Russia repels US-supplied missile attack on Crimean Bridge – minister
RT | May 31, 2024
The Russian military this week repelled Kiev’s largest missile attack yet on the strategic Crimean Bridge, Defense Minister Andrey Belousov has said.
Speaking at a meeting of defense ministers of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in Kazakhstan on Friday, the defense chief said Ukraine had fired ten US-supplied ATACMS at the bridge on Wednesday night, which had a flight time of less than two minutes.
“All missiles were shot down. As a result, hundreds of lives were saved,” Belousov said.
On Thursday, the Russian Defense Ministry said Russian air defenses had destroyed eight ATACMS missiles, which have a range of up to 300km, as well as eight aerial and two maritime drones over the Black Sea.
The Ukrainian military has confirmed that they deployed ATACMS missiles in the area, but insisted that the strikes had targeted a ferry crossing point on the peninsula. It also claimed to have inflicted “considerable” damage on two Russian transport ships. Local authorities have confirmed the damage but insisted that it was limited to shattered windows.
Destroying the Russian bridge is “something that we really want,” Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky told German media earlier this year.
Kiev has launched multiple attacks on the bridge, but the strategic link has only been damaged twice, with several people killed in both incidents. The first was in October 2022, when a truck exploded on the bridge, and the second was in July 2023 when a maritime drone attack took place.
According to Belousov, in May alone, the Russian military intercepted more than 1,000 Ukrainian drones, over 250 HIMARS and Vampire missiles, in excess of 80 Hammer guided bombs, 50 ATACMS rockets, and eight SCALP cruise missiles – all of which had been supplied to Ukraine by Western countries.
Russia has repeatedly denounced arms shipments to Kiev, warning that they will only prolong the conflict, but will not change its ultimate outcome.
Macron wants France to ‘go to war with Russia’ – Le Pen
RT | May 31, 2024
French politician Marine Le Pen has accused President Emmanuel Macron of wanting to “go to war with Russia” in an interview with France Info that aired on Thursday. The three-time presidential candidate said that Macron’s recent remarks on sending NATO trainers to Ukraine and allowing Kiev to use Western-supplied weapons to strike certain targets in Russia risk turning the current conflict into the next “world war.”
Le Pen’s comments come amid intense discussions in the West on how far into Russia Kiev should be allowed to strike using Western long-range weapons. Several NATO governments have said they are in favor of strikes on Russian territory, while NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has urged member-states to “lift some of” their restrictions on the use of Western arms.
Macron weighed into the discussion on Tuesday, opining that NATO should allow Ukraine to “neutralize military sites” inside Russia “from which Ukraine is being attacked,” even if they are far behind the front line. Le Pen slammed the idea, arguing that it “creates the risk of a global conflict.”
Le Pen said that the French leader’s views led her to “conclud[e] that Emmanuel Macron wants France to dive head first into war with Russia.” The right-wing politician said that she “extremely firmly opposes” his positions, which could “create an absolutely staggering danger” for France.
Le Pen previously accused Macron of “playing politics with war” and “hijacking” the Ukraine conflict for his electoral agenda. She has consistently opposed plans to admit Ukraine into NATO and the EU, place economic sanctions on Russia and to deliver heavy weapons to Kiev.
On Friday, NATO’s Stoltenberg announced that “several” of the bloc’s nations had never placed any restrictions on Kiev’s use of Western weapons. Reports also emerged that the US, which had previously not allowed Ukraine to deploy American arms outside of what Washington recognizes as Ukrainian territory, had granted permission to use its systems to target certain parts of Russia.
The reports were confirmed by Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s office, which said that limited strikes are now allowed against direct threats to Kharkov Region, where Russian troops have recently made significant gains.
Moscow has repeatedly insisted that Western arms supplies to Kiev will only prolong the war, and accused Ukraine of using the weapons to attack civilian infrastructure within Russia. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Friday slammed the Western discussions about “allowing” Ukraine to strike deep inside Russia as “a classic NATO-style manipulation.”
Scott Ritter: Ukraine’s NATO Allies Dragging World Into Nuclear Armageddon
By Ekaterina Blinova – Sputnik – May 31, 2024
The West has misinterpreted Russia’s openness to dialogue on Ukraine as a sign of weakness and is now pushing the world to the edge of a disastrous all-out nuclear exchange, former US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter told Sputnik.
US President Joe Biden has authorized Ukraine to hit targets inside Russia with US-made weapons, bringing the conflict to a new level. White House officials claim that Washington’s new policy pertains only to what they call as “acts of self-defense” by the Ukrainian military that is continuing to retreat.
Previously, other NATO member states, including the UK, France and Sweden, gave a nod to the Zelensky regime to use their weapons systems to attack Russia.
The Kiev regime and its Western allies believe they can gain an advantage over Russia by confining its special military operation to Ukrainian territory, ex-US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter told Sputnik. This situation allows Ukraine to train its troops in neighboring NATO states and receive arms and other equipment from the alliance’s hubs, not making them Russia’s legitimate targets.
However, things could drastically change once NATO-grade missiles start flying into Russia’s territory with the approval of Western countries, according to the military expert.
“France is now giving Ukraine permission to use the SCALP air launched cruise missile against targets inside Russia,” Ritter said. “Now [French President Emmanuel Macron] claims it’s just military targets, there won’t be hitting any civilian infrastructure, but it doesn’t matter. The fact is, if the French Scalp missile is used to attack targets inside Russia, this isn’t Ukraine defending itself, it’s France attacking Russia,” he stated.
The military expert indicated that it is a widely accepted fact that Ukrainians lack the ability to pre-program long-range SCALP missiles armed with conventional warheads. Therefore, it would be necessary for French technicians to carry out this task. The question arises: where would they obtain the targeting data? According to Ritter, the French military relies on a network of Syracuse satellites to transmit the essential information required for SCALP missiles.
“The bottom line is it is French space reconnaissance that’s gathering information and transmitting the information to the people who program the SCALP. The French operators, using French communication systems that transmit data collected by French intelligence satellites. This is France attacking. Who picks the target? Ukraine. France? It doesn’t matter. It’s the French.”
Ritter spotlighted the fact that Moscow has recently signaled that it is well aware of who operates NATO-grade long-range missiles and who provides reconnaissance and communications.
“[Russian President Vladimir Putin] knows that it’s not Ukrainian space reconnaissance, it’s not Ukrainian communications, it’s not Ukrainian technicians that are doing the targeting. It is the French, it is the Germans. It is the British. It is the Americans. And therefore, if these missiles, these weapons systems that are now being greenlit by the respective Western nations, to be used by Ukraine to attack targets inside Russia, if this happens, this is no longer about Ukraine defending itself. It’s about NATO attacking Russia.”
The question then arises as to how Russia will respond to these attacks, continued the military expert. According to NATO member states, they authorize Ukraine to use their weapons against Russia as sovereign nations, not as a military bloc. According to Ritter, this apparently means that they invite Russia’s retaliation strikes inside their respective territories and will not invoke Article 5, stipulating collective defense of NATO member states. “Because if they do that, then it’s clear that this is a NATO confrontation against Russia,” he stressed.
“If NATO chooses then to respond by launching additional attacks against Russia (remember, these are retaliation attacks – Russia is retaliating against NATO attacks against its territory) this would be an all-out assault by NATO against Russia. And former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev made it clear that the Russian response would be nuclear. And this would lead to a general nuclear exchange and the end of the world. That’s where we’re at right now. This isn’t about helping Ukraine. This isn’t about Ukraine defending itself. This is about a larger plan by the collective West, by NATO, by the United States to strategically defeat Russia.”
The West’s major problem is that it has completely misread Russia since the outset of the conflict and considered Moscow’s calls for dialogue and negotiated settlement as a sign of weakness, according to the military analyst.
“Therefore the collective determination of the West is that they just continue to pressure Russia, ratchet up the pressure that Russia will fold like a house of cards, and run to the peace table and bring an end to this conflict. That’s not going to happen. This is a misreading of the situation by the West,” warned Ritter.
“And so the West now will attack Russia, trying to pressure Russia to the peace table. But all it will do is guarantee a Russian response that if the West doesn’t respond properly to that, if the West thinks that it therefore has the right to strike, Russian return will lead to Armageddon, the end of the world. That’s where we’re at today. This isn’t a game. This isn’t a joke. This is the end of all humanity,” the military expert cautioned.
Ukraine: Russia won’t escalate, US will
The aftermath of a Ukrainian attack on Belgorod, Russia, in May
BY M. K. BHADRAKUMAR | INDIAN PUNCHLINE | MAY 31, 2024
The United States’ proxy war with Russia is at another inflection point. The battleground is shifting dramatically to Russian territory — something without precedent even in the Cold War. How this pans out will be a momentous event in 21st century politics.
There are three defining issues here. One, the NATO strategy going forward, given the realisation in the West that there is no question of Russia being defeated in Ukraine; two, the constitutional crisis in Kiev with the presidential term of Vladimir Zelensky having run out on May 21; and, three, germane to all this, Russia’s intentions.
To be sure, the NATO and the EU are revamping their strategy while Russia hopes to remain “one foot ahead” of the West, as President Vladimir Putin put it.
Russia is not interested in an escalation as it is doing well in the war of attrition with Ukraine. Russia has effectively countered the US’ Mission Creep so far to push through all of its self-imposed limitations on aid to Ukraine and eventually breach those limits.
The big question today is how one could take the Biden Administration’s affirmation — stated by the White House National Security Council, the state department and the Pentagon — that it disfavours the use of western weaponry by Kiev to attack pre-war Russian territory.
An established pattern has set in whereby when Washington says some advanced weapon system is off limits for Ukraine, it actually turns out that Kiev just has to sit out for a few months so that Biden can cross the self-imposed red line.
Therefore, Russia will not take this as Washington’s final word. Curiously, the ground is being prepared to jettison the taboo, with both congressional Republicans and Secretary of State Blinken urging the White House to give the green light and both New York Times and Washington Post reporting that it is only a matter of time before the administration yields to formal American blessing to accelerate strikes on prewar Russia. (here and here)
The New York Times and Guardian reported on Thursday, in fact, a shift already in the US position that now allows Ukrainian US-supplied artillery to fire back at Russian batteries over the Russian border from Kharkov region and also to target concentrations of Russian forces massing on the border in Russia’s Belgorod region.
Meanwhile, a new phase is about to begin to conclude the Battle of Donbass, which, even after two years remains unfinished business. The entrenched Ukrainian military hubs in the region — Pokrovsk, Kramatorsk and Slovyansk — still threaten southern Donetsk Oblast.
Similarly, Volchansk on the Russian border facing Belgorod city and Kupyansk, also an important logistical point and railway node (almost 20 rail lines intersect in the town with about half track straight into Russia) are a thorn in the flesh for Russia’s border region.
Russians have openly stated that repeated raids into Belgorod city and its environs from the Kharkov Region needed to be countered with the creation of a “security zone”. Putin himself had spoken about this as early as in March.
From present indications, Russian operations are directed on two Ukrainian towns close to the border — Volchansk and Lypsti. Russia may stretch the front with a foray into Sumy oblast but any serious effort to capture either Sumy or Kharkov seems unlikely at this stage.
In an incisive analysis, the well-known Russia watcher Big Serge wrote last week, “The main purpose of these fronts will be to fix Ukrainian reserves in place and denude Ukraine’s ability to react on other fronts. This war will not be won or lost in Kharkov, but in the Donbas, which remains the decisive theatre.
“We currently appear to be solidly in the preparatory/shaping phase of a Russian summer offensive in the Donbas, which (likely among other things) will feature a Russian drive on the city of Konstyantinivka. This is the last major urban area shielding the advance towards Kramatorsk-Slovyansk from the south (remembering that these twin cities form the ultimate objective of Russia’s campaign in the Donbas.)”
Expected Russian summer offensive
Putin has strongly reacted to the recent proxy attacks on Russia’s strategic assets with western weaponry inside its territory. Putin warned that “this unending escalation can lead to serious consequences.”
As he put it, “long-range precision weapons cannot be used without space-based reconnaissance… the final target selection and what is known as launch mission can only be made by highly skilled specialists who rely on this reconnaissance data, technical reconnaissance data.
“For some attack systems, such as Storm Shadow, these launch missions can be put in automatically, without the need to use Ukrainian military… Launching other systems, such as ATACMS, for example, also relies on space reconnaissance data, targets are identified and automatically communicated to the relevant crews that may not even realise what exactly they are putting in. A crew, maybe even a Ukrainian crew, then puts in the corresponding launch mission. However, the mission is put together by representatives of NATO countries, not the Ukrainian military.
“So, these officials from NATO countries, especially the ones based in Europe, particularly in small European countries, should… keep in mind that theirs are small and densely populated countries, which is a factor to reckon with before they start talking about striking deep into the Russian territory. It is a serious matter and, without a doubt, we are watching this very carefully.”
Importantly, Putin underscored, “If Europe were to face those serious consequences, what will the United States do, considering our strategic arms parity? It is hard to tell. Are they looking for a global conflict? I think they wanted to agree upon strategic arms…We will wait and see what happens next.”
However, there are growing signs that the Biden administration may have simply mothballed the idea of western long-range weaponry being used to destroy Russia’s strategic assets deep inside its territory until the NATO summit gets over in Washington (9-11 July) so as to keep the flock together.
Equally, Biden may calculate that it is expedient to drum up tensions with Russia rather than leave the foreign policy turf to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who may land in DC to address the lawmakers. The Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi told Israel’s Kan public broadcaster on Wednesday, “we are expecting another seven months of fighting” in Gaza. The Republicans are already flagging Middle East as the single biggest foreign policy goof-up by Biden. This is where the real risk lies.
There is a remarkable consistency in the Russian words that the depth of its proposed buffer security zone along the western borders will entirely depend on security considerations. The deputy chairman of Russia’s security council Dmitry Medvedev had explicitly stated recently that the security zone may not only include Kiev but also extend as far as the Polish border if the West sends Kiev long-range weapons. Significantly, on Tuesday, Putin called into question the legitimacy of Zelensky remaining in power in Kiev after his presidential term ended on May 21.
The ball is in Biden’s court. But the signs are not good. Germany, which is the US’s closest European ally, is apparently switching tack and now says that Ukraine’s “defensive action is not limited to one’s own territory, but [can] also be expanded to the territory of the aggressor.”
The chancellor’s spokesman said Berlin’s previous stance that Ukraine wouldn’t use German weapons on Russian soil had been “a statement of facts” that was true at that moment but did not necessarily apply to the future. He refused to reveal Berlin’s precise agreements with Kiev on using German weapons.
Almost half of Hungarians oppose any aid for Ukraine, only 16% support sending weapons
BY DÉNES ALBERT | REMIX NEWS | MAY 31, 2024
A new poll in Hungary shows that 46 percent of Hungarians believe that the European Union should not support Ukraine at any level, which was attacked by the Russians more than two years ago.
According to the poll conducted by Závecz Research on behalf of 24.hu, 32 percent of those polled are more permissive and would support EU assistance through financial, economic and humanitarian means, while only 16 percent of the population would also send arms and other military equipment to Ukraine.
The poll reveals that Orbán’s stance of supporting humanitarian aid for Ukraine while rejecting sending weapons is generally in line with what the population is willing to support, while there are still many Hungarians who want to take the step of cutting off support entirely.
Women back Orbán’s pro-peace position
Fifty-four percent of women are in favor of staying out of the war altogether, compared with only 38 percent of men. At the same time, a higher proportion of men (26 percent) would send weapons than women (10 percent).
In a breakdown by age groups, young and middle-aged people are more likely to be unwilling to provide any support (47 and 51 percent, respectively), while among those aged 60 and over, more people would definitely send some help, and only 41 percent are completely against doing so, the paper noted.
The survey also found that 40 percent in Budapest, 47 percent in cities, and 49 percent in towns and villages said they would not give any aid to Ukraine.
By level of education, 54 percent of those with primary education support a complete withdrawal from the war, while 43 percent support this position among those with secondary education. Among those with higher education, the proportion who support cutting all aid to Ukraine is only 34 percent, while 26 percent of this demographic would also support Ukraine with weapons.
US Weapons Already Used in Attempts to Strike Russian Territory – Kremlin
Sputnik – 31.05.2024
Attempts to strike Russian territory with US weapons are already being made, clearly indicating Washington’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict, Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the Russian president, said on Friday.
“We are aware that attempts to strike Russian territory with American-made weapons are already being made. This is sufficient for us, and it clearly demonstrates the extent of the United States’ involvement in this conflict,” he told journalists.
Earlier, a US State Department representative told Sputnik that President Joe Biden had authorized Ukraine to use American weapons for counter-battery operations against targets on Russian territory that threaten the Kharkov region, while maintaining the ban on the use of ATACMS tactical missiles and other long-range strike systems.
The Kremlin agrees with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s opinion that Europe has entered an intermediate stage of preparing for war with Russia.
“We agree. There is absolute inflaming of pro-war sentiments and a deliberate stirring up of pre-war hysteria. And all of this, of course, cannot but have the most negative impact on the overall situation. The escalation of tensions continues,” Peskov said in response to journalists’ questions about whether the Kremlin agrees with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s statement that the longer the range of weapons that the West provides to Kiev, the further the Russian Army will advance.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto previously said that NATO wants to increase its coordination role in supplying weapons to Ukraine and training its soldiers. Thirty-one countries support this decision, but Hungary does not want to and will not participate. Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that in this manner, NATO is “sliding” into the conflict.
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that allies expect Ukraine to act “in a responsible way” when using Western-supplied weapons to hit targets inside Russia.
“So many Allies have made it clear that they, of course, accept that Ukraine is using the weapons they have received to defend themselves, including by striking military targets inside Russia. Especially when those military facilities are used in attacking, directing attacks from Russian soil. Then, we all expect that this is done according to international law, and in a responsible way,” he said ahead of a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Prague.
Stoltenberg said this week that he favored lifting restrictions on the use of long-range Western weapons against “legitimate targets” inside Russian territory. The Kremlin said NATO allies were now directly involved in a military confrontation with Russia.
Why Israeli Military-Industrial Complex’s Dizzying Gaza War Profits Won’t Last
By Ilya Tsukanov – Sputnik – 30.05.2024
Israel’s defense sector has been making money hand over fist supplying weapons to the military for the war in Gaza, with profits going into the double digits, and order backlogs soaring to more than $50 billion. International affairs and security analysts told Sputnik what will stop Israel from sustaining this bonanza over the long run.
Israeli defense giants have been fruitful in multiplying their profits on the eve of the eight-month anniversary of the war in Gaza, with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Elbit Systems enjoying record bumps in stock prices and profits, nearly $15 billion in combined revenues in 2023, and an order backlog worth a whopping $52.4 billion.
The companies – which manufacture everything from drones and armored vehicles to the offensive and defensive missiles the IDF has used against Gaza fighters, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Yemen’s Houthi militia, expect the good times to continue to roll through 2024, with Elbit reporting Q1 profits of $1.55 billion in an earnings call this week – surpassing in quarterly terms the $6 billion the company raked in last year.
Israel is among the top ten weapons exporters in the world, accounting for nearly 2.5 percent of the global arms market between 2019 and 2023. Top clients include the United States, Britain, continental Europe, Azerbaijan, India and Vietnam, with sophisticated Israeli drones and missiles constituting among the top most sought after export articles.
Tel Aviv scaled back exports abroad from the fourth quarter of 2023 onward as the defense sector reoriented toward domestic needs – buoyed by US military assistance – which enables the Israeli government to spend part of its multibillion dollar American aid packages on weapons made in Israel, and supports joint air and missile defense research (preferences Washington doesn’t extend to any other major ally).
The Gaza campaign is a mixed blessing for Israel’s arms industry, observers have told Sputnik, pointing out that while Israeli defense giants may benefit over the short term from the present spike in orders, Tel Aviv’s diplomatic reputation coming out of the crisis may not be what it was when it entered it.
“I don’t think it’s been the most illustrious military weapons show,” veteran international and military affairs observer and former US Army Lieutenant Colonel Earl Rasmussen told Sputnik, when asked whether Israel’s defense industry has benefited or been damaged by the IDF’s Gaza operations.
“I would think some of their demand may diminish,” Rasmussen said, pointing out that besides the reputation of Israeli weapons, there is the country’s international political reputation to account for.
“In the political sense, Israel has isolated themselves due to what’s going on in Gaza. And also you see that what should have been a very quick entrance in and exit out has now dragged on for seven months, and I don’t know if there’s any end in sight until they level the entire Gaza Strip,” the veteran soldier said.
“Ukraine may still engage with them for military sales…but I would not be surprised if a lot of other foreign militaries and countries interested [in some of Israel’s] really good technology may be more hesitant and may look at other opportunities or competing technology,” given what can only be described as the “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing” taking place in Gaza, Rasmussen said.
Veteran Italian former diplomat and prime ministerial foreign policy advisor Dr. Marco Carnelos concurs with this assessment, telling Sputnik that while militarily, the Gaza campaign may have brought Israel’s military establishment some benefits, politically it has been suicidal.
“Politically speaking I do not see any way in which Israel has been benefiting from waging the war in Gaza. Its top leaders received arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court and a judgement for genocide is pending against Israel at the International Court of Justice,” Carnelos said.
“Militarily speaking [Israel’s] armed forces gained further knowledge and expertise in carrying out urban warfare in Gaza in the [past] seven months, maybe testing new techniques and weapons. It is the same for its foes – who after widespread destruction are still capable of engaging Israeli forces,” the observer said. “The real question remains: was it worth this political debacle to get better military experience? I strongly doubt it. Israel’s deterrent power is probably over and the political and strategic consequences could be huge,” Carnelos added.
Israel’s deterrent capabilities and reputation in the eyes of the world have taken a beating over the course of the Gaza crisis, with Hamas proving able to hold its own through seven plus months of intense Israeli bombardment and ground operations across the bombed out ruins of the 365 square kilometer strip of land, the IDF and its US and European allies proving unable to stop Yemen’s Houthi militia from essentially shutting down the Red Sea to Israeli-linked shipping, and Israel and Hezbollah engaging in months of deadly skirmishes along the Lebanese border.
But perhaps nowhere were the limits of Israeli (and by extension NATO) power demonstrated more thoroughly than during Iran’s April 14 drone and missile barrage targeting Israel. The Islamic Republic managed to land multiple projectiles at the Negev Desert air base the IDF used to strike Iran’s Embassy compound in Damascus on April 1, as well as an intelligence collection facility in northern Israel, despite advance warning and Israeli defenses being shored up by military assets belonging to the US, the UK and Jordan. For the first time since the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Israel’s adversaries were able to demonstrate that the Jewish state – while a regional military powerhouse, is certainly not invincible.
For a Fistful of Shekels: Israeli Defense Contractors’ Profits Boom as Economy Takes a Beating
By Ilya Tsukanov – Sputnik – 30.05.2024
With the world watching in horror as the raging Palestinian-Israeli conflict approaches its eight month anniversary, arms makers continue to quietly make a tidy profit from the war. Israel’s domestic defense sector is no exception.
US business media has warned of the “haunting parallels” between Israel’s ballooning military expenditures amid the Gaza War and the country’s 1970s ‘lost decade’ of surging inflation, out of control budget deficits, stagnant growth and faltering investor confidence.
Israel’s Central Bank expects the war in Gaza to cost a whopping 250 billion shekels ($67.4 billion US) through 2025, as defense spending as a share of GDP jumps from 5.3% to 9%. That’s amid increasingly dour circumstances in the civilian economy, with Q4 of 2023 seeing Israel’s GDP drop by over 20%, while consumption dropped 27% and investment by 70%.
Most worrying of all for Tel Aviv is the potential loss of investment flows – particularly in the tech sector. “We can’t even begin to measure how many people have decided not to invest in Israel in the short term, let alone on a permanent basis,” Shoresh Institute economist Dan Ben-David told Bloomberg in a report published Thursday.
But as the civilian economy suffers, Israel’s arms makers have no complaints, boasting record profits, buoyed by Washington’s nod to an unprecedented $17 billion in new military aid (more than five times the $3 billion+ Tel Aviv has been getting from the US annually since the early 1980s). A portion of the funds can be spent on Israeli-made weapons – a privilege not granted to other US allies, with roughly half a billion dollars also typically slated for Israeli-US joint research in missile defense.
Israel’s top three defense giants – Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Elbit Systems have enjoyed surging stock prices and orders growing at a pace beyond their ability to keep up.
- IAI reported a 7% growth in sales to $5.3 billion in 2023, a 49% jump in net profit, with production ranging from drones, missiles, bombs, radars and electronic warfare articles to space-based defenses. Its order backlog has soared to $18 billion.
- Rafael – makers of Tamir missiles for the Iron Dome and an array of other air defense and anti-tank missiles and drones, saw a record 21% increase in sales and a whopping 85% increase in order volume, with net profits hitting $158 million – a 17% jump from 2022, and the backlog of orders reaching over $14 billion.
- Elbit, makers of much of the “guts” of Israeli weapons, plus drones, communications equipment, small arms, cluster munitions and armored vehicles, saw profits jump 8% in 2023, with revenues reaching nearly $6 billion, and Q1 2024 results this week showing $1.6 billion in revenues, and a $20.4 billion order backlog.
The US is the World Leader with No Pier
By Bill Buppert | The Libertarian Institute | May 30, 2024
Yet another existential chaos avalanche in American foreign policy.
The pier took two months and $350m to build, lasted 12 days, and delivered less than 60 trucks’ worth of food (most of which was stolen after it reached Gaza) before it broke and had to be towed away for repairs. Think through the process: ships provide a mass delivery mechanism for cargo and the draft of a ship prevents it from getting close to shore hence the need for pier structures for off-loading and the US spends a third of of billion dollars for a temporary structure to facilitate the off-loading. Weather conditions and sea states are not a mystery and for those keen enough to observe, the facilitators of this disaster had access to all the historical data to know what to do and whether to proceed ahead with the project.
And, remember, this is the same US foreign policy that provides military aid, even now, that necessitated the need for the temporary pier in the first place.
This debacle is a demonstration project of the American experience in the Middle East.
France plans to send military instructors to Ukraine – Reuters
RT | May 30, 2024
France could announce that it will send military instructors to the country during a visit to Paris by Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky, despite widespread concerns from some allies and criticism from Russia, Reuters has reported, citing diplomatic sources.
Zelensky, whose presidency expired on May 20, visited Paris for talks with French President Emmanuel Macron two weeks ago, and will return next week to attend a ceremony marking 80 years since D-Day, the start of a large-scale operation by the Allies against Nazi Germany during World War Two.
The unnamed diplomats told Reuters that Paris hoped to forge and lead a coalition of countries that would offer training assistance to Kiev. France reportedly would initially send a limited number of personnel to assess the modalities of a mission before dispatching several hundred trainers.
Training would focus on demining, equipment and warplane maintenance, to be provided by the West. Paris would also finance, arm, and train a Ukrainian motorized brigade, Reuters added.
“The arrangements are very advanced, and we could expect something next week,” the agency cited one of its sources.
Ukraine’s top general Aleksandr Syrsky said earlier this week that he had signed papers allowing French personnel to visit training centers in Ukraine “soon,” to familiarize themselves with infrastructure and staff.
Over the past few months President Macron has repeatedly insisted he would not rule out the possibility of NATO member states sending troops to Ukraine. According to the French leader, his policy of “strategic ambiguity” is intended to keep Moscow guessing about the US-led bloc’s intentions and the lengths it is willing to go to in support of Kiev.
Some of France’s NATO partners fear that the bloc’s boots on the ground in Ukraine could make a direct conflict with Russia more likely. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said that Berlin will not do anything that places it in direct conflict with Russia. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has also spoken out against German instructors training Ukrainian soldiers in the country.
The US remains publicly opposed to sending instructors to Ukraine while Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has described statements about sending troops to Ukraine as “crazy”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Western military instructors “have long been present” in Ukraine. Acting as mercenaries, they service high-precision weapons sent by NATO countries and are suffering losses, Putin stated.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said earlier this month that the French leadership’s “belligerent rhetoric” and provocative statements around Ukraine are escalating the conflict.
Top Hungarian Diplomat Criticizes NATO Plans to Let Ukraine Strike Inside Russia
Sputnik – 30.05.2024
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto decried NATO plans to let Ukraine use Western-supplied weapons to hit targets in Russia as “insane,” warning that Russia’s response would be multifold.
“I think it is an insane idea because, as we have seen before, Russia will respond. There is no lack of munitions or equipment in Russia. Its response will be multifold,” Szijjarto told Hungarian reporters in Brussels.
The Hungarian minister called for an end to “this madness” before it spiraled out of control.
Szijjarto also criticized a proposal made by NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg that NATO take over the coordination of military aid to Ukraine, giving the alliance a more active role in the conflict. Szijjarto argued that NATO was wiping out its own red lines.
Earlier in the week, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed he was in favor of lifting restrictions on the use of Western weapons on “legitimate targets” on Russian territory.
Over 500,000 people expected to attend largest pro-peace march ever in Hungary
A photo from the last peace march in Budapest in 2022, which saw nearly half a million take to the streets calling for an end to war in Europe.
BY DÉNES ALBERT | REMIX NEWS | MAY 30, 2024
Hungary is gearing up for the largest pro-peace march in the nation’s post-communist history on June 1, with over half a million people expected to attend in Budapest. Among the attendees will be Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who will deliver a speech at the event calling for peace in Europe, a message he has continually promoted since the war broke out in Ukraine.
“This time we are preparing for the biggest peace march ever, we have never received so many messages from Hungarians in Hungary and abroad,” Zoltán Lomnici Jr., spokesman of the Civil Union Forum (CÖF) and the Civil Union Public Benefit Foundation (CÖKA), told Magyar Nemzet.
The constitutional lawyer noted that this year, on June 1, the peace march, which was first launched in 2012 by CÖF-CÖKA and its intellectual defenders, will be organized for the tenth time. The peace marches are the largest civil initiatives following regime change in Hungary in 1989 and have seen the largest crowds gather for any political or social mobilization.
In a country of nearly 9.7 million, if the protest actually manages to attract a crowd of 500,000, it would equal a crowd of 4 million in Germany proportionally speaking.
“The organization of a pre-election peace rally is an excellent opportunity for the courageous civilian supporters of peace to voice their firm commitment to peace, thus legitimizing the line taken by the civilian-national government on the issue of war and potentially contributing to the advance of the pro-peace forces that have long been the hallmark of genuine civil society in the EU,” said Lomnici.
At the last peace march in 2022, nearly half a million people took part, according to CÖF-CÖKA President László Csizmadia. The first peace march was organized in 2012 in support of Viktor Orbán’s government standing up to what he called EU blackmail.
Hungarians overwhelmingly support a ceasefire in the conflict in Ukraine, according to numerous polls. Despite the left’s history of anti-war stances, the left-liberal parties in power in Europe are now the biggest promoters of continued war in Ukraine, while Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is now the only leader calling for a ceasefire besides Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who remains in the hospital with severe wounds after an assassin shot him numerous times over his stance on Ukraine.
The peace march in Hungary is expected to be a show of force in support of peace in the country, a point reaffirmed by Lomnici. The constitutional lawyer said that such a mass event demonstrates social power and is undeniable proof of the will of a people, which, in Hungary’s case, is a desire for peace.
According to Lomnici, the importance of the event and the cause it represents — a stand for peace — is supported by the fact that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will be present and will speak at 3 p.m.
First, this shows that the government considers the cause of peace to be of strategic importance. Second, people can see and hear the prime minister in person, which strengthens trust and a sense of direct political involvement in the cause for peace.
Third, it represents a guarantee that the people who voted for the prime minister know he remains dedicated to pursuing peace in Europe despite enormous pressure, including potential threats on his life. This guarantee means that Hungary will not allow itself to be dragged into a war that is still escalating rapidly right at Hungary’s doorstep, which also affects Hungary’s fellow citizens in Transcarpathia, home to 150,000 ethnic Hungarians, many of whom have already lost their lives at the frontlines in Ukraine.
According to Lomnici, Hungary’s sovereign pro-peace position must be respected by all decision-makers in Europe and in the Western alliance systems.
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Book Review
“Davos Can Really Replace the UN”
Inside the book that maps the architecture behind global governance — from the Epstein files to the Pact for the Future
Lies are Unbekoming | April 1, 2026
On June 13, 2019, the United Nations and the World Economic Forum signed a partnership deal to “accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.” That same evening, WEF president Börge Brende — Norway’s former Foreign Minister — had dinner with Jeffrey Epstein at Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse. The Epstein files, released January 2026, contain an exchange between the two from the previous year. Epstein to Brende: “Davos can really replace the UN. C21, cyber, crypto . genetics… intl coordination.” Brende back to Epstein: “Exactly — we need a new global architecture. World Economic Forum (Davos) is uniquely positioned — public private.”
The next day, the UN General Assembly adopted the framework for restructuring global governance.
That sequence — the partnership signing, the Epstein dinner, the candid admission about replacing the UN with a public-private architecture, and then the formal adoption — opens Jacob Nordangård’s The Digital World Brain. Pages two and three. Footnoted to the UN resolution number, the Epstein files, and the General Assembly record.
I keep coming back to it because it captures what this book does that almost nothing else in the independent research space manages. I’ve followed Jacob’s work for years now and interviewed him about his research. Each book peels back another layer of the same institutional architecture, and each time I think he’s reached the limit of what can be documented, the next one goes further. Nordangård doesn’t speculate. He doesn’t editorialize much. He lays institutional actions next to each other in chronological order and lets the pattern announce itself. … continue
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