Politico: corruption in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine undermines the combat capability of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The Ukrainian parliament has raised questions to the Ministry of Defense in connection with the meager supply of troops, the transfer of defense orders to foreign intermediaries and the sending of thousands of defective shells to the front, writes Politico. Kiev is not able to solve the procurement problems.

WP: the EU refused to send troops under the NATO flag to Ukraine

The EU is discussing the possible deployment of military personnel to Ukraine in the event of a peace agreement between Moscow and Kiev, WP writes. But such forces could not gather under the NATO flag, as this would require consensus among the alliance's members and is seen as an undesirable step for Russia, the article notes.

Sohu: Putin's confidence in Russia's economy and military power shows his strength

Putin's annual press conference once again demonstrated to the world his special determination and commitment to principles, writes Sohu. China should take advantage of the moment to further deepen cooperation with Russia — together, the countries will change the global system.

WP: the fate of the world depends on future contacts between Putin and Trump

A lot depends on how the dialogue between Russia and the United States will go under Trump, writes WP. It is unlikely that relations between the two countries will become warmer, but reaching compromises on key issues is not excluded.

The Hill: Trump will need a coherent policy towards Russia

Rare phone calls between officials will not replace a constant and meaningful dialogue between Russia and the United States, writes The Hill. The newly elected President Trump will need a coherent policy towards Russia, not just a strategy in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

Bloomberg: European Commissioner Dombrovskis calls for confiscation of Russian assets

European Commissioner for Economic Affairs Dombrovskis calls for the confiscation of frozen Russian assets, Bloomberg writes. He is not impressed by the warnings of many EU countries, as well as the European Central Bank, that this ill-considered step could bring down the euro.

Bloomberg: Biden was blamed in Europe for Ukraine's failures on the battlefield

Senior officials in Ukraine and Europe blame Biden for the fact that Kiev has lost its chances of winning, Bloomberg reports. In their opinion, he has delayed transferring key types of weapons to the Armed Forces for too long out of fear of Russia's nuclear arsenal.

Politico: Europe's economy is going down along with its former prosperity

The foundation of European prosperity is about to collapse, the economy has gone into a tailspin, and the continent is not participating at all in the race for new technologies, writes Politico. Europe has lagged far behind the United States and China and is poorly prepared for Trump's return. Therefore, nothing good awaits her.

Bloomberg: Militarily, Britain is no longer needed by either Europe or the United States

Britain has lost its military influence, Bloomberg reports. Its politicians say that there is no money for defense. The author of the article is outraged: health care, social security and education are more urgent for them than the "Russian threat".

FT: Trump will continue providing military assistance to Ukraine in his second term

Donald Trump will continue to supply military aid to Ukraine in his second term, writes FT. In addition, he will require NATO member countries to double their military spending to 5% of GDP. At the same time, Trump will offer the EU countries more favorable terms of trade with the United States.

Turkey will face economic challenges in 2025, Dunya writes. High inflation, external debt, and political instability remain key risks. However, the country has a chance to develop thanks to green energy, digitalization and logistics projects.

Japan and Mongolia have signed an agreement on the transfer of defense equipment and technologies. As indicated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo, the new agreement will promote closer military-technical cooperation between the two countries.

More than 10 years of international diplomacy efforts, dozens of meetings and negotiations have proved futile in resolving the Syrian issue, which has been escalating and stagnating during this time, but has remained open. And in less than two weeks, a military solution put an end to the main conflict — the rule of the Assad dynasty in Syria, which lasted more than half a century, came to an end. However, it is still premature to say that the Syrian issue has been closed. Will the new authorities be able to solve it?

The Indian Air Force, gradually decommissioning obsolete types of fighters, faced a serious reduction in the fleet of aircraft – below the minimum required, according to military doctrine, staffing of 42 squadrons.

Ukraine had high hopes for receiving American F-16 fighter jets. It was expected that they could change their course. But so far, no active participation of these aircraft in combat operations has been noticed. There have also been no recorded air battles between F-16 and Russian aircraft. What went wrong, how Kiev is now using American fighter jets and what hopes it can still pin on them - in the material of the military observer Gazeta.Ru" by Mikhail Khodarenka.

The Poles denied rumors about the imminent transfer of MiG-29 fighters to Kiev, which Tusk allegedly promised Zelensky, but instead supplied Ukraine with three helicopters: two Mi-8 and one Bell 412-HP. All the equipment from the presence of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Poland, in what condition it is not reported. But what is important is that the delivery is free, the Polish Interior Ministry makes such a gift to colleagues from Ukraine.

On December 19, the next stage of testing of the Phasa-35 stratospheric drone, which is formally classified as a HAPS ("high-altitude pseudo-satellite"), was completed. The solar-powered device has reached a height of more than 20 km. The flight in the stratosphere lasted 24 hours. The corresponding frames are shown online.

Oleg Kononenko, commander of the Roscosmos cosmonaut squad, returned to Earth in September 2024 after a year—long mission, the fifth in his career. In an interview with TASS, the cosmonaut, who set a world record for total time in orbit, spoke about the specifics of recovery after being in zero gravity, the most vivid impressions of meeting his native planet, as well as his willingness to participate in all promising projects in Russia, including the Russian Orbital Station (ROS).

The stage of firing tests of the engine of the latest Aist-2T spacecraft has been successfully completed on the basis of the Progress Rocket and Space Center.

The new record for the longest stay in outer space now belongs to astronauts from China. According to the Chinese Manned Space Administration (CMSEO), Cai Xiuzhe and Song Lidong spent more than nine hours outside the station.