Russian military vehicles roll through outskirts of Donetsk after Putin orders troops into Ukraine

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Snejana Farberov - New York Post




Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s doomed private plane showed no signs of distress until a sudden drop 30 seconds before the deadly crash in Russia — amid speculation that the rogue warlord’s plane may have been downed by a bomb hidden in a crate of wine.

The Embraer Legacy 600 executive jet, with Prigozhin and other senior Wagner Group members listed among the 10 passengers, showed “no indication that there was anything wrong” earlier in the flight Wednesday, according to Ian Petchenik of the flight-tracking site Flightradar24.

It then made a “sudden downward vertical” at 5:19 p.m. local time — and within about 30 seconds, plummeted more than 8,000 feet from its cruising altitude of 28,000 feet.

“Whatever happened, happened quickly,” Petchenik said. “They may have been wrestling [with the aircraft] after whatever happened.

Video showed the plane plummeting with its nose pointing almost straight downward and a plume of smoke or vapor trailing behind it.

Flightradar24 received its final data on the jet at 5:20 p.m., moments before it fell out of the sky near the village of Kuzhenkino in the Tver region while traveling from Moscow to St. Petersburg.

The Embraer jet model has a stellar safety record, with only one recorded accident in more than 20 years of service.





The Brazilian plane manufacturer said it had not been providing support services for Prigozhin’s jet since 2019 in compliance with US sanctions on the mercenary boss.

Since news of the plane crash broke Wednesday, there has been furious speculation about its cause and who may have targeted Prigozhin — less than two months after he was labeled a “traitor” by Russian President Vladimir Putin for leading a short-lived mutiny against his top military brass.

One of the theories spreading on Russian social media sites is that a bomb had been planted onboard Prigozhin’s plane, possibly concealed inside a crate of wine, reported the Telegram channel VChK-OGPU, which is linked to Russian security services.

“Supposedly someone testified that at the very last moment, a certain gift consisting of a crate of expensive wine was loaded unto the plane,” wrote VChK-OGPU. “And now they are looking into claims that the crate may have contained a bomb.”

The plane had been carefully searched with sniffer dogs before the wine crate had been loaded, added the Telegram channel.











The same outlet also reported, citing another anonymous source, that the flight attendant on the jet, identified as Kristina Raspopova, told her brother in a phone conversation before the ill-fated trip Wednesday that she and the rest of the crew were awaiting an “important phone call” pending their imminent departure from Moscow.

Raspopova also allegedly said the jet had been undergoing repairs.

Investigators are said to be probing the possibility that an explosive was planted in the jet’s landing gear, reported the Russian outlet SHOT.

British defense sources speaking anonymously to BBC News pointed a finger at Russia’s FSB domestic intelligence agency, which is loyal to Putin. They provided no evidence to back up this claim.

The Telegram channel Grey Zone, which is closely tied to the Wagner Group, reported, citing “various sources, that Russian air defense systems shot Prigozhin’s plane out of the sky.

Abbas Gallyamov, a former Putin speechwriter-turned-critic, suggested that the Russian strongman was behind the crash and had bolstered his authority, which was challenged by Prigozhin’s June rebellion.

“The establishment is now convinced that it will not be possible to oppose Putin,” Gallyamov wrote on Telegram. “Putin is strong enough and capable of revenge.”

Bill Browder, a prominent businessman and outspoken Kremlin foe, went even further in blaming Putin.

“Putin never forgives and never forgets. He looked like a humiliated weakling with Prigozhin running around without a care in the world (after the mutiny). This will cement his authority,” Browder wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.







Some of Prigozhin’s supporters have accused Ukraine of orchestrating the crash on the eve of the country’s Independence Day.

“We had nothing to do with it,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters Thursday.

“Everybody realizes who has something to do with it.”

Prigozhin’s June 23 revolt aimed at ousting Russia’s top military leaders over their handling of the Ukraine war posed the most serious challenge to Putin’s 23-year grip on power.

The brief uprising ended within two days when Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko brokered a deal that allowed the Wagner Group to relocate to Belarus.

Russia’s aviation agency published the names of all 10 people on board the downed plane, including Prigozhin and Dmitry Utkin, his right-hand man and the purported co-founder of the Wagner Group.

Others who were said to be on the jet and were presumed dead included the flight attendant, Raspopova, Prigozhin’s security chief Valery Chekalov, officers Sergei Propustin and Nikolai Matyuseev, bodyguards Yevgeny Makaryan and Alexander Totmin, pilot Aleksei Levshin and co-pilot Rustam Karimov.

The country’s main investigative body launched a criminal probe but there was no official confirmation of Prigozhin’s death beyond the statement from the Federal Air Transport Agency acknowledging his presence on board.

The Kremlin and the Russian Defense Ministry also made no comment on Prigozhin — and neither Putin nor Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov mentioned the Wagner boss during a summit of the BRICS nations in South Africa.

[DemonGeminiX]

That flight attendant was cute. It's a crime she died. We should nuke Moscow to hell.

[lost in melb.]

Ugh, Russia

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Snejana Farberov - New York Post




Paranoid Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his security services to prepare for the possibility of a new military uprising after the death of Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin in a suspicious plane crash, according to a report.

Russia’s shadowy government agencies loyal to Putin are working on a plan to thwart future mutinies similar to the short-lived insurrection led by Prigozhin in June, according to two sources close to the Kremlin and a government official speaking anonymously to the Moscow Times.

The Wagner Group’s tanks that came within 124 miles of Moscow — before Prigozhin agreed to stand down — made an “indelible impression” on Putin, the report said.

Prigozhin, a one-time Putin ally, not only defied Russia’s top military leaders but disobeyed a “personal order” from Putin, thus posing the most serious threat to his 23-year rule, four separate sources close to the Kremlin told the publication.

As a result of the botched insurrection, the 62-year-old Prigozhin was reportedly labeled a threat to Putin’s regime.

There has been much speculation about what caused Prigozhin’s private jet with 10 people on board, among them the renegade Wagner Group boss — previously labeled a “traitor” by Putin — and his second-in-command, to fall out of the sky over the Tver region last week.

The country’s top criminal investigation agency, the Investigative Committee, officially confirmed Prigozhin’s death Sunday but did not say what might have caused the disaster.



A preliminary US intelligence assessment concluded that an intentional explosion brought down the aircraft.

The Kremlin was quick to shut down allegations that it had orchestrated Prigozhin’s assassination in retaliation for the June mutiny, dismissing them as an “absolute lie.”

But doubts remain, even within Russia.



“Many members of Wagner believe that the government might be (behind Prigozhin’s death). And the government cannot ignore such risks,” said Oleg Ignatov, the International Crisis Group’s senior analyst for Russia.

Just two days after the plane crash, Putin signed a decree requiring Wagner mercenaries and members of other paramilitary groups to sign an oath of allegiance to the Russian state, swearing to defend the “constitutional order.”

“Putin wants a tighter grip on Wagner, to make sure that he would not be faced with a repeat crisis in the future,” said Natia Seskuria, an expert with the London-based Royal United Services Institute.

[PorkChopSandwiches]

“Many members of Wagner believe that the government might be (behind Prigozhin’s death).

[Teh One Who Knocks]

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Chris Pandolfo | Fox News




North Korea has likely supplied Russian President Vladimir Putin with several types of missiles for his ongoing invasion of Ukraine, according to South Korean intelligence.

South Korea's military said the hermit nation is suspected of sending an unspecified number of short-range ballistic missiles, anti-tank missiles and portable anti-air missiles to Russia, in addition to rifles, rocket launchers, mortars and shells, The Associated Press reported.

North Korea has been pushing to expand cooperation with Russia and China in the face of protracted security tensions with the United States and pandemic-caused domestic hardships. In an apparent sign of its economic troubles, the country is moving to close some of its overseas diplomatic missions.

Last week, South Korea, the U.S. and Japan strongly condemned North Korea’s alleged supplying of munitions and military equipment to Russia, saying such weapons shipments sharply increased the human toll of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Any weapons trade with North Korea would be a violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions that Russia, a permanent U.N. Security Council member, previously endorsed.

Russia and North Korea have both disputed the allegations.



In response to the criticism, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said North Korea's adversaries, "have vital geopolitical interests in illegalizing the DPRK-Russia relations, in view of the present international political situation and the crises the U.S., Japan and [South Korea] are facing at home and abroad."

"The bilateral relations are developing on the basis of such recognized principles of international law as national sovereignty, mutual respect, non-interference, equality and mutual benefit under the DPRK-Russia treaty of friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation, a legitimate constitution of international law," Choe said Saturday. "This is an intrinsic attribute of the DPRK-Russia relations."



DPRK stands for "Democratic People's Republic of Korea," the official name of North Korea.

South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) briefed lawmakers on Wednesday and said that more than a million North Korean artillery shells have been sent to Russia since August on ships and transport planes. The NIS said the deliveries roughly amounted to two months' worth of shells for the Russians, lawmaker Yoo Sang-bum told The Associated Press.

South Korea believes North Korea has been operating its munitions factories at full capacity to meet Russian demand for ammunition, and that the Russians are providing technological assistance to launch a North Korean spy satellite in exchange.

South Korea's military said North Korea also wants nuclear-related technologies, fighter jets or related aircraft equipment and assistance with creating an anti-air defense network from Russia, The Associated Press reported.

[Godfather]

That's the new Axis eh. China, Iran and Russia - NK is in the mix but they're China's wild card proxy IMO. Best of buddies.

[FBD]

so are you guys still on about russia ebil and stop thinking about this situation right there?

are yas aware that "the biden admin" prevented peace talks at least twice, the latest one in turkey, ukraine was actually open to until the Biden admin said nope not happening

this is because they are heavily involved in the malfeasance

so much money sent there its insane, laundered like mad, weapons up on the black market and even shows up in Hamas' hands

reminder this SMO was all to prevent a bio terror release by globohomo agents

[FBD]

[FBD]

So no more bucks for Ukraine from the traitor machine here, hm...

https://www.politico.eu/article/nato...-from-ukraine/

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned that the Western military alliance should be ready for bad news from the Ukrainian front as Kyiv continues to defend against Russia's all-out invasion.

"We should also be prepared for bad news,” Stoltenberg added, without being more specific.

Without that money, a change in tactics for the Ukranian regime

I heard about it, but I didnt want to believe it
when you see it with your own eyes, you dont forgive

(you dont want the details)

I hope this garbage is all coming to an end, soon

If we (and by we I mean The Plebes) win ww3 (in the battle for this Age, vs the Central Banking Cartels and associated entities)
I will gladly never look at the news ever again
tis both horrifying and fascinating watching the train cars tumble along on this global trainwreck
Sadly, momentum remains

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Katie Bo Lillis, CNN




Russia has lost a staggering 87 percent of the total number of active-duty ground troops it had prior to launching its invasion of Ukraine and two-thirds of its pre-invasion tanks, a source familiar with a declassified US intelligence assessment provided to Congress told CNN.

Still, despite heavy losses of men and equipment, Russian President Vladimir Putin is determined to push forward as the war approaches its two-year anniversary early next year and US officials are warning that Ukraine remains deeply vulnerable. A highly anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive stagnated through the fall, and US officials believe that Kyiv is unlikely to make any major gains over the coming months.

The assessment, sent to Capitol Hill on Monday, comes as some Republicans have balked at the US providing additional funding for Ukraine and the Biden administration has launched a full-court press to try to get supplemental funding through Congress.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Washington on Tuesday, meeting with US lawmakers and President Joe Biden in desperate bid to secure the military and economic aid he says is vital to Ukraine’s ability to maintain the fight against Russia.



Russia has been able to keep its war effort going despite the heavy losses by relaxing recruitment standards and dipping into Soviet-era stockpiles of older equipment. Still, the assessment found that the war has “sharply set back 15 years of Russian effort to modernize its ground force.”

Of the 360,000 troops that entered Ukraine, including contract and conscript personnel, Russia has lost 315,000 on the battlefield, according to the assessment. 2,200 of 3,500 tanks have been lost, according to the assessment. 4,400 of 13,600 infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers have also been destroyed, a 32 percent loss rate.

“As of late November, Russia lost over a quarter of its pre-invasion stockpiles of ground forces equipment,” the assessment reads. “This has reduced the complexity and scale of Russian offensive operations, which have failed to make major gains in Ukraine since early 2022.”

CNN has reached out to the Russian Embassy in Washington for comment.

But it is the political environment in Washington that presents perhaps the greatest peril for Ukraine. Some Republicans are stiffly rejecting any additional funding and Senate Republicans are insisting on making it part of a broader spending package to include money for Israel, Taiwan and the US southern border. The Biden administration is warning that the US will soon be out of money for Ukraine.



“The idea that Ukraine was going to throw Russia back to the 1991 borders was preposterous,” Sen. J.D. Vance, a Republican from Ohio, said on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday. “So what we’re saying to the president and really to the entire world is, you need to articulate what the ambition is. What is $61 billion going to accomplish that $100 billion hasn’t?”

Other newly declassified intelligence previously reported by CNN suggests that “Russia seems to believe that a military deadlock through the winter will drain Western support for Ukraine and ultimately give Russia the advantage despite Russian losses and persistent shortages of trained personnel, munitions, and equipment,” according to a National Security Council spokesman.

“Since launching its offensive in October, we assess that the Russian military has suffered more than 13,000 casualties along the Avdiivka-Novopavlivka axis and over 220 combat vehicle losses-the equivalent of 6 maneuver battalions in equipment alone,” NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson told CNN.

Before the invasion, Russia had a total standing military of approximately 900,000 active-duty troops, including ground troops, airborne troops, special operations and other uniformed personnel, according to the CIA. Since the start of the invasion, Russia has announced plans to increase the size of the armed forces to 1.5 million. The Russian Ministry of Defense has announced several rounds of conscription, including its regular fall conscription cycle on October 1.

Russia has also leaned heavily on convicts marshaled to the fight by the Wagner Group and has increased the age limit for certain categories of citizens to remain in the reserve of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

[lost in melb.]

Russia is going to come out of this a husk.

[FBD]

> CNN

>according to US Iltelligence

[FBD]