Monday, June 2, 2025

Polaris of Enlightenment

Italian defense minister: “Time for Russia and Ukraine to negotiate”

The war in Ukraine

Published 7 May 2024
– By Editorial Staff
Guido Crosetto is one of the founders of the national conservative 'Brothers of Italy'.

A growing number of European politicians seem to be tired of continuing to fund the protracted war in Ukraine, including Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto. In a recent interview, he stated that Western sanctions have failed and that it is high time to go to the negotiating table.

Crosetto, one of the founders of the national conservative Brothers of Italy party that took power after the recent elections, has previously stressed the need to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Ukraine, pointing out that it is not sustainable for Western countries to continue supplying arms to Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Russia indefinitely.

– The only way to resolve this crisis is to involve everyone, first (to obtain) a truce and then peace, he clarified in an interview with Il Messaggero on Monday.

The reporter claims that Russia and Vladimir Putin have shown no signs of wanting to negotiate, an argument the defense minister rejects.

– that is a good reason for us to try harder. We mustn’t give up any possible path of diplomacy, however narrow.

Zelenskiy did not listen

Crosetto says that last year he tried to persuade Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to cancel his planned spring offensive – but that the attempt failed.

He did not listen, he says.

Last fall, Crosetto’s party leader and the country’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, acknowledged that European leaders were growing weary of the war in Ukraine.

– I see that there is a lot of fatigue, I have to say the truth, from all the sides. We are near the moment in which everybody understands that we need a way out, she admitted, thinking she was speaking to high-ranking officials from the African Union – in fact, it was Russian comedians Vovan and Lexus who “prank called” the prime minister.

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Large-scale Ukrainian attack on Russian air bases

The war in Ukraine

Published today 12:43
– By Editorial Staff
Defense analysts in the West describe the attack as the largest single offensive against the Russian air force since the war began in 2022.

The Ukrainian military, in cooperation with the country’s intelligence service SBU, has carried out one of the most extensive attacks to date against Russian air bases. The target is said to have been to knock out Russia’s strategic bombers – aircraft that have played a central role in recent months’ missile attacks on Ukrainian cities.

According to several corroborating reports, at least five military airfields deep inside Russia were attacked during the night of Saturday. The operation, which according to unconfirmed sources went under the code name “Spider’s Web”, is said to have been planned for over a year.

Among the bases attacked are Olenya on the Kola Peninsula near Murmansk, Ukrainka in the Amur region of the Russian Far East, and facilities in Irkutsk, Ivanovo, and Ryazan. According to information in the international press, the attacks were carried out using drones that were smuggled into Russia and hidden in civilian transport vehicles near the respective air bases.

Ukrainian authorities claim that over 40 Russian bombers were hit or damaged, including heavy strategic aircraft of the Tupolev Tu-95 and Tu-22 types, as well as a Beriev A-50 radar reconnaissance aircraft.

Images and videos circulating on social media show what appear to be several destroyed aircraft and extensive fires at Russian bases, including Olenya, over 1,500 kilometers from the nearest Ukrainian territory.

The Russian Defense Ministry has confirmed that several bases were attacked but says most of the drones were shot down and the damage was limited.

Extent unclear

No independent confirmation of either the Ukrainian or Russian reports has been presented so far, but several defense experts in the West describe the attack as the largest single offensive against the Russian Air Force since the war began in 2022.

The extent of the damage is still unclear, but according to reports in the Kyiv Post, among others, entire hangars have been destroyed and the damage could amount to several billion dollars.

For Russia, this would mean a significant weakening of its ability to carry out long-range attacks against Ukrainian targets, as the aircraft types involved are difficult to replace in the short term.

Several analysts also point to the psychological and symbolic value of the attack. The strategic bombers not only play a conventional role in the war, but are also important in the logistics of the nuclear arsenal. The damage is therefore seen as a loss of prestige for Moscow.

Some analysts also interpret the attack as a deliberate show of force by Kiev ahead of the planned peace talks in Istanbul, which, according to Russian and Turkish media, are set to begin on Monday.

Railway sabotage with civilian casualties

At the same time, two separate acts of railway sabotage have been reported from Russian territory. One of them, in the Republic of Bashkortostan, led to derailment and several deaths. The other occurred in the Kirov region.

Explosive devices are said to have detonated on the tracks shortly before military transports passed by. Although the connection with the airbase attack has not yet been confirmed, several military analysts consider the events to be coordinated.

The attack has also brought to light a legal complication in the START treaty between Russia and the US, which is still in force. Under the terms of the agreement, strategic bombers must be visible to satellite surveillance, which makes it difficult to hide them in protected hangars, something that may have facilitated the Ukrainian drone attacks.

The fact that Ukraine managed to strike with such precision and range – deep into Russian heartland – also raises questions about how the country’s military capabilities have developed and what help it has received from Western intelligence services.

Merz: Defiant EU nations could be hit with economic punishment

The globalist agenda

Published 28 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Merz at the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year.

German Chancellor and former BlackRock executive Friedrich Merz is threatening to support a freeze on EU funding for Slovakia and Hungary if the countries continue to oppose EU leaders’ sanctions policy against Russia.

On Monday, Merz removed restrictions on Ukraine’s use of German long-range weapons deep inside Russia, a decision the Kremlin described as a “serious escalation”. Slovakia and Hungary have also taken a critical stance toward the West’s policy in the Ukraine war.

However, Merz does not appreciate the criticism and issued a clear warning to Bratislava and Budapest, stating that EU countries considered to be in breach of the rule of law could face infringement proceedings.

– Withdrawing European funds is always an option… If it is necessary, then we will deal with it, he added.

He also emphasized that “we cannot allow the decisions of the entire EU to depend on a small minority” and hinted that there could be “clearer words and possibly also harder conflicts” if the two countries do not change course.

“The end of democracy in Europe”

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán have long criticized EU leaders for prolonging the war with military and economic support for Kiev without any visible progress.

Fico, who survived an assassination attempt in May 2024, has taken a more neutral stance than his predecessors since coming to power in 2023. Under his leadership, Slovakia has reduced its military support for Ukraine and promised to veto new EU sanctions that could damage the country’s economy. Fico has also visited Moscow twice since December to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which has sparked anger and criticism from both the EU and NATO.

The Slovak prime minister rejected Merz’s threat to withdraw funding and called the attack unacceptable.

– If someone wants to push a policy where only one opinion is allowed, that’s the end of democracy in Europe, he told reporters during a visit to Armenia on Tuesday.

“Not the path to unity and cooperation”

He argued that a policy where only one opinion is allowed is as dangerous for Europe as a third world war, and that German leaders must accept that not everyone shares their views.

Slovakia is not a little schoolchild that needs to be lectured. Slovakia’s sovereign positions do not stem from vanity, but are based on our national interests“, Fico stated, continuing:

When you hear such aggressive remarks, it feels like we are not heading into good times. The words of the German Chancellor are absolutely unacceptable in modern Europe. If we don’t obey, are we to be punished? This is not the path toward cohesion and cooperation”.

Russia plans large buffer zone in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine

  • Russia declares its intention to establish a deep security zone on Ukrainian territory to protect its own regions from Western weapons.
  • Meanwhile, both Russia and Ukraine report record drone and missile attacks over the weekend - with significant casualties and material destruction.
  • Here's the latest we know about developments.
Published 27 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Russian FPV drone destroys Ukrainian Armed Forces pickup truck near Kolodiazne. Source: X/@MilitarySummary

In a statement on Telegram, Russia’s former president and current Security Council member Dmitry Medvedev declared that a Russian victory would require Ukraine to effectively cede a large part of its territory. A proposed buffer zone would extend up to 60 kilometers into Ukrainian territory – with the aim of eliminating the threat from long-range missiles such as Storm Shadow and ATACMS, according to information from sources including voiceofest.

– A demilitarized zone must be created that makes it impossible to use even long-range weapons against our territory, Medvedev himself commented via Telegram.

The proposal comes as the Russian army continues its advance in the Kharkiv region – an area that, according to Moscow, is not intended to become part of Russia, but will be included in the buffer zone.

According to Business Insider, there are also reports of a much larger buffer zone, a zone that essentially encompasses the whole of Ukraine. It is unclear whether these reports represent official Russian policy or are rather propaganda and speculation.

Largest air strike since the war began

On Saturday night, Russia launched what is said to be the largest coordinated air strike against Ukraine to date. According to the Ukrainian Defense Staff, a total of 367 drones and missiles were fired in a massive attack targeting Kiev, Lviv, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, and Dnipro, among other locations.

The Ukrainian air defense claims that 266 drones and 45 cruise missiles were shot down, but the attacks still resulted in civilian deaths, including three children in Zhytomyr. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the attack as “terrorism” and demanded further sanctions from the West.

Any silence after such attacks means complicity in terror, he said in a speech.

Patriot batteries destroyed and Ukrainian drone offensive

In a follow-up attack on Thursday, two American Patriot systems were reportedly destroyed in the Dnipropetrovsk region, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense. An AN/MPQ-65 radar station is also said to have been destroyed.

Images and satellite data from the site suggest that an Iskander-M missile may have hit the site, leading to speculation about weaknesses in the Ukrainian air defense network. Ukraine has not yet confirmed the loss, but several explosion clouds were observed in the area on the same day.

Ukraine responded with extensive drone attacks against Russian territory. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, at least 96 Ukrainian drones were shot down on Monday night, several of them in Belgorod, Kursk, and even over the Moscow region.

Several of the attacks targeted infrastructure, including oil refineries in Krasnodar and oil depots in Kaluga.

A notable incident occurred during President Putin’s visit to the Kursk region, where a Ukrainian drone exploded near the helicopter that was taking him to a meeting. The incident was confirmed in Russian media, but Putin is not believed to have been injured.

Possible Russian summer offensive?

The much-discussed buffer zone shows what a potential Russian security zone could look like, depending on which information is considered reliable. Regardless of the version, a security zone would in practice make large parts of present-day Ukraine uninhabitable for Ukrainian military activity.

Several military analysts believe that the intensity of this weekend’s attacks – combined with the statement on the buffer zone – could signal an imminent escalation on the Russian side.

A summer offensive against the city of Zaporizhzhya, combined with an expanded bridgehead across the Dnieper, or alternatively a pincer movement on the city of Pokrovsk, are two possible scenarios.

The ability to knock out US defense systems and extend the range of drones and ballistic missiles appears to have strengthened Russian operational confidence. However, Ukrainian forces continue to hold certain front lines in Donbas and north of Avdiivka, although resources there are severely strained.

The situation in Ukraine remains very serious, with escalating attacks and strategic maneuvers on both sides. A potential buffer zone and intensified offensives could definitely influence the development of the conflict during the summer of 2025.

USA signs mineral deal with Ukraine

The war in Ukraine

Published 1 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
The newly signed US-Ukraine mineral agreement may be the first sign that the hatchet between Zelensky and Trump is at least temporarily buried.

The US and Ukraine have formally signed a comprehensive mineral agreement that gives Washington access to Ukraine’s strategic mineral resources. The agreement can be seen as a deepening of cooperation between the countries in the wake of the high-profile and aborted meeting between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky in February.

On April 30, the US and Ukraine signed an economic partnership agreement that gives the US access to Ukraine’s important mineral reserves, including rare earth metals, reports PBS News.

The agreement also means that the parties will create a joint investment fund to support Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal describes the agreement as “a strategic deal for the creation of an investment partner fund. This is truly an equal and good international deal on joint investment in the development and restoration of Ukraine between the governments of the United States and Ukraine”.

Trump: Repayment

The fund will be managed jointly with equal voting rights, with both countries contributing to the capital. Revenues from new licenses for critical minerals, oil, and gas will be shared, with 50 percent going to Ukraine’s treasury via the fund.

Donald Trump has described the mineral agreement as an important part of the US’s continued commitment to Ukraine. He has emphasized that the agreement gives the US access to strategic resources and can serve as a form of repayment from Ukraine for the military support Washington has provided to Kiev.

In his speech to the US Congress on March 4, 2025, Trump mentioned the mineral agreement and emphasized Ukraine’s willingness to sign it. He highlighted the importance of the partnership for US national security and stability in the region, without going into details about the content of the agreement.

Difficult negotiations

The agreement has been preceded by lengthy and at times difficult negotiations, in which security guarantees have been a key issue. During a meeting at the White House in February, a planned summit between Trump and Zelensky was abruptly canceled after disagreement over the terms.

Zelensky has emphasized the importance of security guarantees and said that negotiations are ongoing. However, Prime Minister Shmyhal has expressed optimism that the agreement will be signed and that it will strengthen Ukraine’s future.

Ukraine’s mineral resources include 22 of the 50 materials classified as critical by the US Geological Survey, including rare earth metals that are essential for electronics, clean energy technology, and certain weapons systems.

The agreement is also part of the US strategy to reduce dependence on China, which dominates global production of rare earth metals.

In parallel with the agreement, the US and Ukraine have discussed the possibility of including future military support as part of the investment fund, although previous military aid is not covered.

At the time of writing, no official comments from the Kremlin or Moscow have been published in connection with the agreement.

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