*** Official Russia vs. Ukraine Discussion - Invasion has begun *** (4 Viewers)

[themeistersinger]

One night with Ukrainian drone hunters near Russia

Editor’s note: Due to the security protocols of the Ukrainian military, soldiers featured in this story are identified solely by first names and call signs. SUMY OBLAST – Soldiers from one of Ukraine’s 117th Territorial Defense Brigade mobile air defense squads call themselves fowlers. The...

kyivindependent.com

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Ukrainian Armed Forces to receive prototypes of long-range artillery shells from Rheinmetall

Read more

newsukraine.rbc.ua

Ukraine will receive prototypes of artillery shells capable of hitting targets at a distance of 100 kilometers from the German defense concern Rheinmetall, states Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger.

During an event at the Industrial Club of Düsseldorf-Boss, the Rheinmetall CEO said that the concern plans to provide Ukraine with hundreds of thousands of munitions, including long-range prototypes.

"Artillery is changing the rules (on the battlefield - ed.)," Papperger said.

According to the Defense Express military portal, this is probably a prototype of a long-range 155-caliber artillery shell called Vulcano. Last year, it was reported that Germany was supplying the Ukrainian Armed Forces with laser illuminators for the Vulcano version, which can fly 70 kilometers.

North Korean weapons are killing Ukrainians. The implications are far bigger

A missile that crashed in Kharkiv shows the surprising scale at which Pyongyang's weapons are used.

www.bbc.com

On 2 January, a young Ukrainian weapons inspector, Khrystyna Kimachuk, got word that an unusual-looking missile had crashed into a building in the city of Kharkiv. She began calling her contacts in the Ukrainian military, desperate to get her hands on it. Within a week, she had the mangled debris splayed out in front of her at a secure location in the capital Kyiv.

She began taking it apart and photographing every piece, including the screws and computer chips smaller than her fingernails. She could tell almost immediately this was not a Russian missile, but her challenge was to prove it.

Buried amidst the mess of metal and spouting wires, Ms Kimachuk spotted a tiny character from the Korean alphabet. Then she came across a more telling detail. The number 112 had been stamped onto parts of the shell. This corresponds to the year 2023 in the North Korean calendar. She realised she was looking at the first piece of hard evidence that North Korean weapons were being used to attack her country.

"We'd heard they had delivered some weapons to Russia, but I could see it, touch it, investigate it, in a way no-one had been able to do before. This was very exciting", she told me over the phone from Kyiv.

Since then, the Ukrainian military says dozens of North Korean missiles have been fired by Russia into its territory. They have killed at least 24 people and injured more than 70.

For all the recent talk of Kim Jong Un preparing to start a nuclear war, the more immediate threat is now North Korea's ability to fuel existing wars and feed global instability.

Ms Kimachuk works for Conflict Armament Research (CAR), an organisation that retrieves weapons used in war, to work out how they were made. But it wasn't until after she had finished photographing the wreckage of the missile and her team analysed its hundreds of components, that the most jaw-dropping revelation came.

It was bursting with the latest foreign technology. Most of the electronic parts had been manufactured in the US and Europe over the past few years. There was even a US computer chip made as recently as March 2023. This meant that North Korea had illicitly procured vital weapons components, snuck them into the country, assembled the missile, and shipped it to Russia in secret, where it had then been transported to the frontline and fired - all in a matter of months.

"This was the biggest surprise, that despite being under severe sanctions for almost two decades, North Korea is still managing to get its hands on all it needs to make its weapons, and with extraordinary speed," said Damien Spleeters, the deputy director at CAR.

https://twitter.com/deaidua/status/1787052350558908733

My assumption that a lack of missiles (IRIS-T SL) is the limiting factor in the deliveries of IRIS-T SLM air defence systems to #Ukraine seems to be confirmed.

Members of the Bundestag (members of the Budget Committee) Andreas Schwarz, Sebastian Schäfer and Karsten Klein were in Ukraine (not for the first time) and shared their impressions with SPIEGEL.

During a visit to an IRIS-T SLM launcher, they noticed that it was equipped with only one missile instead of the maximum capacity of eight. According to the Ukrainian soldiers, the system delivered by Germany is extremely efficient, but they can hardly use it anymore because they lack the missiles.

To clarify: According to Diehl Defence, they produce up to 500 missiles per year (it is unclear whether only IRIS-T SL or also IRIS-T). Of course, not only do missiles have to be produced for new systems, but existing batteries in Ukraine also have to be regularly equipped with new missiles.

The requirements naturally grow with every system supplied to Ukraine, and it makes not a lot of sense to supply plenty of new systems to Ukraine when you can't even maintain the existing systems.

Only on Monday did the German government publicise the delivery of an unknown number of IRIS-T SL missiles to Ukraine to supply the systems already delivered. Another IRIS-T SLM system was also to be delivered to Ukraine at the end of April (delivery not yet confirmed).

 

[Don't Toews Me]

https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1786915509788610761

Russian forces occupied Kotlyarivka, most of Arkhanhelske, and the remainder of Ocheretyne. They also advanced in Krasnohorivka and elsewhere along the Avdiivka-Pokrovsk front.

https://twitter.com/ChristopherJM/status/1787109888834867282

The below map is bad for many reasons. But one particular reason it’s bad is that the Russians are now less than 10km/6 miles from the strategically important T0504 highway connecting key Donetsk region cities of Pokrovsk and Kostyantynivka, Druzhkivka, Kramatorsk and Slovyansk. Having fire control over it would make logistics difficult for Ukrainian forces on the eastern front. Also, as Russian forces strengthen their flanks and push north from Ocheretyne and Arkhanhelske, it will put the embattled towns of Niu-York and Toretsk under greater pressure and make it harder to supply troops holding them.

Russia, an embarrassing source of profit for major international banks

Foreign banks still present in the country have paid some €900 million in income tax for 2023, according to the Kyiv School of Economics.

www.lemonde.fr

More than two years after the invasion of Ukraine, 21 international banks are still operating and making money in Russia, to a total of $3.5 billion in 2023, according to a Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) study published on Wednesday, April 24. These profits have also generated $970 million in revenue for Russian tax authorities, representing additional resources for the state budget and therefore, potentially, for financing the war effort.

Among banks cited in the KSE study are American heavyweights Citibank and Italian UniCredit, as well as lesser-known names such as Hungary's OTP and Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International, by far the most exposed.
Established in most of the former communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe for over 30 years, Raiffeisen has developed a significant network of retail banks in Russia, to the point of being included in the list of systemically important institutions drawn up by the Central Bank of Russia. This strong presence is reflected in the company's financial results: in 2023, its Russian activities still generated over €2.6 billion in revenues and €1.34 billion in profits, or 52% of its total earnings.

For Raiffeisen, as for the other banks targeted, profits generated in Russia are not in themselves illegal, in the absence of a total embargo against the country. Nicolas Véron, an economist at the Bruegel Institute in Brussels and the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, pointed out that "if European banks remain [in Russia], it's because European companies are continuing to trade with the country. It remains to be seen whether banks need a presence in retail banking. One can pursue commercial transactions with banks in Russia without necessarily providing retail banking services to Russian army soldiers and their veterans."
Since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, Raiffeisen has maintained that it's seeking the best way to withdraw from the Russian market. However, it is not willing to accept a costly exit, unlike, for example, France's Société Générale, resigned to a loss of €3.1 billion when it sold its Rosbank subsidiary.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Russia plotting sabotage across Europe, intelligence agencies warn

Assessments suggest Kremlin agents preparing covert bombings, arson and attacks on infrastructure

www.ft.com

European intelligence agencies have warned their governments that Russia is plotting violent acts of sabotage across the continent as it commits to a course of permanent conflict with the west.
Russia has already begun to more actively prepare covert bombings, arson attacks and damage to infrastructure on European soil, directly and via proxies, with little apparent concern about causing civilian fatalities, intelligence officials believe.
While the Kremlin’s agents have a long history of such operations — and launched attacks sporadically in Europe in recent years — evidence is mounting of a more aggressive and concerted effort, according to assessments from three different European countries shared with the Financial Times.
Intelligence officials are becoming increasingly vocal about the threat in an effort to promote vigilance.
“We assess the risk of state-controlled acts of sabotage to be significantly increased,” said Thomas Haldenwang, head of German domestic intelligence. Russia now seems comfortable carrying out operations on European soil “[with] a high potential for damage,” he told a security conference last month hosted by his agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.

One senior European government official said information was being shared through Nato security services of “clear and convincing Russian mischief”, which was co-ordinated and at scale.
The time had come to “raise awareness and focus” about the threat of Russian violence on European soil, he added.
Nato issued a statement on Thursday declaring its deep concern about growing “malign activities on allied territory” by Russia, citing what it said was an “intensifying campaign . . . across the Euro-Atlantic area”.
The growing fears over Russia’s appetite for physical damage against its adversaries follow a spate of accusations against Russia over disinformation and hacking campaigns.
On Friday, Germany vowed consequences for Moscow — in a statement backed by the EU and Nato — over a 2023 hacking attack on the social democratic party of chancellor Olaf Scholz.
A scandal exposing Russian attempts to co-opt far right European politicians ahead of upcoming European elections is meanwhile still unfolding.

One intelligence official said Moscow’s sabotage efforts should not be seen as a distinct from other operations, saying the ramp-up in activity reflected Russia’s aim to exert maximum pressure “across the piece”.
Putin is currently feeling “emboldened” and will seek to push lines as hard as he can in Europe, on multiple fronts, he said, whether through disinformation, sabotage or hacking.
Increased aggression from Russian intelligence also reflects the desire for the country’s spymasters to reassert themselves after their most serious setback since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
In the weeks following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, more than 600 Russian intelligence officers operating in Europe with diplomatic cover were ejected, dealing serious damage to the Kremlin’s spy network across the continent.

Russia amasses 25K-strong force near Chasiv Yar - Ukraineâs Khortytsia Grouping spox

The enemy has massed up to 25,000 forces in the area of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region. â Ukrinform.

www.ukrinform.net

The enemy has massed up to 25,000 forces in the area of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region.
That’s according to Nazar Voloshyn, the spokesman for the Khortytsia Grouping of Troops, who spoke on the air of the national telethon, Ukrinform reports.

"On the Chasiv Yar axis, the enemy has amassed a grouping of 20,000-25,000 servicemen," said Voloshyn.
He noted that Avdiivka, Bakhmut, and Novopavlivka areas remain the hottest spots in the Khortytsia operational zone. The situation has escalated in the last week as fierce fighting continues.

https://twitter.com/DefenceHQ/status/1787022132997706229

A decree signed by the pro-Russian governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast states that Russia is preparing the necessary infrastructure and measures for military conscription in Russian-occupied areas of Zaporizhzhia.
This would be the first conscription drive in this temporarily occupied territory since its illegal annexation by Russia in September 2022. It is likely that Russia sees this measure as a way of satisfying the need by the Russian Armed Forces for additional personnel to support its war effort. The effect of the decree is likely to be limited given that a significant proportion of the population of Zaporizhzhia has departed. For instance in Melitopol, the largest city in Zaporizhzhia under Russian control, only 40% of the pre-war population remain and a half of those consist of ethnic Russians offered work in the city.

Scale of GPS malfunctions expands, Russia is responsible, Finnish foreign minister says

Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen has reported that Finland has noticed increased activity by Russia recently in jamming GPS signals in the Gulf of Finland and around the eastern border.

www.pravda.com.ua

Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen has reported that Finland has noticed increased activity by Russia recently in jamming GPS signals in the Gulf of Finland and around the eastern border.

Source: Finnish public broadcaster Yle, citing Valtonen, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The broadcaster previously reported a surge in GPS jamming in the Gulf of Finland and around the eastern border.

Pilots in Finland have also reported hundreds of cases of GPS failures affecting air traffic over the past year.

"I will not give an exact date, but it is obvious that the scale of GPS jamming has expanded during Russia's aggressive war and has changed its form in many ways," the Finnish foreign minister said.

Valtonen noted that GPS jamming may affect civil aviation, but there is no cause for concern.

The minister stressed that air traffic in Finland is safe and that GPS malfunctions have not caused any incidents in the air.

The minister noted that aircraft have alternative navigation tools in case GPS equipment is temporarily unavailable.

Valtonen added that the jamming may be related to Russia's attempts to protect its own critical infrastructure amid the war it has been waging against Ukraine.

 

[The Z Machine]

Russian aggression seems to have no limits.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

https://twitter.com/baklitskiy/status/1787380414857777169

Russian MoD announced preparations for conducting exercises in the near future of the Southern Military District (missiles, aviation, Navy) with the aim of increasing the readiness of non-strategic nuclear forces to carry out combat tasks 1/x

Russian MoD announced that during the exercise, a complex of measures will be carried out to practically work out issues of preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons 2/x
Russian MoD announced that the exercise is aimed at maintaining the readiness of personnel and equipment of units employing non-strategic nuclear weapons to respond and to unconditionally ensure the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Russian state 3/x
Russian MoD announced that exercises of non-strategic nuclear weapons will take place in response to provocative statements and threats from certain Western officials directed at the Russian Federation 4/4
"Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday that Macron’s recent statement & other remarks by British & US officials had prompted the nuclear drills" - I think this is the first time Russia says its nuclear exercises are a response to some specific event

https://twitter.com/russianforces/status/1787394105179349381

This is, of course, a signal. "In response to provocative statements and threats made by some western officials." One thing to avoid is getting sucked into this. The right response is to double down on "nuclear threats are inadmissible" and rally everyone around that.

https://twitter.com/walberque/status/1787386263793738037

Russia MOD announced an exercise:

“…a set of activities will be carried out to practice the preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons…to respond and in order to unconditionally ensure the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Russian state” 1/4
“…On behalf of the RF Armed Forces Supreme Commander, to increase the readiness of NSNW forces to carry out combat missions, the GS has begun preparations for holding an exercise in the near future with missile formations of the SMD with aviation and naval forces…” 2/4
“…to practice the preparation and use of NSNW…”

“….The exercise is aimed at maintaining the readiness of personnel and equipment of units for the combat use of NSNW…in response to provocative statements and threats of individual Western officials against the RF.” 3/4
Real-time nuclear signaling, with deterrent and escalation messaging from Russia.

Every state has the right to conduct exercises, but the “in response to” part is definitely designed to be inflammatory. Interesting to see the response from the US, UK, France, and/or NATO. 4/4

 

[Don't Toews Me]

https://twitter.com/JohnH105/status/1787443079621779723

Russian development for fighting Ukrainian one-way attack drones—three machine guns mounted together with a collimator sight.

Video: https://twitter.com/sambendett/status/1787460093937693167

Russians are testing MiS-35 heavy multirotor drone.

https://twitter.com/JohnH105/status/1787471899796074526

Ukraine’s top general, Col-Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi, said he met with commanders of units from Ukraine’s Khortytsia OSUV fighting in the Pokrovsk and Kurakhove directions, which he described as “the direction of the enemy’s main attack.” He said Russia, exploiting its numerical advantages in men and materiel, aims to reach Pokrovsk and Kurakhove, while Ukrainian forces are tasked with holding the line and inflicting maximum losses to “exhaust” the enemy and buy time for Ukraine to form and train reserves.

https://twitter.com/NOELreports/status/1787408928927572248

Minister for Strategic Industries of Ukraine Oleksandr Kamyshin said that both Denmark and Canada have agreed to finance the production of weapons such as armoured vehicles and UAVs by the Ukrainian defense industry.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

EU proposes first sanctions on Russia’s LNG sector

Until now, the EU hasn’t targeted Moscow’s lucrative gas sector. The proposed sanctions would hit about a quarter of Russia’s LNG revenues.

www.politico.eu

For the first time, the European Commission has proposed sanctions on Russia's powerful liquefied natural gas industry, according to documents seen by POLITICO.

The measures wouldn’t directly bar Russian LNG imports to the EU. Instead, they would prevent EU countries from re-exporting Russian LNG after receiving it — confirming POLITICO’s previous reporting.

"This provision does not affect imports into the EU," the proposal stresses.

The sanctions would also ban EU involvement in upcoming LNG projects in Russia. "Such a measure limits the expansion of Russia’s LNG capacity and thereby limits Russia’s revenues," the proposal argues.

Russia will have to increase its missile arsenal to deter the West, diplomat says

Russia will have to increase its entire missile arsenal to deter the West as Moscow is now in an open confrontation with the United States and its allies, a Russian diplomat was quoted as saying on Monday.
President Vladimir Putin's 2022 invasion of Ukraine touched off the worst breakdown in relations between Russia and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, according to Russian and U.S. diplomats.
Russia has ramped up weapons production and is now forecast by the United States to manufacture this year more artillery than all of NATO's 32 members combined.
"We are now at the stage of open confrontation, which, I hope, will not result in a direct armed conflict," Russian Ambassador-at-Large Grigory Mashkov told the state RIA news agency.
Accordingly, Mashkov said, it will be necessary to take "further steps to strengthen the country's defense capability, including building up the missile arsenal, in order to discourage any potential enemy from testing Russia's strength."
Mashkov said Russia was already doing a lot in this area but that more was needed given what he said was the growing threat from the West and the technological advances in most types of missiles, from tactical to inter-continental.

Under Putin, a militarized new Russia rises to challenge U.S. and the West

In ambition and scale, Putin’s effort to mold a new national identity is “as profound as the Russian October Revolution,” a member of the Moscow elite with contacts in the Kremlin said, referring to 1917, when Vladimir Lenin’s Bolsheviks seized power. “He overturns all the values,” this person said. “He cuts all the usual ties.”

Russia’s elite, meanwhile, has hardened against the West, according to one billionaire living outside Russia.
“Everyone is very anti-West; that’s all you hear,” the billionaire said. “Anti-West, anti-West, anti-West. And it will increase, the longer this war goes on — and it could go on for 10 years or more.”

https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1787550466995281921

An account from a Ukrainian soldier who uses an ATV to resupply troops and evacuate casualties from the front line, "smaller vehicles are harder to hit with a FPV drone".
@RFERL

'No Time For Fear': Ukraine's Frontline Quad Bikes Dash To Rescue Wounded

On Ukraine's frontline, quad bikes are increasingly used to rescue wounded soldiers from the battlefield, as they are small, fast and maneuverable. "Kasper" ...

youtube.com

https://twitter.com/andrius_sytas/status/1787520823831453931

France will send its ambassador to the inauguration of Russian President Vladimir Putin for his next six-year term in office on Tuesday, a French diplomatic source said, in contrast with Germany and the Baltics which said it would not be represented.

https://twitter.com/Teoyaomiquu/status/1787548402785333308

After consulting with my friends from the Ukrainian 92nd Assault, 26th, and 47th Artillery Brigades, I have decided to shift my fundraising goals toward engineering equipment, specifically excavators.

Why are small excavators so important for the infantry? I spoke with an infantry battalion commander from one of the assault brigades to better understand this. Please read quotes from him:

"Our brigade has one or two PZM2 trenchers, and they are always either broken or in use. We lack the manpower to build proper fortifications, and the infantry often ends up not digging deep and long enough trenches because they are exhausted from endless combat and shelling. I can't afford to have them in a trench for six days and then digging another trench for six more days; they need to rest."
I asked if they would be able to dig the fortifications when enemy FPVs fly by: "Now is the perfect time for that, because of the greenery, we can relatively safely build trenches inside the treelines 2-5 km away from the frontline. If we have a small 2-8 ton excavator, it can discreetly operate inside the treeline without breaking all the trees. It’s mobile and easy to use. Yes, we will have a risk of delivering it quickly enough to the treeline and back, but I'd rather risk it driving in the open for 15 minutes than having my infantry stuck in knee-deep trenches without proper ceiling layering with three layers of logs."
"They save the lives of our infantry. If you carefully examine the latest videos, you can see that the only thing between the infantry and the enemy FPV is the fortifications."
"No, we won’t use the excavator on the front line; we will use them to build fallback positions, positions for drone operators, and for the command posts."

So I've spoken about the infantry, but why does artillery need them?

To better understand this, I spoke with one of the artillery brigade commander's deputies. Please read his comments:

"Let’s not start the blame game; it’s just the reality. We only have one excavator based on a Kraz for digging, and it’s always under repairs or maintenance."
"Remember how many videos there were of our machines struck by lancets? Well, you see less now. We are taking measures, and those measures work. With properly built fortifications, it’s only a direct hit from a 152mm shell or a missile that can destroy the howitzer."
"With excavators, we hide our equipment deep, we build separate ammo storage, and we build a bunker for the crew."
"How long do you think it takes to dig a fortification to conceal a Krab with shovels? At least two weeks, and while the crew is building it, it can’t operate. If you think that’s not enough reason, I will give you another one: we had crew members injuring themselves while digging, breaking bones, two people got injured at the same time. This affected howitzer operations; you can’t properly operate it if you have two people missing."
"With an excavator that you gave us, it takes us only two days and requires three times fewer people to build a Krab shelter, two ammo storages, and a bunker for the crew."

As you can see, the engineering equipment is highly needed, so this month I want to set an ambitious goal to acquire three excavators, get funds for repairs, and build protective cages for Bohdana howitzers against FPVs.

In response to the above: https://twitter.com/RALee85/status/1787555228272730376

That three brigades are asking for excavators and engineering equipment as the priority gives you a sense of their needs.

 

[Don't Toews Me]

Netherlands plans to begin F-16 aircraft deliveries to Ukraine in autumn

The Netherlands plans to start delivering its F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine this autumn after Denmark begins transferring its aircraft already in the summer, Dutch Defense Minister Kaisa Ollongren said during a press briefing in Vilnius, Delfi reported on May 6.

kyivindependent.com

The Netherlands plans to start delivering its F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine this autumn after Denmark begins transferring its aircraft already in the summer, Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren said during a press briefing in Vilnius, Delfi reported on May 6.

Previously, the Netherlands has pledged to deliver 24 of its fourth-generation U.S.-made jets to Ukraine as Kyiv seeks to bolster its Air Force.

Speaking alongside her Lithuanian counterpart Laurynas Kasciunas, Ollongren said that the deliveries are part of a detailed plan also involving training for Ukrainian pilots and maintenance personnel.

If the allies manage to stay on course, the first Danish F-16s should arrive in Ukraine this summer, she added. The Netherlands hopes to take part in the deliveries starting this autumn.

The Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, and Belgium have pledged to supply Ukraine with dozens of F-16 jets.

Denmark, the Netherlands, and the U.S. have led an international coalition established last year to provide Kyiv with F-16 fighter jets and train Ukrainian pilots.

German chancellor backs EU plan to use frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine arms

Around 90% of the revenues generated from Russian frozen assets should be spent on arms purchases for Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Monday, supporting an earlier EU proposal to use Russian assets' interest payments to boost Ukraine defence.
"It is important that we also agree that this money can be used for arms purchases not only in the EU, but for purchases worldwide," Scholz told journalists after a meeting with members of the three Baltic countries governments in Riga.
In March, the European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell proposed taking take 90% of revenues from Russian assets frozen in Europe and transfer them to an EU-run fund that finances weapons for Ukraine.
Some 70% of all Russian assets immobilised in the West are held in the central securities depository Euroclear in Belgium, which has the equivalent of 190 billion euros ($204.67 billion) worth of Russian central bank securities and cash.
Germany and the three Baltic states are pushing for a rapid expansion of arms production in Europe, Scholz said, adding production of ammunition and air defence systems had already been increased.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said Europe's defence industry was struggling with financing problems and uncertainty for long-term production capacity but that she was optimistic about the planned Rheinmetall factory in Lithuania.

Pentagon sees no change in Russia's strategic nuclear force posture

The Pentagon has not seen a change to Russia's disposition of its strategic nuclear forces, it said on Monday, despite what it called "irresponsible rhetoric" from Moscow detailing plans for exercises involving the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons.
Russia said on Monday it would hold military drills that will include practicing the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons after what Moscow said were threats from France, Britain and the United States. It said the exercises were ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Missile forces in the Southern Military District, aviation and the navy will take part, the defense ministry said.
"We've not seen any change in their strategic force posture. Obviously, we'll continue to monitor," said U.S. Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder, a Pentagon spokesperson.
The exercise of what Russia calls its non-strategic nuclear forces were aimed at ensuring Russia's territorial integrity and sovereignty, its defense ministry said.

Spanish defense minister: Ukraine receives Patriot missiles from Madrid

Ukraine received Patriot anti-aircraft missiles from Madrid, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles announced on May 6, according to EFE news agency.

kyivindependent.com

Ukraine has received Patriot anti-aircraft missiles from Madrid, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles announced on May 6, according to the EFE news agency.

Robles confirmed arrival of missiles less than 10 days after promising to deliver them to Kyiv at the Ramstein-format summit. Patriot missiles were sent by Spain in coordination with other allied countries, she said.

Italian defense minister calls for truce in Ukraine, peace negotiations with Russia

The comments indicated a change of heart from Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, who said in November 2023 that the "time is not yet ripe" for ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine.

kyivindependent.com

The West should seek a truce in Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine, Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said in an interview with the newspaper Il Messaggero published on May 6.

The comments indicated a change of heart from Crosetto, who said in November 2023 that the "time is not yet ripe" for ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine.

Western sanctions against Russia have failed, Crosetto said, adding that "we can only resolve this crisis by involving everyone: first with a truce and then with peace."

Russia’s Budget Is Getting Twice as Much Oil Money as a Year Ago

Russia’s oil revenue more than doubled in April from a year earlier, despite international sanctions intended to limit the flow of money to fuel President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Proceeds for the Russian budget from oil-related taxes jumped to 1.053 trillion rubles ($11.5 billion) last month compared to nearly 497 billion rubles in April 2023, according to Bloomberg calculations based on Finance Ministry data. Total oil and gas revenues in April increased nearly 90% year-on-year, to 1.23 trillion rubles, according to the data.
Rising prices for Russia’s crude helped to drive the increase in budget revenue. State taxes in April were calculated based on a Urals price of $70.34 per barrel, up from $48.67 a year ago when it was dampened in the wake of a price cap the Group of Seven nations imposed on Russian oil exports, data from the Federal Tax Service show.
To be sure, a weaker ruble also contributed to the revenue growth: the April tax calculations are based on an exchange rate of 91.69 rubles per dollar, 20.5% weaker than a year before, according to the tax service data.

What Bloomberg Economics Says...
Three reasons behind Russia’s robust revenue despite sanctions are:
(i) oil prices remain supported by strong global demand, constrained supply and geopolitical premia, (ii) Russia’s newly built export infrastructure, which increasingly relies on shippers, insurance and customers outside the sanctioning coalition, and (iii) Russia’s increasingly tight control over exporters’ cash flows.
Alex Isakov, Russia economist

Russia will collect around $126 billion in oil and gas tax revenue in 2024, according to Bloomberg Economics calculations. The figures are “just a hair above the current government’s projections,” said Alex Isakov, Bloomberg Economics Russia economist.
“Russia would break even on its war budget if Brent were to exceed $95, but its fiscal position will remain relatively sustainable at oil prices north of $70,” he said.

 

[Chadstroma]

MSN

A drone and grenade vs a T-72B3