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Europe
Germany
21.11.2024 The German armed forces have initiated a series of meetings with industry officials to discuss 'potential conflict scenarios in Eastern Europe'. The meetings are part of the Operations Plan Germany, a 1,000-page classified strategy document detailing plans to prepare companies in various sectors, as well as civilian organizations, for possible crisis and conflict scenarios, according to Die Welt daily. The document reportedly lists buildings and infrastructure facilities deemed crucial for military purposes and outlines response plans for crisis and conflict situations, including 'potential Russian aggression on NATO's eastern flank'. According to NATO's defense plans, in the event of a conflict in Eastern Europe, Germany would serve as a hub for tens of thousands of NATO soldiers who would need to be transported eastward, along with military equipment, food, and medicine. Military experts warn that if infrastructure is used for military purposes, the risk of cyberattacks and sabotage rises significantly, potentially impacting German industries and companies. At a recent gathering at the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce, Lt. Col. Plischke advised beefing up security measures against possible acts of sabotage and cyberattacks, developing alternative energy sources, and acquiring diesel generators in case of power cuts. He also stressed the importance of workforce planning. "Seventy percent of all trucks on Germany's roads are driven by Eastern Europeans. If there’s a war there, where will these people be?' he reportedly said. He also suggested: For every 100 employees, train at least five additional truck drivers. (Source: Anadolu Agency - Turkey)
Russia
21.11.2024 Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova criticized today the opening of the US-NATO missile defense base in Poland. It is "a blatantly provocative step in a series of deeply destabilizing actions by the United States and its NATO allies in the strategic sphere," she said. ’Given the nature and level of threats posed by such Western military facilities, the missile defense base in Poland has long been identified as a priority target for potential destruction, if necessary, using a wide range of advanced weapons,’ she said. Responding to Estonian Foreign Minister Tsakhkna's suggestion that European military forces should be sent to Ukraine, Zakharova warned that deploying NATO troops in Ukraine would mean direct involvement in a conflict with Russia. 'This would have catastrophic consequences not only for Europe but for the entire world,' she cautioned. She also criticized the Baltic states for their aggressive rhetoric, particularly targeting Estonia's radical and nationalist overtones. (Source: Anadolu Agency - Turkey)
21.11.2024 The Russian ambassador to the UK, Kelin, claimed that Britain is now 'directly involved' in the Ukraine war following Ukraine's use of British-made Storm Shadow missiles to strike targets deep inside Russia. 'Absolutely, Britain and the UK is now directly involved in this war, because this firing cannot happen without NATO staff, British staff as well," Kelin stated, speaking to Sky News today. When pressed on whether Russia’s own use of foreign-supplied equipment - such as Chinese, Iranian, and North Korean technology - constitutes direct involvement, Kelin deflected by focusing on the presence of foreign fighters supporting Ukraine. 'We have plenty of mercenaries from different countries that are fighting right now on the side of Ukraine,' he said. The recent shift to supplying long-range missiles like the Storm Shadow may signal a turning point in Western involvement in the conflict. (Source: Anadolu Agency - Turkey)
November 21, 2024 12:53 PM ET Russia launched an experimental ballistic missile at the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro overnight, the U.S. National Security Council says. Russian President Putin has now confirmed the launch of a ballistic missile during a speech. Ukraine's Air Force said today that Russia launched the missile from the Astrakhan region in southeastern Russia, more than 770 miles away. The Ukrainian government said it was one of nine rockets fired at Dnipro. Earlier this week, Ukraine fired a series of U.S.-made longer-range missiles, known as ATACMS, into Russia for the first time, following approval from the Biden administration. (Source: National Public Radio - U.S.)
21/11/2024 President Putin said on Russian television that a new intermediate-range missile had been fired at Ukraine, hours 'after claims from Kyiv of the first known use of an even longer-range intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)'. Putin claimed it targeted a military facility. He told Russian viewers that the move was a response to the US and UK granting Ukraine permission to strike targets further inside Russia in a limited capacity with their weaponry. Putin said Russia would have the "right" to strike countries whose weapons were used by Ukraine to strike Russia. (Source: DW - Germany)
Nov 21, 2024, 06:04 PM Russia is ready to consider any “realistic” peace initiative on the conflict in Ukraine which takes into account Russia’s own interests and the situation on the ground, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova said today. “We are open to negotiations, we are ready to consider any realistic, non-politicised initiative – of course,” Ms Zakharova said, adding: “I would like to emphasise once again: The key word is taking into account the interests of our country, the current situation on ground and guarantees of compliance with relevant agreements.” Russia is open to discussing a Ukraine ceasefire deal with Trump but rules out making any major territorial concessions and insists Kyiv abandon ambitions to join Nato. (Source: The Straits Times - Singapore / Reuters - United Kingdom)
Nov 21, 2024 Russia fired intercontinental ballistic missile at the central-eastern city of Dnipro, Ukraine, 'Kyiv reports'. It did not say what kind of intercontinental ballistic missile was fired. It was unclear from the statement what the intercontinental ballistic missile targeted and whether it caused any damage. The missiles have a range of thousands of kilometers and can be used to deliver nuclear warheads, though they can also carry conventional warheads. (Source: The Japan Times / Reuters - United Kingdom)
November 21, 2024, Thursday // 10:22 Russian forces fired intercontinental missile between 05:00 and 07:00 - an intercontinental ballistic missile was fired from Russia’s Astrakhan Oblast. The Air Force did not specify which missile was used. Prior reports on social media warned of a possible attack using the RS-26 'Rubezh' missile. Russian forces launched a series of missile attacks on the city of Dnipro, targeting businesses and critical infrastructure. A MiG-31K fighter jet launched a Kh-47M2 Kinzhal air-launched missile from Tambov Oblast. Seven Kh-101 cruise missiles were fired from Tu-95MS bombers based in Volgograd Oblast. Ukraine’s Air Force intercepted and destroyed six of the Kh-101 missiles. Yesterday, at 22:00, Russian forces carried out an aerial bombing on the city of Kostiantynivka in Donetsk Oblast. The attack involved two FAB-250 bombs equipped with UMPB modules, which convert unguided bombs into guided munitions. (Source: Novinite – Bulgaria)
Footage suggest the use of a missile with a multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle (MIRV) which allows it to carry multiple warheads. (Source: X)
(Thursday), 21 November 2024, 08:57 After US and UK rockets were used in their territory, Russia is threatening to use new missiles to retaliate against Ukraine. It comes after the US embassy in Kyiv was forced to temporarily close amid concerns of a "significant air attack". Meanwhile, Putin has also signed a new doctrine lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons. The doctrine said any aggression against Russia by a state which was a member of a coalition would be considered by Moscow to be aggression against it by the whole coalition. Medvedev, who is deputy chairman of the Security Council, confirmed the decision on Tuesday, tweeting: "Russia's new nuclear doctrine means NATO missiles fired against our country could be deemed an attack by the bloc on Russia. "Russia could retaliate with WMD against Kiev and key NATO facilities, wherever they're located. That means World War III'. Residents in the village of Marino, close to the city of Kursk, claimed to have found fragments of the UK-supplied Storm Shadow missile yesterday. The attacks were reportedly personally approved by Keir Starmer. It came a day after Russia's defence ministry said Ukraine hit the country with ATACMS missiles supplied by the US. Five missiles were shot down and one damaged, with fragments causing a sizeable fire at a military facility in the region. Russia warned that the move would result in a 'tangible response'. It is ready to unleash its RS-26 or Frontier missiles in Ukraine from a base in Astrakhan. "In this situation, we will not use nuclear weapons, but the neo-Nazis and their Western allies, I think, will appreciate in the coming days the blow that will be dealt to Ukraine’s critical infrastructure and, possibly, to targets in Kyiv itself,’ Syrlanov, a Russian military analyst told Russian newspaper Moskovky Komsomolets. 'Let them tremble, be afraid, and wait for landings anywhere. "Moreover, the enemy understands perfectly well that our weapons can reach any targets throughout Ukraine.' Until now, Russia has been using smaller Iskander missiles in Ukraine. The new weapons, which are yet to be used in combat, weigh up to 50 tonnes and have a 3,600 mile-range. (Source: Leading Britain’s Conversation – United Kingdom)
by Soteriou
United Kingdom
21 November 2024 Royal Marines Lieutenant General Magowan Army chief speaking in a parliamentary select committee hearing went on to say that nobody in the room should be under any illusions. ‘If the Russians invaded Eastern Europe tonight then we would meet them in that fight.’ ‘If the British Army was asked to fight tonight, it would fight tonight,’ he said. Magowan was sitting alongside defence secretary Healey who was also facing MPs in light of claims that Ukraine fired British missiles at Russia for the first time. Moscow claims Russian air defences shot down two British Storm Shadow cruise missiles. (Source: The Independent - United Kingdom)
Asia
Israel
21 November 2024 ((10 AM)) Israel launches deadly strikes across Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, kills at least 140 people in less than 24 hours in a sharp escalation following ambushes by Hamas fighters in northern Gaza and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Overnight attacks north of Gaza continued into the morning, with 95 fatalities reported in the besieged enclave alone. At least nine people were killed and 70 injured in Israeli air strikes on Tyre district in southern Lebanon, the Ministry of Health said yesterday. An Israeli air strike on the town of Maarakeh resulted in the martyrdom of four people and injured five others, it said in a statement. A separate strike on the town of Qlaileh killed one person. Lebanon's National News Agency reported intense clashes and attempts by the Israeli army to advance from the outskirts of Aalma El Chaeb toward the village of Shama and town of Biyyadah in southern Lebanon. Earlier yesterday, at least 36 people were killed and more than 50 others injured in an Israeli air strike in the city of Palmyra in central Syria. Israeli warplanes carried out a strike from the direction of the Al-Tanf area in western Syria. The attack targeted residential buildings and an industrial zone in the city. Extensive material damage was reported in the area. Israel, which rarely comments on military incursions, has conducted air strikes in Syria since 2011, with its alleged focus on Iranian and Syrian forces and Hezbollah targets. The latest air strikes highlight continuing regional tensions amid Israel’s military offensives in occupied Gaza and Lebanon. (Source: TRT World – Turkey)
North Korea
2024-11-21 17:46:20 The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says the uranium enrichment facility that North Korean leader Kim visited in September appears to be an undeclared annex of the Kangson Complex near Pyongyang. IAEA Director-General Grossi revealed the assessment in his opening remarks for the agency’s board of governors meeting in Vienna yesterday. Grossi said the depicted centrifuge cascades and infrastructure are consistent with the layout of a centrifuge enrichment facility. Grossi was referring to images that the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency previously released on September 13 of Kim visiting the facility without elaborating its location. The Kangson Complex on the outskirts of Pyongyang has long been identified and monitored by U.S. intelligence authorities as a secret uranium enrichment in addition to the North's Yongbyon nuclear facility. (Source: KBS World - South Korea)
Syria
November 21, 2024 Israeli strikes killed 71 pro-Iran militants in the Syrian city of Palmyra yesterday, with more than a third of them identified as fighters from Iraq and Lebanon, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor based in Britain said today. Those killed included 45 fighters from pro-Iran Syrian groups, 26 foreign fighters, most of them from the Iraqi Al-Nujaba movement, and four from Lebanon’s Hezbollah armed group. The strikes targeted three sites in the city, including one that hit a meeting of pro-Iranian groups with leaders from Al-Nujaba and Hezbollah. Syria said the Israeli strikes on the central city killed 36 people and wounded more than 50 others, in the latest toll issued by the defense ministry. (Source: Arab News - Saudi Arabia)
Taiwan
Nov 21, 2024, 05:46 PM Taiwan would like to establish a representative office in the country, Taiwan Deputy Foreign Minister Wu said. Taiwan has provided millions of dollars of humanitarian aid for Ukrainian refugees and joined in Western-led sanctions on Russia. It has offered strong moral support to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion two years ago, seeing parallels with the threat Taipei says it faces from its neighbour China. “Ukraine, even while receiving Taiwan’s support and sensing hostility from China – since China collaborates with Russia, which continues its war against Ukraine – is very careful about its relationship with Taiwan,” Mr Wu, who until August was Taiwan’s high-profile de facto ambassador in Paris said, during a visit to Berlin, yesterday. “There is a fear within Ukraine that angering China could lead to closer China-Russia collaboration, intensifying military pressure.” Mr Wu said Taiwan is focusing on developing relationships with Ukraine through its neighbours and providing humanitarian aid. “However, military assistance is still too sensitive, so I don’t think we’re working on security equipment with Ukraine just yet.” Taiwan’s defence minister said last week it was up to the United States to decide what to do with Taiwan’s decommissioned Hawk anti-aircraft missiles, when asked if they would be transferred to Ukraine. (Source: The Straits Times – Singapore / Reuters – United Kingdom)
North America
United States
Nov 21, 2024 Could F-16s for Ukraine gain access to NATO’s Link-16 network? Ukraine continues to push for the integration of the Link 16 tactical network into the F-16 fighter jets being supplied by Western allies. Link 16 is a modern tactical network for real-time information exchange, enabling various military platforms to share battlefield data with high speed and precision. Effectiveness of F-16s integrated with Link 16 is improved significantly, as they can connect directly with ground command centers, other aircraft, warships, drones, and satellites. This creates a comprehensive battlefield picture, enabling faster and more informed decisions in a dynamic environment. The ability to integrate with satellites is critical for networks like Link 16, as satellites provide essential positioning and early warning information. This include data from commercial and military satellites monitoring troop movements and air defense systems. F-16s use their onboard sensors for additional verification of these insights transmitted in real-time and execute precision strikes. Synchronization between the F-16s and ground-based intelligence systems via Link 16 allow for the rapid identification and elimination of threats with significantly reduced reaction times. F-16s equipped with Link 16 can act as airborne hubs, coordinating the actions of drones, artillery, and other platforms. For instance, if a drone detects a convoy or battery, the information could be immediately relayed to an F-16, which would assess the situation and assign tasks: the drone continues surveillance while the F-16 executes a strike or transmits target coordinates to ground-based artillery. This integration significantly increases the accuracy and efficiency of attacks, minimizing risks to forces. The Link 16 technology is also crucial for coordination in a complex environment saturated with air defense threats. F-16s use data from ground radars and other aircraft to navigate safe routes and avoid areas with a high concentration of enemy missiles. Simultaneously, the system allows tactical data sharing, such as the location of surface-to-air missiles or enemy aircraft, directly with other platforms, such as allied fighter jets or counter-artillery systems. Link 16 not only provides tactical advantages but also strengthens strategic resilience. The system can operate in environments of intense electronic warfare, which Russia actively employs in the conflict. Connections between different platforms can be encrypted and distributed so that the disruption of one link does not compromise the entire network. This ensures that forces can rely on robust and secure communications even under heavy jamming conditions. The United States remains hesitant due to the risk that the system could fall into Russian hands in the event of a shootdown or capture of an aircraft. However, the issue remains relevant, with Turkish sources reporting that NATO committees are actively discussing the possibility. This suggests that the Ukrainian Air Force gaining access to Link 16 is still 'a viable option'. If approved, Ukrainian F-16s would be able to exchange real-time information with key NATO platforms such as the RC-135W Rivet Joint, E-3A AWACS, P-8A Poseidon, and Saab-340. These aircraft would provide critical intelligence, enhancing the situational awareness of Ukrainian pilots. The ability to coordinate with NATO’s early warning and intelligence systems would deliver unprecedented operational synergy. For instance, during low-altitude penetration missions into Russian territory, F-16s could rely on external data when their own radars are off to avoid detection. Security concerns remain significant. Turkish analysts warn that if an F-16 equipped with Link 16 is captured or shot down, this could compromise NATO’s critical cryptographic codes and technologies. Such a scenario would threaten not only the security of Ukrainian operations but also that of the entire Alliance. The fact that Link 16 integration requires aircraft retrofitting further complicates the situation. While removed modules can be recovered, their loss to Russian forces would provide Moscow direct access to NATO technologies. There is even greater concern about internal threats - bribery or information leaks could compromise the entire network. The decision involves a delicate balance between giving Ukraine a strategic advantage and minimizing risks to NATO. According to Turkish sources, ongoing discussions within NATO committees indicate that the Alliance faces a tough dilemma. If Link 16 is provided, 'it could alter the course of the war', but only if its security is guaranteed at every level. (Source: BulgarianMilitary)
by Nikolov
United Nations
21/11/2024 - 9:41 GMT+1 The United States has vetoed a UN resolution calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, stating that it did not make the release of hostages a condition. The 15-member UN Security Council voted 14-1 in favour of a resolution that “demands an immediate, unconditional and permanent cease-fire to be respected by all parties, and further reiterates its demand for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.” The US was the only country to oppose the text. As one of the five permanent members with veto power - alongside Russia, China, Britain, and France - the US has the power to block the decision. Deputy US ambassador to the UN, Wood, said yesterday that his country would only support a resolution that explicitly calls for the immediate release of hostages. “Let me say this clearly, there are still seven American citizens in the hands of Hamas. We will not forget them. For our part, we will continue to pursue a diplomatic solution, that brings peace, security and freedom to Palestinians in Gaza,’ he told the UN voting chamber in Washington. (Source: Euronews - Headquarter Lyon / AP – U.S.)
International Criminal Court
21.11.2024 The International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a former defense minister mark a critical step in holding Israeli leaders accountable, the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) international movement said today. ’All States parties to the Rome Statute, including deeply complicit ones such as Germany and the United Kingdom, are now compelled to meet their duty, fully cooperating with the ICC and executing these arrest warrants,’ the BDS said in a statement. ’Israel's unchecked brutality and depravity, armed, funded and enabled by the US-led colonial West, have faced another unprecedented blow,’ it concluded. The warrants, announced today, come as Israel’s genocidal offensive in Gaza recently entered its second year, having already killed some 44,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured over 103,000 others. The Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing and deliberate blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, pushing the population to the brink of starvation. (Source: Anadolu Agency – Turkey)
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