A confession from Putin suggests that the Ukraine conflict could last for years

"Russian President Vladimir Putin commented, during a meeting with soldiers’ mothers, that he now regards the Minsk agreements of 2014 and 2015 as a mistake. This concession was stark in the context of the possibility of peace negotiations to end the fighting in Ukraine.

Putin explained to the mothers that at the time, Moscow did not know for sure the
sentiments of the Donbass population affected by the conflict, and hoped that Donetsk and Lugansk could somehow be reunited with Ukraine on the conditions laid down in Minsk. Putin might have added – and his own actions, as well as conversations with then-Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko, confirm it – that he was prepared to give the new Kiev authorities a chance to settle the issue and rebuild a relationship with Moscow. Until rather late in the game, Putin also hoped that he could still work things out with the Germans and the French, and the US leadership. 

Admissions of mistakes are rare among incumbent leaders, but they are important as indicators of lessons they have learned. This experience has apparently made Putin decide not that the decision to launch the special military operation last February was wrong, but that eight years before, Moscow should not have put any faith in Kiev, Berlin, and Paris, and instead should have relied on its own military might to liberate the Russian-speaking regions of Ukraine.

In other words, agreeing to a Minsk-style ceasefire now would be another mistake which would allow Kiev and its backers to better prepare to resume fighting at the time of their choosing." RT

Russian soldiers apparently executed by Ukrainian forces appear genuine, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk stated

"Videos showing Russian soldiers apparently executed by Ukrainian forces appear genuine,
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk stated. He called on Kiev to fully investigate what Moscow has described as an outright execution. 

The footage, consisting of two clips stitched into one video, surfaced on social media last week. It shows a dozen unarmed Russian servicemen surrendering to Ukrainian troops and lying down on the ground, a separate man apparently opening fire on the Ukrainians, and the first dozen soldiers lying dead in pools of blood.

“Our Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has conducted a preliminary analysis indicating that these disturbing videos are highly likely to be authentic in what they show,” Turk said in a press release. “The analysis…underlines the need for independent and detailed forensic investigations to help establish exactly what happened.”

The Russian Ministry of Defense described the footage as evidence of “the deliberate and methodical murder” of the soldiers, with the Russian Presidential Human Rights Council calling the incident a “demonstrative and audacious crime.”  Newsars

Ukraine’s Armed Forces destroy "important Russian target" in Luhansk Oblast

"Serhii Haidai, Head of the Luhansk Oblast Military Administration, has reported about the
success of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Oblast and a strike at an "important enemy target".

The Russians used TOS-1A Solntsepyok (Sunburn) Multiple Rocket Launchers near this village.

Russian forces also deployed tanks and artillery to fire at the settlements of Nevske, Novoselivske, Makiivka, Ploshchanka and Dibrova in Luhansk Oblast throughout the day." Pravada

 

Largest oil refinery in Siberia on fire

"A fire broke out on the territory of the Angarsk petrochemical plant in the Irkutsk Oblast, Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations reported." Pravada

Russian missile strike on Dnipro: dead man pulled out from under rubble

"Following the Russian missile attack on Dnipro on 26 November, a person was killed;
rescuers have pulled out the body from under the rubble." Pravada

Russian forces hit power lines supplying Kherson

"Russian invaders hit the power lines that supply Kherson; power engineers managed to repair
the grid in less than half an hour." Pravada

Two Russian missiles hit Kryvyi Rih in morning: significant destruction on railway

"Head of the Kryvyi Rih Military Administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, has said that the city was attacked by Russian missiles." Pravada

Russian army regroups to reinforce units on three fronts

"The enemy has been ceaselessly striking civilian targets. It is focusing its efforts on deterring
the actions of Defence Forces units, conducting engineering work on defensive lines and positions, and continuing offensive operations in certain areas. It is trying to make up for losses of personnel, weapons, ammunition, equipment, fuel and lubricants. The enemy continues to regroup its troops to reinforce units on the Lyman, Avdiivka and Novopavlivka fronts." Pravada

Most NATO members have run out of weapons for Ukraine – NYT

"Arms transfers to Ukraine have left Western weapon stockpiles strained, making it increasingly difficult for NATO militaries to honor politicians’ pledges to supply Kiev, the New York Times reported.

“Smaller countries have exhausted their potential,” and according to one NATO official, at least 20 of the bloc’s 30 members are “pretty tapped out,” the newspaper wrote. Only “larger allies,” including France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands, have enough stockpiles to continue or potentially increase their weapon shipments to Ukraine." RT

Russian forces attack Nikopol district

"Valentyn Reznichenko, the Head of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration, hasreported that Russian occupation forces attacked the Nikopol district of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast." Pravada

NATO allies embroiled in nuclear dispute

"Two weeks ago, the Belgian government refused to authorize the export of a specialized
isostatic press, which is needed to maintain British nukes because the greens, who oppose nuclear weapons and make up a part of the ruling coalition, vetoed the proposal, the report says.

The Belgian media also reported, citing sources, that on November 9, the government had failed to approve the export of nuclear technology intended for the British army.

According to the Times, the spat escalated when Belgian officials warned that the UK could put the brakes on a $624 million order to procure machineguns made by FN Herstal if Brussels did not change its mind.

Two senior sources in the Belgian government cited by the Times voiced concerns that the dispute could “endanger western unity and NATO” amid the Ukraine conflict." RT

50 Ukrainian defenders return home from captivity, including Azovstal and Snake Island defenders

"50 Ukrainian soldiers were brought back from Russian captivity on 24 November, including
12 defenders of Mariupol and prisoners from Zmiinyi (Snake Island) and the Chornobyl nuclear power plant." UP

 

Russia launches 70 missiles on Ukraine ....Ukraine’s air defence shots down 51

"Ukraine’s anti-aircraft defence systems have shot down 51 out of 70 missiles and five
kamikaze drones that Russia launched on Ukraine. 10 Tu-95MS missile-carrying jets launched missiles from the Volgodonsk district of Rostov Oblast [Russia] and the Caspian Sea, as well as from two small missile-carrying boats from the Black Sea." Pravada

FTX partnership with Ukraine is latest chapter in shady Western aid saga

"The Ukrainian government mysteriously disappeared online records of its fundraising
arrangement with the FTX crypto scam just days before the scandal erupted. The initiative claims to have raised $60 million for Ukraine, but where did the money go?

FTX’s destruction resulted from a mass sell-off of the company’s native bitcoin token, FTT, by the rival exchange, Binance. Its value plummeted, prompting a three-day run on billions of dollars worth of cryptocurrency, which in turn created—or exposed—a “liquidity crisis” within FTX, as it did not have the available assets required to redeem client withdrawals. FTX filed for bankruptcy on November 11th.

FTX founder and top Democrat Party donor Sam Bankman-Fried now faces criminal investigations in the Bahamas, where the exchange was headquartered, and calls for official investigations into the largely unregulated cryptocurrency industry are reverberating across the globe." MRonline

AP fires journalist behind ‘Russian missile’ story

"The Associated Press has fired the journalist behind a since-retracted story, which claimed
that the missile that hit NATO member Poland last week had been launched by Russia, a number of US media outlets have reported.

The news that the agency had terminated its contract with investigative reporter James LaPorta after a brief internal probe was broken by the Daily Beast on Monday. The sacking was later confirmed to the Washington Post by “people at the news organization.”

 Last Tuesday, AP issued a news alert citing “a senior US intelligence official,” who claimed that “Russian missiles crossed into NATO member Poland, killing two people. 

An unnamed AP employee told the Post that LaPorta misinformed his editors that a senior manager had already vetted his source, leaving them “with the impression that the story’s sourcing had been approved.” ” RT