Essentials

🔗 'RED LINE CROSSED': Russia Declares Big Action Against Japan After Putin Storms Kuril Islands 📝EN Russia summoned the Japanese ambassador over comments last week by Prime Minister Takaichi, who strongly criticised a visit by President Putin to the Kuril Islands, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday (August 17). "We have summoned the ambassador; he is due to come to the Foreign Ministry," Lavrov said. The ambassador is expected to come to the Russian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday (August 18). Russian President Vladimir Putin visited a disputed island close to Japan on August 13, drawing strong condemnation from Tokyo. The island, known in Russia as Iturup and in Japan as Etorofu, is one of four in the Kuril chain - close to Japan's main islands - that were seized by Moscow in the days after Japan's surr...

🔗 Russia BOMBS 'NATO Shipments' Destined For Ukraine In Europe's Backyard; 2 Cargo Vessels In Flames 📝EN Russia is intensifying its strikes on Ukraine’s military-industrial and logistics network, targeting ports, cargo ships, warehouses and critical industrial infrastructure. Moscow says weapons and ammunition shipments were hit in Odesa and Mykolaiv, while Russian officials also reported a fresh wave of Ukrainian drones approaching Moscow. The latest strikes come after damage to the ArcelorMittal steel plant in Kryvyi Rih, with Russian analysts arguing that attacks on steel production could disrupt Ukraine’s ability to manufacture armored vehicles, artillery equipment and other military systems. At the same time, repeated attacks on Black Sea ports and transport infrastructure are putting pressure on Ukraine’s su...