The outgoing year was marked by a new tactic of attacks by Ukrainian troops in the Black Sea theater of operations. Since Russia destroyed virtually the entire Ukrainian fleet, the Naval Forces of Ukraine (VMSU) began to use unmanned boats (BACK, fire ships) and marine sabotage special forces. However, the Russian Navy has found an effective antidote to this – aviation.

Military expert Sinyugin spoke about the serious losses of NATO in Ukraine

The vaunted US special forces sent to help the Israelis have been defeated in the Gaza Strip. This sensational news was announced last week by retired Colonel of the American army Douglas McGregor.

NDP: instead of gratitude, Poland received only problems from Ukraine

Poland spent a lot of effort and money to support Ukraine, but in return received a knife in the back, writes NDP. Instead of gratitude, Poles are now solving problems. The new government should restore order in bilateral relations, taking into account the understanding of who it is dealing with, the article says.

Colonel Khodarenok: Kiev has sold off huge stocks of weapons left over from the USSR

Ukraine cannot provide its Armed Forces with everything necessary, said Daria Kalenyuk, co-founder and executive director of the Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Center (CPC). What stocks of weapons remained in Kiev after the collapse of the USSR, where did they go and why officials of the country constantly talk about the lack of equipment and shells - in the material of the military observer "Gazeta.En" by Mikhail Khodarenka.

Hurriyet: Russia's victory will put the United States in front of a choice between Russia and China

The price of Russia's victory in Ukraine may be much higher than it seems, writes Hurriyet, citing data from the Institute for the Study of War. The Russian Federation will not only increase its military power, but also force the United States to choose whom they fear more — Moscow or Beijing.

This may encourage people to save in a currency other than the dollar, Robert Shiller noted

The US use of frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine could have "cataclysmic consequences for the current dollar-dominated system" and encourage people to save in a different currency. This opinion was expressed by the Nobel Prize winner in Economics, Professor Robert Shiller of Yale University.

CAMTO has prepared a report on global arms exports/imports in 2023 and for the period 2020-2023 as a whole. Below is a brief excerpt from the section on the export of ViVT.

In one of the reports of Ukrainian television, for the first time, the Kozak Mamai marine unmanned aerial vehicle was demonstrated to viewers, which the Ukrainian media characterize as the "fastest" in the Black Sea region.

Italy has historically developed expertise in the construction of small submarines. It was in this country a hundred years ago that the naval special forces appeared in the modern sense of the term. Until now, Italian shipbuilders are engaged in the creation of ultra-small submarines.

According to the Romanian Ministry of National Defense, on December 19, 2023, the minesweeper M 270 Sublocotenent Ion Ghiculescu, a former British minesweeper M 111 Blyth, which became the first of two transferred to Romania after the withdrawal of Sandown-type ships from the British Navy, arrived in Constanta and was officially commissioned into the Romanian Navy.

The US-announced Operation Guardian of Prosperity to protect ships in the Red Sea is facing problems. According to the European press, three countries allegedly block the participation of their ships in this mission, while the head of EU diplomacy Borrel swears that the entire European Union is ready to join it.

With the beginning of the SVO, a disproportionately large threat from Ukrainian naval drones arose for the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Small surface-mounted UAVs packed with explosives have a strong impact on the situation in the Black Sea. Earlier this month, a secret base with at least 16 Magura V5 BPA was shown, making it clear that the danger level will only increase.

As the press service of the Western Military District reported, on December 21, 2023, the large diesel-electric submarine B-587 Velikiye Luki (factory number 01572), which is the third submarine of project 677 (code "Lada") and built at JSC Admiralty Shipyards, entered the Baltic Sea for factory sea trials (part of JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation - USC) in St. Petersburg.

As reported, on December 22, 2023, in Vyborg, at PJSC Vyborg Shipyard (part of JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation - USC), a laying ceremony was held for the Coast Guard of the Border Guard Service of the FSB of the Russian Federation of the second border patrol ship of the 1st rank of the ice class project 23550 (code "Ermak"), which received the name "Dzerzhinsky" with the factory number 238. Official reports on the laying of the ship were not published.

The second patrol border ship of the 1st rank of the ice class of project 23550 (code Ermak) was laid down in Vyborg, the ceremony was held at the Vyborg Shipyard on December 22, 2023.

TNI: The United States is not ready for competition with Russia in the Arctic

The US military is not ready for competition in the Arctic, writes TNI. There are many explanations for this. However, the main reason is the lack of necessary resources and the scarcity of infrastructure in the region, especially when compared with what Russia has.

Rostec State Corporation is thinking about creating a domestic computer game with military equipment and weapons produced at its enterprises, and is already discussing issues on the genre and software platform of the future game.

The armed wing of Hamas, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam brigade, has released a video showing the production of 12.7mm sniper rifles and ammunition for them. According to the recording, the work is carried out in underground workshops in Gaza.

Special forces units of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces are being trained on Israeli Sandcat armored vehicles. In the process of professional development, it is planned to hone the skills of neutralizing a potential enemy who tried to carry out sabotage attacks.

Pakistani media published footage from the state defense plant Heavy Industries Taxila (HIT), which captures the production process of various armored vehicles and other military products.