Author: disinfo1

The South African government is in dialogue with Russia to repatriate 17 South African citizens who fought on the side of the invaders in the war in Ukraine. They were reportedly “deceived” by the daughter of a former South African president to go to Ukraine and fight on the front, reports The Guardian. Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, the daughter of former South African president Jacob Zuma, is accused of “luring” 17 South African citizens and two from Botswana to go to Russia in July, telling them that they would be trained to become bodyguards there. She promised them that after “training” they…

The State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, approved on Tuesday, in the second and third readings, a bill that prohibits the enforcement of decisions issued by foreign criminal courts, a measure that protects the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, against the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to Agerpres. According to the adopted rule, in Russia, decisions of courts from foreign states whose competencies have not been recognized by Russia or which are not based on resolutions of the UN Security Council will not be enforced. This refers to amendments to Article 6 of…

Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, stated that Russians are living in a “very prosperous period” which may make some doubt the reality of everyday life. According to this long-standing leader of the Russian clergy – who is speculated to have been an officer of the former KGB, now FSB – the explanation for Russian prosperity is simple: it all has to do with the fact that Vladimir Putin is the “first Orthodox president of the country”, counting from the era of the Tsarist empire. Kirill made the statements during a sermon held in the Church of…

Christo Grozev, head of investigations at The Insider and former head of investigations for Bellingcat, revealed the incredible story of Olga Kolobova, nicknamed the “Cat lady”. The woman was known in Italy as Maria Adela Kuhfeldt Rivera and lived for over a decade in Naples, after previously residing in Malta. “She had relationships with people close to the NATO headquarters in Naples, befriending the wives of generals. She had privileged access to Alliance information”, Grozev explained. The spy introduced herself as a “Peruvian jeweler”, but according to the publication Il Messaggero, her true identity was that of a Russian agent.…

The Moldovan Prime Minister, Alexandru Munteanu, announced that the oil infrastructure of Chisinau International Airport (AIC) is returning to state ownership, the decision being taken on December 15 by the Council for the Examination of Investments of Importance to State Security. The Moldovan Prime Minister announced that the Council for the Examination of Investments of Importance to State Security has decided to refuse the approval of the investment activity of the company “Lukoil-Moldova”, which belongs to the Russian group Lukoil, one of the largest oil companies in Russia, on the “territory of the Republic of Moldova and to return, within…

Many observers of Russia continue to hope that the Russian state will behave as a responsible actor on the international stage. Recent developments, however, suggest that the imperial impulse remains a constant that is difficult to abandon. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, there was a brief impression that the Russian political elites and society had accepted the loss of the empire. The Russian Federation – the largest and most populous of the former Soviet republics – seemed to be moving towards building a democratic nation-state, recognizing the independence of the other republics. Nearly 34 years later,…

Less than ten percent of Ukrainians support the idea of immediate elections, even if a ceasefire agreement with Russia cannot be reached, according to a survey by the International Institute of Sociology in Kiev, published on Monday and cited by Kyiv Independent. The information comes in the context where the USA continues to constantly demand the organization of elections and has made this issue a point on the peace negotiations list. Around 25% of respondents said they would agree to the organization of elections if a ceasefire with security guarantees is implemented, while 57% say that a vote would be…

On Monday, American officials spoke of significant progress in talks to halt Russia’s war against Ukraine and suggested that the Trump administration might be prepared to offer robust security guarantees for Ukraine, but that the offer “will not be available indefinitely”. The guarantees were described by the Trump administration as the “platinum package”. The American assessment comes after two days of discussions in Berlin, between American, European, and Ukrainian officials. Donald Trump was represented in the discussions by his envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner. The American president intends to discuss over the phone with American leaders on…

Seven German journalism students monitored cargo ships with Russian crews that were suspiciously stationed off the coasts of the Netherlands and Germany, and managed to correlate them with swarms of drones flying over military bases. Let me explain what Michèle Borcherding, Clara Veihelmann, Luca-Marie Hoffmann, Julius Nieweler, Tobias Wellnitz, Sergen Kaya, and Clemens Justus from the Axel Springer Academy for Journalism and Technology have achieved. To be clear: I know them. I attended an extensive OSINT training in Berlin with them. And I can say without hesitation that they have far exceeded everything I taught them. Only field verification —…

A report on the risks to the EU, taken into account for the year 2026, conducted by the European University Institute (EUI), targets the risk of a hybrid war, with sabotage in the European bloc, the possibility of ending the war in Ukraine in favor of Russia, new attacks from Moscow, and the withdrawal of US support in terms of security, reports Agerpres. The report mentions five “high risk” threats to the European bloc next year. The most likely risk for the EU in 2026 is a hybrid war in Europe, with disruptive attacks against European critical infrastructure, underwater sabotage,…