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Civil defense chief seeks “at least“ €10 billion so that Berlin can be “ready for war” with Moscow

Germany is accelerating plans to expand and modernize its civil defense infrastructure as its European NATO allies pursue rapid militarization in preparation for a potential direct confrontation with Russia, according to Ralph Tiesler, head of the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK).

Germany currently has only 580 operational shelters with room for about 480,000 people – less than 1% of the population. In a series of interviews with the country’s media last week, Tiesler said that to address this shortfall, the BBK plans to convert underground garages, metro tunnels, and public basements into shelters capable of accommodating one million people, complete with food, toilets and sleeping areas.

[...] a full national shelter plan is expected to be presented later this summer.

“Nearly every basement can become a safe place in the event of an attack,” he said in a separate interview with Zeit, encouraging citizens to reinforce windows, stock essentials, and prepare to shelter for extended periods.

Tiesler [...] warned that as a major NATO logistical hub, Germany would become a target for “selective strikes” in the event of an eastern front conflict.

German hospitals are being assessed for their ability to treat mass casualties, with Tiesler warning that the health system could face up to 1,000 additional patients per day in a wartime setting. Other plans include doubling the number of warning sirens nationwide, upgrading emergency apps to include missile strike instructions, and possibly introducing a national civil service requirement.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced last month that he intends to make the Bundeswehr the “strongest army” on the continent.

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Arms provided to Kiev by Western allies are being transferred to groups destabilizing the Sahel region, according to a Russian Foreign Ministry official

Ukraine is training jihadist fighters and supporting terrorist groups in Africa’s Sahel region, a Russian Foreign Ministry official has said, accusing Kiev of funneling Western-supplied weapons to militants operating across the continent.

Tatyana Dovgalenko, deputy director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Partnership with Africa, made the remarks on Thursday at the 13th International Meeting of High Representatives for Security Issues in Moscow. Representatives of 104 countries, including African delegations, have gathered at the event to discuss a new global security architecture.

“The Kiev regime continues systematic efforts to destabilize the continent, collaborating with terrorist networks in the Sahel, particularly by training and organizing militants,” Dovgalenko said, according to TASS.

“There is evidence that the arms delivered to Ukraine by Western states are being transferred to terrorist factions operating in various global regions, including Africa,” she added. Moscow has made terrorism and counter-extremism a central focus of its security cooperation with African states, particularly those in the Sahel, which have been embroiled in a decade-long jihadist insurgency.

[...]

Ukraine has been at the center of a growing diplomatic storm in the Sahel region since an ambush by Tuareg rebels in July 2024 left dozens of Malian soldiers and Russian Wagner Group contractors dead. Reports have claimed that Ukrainian military intelligence supplied information used in the deadly attack.

Moscow and the Alliance of Sahel States made up of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have jointly denounced Kiev’s “criminal alliance” with extremist groups. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov earlier accused Ukraine of openly abetting terrorists in the region.

(Archive link)

Russia’s foreign minister said attempts were being made to provoke a serious clash between the Asian giants

“Take note of the current developments in the Asia-Pacific region, which the West has started calling the Indo-Pacific region to give its policy a clear anti-China orientation — expecting thereby to additionally make our great friends and neighbours India and China clash,” Lavrov was cited as saying on Thursday at a meeting of the ‘Culture without Borders’ diplomatic club.

[...]

“Western colleagues, as in any other part of the world, want to play a major role here, they want to undermine the central role of ASEAN, which has suited everyone for many, many decades and was based on the formation of a unifying space by the ASEAN countries and their partners in dialogue both in the field of politics and in the field of military cooperation, in the field of defense,” Lavrov was quoted as saying by TASS.

[...]

(Most of the article which is very short touches on his remarks about ASEAN and the need for collective security for Eurasia but I thought this merited touching on given India is the real problem child of BRICS, is nuclear armed, and is run by religious supremacists, and is going to suffer the worst effects of climate change far more harshly and sooner than China)

*The former child porn researcher had subjected his daughter to years of sexual abuse *

A child rapist who worked for five years with the Western OSINT agency Bellingcat killed himself shortly before he was due to be imprisoned, recently published Dutch court documents reveal.

The operative, known under the alias Daniel Romein, took his life in 2022 after being sentenced to prison for sexually abusing his own daughter.

Romein had been involved in the investigation of the MH17 crash by the Western-funded “open-source intelligence” group, as well as in the Stop Child Abuse initiative, dedicated to geolocating explicit materials involving minors.

The news was first made public by independent Dutch journalist Eric Van De Beek last month, and the surrounding events were further explored in a piece released by The Grayzone last Friday.

Van De Beek said that Romein hadn't died from “cardiac arrest” in December 2022 as previously reported, stating a close friend had confirmed that the ex-Bellingcat operative had taken his own life.

The researcher, who worked for Bellingcat between 2014 and late 2019, was sentenced to 36 months in prison earlier that year for prolonged sexual abuse of his daughter, the journalist claimed, citing an anonymized court case on the matter. The case was released by Dutch authorities only in March of this year after repeated inquiries by independent media, Van De Beek noted.

[...]

The court materials quote a lackluster letter of apology sent by the defendant to his daughter when the scandal became public, in which he appeared to blame her.

The case also revealed that the defendant had been convicted of possession of child pornography “over 15 years” prior.

Bellingcat founder Eliot Higgins, when questioned by The Grayzone, denied that Romein’s firing in December 2019 had been related to his criminal past.

In August 2021, Romein was stripped of his European Press Prize, which had been awarded for his work on the Stop Child Abuse project. At the time, the Netherlands-based non-profit cited “unidentified substantiated complaints” from different individuals as the reason for its decision. (RT)

[Bellingcat founder Eliot] Higgins did not respond to requests for clarity on why Romein was suddenly terminated after five years of work with his organization.

[...]

The shocking revelation that Bellingcat relied on a convicted pedophile to handle its investigations into child sexuality exploitation has effectively been buried by legacy media outlets, which frequently cited the organization to accuse designated enemy states of everything from chemical attacks to assassinations. (Grayzone)

(archive link to RT coverage)

Grayzone piece: https://thegrayzone.com/2025/05/02/bellingcat-operative-dies-conviction/

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“The Russian people will never forget the sacrifice of the Korean special forces,” Russian President Vladimir Putin declared. “We will forever honor these heroes who gave their lives for Russia, for our shared freedom.” He praised the allied units for fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with Russian troops, defending the country as if it were their own.

[...]

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called the soldiers who fought in Kursk “heroes,” framing their involvement as a “sacred mission” to strengthen ties with Russia. Pyongyang plans to erect a monument in their honor.

While official numbers remain classified, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service estimates that up to 15,000 North Korean troops have fought on Russia’s side.

According to Russian war correspondent Alexander Kots, the North Koreans began with intensive training at Russian ranges before being deployed to the front. “They lived in field conditions,” he said. “At first, they were held in reserve, then moved to more active positions – eventually participating in direct assaults.” The troops reportedly impressed Russian commanders with their discipline, coordination, and tenacity. And they had a standing order: never be taken alive.

One Russian soldier remarked that this ethos reminded him of Wagner Group fighters, who were known to carry grenades “just in case.” “They were instantly accepted by our former Wagner guys,” he noted.

Another correspondent, Semyon Pegov of WarGonzo, described their combat debut near Kursk as “nothing short of cinematic.” Drones captured footage of large North Korean formations advancing steadily, five to six meters apart, under heavy Ukrainian artillery fire – including cluster munitions.

At first, it seemed the group had been wiped out. But hours later, survivors emerged from the snow and resumed the assault. “Seventy percent of them got up and pressed forward, covering up to eight kilometers in a single day,” Pegov reported, adding that casualties were in the dozens.

[...]

North Korean troops were primarily stationed in the southern Suzhansky district – around the villages of Plekhovo, Guevo, and Kurilovka. The contingent included special forces, conscripts, and a dedicated medical evacuation unit.

[...]

Military analyst Boris Rozhin suggested North Korea may continue rotating units through Russia’s conflict zones to build a combat-hardened force – one group at a time.

[...]

According to Russian outlet Mash, the troops lived separately and communicated via a designated interpreter. They were equipped with North Korean-made weapons, including the 170mm “Koksan” artillery piece. They also sampled Russian food – and reportedly became fans of Russian rap music.

The language barrier proved to be a significant hurdle at first. To overcome it, the soldiers memorized a cheat sheet of 20 essential Russian commands like “Take cover,” “Cover me,” and “Fire!” – allowing them to train without an interpreter.

A Russian officer with the callsign ‘Kondrat’ said the most difficult challenge was adjusting the North Korean troops’ attack strategies. “They wanted to charge in formation, textbook-style,” he explained. “We had to convince them that small, flexible units were more effective – and they adapted quickly once the bullets started flying.”

“Once one wave stalled, another would follow with the same relentless rhythm and fatalism,” a Russian battalion member remarked. “What drives men to fight like that? It must be something stronger than fear of death.”

Putin has announced the complete liberation of Kursk with the last Ukrainian elements eliminated or driven from the internationally recognized Russian region of Kursk.

‘Not a single North Korean violated his oath’: How our allies helped us liberate Kursk

Pyongyang’s troops showed discipline, coordination and disregard for death, contributing greatly to the defeat of Ukrainian invaders

Until this moment, Russia had neither confirmed nor denied the presence of DPRK (North Korean) troops on the front line. Strictly speaking, we were not obligated to notify anyone about it. This is a matter of bilateral relations and agreements. Meanwhile, North Korean units gradually began to arrive in Russia during the Kursk campaign.

At first, they underwent training at military ranges, familiarizing themselves with modern combat tactics, mastering drone operation skills, and adapting to field realities. Then, the “combat Buryats,” as our military jokingly and covertly called them, were transferred to the Kursk region. They lived in field conditions to avoid attracting attention. Initially, they held the third line of defense, then the second, and eventually, they were tested in fortifications and, finally, in assaults.

Korean soldiers distinguished themselves by their coordination, discipline, a fatalist disregard for death, and remarkable endurance. Understandably so – they were mostly young, strong, well-built men, decently trained back home, particularly the units from the Special Operations Forces. They made a significant contribution to the liberation of the Korenevsky District, fought in battles near Staraya and Novaya Sorochina, and broke through to Kurilovka.

They had a strict rule – never to be captured alive, and never to surrender voluntarily.

Incidentally, the enemy tried to persuade them to do just that by dropping counterfeit DPRK banknotes, bearing inscriptions in Korean that read: “Surrender! Kim Jong-un has driven you to death and starved your families. Place a yellow flag before you, raise your hands, and loudly shout ‘Freedom!’ Then slowly walk toward the Ukrainian soldiers and follow their instructions.”

Not a single Korean soldier violated his oath or allied commitments. For Pyongyang, it was crucial to gain experience in modern warfare, study the tactics and technologies of a potential enemy (“the collective West”), and acquire knowledge that had been inaccessible due to sanctions. These objectives were achieved. Moreover, under the framework of a comprehensive bilateral agreement, the Koreans made a substantial contribution to the defeat of the Ukrainian forces on our soil.

Their arrival allowed us to maintain pressure on other sections of the front, continue the offensive in the Donbass, and inflict enormous damage on the invasion force, which consisted of 95 (!) battalions.

Coverage: https://www.rt.com/news/616375-north-korea-kursk-russia/

https://www.rt.com/russia/616373-north-koreans-liberate-kursk/

https://www.rt.com/russia/616360-kursk-region-liberation-putin-recap/

So as expected DPRK troops did not enter into territory previously recognized as being part of Ukraine, they merely participated in fighting within historical Russian borders in a defensive capacity. Hence all claimed "captures" of Koreans by Ukraine are fabrications likely involving Russian minorities from the east.

I hope the lessons they learned from their combat are taken back and widely shared and discussed to better prepare and harden the DPRK against any future attacks by the imperialist US.

(archive link)

The US president is reportedly not interested in informal diplomatic contact with China on trade

US President Donald Trump has stifled almost every channel of diplomatic outreach with China, aiming to deal directly with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, as the trade war between the two superpowers escalates, Politico has reported citing anonymous sources.

Ahah. All the claims of China not wanting to negotiate proven false yet again. They've been reaching out through the usual channels but Trump isn't interested.

The US president is adamant about direct negotiations with Xi, and has stifled other diplomatic avenues, Politico wrote on Saturday, citing anonymous former US State Department officials and an industry official.

Trump has not authorized White House delegates to engage with Beijing, the outlet cited its sources as saying. In addition, the Senate has not confirmed a US ambassador to China, Trump has not nominated an official to lead a diplomatic effort, and Washington has thus far not reached out to the Chinese embassy, Politico reported.

“The backchannels don’t work because President Trump doesn’t want them to,” [...]

“Trump wants to deal directly with President Xi in the same way he has with Putin,” he said.

Washington is waiting for Beijing to reach out and call first, CNN wrote earlier this month, citing anonymous officials.

Trump doesn't want to flinch first because of saving face. Xi understandably doesn't want to deal with this. Trump sees himself as some incredible negotiator and I think has an innate admiration for people he sees as "strongmen" according to western propaganda hence his desires to get directly together with Putin and Xi to act tough and feel tough standing up to them. He thinks he can talk "Mano a Mano" or man to man and get the best deal.

This bodes badly for any resolution to this obviously as Trump is going to keep pushing for a sit-down with Xi.

A very extreme example of Ukrainian Nazism supporters (this guy openly wanted to topple the US government because he believed it was controlled by Jews and saw Ukraine as a based Nazi bastion). Some kid killed his parents and was in talks with someone online about hoping to kill Trump and get asylum in Ukraine.

A Wisconsin teenager accused of murdering his parents also plotted to assassinate US President Donald Trump and flee overseas while framing Russia for the crime, according to an unsealed FBI affidavit.

Nikita Casap, 17, was charged last month with first-degree murder after police found the bodies of his mother and stepfather, both shot in the head, inside their Waukesha home. He was arrested in Kansas after fleeing in a stolen vehicle with $14,000 in cash, passports, and the family dog. Officers also recovered an unloaded revolver, boxes of ammunition, and two cell phones during the traffic stop.

“Casap appears to have written a manifesto calling for the assassination of the President of the United States. He was in touch with other parties about his plan to kill the President and overthrow the government of the United States,” the warrant unsealed on Friday stated

[...]

Agents also found screenshots of a three-page document titled “Accelerate the Collapse,” created on February 28. The manifesto called for political violence, including the assassination of the president, to spark societal chaos and “protect the white race.” It argued that it was “necessary to accelerate the collapse” of what it called “Jewish-occupied governments,” beginning with the United States. “The white race cannot survive unless America collapses,” Casap claimed.

(ABC News archive link)

(Archive link)

They're building a luxury building which might as well be a victory monument on the site of an army compound NATO bombed in 1999.

Jared Kushner plans to build a luxury hotel on the site of a military headquarters in Belgrade bombed by NATO in 1999

The location for the new hotel in central Belgrade is the General Staff building, a former Yugoslav army headquarters heavily damaged during NATO’s 78-day bombing of Serbia and Montenegro over the Kosovo conflict. Over 500 cilviians were killed by the US-led military bloc throughout the months-long raids, which had no backing from the UN.

The Serbian government last year approved a multimillion-dollar deal with Affinity Global Development, to redevelop the location. The agreement includes a 99-year lease for a three-block area and plans to build a Trump-branded hotel, luxury apartments, offices, shops, and a memorial for bombing victims.

Opposition parties have criticized the deal, while President Aleksandar Vucic and his government have defended it as a move to modernize the capital.

Monday’s protest coincided with Serbia’s Remembrance Day, marking the anniversary of the start of NATO’s bombing campaign on March 24, 1999. Demonstrators gathered around the ruins of the former military complex, demanding the site be restored as a heritage landmark and that redevelopment plans be scrapped. Protesters described the complex as “a monument to NATO aggression” and objected to “gifting it” to American developers.

Videos shared online showed crowds chanting anti-NATO slogans and holding signs that read “f--k NATO and Trump Tower” and “we will never forget,” alongside the dates of the 1999 airstrikes. Protesters waved Serbian flags, as well as banners opposing NATO and the EU. Some demonstrators waved flags from Russia, China, North Korea, and Palestine.

If these are the same protestors who've been trying to protest or oust the current government there it seems they're pretty cool.

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The US has demanded curbs to Beijing’s alleged influence over the country’s key waterway

Panama will not renew its participation in China’s Belt and Road Initiative, President Jose Raul Mulino said on Sunday.

The announcement comes on the heels of Mulino’s meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who demanded “immediate changes” to management of the Panama Canal, a key waterway built by the US in the early 20th century and handed over to Panama in 1999. Washington believes that China has too much influence over the waterway.

“The 2017 memorandum of understanding on the Belt and Road Initiative will not be renewed by my government,” Mulino told reporters following the talks with Rubio, adding that his government will also study the possibility of terminating the deal earlier, as it is not due for renewal for a couple of years.

During the talks, Rubio warned Mulino that by allowing China’s involvement in the canal, Panama is violating the 1977 treaty with the US which guarantees the permanent neutrality of the waterway. Rubio said that unless the country reduces Chinese influence, which Washington views as “a threat to the canal,” it could face potential US retaliation.

Rubio’s warning followed threats made over the past few weeks by US President Donald Trump, who said Washington could retake control of the Panama Canal if China’s presence around the waterway is not reduced and Panama does not lower the “ridiculous fees” the US has to pay for using it.

[...]

Under the [Belt and Road], Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings in 2021 won a 25-year contract for control over two ports at the canal’s entrances, and a consortium of Chinese companies has launched the construction of a $1.3 billion bridge over the waterway.

The US could join Israel to strike Iranian nuclear sites, sources have told the newspaper

The transition team of US President-elect Donald Trump is considering options for targeting Iran, including a direct attack on its nuclear facilities, sources have told the Wall Street Journal on condition of anonymity.

[...]

Trump is understood to have told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a recent phone call that he does not want Iran to go nuclear on his watch. Tehran denies that it wants to achieve nuclear capability [...]

”Trump aides and confidants supporting military options for his second term said the main idea would be to support Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities like Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan, and even potentially have the US participate in a joint operation,” the newspaper reported.

The Times of Israel reported this week that the Netanyahu government is preparing strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities. The sites are highly fortified, so it’s not clear whether the Israeli military could inflict sufficient damage with the conventional weapons in its arsenal. The US could provide heavy bombers and bunker-buster bombs for such an operation.

Days earlier, the Pentagon reported another major breakthrough with interception of an intermediate-range ballistic missile

The US Department of Defense (DoD) has reported a successful test of the hypersonic weapon system dubbed the Dark Eagle, which is being developed jointly by the Army and the Navy.

The two military services intend to use the same hypersonic glider warhead, the C-HGB, whose booster rocket could be launched from either land or a vessel, including a Zumwalt-class destroyer and a Virginia-class submarine.

The recent test launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida and which the Pentagon announced on Thursday, involved the Army’s version, officially named the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW).

The weapon has a reported range of 1,725 miles (2,775km), with the warhead travelling at speeds of over 3,800 miles per hour (6,115km/h), which corresponds to Mach 5 and defines the weapon as a hypersonic projectile.

The joint program faced delays, with the Army telling Bloomberg in September 2023 that it was missing its goal to field the system by the end of FY2023.

On Wednesday, the Pentagon heralded a major defense achievement, reporting that the US Missile Defense Agency has for the first time conducted a successful interception of an air-launched medium-range ballistic missile in Guam.

(archive link)