US: Separatists are trying to 'blind' OSCE observers in the Donbas

The U.S. Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Daniel Baer, stated during an OSCE Permanent Council meeting that the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine has been subjected to a deliberate attempt to ‘blind’ it by blocking or destroying the Mission’s means of surveillance in the Donbas.

“Within one week, militia forces shot down two of the SMM’s long endurance UAVs near Horlivka and threatened to shoot down the other UAVs which were looking for the …


Financial Times: EU sanctions against the Kremlin will be extended for another six months

European Union (EU) countries, who support sanctions against Russia, have postponed discussions about their demands until the EU leaders summit in December. This was reported by the Financial Times, citing sources in Brussels.

In addition, and despite signs of some bloc countries softening their attitudes, the EU intends to extend sanctions against Russia for another six months.

The newspaper reports that diplomats fear that this extension may, over the next two weeks, trigger disputes …


Pentagon: Russia would be able to capture Riga or Tallinn in 60 hours

The Pentagon has agreed with analysts’ views that Russia could capture Riga or Tallinn in less than three days. This was reported by the Weekly Standard.

The Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Michael Carpenter, has agreed with a report of RAND research center which states that Russian troops would be able to seize the city of Riga in 60 hours or less.

“NATO would have a few options for further action, of which none are good. These options include an offensive action, which is associated …


Russia holds military exercises in the Black Sea

The Russian Federation is conducting military exercises aimed at the conditional destruction of NATO ships in the Black Sea, as announced by a representative of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate during a briefing on Thursday, June 9th, as reported by RBC-Ukraine.

"The Russian Federation continues activities to increase the ability of the aerospace forces to conduct large-scale offensive operations in the Black Sea region," Skibitsky said. He added that the purpose …


Russian Foreign Ministry: The presence of US warships in the Black Sea will lead to retaliation

The head of the Russian Foreign Ministry's European Cooperation Department, Andrey Kelin, said that the presence of US warships in the Black Sea will lead to retaliation, RIA Novosti reported.

"From time to time, US vessels enter the Black Sea. Obviously, we do not appreciate it and, undoubtedly, this will lead to retaliatory measures," Andrei Kelin told the Russian state-run news agency.

On June 6th, a US Naval destroyer, the USS Porter, entered the Black Sea to conduct exercises with …