Author: disinfo1
Russia will significantly increase its defense spending in 2027, while funding for several civilian areas will be reduced. According to calculations by Alfa-Bank analysts, budget expenditures not allocated to the military, armament production, power structures, or interest payments on public debt will drop next year to about 9% of GDP, the lowest level since 2005. For comparison, the proportion of these expenses was over 10% of GDP in 2025 and 2026, and about 12% during the 2023-2024 period. In 2021, before the large-scale invasion of Ukraine, they accounted for approximately 13% of GDP. According to Reuters, the budget project for…
Over 100 researchers with ties to the UK have worked on projects secretly funded by Chinese intelligence services, aiming to develop technologies that can be used for espionage, warns MI5, according to Independent.co.uk. The British internal intelligence service has issued its first separate security warning on this topic, asserting that a research organization from China has “very strong ties” with the intelligence services from Beijing. This is about the China General Technology Research Institute (CGTRI), sometimes also referred to as the China Academy of General Technology (CAGT), which MI5 says primarily operates to fund research aimed at enhancing China’s technical…
The Lithuanian government approved on Wednesday a bill directly targeting Russians and Belarusians. They are prohibited from purchasing properties near strategic sites, including military installations, reports France Presse, quoted by Agerpres. If approved by the Parliament in Vilnius, the new law will allow for a “significant reduction in intelligence operations (espionage, ed.), as well as the possibility of using real estate properties as a means of support in hybrid operations, especially the surveillance of military exercises, tracking troop movements, gathering information or organizing provocations,” as mentioned in the text. The prohibition equally targets those who hold a residence permit in…
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis stated on Tuesday that his country would be ready to honor its commitments made through NATO membership in the event of a Russian attack on a Baltic country, according to Reuters. Babis, whose government includes a pro-Russian and anti-immigration party, has halted Czech contributions to support Ukraine and has chosen not to participate in EU and NATO funding and military aid commitments for Kiev. He has repeatedly spoken about the need for European leaders to promote peace and was criticized in a 2023 presidential campaign for saying he would not send Czech soldiers to fight…
The Moscow government wants to cover the huge military expenses with money from the wealthiest citizens and companies in the raw materials sector, while revenues from oil and gas are falling. Russia will increase taxes for the wealthiest citizens and companies in the resources sector next year, in order to continue financing the war in Ukraine. The Russian Ministry of Finance announced the measure four days after the elections for the State Duma, according to the French publication Les Echos. The tax rate for income from dividends, bank deposits, and real estate sales will increase from 15% to 22%. The…
Andy Burnham is taking the first steps towards a more serious reorientation of the United Kingdom towards the European Union, more than ten years after the Brexit vote. The British Prime Minister stated that he will present his “options” for closer relations of the Kingdom with the Union and also said that Brexit has done “more harm than good” to his country, reports the German agency DPA, quoted by Agerpres. Suggesting that he might abandon the “red lines” from the 2024 Labour electoral program that ruled out rejoining the customs union or the single market, the British Prime Minister stated…
The European Union does not expect any problems with energy supply this winter, but it does anticipate “very high” prices for oil and gas, said European Commissioner Dan Jorgensen on Tuesday, at the Dublin meeting of energy ministers from member states, reports AFP, as quoted by Agerpres. Considering the energy crisis caused by the war in the Middle East, “there is no doubt that we are heading towards a difficult winter,” said Dan Jorgensen. “In a typical winter, nearly 50 million people in Europe cannot adequately heat their homes. The coming winter could be even more challenging. Therefore, we take…
Details about Vladimir Putin’s childhood and the family in which he grew up are presented in the book by journalist Evan Gerșkovici, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal. A family acquaintance described the Russian leader’s father, Vladimir Spiridonovici Putin, as a “hardened drinker” and recounted the violence his wife would have been subjected to. The testimonies are presented in the context where Putin has offered, over time, a different image of his father. In January 2024, the Russian president stated that he had never seen his father in a state of drunkenness. “First and foremost, I want to emphasize…
Lieutenant General Valerii Kondratiok, former head of the Foreign Intelligence Service and the Main Directorate of Intelligence (GUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, asserts that Russia can no longer conquer Ukraine, but Vladimir Putin is not able to admit this. In an interview given to the Ukrainska Pravda publication, Kondratiuk said that the only force capable of changing Russia’s course remains its secret services. For years, Kondratiok built connections between Ukrainian and American services. With the onset of the large-scale invasion, he practically became one of the informal communication channels between Kirilo Budanov and the USA. In September…
Hungary will publish a significant part of the documents from the former security services of the communist regime, more than three decades after the regime change. A new online platform will allow the search for information about tens of thousands of people who appear in the secret service archives, including officers, informants, collaborators, or individuals targeted for recruitment. The Budapest Parliament passed a law in September significantly expanding access to the documents of former security structures. According to the authorities, the first materials will be published on October 22, 2026, ahead of the 70th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution of…