NATO: “We see no immediate threat to our allies”
“We see no direct or immediate threat to any NATO ally. “We are certainly watching closely what Russia is doing, we have increased our vigilance and our presence in the eastern part of the alliance, but the idea is to prevent an attack,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. “This week's exercise will be the largest exercise for NATO in decades with 90,000 participants. We are doing all this to ensure readiness for aggression and to eliminate any room for misjudgment or misunderstanding in Moscow about our readiness.”
German Council, no public funding for neo-Nazis
The Federal Constitutional Court has ruled that a small neo-Nazi group in Germany, “Heimat” (formerly NPD), will be excluded from public party funding for six years. The unprecedented verdict was broadcast live on the Phoenix channel. Even if the verdict is certainly symbolic given the fact that the party has too few voters and will therefore no longer receive funding from 2021, it could still have an impact on the debate about a possible cut in public funding for the much stronger right-wing extremist AfD formation , predicts the Dpa agency.
READ ALSO / Germany, over 900,000 demonstrate against the right-wing extremism of the AfD
GB, new raids to weaken Houthi rebels' capabilities
The UK has joined the US in carrying out new raids against the Houthis in Yemen in a bid to “weaken” the rebels' ability to carry out “unacceptable” attacks on ships in the Red Sea. British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said this, emphasizing that London had sent “the clearest possible message” and was ready to continue its military actions to protect shipping in the region
For the US, the attacks on the Houthis are a strategic mistake
“We have sent messages to the US seriously warning them that joint attacks” with the UK against the Houthis in Yemen would be “a strategic mistake” and “threaten regional peace and security and lead to war escalating.” Gaza expands.” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said this in New York last night after the US announced the new raids. (TO
Netanyahu: “Tough day, but we won’t stop the war”
– “We have experienced one of the most difficult days since the beginning of the conflict,” but that does not mean that “Israel will stop fighting until complete victory.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this, referring to the explosion that caused the death of 21 soldiers in Almaazi, in the center of the Gaza Strip. “I recognize that the lives of the families of the heroic fallen soldiers will be forever changed,” he added. I feel pain over these losses and hug the families of our soldiers.” The Prime Minister confirmed that the army had launched an investigation into the matter.
France: Car hits farmer's block, woman dies
– A woman protesting with her husband and teenage daughter at a French farm checkpoint in southwestern France was killed in a serious accident when a car plowed into the group of protesters. According to witnesses on site, the man and the girl were seriously injured. The three occupants of the car were arrested, police said. The accident occurred this morning at 5:45 a.m. in Pamiers. French farmers have been demonstrating across the country for several days to demand administrative simplifications and faster compensation in the event of a natural disaster.
Kiev, 21 of 41 Russian missiles shot down
Russian Armed Forces fired 41 missiles of various types into Ukraine last night and this morning, 21 of which were shot down by the country's air defense: this was announced by the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhny, Rbc-Ukraine reported
NATO announces a maximum purchase of 1.2 billion ammunition
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Support and Procurement Agency Director General Stacy Cummings have signed an agreement to produce artillery ammunition. The protocol calls for the purchase of hundreds of thousands of 155mm bullets worth $1.2 billion. “This shows that well-functioning joint NATO purchasing structures deliver results,” said Stoltenberg
Lavrov: Trump's election would not change US-Russia relations
The re-election of Donald Trump as president of the United States would not change the “destructive” American policy towards Russia, Moscow Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with CBS. “I don’t think there is a difference,” Lavrov said in the interview, reported by Russia’s Ria Novosti agency, “because there is a tendency to destroy Russian-American relations, their foundations, including agreements on strategic stability and Equality, mutual trust, controls, transparency, etc.” All of this began to be wiped out “at the time of Bush Jr.'s presidency,” the Russian foreign minister added. According to Lavrov, “those who ignored the good intentions shown by Putin in his first two terms (from 2000 to 2008, editor's note), who miscalculated, are the ones who need to think again. Instead, he concluded, “We see the current generation of politicians in the United States who have not learned a single lesson from the unacceptable policies that the United States pursued after the collapse of the USSR.”
China: At least 50 injured in magnitude 7.1 earthquake in Xinjiang
The preliminary death toll from the powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake that struck Wushi county in Aksu Prefecture, a remote area of Xinjiang in China, overnight is at least 50 injured. The quake, which would not have caused any fatalities at the time, was registered in a vast, sparsely populated area at 2:09 a.m. local time (5:09 p.m. on Monday in Italy), according to the latest findings from the China Earthquake Networks Center. The epicenter, 22 kilometers deep, was identified in a town in Wushi County, in the mountainous border area between China and Kyrgyzstan. According to the Xinjiang Earthquake Agency, the worst affected are five villages in Wushi County, located within 20 kilometers of the epicenter. The rescue operation, which mobilized dozens of people and vehicles, found homes collapsed and some roads unusable, helping several dozen injured, authorities were quoted as saying by state media. The most seriously injured were taken to hospital. A swarm of earthquakes was recorded within hours of the mainshock, with additional earthquakes with a maximum magnitude of 5.3 recorded shortly after 9 a.m. local time. The tremors were mainly felt in the Aksu area, but also in various cities and prefectures in Xinjiang, including Urumqi, Hotan and Kashgar.
Ukraine: Russian attacks on Kiev and Kharkiv, one dead and several injured
New Russian attacks on Kiev and Kharkiv, resulting in a total of one death and several injuries. According to reports from the capital's military administration, Serhiy Popko, a woman was killed and four people were injured after debris from a rocket hit a residential building and a kindergarten. In Kharkiv, a residential area was hit and several people were injured.
Magnitude 7.1 earthquake in Xinjiang, China
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck a sparsely populated part of China's western Xinjiang region, injuring six people and damaging or collapsing more than 120 homes in freezing weather. The earthquake struck a mountainous district in Aksu Prefecture just after 2 a.m. Tuesday and about 200 rescuers were sent to the epicenter. The earthquake destroyed power lines, but power was quickly restored. Train services were suspended during security checks, but no problems were found and services were restored. Numerous aftershocks were recorded, the strongest of which had a magnitude of 5.3.
China: Yunnan landslide deaths rise to 11
Confirmed deaths from the massive landslide that rocked China's remote Liangshui village in Tangfang city and part of southwestern Yunnan province on Monday have risen to 11. As state media reported, rescuers are still busy searching for dozens of missing people who have ended up under around 300,000 cubic meters of earth and rock. Xinhua News Agency reported that teams on site were now in a “race against time,” especially after a night of below-freezing temperatures. “Search and rescue efforts continued throughout the night,” the agency added, saying the disaster was “a result of the collapse of a rocky ridge” from the mountains in the area. Several hundred rescuers, dozens of fire engines and other heavy equipment were sent to the scene, even considering that the affected areas are covered in snow. President Xi Jinping himself has ordered “every possible and comprehensive effort” to search for the missing.
Israel: 21 soldiers killed overnight
Twenty-one soldiers were killed last night in ongoing fighting in Khan Yunis, south of Gaza. This was announced by military spokesman Daniel Hagari. This is the worst episode for the Israeli army since the beginning of the war. In particular, the Israeli army claims that ten soldiers were killed in an attack in central Gaza. Soldiers were preparing explosives to destroy two houses in central Gaza when a militant threw a grenade at a nearby tank. The explosion triggered the explosives.
Ukraine, air alert declared for the entire country
Air alert across Ukraine due to missile attack by Russia. This was reported by Rbc Ukraine, which reports that Russian cruise missiles were fired into Ukrainian territory. “Missile threat in the southern and eastern regions due to the threat of launching cruise missiles from Tu-95MS aircraft,” the Kyiv Defense Forces statement said.
At 6 a.m. local time, the Air Force reported that the first group of missiles flew over the Sumy region towards Poltava. The first group of missiles enters Vinnytsia airspace and flies west.
The second group is located on the border between Poltava and Kiev regions towards the west.
Rockets move along the border between the Kiev and Cherkasy regions.
Franco Sarcina
Deputy Editor in Chief
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