JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin still wants most of Ukraine, war outlook grim – U.S. intelligence chief” – Reuters

Ukraine Map Highlighting Donbas, adapted from image at defense.gov, with photo credit to Peggy Frierson, DOD

“… Putin still wants to seize most of Ukraine, but his forces are so degraded by combat that they likely can only achieve incremental gains in the near term … [said] Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, outlining the current U.S. intelligence assessment of the more than four-month war[.] … [T]he consensus of U.S. spy agencies is that it will […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “‘Hell on earth’: Ukrainian soldiers describe eastern front” – AP

Ukraine Map Highlighting Donbas, adapted from image at defense.gov, with photo credit to Peggy Frierson, DOD

“Torched forests and cities burned to the ground. Colleagues with severed limbs. Bombardments so relentless the only option is to lie in a trench, wait and pray. … Ukrainian soldiers returning from the front lines in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region — where Russia is waging a fierce offensive — describe life during what has turned into a grueling war of […]

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AUDIO: JRL NEWSWATCH: “Are sanctions actually hurting Russia’s economy? Here’s what you need to know” – NPR

“Just over four months ago, the U.S. and several allied nations levied unprecedented sanctions against Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine. For weeks afterwards, the Russian ruble’s value tanked, foreign multinational companies pulled out of the country, and economic prospects began looking grim. But Russia responded aggressively. It shored up the ruble’s value and increased oil exports to […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “EU nears compromise deal to defuse standoff with Russia over Kaliningrad” – Reuters

Map of Baltics and Environs, Including Kaliningrad

“Trade through Lithuania to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad [reportedly] could return to normal within days …  as European officials edge towards a compromise deal with the Baltic state to defuse a row with Moscow. Kaliningrad, … bordered by [EU] states[,] … relies on railways and roads through Lithuania for most goods[] [and] has been cut off from some freight […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian withdrawal from Snake Island offers path for Ukraine grain shipments” – Financial Times

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“Moscow says retreat shows ‘goodwill’ but Kyiv claims victory after bombardment of strategic Black Sea outpost.” [scroll down for maps] “Russia withdrew forces from … strategic Black Sea outpost … Snake Island in what the defence ministry described as a ‘gesture of goodwill’ to help restore Ukrainian grain shipments, but which Kyiv claimed was a humiliating retreat. The [Russian defense] […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Official: Russia could see West’s sanctions as cause for war” – AP

Dmitri Medvedev file photo

“A senior Russian official warned Thursday that Moscow could see Western sanctions as a cause for war. Dmitry Medvedev, … deputy secretary of Russia’s Security Council chaired by … Putin, denounced … Western [sanctions]  …. ‘Under certain circumstances, such hostile measures could be perceived as an act of international aggression, or even as a casus belli,’ Medvedev said … using […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “G-7 Summit Exposes West’s Challenges in Tackling Russia; Economic fallout is hampering further sanctions against Moscow as Ukraine demands more weapons to halt the Russian advance” – WSJ

File Photo of G7 Meeting, with Persons at Round Table and Long Table, with Flags and Windows Overlooking Green Space in Background

“[G7] rich democracies … agree[d] to discuss … new sanctions against Russia …. While weapons deliveries have made an immediate difference on the battlefield and Ukraine has been clamoring for more equipment to repel Moscow’s forces, sanctions have proven slow to take effect, some of them have backfired … and new ones have … been too complex to deploy quickly. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Military Forecasting and Analysis: The Military-Political Situation and Military Potential in Strategic Planning” – RAND

European Portion of Commonwealth of Independent States

[scroll down for embedded 181-page PDF] … Given the large military potential imbalance between the two sides, the continued cohesion of … NATO … will likely force Russia to resolve political grievances without … the use of force against NATO. NATO cohesion creates at least three operational problems for Russia. First, [NATO’s combined] preponderance of military potential that could prove […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “‘He doesn’t have a long life ahead of him’: Putin is suffering from several ‘grave’ illnesses and will be dead within two years, Ukraine’s spy chief claims”  – The Daily Mail (UK)

Vladimir Putin file photo, adapted from screenshot of video at shareamerica.gov

“Kyiv Defense Intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov: Putin’s health ‘grave’ Russian dictator will die of array of illnesses within two years, Budanov added Top spook cites ‘human intelligence’ handed by Ukrainian spies inside Kremlin He also said of American fighters facing death in Donbas: ‘We are working on it” “[The 69-year-old] Putin’s health has been the subject of intense […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Sanctions Push Russia to First Foreign Default Since Bolshevik Revolution” – WSJ

Diverse Paper Currency, Coins, Line Graph

“A debt default has been long in coming since Western sanctions created payment obstacles Moscow couldn’t overcome.” “Russia defaulted on its foreign debt for the first time since 1918, pushed into delinquency not for lack of money but because of punishing Western sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine. Russia missed payments on two foreign-currency bonds as of late Sunday …. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “After the war: AMEURUS; We need to be thinking now about ensuring Russia doesn’t form a power bloc with China in the long term — and even about what may appear now to be an unthinkable alliance” – Politico.eu

European Portion of Commonwealth of Independent States

“… Putin’s geopolitical megalomania and rule of fear was clearly inspired by former absolutist regimes. … [W]hat we’re seeing now is rudimentary proof that absolutism is no longer tolerated …. [T]he chances that Russia will, after this self-inflicted humiliation, embark on a better, more liberal path aren’t bad at all — historically speaking. Two major military defeats triggered modernization in […]

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JRL NEWSBLOG: “Can Putin Survive? The Lessons of the Soviet Collapse” – Foreign Affairs/ Vladislav Zubok

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

“… Putin grossly miscalculated by invading Ukraine, and … has exposed the regime’s vulnerabilities — an economy … much more interdependent with Western economies than its Soviet predecessor … and a highly concentrated political system that lacks the tools for political and military mobilization …. If the war grinds on, Russia will become a less powerful international actor. A prolonged […]

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JRL NEWSBLOG: “Why Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelensky Won’t Say Ukraine Is Winning the War” – Newsweek

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“… Russia had lots of guns and materiel but … proved to be … poorly led, badly trained. … [S]carcely anyone wants to say that Russia has lost. … Zelensky, desperate for external support and more guns, motivator of the people and rouser of the troops, has to … [avoid allowing] all of the urgency and attention [to] dissipate. … […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin denounces the U.S. as a fading world power.” – New York Times

Vladimir Putin file photo, adapted from screenshot of video at shareamerica.gov

” … Putin … on Friday reprised his critique of the United States as a declining power that treats its allies as colonies, while declaring itself exceptional and ‘the messenger of the Lord on Earth.’ … Putin, whose remarks were delayed by over an hour after the Kremlin cited ‘large-scale’ distributed denial-of-service cyberattacks on the conference’s computer systems, spoke for […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “How Ukraine Will Win: Kyiv’s Theory of Victory” – Foreign Affairs/ Dmytro Kuleba

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“… As fatigue grows and attention wanders, more and more Kremlin-leaning commentators are proposing to sell out Ukraine for the sake of peace and economic stability in their own countries. Although they may pose as pacifists or realists, they are better understood as enablers of Russian imperialism and war crimes. … Putin does not simply want to take more Ukrainian […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia isn’t ashamed of Ukraine war, says Lavrov” – The Times (UK)

European Portion of Commonwealth of Independent States

“Russia[n] foreign minister [Lavrov] has claimed that Russia ‘didn’t invade Ukraine’ and … that the nation is not ‘squeaky clean’ and is not ashamed of showing its true nature. … [Said Lavrov,] ‘We declared a special military operation because we had absolutely no other way of explaining to the West that dragging Ukraine into Nato was a criminal act.’ … […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Is the West supplying Ukraine with enough weapons? The answer depends, in part, on what the goal is” – The Economist

Ukraine Map Highlighting Donbas, adapted from image at defense.gov, with photo credit to Peggy Frierson, DOD

“… [Western] help is desperately needed. In recent weeks Ukraine has made some gains …. small consolations next to the steady gains that Russia’s army has made in the … Donbas. … Russia’s army is concentrating its forces and using them more methodically than it did in the first stage of the conflict …. Russia also has a big advantage […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine to restrict Russian books, music in latest cultural break from Moscow” – Reuters

Verkhovna Rada File Photo

“Ukraine’s parliament on Sunday [approved] two laws … [enjoying wide legislative support that would impose] severe restrictions on Russian books and music …. One law will forbid the printing of books by Russian citizens [who held Russian citizenship after the 1991 Soviet collapse], unless they renounce their Russian passport and take Ukrainian citizenship. … It will also ban the commercial […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia needs economic ‘perestroika’ to end reliance on energy exports – cenbank chief” – Reuters

Oil Wells file photo, adapted from image at usda.gov

“Russia must reduce its decades-old reliance on exports of raw materials and stimulate private enterprise to avoid slipping back towards a Soviet-style technological lag with the West, … [Russian] central bank [governor Nabiullina] said …. After the West imposed the most crippling sanctions in modern history to punish … Putin for the war in Ukraine, Russia’s economy is facing its […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The battle of Donbas could prove decisive in Ukraine war” – AP

Ukraine Map Highlighting Donbas, adapted from image at defense.gov, with photo credit to Peggy Frierson, DOD

“…. Russia is pounding the Donbas … with relentless artillery and air raids, making slow but steady progress …. If Russia prevails in the … Donbas, it will mean … Ukraine loses not only land but perhaps the bulk of its most capable military forces, opening the way for Moscow to grab more territory and dictate … terms …. A […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “With Billions Going to Ukraine, Officials Warn of Potential for Fraud, Waste” – WSJ

File Photo of Assorted U.S. Cash, adapted from image at tsa.gov

“While no instances of malfeasance have emerged, current and former officials say it is likely a matter of time.” “With the U.S. sending roughly $130 million a day in military aid to Ukraine plus economic and other assistance, current and former U.S. officials warn that more must be done to ensure arms and money aren’t diverted, stolen or misused. The […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia likely to seize all of Luhansk in coming weeks, U.S. official says” – Washington Post

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“Russia is likely to seize control of the entire Luhansk region … within a few weeks, a senior U.S. defense official said, as Ukraine sustains heavy casualties and its supplies of ammunition dwindle. … [That] would leave Russia short of its … [goal] of capturing all of Luhansk and Donetsk, … the Donbas …. But it would still … [be] […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine’s State Energy Company Keeps Russian Gas Flowing as War Rages” – WSJ

Gas Flame file photo

“An uneasy alliance between Ukraine’s Naftogaz and its Russian counterpart sustains gas supply to Europe and fills government coffers on both sides of the fighting.” “Even as Russian rockets have peppered its facilities, Ukraine’s biggest state company has done hundreds of millions of dollars in energy business with Moscow. .. [T]he uneasy commercial truce … show[s] signs of collapse, threatening […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin Has a Patriotism Problem. [Interview with Masha Lipman]” – The New Yorker

File Photo of Vladimir Putin at Podium with United Russia Logo, Gesturing

“The Kremlin depends on ‘passive loyalty’ from the Russian public. What if winning the war in Ukraine demands something more?” “It has been more than a hundred days since Vladimir Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine. … [T]he Ukrainians — armed by the United States and Europe — have fought back ferociously and repelled assaults on several key cities. … […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Treasury bans Americans from buying Russian stocks and bonds” – CNN

Portion of U.S. Treasury Department Building Facade, North Side, with Sculpture of Alexander Hamilton

“… [T]he Treasury Department [announced Monday] that U.S. investors are prohibited from buying ‘both new and existing debt and equity securities issued by an entity in the Russian Federation.’ … [Previously] Americans were able to buy Russian stocks and bonds that change hands in secondary markets. Americans will still be allowed to sell Russian stocks and bonds … to a […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The conflict in Ukraine is settling into a war of attrition; But who can keep going longest?” – The Economist

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“… Russia’s net gains in eastern Ukraine between the middle of April and the end of May [reportedly] add up to just over 450 square kilometres (about a third of the size of Greater London) …. Neither Russia nor Ukraine looks likely to make a decisive breakthrough. … Russia’s losses have been severe. The invasion force that it initially committed […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine’s Zelensky says stalemate with Russia ‘not an option'” – Financial Times

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“President tells FT conference western sanctions ‘have not really influenced’ Moscow’s position.” “… Zelensky said a stalemate in the war with Russia was ‘not an option for us’ as he once more appealed for western military support to restore his country’s territorial integrity. ‘We are inferior in terms of equipment and therefore we are not capable of advancing,’ … ‘We […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine: ‘Constant’ military aid needed from West until Russia defeated” – AFP

File Photo of Soldier Firing Javelin Shoulder-Mounted Anti-Tank Missile

“Deputy defense minister says support ‘cannot be a one-time thing, but something that continues until our victory’” “Ukraine’s deputy defense minister stressed Sunday that the country needed continuous military support from Western countries until it defeat[s] Moscow’s forces …. The U.S. and European countries are attempting to help Kyiv’s war effort while not entering as direct belligerents. … supplying Ukraine […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Deadly secret: Electronic warfare shapes Russia-Ukraine war” – AP

Montage of Military Equipment, Circuitry, Artistic Enhancements, adapted from U.S. Army image at defense.gov

“… Electronic warfare … targets communications, navigation and guidance systems to locate, blind and deceive the enemy and direct lethal blows. … used against artillery, fighter jets, cruise missiles, drones and more. … [or] use[d] … to protect [one’s own] forces. … [F]or reasons not entirely clear, [Russia’s] much-touted electronic warfare prowess was barely seen in the war’s early stages […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “As Ukraine loses troops, how long can it keep up the fight?” – AP

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“Concentrations of Russian artillery are causing many of the casualties in the eastern regions …. Retired [U.S.] Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges … described the Russian strategy as a ‘medieval attrition approach’ and said that until Ukraine gets promised deliveries of U.S., British and other weapons to destroy and disrupt Russian batteries, ‘these kinds of casualties are going to continue.’ ‘This […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. military hackers conducting offensive operations in support of Ukraine, says head of Cyber Command” – Sky News

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

“In an exclusive interview with Sky News, General Paul Nakasone confirmed for the first time that the U.S. had ‘conducted a series of operations’ in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.” “… [NSA Director, Commander of the U.S. Cyber Command, Chief of the Central Security Service,  and four-star] General Paul Nakasone … explained how … ‘hunt forward’ operations were allowing […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “America sends advanced missiles to help Ukraine fend off Russia; They have been a long time coming” – The Economist

File Photo of HIMARS Missile Being Launched, adapted from image at army.mil

“…. ‘ The Pentagon said it would send a first consignment of four m142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (himars) …. Each carries a pod of six gps-guided missiles, accurate over distances as far as 70-84km — about three times the range of the howitzers … America has supplied thus far. … Germany and Britain [reportedly] are likely to provide […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine Security Services Hunt for Russia Supporters and Agents in Their Midst” – WSJ

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“While the invasion has tarnished Moscow’s appeal, some in eastern Ukraine still back the Kremlin as Russian forces bombard their hometowns.” “… In … predominantly Russian-speaking parts of eastern Ukraine, a sizable share of the population, especially among older generations, long felt more affinity with Moscow than Kyiv. That sentiment has been eroded by Russia’s conduct in the Donbas region […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “How the EU’s ban on Russian oil will rock global markets” – Financial Times

Oil Wells File Photo

“Refiners will face fierce competition to secure supplies as Brussels imposes sanctions on seaborne exports.” “… [T]he EU’s 27 member states agreed to ban seaborne Russian oil imports. To placate landlocked countries such as Hungary, pipeline shipments will continue for now. … Germany’s and Poland’s willingness to taper … pipeline purchases by 2022’s close should, combined with the seaborne ban, […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Seizing Russian Assets to Help Ukraine Sets Off White House Debate” – New York Times

European Portion of Commonwealth of Independent States

“The cost to rebuild Ukraine is expected to be significant. … Zelensky, estimated [in May] that it could be $600 billion after months of artillery, missile and tank attacks — meaning that even if all of Russia’s central bank assets abroad were seized, they would cover only half …. [F]inance ministers from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia urged the [EU] […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The secret planning that kept the White House a step ahead of Russia” – Washington Post

File Photo of Country Flags Outside 2017 G20 Meeting in Hamburg, adapted from image at state.gov

“… The Ukraine threat got red-hot in October, when the United States gathered intelligence about a renewed Russian buildup on the border …. This operational detail ‘was really the eye opener.’ The Group of 20 … were meeting at the end of October … and [the U.S. gave] … Britain, France and Germany … a detailed readout on … top-secret […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Advancing Russian forces reach key highway from Donbas cities” – Reuters

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“Advancing Russian forces came closer to surrounding Ukrainian troops in the east, briefly seizing positions on the last highway out of a crucial pair of Ukrainian-held cities before being beaten back, a Ukrainian official said on Thursday. … Three months into its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has abandoned its assault on the capital Kyiv and is trying to consolidate control […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Locals ‘apprehensive’ in Moscow-run Ukraine region” – AFP

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“In Ukraine’s only region fully controlled by Russian troops, Moscow-backed officials are pushing for formal annexation while those still living there say they are apprehensive …. Russian forces swiftly moved in from neighbouring Crimea … in early March. … [when] Ukrainian troops were focused on defending … Kyiv. … By taking control of Kherson and partially occupying the neighbouring region […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine: Russia must withdraw to pre-war positions for talks” – AP

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“… [Zelenskyy] said Wednesday that Russia must pull back to … pre-war positions as a first step before diplomatic talks, a negotiating line … [the Kremlin] is unlikely to agree to anytime soon. … He expressed a willingness to negotiate with … Putin directly, but stressed that Moscow needs to make clear its willingness to engage in serious talks. … […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “What Is Really Going on in the Kremlin?” – Kyiv Post/ Anders Åslund

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

“… Based on current evidence, I would be surprised if [Putin] can rule Russia until the end of this year. … [T]he Kremlin must be … panic[king] … impos[ing] … Stalinist … censorship …. Putin’s war in Ukraine is an outstanding failure for which he is guilty … [h]is aim … too grand and arrogant, … his resources … too […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin is starving millions of people around the world” – Washington Post

Wheat in Field, adapted from image at usda.gov

“… Putin’s atrocities … grow[] [daily]. In addition to … the blood of Ukrainians on his hands from his completely unjustified war, [Putin] is … responsible for … growing starvation … around the world. Ukraine is the breadbasket for much of the Middle East and North Africa. … Putin is preventing Ukrainian grain from leaving … Odessa and [blocking] other […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Hillary Clinton Did It: Her 2016 campaign manager says she approved a plan to plant a false Russia claim with a reporter” – WSJ

File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

“The Russia-Trump collusion narrative of 2016 and beyond was a dirty trick for the ages, and now we know it came from the top — candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton … [according to federal courtroom] testimony Friday by 2016 Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook …. [T]he Clinton campaign created the Trump-Alfa allegation, fed it to a credulous press that failed to […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Zelenskyy says UN, Red Cross order Russia to take its ‘mountains of corpses'” – Fox

European Portion of Commonwealth of Independent States

“Zelensky says Ukrainian forces have ‘broken’ Russia’s troops ‘psychologically’.” “The [UN] and [ICRC] have directed … Putin to remove his ‘mountain of corpses,’ … Zelenskyy said Saturday. ‘They abandoned their military,’ Zelenskyy said …. ‘They were dying, but they didn’t care. Recently I was told that they are only now thinking about taking the corpses.’ ‘When the war started…they used […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukrainian negotiator rules out ceasefire or concessions to Russia” – Reuters

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“Ukraine on Saturday ruled out … a ceasefire with Russia and said Kyiv would not accept any deal … ceding territory. Acknowledging that Kyiv’s stance … was becoming more uncompromising, presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said … concessions would backfire on Ukraine because Russia would hit back harder after any break in fighting. … Podolyak dismissed as ‘very strange’ [Western] calls […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The Russian Orthodox Leader at the Core of Putin’s Ambitions” – New York Times

Patriarch Kirill file photo

“Patriarch Kirill I has provided spiritual cover for the invasion of Ukraine, reaping vast resources for his church in return. Now, in an extraordinary step, the E.U. is threatening him with sanctions.” “… Kirill … has staked the fortunes of his branch of Orthodox Christianity on a close and mutually beneficial alliance with [] Putin ….  To his critics, the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Blinken accuses Russia of using food as a weapon in Ukraine” – Reuters

File Photo of UN Building with Flags

“U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia on Thursday of using food as a weapon in Ukraine by holding ‘hostage’ supplies for not just Ukrainians, but also millions around the world. A [Russian] senior official … rejected the allegations, saying Russians … would not export food while being subject to tough sanctions. Addressing the United Nations Security Council, Blinken […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine Will Fight Until All Russian Forces Are Expelled, Military Intelligence Chief Says” – WSJ

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“Kyiv must reclaim territory in Crimea and the east effectively seized by Russia in 2014, Maj. Gen. Budanov says.” “Ukraine’s military intelligence chief said the country would keep fighting until it evicts Russian forces from all of its territory … and called for deliveries of longer-range heavy weapons and warplanes from the West …. [P]eace negotiations … stalled, Ukrainian forces […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Trump Russia adviser Fiona Hill recalls dinner with ‘bizarre’-smelling Putin” – New York Post

File Photo of Vladimir Putin at Podium with United Russia Logo, Gesturing

“A former U.S. National Security Council official … described an odd dinner encounter with … Putin — who smelled ‘almost like he had stepped out of some special preparatory bath.’ … ‘I took in … one of the finely tailored suits …’ … ‘I noticed right away that, like the rest of us, he really could have done with glasses […]

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VIDEO: JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Pundit Gives Rare Public Damning Assessment of Ukraine War” – Newsweek

Map of Ukraine, Including Crimea, and Neighbors, Including Russia

“… Russian columnist [Mikhail Kodaryonok] … appear[ing] on [Russian-state-owned] television … gave a damning assessment of the situation in Ukraine from Russia’s perspective. … Khodaryonok’s comments come after Russian military forces have suffered a series of setbacks …. Khodaryonok … painted an even grimmer situation [ahead] for Russia … [anticipating] the vast supply of arms … soon likely … available […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia learns a hard lesson about the folly of war; Great powers usually come off worse when they invade smaller countries” – Financial Times

European Portion of Commonwealth of Independent States

“… Moscow’s military is bogged down and has taken heavy losses. Russia’s international isolation is getting worse … Finland and Sweden are planning to join Nato. … [E]ven a war against a smaller, weaker neighbour can go badly wrong. Larger conflicts invite disaster. Even nominal victory can leave your economy and society in a ruinous condition. … [H]istorian AJP Taylor […]

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