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DPR militia welcomes

Turchak’s statement

on possible military

assistance

January 27th, 11:50am (DAN)

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Possible military assistance to Donbass from Russia

will be important, amid the supplies of foreign

weapons to Ukraine, Donetsk People’s

Republic People’s Militia deputy

commander Eduard Basurin

told the Donetsk News

Agency on Thursday.

“Amid the mass supplies of weapons to Ukraine by

western countries, we welcome the statement by

Federation Council First Deputy Speaker, United

Russia Party General Council Secretary Andrey

Turchak,” Basurin said. “It shows that Russia

would never leave its fellow countrymen in

trouble and will always support them.”

“The People’s Militia is ready to face Kiev’s

armed aggression,” Basurin said.

On Wednesday, Turchak said that Russia had to

supply certain kinds of weapons to the DPR

and the LPR to enhance the Republics’

defense capability and contain the

military aggression which Kiev
is obviously preparing.

Leader of the United Russia faction at the State Duma

lower house of the Russian parliament, Vladimir

Vasilyev, stated that the Party had appealed
to the country’s leadership over the issue.

Turchak’s proposal was supported

by Russian communities and

political forces.

DPR Head Denis Pushilin noted that the Republic

would welcome any decision by Russia,
on providing assistance to the

Donbass Republics.

Tensions in Donbass have been mounting after the

New Year and Christmas holidays. Later on, the

DPR People’s Militia said that Ukraine was

preparing for a new offensive.

Ukrainian troops in the conflict zone were

reportedly reinforced with radicals,
multiple launch rocket systems
and NATO weapons.

Active drills of Ukraine’s chemical warfare

troops have been reported, as well.

___________________________________

Ukraine is openly sabotaging

Minsk negotiating process

- Russia’s envoy Gryzlov

January 27th, 11:10pm (TASS)

Ukraine is openly sabotaging the Minsk negotiating

process during sessions of the Contact Group,

Russia’s envoy to the Contact Group on a

settlement in eastern Ukraine, Boris

Gryzlov said.

"We see.. an obvious sabotage of the Minsk

negotiating process on behalf of Ukraine,"

Gryzlov told journalists.

Ukraine has, once again, blocked an approval

of a roadmap proposed by Donbass, he said.

"During a session of the Contact Group and yesterday

during work groups, the Ukrainian side, once again,

failed to come up with its stance regarding the

draft of the road map --- on the all-embracing

political settlement of the conflict that was

submitted by Donetsk and Lugansk... in

October 2020, ignoring their proposals

and blocking dialogue between Kiev

and Donbass, on the political

settlement envisaged by

the Minsk Accords,"

Gryzlov said.

______________________________

Ball is still in Western court

on security guarantees

- Russian lawmaker

January 26th,10:40pm (TASS)

Head of the State Duma Committee on

International Affairs Leonid Slutsky,

on Wednesday, said... while the

responses by the US & NATO

have yet to be studied... the

statements that have been

reported, suggest that

Russian concerns...

haven’t been met.

"The US and NATO... are playing a dangerous ping-

pong by saying that the ball is now in the Russian

court," he told reporters. "The ball is still in the

Western court."

The responses by the US and NATO have yet to

be studied, but, judging by the statements of

NATO secretary general and US secretary

of state, Russian security concerns have

been ignored, Slutsky said.

Instead, he said, the West is pursuing confrontational

rhetoric, and assertions that Russia, purportedly,
plans to invade Ukraine.

Earlier on Wednesday, US ambassador to Moscow

John Sullivan, delivered Washington’s written

response to Russia’s proposed agreement

on security guarantees to the Russian

Foreign Ministry.

On December 17th last year, the Russian Foreign

Ministry published draft agreements on security

guarantees, addressed to the US and NATO,

which say: NATO won’t expand eastward,

will deny membership to Ukraine and
limit the deployment of 'serious'
offensive weapons, including

nuclear ones.

_____________________________

Normandy Format Advisers

Agree Truce in Donbas Must

Be Observed Unconditionally

January 26th, 9:50pm (Sputnik)

Kremlin Deputy Chief of Staff, Dmitry Kozak, said on

Wednesday that, during the meeting of Normandy

format political advisers in Paris... the parties

made an inventory of the problems related to
the Minsk agreements on the settlement

in eastern Ukraine, and agreed that
the truce in Donbas, must be
observed unconditionally.

"In general, the first, perhaps, rather frank

conversation to take inventory of all the

problems that are associated with the

implementation of the Minsk agree-

ments and the settlement of the

conflict," Kozak said at a press

conference, after the meeting.

"We agreed that, regardless of the discrepancies on

the Minsk agreements that exist between Ukraine,

and representatives of certain regions of the
Donetsk and Luhansk regions.. the truce
must be observed unconditionally, and
the agreement that was signed on

July 22nd, in 2020, must be

implemented... both in

letter and in spirit,"

he said.

In addition, Kozak said that the political advisers did

not discuss the organization of a summit of the

heads of state, at the meeting in Paris.

"As for the summit of the Normandy format leaders,

the issue has not been discussed today and, in

principle, has not been initiated by anyone....

since September 17th last year, since there

are insoluble contradictions in the

Normandy format regarding the

interpretation of the Minsk

agreements," Kozak

told reporters.

He noted that at the last meeting of advisers to
the Normandy Four leaders, which was held
in September, via video link, "these

contradictions were revealed."

"Today there was a dialogue -- in order to eliminate

these contradictions in the Normandy format and

find all solutions. After they are found, we are

sure that the decisions of the previous

summit, will be implemented. As soon

as the results of the previous summit

are implemented... everyone agrees

that it will be possible to gather for

the next summit," Kozak added.

Parties Failed to Agree

on Proposals from

Donetsk, Luhansk

Written proposals from the unrecognized Donetsk

and Luhansk people's republics (DPR and LPR),

remain without any response from Kiev: it was

not possible to agree on this issue, and the

negotiators asked for a two-week pause,

according to the Kremlin Deputy Chief

of Staff.

"Today [was more about] reacting to the numerous

written proposals that Donbas submitted to the

Contact Group, either a positive or a negative

answer. Unfortunately, we did not agree on

this issue either. For this, they also asked

for a two-week pause... unfortunately, all

the proposals on humanitarian, political,

and security issues, remain without a

reaction," Kozak said.

He added that the political advisers of the Normandy

format countries agreed to hold another meeting in

two weeks in Berlin.

"[We agreed] to hold additional intra-state consultations

— both for Ukraine and other representatives of the

Normandy format — in order to meet in Berlin in

two weeks and try to find solutions to all those
problems that have not been resolved for

seven years," Kozak explained.

At the same time, Ukraine has not shared its own

vision of the future political conditions for

resolving the conflict, Kozak noted.

"Let's hope that, in these two weeks, our colleagues

understood all our arguments - both Germany and

France, and the representatives of Ukraine who

were present at the talks - understood that...

without this, we will not move anywhere,"

he added.

"The colleagues agreed that it is still necessary to take

a break, think... and go out to discuss and resolve
all these contradictions that exist today, and,

unfortunately, there are many of them.''

''We hope that the results of this agreement will be

materialized in specific decisions in two weeks.

We will bring our positions closer, in order to

come out with a common position, with some

recommendations to the Minsk negotiation

process --- so that Ukraine, Donbas, the
OSCE, have specific recommendations
on resolving the conflict," Kozak

told reporters.

Overall, Kozak underscored that there is almost zero

progress in the negotiations in the Normandy format

so far, there is nothing to brag about, and Russia

hopes for more constructive negotiations

in Berlin.

"Come to Berlin, maybe we will be more constructive

in the Normandy Format and we will have something

to answer. Because today there is nothing to brag

about: no matter how much we would like us to

move forward, but the progress is virtually

zero so far," he told journalists.

The negotiations, which began at about noon

(11:00 GMT), lasted almost 8 and a half hours.

The Russian delegation at the talks, was headed by

Kozak, the French one - by the diplomatic adviser

to the President of France, Emmanuel Bonn, the

German one - by the foreign policy adviser to

the German Chancellor Jens Plötner, and the

Ukrainian one - by the head of the Office of

the President of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak.

In early January, Bonn and Plötner visited Moscow...

where they met with Kozak, after which French and

German officials went to Kiev and negotiated with

Yermak. The last time the Normandy Format

advisors met, was in September last year,
via video link. The consultations at that
time, also ended with no results.

The so-called "Normandy Format" of negotiations on

Ukraine has existed since June 2014. Then... during

the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Allied

landing in Normandy, the leaders of Germany,

Russia, Ukraine and France, discussed the

settlement of the conflict in Donbas,
for the first time.

The previous summit was held in Paris on December

9th, 2019. Recently, the parties at various levels

have been discussing the prospects for

interaction in this format.

In April 2014, the Ukrainian authorities launched

a military operation against the self-proclaimed

DPR and LPR... which declared independence,

after the coup d'état in Kiev, in February 2014.

According to the latest UN data, the estimated

total number of victims associated with the

conflict, stands at about 13,000.

However... despite the ceasefire agreements,

skirmishes continue, with the DPR reporting

shelling of residential areas by Ukrainian

heavy artillery on numerous occasions.

Moscow has repeatedly stated that Kiev is not

complying with the Minsk agreements and is

dragging out negotiations aimed at

resolving the conflict.

______________________________

NATO’s doors to remain open,

US says, in response to

Russian proposals

January 26th, 8:59pm (TASS)

The US will stand by the NATO’s open doors policy...

but is prepared to hold talks with Russia.. on arms

control in Europe and the transparency of military
exercises. That’s according to the US written

response to Russia’s security proposals,

that was outlined by US Secretary of

State Antony Blinken, at a news

conference on Wednesday.

US doesn’t want to make the response public

Blinken spokes about the broad outlines of the US

replies. The Americans won’t make them public

and are urging Russia to do the same. The US

says the response isn’t a formal document,

but a set of ideas for further discussion,

if Russia wants to continue dialogue.

"There is no doubt in my mind... that if Russia were to

approach this seriously and in a spirit of reciprocity

- with determination to enhance collective security

for all of us - there are very positive things in this

document that should be pursued," he said.

Washington says the ball is now in the Russian court

and it’s now up to Moscow to choose discussions

or a confrontation. The response has been

coordinated with US allies and Ukraine.

NATO expansion is still an option

Blinken stressed the US won’t give up the policy

of keeping NATO’s doors open. He reiterated

that point several times throughout the
news conference, as he fielded
questions from reporters.

US, Russia could discuss missiles in Europe

Blinken said the document sets out possible areas

of cooperation between the US and Russia for

improving European security. These areas

include: missile deployments in Ukraine,

military exercises in Europe, potential

arms control measures, higher

transparency, and risk

reduction measures.

What’s next

Blinken said he expects to hold further talks with

Russia's Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, in the

next few days to get Russian feedback.

The US Congress has also been given a copy of
the response, and Blinken will discuss it with

lawmakers on Wednesday.

The US will continue to supply weapons

to Ukraine, the secretary of state said.

_________________________________

Kiev refused to discuss

de-escalation... at the

Contact Group meeting

January 26th, 6:59pm (DAN)

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Kiev's representatives at the Minsk talks, refused to

discuss possible ways to de-escalate the situation

in Donbass, the LPR Ministry of Foreign

affairs said.

"At the first meeting of the Contact Group this year....

instead of discussing ways to reduce the escalation,

both on the line of contact and in the media, as well

as the options of returning on a constructive

negotiations track.... the Ukrainian side
preferred to stick to the unproductive

tactics of refusing to converge

positions,” the Foreign

Ministry said.

The situation in Donbass has deteriorated even
further recently, as the Ukrainian army is

preparing a new offensive against the

region, and floods the territories it

controls along the line of contact

with radicals, MLR sustems,

NATO weapons and

chemical units.

______________________________

Talks of Normandy Format

political advisers go into

fifth hour in Paris

January 26th, 4:42pm (TASS)

Political advisers... to the leaders of the Normandy

Format group (Germany, Russia, France, Ukraine)
have been holding talks... which started at the

Elysee palace at about noon on Wednesday,

for over four hours, a TASS

correspondent reports.

Dmitry Kozak, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential

Executive Office, is heading the Russian delegation.

The talks are the first face-to-face meeting of the

political advisers of all four Normandy Format

countries, after more than a year’s break.

Moscow is expected to inform counterparts about its

concerns over the state of affairs on the contact line

in Donbass. Some streets around the French

president’s residence have been cordoned

off, with police at the scene.

The previous meeting, which took place in Moscow

on January 6th, but without the participation of the

Ukrainian representative, lasted about 4.5 hours.

Kozak is expected to summarize the results of the

talks at a press conference at the residence of

Russia’s ambassador in Paris. About 30

Russian and foreign reporters are

waiting for him.

_________________________

DPR to welcome any Russian

assistance in withstanding

Ukrainian aggression

January 26th, 4:04pm (DAN)

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The DPR will welcome any Russian decision on

assistance to the Republics of Donbass... the

Donetsk Republic's Head Denis Pushilin said.

"We shall welcome any Russia's decision on

assistance to the Republics of Donbass...
to be able to withstand the impending

Ukrainian aggression. Proposals

of the First Deputy Chair of

the Federation Council and

Secretary of the General

Council of United Russia

Andrey Turchak.. in this

context are significant

for us," he said.

The DPR Head's Administration said that Turchak

proposed sending in military aid to "enhance

their (Republics') defence capacity and
ability to deter military aggression
clearly being prepared by Kiev".

The head of the United Russia faction in the State

Duma, Vladimir Vasiliev, said that the party had

initiated an appeal... to the leadership of the

Russian Federation, regarding the supply

of military production to Donbass.

Pushilin added that if such a decision is made, it will

''significantly strengthen'' the defensive capabilities

of Donetsk and, given the need to resist the state

-of-art weapons, will allow more effective safe-

guarding --- of the civilian population of the

Donetsk & Lugansk People's Republics.

In addition, assistance from Russia, is a logical step, in

view of the “increasing security threats to citizens of

the Russian Federation living in Donbass, and the

obvious destabilization of the situation near

their borders".

___________________________

‘Israel’: Hezbollah Getting

More Powerful - Militarily,

Economically & Politically

January 26th, 3pm (al Manar)

The annual intelligence report in the Zionist entity

considered that..... undermining the military,

economic and political power of Hezbollah

is impossible, citing the increase in the

number of the precision-guided

missiles possessed by the

Resistance Party.

The Israeli report indicated that Hezbollah managed

to reinforce its political and social influence in

Lebanon through confronting some aspects

of the economic crisis, highlighting

importing the Iranian fuel.

Hezbollah's enemies cannot use the economic crisis

in Lebanon to blackmail Hezbollah, according to
the report, which called for supporting the
anti-Hezbollah forces, in order to face
the Resistance group.

The Zionist report indicated that maintaining the

Taif Accord, which preserves the participation

of the various parties in the ruling system,
is better than letting Hezbollah control
the entire state in Lebanon.

According to the Zionist report, Hezbollah

also maintains the balance of deterrence

with ‘Israel’, highlighting its rocketry

power, in this regard.

Source: Al-Manar English Website

____________________________

US has assured it will make Kiev

implement Minsk accords,

Lavrov says

January 26th, 2:41pm (TASS)

The Western countries - including the US - have
promised that they will succeed in getting Kiev

to implement the Minsk agreements - & Russia

believes that this obligation lies with the West

- Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told

reporters on Wednesday.

"The Western patrons of the Ukrainian regime have

assured us - including Americans (by the way, at

Putin’s meeting with Biden in Geneva in June) -

that they will make sure... that Kiev complies

with its commitments under the package of

measures signed in Minsk, in 2015, first

and foremost, with regard to ensuring

the special status of Donbass,"

he said.

"I proceed from the fact that this obligation lies with

the West and it must ensure that Kiev complies

with the Minsk agreements. Then... all the

questions will cease to exist. I am very

hopeful that it will be the case,"

Lavrov noted.

The minister stressed once again that Russia is a

supporter of the unconditional implementation of

the Minsk agreements, which Ukraine obstructs

in every possible way.

Russia, at the highest level, has reiterated its

commitment to the 2015 Minsk agreements,

which Moscow views as the irreplaceable

foundation for resolving the intra-

Ukrainian conflict.

_______________________________

Russia to disclose general

meaning of US response

on security guarantees

— Lavrov

January 26th, 12:36pm (TASS)

Russia won’t publish a US response on security

guarantees - if asked - but will disclose the

general meaning of the answers, Russian

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told the

State Duma on Wednesday.

He said the US had already said... that the

written response shouldn’t be made public.

"If that’s how they will approach everything that’s

happening, we will probably be unable to publish

the US document," Lavrov said. "But the meaning

of their reaction, the essence of their reaction,
of course, deserves to be made available to
the public in Russia, and other countries."

"I’m sure we’ll be able to do it,"

the minister went on to say.

Russia expects the response to

come through this week, he said.

"There are reasons to believe that they

won’t let us down this time and will

keep their word," Lavrov said.

On December 17th last year, the Russian Foreign

Ministry published draft agreements on security

guarantees addressed to the US and NATO,

which say NATO won’t expand eastward,

deny membership to Ukraine and limit

the deployment of serious offensive

weapons, including nuclear ones.

___________________________

DPR Intelligence: Ukraine sends

more ammo to all three axes

in Donbass

January 26th, 10:30am (DAN)

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Ukrainian units on Donetsk, Gorlovka and Mariupol

axes received supplies of additional ammo, the

deputy chief-of-staff of the Republican

People's Militia, Eduard

Basurin, said.

"Special trains with fuel and lubricants for 25,

56, 54, 53 and 36 Ukrainian brigades, arrived

at Krasnoarmeisk, Druzhkovka, Zachatovka

railway stations," he said.

The supplies are to be delivered to units during

nightime via country roads to conceal the fact

from locals and the OSCE SMM.

Ukrainian leadership is also in contact with

Western countries to procure more ammo

and equipment in short supply.

In particular, Kiev is negotiating supplies of Soviet-

times artillery rounds from NATO countries and

152 mm artillery rounds from the

Czech Republic.

The situation in Donbass... has deteriorated even

further recently, as Ukrainian army is preparing

a new offensive against the region, and floods

the territories it controls along the line of

contact... with radicals, MLR sustems,

NATO weapons and chemical units.

____________________________

DPR Ministry of State Security

seizes ammo, explosives from

Ukrainian arms cache

January 26th, 9:49am (DAN)

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DPR Ministry of State Security has seized

explosives and hand grenades, from an

arms cache outside Dokuchayevsk.

"The Ministry received information on Ukrainian

special services preparing sabotage attacks

in the frontline areas of the Republic. The

Ministry then discovered an arms

cache... in an abandoned house

outside Dokuchayevsk, where

officers seized 1.6 kg of TNT,

20 hand grenades... and 15

grenade launcher rounds,"

the Ministry's report reads.

Ukrainian special services planned to use

the cache for its sabotage operations.

The situation in Donbass... has deteriorated even

further recently, as Ukrainian army is preparing

a new offensive against the region, and floods

the territories it controls along the line of

contact... with radicals, MLR sustems,

NATO weapons and chemical units.

____________________________

Yemen Warns: Dubai Expo

in Crosshairs, if Saudi-led

War Continues

January 26th, 9:08am (al Manar)

Yemeni Armed Forces Spokesman Brigadier General

Yehya Saree, warned that, with the United Arab

Emirates’ involvement in the devastating

Saudi-led war going on, the Emirates’

popular Expo 2020, might be the

next target, amid the wave of

Yemeni retaliatory attacks

against the Gulf country.

In a Tuesday tweet, which incorporated #expo as its

only hashtag, Brigadier General Saree wrote: “With

us, you might suffer damages…we advise you to

change your destination.”

In an earlier tweet, Saree likewise cautioned foreign

investors against setting up businesses in the UAE

...given the most recent “atrocities of the Saudi-

American-Emirati” coalition, which has been

waging a war on Yemen, since 2015.

Source: Agencies and Al-Manar English Website

____________________________________

Ukrainian nationalists intensify

recruitment and train

assault squads

January 26th, 8:45am (DAN)

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Ukrainian nationalists have activated recruiting of

people with previous military experience in

Donbass, the deputy chief-of-staff of the

Republican People's Militia, Eduard

Basurin, said.

"Sources report intensified recruiting efforts of

nationalistic organizations. Fighters are being

selected, from among Ukrainian citizens with

experience in combat operations in Donbass

at recruiting stations in Kharkov, Belaya

Tserkov, Kherson and Dnepropetrovsk,"

he said.

The selected fighters are sent into

training camps for refresher training.

"Fund-raising campaign has been launched

to provide nationalist assault teams with

transport and equipment," Basurin said.

The situation in Donbass... has deteriorated even

further recently, as Ukrainian army is preparing

a new offensive against the region, and floods

the territories it controls along the line of

contact... with radicals, MLR sustems,

NATO weapons and chemical units.

___________________________

Kiev forces violate ceasefire

8 times in 24 hours

January 26th, 7:36am (DAN)

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Ukrainian forces violated the ceasefire eight times

over the past 24 hours, the DPR mission to the

Joint Centre for Control and Coordination

(JCCC) said.

Shakhta Trudovskaya, Spartak, Vasilyevka, Gornyak,

Oktyabr, Belaya Kamenka and Dzerzhinskoye, came

under grenade launcher fire.

No damage or casualties have been reported.

In the previous reporting period, Kiev

forces violated the ceasefire once.

The Additional Measures to Strengthen the Ceasefire

were signed at the Contact Group meeting on July

22nd, to reinforce and control the indefinite cease

-fire, in effect since July 21st, 2019, the latest in

the series of more than 20 reconfirmations and

announcements of the “silence regime”.

The package came into

effect, on July the 27th.

_________________________________

US - gives Ukrainian neo-Nazis

‘carte blanche’ for provocations

— Russian embassy
January 26th, 5:42am (TASS)

Together with Washington’s political support,

Ukrainian neo-Nazis receive a ‘carte blanche’

for provocations... the Russian embassy in

the US said, in a statement on Facebook.

"US Department of State & Pentagon press-services,

almost on a daily basis, brag about their efforts to

build up military assistance to the Kiev regime...

The US authorities do this, being aware that US

lethal weapons, will end up in the hands of the

militants and terrorists in Ukraine. Together

with the political and material support of

Washington, the neo-Nazis, in fact,

receive a ‘carte blanche’ for their

provocations, and carrying out

military actions in Donbass"

the statement reads.

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said on

Tuesday, that the US planned to send more

military aid to Ukraine. Another batch of

weapons arrived in Ukraine on Tuesday.

According to media reports, it contains

300 Javelin anti-tank missiles.

________________________________

Diplomat: West conniving at

Kiev’s provocations, under

the pretext of an alleged

Russian threat

January 25th, 10:19pm (TASS)

Western countries use allegations about threats

from Russia, as a pretext, to keep on pumping

Ukraine up with weapons, pushing it towards
provocations fraught with civilian deaths in

its eastern regions, the Russian Deputy

Permanent Representative to the
UN, Gennady Kuzmin, said
on Tuesday.

"Amid the deliberately fanned allegations about a
fake threat coming from Russia, the Western
countries keep on pumping Ukraine up with
weapons, sending their military advisers,
and conniving at Ukraine’s provocations
...instead of compelling it to implement
the Minsk agreements, which were
endorsed by the UN's Security
Council," he said at a meeting
of the UN's Security Council,
dedicated to the protection
of civilians during combat
operations in cities.

"And it means that the children, elderly people

and women the Kiev authorities have been

conducting an undeclared war against,

will continue to be killed."

NATO countries and the countries of various

"coalitions for democracy... have a colossal

negative experience... in terms of today’s
topic," Russia's diplomat noted. "Notably
airstrikes at cities’ quarters are often
geared ----- not to achieve military
advantages but for the purposes
of political intimidation ----- for
revenge & the punishment of
unwanted governments.''

''Everyone remembers the bombardments
of central Belgrade, and other Serbian

cities, in the spring of 1999. We also

remember the reasons, and fighting

methods, used in Iraq, and Libya."

Recently, Western & Ukrainian media outlets

have been echoing claims --- about Russia’s

possible aggression against Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier

slammed such statements as "empty and

groundless", and their goal is to whip up

tensions. He stressed that Russia does

not pose any threat to anyone, but did

not rule out possible provocations, to

justify the remarks in question... and

warned that attempts at using force

to settle the crisis in southeastern

Ukraine, would have the most

serious consequences.

______________________________________________

Third US plane loaded with arms

lands in Kiev amid tensions

with Russia

January 25th, 7:23pm (PressTV)

A US aircraft carrying military equipment and

munitions has landed in Ukraine, carrying

the 3d such arms shipments supplied

to Kiev, amid escalating tensions

between the West and Russia.

Oleksii Reznikov, Ukraine's defense minister,

made the announcement on Tuesday... and

said the consignment was the third batch

of US weapons, under a $200-million

security package pledged by

Washington to Kiev, over

the past week.

"Our partners are increasing the amount of military

assistance. And today we are meeting the third

aircraft from the United States government,

as part of this assistance," Reznikov told

reporters before the plane landed.

The United States has committed more than $650

million in security assistance to Ukraine in the

past year and more than $2.7 billion in total,

since 2014, when the then-Ukrainian

territory of the Crimean Peninsula

voted, in a referendum, to fall

under Russian sovereignty.

The 2nd batch of US military equipment

had arrived in Kiev, on Sunday.

Several NATO members, such as Britain, Spain,

Denmark, and the Netherlands... have already

sent consignments of weapons and warships
to the region, amid tensions with Russia

over Ukraine.

Western governments accuse Russia of planning

an invasion of Ukraine. Moscow rejects the

allegation... and insists that its border

deployments are defensive in nature.

NATO announced on Monday, that it was putting

8,500 forces on standby & reinforcing Eastern

Europe, with more ships and fighter jets, in

response to the Russian military build-up,

at Ukraine's borders. Russia has said the

risk of an offensive by Ukrainian troops

against pro-Russia forces in the

country's volatile east, is

"very high."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has accused

Washington of escalating tensions with the

deployment of forces in Eastern Europe,

stressing that Moscow is watching
US actions with great concern.

The US and NATO's latest provocations against

Russia come.. while US and Russian diplomats

have failed to make a breakthrough, in talks
to resolve the crisis over Ukraine,
although they agreed to
continue the talks.

Russia has demanded ''legally binding guarantees''

from NATO that it will halt its eastward expansion

and return to its 1997 borders. Moscow also

demands that the military alliance never

admit Ukraine as a member.

Russia is awaiting a written response from the

Biden administration this week, to its list of

security demands, some of which

Washington has previously

dismissed as being....

"non-starters."

__________________________

Taiwan Reports First Sighting of
Two Chinese J-16D Electronic

Warfare Aircraft Near Island

January 25th, 7:22pm (Sputnik)

Taiwan’s de facto defense ministry said on Monday

- it had detected two advanced Chinese electronic

warfare jets flying near Taiwan for the first time.

The fighters can jam enemy communications
and radar systems, blinding air defenses to
an incoming attack.

Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense reported

tracking 13 Chinese People’s Liberation Army

Air Force (PLAAF) aircraft flying through its Air

Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Monday:

eight were J-16 multirole strike aircraft, one

was a Y-8 anti-submarine warfare plane, two

were H-6 strategic bombers, and two were

J-16D electronic warfare aircraft.

The J-16D, a version of Shenyang’s J-16 which only

debuted in 2015, had never previously been spotted

near the autonomous island, according to Taiwan

Central News Agency. The jet carries 4 different

electronic warfare pods designed to suppress

enemy air defenses (SEAD), and disrupt

communications systems across the

EM band... and can also fire anti-

radiation missiles, which home

in on enemy radar sites.

“It can take the lead in warfare with electromagnetic

suppression … Then the assault group follows in

its path to attack the enemy,” Fu Qianshao, a

retired PLAAF equipment expert in Beijing,

told the South China Morning Post about

the J-16D.

In all, the J-16D is a broad equivalent to the US Navy’s

E-18 Growler... itself a heavily modified version of the

F/A-18E/F Hornet fighter jet. Russia never developed

a separate SEAD role for its strike aircraft, instead

using “escort jammers” made out of modified

bombers... teamed up with either regular

bombers or strike aircraft armed with

anti-radiation missiles.

Taiwan scrambled fighters in response to detecting

the PLAAF aircraft, which were flying outside

Taiwanese airspace, but within its ADIZ, a

self-declared and defined area where it

claims the right to identify aircraft
flying through it, military and
civilian alike.

In the Western media, such flights have been

characterized as violations of Taiwanese

airspace and a bellicose prelude to a

Chinese attack. While the Chinese

government sees Taiwan as a

rebellious province destined

to be reunited with the rest

of China, it doesn’t have

the means at present

to invade the island.

Taiwan, once the ruling government of all of China,

has been autonomous from Beijing, since the

victorious communist forces founded the

People’s Republic of China in 1949.

The island’s government has survived largely with

US backing... even as Washington switched
its recognition of the legitimate Chinese

government, from Taipei to Beijing, in

the 1970s, keeping open an informal

lifeline that has included the sale of

advanced weapons systems like

F-16V “Viper” fighter jets.

According to the Taiwanese MND, the aircraft on

Monday, flew between Taiwan and Pratas, an

island in the northern South China Sea that’s

controlled by the government in Taiwan.

Further to the south, two US Navy aircraft carrier

battle groups, led by the carriers USS Carl

Vinson and USS Abraham Lincoln began

operations on Sunday after performing

joint exercises east of Taiwan, in

conjunction with Japanese self

-defense forces.

During those operations, one of the Navy’s stealth F-

35C Joint Strike Fighters slammed into the deck of

the Carl Vinson, causing the pilot to eject and

injuring seven on board the warship. The

Navy said it had sent more than two

dozen F-35s on the deployment.

Last week, the PLA Navy said it had warned off

another US warship, the destroyer USS Benfold,

which strayed too close to the Paracel Islands,

one of several island chains in the South China

Sea that China claims as its territory. However,

Vietnam also claims to own the islands.

The US says it operates in the region to deter

Chinese aggression and defend the region’s

smaller nations ... but Beijing has its own

dialogue with the Association of South

-east Asian Nations (ASEAN), on

developing a mutual code of

conduct for the waterway

and established hotlines

to settle their disputes.

______________________________

Zelensky pushes country

to abyss, urging military

to attack - Pushilin

January 25th, 6:35pm (DAN)

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Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is trying to

draw attention to himself with eye-catching and

eccentric statements which, however, bring
no positive changes to Ukraine, Donetsk

People’s Republic Head Denis Pushilin
told the Donetsk News Agency
on Tuesday.

On Monday, Zelensky urged the foreign intelligence

service officers to launch an offensive. He said that

“Ukraine is faced with extremely dangerous threats

-- particularly threats to sovereignty, territorial
integrity and unity” and that... “the time has
come to conduct an offensive in defense
of our national interest.”

“Obviously, nobody is fighting the real threat to

Urkaine’s sovereignty. They don’t even raise

the issue of its loss, although the country

has long stopped being an actor,”

Pushilin said.

“Oddly, Zelensky only announced an offensive

by Ukrainian spies, but not the time, place or

purpose of special operations. On a serious

note - he’s actively engaging in media
activity drawing attention to himself
with eccentric statements;- the
Ukrainian president’s games...
already lead to tragedies, not

only in Donbass, but give the

remaining part of Ukraine,
an increasingly vigorous
push towards an abyss.”

_____________________________

US Forces Continue

Bombing Syria

January 25th, 4:34pm (teleSUR)

On Tuesday, the U.S. forces continued their

bombardment of buildings and institutions

in Syria's northeastern Hasakah Province

...as part of their alleged manhunt of
Islamic State (IS) fugitives.

The U.S. forces are shelling buildings and public

institutions in the vicinity of the Sina'a prison in

the Gweiran neighbourhood in Hasakah "on the

pretext of hunting down IS militants who fled

the prison," state news agency SANA said.

The shelling came in tandem with waves of raids by

the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)

to homes in the surrounding areas, rounding

up many civilians and taking them to

unknown locations.

On January20th, IS inmates inside the Sina'a prison,

which is controlled by the SDF, started a riot that

was coordinated with IS militants from outside,

who detonated the prison's gates with two

booby-trapped vehicles, succeeding to

free some prisoners.

The incident triggered clashes between IS and the

SDF, as well as U.S. airstrikes on the areas where

the IS fugitives could have sought shelter.

The clashes and airstrikes are still ongoing, as the

SDF has so far failed to contain the situation and

storm the prison.

Syria's Foreign Ministry has slammed the U.S.

airstrikes, as civilian casualties have been

reported. Hasakah province is largely

controlled by the U.S.-backed SDF,

while certain areas, particularly

in the city of Qamishli, are still

under the control of the

Syrian government.

____________________________

Kiev brings humanitarian

subgroup talks to naught

- Morozova

January 25th, 3:49pm (DAN)

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Ukraine continues to block the discussion of a new

prisoner exchange, Donetsk People’s Republic

ombudswoman, DPR representative in the

humanitarian subgroup, Darya Morozova

said, after the humanitarian subgroup

session on Tuesday.

“I have to say that during a month’s pause in the

negotiations Ukraine made no moves which

could contribute to the beginning of a

productive discussion... between
the humanitarian subgroup
participants,” she said.

The DPR ombudswoman said that Kiev

representatives had not made a single

step towards dropping the criminal

charges against the persons

passed to the Donbass

Republics in the

prisoner swaps

in 2019-2020.

“I remind: that Ukraine has not been fulfilling these

obligations for about two years, thus blocking the

discussion of a new stage of a mutual release
of detainees,” she added.

______________________________

DPR reminds - that Kiev will

have to implement “Minsk-2”

political part anyway

January 25th, 3:28pm (DAN)

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Kiev has no chance to avoid meeting the political

commitments within the Package of Measures,

the DPR representative at the talks, Natalia

Mikhailova, said, after a session of the

Contact Group political subgroup

on Tuesday.

“It’s absolutely obvious... that nothing has changed

since last year - and that Ukrainian representatives

continue to sit on the other side of the screen with

just one purpose: to delay the negotiations for as

along a possible, so that the Minsk Agreements

and the Package of Measures have no chances

to be implemented,” Mikhailova said after the

Tuesday session.

“Today, they made as if they were discussing special
status issues... although they were talking

about all-Ukrainian decentralisation

parameters instead.”

A lack of political will in Kiev is not the pretext for

forgetting that Ukraine has commitments to the

Republics’ population under the Minsk

Agreements, which will have to
be met, anyway.

The Agreements dated September 5th and 20th, 2014

and February 12th, 2015 forged by the Contact Group

in Minsk make groundwork for a peaceful settlement

of the Donbass conflict. The Contact Group set forth

a peace plan and agreed a ceasefire and then

adopted the Memorandum on ceasefire
implementation and, later, on the

Package of Measures for the

Implementation of the

Minsk Agreements.

It envisioned an immediate and comprehensive

ceasefire in Donbass, the withdrawal of heavy

weapons, the establishment of security zones

and a discussion of the modalities for the

resumption of the payment of pensions

and allowances to DPR & LPR citizens.

The political part of the agreement required Kiev to

grant a special status to Donbass and carry out a

Constitutional reform in Ukraine which should

result in deep decentralisation. The reform

has to take into account the specifics of

the conflict-affected areas... and be

coordinated with representatives

of these areas.

____________________________

Kiev refuses to discuss

cementing of special

status for Donbass

in Constitution

January 25th, 3:27pm (DAN)

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Kiev representatives at the Contact Group political

subgroup session, on Tuesday, preferred to

discuss decentralisation across Ukraine

instead of special status for Donbass...

the Donetsk People’s Republic Deputy

Foreign Minister, DPR representative

in the political subgroup Natalia

Mikhailova said.

“Today, they made as if they were discussing special

status issues, although they were talking about all-

Ukrainian decentralisation parameters instead,”

Mikhailova said after the meeting.

“Our counterparts flatly refused to discuss the issue

of cementing the special status of certain areas of

the Donetsk and Lugansk regions in the Ukrainian

constitution, without even trying to to show an

intention to fulfill the Package of Measures or

go for a compromise... which is essential for

any dialogue. “

______________________________

British troops are unlikely to

be deployed to Ukraine for

combat — foreign minister

January 25th, 1:58pm (TASS)

The UK is unlikely to deploy British troops to

Ukraine for combat, UK Foreign Minister Liz

Truss said in a speech before parliament

on Tuesday.

""It is unlikely that that would be the circumstance,"

she said... when asked by a lawmaker if British

troops will be deployed to Ukraine in a combat

role, not just for helping to train the Ukrainian

forces. This follows earlier statements by UK

Secretary of State for Defense Ben Wallace

& a spokesman for UK Prime Minister Boris
Johnson... that there are no plans to send

British troops to Ukraine in the event of

a purported Russian invasion.

Truss reiterated that the UK helped to train 50,000

Ukrainian soldiers & officers, provided defensive

weapons and put strong pressure on allies to

provide Ukraine with similar assistance, to

raise the country’s defense capability.

The UK foreign minister also said... she planned to

visit Ukraine next week. She also reiterated that

a purported Russian invasion of Ukraine would

be a strategic mistake, that would trigger

coordinated Western sanctions... and

cost dearly, the Russian economy.

Last week, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman

Maria Zakharova, said the UK Foreign Office had

requested an opportunity for Truss to travel

to Moscow... and the request was being

studied. UK foreign ministers haven’t

come to Russia, since Johnson,

who’s now the prime minister,

visited in December 2017.

There has been a flurry of statements in the West

and Kiev, in recent months, that Russia allegedly

could invade Ukraine. Moscow said, they are an

unsubstantiated escalation, while the Kremlin

didn’t rule out... that the purpose of these

statements... was to justify an attempt
to resolve the crisis in southeastern

Ukraine by force and warned that

these actions by Kiev, will have

serious consequences.

At the end of December, Russia proposed that it sign

legally binding agreements with the US and NATO

on mutual security guarantees, due to what

Moscow said, is NATO’s ongoing military

utilization of the Ukrainian territory.

The sides held several rounds of talks including

a meeting between Russian Foreign Minister

Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State

Antony Blinken... where the Russian

foreign minister reiterated: Russia

didn’t plan to invade Ukraine.

____________________________

Croatia to recall all troops

from NATO, in the case of

a Russia-Ukraine conflict

January 25th, 1:28pm (TASS)

The Croatian authorities will recall all troops

from NATO forces in eastern Europe in case

of a conflict between Russia and Ukraine,

President Zoran Milanovic said on

television on Tuesday.

"As the commander-in-chief.. I have been closely

following statements indicating that NATO - not

one country, not the United States - is building

up its presence... and sending some

reconnaissance ships. We do not

have any bearing on this, and
we will not have anything to
do with this. I guarantee

this," Milanovic said.

"Croatia will not send any troops in case of an

escalation. On the contrary, it will recall all

troops, to the last Croatian soldier,"

he promised.

At the same time Milanovic stressed that this

intention was not related with Ukraine or

Russia, in anyway. The decision stems

from what he described as "trends in

the United States’ domestic policies,

being conducted by Joe Biden and

his administration," whose rise to

power Milanovic had welcomed.

"As far as international security matters are

concerned, I can see inconsistency and, in

fact, dangerous behaviour," he said.

Milanovic also mentioned his political opponents -

Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic-Radman, Defense

Minister Mario Banozic and Prime Minister

Andrej Plenkovic.

"Grlic-Radman and Banozic, are free to go to Brussels.

As for the Croatian army, Croatia will not participate

in this. Nothing will come of it. Plenkovic may

threaten Russia as much as he wishes.

Croatia should run away from this

like from fire," Milanovic said.

Russia and the United States have been in talks on

NATO’s security guarantees to Moscow, including

the alliance’s non-expansion, and the pullback

of attack weapons. There have been several

rounds of consultations in different formats

already, but no agreements have been

announced yet.

Nevertheless, the West keeps arguing that

the discussion is called, to upset alleged

preparations for a Russian invasion

of Ukraine.

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov,

repeatedly dismissed such rumours as ground

-less fanning of tensions. He stressed that

Russia was of no threat to anyone. At the

same time, Peskov pointed to a certain

risk of provocations that might be

staged... to back up such claims

and warned that any attempts

at handling the crisis in

southeastern Ukraine

would entail dire

consequences.

_____________________

Russian Baltic Fleet’s missile

ships wipe out aerial targets

in drills

KALININGRAD, January 25th, 1:24pm (TASS)

The crews of the Baltic Fleet’s missile ships

delivered artillery fire against aerial targets

during drills, the Fleet’s press office

reported on Tuesday.

"During the Baltic Fleet’s scheduled exercise at

practice ranges in the Baltic Sea, the crews of

the missile corvettes Mytishchi, Odintsovo

and Zelyony Dol successfully conducted

artillery firing against the targets

simulating a notional enemy’s

air attack weapons," the

press office said in

a statement.

Illuminating shells fired from a 152mm Akatsiya self-

propelled battalion howitzer from Cape Taran on

the coast of the Baltic Sea in the Kaliningrad

Region served as targets during the drills,

the statement says.

The combat exercises were carried out at various

altitudes and distances... employing AK-176 and

AK-630 shipborne artillery guns. All the targets

were successfully eliminated during the

artillery firing, the press office said.

It was earlier reported that about 20 combat ships &

support vessels of the Baltic Fleet, were involved in

the Fleet’s scheduled maneuvers, including missile

corvettes and boats, small anti-submarine warfare

ships, coastal and harbour minesweepers, and

also fixed-and rotary-wing aircraft of the

Baltic Fleet’s naval aviation.

__________________________

Ukrainian forces fire grenade

launchers at Donetsk

outskirts, contact

line south area

January 25th, 12:26pm (DAN)

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Ukrainian armed formations fired grenade launchers

at Donetsk outskirts and a village area in the south

of the Donetsk People’s Republic, on Tuesday

afternoon... the DPR Office at the Joint
Centre for Control and Coordination

(JCCC) reported.

Fire was opened at 11:20, 11:25 and 12:10 at

Gornyak settlement and Spartak village in

the outskirts and suburb of Donetsk, as

well as at Oktyabr viallge in the south

of the Republic from the Peski,

Avdeyevka, and Pischevik

settlements, respectively.

The enemy used grenade launchers expending

18 rounds of ammunition. No casualties or

damage were immediately reported.

The package of tighter ceasefire control measures

has been formally in effect in Donbass since July

27th, 2020. The document bans the use of any

weapons, deployment of heavy armaments in

and around settlements, engineer works at

troops’ positions and unmanned aerial

vehicle flights.

________________________

Situation in Donbass -

resembles eve of war,

LPR says

January 25th, 9:47am (TASS)

The situation in Donbass currently resembles the

eve of war, Lugansk People’s Republic’s (LPR)

People’s Militia said Tuesday, adding that the

available data indicate, that Kiev prepares

for active warfare.

"The situation today rather resembles a situation

on the brink of war. All provided data indicate

that the Ukrainian army is preparing for

active warfare," People’s Militia head

Yan Leschenko said Tuesday.

Leschenko added that the People’s Militia intelligence

is constantly monitoring the active relocation of

vehicles inside Kiev’s Donbass operation area,

which also confirms that the Ukrainian army
is preparing for an aggression against LPR
and the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR).

He noted that the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ (UAF)

activities are meticulously covered and the

operation of the OSCE missions is

effectively blocked.

"The convergence of forces and means to the area of
the so-called joint forces operation in Donbass...
is being meticulously covered. The operation of

OSCE mission observers is effectively blocked.

Since the beginning of this year, a total of 57

instances of Ukrainian forces jamming
OSCE drones have been registered,"

Leschenko said.

He underscored that the People’s Militia has enough

personnel and vehicles, and is ready to thwart all

attacks on the republic's territorial integrity.

"I would like to reiterate... that the People’s Militia

forces are on constant full alert and have enough

servicemen, vehicles and equipment, to

decisively thwart all attempts at the

territorial integrity and people’s

security of the Lugansk

People’s Republic,"

Leschenko said.

Previously, DPR People’s Militia deputy head

Eduard Basurin also stated that the republic

registers preparations for an offensive in

UAF forces deployed within the area
of Kiev’s operation in Donbass.

__________________________

Russia’s Central Military Command

to hold five large-scale air defense

drills this year

January 25th, 9:41am (TASS)

Russia’s Central Military District will hold five

massive air defense drills with live-firings of

surface-to-air missile systems, at practice

ranges in the southern Astrakhan Region

and the Republic of Buryatia, in Eastern

Siberia in 2022, Central Military District

the Commander Cl., General Alexander

Lapin, announced on Tuesday.

"The combat teams of S-400 ‘Triumf’ and S-300

‘Favorit’ surface-to-air missile systems... and

Pantsyr-S anti-aircraft missile/gun launchers

will take part in 5 large drills, of air defense

forces in 2022. They will practice the entire

range of combat training tasks and live-fire

missiles, against the targets simulating a

notional enemy’s air attack weapons,"

the commander said.

During the drills, the anti-aircraft gunners will conduct

combined multi-kilometre marches to distant training

grounds and practice a set of tasks of equipping fire

emplacements, changing areas of their deployment

and shielding air defense systems.

The drills will involve about 2,000 troops from among

combat teams, command posts, and headquarters

officers and also over 500 items of armament and

military hardware, the press office specified.

The Central Military District is the largest in Russia.

It is based on the territory of the Volga, Urals and

Siberian integrated federal districts, & 29 Russian

regions. Structurally, the Central Military District

also includes some overseas facilities: the 201st

military base in Tajikistan, the Kant integrated

military base in Kyrgyzstan & units stationed

on the territory of Kazakhstan. The Central

Military District is headquartered in

Yekaterinburg in the Urals.

__________________________

Ukrainian forces violate ceasefire

once over 24 hours, DPR says

January 25th, 7:27am (DAN)

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Ukrainian armed formations fired at the Donetsk

People’s Republic once, over the past 24 hours,

the DPR Office at the Joint Centre for Control

and Coordination (JCCC) reported

on Tuesday.

The Alexandrovka settlement in western Donetsk

came under fire. The enemy expended two anti-

tank grenade launcher rounds, and also used

small arms. There have been no casualties

or new damage.

The package of tighter ceasefire control measures

has been formally in effect in Donbass since July

27th, 2020. The document bans, among other

things, the use of weapons, deployment
of hardware next to settlements and

engineer works at troops’ positions.

Tensions in Donbass have been mounting after the

New Year and Christmas holidays... DPR People’s

Militia deputy commander Eduard Basurin, said

Ukraine was preparing for a new offensive.

Ukrainian troops in the conflict zone had

been reportedly reinforced with radicals

and multiple launch rocket systems and

NATO weapons.

Active drills of Ukraine’s chemical warfare

troops have been reported as well.

______________________________

Ukrainian defense minister sees

no threat of Russian invasion in

near future

January 25th, 2:34am (TASS)

Ukrainian Defense Minister, Alexey Reznikov, said

early on Tuesday he had received no information

so far, indicating the possibility of Russia’s

invasion of his country in the near future.

"As of today, the armed forces of Russia created no

strike groups indicating they were ready to launch

an offensive tomorrow," he told Ukraine’s ICTV

television channel, adding that a scenario of

a Russian attack in the near future, was

also unlikely.

When asked about the likelihood of Russia attacking

Ukraine on February 20th, the final day of the

Olympic Games in Beijing, the minister
said the probability was "low."

The West, and Kiev, have recently been spreading

allegations about Russia’s potential ‘invasion’ of

Ukraine. Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov

castigated these claims, as "empty and

unfounded" ...serving as a ploy to

escalate tensions, pointing out

that Russia.. did not pose any

threat whatsoever to anyone.

However, Peskov did not rule out the possibility of

provocations aimed at justifying such allegations

and warned: that attempts to use military force
to resolve the crisis in southeastern Ukraine

would have serious consequences.

At the same time, the Russian Foreign Ministry

published the draft agreements between

Moscow and Washington on security

guarantees and the measures for

ensuring the security of Russia

and NATO member states, on

December the 17th.

The document was designed to address,

among other things, NATO’s ongoing

‘military development’ of the

Ukrainian territory.

The sides conducted several rounds of negotiations,

including a personal meeting between the top

diplomats of Russia and the United States,

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US

Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

In the meeting, Lavrov reaffirmed that Russia

had no plans of attacking its neighbour.

_______________________________

All participants of Normandy Quartet

meeting of advisers confirm

participation — Kiev

January 25th,, 2:32am (TASS)

The head of the Ukrainian presidential administration,

Andrey Yermak, announced... that all participants of
the upcoming Normandy Format (Germany, Russia,

France & Ukraine) meeting of political advisers

had confirmed their attendance.

"This is a very powerful signal, meaning that the

Normandy Format has been unblocked at last.

All envoys (political advisers) have confirmed

their participation," he told Ukraine’s

ICTV channel.

"I hope that our partners from Germany and France

will take a proactive stance, during these talks.

We don’t have much time or many opportunities

for long discussions," the Ukrainian official

continued. "I think that we will stand united

with our partners. That is why, I think, we

will have an opportunity to talk about a

ceasefire, which is very important."

He reiterated Ukraine’s earlier proposal to

include Germany and France into the

process of ceasefire verification.

"We believe that this would be logical and realistic. I

hope for constructive negotiations," Yermak said.

At the same time, he stressed that "no prerequisites

have been named for the advisers’ meeting"...

including the demand to revoke the bill
on the transition period in eastern
Ukrainian areas... outside the
Kiev government’s control.

________________________________

NATO pursuing policy
of escalating tension
in Europe

— Russian lawmaker

January 24th, 5:20pm (TASS)

NATO is seeking to expand its presence near

the Russian borders, and this path is fanning

tensions in Europe, a Russian lawmaker said

on Monday, commenting on the alliance’s

decision to deploy additional forces to

Eastern Europe over the situation

around Ukraine.

"Even a child can see, that the reason given, results in

tensions fanned by the collective West. The alliance

has obviously decided to continue the policy of

double standards," Leonid Slutsky, chairman

of the international committee of Russia's

State Duma (lower parliament house,
wrote on his Telegram channel.

He recalled that... ahead of the talks on security

guarantees, NATO’s leadership has repeatedly

declared its "readiness for dialogue."

"But in fact, we now see NATO striving to increase

its military presence near the Russian borders. Is

this the reason why they have been telling tales

about plans of ‘Russian aggression’?"

he noted.

"While Washington is... delaying its response to

the Russian proposals on security guarantees,

Brussels is openly pursuing a policy toward

escalation of tension in Europe," he noted.

"Does the NATO leadership understand

that it may lead to the most

severe crisis?"

Earlier, NATO announced its plans to deploy

additional forces to Eastern Europe over

the situation around Ukraine.

_____________________________

Opinion: Nationalistic plans to

'mop up' pro-Russian Donbass

likely to have opposite effect

January 24th, 4:29pm (DAN)

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Kiev's plans to eradicate the Donbass population
opposing radical nationalistic ideas, will have an

opposite effect, the head of the parliamentary

committee on foreign policy, Vladislav

Berdichevsky, said.

Earlier on Monday, the commander of the Ukrainian
volunteer army (on DPR list of terrorist & extremist

organizations) Dmitry Yarosh, said that his troops

are planning to: "cleanse the rear of traitors

and collaborants".

"I believe that's what is going to happen, fanatics will

remain until the end, but 99% of the Ukrainian army

will defect, or escape to Poland. As for the pro-

Russian population, during the lawlessness

period, they will try to eradicate their

personal enemies. But the opposite

situation is highly probable: people

will come together and liquidate

"nazi fans" on their own."

Kiev and some western countries are accusing

Moscow of planning to invade Ukraine.

Moscow has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Earlier, the DPR Defense, reported the preparations

of the Ukrainian army, for a large-scale offensive.

__________________________________

US Forces at Al-Dhafra Air Base

Resort to Basement... during

Yemeni Attack on Abu Dhabi

January 24th, 1:58pm (al Manar)

U.S. troops at Al-Dhafra Air Base in Abu Dhabi, took

shelter in bunkers, during Monday’s Yemeni aerial

attack, according to US media.

Saudi Arabia and UAE were hit on Monday by drones

and ballistic missiles, in retaliation for the ongoing

aggression on Yemen, the Yemeni Armed

Forces announced.

In a statement, Yemeni Armed Forces said “Yemen

Tornado-2 Operation” targeted the Saudi and

Emirati depth, with drones and

ballistic missiles.

Several ballistic missiles, dubbed “Zoulfikar”, hit
Al-Dhafra airbase in Abu Dhabi as well as other

sensitive sites in the Emirati capital.

“Sammad-3” drones also targeted vital posts

in Dubai, according to the statement.

The command of the US forces at the air base rejected

to clarify whether the interception of the two Yemeni

missiles was carried out by the US defenses.

Yemen has been since March 2015 under a brutal

aggression by the Saudi-led coalition. Tens of

thousands of Yemenis have been injured

and martyred in Saudi-led strikes, with

the vast majority being civilians.

The coalition has been also imposing a blockade on

the impoverished country’s ports and airports as a

part of its aggression, which is aimed at restoring

power to fugitive former president Abdrabbuh

Mansour Hadi.

Meanwhile, Yemen is home to the world’s largest

humanitarian crisis, with at least 7 million people

on the brink of famine and hundreds of

thousands suffering from cholera.

Source: Al-Manar English Website

_______________________________

NATO begins naval exercises

in the Mediterranean Sea

by Elsy Fors Garzon

January 24th, 1:51pm (Prensa Latina)

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

reported today, in a statement, the start of
the Neptune Coup 22 maneuvers in the

Mediterranean Sea, a show of force

that aims to raise tensions

with Russia.

The report released by the Allied Command of Joint

Forces in Naples specified that the US aircraft

carrier, Harry S. Truman (CVN-75)..... will

participate in these maritime exercises,

...which will include training in
long-distance attacks.

Neptune Strike 22 takes place in the middle of a

complex scenario -- where the purpose of the

Atlantic Alliance is to increase its military

presence on the borders with Russia.

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitri Peskov said

Monday that NATO’s statements about increasing

its contingent and sending forces to Eastern

Europe, increases tensions in the region.

Peskov recalled that Moscow began talks and

consultations on security guarantees for

Russia and “we hope this week we will

receive written responses to our

proposals, which are designed

to help us avoid tense

situations in

the future.”

Last Friday, press secretary of the US Department
of Defense, John F. Kirby, acknowledged... that
although Neptune Coup 22 has been planned
since 2020, the current tensions with

Russia regarding the Ukraine issue,
were ''taken into consideration''
when deciding to carry

out the exercise.

____________________

Dutch Senator, Tiny Kox,

elected new PACE President

January 24th, 1:37pm (TASS)

Tiny Kox of the Netherlands has been elected

President of the Parliamentary Assembly of

the Council of Europe (PACE) for this year.

The results of the voting were announced at the first

meeting of the PACE winter session, on Monday.

Kox scored 164 votes in his support. His only rival,

Ukrainian lawmaker, Maria Mezentseva, who

heads Ukraine’s delegation to the PACE,

was supported by 80 votes.

________________________________

Syria, Russia, Hold

Joint Air Force Patrols

near Golan Heights

January 24th,1:09pm (al Manar)

Syrian and Russian military jets jointly patrolled the

airspace along Syria’s borders on Monday... and

plan to make such flights regular, the Interfax

news agency quoted Russia’s defense

ministry as saying.

The path of the group, which includes fighter, fighter-

bomber and early warning and control aircraft,

included the Golan Heights, the line which

has seen repeated Israeli aerial

aggressions against Syria.

Russian forces have been present in Syria since 2015

under a request by the Syrian Government, in order

to help Damascus in its war on terror.

Source: Agencies

_____________________________

Ukraine, Lithuania, file motion

to challenge Russia’s PACE

delegation powers

January 24th, 12:58pm (TASS)

Some Eastern European participants of the

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of

Europe (PACE), challenged the powers of

Russia's delegation to the organization.

This was announced in the opening

of the PACE winter session in

Strasbourg, livestreamed

by PACE’s press office.

A total of 2 protests were filed. The initiative,

introduced by the Lithuanian lawmaker,

Emanuelis Zingeris, was supported

by 49 session participants, while

the 'initiative' introduced by the

Ukrainian lawmaker, Yevgeny

Kravchuk, was supported

by 47.

According to the PACE rules, at least 30 votes from

five different national delegations, were required.

Zingeris and Ukraine’s delegations regularly file

protests against the Russian delegation’s

power, at the opening of every
winter session.

This is being done at the first meeting of the year

.....because this is when all delegations file
their applications for participation in this

year’s Parliamentary Assembly work.

During the first day of the session.... the powers of

the delegations are being confirmed automatically

...unless challenged by PACE members.

At present, the PACE Monitoring Committee will have

to prepare a report and a draft resolution within
24 hours. Until the report is published and
the resolution is adopted, the Russian

delegation enjoys all powers... (can

participate in meetings, speak

and vote).

Under the draft resolution, the Russian delegation

...won’t be allowed to vote. The debate on the

powers of the Russian delegation will take

place on Wednesday, January 26th.

______________________________

Diplomat slams ‘report’ of Xi

asking Putin not to attack

Ukraine - as jaw-dropping

fake news

January 24th, 12:53pm (TASS)

A Bloomberg report about the Chinese President Xi

Jinping, allegedly asking Russian leader Vladimir

Putin, not to attack Ukraine during the Beijing

Olympics is spectacular fake news, Russian

Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman, Maria

Zakharova told the Ekho Moskvy (or

Echo of Moscow) radio station

on Monday.

"Bloomberg has publicized utter jaw-dropping fake

news recently, claiming that Xi Jinping had asked

Putin not to attack Ukraine... during the Olympic

Games," she noted.

"Frankly speaking, I didn't expect this level of
disinformation from Bloomberg; not because
it is an unconfirmed fact, but because it
is sheer impossibility & unbelievable

stupidity... I could have expected it

from some US newspaper, but not

from Bloomberg. They used to be

less susceptible to these types of

propped-up leaks, but now, they

seem to have given up on that,"

Zakharova stated.

The Russian diplomat pointed out that while

working on the report, Bloomberg did not

request any comments from the Russian

presidential press service, or from the

Foreign Ministry. "That’s not like

Bloomberg.. is it? They maintain

virtually round-the-clock contact

with high-ranking Russian

officials on all issues,"

she emphasized.

The Bloomberg agency reported earlier, citing an
unidentified diplomat in Beijing, that Chinese

President Xi Jinping... could have allegedly

asked Putin.. not to attack Ukraine during

the Olympics scheduled for February 4-20.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman
Maria Zakharova slammed the report as
"an information black op" ...carried out
by the United States.

Furthermore, the Chinese Embassy in Russia

rejected the report as fake news.. and
a provocation.

___________________________________

Risk of Ukraine staging
provocations in Donbass
higher than before

— Kremlin

January 24th, 12:52pm (TASS)

The risk of the Ukrainian Armed Forces staging

provocations in Donbass, is now higher than

before, Russian Presidential Spokesperson,

Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on Monday --

when asked what was the Kremlin’s view

of the risk of a Ukrainian offensive and

provocations --- against the self-

proclaimed Donbass republics.

"The risk is there, it is very high. It is higher than

before," the Kremlin spokesman pointed out.

At the same time, Peskov declined to answer the

question: when, according to the Kremlin,

Ukraine might launch an offensive

operation in Donbass.

"Let’s not behave like our vis-a-vis, and engage in

what looks like hysterical actions," the Russian

presidential spokesman said, hinting to

Western allegations about Russia’s

possible invasion of Ukraine.

__________________________________

Russian military cannot ignore

NATO’s activity in Europe,

says Kremlin

January 24th, 12:52pm (TASS)

NATO’s activity near Russia’s borders cannot be

ignored by the Russian military, Kremlin

Spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said on

Monday --- speaking about the

participation of the Baltic

Fleet’s warships in

naval maneuvers.

"These actions and NATO’s increased activities

near our borders, cannot be ignored by our

military, which is responsible for the

security of our country," Russia's

presidential spokesman

pointed out.

When asked about whether the participation of the

Russian Baltic Fleet’s warships in drills could be

viewed as a response to the deployment of

NATO’s forces to Eastern Europe and the

Baltic states, Peskov advised reporters

to address this question to Russia’s

Defense Ministry.

"After all, there is a constant process of drills,

maneuvers and military development, that

has never ceased and will be continued,"

the Kremlin spokesman said.

The press office of the Russian Baltic Fleet reported

earlier on Monday that the Fleet’s task force, made

up of the corvettes, Stoiky and Soobrazitelny, had

departed from the naval base of Baltiysk for long

-distance deployment, to participate in naval

drills under the general command of Navy

Commander-in-Chief... Admiral Nikolay

Yevmenov, to ensure naval presence

and demonstrate the St. Andrew’s

(Russian naval) flag in various

parts of the World Ocean.

In compliance with the 2022 plan of the Russian Armed

Forces’ training, a series of naval drills will be held in

all the areas of responsibility of the Navy’s fleets.

The naval maneuvers will focus on measures by the

Navy and the Aerospace Force to protect Russia’s

national interests in the World Ocean and counter

military threats to Russia from the direction of

seas and oceans.

_____________________________

Putin takes measures to ensure

Russia’s security at proper level

— Kremlin spokesman

January 24th, 12:40pm (TASS)

Russian President Vladimir Putin takes necessary

measures to ensure Russia’s security and the

interests of its citizens at a proper level, the

Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told

journalists Monday.

"The head of our state, as the commander in chief, and

the man who defines the foreign policy of our country,

he takes necessary measures to ensure our common

security and to protect our interests," Peskov said.

"It was us who initiated the negotiations, the

consultation [on guarantees of security for

Russia], and we expect to receive written

responses to our proposals - which aim

to help us avoid such tense situations

in the future," he added.

According to the spokesman, Russia currently

exists in an "aggressive environment."

"We read statements made by NATO countries,

totally unfriendly, made towards us. This is

the reality that we exist in,"

Peskov concluded.

Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov

met with US Secretary of State Antony B Blinken,

discussing further steps... in regards to

Moscow’s proposals on guarantees

of security.

__________________________________

Russia expects separate response

on security proposals from NATO

— Kremlin

January 24th, 12:33pm (TASS)

Moscow expects the United States and NATO to

provide their separate responses to Russia’s

proposals on security guarantees, Kremlin

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"Yes, we do expect [them to do it], based on how

[NATO Secretary General] Mr Stoltenberg put it.

He said that such a response will be prepared,"

Peskov said, in a response to a question.

At the same time, Peskov declined to specify if

Moscow planned to publish the West’s written

responses. "Let’s not discuss the response

that we haven’t received yet," he said.

According to him, the same goes for

NATO’s response. "We would prefer

to get it first," Peskov added.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said,

following talks in Geneva, that it would be

right to make Washington’s response to

Moscow’s proposals public. However,

the Washington Post reported that

"US officials asked their Russian

counterparts to keep the

document secret."

According to the newspaper, "the Biden

administration’s written response will

include... US security proposals and

demonstrate Washington’s interest

in continuing dialogue" but "fall

short of Russia’s demands to

close NATO’s open-

door policy."

________________________________

West using legacy media, official

resources more often, to spread

disinfo, says diplomat

January 24th, 12:33pm (TASS)

Western countries are more frequently employing

legacy media, or official sources, to disseminate

disinformation about Russia’s alleged plans of

aggression against Ukraine, since social

networks are not able to keep the hype

on this topic on life support for them,

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokes-

woman Maria Zakharova said

on Monday.

"Today, [this disinformation].... is being published in

official, traditional mass media daily, because they

(Western nations - TASS), are unable to keep this

story going on social media any longer. That, is

why they are turning to traditional mainstream

media to publish this disinformation, or even

use their own official resources, like the

British did," she said in an interview

with the Ekho Moskvy... (Echo of

Moscow) radio station, referring

to recent published allegations

by the UK Foreign Office, on

Russia’s plans to "install" a

pro-Russian government

in Ukraine.

According to Zakharova, the British would have never

have posted anything of the kind on an official web-

site, unless it was a "sensational story." "They

typically behave in a different way, by citing

sources, through leaks and so on. But they

chose this option and published the state-

ment on the official website, & even their

own media laughed at them --- because
this provocation looked too obvious,"

she noted.

The UK Foreign Office said late on Saturday, that

Moscow was seeking to "install" a pro-Russian

government in Kiev, with former member of

Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada (parliament)

Yevgeny Murayev as its head.

London claimed it allegedly had information that

Russia’s intelligence services maintain contacts

with a number of former Ukrainian politicians,

including Sergey Arbuzov (Ukraine’s First

Deputy Prime Minister in 2012-2014 and

interim Prime Minister in 2014), Andrey

Kluyev (First Deputy Prime Minister in

2010-2012 and chief of the presidential

staff under former Ukrainian President

Viktor Yanukovich), Vladimir Sivkovich

(former Deputy Head of the Ukrainian

National Security & Defense Council),

and Nikolay Azarov (who served as

Prime Minister of Ukraine

in 2010-2014).

Murayev has already slammed this publication

as groundless --- saying that he has been on

Moscow’s sanction list for three years and

cannot enter Russia. Moreover, in his

words, his father’s assets in Russia

have been frozen. Murayev called

on the British side to stop

fomenting inflammatory

activities.

______________________________

DPR head says republic’s

armed forces are on

high combat alert

January 24th, 12:19pm (TASS)

The army of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s

Republic (DPR) is on high combat alert, but the

authorities are doing their utmost to settle

the conflict peacefully, DPR head Denis

Pushilin said on Monday.

"Naturally, we are now on high combat alert because

we don’t know what to expect from Ukraine. On our

part, we are sparing no effort to settle the conflict

peacefully," he said in an interview with the

Rossiya-1 television channel.

He also pointed to a serious media campaign in

Ukraine that accompanies developments at the

contact line.

"I mean that Ukraine invites foreign journalists to the

contact line as though they are supposed to start

recording something. Naturally, I am speaking

about instructors who are near the contact

line, taking photos and openly posting

them on the internet. These are

instructors from the United

States and Great Britain,"

he said.

______________________________

Kiev actively preparing for

forceful resolution of

Donbass conflict,

DPR says

January 24th, 11:57am (TASS)

Ukraine continues its attempts to destabilize the

situation in Donbass, and is actively preparing

to resolve the conflict by force, the Donetsk

People’s Republic (DPR) People’s Militia

deputy head, Eduard Basurin, stated

on Monday.

"Ukraine not only continues its attempts to destabilize

the situation in Donbass by shelling settlements, but

its preparations are well underway, to resolve the

conflict by force. The People’s Militia command

strongly urges its adversary -- to drop its

criminal intents," says the emergency

statement, published in the People’s

Militia’s Telegram channel.

The People’s Militia registered Ukrainian Armed

Forces’ (UAF) inside the Kiev’ force operation

in Donbass preparing for an offensive.

According to Basurin, the Ukrainian command is

pulling the UR-77 self-propelling minesweepers

to the contact line, and military vehicles are

being prepared for combat. Vacations for

all personnel in individual battalions and

brigades have been suspended, while all

commanders were ordered to remain in

their temporary deployment locations.

In addition, commissions arrived in tank

battalions from brigade headquarters to

supervise the preparation of weapons

and combat vehicles.

The DPR intelligence also obtained information
about the formation of armoured brigades
deeper in Ukrainian territory, and
their dispatch to Donbass.

Furthermore... Ukraine is relocating forces
from their permanent deployment location
in the Odessa region... disguised as a
"planned tactical special exercise."

All these facts confirm: that the UAF is preparing
for aggression against the Donetsk and Lugansk
People’s Republics, Basurin says.

The People’s Militia stated that it will provide a

response, should Kiev commence the forceful

resolution of the Donbass conflict, and it will

cause irreparable damage to the UAF.

"Acts of Ukrainian aggression against the DPR and

LPR will not be left without an appropriate reaction.

The Ukrainian army will suffer irreparable damage

that it will not recover from," Basurin said, calling

on Ukrainian servicemen to "reject taking part in

hostilities and executing the criminal orders of

their command.".

______________________________________

Ukrainian armed forces

intensify preparations

to invade Donbass

- Basurin

January 24th, 10:15am (DAN)

VKontakte

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Twitter

Odnoklassniki

Viber

DPR People's Militia Command strongly recommends

the Ukrainian military to abandon their plans of
an offensive against Donbass, the deputy

chief-of-staff of the Republican

People's Militia, Eduard

Basurin, said.

"We have recorded activities of Ukrainian armed

formations aimed at preparing for an offensive,"

he said.

All scheduled leave has been revoked in the units of
the 1st tank brigade, 53rd and 54th brigades' tank

battalions, 58th separate motorized brigade.

Their commanders are ordered to remain

in temporary dislocation quarters.

Driver-mechanics and spotters

are urgently discharged from

hospitals. Tanks and artillery

teams are being sent to the

Volnovakha, Andreyevka

and Dobropolye areas.

Special task units have been deployed to Avdeyevka

after completing their training under the command

of British instructors at the 142nd training centre.

"The DPR People's Militia Command strongly
recommends the Ukrainian military to

abandon their plans of an offensive

against Donbass. Aggression

against the Republics will

not remain unrepelled,"

Basurin said.

According to intelligence reports and sources,

Kiev forces are rigorously training radiation,

chemical and biological protection units,

and deploy high calibre MLR systems

in Donbass, and replenish their

ammo stocks.

____________________________

US, UK Withdraw Diplomats'

Families, Staff from Ukraine,

EU Says Not Following Suit

January 24th, 9:45am (FNA)

The US said it had instructed the families of its

diplomats to leave Kiev on Sunday, the same

day Ukraine said: it had received a second

batch of US weapons to boost its defense

amid an alleged threat of Russian

military invasion.

The US's non-essential embassy staff have also

been cleared to leave the Eastern European

country on a voluntary basis -- and US

citizens need to: "consider departing

now," the US State Department said,

adding that travel to Russia is also

discouraged, CGTN reported.

The UK also began withdrawing staff from its

embassy in Ukraine, the BBC reported on

Monday. But the European Union

(EU) said the block is not

following suit.

"We are not going to do the same thing because we

don't know any specific reasons," top European

Diplomat Josep Borrell said, adding that there

was no need to "dramatize" the situation
while talks with Russia continue.

Ukraine, in response, has called the US move to

withdraw diplomats' families, as "premature".

"We consider such a step by the American side,

premature and a display of excessive caution,"

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Oleg

Nikolenko, said in a statement.

Tensions have been running high between Moscow

and the West over Russia's massing of troops near

its border with Ukraine, a country divided by pro-

and anti-Russia elements that has over the past
several days, received two consignments of US
security assistance, including ammunition.

"The second bird in Kyiv! More than 80 tons of

weapons to strengthen Ukraine's defense

capabilities from our friends in the USA!

And this is not the end," said Ukraine's

Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov

on Twitter.

Washington has promised Ukraine

defensive aid totaling $200 million.

The West accuses Russia of planning a massive

military offensive against Ukraine, and claims

such as Russia is plotting to overthrow the

Ukrainian government and install a

"puppet regime" have added fuel

to the ongoing tension.

Moscow has repeatedly denied these allegations,

but warned that it could be forced to "eliminate

unacceptable threats to our security".

Apart from threatening Russia with severe sanctions,

the US and European countries have been stepping

up diplomatic efforts to resolve the standoff, with

British Foreign Minister, Liz Truss, planning a

visit to Moscow, and Washington proposing

a summit between US President Joe Biden

& his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Russia has said that, in order to deescalate tensions,

the West must meet its demand: of not expanding

the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Eastward

or deploying forces to Ukraine and other

ex-Soviet nations.

__________________________________

US Congresswoman urges

end to Israel’s Palestinian

homes demolition policy

January 22nd, 7:20pm (PressTV)

A US Congresswoman has condemned the Israeli

practice of the demolition of Palestinian-
owned homes, in the occupied East
al-Quds neighbourhood of Sheikh
Jarrah --- calling on the Israeli
authorities to quit
the policy.

Democratic Representative Marie Newman made the

appeal in a post on her Twitter account on Saturday

...after Israeli forces tore down the property of a

Palestinian man in Sheikh Jarrah, earlier this

week, displacing his entire family of over a

dozen, mainly children, the Palestinian

Information Centre reported.

Newman further noted that members of the Palestinian

family became homeless... after Israeli police forced

them out of their home in the middle of the night,

while pointing out that Israeli forces have

carried out over 1,000 demolitions

since 2016, in the same area.

On January 19th, an Israeli mechanical digger, under

the tight protection of Israeli soldiers, tore down the

property of Mahmoud Salhiyeh, in Sheikh Jarrah.

The Israeli police cordoned off the area where

the house was located, during and after

the demolition.

Local sources said a large number of police forces

stormed the house and arrested 20 activists and

six individuals from the 18-member Salhiyeh

family, including Mahmoud. They assaulted

the other members of the family, including

his nine-year-old daughter and her aunt.

The family said that the Israeli forces had cut off

electricity from the house, as they raided it,

and started firing tear gas, to block

everyone’s vision.

The Israeli regime presses ahead with its settlement

expansion & land-grab policy across the Palestinian
territories, despite the international outcry. Many
believe such a policy is aimed at forcing the
Palestinians to leave their homeland, by
making it difficult for them to

live there.

Sheikh Jarrah has been the scene of frequent

crackdowns by Israeli police, on Palestinians

protesting at the displacement of dozens of

Palestinian families from their homes.

Since Israel seized East al-Quds in the 1967 war,

Israeli settler organizations have claimed

ownership of land in Sheikh Jarrah and

have filed multiple lawsuits to force

Palestinians from the area.

Most of the international community considers Israeli

settlement construction illegal under international

law and an obstacle to the so-called two-state

solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Nearly 700,000 Israelis live in settlements built since

the 1967 occupation of the Palestinian territories

of the West Bank and East al-Quds.

The UN Security Council has - in several resolutions, -

condemned the Tel Aviv regime’s settlement projects

in the occupied Palestinian lands. Palestinians want

the West Bank as part of a future independent state

--- with East al-Quds as its capital.

_______________________________