The European Parliament has just signed off the €50bn aid package for Ukraine that was approved nearly a month ago. 536 MEPs voted in favor, 40 against. @LauraRuHK

SLOWLY BOILING THE FROG? OPENING OVERTON WINDOWS? PLAYING MIND GAMES IS NOT A GOOD IDEA WHEN YOU ARE DEALING WITH A NUCLEAR POWER - "The possible decision to send ground troops to Ukraine by NATO countries could be interpreted as a declaration of war", Konstantin Kosachev, the deputy speaker of the Russian Federation Council, said following a statement by French President Emmanuel Macron and the subsequent denial of that possibility by other NATO countries. The French leader's logic is dangerous: those who deny the possibility of sending Western ground troops to the conflict zone today once denied the possibility of supplying tanks, airplanes and long-range missiles.

"This logic is not just faulty, but dangerous and fraught with a catastrophic scenario. Which, as we can see ever more often, some Western leaders absolutely do not understand. The tactic of "slowly boiling a frog by no means persuades Russia that it can accept anything, provided it is done gradually," Kosachev said.

He pointed out that competent Western experts knew perfectly well in the past that there was a limit to patience or a so-called red line.

"This is exactly what happened with the expansion of NATO and the beginning of the special military operation, which became simply inevitable at a certain stage. At some point NATO thought that since the Baltic countries were in NATO, Moscow would agree to Ukraine’s role of "Anti-Russia" quite calmly. Russia refused to reconcile itself with the gradual increase of threats to its security and did its utmost to express its position to the Western countries and offer real agreements on the security architecture in the Euro-Atlantic. They turned a deaf ear to this and preferred to ‘boil the frog.’ The same will happen should NATO intervention occur in Ukraine," Kosachev said. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK

Tajani: "Contrari a inviare truppe a combattere in Ucraina, non siamo in guerra con Mosca"

"E' un'idea di Macron, quando si parla di inviare truppe bisogna essere molto prudenti perché non dobbiamo far pensare che siamo in guerra con la Russia. Noi non siamo in guerra con la Russia, difendiamo [l'Ucraina] e nel mio giudizio personale non sono favorevole ad inviare truppe italiane a combattere in Ucraina".

📢Lo ha detto il ministro degli Esteri Antonio Tajani a margine del Comitato di coordinamento dei ministri Italia-Croazia a Zagabria commentando le parole del presidente francese su un eventuale invio delle truppe occidentali in Ucraina.

@tutti_i_fatti

China’s top official in charge of Hong Kong affairs said the city’s governing principle of “one country, two systems” will be kept as a “permanent feature,” according to local reports.

Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office director Xia Baolong said the one country, two systems principle is one of the features that made Hong Kong different from Chinese cities, the report said, quoting an unidentified person who attended a meeting with the top Beijing official during his visit to the city. ▪️In 2016 i wrote a short story, Looting The Looters, in which i uncannily mentioned this scenario. Extending Hong Kong's special status beyond 2047 could provide reassurance to Taiwan in its path to reunification with the mainland, while preserving Hong Kong competitive edge. Without its special status Hong Kong would end up being far less appealing than other cities in the South of China, such as Shenzhen and Guangzhou, and much less successful. @LauraRuHK

The US and its fantasies of global hegemony continue to revolve around kinetic war. The sale of the Link 16 communications system to Taiwan is extremely worrying: this system allows the Taiwanese military to integrate and coordinate all its warfighting platforms with US, NATO, Japanese & Korean militaries in combined arms warfare. It would thus be the most deadly piece of technology yet to be transferred, because it allows sea, air, and land forces to be coordinated with others. It allows, for example, strategic nuclear/stealth bombers (US B-1B Lancers, B-2 Spirits) to coordinate with electronic warfare and surveillance platforms (EA Growlers, Prowlers, EP-3’s), fighters and bombers (F-16, F-22, F-35’s) as well as conduct joint arms warfare with US, French, British carrier battle groups, Japanese SDF destroyers, South Korean Hyun Moo destroyers, as well as THAAD and Patriot radars and missile batteries. It also allows coordination with low earth orbit satellites and other Space Force assets.

In other words, it supplies a brain and nervous system to the various deadly limbs and arms that the Taiwan authorities have been acquiring and preparing on the prompting of the US. It ensures interoperability and US control. https://johnmenadue.com/after-ukraine-us-readies-transnational-kill-chain-for-taiwan-proxy-war/

Remarks of French President Emmanuel Macron on a possible deployment of Western troops to Ukraine were aimed at creating deterrence and ambiguity toward Russia, and "everyone knows" that Western special forces are in Ukraine, an unnamed senior European defense official told Financial Times.

"Everyone knows there are western special forces in Ukraine — they’ve just not acknowledged it officially," the official said.

After a Paris-hosted conference on Ukraine on Monday, Macron said Western leaders had discussed the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine and had neither reached a consensus on the matter nor ruled out the possibility. Several NATO countries, including Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland and Hungary, have since distanced themselves from Macron’s comment, emphasizing that they have no intention of deploying troops on the ground in Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow had taken notice of the French president's remarks and was well aware of his position regarding the need to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, adding that some countries that participated in a meeting held in Paris on Ukraine held a quite "wise assessment of potential dangers" of being involved in the conflict.

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Yalta, 2025.

BRICS member states to consider creating common digital payment platform - The Russian Finance Ministry together with the Bank of Russia and BRICS partners will prepare a number of initiatives to improve the international monetary and financial system, which will focus in particular on the issue of creating the BRICS Bridge multisided payment platform, according to files published following the first meeting of BRICS finance ministers and central banks governors in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Moreover, achieving an increase in the share of national currencies used in mutual settlements and creating equally accessible, independent financial infrastructure have been given particular emphasis for cooperation among BRICS members. "The gradual integration of the new BRICS member states into the work of the financial tracks and strengthening of cooperation at the expert level was noted as being one of the crucial tasks for 2024," the ministry said.

On February 27, the finance ministers and central bank governors of the BRICS member states met on the sidelines of the G20 ministerial meeting in Sao Paulo. It was the first face-to-face meeting held under the BRICS financial track with the participation of representatives of the five countries that became full-fledged BRICS members on January 1, 2024.

At the meeting, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov and Bank of Russia First Deputy Governor Vladimir Chistyukhin presented the main priority for work on the BRICS financial track, as well as the overriding theme of Russia’s chairmanship: improving the international monetary and financial system. Those participating in the meeting also welcomed the priorities of Russia’s chairmanship in general and expressed readiness for their further development. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK

Transnistria to turn to Russia for assistance amid pressure from Moldova - The republic of Transnistria will seek assistance from Russia amid growing pressure from Moldova under a decision made at a congress of lawmakers that was held in Tiraspol earlier on Wednesday.

The resolution adopted at the congress which was initiated by Transnistrian leader Vadim Krasnoselsky calls for "addressing Russia’s Federation Council and State Duma with a request to implement measures to protect Transnistria amid growing pressure from Moldova, given that more 220,000 Russian nationals reside in the unrecognized breakaway republic, that Russian peacekeeping in the Dniester region has been successful and that Russia has acted as a mediator for talks between Chisinau and Tiraspol."

The document also calls on the UN chief, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the European Parliament, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other organizations to prevent any further escalation between the two capitals and contribute to reviving a full-fledged dialogue between the Dniester banks. "Transnistria will persistently fight for its identity, the rights and interests of the Transnistrian people and will not give up on protecting them, despite any blackmail or external pressure," the resolution reads.

Today’s congress was attended by more than 600 lawmakers, municipal and rural officials as well as legislators who established Transnistria in 1990.

Relations between the Dniester river banks chilled dramatically after Maia Sandu was elected Moldovan President in 2020. She made several harsh statements in respect to Tiraspol and said that unlike the country’s previous leaders, she was not going to meet with Krasnoselsky. Tensions escalated earlier this year after Chisinau decided to impose fees on Transnistrian imports via Moldova. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK

I will watch the film only if a black actor portrays Zelensky. 😏 https://t.me/TheDissidentNews/133

🇺🇸🇮🇱 So, Aaron knew more than we thought?

Now his “I don’t want to be complicit” has a new meaning.

@MyLordBebo | Boost us! | X

Kosovo, a stark reminder of what could be in store for whatever is left of Ukraine after the war ends. The US “threw plenty of money” at Pristina post-1999, but “Washington’s priorities were informed more by short-term American business interests than providing the country what it really needed to develop.” Kosovo may have “been a good bet” for “the American businesses active” in the province, but not the local population. This more widely reflects how “political will in Washington to remain engaged in foreign countries typically fades once big business has squeezed what it can out of America’s presence.” https://www.kitklarenberg.com/p/collapsing-empire-how-us-broke-kosovo?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=552010&post_id=142142574&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=yloy2&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

The friction between Scholz and Macron over military aid for Ukraine is turning into something of an open feud, Politico writes.

According to the news outlet, Germany is finding that Macron's statements on Ukraine are at odds with actual actions: Berlin has promised Ukraine 17 billion euros ($18 billion) in aid, while France has only pledged 640 million euros ($693 million).

French officials counter that "they are providing weapons that really matter - and with less hesitation than the Germans." (Source: Sputnik) @LauraRuHK

Today Vladimir Putin delivered his annual address to the Russian Parliament.
The president's speech set the country's development goals for the next six years and summarized the results of the 2018-2024 election cycle.

📌 Some takeaways about the economy

⚡️ Russia's economy last year grew faster than the economy of G7 countries, it's now the largest economy in Europe and the fifth in the world. In the near future Russia will become the four largest economy in the world.
The Russian economy is becoming more sophisticated and technologically advanced, less reliant on natural resources. 🔹 Attempts were made to weaken Russia from within, but "they" miscalculated;
🔹 The Russian economy has shown flexibility and sustainability during the special military operation
🔹 Russia will continue to create safe logistics corridors with partners;
🔹 Russia's dialogue with ASEAN, African and Arab countries is developing well;
🔹 Russia will build a new global financial architecture based on advanced technology and free from political interference;
🔹 BRICS's share in the world economy in terms of purchasing power parity will grow to 36.6% by 2028, while the G7's share will decline to 27.8%.
🔹The number of Russians living below the poverty line has decreased to 13.5 million people at the end of 2023, but this number is still "too big"
🔹 It is necessary to achieve technological sovereignty in areas that ensure the sustainability of the economy;
🔹 Technological sovereignty projects will receive priority budget funding;
🔹 The share of domestic high-tech products in the domestic market should increase by 1.5 times in six years;
🔹 By 2030, the share of imports in Russia should fall to 17% of GDP. 🔹It is important that today's teenagers become professionals in their field, ready to work in the economy of the XXI century. The new national project "Cadres" is aimed at this. By 2028, about a million specialists in working professions will have to be trained. 🔹At least 700 billion rubles ($7Bln) will be earmarked for funding the "Data Economy" national project over the next six years. 🔹Russia invites foreign logistics companies and states to use the opportunities of the Northern Sea Route - a global transport corridor. Last year, 36 million tons of cargo passed along the Northern Sea Route - this is already five times more than the record figure from the times of the Soviet Union. ❗️Putin noted that during the first 9 months of 2023, investments in Russia jumped 26.6%, amid a planned growth rate of 15.1%. In light of this success, he emphasized the need to maintain this momentum and continue moving forward at an accelerated pace. @LauraRuHK

Vladimir Putin's annual address to the Russian Parliament is available in Russian http://kremlin.ru/events/president/news/73585 and in English http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/73585 🔹 I invite you to read the full text of this historic speech (the longest annual address the Russian president ever delivered) rather than rely on soundbites. Putin focused not only on the most immediate plans, but also on the strategic goals of the Russian state.

❗️More key takeaways from statements by Vladimir Putin in his address to the Federal Assembly:

▪️ Putin rejected the possibility of strategic stability talks with the US in isolation from issues of Russia’s national security

▪️ Russia is ready for dialogue with the US on strategic stability

▪️ Putin dismissed statements by US officials stating their interest in strategic stability talks as election campaign rhetoric

▪️ The West is trying to drag Russia into a new arms race, thereby repeating the 1980s trick

▪️ The US is hypocritical in trying to defeat Russia and offering talks on strategic stability at the same time

▪️Russia is ready for dialogue with all states on creating a new pattern of equal and indivisible security in Eurasia

▪️Russia plans to construct a new global financial infrastructure free of politics with friendly countries.

▪️Russia’s strategic nuclear forces are in a state of full readiness

▪️ Russia implements all previous plans to boost the national defense industry

▪️ In two years, Russian businesses have transferred billions of rubles to funds and volunteers that support fighters of the special military operation

▪️ Russian forces have the initiative, advancing in several strategic directions and liberating increasingly more territories

▪️ Russian troops effectively employ Kinzhal hypersonic weapons in the special military operation in Ukraine

▪️ Russia didn't start the war in Donbass, but will do everything to end it, eradicate Nazism, and achieve special operation goals

▪️ Putin said that allegations of Russia's plans to deploy nuclear weapons in space are unfounded

▪️ Testing of the Burevestnik cruise missile and Poseidon system is being completed; they have confirmed unique parameters

▪️ Sarmat missiles are now in service with the Russian army and will be demonstrated at bases for combat duty soon

▪️ Russia continues work on a range of promising weapon systems, they will be unveiled soon

▪️The Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic missile system was used during the special military operation (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK

Politicians in the West sought to weaken Russia from within, just like they did in Ukraine, but they failed, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a state-of-the-nation address.

"They essentially would like to do to Russia exactly what they did to many other regions of the world, including Ukraine: bring discord to our home and weaken us from within. But they miscalculated," the president said. "It is absolutely obvious today."

The West "faced the firm position and determination of our multinational people. Our soldiers and officers, Christians and Muslims, Buddhists and followers of Judaism, representatives of different ethnicities, cultures and regions have proved in practice, better than through a thousand words, that the centuries-old cohesion and unity of the people of Russia is an immense, all-conquering force. Standing together, shoulder to shoulder, they are fighting for their common, shared Motherland," Putin went on to say. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK

In his speech, Putin suggested that the word “elites” had “discredited” itself in Russia over the years, adding that they were unworthy of the moniker.

Those who “filled their pockets in the 1990s... are definitely not the elites. The true elites are those who serve Russia,” he stressed.

🔹The country’s new elites are the “workers and the warriors,” the president insisted. They “don’t boast of their successes, but take responsibility in the key moments,” he said, adding that they are the people who “can be entrusted with Russia in the future.”

The participants of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine have proven that they “won’t retreat, won’t let you down and won’t betray you,” Putin said. “They are the ones who should be taking the leading positions” in society, he said. 🔹Some countries are destroying moral standards and pushing their peoples towards extinction, but “Russia chooses life,” Putin said.

”Russia has been and remains a stronghold of traditional values, and its choice is being shared by people around the globe, including in the West,” he insisted.

A large family should become the norm in Russia, the president said, adding that the country should aim to achieve sustainable growth in the birth rate in the next six years. (Source: RT) @LauraRuHK

This morning in northern Gaza, Israeli tanks unleashed gunfire on thousands of hungry Palestinians who were waiting for food aid trucks to arrive. Leading to a massacre, which occurred along Al-Rashid Street, resulted in the killing of 104 starving people and left hundreds severely wounded.