I think it would be fair to say that the elections in France and the UK have been among the most significant events of the week. Both have shown that the voters were not at all happy with their elected representatives. I doubt that the election of Keir Starmer will make any difference to Ukraine or Gaza while it remains to be seen whether or not policies relating to the two conflicts will alter very much if Le Pen’s dominance finds expression in Sunday’s vote. Much depends on which parties form the next French government. Iran is electing a new president after the previous incumbent was killed in helicopter crash. The post could go to a reformer or a hard liner but the voting will not be complete before I publish this.
Russia will probably have a torrid time as chair of the UNSC which it took up on July 1st. It’s representatives will have felt much more at ease in Astana where they participated in the Shanghai Cooperation Association Summit - July 3rd - 4th.
The fallout from Biden’s disastrous debate with Trump continues and it is still not clear whether he will stay or go. Cackling Kamala, who was trounced in the 2020 primaries and humiliated by Tulsi Gabbard, is waiting in the wings. She really thinks she’s got what it takes to be POTUS - God help us.
In the middle east, Israel has increased its air and ground attacks in Gaza. The intensity of the fighting with Hezbollah has increased but an invasion of Lebanon has not happened. This may be due in part to Iran’s threat of involvement if Israel does invade. Meanwhile, the Houthis continue to have successes in the Red Sea.
Ukraine’s mobilisation methods are causing concern among its population, some of whom have started to resist.
On the battlefronts, Russia’s strategy of attrition while stretching the Ukrainian force by pressing simultaneously all along the front lines appears to be paying off as some sectors are close to collapse. Ukrainians reinforcements are ill equipped, poorly trained and lack motivation. In consequence, their attempts to push the Russians back in north Kharkov have yielded nothing but heavy losses. Some troops have even refused to engage in futile, suicidal assaults.
Thankfully, Ukrainian/US terror attacks have yielded few casualties as compared to previous weeks - but these will probably increase leading up to the NATO Summit next week.
The once great Z has given a few interviews this week which demonstrate a lack of grasp on reality (see below).
It has been an interesting week but maybe not as eventful as the previous one.
Russia to Produce Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF)
Vladimir Putin has announced that Russia will start producing medium-short ground based nuclear missile systems to counter those being produced by the US - according to Pravda. The US deploys these missile systems around the world and Putin hinted that Russia should do the same:
We need to react to this and make decisions on what we will have to do in this direction next. Apparently, we need to start the production of these strike systems and then, based on the actual situation, we will need to decide where to deploy them to ensure our security, if necessary.
This suggests that Russia will start to produce these missiles and deploy them around the world to protect itself - according to Pravda.
In 2019 Russia and the US agreed not to produce and deploy INF but the US has now abandoned this treaty - so Russia has had to respond. The world will become a more dangerous place in consequence.
Russia Resigns From OSCE
The Russian parliament agreed that Russia should suspend participation in the Western influenced Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. When you think of it, Russia isn’t getting much by way of Security and Cooperation with Europe in recent years - so why bother with the OSCE?
Ukraine Funding Declines
Ukraine Economy Near Collapse
Verkhovna Rada deputy Yevgeny Shevchenko said that Ukraine’s economic opportunities have been exhausted and practically destroyed. He noted that the country has long been living off Western assistance and does not earn its own money. He also said that:
From an economic point of view, we have become a closed country. Both inside and outside. Probably, a new Maidan is waiting for us. Even more merciless and even more destructive. And the trigger for this will be the complete collapse of economic stability. It is still living off Western aid.
Whining Z
Zelensky was interviewed by the Philadelphia Inquirer this week and lamented the fact that the Patriot has no chance in a fight with the Russian KAB aerial bombs:
If you and I take the cost of Patriot missiles and their quantity, as well as KABs, then we will never have a thousand Patriot missiles per month. I’ll tell you honestly that we won’t even have a hundred a month. Because each rocket costs more than $3 million, and the issue is not only about money - they just don’t produce that many.
On the positive side, or so he claimed in an interview, Russia is losing six times more personnel than Ukraine. You could see his nose growing as he spoke.
He also said:
Let's not talk about a long war, as he (Putin) doesn't have the strength for it. We in Ukraine have no desire to continue the war, and he has the desire but no forces. This is a fact. And if we don't sell Putin spare parts [for weapons production], ban it, focus and control this issue, then his desire to wage war, in the absence of the ability to continue, will decrease.
One Ukrainian Telegram Channel suggests that Z may be throwing a tantrum because the upcoming NATO summit is unlikely to provide him with a date for the delivery of F-16s.
Z also made an appeal to Trump, in desperation perhaps:
If Trump knows how to end this war, he should tell us today. If there are risks to Ukrainian independence, if we lose our statehood, we want to be prepared for this, we want to know [Zelensky told Bloomberg].
In another interview, Zelensky appealed for more weapons - without which he cannot launch the counter-offensive the West wants. He has 14 brigades, he said, but not enough weapons to arm them. He also asked for permission to strike deep in the heart of Russia.
‘We can all force Russia to end the war; this year. We are all capable of this when we are all together’, he said.
These statements are characterised by a mixture of reality and delusion - a strange mix which some of the experts will try to unpack. I’ll leave it to them because I have no idea how this man’s mind works.
Syrsky Also Whines
But with some justification, perhaps. He laments that many of his soldiers are undertrained and under motivated. This makes it difficult to complete tasks and impacts on the general combat effectiveness of units. Many Ukrainians blame military failures on the botched mobilisation which has alienated many commentators who are sympathetic to Syrsky’s complaints. Others in Ukraine’s administration are after his head.
Ukrainians Fear Cold Winters Over Many Years
Some Ukrainians are concerned about 14 hour blackouts during many cold winters to come in a very pessimistic assessment of the situation - according to legitimniy.
Attempted Coup?
The SBU has announced the arrest of ‘activists’ who, it is claimed, organised a peaceful meeting in Kiev and planned to use the participants as part of a coup against the existing political/military leadership. Weapons, ammunitions and draft plans were found in the arrested activists’ homes. Those arrested face ten years in prison. Some on the Ukrainian Channel legitimniy are not convinced that the SBU’s account of this incident is accurate. It is possible that the activists were engaged in nothing more than legitimate peaceful protest, they believe.
Commentators on rezident are reporting on a number of demonstrations that have been made against mobilisation. They expect these to increase since the draconian way the Ukrainian authorities are handling mobilisation is more than unpopular.
Some believe that a bloody repeat of the 2014 Maidan coup is inevitable.
Ukraine/US Terror Attacks - (those that target civilians)
US operatives are sometimes involved in directing munitions onto civilian targets - this is why they are included as culprits in this section. It looks as though the US is attempting to blackmail Russia by advising of its intention to allow Ukraine to target deep inside Russia should the latter decide to extend the front westwards - according to Jake Sullivan. I doubt that Putin will allow this to interfere with his plans.
28th/29th June
Several cars were burned out and others damaged by drone attack overnight in Belgorod. One civilian was wounded. Several ‘aircraft type’ drones were destroyed over Bryansk while many villages in Kursk suffered shelling and drone attacks. In Rylsky district of Kursk, a drone attacked a house killing five people, including 2 small children. A little girl and her grandfather were taken to hospital in serious condition. Later, the little girl of four died of her wounds. Nine drones were suppressed by EW in the border regions on this day. In the DPR, 2 civilians were killed and 4 wounded by drones and shelling.
29th/30th June
The Russian MoD reported that 15 drones were intercepted over the Kursk region, nine over the region of Lipetsk, four over each of the regions of Voronezh and Bryansk as well as two more drones over each of the regions of Oryol and Belgorod - according to South Front. Three civilians were injured in Belgorod by kamikaze drone attacks on their cars.
30th June/1st July
Overnight, Russian air defence destroyed 36 Ukrainian drones over the territories of the Kursk, Lipetsk, Voronezh, Bryansk, Oryol and Belgorod regions, according to the Russian MoD. Two civilians were injured by drone attack in the village of Bogun Gorodok (Belgorod) while four rescue workers were injured by shelling in Donetsk. According to another report, four civilians, including two children, were injured by 155mm shelling in Donetsk and Gorlovka.
1st/2nd July
Belgorod came under attacks from shelling and drones overnight killing two civilians and injuring nine - according to the Two Majors. Many villages in Kursk also came under attack from shelling and drones but no casualties were reported. Finally, in the DPR one person was killed and another 5 injured by shelling.
3rd July
At 5.30 am on the morning of July 3rd, a supermarket in Donetsk was completely demolished by HIMARS missiles, which, as I understand it, are operated by US personnel. Given the early hour, it is not clear whether there was an intention to cause casualties but no one was injured. Early the same morning a bakery in Belgorod was attacked killing two and injuring several others. Many villages in Belgorod and Kursk were attacked overnight damaging houses and cars but causing only two casualties.
24 drones were suppressed over the border regions on the 3rd July.
On this day, the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant came under attack cutting off electricity to many in the Ernogodar region. Eight workers who were engaged in repair work after the previous attack were injured, according to RT. This is worrying.
3rd/4th July
Overnight, two drones were destroyed over Tambov region and two more over Bryansk. Three civilians were injured in Belgorod by a ‘drone drop’ on their house while a truck driver working in a field was also injured. In another village, a woman was injured when a kamikaze drone attacked her house while in Shebekino three civilians were injured by shelling. Kursk also suffered drone attacks and shelling but no casualties were reported. 13 drones were suppressed over the border regions during the day while in the DPR, 3 civilians were injured by shelling.
4th/5th July Overnight
According to the Military Chronicle:
During the night, Russian air defense shot down 14 UAVs over the Kuban, another 10 drones over the Rostov region and 26 over the Zaporizhzhia region. There are especially many shots from Rostov, the attack was at one o'clock in the morning.
Belgorod suffered shelling and ‘drone drops’ onto civilian cars which injured six. Kursk also suffered ‘drone drops’ onto cars and houses but only one civilians was injured. The DPR was less fortunate, suffering one fatality and three wounded.
The Sea War
28th/29th June
Overnight, two drones were destroyed above the sea near Balaclava (Crimea) but fragments injured three civilians.
29th/30th June
Fragments from a destroyed missile injured four people overnight at Sevastopol.
30th June
Later on the 30th June, Stormshadow missiles along with decoys were launched against Crimea. All six were shot down above the Kerch peninsular damaging some dachas but causing no casualties.
1st/2nd July
Crimea came under ‘air launched’ missile attack overnight but this was defeated by Russian air defences. According to this report, 5 missiles were destroyed over the Balaklava region and falling fragments caused damage to buildings and cars - but no one was hurt.
3rd July
Three drones were destroyed over Crimea during the night.
3rd/4th July Overnight
Unmanned boats attacked the bay of Novorossiysk (Crimea) overnight.
4th/5th July
In Krasnador, six people were injured and power supplies disrupted.
The Air War
Russian Missile/Drone Attacks
30th June/ 1st July
According to the Two Majors:
Over the past day, the RFAF carried out pinpoint strikes against enemy facilities in Kharkov, Kiev, Kropivnitsky, Chuguyev and Dnepropetrovsk. Enemy channels reported the use of our Iskander missiles.
1st July/2nd July
Mirgorod airfield in Poltava came under heavy attack from Iskander missiles overnight. It is claimed that up to four SU 27s were destroyed and another two damaged.
2nd/3rd July
Dolgintsevo airfield in Krivoy Rog was attacked with Iskanders overnight. One Mig-29 and some engineering vehicles were destroyed.
4th/5th July
Mirgorod airfield in Poltava region was attacked with Iskander missiles overnight. Supply warehouses in Odessa and Ilyichevsk also came under fire along with the airport at Odessa. Pravda is reporting that a large group of foreign mercenaries came under attack at the port of Ilyichevsk killing 18 and injuring another 30.
It appears that the Russians are determined to eliminate Ukraine’s air force and make airfields unusable for the F-16s that are coming.
Ukrainian Missile/Drone Attacks
28th/29th June
Overnight, the Ukrainians attacked two electricity substations in Zaporozhye cutting supplies to eleven villages.
The Ground War
The Fronts
This presentation of the fronts proceeds from north to south.
Russian MoD Reports
w/e 14th June 12,795 Casualties killed and wounded: equipment losses 409.
w/e 21st June 13,710 Casualties killed and wounded: equipment losses 452.
w/e 28th June 13,820 Casualties killed and wounded: equipment losses 474.
w/e 5th July 13,525 Casualties killed and wounded: equipment losses 418
Front Line Cats
Kharkov
The Russians still have the initiative in this Direction. The Ukrainians have launched counter attacks near Volchansk and north of Liptsy this week but none has been successful. They are attempting to build up forces for an attack but Russian artillery and aviation is preventing this. Street battles continue in Volchansk itself and the Russians maintain control over the Aggregate Plant. According to the Military Chronicle, the Ukrainians are plugging gaps with untrained infantry leading to predictable results but Ukraine needs some positive optics to take to the NATO Summit next week.
Kupyansk - Svatove
This week, according to the Two Majors, the Russians intensified their actions near the village of Stepovaya Novoselovka and are advancing on Stelmakhovka and Makeyevka (LPR). By the end of the week, the Russians had occupied the southern part of the village of Peschanoye.
Seversk (see above map)
This week in Seversk Direction, the Russians continued attacks north of the outskirts of Razdolovka, as well as north of Vesyoloye in the direction of Vyemka.
On July 1st, the village of Spornoye was liberated according one report but another places the village in the ‘grey zone’.
In the Krasny Liman Direction, fighting continues in the forestry around the village of Terny.
Chasov Yar
The ‘Kanal’ Microdistrict was fully occupied by Russian forces on July 3rd.
Toretsk Tunnel Breakthrough
On July 1st, a veteran Russian air assault Brigade used a forgotten tunnel to launch a surprise attack on the rear of Ukrainian units on the outskirts of Kirovo - according to the Military Chronicle. Some Ukrainians retreated, some were killed, the rest surrendered.
Yury Podolyaka gave this report:
The front had been stagnant here for a long time until the Russians dug a 3 km tunnel into the rear of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This tunnel not only allowed Russian stormtroopers to suddenly appear behind the enemy's powerful fortifications (which collapsed from such an unexpected attack) but also enabled these avant-garde troops to be supplied without fearing the enemy's drones.
On July 1st, the village of Sumy was completely cleared by Russian forces.
Gorlivka - Toretsk
The Two Majors gave this report on July 4th:
In In the area of Toretsk (Dzerzhinsk), the Russian Army is making significant progress. Our troops broke through the AFU defence near Nyu-York (Novgorodskoye) to a depth of up to 3 km and occupied part of Yuryevka. The assault on Yuzhnoye (Pivdennoye) is continuing. In addition, the RFAF have entrenched themselves on the outskirts of Druzhba. The Toretsk agglomeration is almost continuous urbanised terrain, but despite the dense construction, the surprise of the enemy's individual manoeuvres caused the sprinkling of the front edge of the AFU defence. The fighting continues.
On July 5th, the Military Chronicle gave this short report:
The situation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Toretsk and the village of New York continues to deteriorate. Ukrainian publics are in alarm - the command of the 41st Mechanized Brigade, which leads the defense of the agglomeration, cannot adequately manage the units entrusted to it, in particular the 206th Tro Battalion.
Ocheretyno - Sokol (north west of Avdeevka)
By the evening of the 3rd July, according to Sitrep:
[There is] Fighting on the outskirts of Karlovka and north of Umanskoye. In the direction of Novosyolovka1st, the RFAF have made serious progress south of Sokol, and are also fighting on the southern outskirts of Yevgenyevka. The control zone in the area of Novoaleksandrovka has been expanded. There is advance towards Progress, which is about 1 km away. In the Kalinovo area, it has not yet been possible to advance, as well as in the area of Rozovka.
Novoaleksandrovka - Sokol - Kalinovo - Detail
On the 5th July, the Military Chronicle gave this short report:
From the Avdiivka direction, there is confirmation of the breakthrough of our armored group towards Lozovate and Pokrovsk. The advance was more than 1.5 kilometers to this point - 48.271183, 37.528736. There is a gradual coverage of plantings, fields and the railway south of Novoaleksandrovka
Karlovka - Detail
According to the Two Majors on July 4th:
West of Avdeyevka, the RFAF are attacking at the Nevelskoye - Netaylovo line, the AFU are preparing for the surrender of Karlovka, withdrawing the most combat-ready units from Karlovka in the hope of preserving them, while leaving motorised infantry for rearguard fighting to slow down the advance of our troops.
Krasnogorivka - Marinka
By the week’s end, the Russians continued to push the Ukrainians to the outskirts of Krasnogorovka - according to this report.
Vuhledar
On July 3rd, fighting continued around Konstantinovka while east of Uhledar the Russians advanced 2kms into Ukrainian held territory north of Vladimirovka.
Vremyevka Ledge
On the Vremyevka ledge, according to Sitrep, Russian fighters completely liberated Staromayorskoye, advancing almost a kilometer in the direction of Makarovka.
Zaporozhye
This week, the Russians went on the offensive in the area of Shcherbaki - Nesteryanka and advanced to a depth of up to half a kilometre. Heavy flamethrower systems assisted in securing three enemy strongholds.
Kherson
Fighting continues in this Direction near the Antonovsky bridge.
The Economic War
Ukraine Could Default
Ukraine’s debt is now 100% of GDP and its debt of $12 billions to French asset companies will be reviewed at the end of the month when its ‘repayment pause’ has expired. If Ukraine is unable to get a repayment extension; it will default - thereby admitting that the country is bankrupt - according to this report. But Ukraine’s credit rating and its ability to borrow will be affected by the default. You can read more at RT.
Meanwhile, Russia is Thriving - World Bank
According to The World bank’s ‘National Income Rankings’, Russia has been elevated from ‘upper middle’ to ‘high’ based on the strength of its economic growth. You can read more at RT.
Russian income from oil and gas increased by 41% during the first six months of 2024 to a grand total of $65.12 billions. This increase is due in part to higher oil prices and the weakening of the Ruble.
In addition, Russia’s share of the world wheat market has increased from 25% (last year) to 28%.
World Politics
Russia Presides Over UN Security Council
On July 1st, Russia took up the presidency of the UNSC until August 1st. According to Tass:
Major events under Russia’s presidency [include], discussions on how to build a fairer and more democratic world order and ways to resolve the Middle East crisis as well as cooperation between the UN, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), are expected to take place in mid-July.
Russian spokesman Dmitry Petrov has said that the atmosphere at the UNSC is very hostile towards Russia which will make it difficult for ‘objective’ discussion to take place regarding Russia’s agenda. You can read more at Tass.
Marine Le Pen’s Surges in French Elections
Le Pen’s National Rally (used to be the National Front) has won more handsomely than some predicted and less so than others believed would happen. Some commentators believe that Macron made a huge mistake when he judged that the French people approved of the hard line he took against Putin and his support of the Ukraine conflict. But the people actually believed that the rise in food and energy prices they have been experiencing were due, in part, to the Ukraine conflict.
It is much too early to speculate about the formation/composition of a future government and its policies since the second round of voting isn’t happening until the weekend. I’ll provide a more detailed report next week.
UK’s Labour Win In Landslide
Unsurprisingly, the UK’s Labour Party under Keir Starmer won over 400 seats to gain an overall majority while the Tories have been reduced to just 119 seats, losing a staggering 248. This was the heaviest defeat in the party’s history. Nigel Farage has become an MP but perhaps he will be a little disappointed that his Reform party managed only 4 seats. Plaid Cymru (Welsh Nationalists) and the Greens also have 4 seats while the Scottish Nationalist Party received a hammering, losing 38 seats to be left with only 8 (the appetite for independence appears to have declined somewhat). The Liberal Democrats, who have been in the wilderness for a while, surged from 8 seats to 71.
It was good to see the Tories trounced but Starmer and his party will be no better than Sunak and co. Nothing will change with regard to Ukraine and Gaza and some will fear that Labour will try to get closer to Europe and accelerate the Green agenda. For those who don’t know, Labour, which used to have some allegiance to the working class, is now a neo-liberal globalist party just like the Tories.
Some hoped it would change under Corbyn but the rot was much too deep and socialist ‘usurper’ was quickly disposed of. The Tories donated £12 billions of our money to Ukraine while 4.3 millions UK children live in poverty. I doubt whether Starmer will change these priorities.
Wise Westerners - Robert Kennedy Jnr (Again)
I had to include this man again because he is speaking truth to power. The people of America want leadership from their politicians, he said; they don’t want them to bully. Yet the US military budget is spent, not on defence but to dominate the world. The US, he pointed out, has 800 military bases around the world while the great fearsome Russian bear has only one and a half and the fiery dragon, only one. The US is no longer the only great power in the world, as it keeps telling itself, so playing the bully doesn’t work any more. Sanctions on Russia, he pointed out, have strengthened, not weakened its economy and the Ukraine war has been a disaster for the US.
Wise Westerners - Eva Vlaardingerbroek
Dutch politician Eva Vlaardingerbroek believes that European states should prioritize regaining their own national sovereignty over spending billions on "defending the sovereignty of Ukraine’’.
You can see her in action here.
Orban Creates ‘Right Wing’ Bloc in European Parliament
According to Orban:
We take upon ourselves the responsibility to create a group that will be the strongest right-wing coalition in Europe. The strongest right-wing forces from Austria, Hungary, and the Czech Republic are sitting before you.
The group signed a "patriotic manifesto for the future of Europe," stating that "the EU has turned against Europeans and now represents interests that contradict the will of nations, regions, and small communities."
Changes are needed, he said, because something has gone wrong in Europe:
The people of Europe want peace, but we could not prevent the Russian-Ukrainian war, and when it broke out, we could not isolate it. Therefore, instead of peace, Europeans today get war, and instead of order and security - migration and a terrorist threat.
AfD (Germany) has announced that it will become part of the bloc.
Orban Visits Kiev and Moscow
On July 2nd, Viktor Orban visited the once great Z in Kiev to talk peace. He did so as a representative of the Council of The EU over which Hungary currently presides as chair. Orban asked for a ceasefire which neither country will agree to at this stage. The Kremlin does not expect anything to come out of the meeting - according to Pravda.
On July 5th, much to the chagrin of some disapproving European leaders, Viktor Orban visited Putin in Moscow.
I’ll report on their meeting next time.
The emerging Multi-Polar World Order
SCO - Kazakhstan July 4th
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is being hosted by Kazakhstan in Astana on the 4th of July. According to Tass:
The event is expected to be attended by the heads of state of Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Kyrgyzstan, China, Mongolia, the UAE, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Qatar and Uzbekistan. SCO Secretary General Zhang Ming and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres will also attend the summit.
Xi Jinping made an official state visit to Kazakhstan between the 2nd and 4th of July. At a press conference Xi said:
Changes and turbulence in the global landscape pose new threats and new challenges, but also bring new opportunities and create new possibilities for all-round cooperation of mutual benefit between China and Kazakhstan.
He added:
China will work with Kazakhstan to uphold the international system with the United Nations at its core and the international order underpinned by international law, act on true multilateralism, oppose hegemonism, power politics and bloc confrontation. We will work together to build an equal and orderly multipolar world, promote universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, and bring about more positivity and certainty to world peace and stability.
Putin also attended and called the SCO ‘one of the key pillars of a fair Multi-Polar World Order’ which is increasingly using national currencies rather than the dollar for transactions between them. According to Putin:
Our countries are increasing the use of national currencies in mutual settlements. For example, their share in Russia's commercial transactions with the organization's participants has already exceeded 92% in the first four months of this year.
‘The Multi-Polar World has become reality’ - Putin.
He also reminded the whole world that The Istanbul Agreements are still in place and can form the basis for continuing negotiations.
A three year cooperation program has been agreed to combat terrorism, separatism and extremism and Putin urged member states to create their own ‘payment and mechanism’ - which would be immune from Western sanctions.
You can read more at RT.
Belarus was welcomed as a full member of the SCO.
North Korea Switches Satellites
On June 29th, not long after Putin’s visit, North Korea switched to a Russian satellite to broadcast its state TV. This will make it more difficult for South Korea and the West, generally, to monitor its broadcasting - according to RT.
Some believe that the SCO could provide a Eurasian Security system to replace NATO but with a totally different ethos. According to Fyodor Lukyanov:
The idea of a Eurasian security system is in the air. China, the Central Asian countries, and India have approached it from different sides. Recently, the Russian president launched such an initiative. Eurasian security, unlike European security, is not a military-political phenomenon, but a model for the comprehensive development of the space and the realization of its enormous potential. The SCO has its shortcomings, but it is an ideal platform for formulating the principles of this great project.
You can read more at RT.
USS Empire Sinking
Out in a vulnerable boat during a huge storm, without a paddle or compass: the crew of the shipwrecked USS Empire splashes around, utters platitudes, pleas of innocence, claims to greatness, and defiant claims of exceptionalism - before it is finally, irrevocably, mercifully and thankfully, overwhelmed by the waves.
Correction
It looks as if the claim that North Korea is sending engineers to Ukraine is not true.
That’s it for this week. Many thanks for you views, your subscriptions, your likes, shares and comments. Best Rob
Farage's Reform took a fifth seat following a recount (overturning the Labour winner by 100 votes). I don't know what happened, there, but that's REALLY strange; if the gap was 100, did someone bury the needed ballots? I'm used to recounts arguing over a valid paper here and there when the margin is tight, but that's a hell of a lot. Anyway, five reforms.
More importantly, they came second in ~105 seats, about 90% of which are Labour - and many of those Labour MPs have very small majorities - very vulnerable, in other words, to a Reform push in 2029. Given Starmers right wing tendencies, he'll likely do something stupid, like trying to out-Farage Farage, which will only alienate even more party members into waking the F up, and getting out.
I'd also expect Reform to win a few Tory switchers in the next 5 years, and a couple of by-elections, especially if the Tories elect a 'moderate'.
Four or five Gaza candidates won this time (though you'd barely know it from the MSM coverage), and a few came very close to winning by a few hundred votes; a more organised campaign would certainly have taken out the invertebrate Wes Streeting and the Crass has Jess Philips; the Greens four seats were surgical, targeted campaigns at those seats, and they are keyed up as second place challengers a few dozen seats. Muslim voters are fleeing the Zionist Starmer in droves.
Given Labour's pathetic votes and % (both lower than 2019 in England!) they are very vulnerable now to catastrophic collapse come 2029 if they fail, as they surely will. It couldn't happen to a nastier bucket of scabs.
According to Richard Seymore in New Left Review in the UK General Election ....'Labour won 64% of the seats with 34% of the vote, the smallest ever vote share for a party taking office. Turnout, estimated at 59%, was at its lowest since 2001 (and before that, 1885). When a soggy Sunak finally pulled the plug on his flagging, flag-bedraggled government at the end of May, every poll showed Labour with a double-digit lead, at over 40%. Sunak’s litany of unforced errors, as well as the massive funding gap between Labour and the Conservatives and the queue of businessmen and Murdoch newspapers endorsing Labour, ought to have helped keep it that way. Instead, Labour’s total number of votes fell to 9.7 million, down from 10.3 million in 2019.' Nobody trusts Starmer - he leads the UK 'B' team of neo-liberals/conservatives..Another great report Rob