Important Takeaways:
- After his “sobering visit” to Kyiv, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken wants the White House to allow Ukraine to strike inside Russian territory with American-supplied arms, The New York Times (NYT) reported on May 22, citing undisclosed official sources.
- The ban has prevented Kyiv from attacking Russian forces, which were amassing near Kharkiv Oblast for their offensive launched earlier in May, with advanced U.S. weaponry like ATACMS missiles.
- The news outlet noted that the proposal is still “in the formative stages” and that it is unclear how many other high-ranking officials in Biden’s team will support it.
- The plan would include permitting strikes against Russian military facilities but perhaps not oil refineries and other infrastructure that Ukraine has been hitting with homemade drones, according to the outlet.
- The Pentagon has also reiterated this position, but Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin recently hinted that the rules might be different in regards to aerial targets.
- “The aerial dynamic’s a little bit different,” Austin said during a press conference on May 20 but avoided saying explicitly whether attacks against Russian aircraft with U.S. arms are off-limit or not.
- Unlike Washington, the U.K. said it does not oppose Ukraine using British-supplied arms – which include Storm Shadow missiles – to strike Russian soil, provoking threats from Moscow.
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Important Takeaways:
- Russia launched counter-space weapon capable of attacking U.S. satellites in orbit, Pentagon says
- Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder told reporters that Russia launched the weapon on May 16. He said the weapon is similar to other counter-space payloads that Russia launched in 2019 and 2022. But the most recent launch comes amid fears in Washington that the Kremlin might consider putting a nuclear weapon in space, and against the backdrop of the broader reality that space is shaping up to be a key battleground in 21st-century conflicts.
- “Russia deployed this new counter-space weapon into the same orbit as a U.S. government satellite,” he continued. “And so, assessments further indicate characteristics resembling previously deployed counter-space payloads from 2019 and 2022.”
- “Certainly, we would say that we have a responsibility to be ready to protect and defend the domain, the space domain, and ensure continuous and uninterrupted support to the Joint and Combined Force,” Gen. Ryder said. “And we’ll continue to balance the need to protect our interests in space with our desire to preserve a stable and sustainable space environment.”
- Speaking before the vote, Mr. Wood called the resolution “disingenuous.”
- “Colleagues, we are here today because Russia seeks to distract global attention from its development of a new satellite carrying a nuclear device,” he said.
- Last month, Russia vetoed a U.S.-backed resolution designed to prevent an arms race in outer space. The failure of both countries’ resolutions underscores how difficult it will be to find international agreement on the issue of weapons in space.
- Russia has been making advances on the space-based weapons fronts for years. In 2021, Russia conducted a “hit-to-kill” test that destroyed one of its own satellites, smashing it into what the Pentagon described as “more than 1,500 pieces of trackable orbital debris”
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Important Takeaways:
- Cyberattacks on U.S. Water Facilities Are Increasing. Why?
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a critical enforcement alert on Monday, warning water utilities nationwide to bolster cybersecurity measures immediately due to an increase in the frequency and severity of cyberattacks. According to the EPA, 70 percent of inspected water utilities violated standards designed to prevent security breaches, highlighting the urgent need for improved defenses. The alert comes as smaller communities become prime targets for attacks by groups linked to hostile actors in Russia, Iran, and China.
- In recent assessments, federal officials found water systems failing to implement basic security protocols, such as changing default passwords and revoking access from former employees. With many utilities relying heavily on computer software for operations, the EPA emphasized the importance of safeguarding both information technology and process controls to ensure uninterrupted water supply and safety.
- “In many cases, systems are not doing what they are supposed to be doing, which is to have completed a risk assessment of their vulnerabilities that includes cybersecurity and to make sure that plan is available and informing the way they do business,” said EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe. She added: “China, Russia, and Iran are actively seeking the capability to disable U.S. critical infrastructure, including water and wastewater systems.”
- Recent incidents include the Iranian-affiliated Cyber Av3ngers hacking a small Pennsylvania town’s water utility and a Russian-linked group targeting Texas utilities. In the past, most cyber attacks on utilities have been spearheaded by private actors looking to ransom back access to the owners in the hopes of receiving a cash payment. However, hostile state-aligned actors have also stepped up attacks in recent years. U.S. officials have acknowledged that ‘Volt Typhoon,’ a Chinese-affiliated cyber group, has carried out multiple attacks on U.S. infrastructure.
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Important Takeaways:
- President Biden has made his “biggest blunder” yet by driving China and Russia into a closer strategic partnership through his faulty foreign policy
- Heritage Foundation senior fellow Michael Pillsbury argued on “Fox & Friends” that the “shocking” relationship the two nuclear world powers have fostered never would have happened under the Trump administration
- Putin visited Xi in Beijing to strengthen bilateral relations and garner additional support for the war in Ukraine
- China has vowed “resolute measures” against the U.S. in retaliation for Biden’s newly announced tariffs on $18 billion worth of Chinese imports
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Important Takeaways:
- Biden signs Russian uranium ban
- Why it matters: The U.S. spends an estimated $1 billion per year on nuclear fuel from Russia, so the new law cuts off a key source of revenue as Putin’s forces escalate their war on Ukraine and drive military spending to levels not seen since the Soviet Union in the mid-1980s.
- Congress moved to ban Russian oil, gas and coal soon after the full-scale Russian military invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, but Russia supplies about 20% of its enriched uranium for U.S. nuclear fuel.
- The legislation could shake up the industry’s supply and initiating nuclear fuel supply programs will be crucial for the Biden administration to avoid industry disruptions and obstacles for the next generation of reactors, Axios’ Nick Sobczyk reports.
- Zoom in: The measure, dubbed the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act, unlocks $2.7 billion in new funding for nuclear fuel supply programs at the Department of Energy.
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Important Takeaways:
- Russia warns it is ready for direct conflict if the West wants to fight for Ukraine on the battlefield – as Swedish PM says he is open to hosting nukes ‘in a war situation’
- If the West wants to fight for Ukraine on the battlefield, Russia is prepared for it, the country’s foreign minister declared today.
- ‘It’s their right – if they want it to be on the battlefield, it will be on the battlefield,’ Sergei Lavrov said in comments carried by Russia’s RIA Novosti.
- His statement comes months after French President Emmanuel Macron refused to rule out the possibility that Western troops could one day be sent to Ukraine, and weeks ago said he could send troops if Russian forces break through the front lines.
- Lavrov made the warning as Sweden’s Prime Minister said he would be willing to host Western nuclear weapons should war break out.
- Leaked German documents have also suggested Berlin may be planning to introduce mandatory military service for men and women aged 18.
- The war of words between Moscow and the West dialed up as Russian troops pummeled 30 towns in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region after launching a surprise ground offensive over the border last week.
- RIA also cited him as saying that peace talks on Ukraine due to take place in Switzerland next month without Russia’s participation amounted to an ultimatum to Moscow.
- He compared the situation to ‘a reprimand for a schoolchild’ whose fate was being decided by teachers while he was out of the room.
- ‘You can’t talk to anyone like that, especially to us,’ Lavrov said. ‘The conference… boils down to restating an ultimatum to Russia.’
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Important Takeaways:
- Ukraine warns northern front has ‘significantly worsened’ as Russia claims capture of several villages
- Ukraine’s top general says the situation in the northern Kharkiv region has “significantly worsened” after Russia claimed to have captured four further villages as it expanded its surprise cross-border offensive.
- A Ukrainian regional official insisted Russia’s progress was not yet “significant” but admitted ground fighting in the area was spreading. Meanwhile, speaking on British television, UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron acknowledged it was an “extremely dangerous moment,” adding that Russia had effectively “invaded [Ukraine] again.”
- The precise goal of Russia’s new push – which began in the early hours of Friday morning – is unclear. It may be to create a buffer zone designed to reduce Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory, or possibly even a renewed assault on the city of Kharkiv, 30 kilometers (18 miles) to the south.
- Equally, it could be an attempt to draw Ukrainian forces away from other key Russian objectives further south – which was the rationale Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky offered in his Sunday evening address.
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Important Takeaways:
- The Russian Military district responsible for occupying eastern Ukraine is to respond to “inflammatory statements… by some Western officials” by drilling with tactical nuclear weapons, Moscow has said.
- Russia claims Western provocations while launching a nuclear provocation of its own, saying it will drill its nuclear missile troops, air force, and ships to “practice employing non-strategic nuclear-weapons”. Also known as tactical weapons, the lower-yield atomic bombs are intended for battlefield use to destroy opposing armies and fortifications, rather than whole cities or industries, as with long-range strategic missiles.
- A statement by the Russian ministry of defense expressed the intentions of the exercise, while blaming Western states for it happening at all. Russian state media quoted the Kremlin as having said:
- The exercise aims to maintain the preparedness of troops and equipment for the combat employment of non-strategic nuclear weapons to react and unconditionally ensure the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Russian state in response to provocative statements and threats by some Western officials against the Russian Federation…
- Kremlin media paraphrased this as the exercise being intended to be a retaliation against what it called “inflammatory statements and threats by some Western officials”
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Important Takeaways:
- Russia will face consequences for a cyberattack allegedly orchestrated by a group with ties to its military intelligence, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Friday.
- Germany has been among the Western nations providing Ukraine military support in its war with Russia
- In January 2023, Berlin said Russian activist hackers knocked several German websites offline in response to its decision to send tanks to Ukraine, although with little tangible effect.
- “We can now clearly attribute last year’s attack to the Russian group APT28, which is controlled by the Russian military intelligence service GRU”
- “In other words, Russian state hackers have attacked Germany in cyberspace,” added Baerbock, who is visiting Australia to meet counterpart Penny Wong. “This is completely unacceptable and will not remain without consequences.”
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Important Takeaways:
- Emmanuel Macron has said he would be prepared to send troops to Ukraine if Vladimir Putin’s forces break through the front lines – further raising the risk of NATO forces clashing with Russia’s armies.
- In an interview published today, the French president said the issue of sending troops would ‘legitimately’ arise if Kyiv and President Volodymyr Zelensky made such a request.
- The Economist said Macron gave the interview after delivering a keynote speech last week where he declared that Europe is ‘mortal’ and could ‘die’ partly due to the threat posed by Russian aggression after its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
- It also came as Russia claimed its forces had taken another town in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, with Moscow’s armies continuing to push against Kyiv’s defenses.
- Russia is rushing to advance against struggling Ukrainian forces ahead of the long-awaited arrival of the bulk of US weapons to the front for Kyiv’s outgunned troops.
- ‘I’m not ruling anything out, because we are facing someone who is not ruling anything out,’ Macron said when asked if he stood by comments earlier this year not excluding the sending of Western troops that sent shockwaves around Europe.
- Such a move would see NATO troops go head-to-head with those in the Russian army, dramatically increasing the risk of an escalation.
- ‘I have a clear strategic objective: Russia cannot win in Ukraine,’ Macron said.
- ‘If Russia wins in Ukraine, there will be no security in Europe,’ he warned.
- ‘Who can pretend that Russia will stop there? What security will there be for the other neighboring countries, Moldova, Romania, Poland, Lithuania and the others?’
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