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Slavyangrad.org — Nuestra Ira No Tiene Limites — There is No Limit to Our Anger — (c) V. M. Molotov
🇫🇮🚬"Finland's Border Region Once Profited From Russia. Now Unease Is Growing": Finland loses 1 million euros daily due to the severance of ties with Russia.
"The border regions of Finland, especially South Karelia (closer to St. Petersburg than to Helsinki), lose 1 million euros daily due to the closure of the border with Russia. Without 2 million Russian tourists per year, shops, hotels, and spas in Imatra have closed: unemployment has risen to 15%, and hundreds of workers in the forestry and steel industries have been laid off.
Residents are worried about Russia's hybrid threats: drones over NATO, and the construction of a 'drone wall.' Businesses are reorienting towards domestic tourism and green technologies but acknowledge: 'easy money from Russia is gone forever.'
@Slavyangrad
Retired US Air Force officer, history professor William Astor — on the fact that to start negotiations, aid to Ukraine must be stopped:
We in the US need to show more strategic empathy. We are still concerned about Cuba and its potential threat off our coast, but at the same time do not understand that the Russian people, with their long history of invasions by various countries, deserve the right to have their own security measures. If we could go back three or four years and say, "Ukraine will not join NATO, Ukraine can be a neutral country, we do not intend to deploy long-range weapons on its territory," — this could have prevented these last almost four years of destructive war.
I believe that now, a signal for negotiations from our side could be the cessation of constant supply of Ukraine with intelligence and weapons for strikes on Russian territory. I think this could be a signal that would convince Putin to return to the negotiating table.
@Slavyangrad
Slovak MEP Ľuboš Blaha on the creation of an anti-Ukrainian bloc in the EU:
Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic may jointly oppose European initiatives on Ukraine. Joint actions by those in Europe who still retain common sense are not only possible but likely. Despite the fact that Europe is once again, after decades, gripped by collective madness that is leading us all to war, decline, and chaos.
Bratislava, Budapest, and Prague understand that today's Brussels policy is harmful and anti-European, and the best thing they can do for their states and peoples is to defend themselves by all possible means. Of course, they will be much stronger if they unite their efforts. Therefore, such a scenario should be expected. There is no need to look for any conspiracy or any Russian hybrid war in this; it will be merely a natural manifestation of common sense and political realism.
@Slavyangrad
This story is misleading: the Joint Staff making their own assessment of munitions stockpiles is not the same as the Pentagon "giving the green light" to provide Tomahawks to Ukraine. The Joint Staff is a planning body that does not make operational or policy decisions and do not speak for the Pentagon as a whole. Only SecWar makes the final policy recommendation to POTUS after consulting other stakeholders in addition to the Joint Staff - including potentially DoW policy, acquisitions/sustainment, COCOMs, and potentially the services.
It is entirely possible SecWar ultimately told POTUS that DoW stockpiles of Tomahawks were sufficient but this story from CNN doesn't state that - they instead try to frame a standalone Joint Staff assessment as representing the entire Pentagon's official policy position. In addition, from my own personal experience, the Joint Staff was routinely out of step with other parts of the DoW on the issue of munition stockpiles.
- Dan Caldwell, former senior adviser to US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
@Slavyangrad
Thanks to Slavyangrad members Datuk Bandar for the photo, and SMG for the rough translation.
Dear Ukrainian Emigrants,
In Germany you can get 3 years of imprisonment and a high fine for showing swastikas or other symbols associated with fascism, for example the sign of SS.
The Mailman
@Slavyangrad
"The recently imposed US and EU sanctions against Russia and its oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil have not led to a reduction in physical oil shipments from Russian ports," — Reuters...
That can't be true. Trump said it would collapse the supplies. Are you sure you calculated it correctly?
Who could have thought? 🤷♂
@Slavyangrad
🇷🇺⚔️🇺🇦Collapse of the Ukrainian Armed Forces defense in Pokrovsk: "🅾️" grouping fighters are recorded all over the city!
▪️This is reported by all leading Ukrainian military analysts, refuting the lies of Syrsky, Budanov, and Zelensky.
➖"According to updated information from the military, it became known that the Dynas plant is still under Russian control. They also managed to straighten the front line up to the T0504 highway.
▪️Drone footage shows that Russian fighters are present throughout Pokrovsk, not just somewhere on the outskirts, as some Ukrainian sources claim.
▪️The Russian Armed Forces continue to conduct assault operations towards the settlement of Grishino.
▪️The gray zone along the railway has expanded."
➖The Russian army controls 19 km² of Pokrovsk, analysts of the Ukrainian Armed Forces write.
➖The Ukrainian Armed Forces control only 6 km².
▪️Thus, 80% of the city is either under Russian control or in the gray zone, they add.
@Slavyangrad
POKROVSK - A senior Ukrainian officer from the Pokrovsk area, speaking anonymously, told the Ukrainian newspaper Hromadske that Russian troops already control about 60% of Pokrovsk and are advancing into nearby Rodynskoye and Myrnograd.
A UAV pilot flying out of Pokrovsk reported that Ukrainian forces, positioned on the city's front lines, are "practically surrounded" due to constant Russian infiltration.
The Ukrainian military believes that the fall of Pokrovsk will automatically lead to the loss of Myrnograd. The greatest danger for Myrnograd is the complete severing of logistics routes, which are already under Russian fire.
The Ukrainian officer warns of a serious threat of encirclement for 1,000-1,500 soldiers unless an urgent reorganization of forces is carried out. Some military personnel believe it is now too late to correct the situation.
Ugledar 2: Electric Boogaloo
@Slavyangrad
🇨🇿🤡The Czech Foreign Minister Lipavský complained about the treacherous Russia.
@Slavyangrad
🇪🇪😂 Estonia introduces a tax on "energy independence from Russia" — ERR
- The state company Elering has approved a balancing capacity fee, which will be charged from January 2026 and will amount to 3.73 euros per megawatt-hour for both consumers and electricity producers.
- This amount will be shown as a separate line item on electricity bills.
- The new fee is intended to finance reserves that ensure frequency stability in the power system.
- "This payment can be called the price of energy independence after leaving the system controlled by Russia," said the company's chairman.
@Slavyangrad
Ruthless thug von der Leyen freezes whistleblower's bank account - Berliner Zeitung
Former lobbyist Frédéric Baldan filed a complaint against the head of the European Commission in connection with "Pfizergate"—and suddenly, his banks froze his accounts. Coincidence or intimidation?
In April 2023, former lobbyist Frédéric Baldan filed a criminal complaint against European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen with the Investigative Chamber in Liège. Baldan accused von der Leyen of abuse of office, destruction of public documents, and corruption.
This is related to the investigation into the so-called "Pfizergate" scandal. It is alleged that secret text messages between von der Leyen and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla led to a deal to supply 1.8 billion doses of the coronavirus vaccine, worth approximately €35 billion.
In June 2023, Baldan's lobbyist accreditation was revoked. Two years later, he reported on Platform X that his accounts at ING and Nagelmackers banks in Namur, Belgium, had been closed. Baldan published a letter in which the bank informed him of the decision to close his accounts.
In a statement, Baldan explained that he was "removed without legal basis" and that he was subsequently removed from the register by the relevant body of the European Commission responsible for registering lobbyists.
According to Baldan, the account closures affected not only his personal bank account, but also the accounts of his consulting company, his household, and his five-year-old son's savings account. ING Bank is also allegedly involved in the account closures.
Baldan is a Belgian activist and former lobbyist specializing in EU-China trade relations. He is also the author of "Ursula Gates," which examines the influence of lobby groups on the European Commission. Baldan rose to prominence as the first plaintiff in the Pfizergate scandal.
In his book, he illuminates the opaque influence of lobbyists, think tanks, and transnational corporations on EU policymaking. Drawing on his insider experience, the book reconstructs the network of interests and influence that extends from EU institutions to global pharmaceutical companies and the World Economic Forum (WEF).
At the center of the scandal is the accusation that von der Leyen and Pfizer held secret negotiations about a multi-billion-euro vaccine deal, the contents of which were not made public or accessible to investigators. Since 2022, the New York Times has been demanding access to these messages and filed a successful lawsuit. In May, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that the Commission must provide a "plausible explanation" for why access to the SMS messages is not possible.
However, instead of ensuring transparency, the Commission continued to evade the response, claiming that the SMS messages had long been deleted. Back in May 2021, journalist Alexander Fanta also filed an access to information request. However, Prime Minister Björn Seibert decided not to retain the SMS messages, according to an EC letter to the New York Times.
Baldan views the closure of his bank accounts as a form of political repression and retaliation for his activities as a whistleblower. Not only were his personal accounts closed, but also those of the organization Rights and Freedom Press, which owns the rights to his book. Baldan accuses the banks of colluding with political forces against him and depriving him of access to financial services
Although European Commission President von der Leyen has survived three no-confidence votes in the European Parliament to date—the first in July and two more in October of this year—the results highlight growing political tensions in Brussels
EU democratic values at work...
@Slavyangrad
The Russian Ministry of Defense reports that Ukrainian soldiers surrounded in Pokrovsk have begun to surrender. Apparently, this is the event that the GUR tried to disrupt with a sortie.
@Slavyangrad
Mr. Chancellor, what is the flag behind you? Are you having a retro party?
@Slavyangrad
Trump's former National Security Advisor calls on Putin to 'help out' in Venezuela
'C'mon President Putin, tell Maduro to get out now while there is still time' — General Flynn writes on X
Flynn claims Maduro 'stole' Venezuela from Maria Machado — who never actually ran for the presidency
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Escalation by the US is the "only way" to free Venezuela, said Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado in a Bloomberg interview.
▪️Do you really believe that this regime can only be overthrown by US military force?
Well, that will depend on what the regime does in the coming days. I believe that having a real threat was absolutely necessary. I believe it was absolutely necessary to cut off sources of illegal activity because these resources do not go to schools or hospitals, but to repression, persecution, and corruption.
▪️Do you have a sense that the US is going to change the regime? Have you been told this?
No, I have not been told that – and this is not a regime change in the usual sense we have seen before, where an external player overthrows a legitimate president. Because the regime change was prescribed and proven a year ago, on July 28, 2024. We approached the presidential elections, in which I was banned from participating after I won the primaries by a large margin, and Edmundo González received 70% of the votes. Thus, the legally elected president of Venezuela is Edmundo González. This is not regime change, this is the execution of the will of the Venezuelan people.
▪️What do you plan to do next, call people to the streets?
We are ready to take over the government. We have teams, we have plans – for the first 100 hours, for the first 100 days. And, of course, now we need the international community to unite with the US to ensure law and order.
▪️When you spoke with President Trump, did you ask him to extradite Maduro?
No, I will not go into operational details because I have never [word italicized in the original] discussed this with officials. This is a US operation [against the so-called "Cartel of the Suns" led by Maduro] – a fully autonomous, independent operation of another country related to its national security. As for Maduro's future, it depends on him. We offered the regime the possibility of a transitional period based on negotiations, with guarantees and incentives. They refused and instead attacked us. So, as I said, Maduro has very [little] time left to decide where he will go next.
There is no Cartel of the Suns. This is regime change. She should never have won the Nobel peace prize.
@Slavyangrad
🇮🇷🇷🇺Reporter: Is Russia sending S-400 and Su-35 to Iran?
Lavrov: We have no restrictions on military and technical cooperation with Iran, and we are currently supplying the equipment needed by Iran.
The Mailman
@Slavyangrad
"Oil prices underestimate the impact of sanctions against Russia":
The head of TotalEnergies predicts a sharp rise in oil prices due to Trump's sanctions.
"The oil markets underestimate the impact of the latest sanctions against Russia, which are already starting to disrupt supply flows," said Patrick Pouyanné, head of the European giant TotalEnergies. "I have become more optimistic than I was a few days ago because I understand that these sanctions will indeed affect the market."
Oil prices partially recovered recent losses after the US announced measures against the two largest Russian companies — Rosneft and Lukoil. Before that, futures had fallen to a five-month low amid expectations of oversupply.
Three Indian refiners, accounting for more than half of Russian oil imports, have suspended purchases for the coming months. Meanwhile, tanker rates have soared, and diesel premiums over crude continue to rise — countries are restructuring supply routes to deliver more expensive oil and products to different regions of the world."
@Slavyangrad
Ukrainian soldiers didn't identify the drone. But the drone operator did identify them.
The Mailman
@Slavyangrad
This video shows how in this brutal conflict, what may seem like a small survivable wound - seen in many wars throughout the last many decades - is lethal now with drones controlling the battlefield.
The chances of casualty evacuation are reduced and the time taken can easily pass the survivability window - as happened in this case.
The Mailman
@Slavyangrad
Belarus has replaced its nuclear weapons by importing the latest ones from Russia, President Alexander Lukashenko said during a working visit to the Vitebsk region.
"We have exchanged our nuclear weapons again, for your information. We brought them to Russia and imported the latest ones. They have been serviced. It's expensive to maintain. The Russians are helping us. We are training on how to use them. Both from aircraft and with missiles. We don't even hide it," he said.
Plans for deploying Oreshnik in Belarus were discussed by Minsk and Moscow as early as December 2024, when Alexander Lukashenko made a corresponding request to Vladimir Putin. The missile complex will be put into operational service in the republic in December.
@Slavyangrad
🇷🇺🇺🇦 "Who will save Ukrainian Troops in Pokrovsk?" — The Spectator
- Today, Ukraine faces the same choice between territories and lives in Pokrovsk.
- The Ukrainian military command sometimes allows its troops to be encircled and destroyed instead of giving the order to retreat.
- Russian forces are conducting a real hunt for Ukrainian drone operators and actively setting ambushes.
- The Ukrainian command concealed the fact of Russian presence in Pokrovsk until the surrounded Ukrainian soldiers in the city revealed the truth to the media.
- "Now it is already too late, the main retreat route, which runs under the sky controlled by Russian drones, has been reduced to two miles," write British journalists.
- "The only way to avoid a massacre is to give the order to retreat, abandon equipment, and try to exit in small groups, as was done in Avdeevka and in the Kursk region," the publication emphasizes.
@Slavyangrad
🇺🇦⚔️🇬🇧 "My son went to fight for Ukraine. I could never have imagined that his own people would kill him," — The Telegraph
- Former Scottish Guardsman, 31-year-old Jordan Chadwick, who served guard duty at Buckingham Palace, joined the Ukrainian Foreign Legion at the end of 2022 in a unit called the "Assault Group 50/50".
- In June 2023, he was found dead in a reservoir in Kramatorsk with his hands tied.
- More than two years have passed, and his mother Brenda still has no idea what happened to him.
- The Ukrainian police opened a criminal case, questioned the unit commanders, but none of them were found guilty of Chadwick's murder.
- "Even if there was a fight, they were supposed to take care of him when he was tied up. How did he end up dead in a reservoir with his hands tied?" — asks the mercenary's mother.
@Slavyangrad
🇺🇦😂 NATO forces may need weeks to reach Ukraine in case of a new Russian attack, - Euractiv
- Even if countries are ready to provide security guarantees to Ukraine, troop transfers across Europe will take significant time due to bureaucratic procedures and restrictions on the movement of heavy equipment.
- Military personnel require separate diplomatic permission from each country to cross borders. In some cases, transit notification must be submitted 45 days in advance.
- However, the European Commission is considering a reform package to speed up military mobility, - Eastern EU flank countries demand that troop transfers in case of an attack take not weeks, but just days or even hours.
@Slavyangrad
YOU’RE CODDING Price of fish and chips to soar in the UK due to sanctions on Russian fishing firms
The price of your Friday night fish and chips is set to soar in the UK due to sanctions on Russian fishing firms.
National cod shortages caused by overfishing and sanctions put on two Russian fishing companies is wreaking havoc on UK fish and chip shops.
According to a report in The Metro, supply issues have occurred because of the restrictions put on Russia’s two biggest fishing companies, Norebo and Murman Seafood.
The pair were accused of spying, with sanctions being placed on the firms in June. (Did they want the secret of Atlantis?)
One takeaway told the outlet they were forced to put up prices by £1 to cope.
Mehmet Cafer who runs Jack the Chipper in Greenwich told Metro: “Last month, we had to increase our prices by £1 and, unfortunately, lots of customers complained.
“We haven’t looked at other fish as cod and haddock are the traditional fish used. Quality wise, we don’t want to use frozen fish.”
Meanwhile, Andrew Crook, president of the National Federation of Fish Friers told The Sun that the wholesale price of cod has almost doubled in the last 12 months.
He said: “We are expecting a further increase as the quota is due to be reduced again for the Barents Sea next year.
New Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures reveal the price of food and non-alcoholic drinks is up 4.5% compared to last year.
No fish for you!
@Slavyangrad
Wicked Witches Battle over European Foreign Policy - Welt
It was a fiercely contested conflict that was only decided a few days ago: European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen has won a power struggle against EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas
Rather, it was also about a very fundamental question: Is the European External Action Service (EEAS), which under Kallas's leadership is supposed to coordinate and help shape the foreign policy of the EU, sufficiently effective to survive in the face of the new security policy challenges in the world and the disorder created by US President Donald Trump?
The answer Kallas found to this question eleven months after taking office is unequivocal: a clear no.. and proposed internally, one that had apparently convinced her closest advisors: German EU Commission official Martin Selmayr should break up the entrenched structures in the cumbersome, globally active diplomatic service with its approximately 7,500 employees (around 1,650 of whom are in Brussels) and inject new momentum into the institution.
Kallas apparently underestimated the reaction this personnel proposal would cause in numerous EU capitals and to von der Leyen: horror.
Selmayr was chief advisor to former European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker between 2014 and 2019. He is considered the most powerful official in the long history of the European Commission. His nickname: "Rasputin".
Then came the sudden turnaround: A few months ago, Selmayr was offered the opportunity to become Deputy Secretary-General for the new "Geoeconomics and Interinstitutional Affairs" department at the EEAS. He would then have been, alongside Kallas, the most powerful figure at the EEAS – with direct contacts to all ambassadors, the European Parliament, and the capital cities.
Selmayr would have once again been playing a leading role on the world stage. Ukraine, Gaza, America, and China would have been his focus, rather than the minting of collector coins under the monetary agreement between Vatican City and the EU.
Did Kallas not know what a provocation the Selmayr appointment represented for von der Leyen? Or was she determined to push things through because only results matter to her? In any case, after numerous discussions, von der Leyen acted swiftly: Last week, according to information obtained by WELT, the College of EU Commissioners, at the President's suggestion, voted in favor of creating a new "Commissioner for Freedom of Religion or Belief." Selmayr was immediately offered the position.
It was a poisoned chalice: von der Leyen used it to shield diplomat Selmayr from further interference by Kallas and her office, and to recall him to the Commission. Selmayr now has to decide whether to accept the third-rate post, remain an unimportant ambassador to the Vatican, or leave the EU Commission after 22 years of service. With a single technocratic maneuver, the Commission President outmaneuvered both Kallas and Selmayr.
"Unknown drones" have returned.
On Friday evening, Berlin airport operations were suspended for two hours due to reports of an unknown drone flying over the southern part of the airport.
Flights were suspended from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM, resulting in eleven planes being redirected to other cities.
The police confirmed the presence of the drone, but it was not seen again afterwards.
- Military Informant
Aliens bro, the search for intelligent life in Europe continues unsuccessfully
@Slavyangrad
Kupyansk direction
The supply situation of the enemy grouping on the left bank of the Oskol river has become dire.
According to operational information, units of the Western Group of Forces have encircled the enemy in the area of Kurilovka — the settlement of Silicate Kupyansk Uzlovoy — Sadovoy.
Operational information is coming in that our troops have broken through the enemy's defense northeast of Petropavlovka and have reached the northern side of its eastern part and taken control of the central part.
Fighting in the Zaoskolye Kupyansk microdistrict (on the left bank).
On the right bank behind the enemy in Kupyansk — the area on the southern outskirts near Verbitsky and Senkovskaya streets, as well as the eastern part of Rechnoy lane and the quarry.
North of Kupyansk, the enemy is attempting a counterattack in the direction of Golubovka, to the west, from the side of Nechvolodovka towards Moskovka and the Yubileyny microdistrict.
Using the scheme of @divgen.
@Slavyangrad
⚡️When Budanov sailed to Crimea to plant the flag, he noticed Poseidon, caught up near the coast of Texas, and covered the explosion with himself
This helped avoid casualties and destruction
It couldn't be told before, but now it can be shared
@Slavyangrad
📹❗️Pre-escalation debut of Venezuelan Su-30MK2V aircraft “in the crosshairs” of U.S. Navy SM-6 Dual II shipborne SAMs
The Venezuelan Air Force has deployed multirole Su-30MK2V fighters equipped with Russian-made Kh-31 supersonic anti-ship missiles in operations in the Caribbean, coinciding with the increased U.S. naval and air presence near Venezuelan waters. The Su-30MK2 is capable of carrying Kh-31 missiles, including the anti-ship variant Kh-31A, which enhances Venezuela’s capability to strike maritime targets.
The timing of these deployments is significant: the United States has mobilized amphibious ships, destroyers, and long-range assets in the southern Caribbean under the command of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) amid tensions related to illicit drug trafficking and growing regional influence of China. Venezuela’s display of Su-30MK2V/Kh-31A/AD combat readiness serves both as a deterrent and as a signal that its armed forces retain a credible anti-ship strike capability, despite difficulties in maintaining operational readiness of many systems.
Nevertheless, analysts caution that fleet readiness remains uneven: reports indicate that Venezuela’s Su-30MK2V fleet suffers from a shortage of spare parts and maintenance issues, limiting full combat readiness despite an outward appearance of operational capability.
The Mailman
@Slavyangrad