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Russian Military Aircraft Enter Alaska’s Air Defense Identification Zone

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The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) reported Thursday that Russian military aircraft were detected in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Tuesday and Wednesday. NORAD said such activity “occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat.”

The ADIZ is a zone that extends outward from the sovereign air space of a nation, forming a buffer zone between sovereign and international air space. Planes that enter an ADIZ are identified and tracked to ensure they do not behave in a threatening or provocative manner.

NORAD said the Russian aircraft tracked on Tuesday and Wednesday did not attempt to enter either American or Canadian airspace.

Tensions along the northern frontier have been elevated since an incident in January where an unusually large number of Russian warplanes were spotted in the Arctic, prompting U.S. and Canadian fighters to scramble in response. (Read more from “Russian Military Aircraft Enter Alaska’s Air Defense Identification Zone” HERE)

Starmer Rebuffs Trump, Reassures Zelensky It’s ‘Perfectly Reasonable’ to Cancel Elections in Wartime

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British Prime Minister immediately offered Volodymyr Zelensky affirmation over his democratic status after President Trump blasted Ukraine for cancelling its elections and enforcing martial law on its citizens.

Sir Keir Starmer spoke to Ukrainian President Zelensky overnight, with his Downing Street office revealing the Prime Minister had told the Ukrainian he is not a dictator and that it had been “perfectly reasonable” to suspend democracy because of the Russian invasion.

The comments follow Donald Trump airing his views on the state of Ukrainian democracy, saying if Ukraine’s leadership wants a seat at the table, the Ukrainian people should be consulted on who they will send to sit at the table. Later remarks were more strident — perhaps in response to Zelensky’s angry answer to the initial comments, and accusing Trump of repeating Russian “disinformation — and called Zelensky a dictator.

President Trump had said: “A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left… I love Ukraine, but Zelenskyy has done a terrible job, his Country is shattered, and MILLIONS have unnecessarily died”.

These remarks likely come as part of a strategy of pre-positioning by the United States ahead of the coming U.S.-Russia peace talks, and the United Kingdom government was fast to counter-signal against them. Downing Street said of Starmer’s call with Zelensky: “The prime minister spoke to President Zelenskyy this evening and stressed the need for everyone to work together. The prime minister expressed his support for President Zelenskyy as Ukraine’s democratically elected leader”. (Read more from “Starmer Rebuffs Trump, Reassures Zelensky It’s ‘Perfectly Reasonable’ to Cancel Elections in Wartime” HERE)

Trump Torches ’Dictator’ Zelensky For Opposing Peace Push; President Doubles Down After Zelensky Responds to His Criticism

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By Breitbart. President Donald Trump slammed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a “Dictator without Elections” a day after Zelensky complained about Ukraine not having a seat at diplomatic talks Tuesday between the United States and Russia.

Trump ripped into Zelensky in a lengthy Truth Social post, first addressing him as “a modestly successful comedian” rather than president.

“Think of it, a modestly successful comedian, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, talked the United States of America into spending $350 Billion Dollars, to go into a War that couldn’t be won, that never had to start, but a War that he, without the U.S. and ‘TRUMP,’ will never be able to settle,” Trump wrote.

Trump added that the United States has spent hundreds of billions more on the war than Europe has:

The United States has spent $200 Billion Dollars more than Europe, and Europe’s money is guaranteed, while the United States will get nothing back. Why didn’t Sleepy Joe Biden demand Equalization, in that this War is far more important to Europe than it is to us — We have a big, beautiful Ocean as separation.

(Read more from “Trump Torches ’Dictator’ Zelensky For Opposing Peace Push” HERE)
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President Doubles Down After Zelensky Responds to His Criticism

By Breitbart. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has found himself exactly where he does not want to be: In a war of words with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump addressed complaints on Tuesday coming from Ukraine about it being left out of recent peace talks with Russia while addressing reporters at Mar-a-Lago. A brought up Russia’s insistence that Ukraine hold new elections for president to potentially sign a new peace deal and asked whether Trump would support this idea.

“Well, we have a situation where we haven’t had elections in Ukraine. Where we have martial law, essentially martial law in Ukraine, where the leader in Ukraine, I hate to say it, but he’s down at 4% approval rating, and where a country has been blown to smithereens,” the president replied.

Trump referred to the damage Ukraine sustained after Russia’s invasion began in 2022. “You have cities that are absolutely decimated,” he said, comparing it to the Gaza Strip amid Israel’s war against terrorist group Hamas.

The president asserted that the Ukrainian people “are tired of it” and that they “want to see something happen.” He criticized Zelensky over reports suggesting he could not locate half of the financial aid the U.S. had sent Ukraine. (Read more from “Trump Doubles Down After Zelensky Responds to His Criticism” HERE)

U.S. And Russia Take ‘First Step’ With ‘Very Useful’ Ukraine War Talks, Agree Trump-Putin Meeting to Come

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Russia praised the first round of Ukraine war talks with the United States as “very useful”, while the American delegation said both sides had committed to “make sure the process moves forward in a timely and productive manner” and will work towards a Presidential meeting soon.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for the first in-person talks of high-level delegations since Russia invaded Ukraine almost three years ago in 2022. After four and a half hours of talks the meeting broke, with both sides relating they felt it had been productive.

In terms of normalising diplomatic relations between Russia and the U.S., both sides are said to have agreed to return to staffing their embassies in the respective nations.

One of the intended outcomes of the talks was apparently laying the groundwork for an in-person meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin for the actual war-ending negotiation process. No date has been set for that meeting, but it was said work was happening to enable it.

Advisor to President Putin and former Russian ambassador to the U.S., Yury Ushakov, who sat around the table with Rubio and Lavrov, said after leaving the meeting that it was not likely Trump and Putin would meet within the next week but that both wanted to meet eventually. He said: “The delegations of the two countries have a lot of work to do. We are ready for this but it is still difficult to speak about the specific date of the meeting between the two leaders… The issue was discussed. We are working out the terms of this meeting”. (Read more from “U.S. And Russia Take ‘First Step’ With ‘Very Useful’ Ukraine War Talks, Agree Trump-Putin Meeting to Come” HERE)

Major Left-Wing Outlet Accused of Twisting JD Vance’s Words

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Vice President J.D. Vance is accusing The Wall Street Journal of misrepresenting his comments in a Friday headline that suggested he had threatened to use military and economic force to pressure Russia into agreeing to a deal to end the war in Ukraine. Vance claims the headline distorted his words, asserting that he did not propose such extreme measures but was discussing potential diplomatic solutions and a shift in U.S. foreign policy. The controversy highlights ongoing tensions between Vance and the media over his statements on international relations.

The article titled “Vance Wields Threat of Sanctions, Military Action to Push Putin Into Ukraine Deal” twisted the Vice President’s comments, claiming he threatened Russia with military intervention or sanction. Instead, he said that all options were on the table for President Donald Trump’s negotiations between the two countries to end the war to continue, according to a transcript of the interview posted by Vance’s communications director, William Martin.

“Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that the U.S. would hit Moscow with sanctions and potentially military action if Russian President Vladimir Putin won’t agree to a peace deal with Ukraine that guarantees Kyiv’s long-term independence,” the opening paragraph to the outlet’s article read.

In a social media post, the WSJ stated that Vance vowed to hit Russia with sanctions and military action if [Russian President Vladimir] Putin [wouldn’t] agree to a peace deal that guarantees Ukraine’s independence.”

Martin took to social media to accuse the WSJ of publishing “pure fake news” about the vice president.

(Read more from “Major Left-Wing Outlet Accused of Twisting JD Vance’s Words” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

Trump Promises In-Person Meeting With Putin as Ukraine Talks Get Underway

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An American president hasn’t visited Russia in more than a decade. That could change soon, according to President Donald Trump, who said Wednesday that he and Russian President Vladimir had agreed to visit “each other’s Nations” as part of an effort to end the war in Ukraine.

Trump promoted the potential trips in a social media post detailing his phone call Wednesday with Putin. It was the first announced conversation between the two leaders since Trump started his second term in office.

“We agreed to work together, very closely, including visiting each other’s Nations,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump added later in the day Wednesday that he would likely hold his first meeting with Putin since taking office for a second time in Saudi Arabia, though plans had not been settled.

A meeting anywhere in the world between the two leaders would garner headlines — but it would be especially unusual if one took place in the U.S. or Russia. Regardless of the location, analysts said suggestions of a face-to-face meeting are in line with Trump’s practice, in his first term in office, of holding high-profile summits with adversaries like North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. (Read more from “Trump Promises In-Person Meeting With Putin as Ukraine Talks Get Underway” HERE)

Donald Trump Welcomes Marc Fogel to the White House Hours After American Teacher Was Released From Russia

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Donald Trump hosted Marc Fogel at the White House Tuesday night just hours after the American teacher was released from Russian custody.

‘I’m so excited,’ Fogel told Trump of being back in the U.S. after arriving at a snowy White House with an American flag draped around his neck.

As he shook the president’s hand, Trump rubbed Fogel’s arm and gave him a cordial embrace.

Both men smiled and celebrated the teacher’s release before heading into the warmth of the White House Diplomatic Reception Room.

‘I feel like the luckiest man on Earth right now,’ Fogel said inside as he fought back tears while holding a celebratory beer from his native Pennsylvania. ‘President Trump is a hero.’

He described his horrific detainment in Russia, where he claimed to have spent over 100 days in medical wards and received over 400 injections during his 3.5 years in prisoned there. (Read more from “Donald Trump Welcomes Marc Fogel to the White House Hours After American Teacher Was Released From Russia” HERE)

Zelensky Calls For U.S. Troops in Ukraine

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Intensifying talk in European capitals about sending peacekeepers to Ukraine’s front lines is welcome but it won’t work without American boots on the ground, President Volodymyr Zelensky says at the Davos World Economic Forum meeting.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has been at Davos this week drumming up support, but also attempting to ingratiate himself with President Donald Trump by acting as a conduit for America First messaging to European leaders. Nevertheless, Bloomberg reports the Ukrainian “bristled” at the suggestion the United States wouldn’t put boots on the ground in Ukraine to deter further Russian aggression.

The conversation follows months of talk in Europe, particularly in capitals like Paris, Warsaw, and London, about what happens when the now apparently inevitable ceasefire comes. Preventing Russia from simply using a pause as a chance to catch its breath, re-arm, and then attack anew after a short break is the main concern and European leaders have told President Zelensky they would want to consider deploying their own armies to Ukraine to prevent Russia from renewing hostilities.

But forward-deploying NATO like this and de facto welcoming Ukraine into its protective embrace wouldn’t work, President Zelensky reportedly told Bloomberg on the side-lines of Davos, without American manpower. He is reported to have said: “It can’t be without the United States… Even if some European friends think it can be, no it can’t be. Nobody will risk without the United States.”

As well as the United States, Zelensky also expressed optimism that China might be persuaded to force Russia to peace, because so much of Russia’s economy and military supply relies on Beijing. While “President Trump is the strongest”, Xi Jinping “can push Putin for peace, I’m sure”. (Read more from “Zelensky Calls For U.S. Troops in Ukraine” HERE)

Putin and Xi Vow to ‘Deepen’ Alliance After Trump Returns to White House

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Within hours of President Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, Chinese and Russian leaders Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin held a 90-minute telephone conference to “deepen strategic coordination” and look out for each other’s interests in the “current global situation.”

“This year, I am ready, together with you, to elevate Chinese-Russian relations to a new level, to counter external uncertainties by preserving stability and resilience of Chinese-Russian relations,” Xi told Putin, according to a transcript of the call posted by the Kremlin.

Putin responded by praising collaborative projects, such as a pipeline operated by Russia’s national energy company Gazprom that carries natural gas to China.

“Five years ago, we launched the Power of Siberia gas pipeline together, and today, Russia has become the leading supplier of natural gas to China,” Putin boasted.

“I believe that the past year was very good for us. It can be said confidently that our foreign policy ties and Russia and China’s joint efforts objectively play a major stabilizing role in international affairs,” he said. (Read more from “Putin and Xi Vow to ‘Deepen’ Alliance After Trump Returns to White House” HERE)

Russia ‘Restraining’ the Antichrist? Orthodox Church Believes Last Czar ‘Held Back Satanic Socialism’

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While many commentators identify the restrainer as the Holy Spirit who works in and through the Church and whose subsequent removal necessitates a “pre-tribulation rapture” scenario, this identifying of Russia as the restrainer, according to Riccardi-Swartz, is reinforced by the canonization of Nicholas II, whose intercessions are believed to protect Russia from evil.

As such, Riccardi-Swartz said, this “holy war” narrative serves as an appeal to Russian nationalism and a denunciation of modern Western values, further cementing Kirill’s alignment with Putin’s agenda to depict Russia as a defender of traditional Christian values.

“It’s clear that both Putin and the Moscow Patriarchate (Patriarch Kirill) are using language that aligns with this theological opinion,” she told CP. “They often position themselves as if they — and Russia as a nation — are on a holy mission to preserve traditional values from Western secularism.”

This ideological overlap between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Kremlin, said Riccardi-Swartz, is one of mutual benefit.

“Scholars have been quick to point out that there seems to be a cozy relationship between the Kremlin and Russian Orthodox Church,” she says. “It’s also clear from recent policies, particularly around [LGBT] and human rights, that religious values are playing a valuable role in crafting governance and marketing a Christian conservative Russian ethos for interested parties abroad even if that’s not the reality on the ground.” (Read more from “Russia ‘Restraining’ the Antichrist? Orthodox Church Believes Last Czar ‘Held Back Satanic Socialism’” HERE)