Новости за 14.05.2024

DoD officials have accused Russia of working on a secret, space-based, nuclear antisatellite weapon. President Putin has stressed that Moscow is “categorically opposed” to the deployment of nuclear weapons in space, and urged all sides to adhere to their treaty obligations. Russia and the US have taken the matter to the United Nations.

The US Special Operations Forces (SOF) say they are experiencing a "renaissance," adapting to irregular warfare in the context of heightened great power competition. But in reality the command is facing cuts as the US military's ability to project power wanes.

A senior US Air Force official has sent defense contractors a strongly worded letter over delays to the Vulcan Centaur heavy-lift launch vehicle program – initiated to replace the workhorse Atlas V, which uses Russian-made RD-180 engines. The delay signals the US’s inability even to copy Russian-made equipment, a leading space researcher says.

The Yemeni militia’s unrelenting campaign of ship hijackings and missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, US, and UK-linked commercial vessels has resulted in a two-thirds drop in traffic through the strategic Red Sea chokepoint since December. The militia has vowed to end its campaign if Israel halts its military incursion into Gaza.

Russia’s Su-34 is a multirole fighter-bomber designed to perform a variety of missions, including air-to-air combat, ground attack, and reconnaissance. The Su-34 is known for its high speed, maneuverability, and advanced avionics.

Major Harrison Mann's resignation is not the first departure of a US official in protest against the Biden administration’s Gaza policy. Two State Department officials similarly quit earlier, lambasting Washington for continuing to “send a steady stream of weapons to Israel” amid the suffering of the Palestinian people.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The position of Secretary of the Russian Security Council, to which former Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has been appointed, is a high government post with a wide range of tasks and implies direct contacts with the head of state, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin signed on Tuesday the decrees on appointments in the leadership of the Russian Presidential Administration, the Kremlin said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - A criminal case for receiving a bribe on an especially large scale has been launched against Lieutenant General Yuri Kuznetsov, the head of the Main Personnel Directorate of the Russian Defense Ministry, Russian Investigative Committee spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko said on Tuesday.

News that the Royal Marines will be getting new specialist vessels comes as two of the UK’s aircraft carriers – the HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales – have been plagued by technical malfunctions, with humiliating breakdowns affecting Britain’s ability to participate in large-scale joint NATO drills.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has announced his desire to stay in office after the next German federal elections scheduled for October 2025.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Japan has lodged a protest with South Korea after opposition politicians from the neighboring East Asian nation visited disputed Takeshima Islands (also known as Dokdo Islands or the Liancourt Rocks), Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said on Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda Pharmaceutical has entered into an agreement with Swiss drug developer AC Immune under which it will invest up to $2.2 billion to develop a cure for Alzheimer's disease, the Japanese company said.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Israel has killed or injured at least 31 aid workers in Gaza since October in at least eight strikes on coordinates that were provided by aid groups to Israeli authorities in advance, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON, (Sputnik) - President Joe Biden on Monday issued an order prohibiting the purchase of real estate property in the vicinity of a US Air Force base in the state of Wyoming by four companies, including MineOne Partners Limited, owned by Chinese nationals.

MOSCOW, (Sputnik) - The UK army was the first to use a 3D printer to produce spare parts for equipment in the field during NATO exercises, the UK Defense Ministry said.

WASHINGTON, (Sputnik) - President Joe Biden has signed a bill that prohibits US imports of Russian uranium, the White House said in a press release.

Last week, Israel seized the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing, the only entry point into Gaza not controlled by Israel and where the largest amount of aid was entering the Gaza Strip. Israel has halted all shipments entering through the Rafah border crossings and the nearby Kerem Shalom crossing, citing nearby fighting.

A study by the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED) examined 553 campus protests focused on the war in Gaza and found that the vast majority of them - 97% - did not include violence or property damage.