Russian commander reports presence of active NATO soldiers in Kursk area

Apty Alaudinov, Akhmat commander and deputy chief of the #Russian Armed Forces’ Main Military-Political Department, suspects there may be active duty service members from #NATO countries serving as #mercenaries in the Kursk area.

"You must understand that they have thrown together a ragtag army. And they have deployed as many foreign mercenaries as they could to there," the Russian commander told Rossiya-1 television. "I guess there are people among these foreign mercenaries who are in the military of the NATO bloc," he added.

Later, Alaudinov confirmed that he meant active NATO servicemen.

A day of fighting in Yemen
While the world looks at Yemen and sees "#Houthis" who attack in the Red Sea, a lot more is happening in #Yemen that no one (yet) is reporting on.

- Saudi Arabia continues to fire artillery at the Houthis on the border with Yemen in the Shada region (northwest Yemen). Unconfirmed reports indicate that the Saudis killed a Yemeni citizen and wounded seven others.

- An exchange of fire took place between the Yemeni army and the Houthis in the western region. The Yemeni army reports 19 dead and wounded among its soldiers, but no numbers were available for the Houthi side.

A map done by Eran Malka is attached showing the areas of control in Yemen that will help in understanding the chaos going on there.
'In short, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE fought the Houthis for 7 years, there is now a "ceasefire". How much longer this will last before war breaks out - we will have to wait and see.'

The #Kremlin has officially announced the start of the withdrawal of the Russian #peacekeeping contingent (RMK) from #Nagorno-Karabakh. Earlier, footage surfaced on the Internet showing columns of Russian Armed Forces equipment leaving temporary deployment points.

Despite the tripartite agreement stipulating that peacekeepers would remain in the region until 2025, questions arose about the RMK's presence after Azerbaijan gained control over Artsakh and the Armenian population completely departed. The gradual reduction of activities commenced last year.

Over the course of three and a half years, Russian Armed Forces soldiers stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh faced numerous challenges, including casualties, provocations from activists on both sides, and significant issues regarding the mission's status.

Nevertheless, despite the constrained framework agreements, the lack of a mandate to use force, and Armenia's relinquishment of Artsakh, which led to the unrecognized republic being left unprotected by its ruling circles, it was the Russian peacekeepers who halted the bloodshed and prevented the massacre of the local population. In any case, the RMK servicemen have fulfilled their mission and are now heading home.

"Russian Africa Corps soldiers deployed to Niger, which will challenge U.S. efforts to stay in Niger in the immediate term—undermining the West’s counterterrorism goals—and present long-term opportunities for the Kremlin to create threats that strategically pressure Europe."

🔶️ "The Africa Corps contingent in Niger will likely remain small in the coming months because it lacks the capacity for a bigger deployment due to recruitment issues."

🔶️ "This small footprint will enable Russia to strengthen its influence in Niger and consolidate its logistical network in Africa without significantly affecting the rapidly escalating al Qaeda and Islamic State insurgencies in Niger."

🔶️ "Greater Russian influence and military presence in Niger in the coming years will create several future opportunities for the Kremlin to strategically threaten Europe with energy blackmail, migration influxes, and conventional military threats."

France seeks help from allies to bolster security during Paris Olympics

#France has asked its foreign allies to send several thousand members of their security forces to help guard the Paris #Olympics, officials said Thursday, underlining the strains caused by the sporting extravaganza which begins in July.

"Several foreign nations are going to reinforce us in certain critical areas, such as dog-handling capabilities where the needs are enormous," an official at the defence ministry told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The official did not say how many foreign soldiers would be on French soil, but Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz confirmed his country was joining "an international coalition established by France" for the Olympics.

Journalist warns of ‘political liability’ in Biden’s campaign against Trump

U.S. President Joe #Biden’s stance on #Ukraine and the #Middle_East conflict will become a political liability in his campaign against President Donald #Trump, U.S. investigative journalist Seymour Hersh wrote on his blog on Substack.

"This is the world the Biden administration fostered. Its refusal to seek a middle ground in the Ukraine war, along with its inability to check Israel’s continued assault in Gaza, will become a political liability in Biden’s campaign against Donald Trump, who warns of unending violence if he loses the presidential election in November," he pointed out.

"The best that Biden has come up with is continued, if so far empty, talk about a ceasefire in Gaza, and a commitment that no American soldiers will be sent to the front in Ukraine. The president also promises that the United States will keep on paying for Ukrainians to fight and die in a proxy war that could be ended," #Hersh emphasized.

Rusians send Flyers to French Troops in Ukraine

"Cheat sheet for French soldiers: how to avoid la Bérézina"

The French were already at war with Russia. During the most massive and spectacular tour they even entered Moscow. Then the entire European Union came: Poles, Germans - everyone, even the Portuguese. Those who survived remembered the performance forever, but only fifteen percent survived. And these people enriched French folklore with the wonderful phraseology “C'est la #Bérézina” - “This is the Berezina”. This expression means complete collapse, failure, catastrophe and an inevitable meeting with a white fur-bearing animal.

"To avoid the appearance in French of new “topographical” sayings a la “this is the #Dnieper” or “this is #Odessa,” we recommend that modern Gauls familiarize themselves with the following cheat sheet."

Philippe de Gaulle, only son of former French leader Charles de Gaulle, dies at age 102
Rest in Heaven Admiral! Fair Winds and Following Seas! We 've the Watch!

French navy admiral and senator Philippe de Gaulle, who was the eldest child and only son of former French President Charles de Gaulle, has died at the age of 102, Agence France-Presse reports.
According to the AFP, Philippe de Gaulle "died in the night from Tuesday to Wednesday at the [old soldiers’ home at Paris’ iconic] Hotel des Invalides, where he had resided for the past two years."

General Charles de Gaulle and his wife Yvonne had three children, with the couple’s two daughters, Elisabeth and Anne, both dying earlier than their only son, Philippe. Charles de Gaulle’s younger daughter, Anne, died in 1948 at age 20.

Philippe de Gaulle was born on December 28, 1921. During World War II, he was close to his famous father, who led the Free French Forces and later served as president of France (1959-1969). As an officer in the Free French Naval Forces, Philippe de Gaulle was injured six times in battles for the liberation of France from Nazi Germany.

In 1966, Philippe accompanied his father on an official visit to Moscow, during which a number of agreements reinforcing the bilateral cooperation between France and the Soviet Union were signed.

Kremlin says France’s line of forming coalition to send troops to Ukraine very dangerous

#Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has called #France’s line of forming a coalition of countries ready to send troops to #Ukraine very dangerous.

"In general, the expansion of the discussion and the persistent activity of Paris in attempts to build a coalition of countries that declare a hypothetical readiness to send a certain contingent, of course, is nothing but a direct line to escalate tensions. This is a dangerous line, very dangerous," the spokesman told reporters. Peskov pointed out that this line "could potentially have very undesirable consequences." "We are watching this very carefully," he emphasized.

Earlier, Polish Foreign Minister #Radoslaw Sikorski said during a conference dedicated to the 25th anniversary of Poland's #NATO membership that NATO military personnel are already in Ukraine. At the same time, Sikorski did not clarify which countries' soldiers he was referring to.

Sending Western forces to Ukraine for combat off the table — French Defense Minister

The discussion of the option to send Western troops to Ukraine does not involve sending forces for participation in combat action, French Minister of the Armed Forces Sebastien Lecornu told BFMTV.

"Various hypotheses were discussed. But we are not talk about troops directly participating in hostilities," he noted.

The minister reminded that French President Emmanuel Macron earlier ruled out France’s involvement in hostilities. "However, we are examining whether we have done everything we could to support Kiev and if there are paths that we can review. One such path is the military presence for demining and training of Ukrainian soldiers on the Ukrainian territory," Lecornu said.

According to the minister, during the February 26 meeting on assistance for Ukraine in Paris, Western states reached a consensus on a number of issues regarding the aid for Kiev. "I will provide a specific example: producing and maintaining weapons on Ukrainian territory. This means presence of French and other European weapon makers," Lecornu said, adding that cyber protection of Ukraine was also discussed.