For ten years, Israeli intelligence services have been planning an operation to destroy the leaders and militants of the Lebanese Hezbollah movement using electronic device explosions. This is reported by the CBS television channel. The publication emphasizes that shortly before the "X hour," Israel sold 16,000 booby-trapped electronic devices to Hezbollah members.

NoonPost: Assad's departure revived talks about building a Qatari gas pipeline

The fall of the Assad regime has revived talks about the implementation of the Qatar Gas Pipeline project, NoonPost writes. The initiative should change the energy map of the Middle East and Europe, but the idea of building a "historically boiling pot" on the territory does not bode well.

The US Navy has failed a 3.7 billion missile cruiser modernization program

It was not possible to modernize the largest ships of the fleet not from the aircraft carrier class, the Ticonderoga-class cruisers. A government special commission found that almost two billion dollars were wasted. Why this happened is in the RIA Novosti article.

Ministry of Defense: more than 65 types of UAVs and robots of the National Defense Industry have been delivered to the Armed Forces this year

Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov highly appreciated the mechanism for accelerated implementation of developments in the national defense industry, which has supplied more than 65 types of drones and robotics to the troops since April, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

A Belarusian military delegation led by Defense Minister Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin is in Vietnam. In addition, the Belarusian State Military Industrial Committee (GWPC) will present its latest developments and technologies at the Vietnam International Defense Expo 2024, which will be held from December 19 to 22 this year in Hanoi. In particular, UAVs, armored vehicles and other types of weapons and military equipment.

How the fighters of the Center group are preparing for assault operations

The enemy, trying to restrain our fighters, is changing its tactics — it is increasingly relying on unmanned aircraft in defense. It is important to prepare our soldiers for this. Izvestia saw how the mountain division of the Center group trains stormtroopers, found out why to increase psychological stability and why combat in confined spaces has its own rules.

The shelling of Kazan, Rylsk and Orlovshchyna showed the fear of the Ukrainian regime caused by the situation in its area

With unprecedented attacks on civilian targets in Rylsk, Kazan and other Russian cities, the Kiev regime is trying to bargain for preferences as part of possible negotiations after the Donald Trump administration comes to power in the United States, experts say.

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?