Author: Michael

After four and a half years of war in Ukraine, has Russia hit a money crunch? That seems to be the case, according to a Bloomberg News story on Friday.

Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, the story said, warned Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin that Russia might not have enough money to meet its payment obligations on time.

Moscow Warehouse Fire X Screenshot

Russia: Economic Crisis Thanks to Ukraine War? 
Per the report, as cited by Defense News, the balance on Russia’s treasury account “fell to roughly minus 5.5 trillion rubles, or about $65.

Finland has placed a $126m order for the RBS 70 NG short-range air defence upgrade with Swedish defence prime Saab.

The US publication The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Thursday, 27 August, that some of the senior-most White House aides to US President Donald Trump were kept in the dark about this Tuesday’s diplomatic mission to Moscow by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe.

This interaction with the Russians was considered so sensitive that most White House officials had received no advance notice.

President Donald J.

A sailor assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln who was rescued after jumping overboard may face nonjudicial punishment, a common disciplinary proceeding in the military for misconduct on or off duty, a source with knowledge of the matter told Task & Purpose.
A nonjudicial punishment, or NJP, falls under Article 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, not a criminal conviction or court-martial, said Phillip Stackhouse, a civilian attorney who often represents service members.

A massive drone attack was launched by Ukraine on Friday, with targets hundreds of miles into Russian territory being hit overnight.

Russia Says it Downed Over 500 Ukrainian Drones

Switchblade Drone. Image Credit: Industry Handout.

The Russian Defense Ministry alleges its forces downed some 512 Ukrainian drones.

Yaroslavl’s Slavneft-YANOS refinery, the country’s fifth-biggest refinery, was among those targeted. The facility can process about 300,000 barrels of crude per day, or 15 million metric tons annually.

The exact purpose of the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe’s 25 August trip to Moscow has become clearer in the days since his return.

The main objective was to deter Putin from attacking NATO. At least, that is what is being widely reported.

Putin At a Conference Creative Commons Photo

Putin In September of 2022 Creative Commons Photo

His visit was so short – at least 4 hours but no more than 8 hours in length- that it falls somewhere between the categories of a drive-by and a cameo appearance.

Russia’s armed forces have bombarded at least nine cities across Ukraine with missiles and drones. Locals describe it as a relentless onslaught that continued through the night of Wednesday, 26 August, and into the daylight hours of Thursday, 27 August, with explosions echoing across the capital, Kyiv, for most of the morning.

Technology and the Ukraine War Merge

Tim Murry, a foreign threats compound contractor, drives a T-72 battle tank into position to serve as adversary targets for a joint service exercise, Emerald Flag, at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Nov. 30.

YOU WON’T SEE THEM COMING | Military Motivati

Air Force special operations crews appear to be using a major exercise in Iceland to test and train with cargo gliders to resupply ground teams in tough-to-reach locations.
At the Northern Viking 2026 exercise held this month near the northern city of Akureyri, an official with the 352d Special Operations Wing said the unit would be simulating the supply of ground troops with gliders dropped from the unit’s MC-130 cargo planes.

On July 15, 2005, thieves broke into several cars in the parking lot of a hotel in Indianapolis. The media normally might have given the robbery a brief mention, if that. But in this case, they paid more attention.
News crews and reporters followed this crime, because one of the vehicles that the robbers broke into belonged to retired Army Sgt. Sammy Lee Davis. They took a briefcase that contained his Medal of Honor from his car’s trunk.
Davis earned the U.S. military’s highest award for valor during the Vietnam War when he rescued three wounded soldiers along the Mekong Delta.