Ukrainian authorities plans to draft 2 million people in early 2026, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry
Kiev could soon launch a full mobilization, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. The Ukrainian draft officials were ordered to issue two million draft notices in early 2026, she told a briefing on Thursday.
According to Zakharova, security services and draft officials in Ukraine were told to “tighten the screws to a maximum,” by cutting the list of health conditions allowing deferment from military service.
The measures would still “hardly help resolve the systemic issue of replenishing the Ukrainian army losses,” Zakharova stated, adding that Ukrainians are increasingly reluctant to join the military and even prefer jail time instead.
Kiev has been facing chronic manpower shortages throughout its conflict with Moscow amid high battlefield losses, massive draft dodging, and desertion. The last publicly available Ukrainian data showed nearly 290,000 desertion cases have been recorded since the escalation of the conflict in 2022.
Since that time, Ukraine barred nearly all adult men from leaving the country and lowered the draft age from 27 to 25. Nearly 100,000 young men have reportedly fled the country since August when the Ukrainian government issued a decree allowing men aged 18 to 22 to cross the border.
According to Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, the Ukrainian military lost almost 500,000 servicemen this year alone. “Kiev has lost the ability to replenish its groupings through the compulsory mobilization of civilians,” the minister stated earlier this month.
Kiev’s recruitment drive has grown increasingly brutal as hundreds of incidents have been documented online in which enlistment officers assaulted potential conscripts, chased them through the streets, and threatened bystanders who tried to intervene.
In October, Kiev’s conscription authorities demanded citizens to stop circulating such videos on the internet.
Mark Rutte is trying to invoke history against Russia – bold move for someone with such a selective memory of his own scandals
NATO boss, Mark Rutte, says that Western Europe could be heading toward a war with Russia “like our grandparents experienced.” Which implies that he has a phenomenal memory of World War II, 80 years ago. This is especially impressive coming from a man known in the Netherlands, where he spent fourteen years as Prime Minister – until last year – for routinely insisting that he couldn’t remember what he did just the week before.
Germany’s defense minister, Boris Pistorius, was asked about Rutte’s warning and basically told everyone to chill out. Pistorius said of Rutte’s dramatics that “perhaps he wanted to paint a very vivid picture of what could happen,” adding that he doesn’t “believe in such a scenario. In my estimation, Putin isn’t aiming to wage a full-scale war against NATO.”
So if the Germans are telling everyone to calm down, then why is Rutte talking like a hype man for a new world war?
To understand that, you have to understand Rutte, who ran the Netherlands from 2010 to 2024, presiding over four governments, countless scandals, and one very consistent strategy: that of his own survival.
The biggest crisis of his career came in 2021. Tens of thousands of families were falsely accused of welfare fraud as a result of some algorithm being used for detection. They were forced to repay money they didn’t owe. Lives were wrecked. A parliamentary inquiry later called it “unprecedented injustice.” In other words, in the grand scheme of political screwups, this one really stands out in a league of its own. Eventually, Rutte’s government resigned and Rutte called the decision “unavoidable.” Unavoidable – but also somehow not career-ending for him. Rutte resigned, stayed in charge, and later returned – which is like quitting your job but still keeping your office and your parking spot.
Then there were the puzzling money decisions. Rutte oversaw cuts of €47 billion in public spending from 2011 to 2016. Students paid more, pensioners got squeezed, and social housing dried up. By the end of the decade, homelessness had doubled, and half the country couldn’t find an affordable place to live. But hey, the budget spreadsheets looked fantastic. Thing is, they already did before. It’s almost like Rutte had hopped aboard the European austerity train when he saw everyone else boarding it, without checking if the Netherlands even needed to make the trip.
Next stop for Rutte’s political trainwreck: Groningen. Turns out some gas extraction that Rutte’s administration had greenlit started causing earthquakes in the northern Dutch province of Groningen, including a 3.6 magnitude one in 2012. Who knew? Oh, just a bunch of scientists actually working for the government’s mining supervision authorities, who kept shouting at Rutte while he ignored them. Houses cracked. Residents complained. Maybe that’s a cue that it’s time to take the foot off the gas, right? Nope! The government doubled down and increased production anyway. MPs weren’t impressed, with some calling on Rutte to resign. (Spoiler alert: he didn’t.)
Later, a parliamentary investigation found that the state prioritized gas revenue while taking most of the profit. Safety came a distant second. Apologies came much later – long after the government and special interests in oil and gas had pocketed the cash, which the inquiry said was facilitated by all the singing and dancing that Rutte was doing about the need for security at all cost. Sound familiar? Only back then, it was energy security, not national security and defense using Russia as a convenient bogeyman.
And speaking of a lack of transparency, it turns out that was only Rutte’s first rodeo. Later, Rutte admitted that he routinely deleted the text messages off his government phone that were both sensitive and political. Some involved squabbling with the mayor of Amsterdam over whether Black Lives Matter-type protests should supersede the dystopian Covid-era 1.5 meter social distancing rule. Others were with the CEO of multinational Unilever about tax matters.
The opposition said that Rutte wiping his hard drive on a daily basis with all the nonchalance of cleaning the coffee machine was a great way to avoid all accountability around archiving laws. Particularly when that accountability exists almost exclusively in text message form on your government phone and server. Which brings us to Rutte’s signature phrase.
During government coalition talks in 2021, Rutte repeatedly claimed that he had “no active memory” of key discussions – even when paperwork suggested otherwise. ‘No active memory’ became his unofficial slogan. Bolstered by his highly selective memory, Dutch media nicknamed him ‘Teflon Mark,’ because nothing stuck – except maybe the job that he should have been kicked out of several scandals ago.
If all this isn’t quite dramatic enough, then why not also spill some unnecessary details about your private life, too? In Europe, no one really cares much about people’s personal lives, but Rutte has long insisted on regaling the public with ambiguities around his anyway. Even before he became prime minister, he openly wished that he were a thirst trap, specifically bisexual, because “then the whole world is after you.”He also riffed about walking around naked at home. Way to turn your political origin story into some kind of kinky art house movie.
Meanwhile, on the world stage, he seems to be just as thirsty. At Ukrainian peace negotiations in Istanbul over the summer, Rutte complained that Russia had sent a historian as part of its delegation, basically accusing him of using Russian history going back to the 13th century to filibuster the peace talks.
Moscow was quick to point out that the EU also sent a historian – one whose insights could best be described as bargain basement. Wonder why Rutte didn’t notice, despite being in attendance? Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has a hunch: “Mr. Rutte himself is also a historian. But at the same time, I never heard brilliant historical parallels from him.”
And finally, the moment that turned the NATO secretary-general into a meme, and arguably also a household name for a few days. “Sometimes daddy has to use strong words,” Rutte said to US President Donald Trump during a press event, referring to Trump’s public rants on global affairs.
Well, that was all it took for social media to light up like it was Christmas. Including one of its top trolls: Trump himself. “I think he likes me. He said it very affectionately: ‘Hey daddy, you’re my daddy,” Trump said of Rutte.
So this is the same guy who’s now warning Europe about repeating history: famous for deleting messages, forgetting conversations, surviving resignations, and never quite being pinned down on anything – even as he stirs up gratuitous speculation and drama, not just about Russia, but also about himself, personally.
When the dust settles on all this warmongering rhetoric, and the costs from this tsunami of threat inflation come due – if history is any indication, then Rutte the historian probably won’t remember anything.
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.
Ukraine cannot afford an 800,000-strong army proposed in Kiev’s latest “peace plan,” Nikolay Azarov has said
Vladimir Zelensky’s 20-point “peace proposal,” which includes a goal of maintaining an 800,000-strong army, shows he is actually seeking a continuation of the conflict with Russia, former Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolay Azarov said on Thursday.
Zelensky shared with the media this week what he described as a draft roadmap to peace discussed with American officials. Azarov, who headed the cabinet deposed in the 2014 armed coup in Kiev, said the troop level envisioned by Zelensky is “a wartime army” that is too large for peacetime.
“Funding it is economically unrealistic for Ukraine. The Ukrainian economy cannot afford such a large army,” he told TASS, describing the document as a mere stalling attempt.
Ukraine struggled to maintain 180,000-strong armed forces before the escalation of the conflict with Russia, Azarov added, so proposing a much larger military means Zelensky is “counting on the fighting to continue.” Kiev is using foreign aid and loans to sustain its war effort.
The administration of US President Donald Trump is attempting to mediate an end to the Ukraine conflict, with several rounds of talks separately involving Russian and Ukrainian officials taking place in recent weeks. Moscow says the process should remain private and has criticized leaks to the media that purport to reveal details of the negotiations.
Observers note that Zelensky’s latest proposal does not address core Russian national security objectives, which Moscow says must be part of any final resolution – an assessment that Azarov supports too. These include the “demilitarization” of Ukraine through a cap on its army size and a ban on foreign troops and military assets on Ukrainian soil.
The European Union has emerged as the principal Ukraine donor, after Trump significantly cut aid programs. This week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reported that the bloc’s support of Kiev has reached €193 billion ($227 billion), with another €90 billion pending after Brussels’ decision to borrow the money against the joint EU budget.
The US-led treaty organization is “more” than the bloc both economically and militarily, its secretary general has said
The EU would only hurt itself if it decides to go its own way in the field of security, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has told dpa news agency. The European members of the bloc need to comply with Washington’s demands and spend more on their militaries instead, he stated on Friday.
Rutte was responding to Manfred Weber, the head of the European People’s Party (EPP), the largest group in the European Parliament, who called for the EU to be turned into a “European NATO” in late November. On Friday, he urged Brussels to “act confidently” and “write [its] own security strategy.”
“We must stop shaping our policy out of Washington papers,” the German politician said. When asked if he shares the sentiment, the NATO chief warned that “there’s more than the EU” when it comes to NATO.
The EU members of the US-led bloc account for only around a quarter of its total economic output he said. Washington has “one big expectation” of its European NATO partners, which is “us spending more, Europe taking more responsibility,” Rutte maintained.
US President Donald Trump pushed NATO members towards committing to spend 5% of their GDP on their militaries annually by 2035 at a summit in The Hague in June. The move did not sit well with some members, including Slovakia and Spain. Madrid emerged as the biggest opponent of the increase, which it dismissed as “absolutely impossible,” prompting Trump to threaten it with tariffs over a failure to comply.
Brussels and Washington also appear to have different approaches to the Ukraine conflict. In November, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban warned that the EU was stalling US peace efforts and “plotting war.” Earlier the same month, the New York Times reported that Washington had cautioned Kiev’s European backers against dragging out the conflict, citing an increasing risk of escalation.
Moscow maintains that the hostilities are a NATO proxy war sparked by the bloc’s continued eastward expansion. Earlier this month, President Vladimir Putin told a Q&A that Russia has no desire to confront the bloc as long as its interests are respected.
The Democrats and Republicans initially worked together to release the files, until ‘politics as usual’ inevitably spoiled everything
Across the United States, Democrats and Republicans are demanding that their leaders come clean with the Epstein files and the truth finally be told. What they are getting instead is a massive redaction campaign.
Not since 1998 with the Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky show trial has the American public been so incensed by a sex scandal like the one the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein personally directed for many years. Here is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to send not just one or two powerful ‘untouchables’ to prison for the worst crime imaginable – sexual abuse of a minor – but many dozens, possibly hundreds. In other words, a vast network of international power, wealth, and systemic abuse.
Yet today we are no closer to the truth as to the identities of the sick perpetrators. Under the bipartisan Epstein Files Transparency Act, the Justice Department was required to release all of its investigative material on Mr. Epstein by Dec. 19, though it was allowed to redact and withhold certain material in order to “protect the victims,” which is of course understandable. It also withheld materials that would “jeopardize a federal investigation.” Whether we’ll actually see a single suspect face trial is presently unknown, but the DOJ took full advantage of that loophole as 680 pages of the release were entirely redacted, which made the release practically redundant and senseless.
Were we the people once again expecting too much from the government? That’s very likely, but considering that we are talking about child abuse, even just a single redacted page would have appeared suspicious; hundreds of pages totally blacked out is completely unacceptable. After all, an investigation would not be hindered by the release of the identities of those individuals who had sexual relations with underage girls. The American people deserve better than this. The American people deserve the names of those pedophiles who are walking the streets free today.
In the beginning, President Donald Trump was of the opinion that such a mission was a cause worth pursuing. On the 2024 campaign trail, he pledged he’d have “no problem” releasing more files related to Jeffrey Epstein if elected. He even said he’d make public the late sex offender’s “client list” of those elite pedophiles who paid a visit to his notorious Little Saint James Island in the Caribbean. It is not difficult to imagine the nervous tremors that reverberated throughout the nation following that statement, and it could very well be the source of the ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’ that has infected so many among the world’s top movers and shakers. It looked as though the MAGA movement would turn a deranged part of the establishment on its head.
Once in office, however, Trump, who has maintained his innocence throughout the saga, vacillated on the question of what to do with the files. He has gone from saying he would welcome the release of the documents to calling the whole scandal a “Democratic hoax.” As for an Epstein client list, his Attorney General Pam Bondi was on the record as saying it was in her possession, only to later deny the existence of a client list. This has led to both Democrats and Republicans asking what Trump was hiding, if anything.
What we know is that Trump was good friends with Epstein from the late eighties, but ended contact with the pedophile in 2004, four years before Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor. This is where the plot thickens as a number of highly influential men, including Bill Gates, Larry Summers, and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (formerly Prince Andrew), continued their friendship with Epstein even after he had been publicly exposed as a child predator.
One political figure who appeared prominently in the latest file release was – yes, you guessed it – Bill Clinton, who also claims to have cut off relations with Epstein in 2005, years before child molestation charges were filed against the latter. This is where the political battle between the Democrats and Republicans has exploded and can expect to worsen over time. Clinton’s spokesperson Angel Ureña has accused the White House of using the former Democratic president as a scapegoat.
“The White House hasn’t been hiding these files for months only to dump them late on a Friday to protect Bill Clinton,” the spokesperson said in a statement on X.
“This is about shielding themselves from what comes next, or from what they’ll try and hide forever. So they can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn’t about Bill Clinton. Never has, never will be,” the statement added.
Despite the Democrats and Republicans initially working together to release the files, it was inevitable that ‘politics as usual’ would spoil the party. In fact, it is truly a spectacle to watch powerful, influential men doing everything possible – short of murder – to conceal their guilt in Epstein’s extensive pedophilia ring. Actually, scratch the murder part. Regardless of what the FBI would have us believe, there is simply no way that Jeffrey Epstein was able to commit suicide inside of his jail cell, which did not come specially equipped with convenient hooks in the ceiling from which to hang oneself. Prison cells are built specifically to be suicide proof.
But I digress.
It would be nice to think that there will be some sort of political price to be paid for these crimes against society’s most vulnerable segment, and that could very well happen in the 2026 midterm elections. Although we can expect there to be no smoking guns, no bombshell revelations, no crack-of-dawn arrests for the child molesters, there very well could be a political backlash against Trump and the Republican Party for keeping the country in the dark when it comes to Mr. Epstein and his massive closet of skeletons. A large part of that backlash could come from within MAGA itself, which had such high hopes for Trump cracking down on the sexual predators.
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.
Tehran will not bow to intimidation by Washington, the Iranian envoy to the UN has insisted
The US and Iran have sparred at the UN over the conditions for resuming nuclear talks, with Tehran calling Washington’s demand for a zero uranium enrichment policy a nonstarter.
The US deputy Middle East envoy, Morgan Ortagus, told the UN Security Council on Tuesday that Washington “remains available for formal talks with Iran, but only if Tehran is prepared for direct and meaningful dialogue.”
“We have been clear, however, about certain expectations for any arrangement. Foremost, there can be no enrichment inside of Iran, and that remains our principle,” she said.
Ortagus claimed that US President Donald Trump, who unilaterally withdrew Washington from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with Iran in 2018, had “extended the hand of diplomacy” to Tehran during both of his terms.
“But instead of taking that hand of diplomacy, you continue to put your hand in the fire. Step away from the fire, sir, and take President Trump’s hand of diplomacy,” she said, addressing Iran’s UN envoy, Amir Saeid Iravani.
Iravani replied by saying that the authorities in Tehran “appreciate any fair and meaningful negotiation, but insisting on zero enrichment policy, it is contrary to our rights as a member of the NPT [treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons].”
The demands by Washington mean that “they are not pursuing the fair negotiation,” he said. “They want to dictate their predetermined intention on Iran. Iran will not bow down to any pressure and intimidation.”
The negotiations between the sides to revive the 2015 JCPOA, which saw Tehran giving up on its military nuclear ambitions in exchange for lifting of international sanctions, remain stalled since June when the US and Israel launched coordinated attacks on Iran’s Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites. They described it as preemptive strikes to halt Tehran’s progress toward developing a bomb. The Iranian authorities insist that their nuclear program is purely peaceful.
Last month, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran will rebuild its damaged nuclear sites with “great strength.” The country’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, also insisted that Iran “cannot stop uranium enrichment.”
The capture of Gulaypole opens the way for further advances in Russia’s Zaporozhye Region, the president has said
Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated the military for liberating Gulaypole, a strategic town in Zaporozhye Region. The achievement opens the way for further advances in the area, the president told the top brass on Saturday during a visit to one of the command posts.
Earlier in the day, the Defense Ministry reported that the Russian troops had successfully taken a large Ukrainian fortified zone centered around the town and published a video showing the Russian advances.
The clip shows the Russian military shelling Ukrainian positions in the town, and later storming the buildings. The video ends with the soldiers posing with Russian national flags in various parts of Gulaypole.
According to the ministry, the troops established control over a territory of more than 76 square kilometers and cleared over 7,000 buildings. The Ukrainian forces in the area suffered heavy losses and lost dozens of pieces of heavy equipment, as well as various vehicles. Kiev has disputed the loss of the town, but acknowledged that the situation is difficult.
During the Saturday meeting, Putin said capturing the town was “an important result,” adding that the liberation of Gulaypole opens “good prospects for further advancements in Zaporozhye Region.”
The generals also informed the president about finishing mop-up operations in the city of Dmitrov (also known as Mirnograd in Ukraine) in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR). Earlier, Ukrainian forces in the city were encircled as Russian troops liberated the nearby city of Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk). The president called the development “an important step towards the full liberation of the DPR.”
Russia’s forces have been on the offensive for many months, taking dozens of settlements in the new regions, as well as in Ukraine’s Kharkov, Sumy and Dnepropetrovsk Regions. In particular, Moscow’s troops took the major logistical hubs of Krasnoarmeysk in the DPR, and Kupyansk in Kharkov Region.
Earlier this month, the Defense Ministry also reported liberating the former Ukrainian stronghold of Seversk in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR).
While progress has been achieved, Kiev and its EU backers are determined to torpedo the deal, Ryabkov has warned
Major progress has been made to reach a peace settlement in the Ukraine conflict, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has said. While Moscow is “fully ready” to resolve the conflict, Kiev and its European backers have “doubled their efforts to torpedo” a potential peace deal, he told the 60 Minutes TV show on Friday.
According to Ryabkov, December 25 marked a major milestone in the peace process. It was the moment “when we got close, really close to a solution,” the senior diplomat said.
While he did not elaborate on what that major milestone might be, diplomatic activity between Russia and the US intensified this week.
Kirill Dmitriev, a Russian presidential envoy involved in talks with the US, met with the White House special envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in Miami last week. The draft peace plan discussed during the meeting was then presented to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, according to the Kremlin.
Earlier this week, Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky revealed his new 20-point peace proposal, which he claimed has been discussed with US officials as part of Trump’s efforts to resolve the conflict. According to Ryabkov, Kiev’s plan “is radically different… from the 27-point [proposal] we were working on with the US side… over the past weeks.”
According to the Russian diplomat, Moscow is ready to move forward but the success also depends “on the political will on the other side.” Reaching a deal would be impossible “without a proper solution” to the problems at the root of the conflict.
His words came as Zelensky told Axios on Friday that he expected to agree on a peace framework during his meeting with Trump on Sunday. The plan would reportedly require Russia to agree to a ceasefire prior to any permanent settlement.
Moscow has repeatedly rejected the idea of a temporary ceasefire which would allow the Ukrainian military to rearm and regroup. Russia has instead insisted on a permanent peace if Kiev recognizes new territorial realities and commits to neutrality, demilitarization, and denazification.
US presidential envoys and confidants Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner reportedly see great investment opportunities in the country
US President Donald Trump’s envoys in negotiations with Moscow, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, see Russia as an “El Dorado” with vast natural resources and rich investment opportunities, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing sources familiar with their thinking.
Both believe that lifting sanctions and reintegrating Russia back into the world economy could make money for US investors and smooth out its relations with Ukraine and Europe, the newspaper wrote.
The West imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, which Moscow maintains have only served to strengthen the Russian economy.
US firms could return to Russia after a peace deal with Ukraine is reached, Witkoff has stated.
Trump has expressed interest in joint projects with Moscow, as well as in Russian rare earth minerals, which have emerged as a key bone of contention in his on-and-off trade war with China this year. President Vladimir Putin has demonstrated willingness to collaborate with the US regarding Russia’s rare earth deposits.
Joint US-Russian ventures have also figured in Trump’s peace push centered around his roadmap for Ukraine.
One of its initial clauses reportedly suggested unfreezing the hundreds of billions of dollars in Russian assets frozen in the West and partly investing them into joint US-Russian projects, with Washington taking half the profits.
According to an early draft published by the media, another point of Trump’s peace plan proposed joint ownership of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, which Russian forces have held since 2022.
In the course of the ongoing shuttle diplomacy talks, Witkoff and Kushner have shown interest in shared US control of the plant and in using it to mine cryptocurrency, Putin said on Thursday.
While the Kremlin has largely kept its cards close to its chest regarding the talks, Witkoff has called the latest round of talks “productive and constructive.”
2025 has yielded some extraordinary own goals that have exposed the posturing of Western politicians and left the EU isolated, irrelevant, and alone, pursuing policies contrary to self-interest.
Unwelcome stories often cling to reality, like an alien to John Hurt’s face. And just as the notorious species did to humans, so too could these unwelcome stories eventually impregnate, and burst from the belly of the narrative beast.
Nord Stream and the Polish-German standoff over Ukrainians nobody wants to interrogate
New Europe bullhorn Poland is trying to shut down any investigation into the greatest destruction of national infrastructure on the European continent since WW2. Germany – a victim of the Nord Stream blasts celebrated by Polish Foreign Minister ‘Osama bin’ Sikorski – is seeking extraditions. Warsaw has refused to investigate or extradite any of the alleged Ukrainian divers who supposedly rented a little yacht and went off to blow up giant undersea pipelines at 250 feet, and who have been fingered by Berlin.
Italy, on the other hand, has extradited a Ukrainian military officer to Germany. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (a former president of the European Council) has insisted, however, that “the case is closed.”
“Who blew up Nord Stream?” is a question nobody in the West wants answered.
NATO-Israeli arms corruption scandal
Who would have thought that there’s a cozy consulting gray-area where former NATO staff float into weapons sales jobs whose primary client is… NATO? And amid the destruction of Gaza and an unprecedented militarization drive across the EU, where billions are suddenly up for grabs and everyone is seeing ‘drones’? Thirteen contracts with Israeli weapons manufacturer Elbit have been canceled, five arrests have been made, including a former Dutch Ministry of Defense staffer, and one suspect is on the run over revelations of a massive bribery scheme involving bloc officials. NATO procurement boss Stacey Cummings – a former career member of the US Department of War’s Senior Executive Service – has ordered that nobody in the military bloc’s buying agency speak to the press.
The EU’s toxic reputation as a haven for military and political lobbyists happy to do business with Israel is about to get a major boost.
Corruption in Ukraine
This year’s revelations that Zelensky’s inner circle took part in a €100 million graft scheme connected to the energy sector were reasonably widely reported, but will be conveniently disconnected from the idea that EU taxpayers will effectively hand over €90 billion more to Zelensky’s cronies to keep Kiev’s frontline fighting, as well as lining pockets.
On December 27, Ukraine’s national anti-corruption agency NABU announced it had uncovered a criminal vote-rigging scheme involving MPs, triggering a raid on the Ukrainian parliament by anti-corruption agents, and a very public standoff between them and parliamentary security.
That the revelations of rampant corruption by Zelensky’s inner circle – authored by an anti-corruption unit he had tried and failed to take control of – weakened him and emboldened Washington to push more for peace is also not a story the Western media is very happy to report, however obvious it is.
Where is the West on genocide and Gaza?
EU High Representative for Foreign Policy Kaja Kallas has never used the term “genocide” to refer to Isreal’s military destruction of the Palestinian people in Gaza, while professing to hold the highest moral and ethical standards. The unfortunate Kallas is widely seen outside the Brussels bubble – and possibly inside – as a liability. Not a story the Western press sees as important, given the bloc’s slide to the far right and its turn to a war economy to save itself.
Plane wrong
Kallas’ boss, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, has landed herself in trouble literally and metaphorically in 2025. Claims that her rented private jet’s signal was jammed by Russia while she headed a press junket/defense review of her bloc’s ‘eastern flank’ have been laughed at and debunked. A Bulgarian inquiry into the incident has been shelved, while no inquiry into the FT’s initial reporting of the story ever took off.
Von der Leyen has carried her disastrous form from the German Defense Ministry into Brussels and shown a strong penchant for losing private messages through which she struck a multibillion-euro deal for vaccines from Pfizer – resulting in censure by the European Court of Justice.
Pain in the assets
How and why von der Leyen and her compatriot and fellow German 1-percenter, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, managed to push a dangerous plot to steal Russia’s assets, give them to Ukraine, and let Belgium carry the can, to a midnight denouement only resolved by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will be a story you will not read anywhere in the Western press. Nor the role played by Kaja Kallas and her functionaries in supporting the German push. That the €90 billion ($105 billion) they claimed they raised for Ukraine is money down the drain that will eventually be paid for by European taxpayers is also a story the West would rather not have to read.
Droning on
Von der Leyen and Kallas, as well as the Western media, were also happy to fan the drone hysteria that gripped northern Europe – a kind of religious mass-event for which there is a precedent in Belgium. An investigation by Dutch magazine Trouw found that of 61 reported drone sightings in Belgium, Denmark, and elsewhere, only three were not debunked. The CEO of Copenhagen airport has also since confirmed that any drones spotted near the facility were peaceful. You’re not going to read that anywhere in the Western press.
