Europe

President Donald Trump has said the U.S. will revisit its stance on Greenland in the coming weeks.

Asked if he expected to take action on the territory, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday: "Let's talk about Venezuela, Russia, Ukraine. We'll worry about Greenland in about two months. Let's talk about Greenland in 20 days."

He added: "We need Greenland from a national security situation. It's so strategic."

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The fire that broke out on a bridge across the Teltow canal in the south-west of the capital early on Saturday could deprive up to 35,000 homes and 1,900 businesses of electricity – and in many cases heat – until 8 January, the grid company Stromnetz Berlin said.

As state security authorities opened an investigation into the cause of the blaze near the Lichterfelde heat and power station that damaged several high-voltage cables, the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group) said.

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The area affected by the power cut includes many elderly care homes and hospitals as well as high-rise buildings with residents who are reliant on elevators that are now out of order. Berlin received moderate snowfall at the weekend and night-time temperatures plunged well below freezing.

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A previous arson attack attributed to the far left in September knocked out electricity for 60 hours in the south-east of the city in what was reportedly Berlin’s longest power cut since the second world war.

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Archive link

cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/56349486

Spain, along with Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Uruguay, issued a joint statement on Sunday condemning unilateral military actions in Venezuela and calling for a political solution led by Venezuelans.

Netanyahu is also Merz's daddy.

Paywall? https://archive.is/8tCU5

Denmark on Sunday made its displeasure known after the wife of President Donald Trump’s most influential aide posted a social media picture of Greenland painted in the colours of the US flag.

Katie Miller -- wife of Trump’s deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller -- put the contentiously altered image of the Danish autonomous territory on her X feed late Saturday, after the US military operation against Venezuela.

Her post had a single word above it: “SOON”.

cross-posted from: https://mander.xyz/post/44882952

Here is the original report published by Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service

After statements about an alleged Ukrainian attack on Russian leader Vladimir Putin's residence, Ukrainian intelligence is detecting the Kremlin's spread of "new fabricated information pretexts to prepare Russian and foreign audiences for further escalation."

"We predict with high probability a shift from manipulative influence to an armed provocation by Russian special services with significant human casualties. Expected timing — ahead of or during Orthodox Christmas celebrations. The provocation site could be a religious building or other object with high symbolic value in Russia or temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories," the FIS said.

According to intelligence, to fabricate evidence of Ukrainian involvement, debris from Western-made strike UAVs will be delivered to the provocation site from the line of contact.

"Exploiting fear and committing terrorist acts with human casualties under a 'false flag' fully matches the style of Russian special services. Putin's regime has repeatedly used this tactic inside Russia, and now the same model is being exported abroad, indirectly confirmed by public statements from senior Russian officials," the FIS said.

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A related report, citing Ukrainian Military Intel, says that, "To falsify evidence of Ukraine's involvement, fragments of Western-made attack UAVs will be used, which will be delivered to the site of the provocation from the line of combat contact."

Web archive link

cross-posted from: https://mander.xyz/post/44883299

From February 24, 2022, to January 4, 2026, Ukrainian law enforcement officers recorded 191,822 crimes committed by Russian occupiers.

Of these, 174,883 are war crimes, 9,380 are crimes against the territorial integrity of Ukraine, and 4,639 are crimes related to collaborationism. Another 426 cases of high treason were recorded.

Also, 144 criminal proceedings were initiated for sexual crimes committed by Russian occupiers.

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At the same time, during the full-scale invasion, 678 children died in Ukraine, 2,315 of them were injured, 2,232 went missing, and 20,000 were deported to Russia.

Another 49,420 children were found and 1,943 children were returned.

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During 2025, Russia launched more than 60,000 guided aerial bombs, about 2,400 missiles, and over 100,000 drones at Ukraine. Air raid sirens sounded at least 19,033 times across Ukraine.

Web archive link

1. The Russian Model: Biohazardous Disinformation

The concept of disinformation as a “biohazard” underscores its infectious nature. Like a virus, disinformation spreads invisibly, mutates rapidly, and exploits the vulnerabilities of its host societies. Thus, the NDU Press article notes, Russia’s campaigns are tailored to the sociopolitical fault lines of target countries—race, immigration, economic inequality, and vaccine hesitancy, among others. Meanwhile, this precision targeting is facilitated by data analytics and AI-driven algorithms that allow for hyper-personalized influence operations.

2. Evidence-Based Countermeasures: A Path Forward

• Resilience involves enhancing societal immunity to disinformation. This includes media literacy education, public awareness campaigns, and investment in independent journalism.
• Transparency requires holding platforms accountable for the algorithmic amplification of false content and enforcing robust content labeling standards.
• Deterrence suggests imposing costs on perpetrators through sanctions, cyber countermeasures, and diplomatic censure.

3. However, as the Brill article argues, strategies must also respect democratic values and avoid sliding into counterpropaganda or censorship.

NOTE: Happy New Year and let's be alert together. In light of the ongoing wars, turmoil and new events, I thought this hand-out could be helpfull.

Deutsche Bahn's punctuality rate was 62.5% in 2024, and 74.4% in 2015. Germany's rail operator counts a train as late if it is delayed by six minutes or more.

cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/56310781

Around 70 battery-electric buses supplied by Ebusco to Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG) have been temporarily withdrawn from service after routine inspections revealed cracks in the vehicle frames.

“Under all circumstances, the principles of international law and the UN Charter must be respected. We call for restraint,” she wrote.

Her comments were echoed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa, with Commission Vice-President Teresa Ribera adding that “we need a rules-based world.”

France went a step further with its foreign minister condemning the American operation on social media. According to Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, Maduro “gravely violated” the rights of Venezuelans, but the military operation that led to him being grabbed “contravenes the principle of non-use of force, which underpins international law.”

Archived version

The Irish Military Intelligence Service (IMIS) has provided confidential briefings to university leaders, warning them about the risks associated with Chinese engagement in sensitive areas of research, particularly in fields that could be adapted for military use.

In the first authorised interview by the organisation, a senior IMIS officer said Ireland’s relationship with China posed a unique challenge, as the country enjoyed a beneficial economic relationship with Beijing, but said Irish universities had been warned about the potential consequences.

“It can be hugely detrimental to the West if you empower them [China] by educating them simply because they come to a university with funds. This can be hugely detrimental to the West if you teach them how to twist a knot to the left or right, which helps them to develop a weapon or military application.

We made these points to the universities and it was very successful. It’s done discreetly to empower and protect our democratic institutions,” he said. Irish third-level institutions have collaborated with Chinese universities, which have been linked to cyberattacks and nuclear research.The Irish Military Intelligence Service has provided confidential briefings to university leaders, warning them about the risks associated with Chinese engagement in sensitive areas of research, particularly in fields that could be adapted for military use.

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Irish third-level institutions have collaborated with Chinese universities, which have been linked to cyberattacks and nuclear research.

The intelligence service also identified Russia as one of the primary threats to the state’s national security and confirmed it had successfully disrupted the activities of foreign spies operating here, ­forcing some to leave the country.

Spies have been made to “pack their bags and go home” after their activities were “disrupted”, the officer said, which made it untenable for them to continue operating here without the need to make an arrest.

“They don’t necessarily know that we’ve been in the background but we have had a lot of success doing that,” he said.

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The secret organisation said it worked alongside the militaries of European countries including Britain, France and Germany, helping to protect them from aggressive acts by hostile states while upholding Ireland’s stated position of neutrality.

The officer described IMIS as being a “good European neighbour”. The Sunday Times agreed not to identify the officer by name, rank or appearance, or to record the interview, but he plays a part in briefing the government on national defence and authorising covert operations mounted by secretive branches of the military to protect Ireland.

The decision to allow the interview reflects mounting concern within the military about the scale of hostile activity targeting Ireland, and a belief that the public must be made aware of how modern conflict is already being waged below the threshold of war.

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In a related report from October, an investiation revealed how China’s United Front spy network has sought to influence Irish politicians and exploited a residency scheme.

... China’s intelligence services are infamous for their slow, methodical cultivation of contacts in positions of power — a strategy that embeds them in political and business life long before their aims become clear. The operation targeting Leinster House took years, indicating it was run by the United Front, a shadowy organisation that organises influence operations, but it may also have involved the Ministry of State Security (MSS), China’s foreign intelligence service.

“The United Front is a network of organisations and individuals working under a degree of guidance and control from the Chinese Communist Party. It helps legitimise the party inside China and manage political representation while also being used to push international objectives such as political influence in foreign countries,” Alex Joske, the author of Spies and Lies: How China’s Greatest Covert Operations Fooled the World, said ...

The United Front’s structure is vast and under President Xi it has become a central instrument of Beijing statecraft. It extends its reach through an array of friendship associations, business forums and student groups ...

The UF was also responsible for attempts to secure access to the British royal family by befriending the Duke of York. Prince Andrew first met the suspected agent, Yang Tengbo, in 2013 at a reception during the Shanghai Grand Prix. Yang later became a confidant of the duke until he was banned from entering Britain on national security grounds.

The full scale of the damage done to Irish interests may be far greater than the government can imagine, however. The agent at the centre of the scandal is part of a larger network of Chinese nationals who have acquired significant wealth in Ireland. An analysis of one business showed it acquired a significant state property in return for investment into a company that appears to have stopped trading and is defunct ...

The threat posed by hostile states such as Russia and China has been identified as one of the most pressing challenges for the government, specifically Jim O’Callaghan, the justice minister, and Harris, now foreign affairs and defence minister ...

Chung Ching Kwong, a senior analyst at the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance in Britain, described UF operations in Ireland as part of wider “grey zone” activity by Beijing in the European Union. Her research has previously uncovered the existence of UF stations in Dublin, two in Cork and one at the University of Galway, identified using information from publicly available Chinese records ...

“At some point intelligence communities will have to come up with a whole-of-state approach to protect ­society. But I haven’t seen those kinds of discussions happening yet,” she said.

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Chinese state-owned China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) each own 10% of the Arctic LNG 2 project.

All of the shipments were delivered to the Beihai LNG Terminal in China's southwestern Guangxi region.

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The linked article contains a list of tankers that delivered the cargo to Beihai along with arrival dates, derived from Kpler data.

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The extensive damage means that about 35,000 households will be without electricity until Thursday afternoon, Berlin authorities said in a statement. Power should be restored to other homes by early Sunday.

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Overall, the BBC has confirmed the names of almost 160,000 people killed fighting on Russia's side in Ukraine.

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The real death toll is believed to be much higher, and military experts we have consulted believe our analysis of cemeteries, war memorials and obituaries might represent 45-65% of the total.

That would put the number of Russian deaths at between 243,000 and 352,000.

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In October [2025], when a planned second Russia-US summit was eventually shelved, and then in November, when the US presented a 28-point peace proposal, an average of 322 obituaries were published per day - twice the average in 2024.

It is difficult to put increased Russian losses down to any one factor, but the Kremlin sees territorial gains as a way of influencing negotiations with the US in its favour: Putin aide Yuri Ushakov stressed recently that "recent successes" had had a positive impact.

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Russian authorities plan to include drone operation as part of the national GTO program—a Soviet-era system formally described as physical education and fitness training for children, standing for “Ready for Labor and Defense.”

Moscow is also strengthening state oversight of military-sports training for minors, effectively treating such activities as part of the formal educational system.

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On the regional level, the militarization of youth is becoming increasingly visible. Children are reportedly being allowed to ride on combat vehicles, handle firearms, and participate in holiday events featuring military equipment—such as New Year celebrations where traditional characters arrive on tanks.

Military symbols are increasingly becoming part of everyday childhood experiences.

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