Pyongyang welcomes Putin with spectacular ceremony | North Korea’s Kim Jong-un welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to Pyongyang with a spectacular ceremony on Wednesday, marking the Russian leader’s first official visit to the country since 2000. ● The two leaders began the official ceremony at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang at around noon on Wednesday. A military orchestra played the national anthems of the two nations, with artillery guns firing a welcoming salvo. The square, which can hold more than 100,000 people, was packed with local residents, who came to greet the Russian president. ● Ahead of President Putin’s visit, the streets of the North Korean capital were decorated with countless Russian flags, welcoming banners both in Korean and Russian, and portraits of the Russian head of state. Official talks between the two delegations began immediately after the ceremony, and the heads of state are expected to hold a one-on-one discussion later in the day.

■ Russia and North Korea agree on mutual aid against aggression – Putin (RT.com)
■ Warm welcome, bilateral agreements and a new comprehensive partnership treaty (RT.com)
■ WATCH Putin arrive in North Korea (RT.com)
■ President of Russian Federation Arrives in Pyongyang to Pay State Visit to DPRK (KCNA)
■ Putin Gets Lavish Welcome in North Korea with Vows of Support (english.aawsat.com)
■ Putin and Kim Jong Un start negotiations as part of delegations in Pyongyang (TASS)
■ Live Updates: Russia Appreciates North Korea's Full-Fledged Support for Russian Policy (Sputnik News)
■ Путин высоко оценил поддержку КНДР политики России (Известия)

Drago Bosnic | When Russia launched its special military operation (SMO) on February 24, 2022, it became the active part of the Kremlin’s strategic counteroffensive against crawling NATO aggression.

[...] Namely, NATO forces in Eastern Europe rely on the same offensive-oriented approach that the belligerent alliance usually uses in its aggression against the world. This means that there’s a significant focus on air superiority and rapid deployment of frontline troops, particularly airborne and special forces. It’s certainly a challenge to coordinate a dozen or so different countries in the region, particularly as they have highly diverging foreign policy frameworks. Namely, while the endemically Russophobic EU/NATO member states such as the Baltic republics and Poland are far more committed, others such as Slovakia and Hungary aren’t as thrilled to get into a confrontation with Russia. There are also those who don’t belong to either category, such as Romania, where the political leadership is decisively pro-EU/NATO, but the population is generally more ambivalent.
[...] Another clear indicator that the political West is preparing for a large-scale confrontation is the fact that the US House passed a bill automatically registering men aged 18-26 for the draft. And while American congressmen are insisting this measure serves “only to cut down on bureaucratic red tape and help US citizens avoid unnecessary legal issues”, the timing is far too peculiar. The draft, while mandatory, hasn’t been invoked in over half a century, particularly after the crushing defeat Vietnam inflicted on American occupation forces. This clearly indicates that the political West is becoming desperate to prevent Russia’s victory. However, as former US Army Colonel Douglas McGregor warned repeatedly, this will be met with a swift response from Russia, as its unrivaled hypersonic missiles will rain down and obliterate any large NATO troop concentrations.

He noted that the condition for Ukraine's entry into the military bloc will be its victory in the conflict with the Russian Federation, which means this will never happen | Ukraine will never join the North Atlantic Alliance, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with TASS. ● Commenting on statements by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg that the condition for Ukraine's entry into the military bloc will be its victory in the conflict with the Russian Federation, the deputy minister said: "This means this will never happen." "I hope Mr. Stoltenberg understands this," he added. 💬 "He knows better than I how the notorious decision of 2008 was prepared, when NATO leaders wrote at the highest level that Ukraine would become a member of NATO. This became the trigger for much of the entire crisis that we are observing today. If NATO members are ready to falling into the same trap again and history teaches them nothing, then they will get hit again and their bruises will get worse," he stressed. When asked if it means that Ukraine will never join NATO, Ryabkov reiterated: "I think that this is ruled out."

Israel’s military said it has “approved and validated” operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon as months of fighting with Hezbollah threaten to spiral into a full-blown war. | The military statement did not promise an imminent Israeli offensive in Lebanon — any plans must still be vetted by Israel’s leaders. But it appeared to indicate that after months of tit-for-tat fighting, the army wants to show it's prepared for tougher action. The military did not specify what the plans entailed. ● It came as the US tries to broker a diplomatic solution to the cross-border conflict and avert a major escalation. Amos Hochstein, a senior advisor to US President Joe Biden, was meeting with officials in Beirut Tuesday in an attempt to quell tensions. ● Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah have exchanged fire across the border almost daily since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in October.

■ Israel ready for ‘all-out war’ in Lebanon (Al Jazeera)
👉 Video| About Hezbollah’s Undetected Drones: All Israeli Installations Within Sight, Reach + HERE
👉 Resistance to know no bounds if Lebanon attacked: Sayyed Nasrallah (Al Mayadeen)
■ White House cancels meeting, scolds Netanyahu in protest over video (Al Mayadeen)
■ Διαταγή στον IDF για στρατηγική νίκη επί της Χεζμπολάχ (War News 24/7)

The IDF had precise information about Hamas's intentions, but due to prevailing conceptions in the security establishment and possible negligence by officials, the warning signs were not acted on. | A newly surfaced document has revealed that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and intelligence systems had detailed knowledge of Hamas's plan to raid Israel and kidnap 250 people weeks before the October 7 massacre. ● The document, which was compiled in the Gaza Division, outlined Hamas's intentions and was known to top intelligence officials, according to a report by Kan News. ● The document, titled "Detailed End-to-End Raid Training," was distributed on September 19, 2023, and described in detail the series of exercises conducted by Hamas's elite units.

■ OCTOBER 7 WAS AN INSIDE JOB (05/29/24)
■ October 7: An Israeli Inside Job? Former IDF Soldiers Speak Out (SPR) (05/01/24)(VIDEO)

A bulk carrier sank days after an attack by Yemen's Houthi militias believed to have killed one mariner on board, authorities said early Wednesday. | The Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned-and-operated Tutor sank in the Red Sea, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said in a warning to sailors in the region. ● “Military authorities report maritime debris and oil sighted in the last reported location,” the UKMTO said. “The vessel is believed to have sunk.” ● The Tutor came under attack about a week ago by a bomb-carrying Houthi drone boat in the Red Sea. John Kirby, a White House national security spokesman, said Monday that the attack killed “a crew member who hailed from the Philippines.” ● The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, killing four sailors. They've seized one vessel and sunk two since November, according to the US Maritime Administration. A US-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January. In March, the Belize-flagged Rubymar carried a load of fertilizer sank in the Red Sea after taking on water for days following a militia attack.

Mary Manley | A Harris Poll report published in February showed that a majority (70%) of Americans want to push Ukraine toward a negotiated peace deal with Russia, even as Western media seems prepared to continue beating their war drums. | An article published in Pearls and Irritations claims that US presidential elections are rigged because mainstream political opinion is shaped by the powerful and wealthy who “control the sources from which Americans have been trained to get their information”, writes Caitlin Johnstone, the author of the article. 💬 “So long as the rich and powerful can manipulate public opinion at mass scale through the corporate media, through Hollywood, and through Silicon Valley algorithm manipulation, they can rig elections however they want,” she adds.