Military Experts Give Frank Assessment if U.S. Were to Confront China After Shooting Down Spy Balloon

The U.S. would face few but significant hurdles if the military were to confront China following a Taiwan invasion, military experts told Fox News Digital.

“Unfortunately, talking broadly and in overall terms, the Chinese have dramatically increased their air, sea, space, cyber and missile capabilities in the last couple of decades,” said James Anderson, acting undersecretary of defense for policy under President Trump.

“In some of the scenarios that could happen, we might well be at a competitive disadvantage initially because they have home-field advantage in terms of their capacity to quickly mobilize local forces, and that’s really important to the PRC.”

Four-star Air Force Gen. Mike Minihan, head of Air Mobility Command, wrote in a memo last week that he believes that the U.S. and China “will fight in 2025,” adding, “I hope I am wrong.” He pointed to the upcoming elections in the U.S. and Taiwan, which he believed could provide a distraction and allow China to make a move on the island.

The general said “a fortified, ready, integrated and agile Joint Force Maneuver Team ready to fight and win inside the first island chain” needs to be established to prepare for the looming fight. (Read more from “Military Experts Give Frank Assessment if U.S. Were to Confront China After Shooting Down Spy Balloon” HERE)

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U.S. Giving Ukraine Smart Bombs to Double Strike Range Against Russia

The U.S. will announce on Friday it is sending Ukraine Ground Launched Small Diameter Bombs or GLSDB, significantly improving the country’s ability to strike targets behind Russian lines, according to media reports.

Ukraine has been pushing for longer-range missiles, particularly the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) which has a range of 185 miles, in a bid to disrupt Russian command posts and supply chains ahead of an expected spring offensive.

Washington has been refusing to hand over ATACMS to the Ukrainians, fearing this would be seen as too provocative by Moscow, as they could be used to hit targets deep within Russian territory.

However, the Financial Times reported Kyiv will be sent the smart bombs, which have a range of 94 miles and can be fired from Ukraine’s HIMARS rocket launchers. (Read more from “U.S. Giving Ukraine Smart Bombs to Double Strike Range Against Russia” HERE)

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Canada Says It Is Monitoring ‘Potential Second Incident’ Linked to Chinese Alleged Spy Balloon

The Canadian Armed Forces revealed late Thursday that it is monitoring a “potential second incident” related to the discovery of a massive Chinese balloon over Montana that the Communist Party claimed had drifted off course and coincidentally landed near American military sites of high importance.

The Pentagon confirmed late Thursday that it had identified what it suspected was a Chinese surveillance balloon over Montana, near an area housing nuclear missile silo fields. A Pentagon spokesman insisted the balloon was “currently traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground.” Pentagon officials reportedly opted not to shoot the balloon down, despite the overt national security threat it causes, out of concern that debris from the destroyed balloon could hurt people on the ground.

The Communist Party of China confirmed on Friday that the balloon originated in China, but claimed it unintentionally drifted into sensitive U.S. airspace due to “force majeure.”

The balloon has caused a growing international scandal for left-wing President Joe Biden, who is facing criticism from the right for not acting to take down the balloon and reportedly moved to postpone a planned trip to China by Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday. Hours before the reported postponement, reports indicated that China had agreed to schedule a meeting between Blinken and dictator Xi Jinping.

The Canadian government waded into the fray with a statement confirming that it is working “with American partners and continue to take all necessary measures to safeguard Canada’s sensitive information from foreign intelligence threats.” It also suggested the existed of either a second Chinese alleged spy balloon or of a second incident involving the same balloon.

(Read more from “Canada Says It Is Monitoring ‘Potential Second Incident’ Linked to Chinese Alleged Spy Balloon” HERE)

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Ukraine Confirms Putin Planning February ‘Anniversary’ Attack With Half a Million Troops

Ukraine has confirmed fears that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be planning a February 24 ‘anniversary’ attack on the country with half a million troops.

Ukraine’s defence minister Oleksii Reznikov has said that Moscow has amassed hundreds of thousands of troops and could “try something” on the one year anniversary of its invasion.

The major new offensive would mark another phase of the ongoing war, and comes after prolonged fears Russia might utilise the anniversary date to renew their efforts to take Ukraine.

The Kremlin shocked the world when, in February last year, it invaded the country and tried to seize Kyiv as apart of what it claimed was a “special military operation”.

Any attack would also mark Russia’s Defender of the Fatherland Day on February 23 – which celebrates the army. (Read more from “Ukraine Confirms Putin Planning February ‘Anniversary’ Attack With Half a Million Troops” HERE)

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Hundreds of Millions of Dollars of Ukrainian Corruption Uncovered

Ukrainian authorities have conducted a series of anti-corruption raids across the country, uncovering stashes of cash as well as luxury watches and cars.

Among those caught up in the investigations is the acting head of the Kyiv tax authority, who was allegedly part of a scheme to overlook 45 billion Ukrainian hryvnia ($1.2 billion) in unpaid taxes.

On Wednesday, the State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) said that it had found hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, as well as luxury watches and cars, at the tax chief’s residence. CNN is attempting to reach that individual for comment.

The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) said the raids were part of an effort to combat what they described as “the internal enemy” in the country. (Read more from “Hundreds of Millions of Dollars of Ukrainian Corruption Uncovered” HERE)

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Ukrainian Troops Say Russians Are Becoming Much More Effective, Gaining Ground

Ukrainian troops on the front lines in the Donbas have told the BBC that Russian forces are “learning every day and changing their strategy” as they continue to gain ground around the heavily contested town of Bakhmut. . .

Sgt Denys Kalchuk from the all-volunteer Dnipro-1 Battalion [described] how Russian infantry, fighter jets and artillery units appeared to be operating with growing co-ordination and effectiveness around Bakhmut: “The planes are the worst. You can’t hear them until it’s too late. It’s the same with the tanks. Artillery is easier – at least you might have a second or two [to dive for cover] after you hear them coming”. . .

“It is very hard for us now. We understand that Russia is learning every day and changing their strategy. And I think we need to learn faster,” said Dmytro Podvorchanskyi, who heads a reconnaissance unit in Dnipro-1.

He and others spoke of the way well-equipped regular Russian forces were now hiding and dispersing their ammunition stores far better and targeting Ukrainian logistics routes more effectively. As a result, they are continuing to gain ground around Bakhmut and threatening another potentially significant town, Vuhledar, further south. . .

“There have been cases of [Ukrainian] units who don’t seem willing to fight, and disagreements [over tactics],” one Ukrainian soldier acknowledged, speaking off the record. Others talked about the trauma of seeing their friends die, of units that had sustained overwhelming numbers of casualties and of the psychological impact of fighting amidst the corpses. (Read more from “Ukrainian Troops Say Russians Are Becoming Much More Effective, Gaining Ground” HERE)

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Canadian Politician Calls on Government to ‘Condemn’ Tucker Carlson (VIDEO)

A member of Parliament from the New Democratic Party of Canada called on other politicians to unanimously “condemn” Fox News host Tucker Carlson for “incendiary, anti-democratic language,” but was immediately met with a chorus of “nay” when the speaker of the House asked the other members about his motion.

MP Matthew Green (Hamilton Centre) was referring to Carlson’s remarks that the United States should “liberate Canada” on a recent episode of “Tucker Carlson Today.” . . .

In response, Green announced in Canadian Parliament that he had consulted with other members of the government before saying he believed he would garner “unanimous consent” on his motion.

The speaker of the House then rose, asking “all those opposed to honorable member moving the motion, please say ‘nay’.”

After an array of “nay” responses, the speaker of the House immediately replied, “I’m afraid we don’t have unanimous consent.” (Read more from “Canadian Politician Calls on Government to ‘Condemn’ Tucker Carlson (VIDEO)” HERE)

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Kyiv Says Forces Outnumbered, Battling ‘Intensifying’ Russian Attacks

A Ukrainian deputy defense minister said on January 25 that Russian forces are “intensifying” their attacks near Bakhmut in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine and warned that Moscow had a “superior number of soldiers and weapons” in what has become a hot spot in the 11-month-old invasion.

Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar wrote on Telegram that “the enemy is intensifying pressure in the Bakhmut and Vuhledar sectors” in a broader region that Ukrainians frequently refer to as the Donbas

“The enemy is throwing a significant number of personnel, weapons, and military equipment into the battle, trying to break through our defenses, [and] is suffering significant losses but is not giving up its plans,” Maylar said. “The intensity of the fighting is increasing.”

Russian-backed separatists have controlled large swaths of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions that compose the Donbas since 2014, when Russian troops also invaded Crimea ahead of its annexation. (Read more from “Kyiv Says Forces Outnumbered, Battling ‘Intensifying’ Russian Attacks” HERE)

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North Korea Calls NATO Chief’s Seoul Visit a ‘Prelude’ to War

North Korean state media on Monday denounced NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg’s visit to South Korea as a “prelude to confrontation and war.” During his visit, Stoltenberg urged South Korea to “step up to the specific issue of military support” for Ukraine.

“The trip of the NATO secretary general to South Korea and Japan is a prelude to confrontation and war as it brings the dark clouds of a ‘new Cold War’ to the Asia-Pacific region,” North Korean political researcher Kim Tong-myong charged in an article published by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), an outlet controlled by the North Korean regime.

Kim claimed NATO has turned Ukraine into a “theater of proxy war” against Russia and claimed Stoltenberg is attempting the same strategy against North Korea by building an Asian version of NATO.

On Saturday, dictator Kim Jong-un’s sister Kim Yo-jong denounced the United States for promising to send 31 advanced main battle tanks to Ukraine. Kim said the offer crossed a “red line” and promised North Korea would “stand in the same trench” as the Russians against the United States.

“I express serious concern over the U.S. escalating the war situation by providing Ukraine with military hardware for ground offensive,” Kim said in a statement published by KCNA. (Read more from “North Korea Calls NATO Chief’s Seoul Visit a ‘Prelude’ to War” HERE)

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Biden Says U.S. Won’t Send F-16 Fighter Jets to Ukraine

President Biden on Monday said the U.S. will not supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets to assist in their ongoing fight with Russia, which is heading into its second year.

“No,” Mr. Biden said when a reporter asked him if the U.S. would send the fighter jets to Ukraine.

Mr. Biden also said he was unsure if he would visit Europe for the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials last week renewed their calls for the U.S. and Germany to provide them with F-16 fighter jets, which have been on the country’s wish list since the war began last year.

The Biden administration has rebuffed such calls, saying that artillery, armor, and ground-based defense systems and tanks are more urgent needs because Ukraine must protect civilian infrastructure and repel Russian forces. (Read more from “Biden Says U.S. Won’t Send F-16 Fighter Jets to Ukraine” HERE)

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