Second Biden search yields additional classified documents

Earlier this week, an attorney for Biden said the president’s personal lawyers had discovered a small number of classified documents at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, an institute in downtown Washington that Biden started after serving as vice president. People familiar with the matter said that discovery involved about 10 classified documents.

Biden’s lawyers notified government agencies, and the Justice Department opened an investigation to see how the classified material got there and whether there was any other material that should be under government lock and key.

Story continues below advertisement Legal representatives for the president found additional classified material at a second location, a person said Wednesday, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. The person would not say when that material was found. The second batch of classified material was first reported by NBC News.

Spokesmen for the Justice Department, the FBI and the White House declined to comment. Earlier in the day, a White House spokeswoman refused to say if any additional classified material had been found beyond the batch at the Penn Biden Center.

“This is under review by the Department of Justice. I’m not going to go beyond what the president shared,” White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said, declining to respond to several questions about whether additional properties — including Biden’s Delaware homes in Wilmington and Rehoboth Beach — had been searched.

White House officials have said that they are cooperating with the Justice Department and that Biden’s lawyers quickly handed over the documents to the National Archives and Records Administration — the agency tasked with handling presidential records.

Story continues below advertisement A Biden lawyer said the classified documents at the Penn Biden Center were found Nov. 2, when one of his personal attorneys opened a locked closet to pack up the contents. The White House Counsel’s Office notified the Archives, which took possession of the documents the following day, a Biden lawyer said.

That discovery came not long before Attorney General General Merrick Garland appointed a special counsel, Jack Smith, to oversee the agency’s criminal investigation into former president Donald Trump’s possible mishandling of hundreds of classified documents that were taken to Mar-a-Lago after his presidency ended. Officials have said the investigation of Trump concerns not just the possible mishandling of government secrets but also possible obstruction of justice or destruction of records.

To review the discovery of Biden classified documents, Garland tapped U.S. Attorney John R. Lausch Jr. of Chicago, a holdover from the Trump administration. Depending on what this initial investigation yields, Garland could decide to appoint a special counsel.

Story continues below advertisement While the Biden case has obvious echoes of the Mar-a-Lago investigation into Trump’s conduct, the details provided by Biden’s lawyer Monday suggest key differences that could factor heavily in whether the Biden documents become a criminal matter.

Biden’s lawyer Richard Sauber said the Biden documents were discovered by the president’s lawyers and voluntarily turned over to authorities. By comparison, in Trump’s case, NARA officials pressed for material to be handed over, and then Trump’s office was served with a grand jury subpoena demanding their return. After Trump’s lawyers delivered 38 classified documents in response to the subpoena, an FBI search recovered more than 100 additional classified documents that were not turned over to authorities.

Much of the criminal investigation into the keeping of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s private club and residence, has centered on what officials have described in court papers as possible obstruction of the efforts to recover all of the documents. So far, no such allegation has been leveled in the Biden matter, though it is at an earlier stage.

Story continues below advertisement Legal experts say that it is not uncommon for some people who have security clearances to mishandle classified documents. But these situations are typically handled administratively, not criminally, because the criteria for prosecuting people who mishandle classified documents include proving that the person deliberately flouted rules for how to secure the materials.

Biden opened the Penn Biden Center in February 2018 as a think tank for the University of Pennsylvania in Washington, attracting some of the country’s top foreign policy experts and lawmakers.

Garland tapped U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois John Lausch to determine how the first set of records ended up at Penn Biden Center. Following the review, which is expected to yield a report, Garland can appoint a special counsel to escalate the investigation if warranted.

The Biden document discoveries come after the FBI raided with a search warrant former president Donald Trump’s Florida home months ago on the grounds that he mishandled documents the government claimed as its property and that should have been delivered to the National Archives.

During a September appearance on “60 Minutes,” Biden said of the trove of records retrieved from Mar-a-Lago: “How that could possibly happen? How anyone could be that irresponsible. And it just — totally irresponsible.”

Ukrainian hospitals overflowing with troops from Soledar — Russian special forces officer

©AP Photo/Libkos, File

Hospitals in a number of Ukrainian cities are overflowing with wounded troops from the Donetsk People’s Republic’s town of Soledar, commander of the Troy volunteer special forces unit Vladimir Novikov (codenamed Alabay) told TASS.

"All hospitals in the Zaporozhye and Dnepropetrovsk regions are really full of wounded troops, mostly from Soledar," he said, adding that it was hard to estimate Kiev’s losses in Soledar because the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ command sought to withhold information on killed troops.

According to Novikov, the Ukrainian army suffered huge losses in Soledar though the Ukrainian command had "sent the most capable forces" there.

Former Ambassador of the Lugansk People's Republic to Moscow Rodion Miroshnik said earlier that Ukraine had lost about 25,000 people in the battles for Soledar and those losses were irreparable.

In the early hours of Wednesday, Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin said that Soledar, which had been an arena of hostilities over the past days, had been taken under control by combatants of the Wagner private military company and that there was a pocket in the city center where fighting was raging. Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov reported later on Wednesday that Russian forces had blocked Soledar from the north and south and fighting was going on in the city. Yan Gagin, a military and political expert from the DPR, previously told TASS that up to 500 Ukrainian service members might remain in Soledar.

Victory in Soledar Opens Door to Liberation of All Donbass, DPR Lawmaker Says

Russian forces have established control over Soledar, a town lying around 18 km from Bakhmut (Artyomovsk), which has recently become the linchpin of the Russo-Ukrainian standoff.

"Donbass is the main direction [of offensive] now; as you can see, it goes on the Artemovsk-Soledar-Seversk line," Vladislav Berdichevsky, a lawmaker of the parliament of Russia's Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), told Sputnik.

"This is now the first line of defense from this side. On the other hand, there is Maryinka, Krasnogorovka, and Avdeevka. There is also a very tense situation there now. But so far, there have been more positional battles there than in Soledar-Artemovsk. Soledar is almost under control now. A mini-cauldron was created there, closer to the west of Soledar."

Acting head of the DPR, Denis Pushilin, announced on Tuesday that the Wagner Group private military company (PMC) had gained the center of the town of Soledar. Pushilin noted that Ukrainian troops had been suffering serious losses but continued to resist.

On Wednesday, Russian forces managed to spread their control over the rest of the town. A fighting cauldron has been formed in the center of the city, where urban battles are taking place, according to the company’s head, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

The liberation of Soledar will not only pave the way to the taking of Artyomovsk (Bakhmut), but will also ensure the liberation of other parts of the former Donetsk region, including Slavyansk, Konstantinovka, Druzhkovka, Kramatorsk and further north, according to Berdichevsky.

"It is important to 'grind' this line of defense now, [Ukraine's] most combat-ready units are there, Ukrainian special forces are participating there, and, in principle, everyone is pulling up there," the DPR lawmaker said. "Judging from obituaries there are a lot of dead there, including border guards and policemen. That is, various units are involved there, they seem to be thrown there all the time for support and they are crushed there by our troops."

Makeevka Attack & Christmas Ceasefire

On January 1, at 00:01 Moscow time (21:01 December, 31 GMT), Ukrainian artillery fired six HIMARS rockets at a temporary deployment point of a Russian military unit in the area of Makeevka, with two rockets intercepted by air defense. The attack claimed the lives of 89 Russian soldiers.

Following the Kiev regime's strike, Moscow called on the Ukrainian leadership to implement a ceasefire on Orthodox Christmas Day to allow Russian and Ukrainian civilians to celebrate the sacred holiday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the Defense Ministry to introduce a 36-hour ceasefire along the line of contact between the warring sides from January 6-7. However, Moscow's request was rejected by Kiev: the Ukrainian military continued to shell Russia's military positions and residential areas during the holiday.

Kiev's snubbing of Russia's ceasefire initiative is hardly surprising given that the Ukrainian authorities are doing everything to keep the war going as long as possible, according to Berdichevsky. He pointed out that the Kiev regime's strings are actually being pulled by US policy-makers, who have forbidden Ukraine from conducting any negotiations with Moscow, because the goal of the US is to bleed Russia dry and to try to Balkanize it.

"(Washington) hoped that the supply of weapons and funding to Ukraine would lead to many casualties in Russia and mass unrest," the DPR lawmaker said, adding that the US and its NATO allies have failed to reach their objectives. "Their goal is a war to the last Ukrainian, there will be no negotiations, I think, there will only be [Kiev's] capitulation."

After the Christmas holidays, the Russian military avenged the Makeevka tragedy. In the result of the retaliatory operation, over 600 Ukrainian troops were reportedly eliminated in the city of Kramatorsk, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Berdichevsky highlighted that the Russian military is attacking positions of the Ukrainian nationalists on a regular basis. He added that Banderites – the ideological heirs of Nazi Germany collaborator Stepan Bandera – are typically deploying their units in civilian facilities, including schools and kindergartens, especially old Soviet ones which have big thick walls.

"I just think that we need to cover this more actively in the media," Berdichevsky remarked, adding that "the enemy’s losses can be quite large during the day precisely from attacks on temporary accommodation points."

"For the Russian troops it was a surprise that the first and second [military] corps of Lugansk had drones, that they actively used them; and the Russian army relied on satellites, as they used to do in Syria," Berdichevsky said. "But here the situation is different. Ukraine has a lot of unmanned aircraft. They used them more actively; [UAVs] have already been tested on the front lines."

Moscow managed to quickly fill this gap: Russia-made "Geran-2" and "Lancet" drones are being successfully used in Ukraine now.

Likewise, the coordination between Russia's units and the understanding of the situation on the ground has been elevated to a new level, according to the DPR lawmaker.

"I see great prospects for Russia," said Berdichevsky. "The mobilized units are being trained and their number at the front is somewhere around 30% of those who were mobilized. They are being trained and undergoing combat coordination. Therefore, we hope that the Russian offensive will be kicked off in the near future."

Airlangga Hartarto - Perpu Cipta Kerja Bisa Tingkatkan Investasi

Menko Perekonomian Airlangga Hartarto dalam program BeritaSatu Spesial yang dityangkan BTV, Senin, 9 Januari 2023. Dalam wawancara khusus tersebut dibahas secara mendalam Perppu No 2 Tahun 2022 tentang Cipta Kerja. (Foto: B-Universe/Mohammad Defrizal)

Menko Perekonomian Airlangga Hartarto menilai terbitnya Perpu Cipta Kerja, terutama menyangkut investasi yang ditargetkan mencapai Rp 1.400 triliun pada 2023, itu bisa menciptakan iklim investasi yang kondusif dan mendorong penambahan lapangan kerja.

“Tentu, yang namanya job market itu ada supply dan demand. Demand side-nya itu dari investasi,” kata Airlangga, dikutip Tempo dari laman resmi Kemenko Perekonomian, Kamis, 12 Januari 2023

Menurut Airlangga, Perpu Nomor 2 Tahun 2022 ini memberikan kepastian hukum bagi investor. “Tentu investor itu butuh kepastian hukum. Kalau kepastian hukumnya harus menunggu, maka investor akan wait and see,” ujar Ailangga.

Padahal, lanjut Airlangga, wait and see tidak diperlukan. "Karena kalau wait and see dilakukan, maka satu pihak PHK-nya real, tapi lapangan kerjanya menggantung. Nah ini kita mau mencocokkan,” ujarnya.

Lebih lanjut, Airlangga menegaskan bahwa dalam situasi ekonomi yang tidak normal, diperlukan kemudahan berusaha dan iklim usaha yang lebih baik. Melalui Perpu Cipta Kerja, dia pun berharap investor domestik mampu melakukan ekspansi usaha. Begitu pula dengan usaha mikro, kecil, menengah (UMKM) yang diharapkan bisa melanjutkan usaha, apalagi telah memperpanjang restrukturisasi kredit bagi UMKM hingga Maret 2024.

Menurut Airlangga, gejolak ekonomi global di tahun ini tetap tidak mudah akibat konflik Ukraina dan Rusia serta konflik lainnya yang masih terjadi menyebabkan berbagai negara menghadapi krisis pangan, energi, keuangan, dan perubahan iklim sehingga kondisi krisis untuk emerging/developing country sangat nyata.

Bahkan beberapa negara berkembang tengah meminta bantuan pendanaan kepada International Monetary Fund (IMF) untuk menghadapi tekanan global saat ini.

“IMF sampaikan sepertiga dunia masuk resesi, 19 negara jadi pasien IMF, lebih dari 30 sedang antre dan tentu di tengah ketidakpastian perlu kepastian salah satunya kepastian reformasi. Restrukturisasi yang dilakukan Indonesia dalam bentuk revisi 79 Perundang undangan situasi ketidakpastian dan tahun ini masuk dalam APBN normal,”tegasnya.

Lebih lanjut, Airlangga optimistis bahwa kinerja ekonomi domestik di tahun ini akan tetap kuat seiring proses pemulihan ekonomi yang terus terakselerasi di tahun ini. Terlebih dalam Anggaran Pendapatan dan Belanja Negara (APBN) defisit sudah dipatok dibawah 3%.

Menteri Koordinator Bidang Perekonomian Airlangga Hartarto menilai nasib perekonomian Indonesia pada tahun ini seutuhnya bergantung pada investasi. Menurutnya, inilah yang menjadi alasan pemerintah mengeluarkan Peraturan Pemerintah Pengganti Undang-Undang/Perpu Cipta Kerja dalam rangka memberikan kepastian hukum kepada para investor.

"Nah kalau di tahun ini sepenuhnya tergantung daripada investasi, artinya kalau investasi berarti harus ada iklim yang baik dan iklim yang baik tentu salah satunya kepastian hukum, nah salah satu itulah yang kemarin pemerintah memutuskan untuk menerbitkan Perpu Cipta Kerja sehingga kepastian di sektor investasi itu jelas dan kepastian ini akan mendukung penciptaan lapangan kerja," jelasnya, pada hari Selasa, 10/01/2023.

Untuk itu lanjut Airlangga dengan adanya Perpu Cipta Kerja ini pemerintah berupaya untuk menciptakan ekosistem investasi yang dapat mendukung kemudahan berinvestasi di Indonesia. "Kembali yang namanya investasi itu butuh ekosistem, ekosistem daripada investasi mulai dari perpajakan, perizinan, amdal, kemudian juga tata ruang dan berbagai ekosistem yang memudahkan orang melakukan investasi. Itu ada 79 UU yang direvisi dengan UU cipta kerja," ujarnya.

Lebih lanjut ia mengatakan di tahun politik ini pemerintah memiliki target investasi sebesar Rp 1.400 triliun. Menurutnya Perpu ini akan dapat membantu mencapai target tersebut mengingat pemerintah sudah tidak lagi menerapkan program pemulihan ekonomi nasional dan menetapkan angka maksimum defisit di 3% PDB.

"Nah tahun ini pemerintah tidak bisa memainkan anggaran dibandingkan 2-3 tahun lalu, karena pemerintah sudah mematok anggaran itu maksimum budget defisit adalah 3% dan Perpu terkait dengan anggaran yang fleksibel, penanganan Covid dan pemulihan ekonomi sudah selesai di 31 Desember 2022, sehingga ini menjadi jalur kembali mekanisme APBN dengan DPR. Berarti hanya ada kemungkinan 2, APBN yang sudah diketok dan revisi APBN melalui DPR, jadi tidak ada fleksibilitas lagi," jelasnya.

"Nah oleh karena itu, satu-satunya cara investasi yang Rp 1.400 triliun, yang ini diperlukan di tahun politik, sehingga betul-betul kita harus ada kepastian hukum dan betul-betul pemerintah ini harus prudent untuk menjalankan kebijakan perekonomian karena investasi tidak juga perlu dibatasi oleh tahun politik," pungkasnya.

Dia juga mengatakan, Perpu Cipta Kerja akan menjamin kesejahteraan para pekerja. Terlebih para pekerja yang terkena PHK bakal diberi jaminan kehilangan pekerjaan sebesar 45 persen dari gaji, serta mendapat pelatihan berupa retraining dan reskilling. Kedua pelatihan itu, kata dia, diberikan selama 6 bulan.

Adapun ihwal penetapan Perpu Cipta Kerja ini, Airlangga menyampaikan bahwa Perpu tersebut merupakan kelanjutan dari UU Cipta Kerja yang diamanatkan MK untuk dilakukan perbaikan hingga November 2023. Perpu Cipta Kerja, kata dia, diterbikan sebagai langkah antisipatis di tengah ketidakpastian situasi global.

“Kita ketahui bahwa saat sekarang ini kan dunia menghadapi ketidakpastian, baik itu dari segi perang yang belum usai, kemudian pengaruh dari climate change dan bencana, kemudian krisis baik itu di sektor pangan, di sektor energi, maupun di sektor keuangan,” ujar Airlangga.

Kuota Pupuk Subsidi di Jatim Turun Terus, Petani Cuma Bisa Garuk Kepala

PT Pupuk Indonesia (Persero) memastikan stok pupuk subsidi tahun 2022 aman dan pendistribusian berjalan baik. Foto: Pupuk Indonesia

Pupuk subsidi masih menjadi permasalahan petani. Jumlahnya yang sangat terbatas, kerap kali mengikat leher petani. Sebab, mereka harus membeli pupuk non-subsidi dengan harga yang jauh lebih mahal. Itu dilakukan untuk memenuhi kebutuhan pupuk mereka.

Seperti yang dialami oleh Suwardi, petani di Desa Pagerngumbuk, Kecamatan Wonoayu, Sidoarjo. Di 2022 lalu, jatah pupuk subsidi yang ia dapatkan hanya 200 kilogram. Padahal, kebutuhan satu hektar lahan pertaniannya sebanyak 500 kilogram.

“Karena kurang, jadi kami harus beli pupuk non-subsidi. Harganya sangat mahal sekali. 1 kwintal harganya Rp 1,1 juta. Jadi, setiap kali musim tanam, saya harus nambah pupuk,” kata Suwardi, Rabu, 11 Januari 2023.

Sementara, ketua kelompok tani Sumber Maler 3 ini memiliki dua hektar sawah. Artinya, kebutuhan pupuknya sebanyak 1 ton. Dirinya pun harus mengeluarkan uang sebesar Rp 6,6 juta untuk pembelian pupuk non-subsidi.

Di kelompok tani yang dipimpinnya itu, memiliki 18 hektar tanah. Dikelolah oleh beberapa petani. Sementara, di desa Pagerngumbuk, terdapat tiga kelompok tani. Dua kelompok tani lainnya, memiliki kisaran luas lahan sebesar 30 hektar.

Sementara itu, Sub Koordinator Pupuk, Bidang Sarana dan Prasarana, Dinas Pertanian dan Ketahanan Pangan Jatim Setianti menjelaskan, kuota alokasi pupuk subsidi sebenarnya ditentukan oleh Kementerian Pertanian. Itu diberikan menyesuaikan permintaan dari petani.

“Sebenarnya dari Dinas Pertanian kabupaten/kota yang mengajukan itu. Dilakukan menggunakan aplikasi. Bahkan, kebutuhan itu diajukan dari petani melalui petugas yang ditunjuk. Dimasukkan ke website dan itu langsung ke kementerian,” ucapnya.

Hanya saja, dalam aplikasi itu sudah ada aturan-aturan siapa saja yang berhak mendapatkan pupuk subsidi. Seperti, memiliki maksimal dua hektar lahan. Aplikasi itu juga hanya membaca satu nomor induk kependudukan (NIK).

“Sehingga, pemilik NIK yang telah meningga, otomatis terhapus. Atau, ada juga yang terbaca memiliki lahan di tempat lain. Tetapi, namanya aplikasi kan kadang eror. Sehingga, banyak yang akhirnya tidak mendapatkan jatah pupuk subsidi,” terangnya.

Setiap tahun pun, kuota pupuk Jatim selalu mengalami penurunan setiap tahunnya. Di 2021 misalnya, kuota pupuk padat yang diberikan Kementerian Pertanian sebanyak 2,3 juta ton. Sedangkan pupuk cair sebanyak 177.609 liter.

Namun, di 2022 kuota yang diberikan hanya 1,9 juta ton pupuk padat dan 48.031 liter. Di 2021 kembali mengalami penurunan kuota. Hanya menjadi 1,6 juta ton pupuk padat. “Di sisi lain, penyediaan kuota pupuk subsidi ini mengikuti budget yang ada,” tambahnya.

Ketua DPD Perempuan Tani HKTI (Himpunan Kerukunan Tani Indonesia) Jawa Timur Lia Istifhama menambahkan, dalam kondisi saat ini, petani selalu kalah melawan keadaan. Sehingga, petani menurutnya perlu pembelaan. Bukan hanya sekedar pendampingan.

Pun saat ini, masih banyak masalah yang melilit sektor pertanian. Ini membuat program swasembada pangan pemerintah, sulit terwujudkan. Padahal, di negeri agraris seperti Indonesia, swasembada pangan harusnya menjadi keniscayaan.

Menurut keponakan Gubernur Jatim Khofifah Indar Parawansa itu, permasalahan pupuk subsidi tadi membutuhkan terobosan tersendiri.

Misalnya: petani di Indonesia ini, dalam usulan Rencana Definitif Kebutuhan Kelompok (RDKK) mencapai 22,57 juta ton sampai 26,18 juta ton pupuk. Jika angka itu dipenuhi, maka, pemerintah harus menyiapkan subsidi anggaran Rp 63 triliun hingga 65 triliun.

Namun faktanya, pemerintah hanya mampu mengalokasikan anggaran berkisar Rp 25 triliun sampai Rp 32 triliun. Atau kisaran 8,87 juta ton - 9,55 juta ton pupuk subsidi. Dengan kata lain, kebutuhan yang dapat terpenuhi, hanya 37- 42 persen.

FACTBOX: What is known about the fight for Soledar

According to Acting Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin, downtown Soledar is already under the control of Russian forces

Soledar
©AP Photo/Roman Chop

Russian Airborne Troops blocked the city of Soledar from the north and south, with fighting going on inside the city itself, Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Igor Konashenkov told reporters Wednesday.

According to Acting Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin, downtown Soledar is already under the control of Russian forces. Earlier on Tuesday, businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin announced that fighters from the Wagner PMC control the entire Soledar territory.

Prigozhin left salt in Soledar: "so that America does not think that we are fighting for it"

TASS Media has collected the latest reports about the fight for the city.

What is going on in Soledar

• On Tuesday, Pushilin claimed that Soledar’s city center had been taken under control by Russian forces, who were already conducting a mop-up operation in the Western part of the city.



• Later, Prigozhin claimed that the Wagner PMC controls the entire city, with a cauldron (pocket) in the city center. He promised to provide the number of captured Ukrainian servicemen later.



• According to Apti Alaudinov, commander of the ‘Akhmat’ special forces unit and deputy commander of the LPR People’s Militia 2nd Army Corps, it will be possible to talk about the total liberation of Soledar by late Wednesday or on Thursday at the latest. The remaining Ukrainian forces in the city "will not be able to change anything anymore," he said.








• Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov urged reporters to wait for official statements on Soledar, but noted the "positive dynamic" of the special military operation.

Situation around Soledar

• Currently, Russian forces are fighting for Artyomovsk, or Bakhmut, located south of Soledar. According to Alaudinov, fighters from the Wagner PMC "took ‘all logistics routes’ in this city under control."



• On Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry reported the liberation of the nearby settlement of Podgorodnoye.

What’s next

• According to Pushilin, the liberation of Soledar will increase Russian forces’ ability to take control of Artyomovsk and Seversk, which will open the path towards Slavyansk and Kramatorsk



• the largest Donbass cities currently under Kiev’s control.



• He noted that Russian forces are destroying Ukrainian defensive lines, adding that a "breaking point for liberation of the entire Donetsk People’s Republic is being prepared."








• Pushilin’s advisor, military expert Yan Gagin called Soledar a "key to the liberation of Donbass" in an interview for TASS, adding that control over the city is a strategic victory for Russian forces. According to Gagin, about 500 Ukrainian servicemen, who could possibly have been "left there unintentionally," may remain in the city.

One tank company for Ukraine not to break situation on battlefield — official

The shipment of a company of Leopard tanks to Ukraine from Poland will not fundamentally break the situation at the contact line, this is merely a virtual success by Kiev, says Alexander Malkevich, member of the Russian Civic Chamber and head of the Department of Journalism and Media Communication at the Kherson State University.

According to Malkevich, the promise to ship the tanks has become a "so necessary, vital ‘victory’ for Kiev now that Soledar is lost. However, he believes that this is merely a virtual victory for Ukrainian authorities.

"Yes, these are heavy armored vehicles. But, first, a company of tanks will not change the situation significantly. Second, one must first understand who will use them and where, and if they are not going to be late with all this at all," Malkevich told TASS.

Meanwhile, Adrien Bocquet, an invited expert on NATO weapons at the DPR mission to the Joint Coordination and Control Center (JCCC) on Ukrainian war crimes, not that using tanks amid the Donbass winter will require serious efforts and will be costly.

"The weight is wrong; they will have problems because of that. The engine requires special liquids for cold weather, special spark plugs in order to run. A very big number of parts must be replaced so that the tanks do not break because of cold. It will be very costly," Bocquet said.

Meanwhile, Adrien Bocquet, an invited expert on NATO weapons at the DPR mission to the Joint Coordination and Control Center (JCCC) on Ukrainian war crimes, not that using tanks amid the Donbass winter will require serious efforts and will be costly.

"The weight is wrong; they will have problems because of that. The engine requires special liquids for cold weather, special spark plugs in order to run. A very big number of parts must be replaced so that the tanks do not break because of cold. It will be very costly," Bocquet said.

Malkevich also pointed out that the Leopards are analogs of Soviet T-72 and T-80 tanks, but it is unclear how Ukraine will pay for them.

"What will they provide in exchange? Is it a preparation for gradual surrender of Western Ukraine, after all? There is a feeling that the next step will be the appearance of a Polish ‘peacekeeping contingent’ in Lvov ‘for protection of strategically important facilities’," he added.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said during a press conference in Lvov that Western states should hand over more tanks to Ukraine. Later, his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda announced the plan to ship a company of German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine as a part of the international support.

Special operation, January 11th. The main thing:

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that on January 11, Shoigu made new appointments to lead the special operation. Chief of the General Staff Gerasimov was appointed commander of the Joint Group of Forces, General Surovikin, Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces General Salyukov and Deputy Chief of the General Staff Colonel-General Kim became his deputies.

▪️ Prigozhin announced the complete release of Soledar. According to him, civilians were withdrawn, 500 Ukrainian soldiers who did not want to surrender were killed.

▪️ Pushilin, against the backdrop of military successes, announced a turning point in the liberation of the territory of the DPR.

▪️ The Russian Armed Forces hit the command and observation post of the Ukrainian battalion in Artemovsk, the Ministry of Defense reported.

▪️ Moskalkova said that she met with the Ombudsman of Ukraine Lubinets, they discussed the exchange of wounded prisoners of war and the provision of humanitarian assistance.

▪️ Foreign Policy reported that Turkey has been supplying Ukraine with US-style cluster munitions since November 2022, a RIA Novosti source in the Erdogan administration said that this is misinformation that undermines peace efforts.

The President of the Philippines has been ignoring Zelensky's attempts to contact him since June, Chargé d'Affaires of the Ukrainian Embassy in the country said.

▪️ Poland, within the framework of the international coalition, will transfer a company of Leopard tanks to Ukraine, Duda said.

▪️ The British government has confirmed that London plans to transfer tanks to Kyiv.

▪️ Stoltenberg announced the importance of strengthening NATO military assistance to Ukraine against the backdrop of the events near Artemivsk and Soledar.

▪️ The head of the IAEA said that the conclusion of an agreement on the Zaporozhye NPP is not impossible, since a nuclear incident is not in the interests of either the Russian Federation or Ukraine.

Extra non-oil and gas revenues help Russia in solving required issues — Putin

©Mikhail Metzel/POOL/TASS

Extra 200 bln rubles ($3 bln) of non-oil and gas revenues of Russia enable the country to solve required issues, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday at the first meeting with Cabinet members in this year.

"We know additional budget revenues, associated exactly with non-oil and gas revenues and not with oil or with gas ones, [stand] at 200 bln rubles provisionally. This provides us with an opportunity to solve all tasks we set for development and for matters being current yet very serious and important," the head of state said.

Sovereign development should be achieved contrary to any pressure from the outside, the Russian leader said. "We certainly need to achieve [resolution] of issues related exactly to sovereign, independent development in the near future, contrary to any external pressure and threats," Putin added.

Chances of India joining price cap on Russian oil ‘nil', says country’s expert

The possibility of India joining the price cap on Russian oil is almost zero as New Delhi relies on its own political and economic interests, an Indian political analyst and Distinguished Fellow at Observer Research Foundation Nandan Unnikrishnan told TASS on Wednesday, adding that the country is not facing secondary EU sanctions for such a decision.

"At the moment the chances of India joining the price cap on oil are virtually nil. India will rely purely on its interests, economic, political, strategic. Currently there is an interest in imports of cheap oil from Russia, which India will not reject. India receives huge revenues," the expert said.

The country is not facing the threat of secondary sanctions from the European Union for purchasing Russian oil, he noted. "The Europeans have become ‘an appendage’ of the Americans as of today, whereas the Americans are not going to impose any sanctions against India as they are being very polite with the Indians, being reluctant to offend them," Nandan Unnikrishnan said.

As much as 85% of the Indian economy is in the private sector, he said. "Indian companies will adhere purely to their business interests," the political analyst said, adding that Reliance industries is the largest purchaser of Russian oil in India, which has serious assets in the US, though it has not stopped imports from Russia.

The world’s third-biggest importer of crude oil after China and the US, India is actively buying Russian oil. In early 2022, Russia’s share in the country’s oil import basket equaled 0.2%, but rose to over 20%, or almost 1 mln barrels per day, by the end of the year.

Putin: Everything Must Be Done to Protect Rights, Security of New Russian Regions' Residents

It is important to do everything possible to protect the constitutional rights and security of new Russian regions' residents, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

In his congratulations to prosecutor's office employees on their professional holiday, Putin said countering extremism and corruption, protecting the rights of entrepreneurs and environmental protection remain the key areas of work.

"And, of course, it is important to assist the complex, comprehensive work to integrate new regions of Russia into the country's unified legal framework, to do everything to protect constitutional rights and security of people living here," he said.

Referendums on the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions becoming part of Russia were held on September 23-27, 2022. Most voters supported joining Russia. Putin signed relevant treaties with the territories' heads on September 30.

The Russian president added that Russia's prosecutor's office should pay special attention to the rights of the military personnel, the mobilized soldiers and volunteers participating in the ongoing special military operation.

"It is to pay special attention to respecting the rights of soldiers, mobilized ones, and volunteers. I would like to emphasize that prosecutors have all the necessary powers to effectively address these and other important tasks. I am sure you will do your best to do so," the Russian president said in his congratulatory speech to prosecutors on their professional holiday.

"I specifically draw attention to the need to strengthen oversight of the timely implementation of the state defense orders."

Putin further noted that the main aspect in the work of prosecutors is for Russians to feel that they are under the protection of the law.

Russian prosecutors celebrate their professional holiday on Thursday, January 12.