US welcomes "promising messages" from Syria's interim authorities, but looking for actions, according to Assistant Secretary of State Barbara Leaf following her visit to the country.

Leaf said the US will now drop the bounty on Hayat Tahrir al-Sham's (HTS) leader's capture.

HTS' leader promised the US that terrorist groups won't pose a threat inside Syria or externally.

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Could European Peacekeepers Really be Deployed to Ukraine?

Few European countries would risk sending their soldiers to Ukraine as part of some kind of a peacekeeping force, former Swedish military officer and politician Mikael Valtersson told Sputnik.

He outlined two potential scenarios of peacekeeper deployment in the Ukrainian conflict zone, with the basis for both being “a ceasefire along the current front lines and no Ukrainian NATO membership in the foreseeable future.”

The first scenario involves an international peacekeeping force comprised of troops from countries or regions unaffiliated with the participants of the Ukrainian conflict, such as “Turkiye, India, Latin America, Africa, ASEAN and maybe European countries like Hungary and Slovakia.”

The second scenario, where EU troops would be sent as peacekeepers, would likely result in Russia perceiving it as a breach of any ceasefire and would restart the fighting “long before the Western forces reached the front lines.”

As a result, Europe would be left with a conflict “involving several European countries, but without the backing of NATO or the US,” so it is small wonder that, as Valtersson put it, “it would be impossible to get unity within Europe about such a mission.”

“Instead, the fighting probably will continue during 2025, without US support, until Ukraine realises that they must accept the situation on the ground. But then the conditions might be even more severe for Ukraine,” Valtersson mused. “They lost a great opportunity to get a good deal during the Istanbul negotiations and risk gambling away even more now.”

“A much more plausible scenario for European military involvement on the ground in Ukraine is that some of the more hawkish nations send support units and 'instructors' to Ukraine,” Valtersson warned. These European troops would become prime targets for Russia, he added, without actually having “much impact” on the outcome of the conflict.

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Pepe Escobar on Putin's art of compromise and Oreshnik duel

"President Putin’s end of the year Q&A contains enough substance to be unpacked for weeks, if not months," writes Pepe Escobar, a geopolitical analyst and veteran journalist, in his Sputnik column.

According to Escobar, the US-driven "forever wars" in West Asia and Ukraine have now been united in "an omni-war", which fails time and again to render Russia defeated.

"Putin brushed aside the notion that Russia has been weakened by Assad’s downfall in Syria," Escobar notes. "Instead, he practically proposed that the Russian bases could provide humanitarian aid [to Syrians]."

The Russian president "reminded everyone that politics is the art of compromise," Escobar stresses.

At the same time, "Putin increased the tone on Tel Aviv..., directly condemned Israeli invasion and annexation of sovereign Syrian territory; and confessed he does not know what 'ultimate goals' Israel is pursuing in Gaza," the journalist continues.

When it comes to Ukraine, "Putin is adamant that Russia is always ready to negotiate with Kiev" the analyst highlights, adding that Moscow has already articulated its conditions for that.

Putin also busted Western speculations about BRICS, stressing that “BRICS is not a tool for countering the West" but a group aimed at propping up development and generating "more economic growth."

According to Escobar, "the whole Forever Wars riddle directly links with BRICS, because this is a hegemon war against BRICS... inscribed in the big picture of Eurasia v. NATOstan war."

"Arguably the prime cliffhanger of the Q&A was Putin proposing to test the hypersonic Oreshnik [missile] against NATO’s Aegis Ashore [air defenses]," the journalist notes, adding that it wouldn't happen since "collective West cowards" would "flee from being totally humiliated."

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🚒🔥Large fire at former Virginia Intermont College campus in the US

Firefighters were called to Moore Street in Virginia state's Bristol early on December 20 to fight a blaze at the former Virginia Intermont College campus, local media reported.

Thick smoke can be seen in the area, according to footage circulating on social media.

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😫 Someone was left without a New Year's gift...

Zelensky has repeatedly demanded that the US give Ukraine the technology and license to produce Patriot air defense systems, but still can't get a yes or no answer.

"And nobody seems to mind. Nobody has ever said to me, ‘No, we're not going to give you one.’ But so far, we haven't received anything," he complained.

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A sudden surge of energy or...?

Outgoing US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have both suddenly interrupted their planned Christmas holidays - Biden returned from Delaware and Harris cancelled her trip to California at the last minute, according to reports.

Neither of them has made a public statement explaining the reason for such a rapid comeback, leaving many to wonder whether the bustle over the government funding is the real cause, newspaper suggest.

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🇦🇷🌪 An Argentinian captured a video of a powerful dust storm on their phone

As soon as the car entered the storm, darkness fell instantly (1:20)

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📉 British car industry experiences worst month since 1980

Production in November fell by 30% compared to 2023 to 64,216 units, which is the ninth consecutive month of decline and the worst figure for the month of November in the last 44 years, according to a report by the British Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Overall, in the year to December 2023, UK car production fell 12.9% to 734,562 units, down 108,787 on the same period in 2023 and almost half a million fewer than in 2019, the document said, noting that this comes amid weak demand both at home and in Europe.

"These figures offer little Christmas cheer for the sector," warned SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes.

*the picture is AI-generated

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Europe and the United States have spent a total of 310 billion euros ($322.2 billion) on Ukraine, a "dreadful" amount, that could have been invested in European economy, Hungarian PM Viktor Orban said.

"During talks with the Americans, I received data from it that Europe and the United States have spent a total of 310 billion euros on Ukraine so far. This is a huge amount, just a dreadful amount," Orban told Hungary’s Kossuth radio.

These funds could "do wonders" if they were invested in the European economy, Orban said, adding that they could have been used to reduce energy prices, accelerate economic growth in Europe, reduce the flow of illegal migrants from the Sahel, or develop the European defense industry.

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What is known about Magdeburg terror attack so far?

🔺A vehicle drove into a crowd at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, resulting in two fatalities and 68 injuries, according to the official information.

🔺Among the injured, 15 people sustained severe injuries, while 37 suffered moderate injuries, the local media specifies.

🔺The government of Saxony-Anhalt has labeled the incident a terrorist attack.

🔺The suspect was 1974-born individual from Saudi Arabia who worked as mental health care professional. Media reports indicate that he was previously unknown to law enforcement agencies and was not considered a proponent of radical Islam.

🔺According to several reports, the suspect gained refugee status in 2016.

🔺The market area has been cordoned off, and police are inspecting it for explosives.

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The chances of reaching a peace agreement on the Ukrainian conflict under Trump will be "greater than ever", Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto told RIA Novosti.

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❗️Ukraine mounted three waves of drones to attack civilian infrastructure in Russian city of Kazan
 
Kiev used three waves of drone attacks from different directions to hit civilian targets in Kazan; three drones were destroyed, and three more were suppressed by electronic warfare, the Russian Defense Ministry informed.
 
As a result of the attacks, a fire broke out in houses in three districts, Sovetsky, Kirovsky and Privolzhsky, the mayor's office said.
 
Operational services are working at the site of the fire; all necessary assistance is being provided, and evacuated residents will be provided with food and accommodation.

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Nobody knows why Oreshnik missile is named that way, but Pink Floyd legend may have a clue

We bet anyone in the know about the new Russian nuclear-capable intermediate-range ballistic missile Oreshnik (lit. hazelnut tree) ponders why it got such a name. Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters shares his own inkling on the matter.

🔸Hazelnut tree resemblance

Speaking to Sputnik, the UK rock group legend suggested the missile was called “Oreshnik” because it drops several “nuts” when the weapon hits the target, in an apparent reference to the missile’s submunitions, which resemble clusters of hazelnuts.

Waters added jokingly that he cannot think of another reason for a missile to be named after a tree.

🔸Even Putin wonders

Answering the same question during his annual "Direct Line" question-and-answer session and end-of-year press conference on December 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted to being in the dark about it.

🔸A sobering strike on Dnepropetrovsk

This came after Waters told Sputnik earlier this month that he thinks Russia’s recent use of the Oreshnik missile made Volodymyr Zelensky think once or twice about what he might do in the next two months.

The remarks followed Putin’s statement that Russia has successfully test-fired the Oreshnik missile on November 21, hitting a Ukrainian defense industry complex in the city of Dnepropetrovsk, in response to Kiev using the US- and UK-supplied missiles to strike facilities in Russia's Kursk and Bryansk regions.

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🔸Pepe Escobar, veteran geopolitical analyst, weighs on Putin’s address
 
🔸British car industry experiences worst month since 1980
 
🔸What is known about terror attack in Magdeburg

🔸Rock music legend shares his theory why Oreshnik missile is named that way

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⚡️The death toll from the terrorist attack in Magdeburg has increased to 4; 205 people were injured, German media reported.

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❗️Russian troops have liberated the village of Ostrovskogo in the Donetsk People's Republic, the Russian Defense Ministry announced

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❗️Russian aviation and artillery has destroyed energy facilities that support the operation of Ukrainian military industrial complex enterprises and the infrastructure of military airfields.

🇷🇺🪖 More statements from the Russian Defense Ministry's daily briefing on the special military operation's progress:

🔸 Ukrainian forces lost 110 militants in the area of responsibility of the Russian Sever and Dnepr Battlegroups

🔸 Ukrainian losses amounted to 440 soldiers and an ammunition depot from the actions of the Russian Zapad combat group;

🔸 Russian Tsentr Battlegroup continued to advance into the depth of the enemy's defense; Ukrainian troops lost up to 580 soldiers and a Leopard tank;

🔸 Russian air defense systems destroyed eight HIMARS shells and Ukrainian 89 drones.

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