TYB
US air base on Okinawa sounds ‘space debris’ alarm
March 30, 2025
Kadena Air Base briefly ordered all its residents to shelter-in-place early Sunday morning due to unspecified space debris, according to the 18th Wing.
The overnight notification declared “Alarm Red” for all personnel, the wing said on its official Facebook page at 8:17 a.m. Sunday. The siren and voice alert system on the base also sounded.
The notice went out via email at 1:21 a.m., according to a screenshot of the notices posted by the Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook group.
An “Alarm Green” notice declaring all-clear was sent via email about 10 minutes later, according to a Facebook post on the Kadena Spouses Group.
The wing’s Facebook post said “space debris that was identified in the area” prompted the alarm but provided no further information about the debris.
“The base’s safety protocols were activated and after careful monitoring, the situation was cleared within minutes,” the post stated. “We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during this brief event.”
The wing did not respond to emails and phone calls on Sunday seeking comment.
https://www.stripes.com/branches/air_force/2025-03-30/kadena-okinawa-alarm-space-debris-17305045.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20250330152345/https://www.stripes.com/branches/air_force/2025-03-30/kadena-okinawa-alarm-space-debris-17305045.html
https://www.facebook.com/@KadenaAirBase/
https://www.the-sun.com/news/13898910/inside-secret-us-military-pituffik-space-greenland-vance-trump/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wO6NFaoviNU
Inside secret Arctic ‘top of the world’ US military Pituffik space base in Greenland after JD Vance controversial visit
Updated: 13:38 ET, Mar 29 2025
AT the icy edge of the Arctic, a Cold War-era military outpost has once again been thrust into the spotlight — this time by Donald Trump’s right-hand man.
As part of his controversial visit, Vice President JD Vance touched down at the Pittufik Space Base in northwestern Greenland on Friday, one of the most remote and secretive US military installations on Earth.
Nicknamed "top of the world", Pituffik isn’t just a harsh posting — it’s a frontline outpost of US missile defence and space surveillance.
It is locked in by sea ice for nine months a year and is plunged into total darkness from November to February, only accessible by plane.
The nearest town, Qaanaaq, lies 75 miles to the northwest. There are no roads, no nightclubs, and for three months a year, no sun.
Yet this frozen fortress continues to serve as America’s Arctic eyes and ears — a throwback to the Cold War that’s once again become a key player in a new era of great power rivalry.
Strategically perched just 947 miles south of the North Pole and 750 miles above the Arctic Circle, the isolated base plays a vital role in detecting ballistic missiles and tracking debris from decommissioned satellites.
It also boasts the northernmost deep-water port in the world.
Formerly known as Thule Air Base, Pituffik was renamed in 2023 to honour Greenlandic cultural heritage and reflect its new status as a key site for the US Space Force.
It is operated by the 821st Space Base Group and remains one of America's most vital but least-known defence assets.
The base's location - roughly 1,500km (932 miles) from Greenland's capital, Nuuk - is no coincidence.
Built after a 1951 defence treaty with Denmark, it was designed as a Cold War-era Arctic shield.
The US has maintained a military presence here since World War Two, when Nazi-occupied Denmark left Greenland vulnerable and the Americans stepped in to build airfields, monitor weather, and hunt German U-boats.
Today, around 150 US Air Force and Space Force personnel are stationed at Pituffik, alongside Danish and Greenlandic staff — and the occasional polar bear.
Despite its extreme remoteness, the airfield remains operational year-round, serving as a crucial northern hub for the Pentagon and NATO.
“Why does Greenland matter?” Vice President JD Vance asked during a visit to the base on Friday.
“If a missile was fired by the enemy, it is the people here who will know about it first and will give us notice and tell us what is coming.”
Danish defence analyst Peter Ernstved Rasmussen told The New York Times how the post is "the outermost eye of American defence".
He described it as "irreplaceable" as it is "where the US can detect a launch, calculate the trajectory and activate its missile defence systems."
Vance's controversial visit to Pituffik — part of a wider Trump-era push to assert US dominance in the Arctic — sparked political fallout in both Greenland and Denmark, as locals voiced fears of increased pressure from Washington.
Vance warned: “We know Russia and China and other nations are taking an interest in the region. We’ve seen very strong evidence.”
"So, we need to ensure that America is leading. "What Denmark has failed to do is to secure the region as it was 30 or 40 years ago.
It has failed to keep our troops and its own people safe. "Our European allies have not kept up with the pace in military spending."
1/2
Vance added: "Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not been able to keep it up.
"People in Greenland have an incredible opportunity here. It is far better to come under the US security umbrella than the Danish security umbrella."
Trump has sparked outrage after repeatedly claiming he wants to take control of Greenland, calling it "very important for the peace of the world".
"We have to have Greenland. It's not a question of 'do you think we can do without it' We can't," the President added.
He previously said he would "go as far as we have to go" to get control.
His repeated comments and refusal to deny plans to take it by force have seen its residents and politicians slam the administration and protest with signs saying their land is not for sale.
The trip originally planned by Second Lady Usha Vance which was touted as "a bit of fun" quickly became more clearly politically motivated when the Vice President joined and met with military officials.
The Americans were not invited by authorities in either Greenland or Denmark, and the Vice President's attendance was announced on Tuesday, a day after Usha revealed she would be visiting the island.
Vance said: "There was so much excitement around Usha’s visit to Greenland this Friday that I decided that I didn’t want her to have all that fun by herself, and so I’m gonna join her."
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called the initial plans for the US visit "unacceptable".
Tensions ramped up since and continue to do so as long as they are there.
The VP and Second Lady Usha descended the steps from Air Force 2 wearing large camo-green jackets, waving to the cameras and those welcoming them.
Usha, who was due to attend Greenland's Great Race of the North featuring 37 dog sled drivers, will no longer be going after protests at the couple's arrival.
Race organisers have even publicly stated that the pair were not invited, despite claims by the Second Lady that she had been.
Meanwhile, the country's new Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen has said the US is failing to show them the respect of an ally.
"The whole situation of coming to visit when there is no government in place, we insist, is not showing respect for an ally," the Danish broadcaster DR reported the PM saying.
"It's a shame, but now we have a government that needs to put on its work clothes".
In a show of unity against Trump, four of Greenland's five parties signed a coalition agreement ahead of the arrival of the Vances stating on page one: "Greenland belongs to us".
Under the terms of a 1951 agreement, the US is entitled to visit its Pituffik base whenever it wants, as long as it notifies Greenland and Copenhagen.
2/2
China launches classified TJS-16 spacecraft, companion object emerges alongside earlier TJS-15 satellite
March 29, 2025
China launched the new TJS-16 classified satellite on Saturday aboard a Long March 7A rocket, continuing the opaque series of experimental missions.
A Long March 7A rocket lifted off at 12:05 p.m. Eastern (1605 UTC) March 29 from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on the island province of Hainan.
The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) announced launch success around an hour after liftoff, revealing the payload to be the communication technology experiment satellite-16, or Tongxin Jishu Shiyan-16 (TJS-16).
CASC described the TJS-16 satellite as mainly used to verify multi-band and high-speed satellite communication technology. It published neither images nor technical details of the satellite, following the pattern for all previous TJS launches.
The satellite was developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST), a major arm of CASC. SAST reiterated the terse description of TJS-16 and included a mission patch with its statement.
The TJS series mainly operates in geostationary orbit (GEO). It is seen by Western analysts as potentially carrying out classified missions including signals intelligence, early warning missions and satellite inspection activities to support the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
China now has 15 main TJS satellites in orbit, with no apparent TJS-8 satellite.
TJS-15’s mysterious companion object
The launch of TJS-16 follows the March 9 launch of TJS-15 from Xichang, southwest China, on a Long March 3B rocket, a mission given a similar, brief description in terms of its purposes.
TJS-15 has since reached the geostationary belt. U.S. Space Force space domain awareness has also cataloged an AKM, or apogee kick motor, associated with the launch, a motor typically used for the final impulse needed to insert a satellite into GEO orbit.
That object now appears to be in an orbit a few hundred kilometres above the GEO belt, as is typical for a spent AKM.
Orbital data suggests, however, that the AKM has made a series of small changes to its orbit, suggesting low-thrust propulsion capabilities. The mission could echo an earlier TJS mission.
The TJS-3 mission, launched in 2018, also had an apparent AKM. However, that object carried out subsequent maneuvers, often synchronized with the main satellite, showing behavior inconsistent with an AKM, which often performs one of few major burns.
The mission had intelligence implications and stirred significant analyst interest.
Long March 7A
Saturday’s launch was the ninth flight of the Long March 7A. The 7A variant is a three-stage version of the standard Long March 7 used to launch cargo missions to the Tiangong space station in low Earth orbit.
The 7A is a 60.1-meter-long, 3.35-meter-diameter kerosene and liquid oxygen launch vehicle with four side boosters. Its first stage and boosters are powered by YF-100 engines.
The launcher is capable of delivering up to 7 metric tons of payload to GTO. It features a fairing diameter of 4.2 meters.
The first launch, in 2020, ended in failure. The launcher has been seen as a long-term replacement to the workhorse, hypergolic Long March 3B for launches to GEO.
However, the rocket has yet to launch more than twice in a calendar year. The TJS-16 mission was China’s 16th orbital launch of 2025.
It follows the launch of the Tianlian-2 (04) data relay satellite March 26.China could be targeting 100 or more launches in 2025, driven by growing commercial activity, megaconstellation projects, and new launcher development.
A number of new, medium-lift and potentially reusable rockets are targeting debut flights this year.
https://spacenews.com/china-launches-classified-tjs-16-spacecraft-companion-object-emerges-alongside-earlier-tjs-15-satellite/
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/0jmMJymRcY-WGUARh4pBlQ
SpaceX Starlink Mission
March 30, 2025 3:25 p.m. ET
SpaceX is targeting Sunday, March 30 for a Falcon 9 launch of 28 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Liftoff is targeted for 3:25 p.m. ET, with backup opportunities available until 7:10 p.m. ET. If needed, additional opportunities are also available on Monday, March 31 starting at 2:57 p.m. ET.
A live webcast of this mission will begin about five minutes prior to liftoff, which you can watch here and on X @SpaceX. You can also watch the webcast on the new X TV app.
This is the 17th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Ax-2, Euclid, Ax-3, CRS-30, SES ASTRA 1P, NG-21, and 10 Starlink missions.
Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the Just Read the Instructions droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=sl-6-80
PM Modi visits Solar Defence facilties in Nagpur, launches loitering munition test range, MALE drone runway
Mar 30, 2025
Seeking to further promote Aatmanirbharta in defence, PM Narendra Modi on Sunday visited the Solar Defence and Aerospace Ltd complex.
During the visit, the PM was briefed by the Solar Industries chairman Satyanarayan Nuwal on the various weapon test facilities and product range of the company.
In the Technical Area, the Prime Minister inaugurated the Loiter Munition Test Range. Spread over 1080 acres, this test range has a dedicated Command and Control Centre, UAV Take off Area, endurance and communication range and many other facilities.
The PM also visited the product gallery wherein Solar Defence showcased its products like Pinaka Rocket System, air-bombs, mines, grenade, military explosives, Anti tank Guided Missile (ATGM), Nagastra 1 & 2 Loiter Munitions, and many more.
The PM also inaugurated the newly constructed air strip which is a 1.27 km runway facility built for development & testing of MALE/HALE Class Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS).
Solar Defence said it has taken a big initiative for developing a MALE UAV and a suo-moto proposal has already been submitted to IAF which is under consideration.
The Prime Minister also witnessed the display of the state of art indigenously developed systems viz. Loiter Munition (Nagastra 3), Bhargavastra (Micro-Missile based Counter Drone System) and Bhaumastra (Mine Detection & Disposal System).
Keeping in view the futuristic requirements of this emerging technology, Solar Defence said it has taken the initiative to develop Nagastra series of Loiter Munitions of ranges from 15 km to more than 100 km and explosive payload carrying capability from 1 kg to 10 kg.
Nagastra 3 is a Vehicle Launched Loiter Munition System of endurance 3 hours and range of 100 km. It can carry 8.5 kg warhead. It is being developed under Make 2 project from Arty of Indian Army.
The Bhargavastra is an indigenously designed and developed Counter Drone System meant for quick interception of drones for an assured hard kill using tiny, guided missiles with swarm engagement capability.
This solution offers mobile protection against drone attacks with near simultaneous engagement of multiple drones.
With a long range of detection (upto 6 km) and a long range of neutralization (upto 2.5 km), it ensures the safety of vulnerable assets/battlefield formations.
SDAL has taken an initiative to address the global menace of landmine detection and disposal.
As per some estimates, there are more than 11 million buried mines worldwide that remain uncleared and are causing casualties or maiming of both soldiers and civilians in peacetime.
Bhaumastra, a drone-based system under development by SDAL, would be the first of its kind in any developed nation to provide a drone-based solution to this global problem.
https://thenewsmill.com/2025/03/pm-modi-visits-solar-defence-facilties-in-nagpur-launches-loitering-munition-test-range-male-drone-runway/
China issues first batch of passenger drone operation certificates
2025-03-30 Last Updated At：20:07
The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) on Friday issued the first batch of certificates for autonomous passenger drone operation to two Chinese companies, marking China's entry into the commercial operation stage of autonomous passenger drones.
The two certificates were granted to Chinese drone makers EHang Holdings Limited in south China's Guangdong Province and Hefei Hey Airlines Co., Ltd. in east China's Anhui Province.
The operation certificate is used to confirm that the autonomous passenger drone service meets the safety operation standards and operation requirements.
The companies with an operation certificate can carry out commercial operations in approved areas, provide paid passenger services and other low-altitude economy-related services.
With the operation certificate, consumers will be able to purchase tickets at operating spots in Guangzhou and Hefei to experience low-altitude tours, city sightseeing and a variety of commercial passenger transport services.
https://www.bastillepost.com/global/article/4701658-china-issues-first-batch-of-passenger-drone-operation-certificates
11 dead in drone strikes against Taliban hideouts in Pakistan's KP province
March 30, 2025
Eleven people were killed in drone strikes in northern Pakistan on Saturday launched by the army against the Taliban, who had killed seven soldiers a day earlier, police told AFP.
Three drone strikes were carried out on Friday night in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, a senior police officer said on condition of anonymity, targeting “Pakistani Taliban hideouts” in the region bordering Afghanistan where violence has erupted in recent months.
“It was only this morning that we learned that two women and three children were among the victims,” he said.
“In protest, local residents placed the bodies of the victims on the road,” saying that they were “innocent civilians” killed in the strikes, he added.
Another police source said that “an investigation is under way to establish whether Taliban fighters were indeed present at the sites at the time of the attack.”
“It is too early to say whether the places affected were civilian areas or whether they were sheltering Taliban,” he added.
At least eight soldiers and a civilian were killed in western Pakistan in separate attacks along the border with Afghanistan, where violence has erupted in recent months, police told AFP.
Seven soldiers were killed in a security operation against “armed Taliban” in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, a police source said on Saturday.
“Fighters hiding in a house fired on security forces,” the source said.
The army deployed combat helicopters during the hours-long fight, killing eight Taliban fighters, while six other soldiers were wounded, the source said.
A blast from a bomb planted by separatists on a motorbike also killed a soldier and a civilian further south in Balochistan, police officer Mohsin Ali told AFP.
At least six people were injured in a suicide blast near a rally of Balochistan National Party (BNP) on Saturday in the Mastung district of Balochistan, according to police officials.
However, the party has alleged that it was a “failed attempt” to suppress their protest against the Pakistani government.
Meanwhile, over 250 activists of the BNP were also arrested during the same rally that was leading the peaceful long march to Quetta against the illegal detention of Baloch Yakjehti Committee leaders and activists.
The protestors were held near Mastung in the Balochistan province, local media reported on Saturday.
Later during the day, the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has announced a ceasefire during Eid-ul-Fitr, stating that it would halt all of its activities during Eid.
The announcement comes amid heavy losses incurred by the banned outfit during an Intelligence-Based Operation (IBO) in Mardan district of KP province.
TTP announced similar ceasefires during religious festivities in the past as well.
Muhammad Khorasani, the spokesperson of the TTP, aka Pakistani Taliban, issued a single-liner statement, announcing a ceasefire during Eid Al Fitr.
“Announcement of ceasefire during Eid Al Fitr,” read a statement issued by the TTP spokesperson.
The Pakistani Taliban announced in mid-March a “spring campaign” against security forces, threatening “ambushes, targeted attacks, suicide attacks and strikes.” The TTP has since claimed responsibility for around 100 attacks in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
In the same province, “armed Taliban” fighters hiding in a house shot and killed seven soldiers who were carrying out an operation against them, a police source said on Saturday.
During the shoot-out, which lasted several hours, the army deployed helicopter gunships, killing eight Taliban, while six other soldiers were wounded, according to the source.
Since January 1, more than 190 people, mostly members of the security forces, have been killed in violence carried out by armed groups fighting against the government both in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in Balochistan provinces, according to an AFP count.
“Pakistan expects the Afghan government to assume its responsibilities”, the army said at the beginning of March, reserving “the right to take the necessary measures to respond to these threats coming from across the border.”
https://www.gulftoday.ae/news/2025/03/30/11-dead-in-drone-strikes-against-taliban-hideouts-in-pakistans-kp-province
Russian attack on hospital, shopping center leaves 2 dead as Ukraine braces for fresh offensive
March 30, 2025 8:17am EDT
Two people were killed and 35 others were injured after a Russian drone attack struck a military hospital and shopping center in Ukraine late Saturday night, Ukrainian officials say.
Regional Gov. Oleh Syniehubov condemned the attack on Kharkiv in a statement on Sunday, saying a 67-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman were killed.
The attack comes as Russia's aggression in Ukraine shows no signs of stopping despite efforts by President Donald Trump's administration to speed along peace talks.
Ukraine says that many of the casualties were servicemen undergoing treatment at the military hospital.
Ukraine's air force says the attack consisted of 111 Russian drones, 65 of which were shot down and another 35 of which were disabled electronically or failed of their own accord.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy predicted late last week that Russian forces would ramp up their attacks in the coming weeks in an effort to bolster their negotiating position for peace talks.
"They’re dragging out the talks and trying to get the U.S. stuck in endless and pointless discussions about fake ‘conditions’ just to buy time and then try to grab more land," Zelenskyy said in a Thursday visit to Paris.
Saturday night's attack came after four people died and 24 were injured Friday evening after Russian drones struck Dnipro in the country’s east, according to regional Gov. Serhii Lysak and Ukraine’s emergency service.
At least eight more people were injured when a Russian ballistic missile struck nearby Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy’s hometown, Gov. Lysak reported.
Russian President Vladimir Putin himself praised the "strategic initiative" of his forces on Thursday.
"Our troops, our guys are moving forward and liberating one territory after another, one settlement after another, every day," he said at a public forum.
Zelenskyy has pleaded with Trump's administration not to give in to Putin's demands at the negotiating table.
On Thursday, Zelenskyy met with French President Emmanuel Macron ahead of a summit in Paris of some 30 nations about how to strengthen Kyiv’s hand and its military as it pushes for a ceasefire with Russia.
Proposals to deploy European troops in the country in tandem with any peace deal are also being discussed.
https://www.foxnews.com/world/russian-attack-hospital-shopping-center-leaves-2-dead-ukraine-braces-fresh-offensive
https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/03/30/kremlin-doubles-down-on-demand-to-replace-zelensky-risking-trumps-ire-a88527
Kremlin Doubles Down on Demand to Replace Zelensky, Risking Trump’s Ire
March 30, 2025
The Kremlin is increasingly set on subjugating Ukraine by forcing a change in the country’s leadership as Moscow’s military efforts falter, five sources familiar with its thinking as well as independent experts told The Moscow Times.
But the longer it drags out peace talks on Ukraine, the more Russia risks losing U.S. President Donald Trump’s favor and missing a key window of opportunity to strike a bigger deal with Washington, sources said.
On Sunday, Trump told NBC News he was “very angry” and “pissed off” with President Vladimir Putin for attacking Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky’s credibility and calling for new leadership in Kyiv.
All of The Moscow Times’ sources spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.
Despite U.S.-Russia talks on a negotiated peace in Ukraine and preparations for a Putin-Trump summit, the Kremlin continues to pursue its maximalist goals in the war.
Officially, the Kremlin envisions two possible scenarios for achieving its goals.
The first is Kyiv’s capitulation, leading to regime change and the restructuring of the Ukrainian state under Russian influence, effectively turning the country into a Belarus-like satellite.
The second, more modest, option would see Russia solidify its control over the four occupied Ukrainian regions while restricting Ukraine’s political and military independence.
But even this limited plan will be difficult to achieve, sources agreed. Russian forces have yet to establish full control over the occupied regions, and Zelensky is unlikely to agree to cede territory voluntarily. Instead, he continues to seek military and political support from allies in Brussels, London and Paris.
Moscow’s official and propaganda rhetoric remains unchanged.
“If you negotiate with Ukraine’s current leadership, you cannot keep calling it a ‘Nazi regime,’ because you would have to engage with that regime," a Russian diplomat said.
According to two Russian diplomats and a source close to the Kremlin, Moscow is now focusing on a third option: discrediting Zelensky in the eyes of Trump so that Washington will pressure Kyiv to hold presidential elections.
The sources claimed that Russian officials have already made progress in this effort, citing the Feb. 28 Oval Office clash as an example of their success.
Speaking aboard the nuclear submarine Arkhangelsk in the Murmansk region last week, Putin insisted that “democratic elections” in Ukraine could only take place under temporary external administration led by the UN and the U.S. — an extraordinary proposal with almost no historical precedent.
Russia’s nuclear submarine fleet is a key component of its “nuclear triad,” the strategic deterrence system inherited from the Soviet Union.
The visit to Murmansk was Putin’s second high-profile military appearance in a week, intended as signals to Kyiv and Western capitals.
“We’re toughening our rhetoric now so that our demands to Kyiv are heard and accepted,” a Russian diplomat told The Moscow Times.
The Kremlin believes Zelensky has a high chance of losing reelection and is intent on ensuring that outcome, with the hope that his successor will be more willing to compromise with Moscow.
“Zelensky will not agree to any territorial concessions. We need to address the root of the issue: Remove him,” said a source close to the Kremlin.
A senior Russian official familiar with Moscow’s foreign policy thinking echoed this view, calling the Ukrainian president’s departure a “successful and beneficial” outcome for Russia.
Ukraine has not held elections due to the martial law that it imposed following Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Putin has repeatedly claimed in recent months that Zelensky’s presidency is illegitimate, arguing that his term should have ended in May 2024.
And while he previously referred to the Ukrainian parliament speaker as a legitimate counterpart in contrast to Zelensky, he now calls the entire government in Kyiv illegitimate.
For his part, Zelensky has said he would step down if it meant that Ukraine would be admitted to NATO.
“Nachalnik [‘The Boss,’ a nickname for Putin among officials] has a personal dislike for Zelensky because he dared to publicly challenge him. One of our key goals is that Zelensky must no longer be in charge of Ukraine.
That’s why we are systematically pushing the narrative of his illegitimacy and the need for elections,” a Russian diplomat said.
Moscow is also working to justify its position to the U.S. As The Moscow Times previously reported, the Russian Foreign Ministry has sought to blame Kyiv for violating a proposed 30-day partial ceasefire.
1/2
In doing so, Moscow hopes to convince Washington that Zelensky has lost control over his military.
“External administration is a sound initiative by the president because many institutions no longer obey the central government.
Just look at Ukraine’s failure to uphold the ceasefire,” said Russian Senator Vladimir Dzhabarov, a former KGB officer. “Total chaos could erupt there soon, up to and including civil war.”
In reality, the ceasefire has yet to take effect, and both Kyiv and Moscow continue to trade strikes.
Dzhabarov also suggested that Putin’s proposal for external governance in Ukraine could gain support from the U.S., China and India.
“If the EU opposes it, Brussels may end up seriously damaging its relations with Washington,” he warned.
According to a Russian diplomat, Putin will refuse to make any concessions in peace negotiations as long as Zelensky remains in office.
“The hawks are dominating” the president’s inner circle, he noted. “Even the smallest concession now would be seen as a gift not to Trump, but to Zelensky. That’s unacceptable to Putin,” the diplomat said.
Putin “acts in full accordance with Machiavelli’s advice — protect what’s yours, generously give away what isn’t.
He’s ready to offer Canada and Greenland to Trump in exchange for Ukraine and Europe,” Boris Bondarev, a former Russian diplomat who resigned from Moscow’s UN mission in Geneva in protest of the invasion, told The Moscow Times.
The Kremlin understands it must offer Trump at least a symbolic gesture to maintain his interest. One such attempt was the renewal of the Black Sea grain deal, which the American side announced with a great deal of fanfare.
However, that effort failed, a Russian diplomat said.
“It’s not that important for Ukrainians, who already export their grain to the West. And to make it beneficial for us, Trump would have to pressure Europe into lifting sanctions — which is very difficult, if not impossible,” the diplomat said.
While Moscow still views itself as the stronger party, it remains unwilling to agree to a ceasefire — even in exchange for a potential deal with Trump.
This has put the Kremlin in a bind: unable to secure a military victory on the one hand, yet unwilling to compromise with Ukraine’s leadership on the other.
As a result, Moscow risks derailing negotiations and the warming of U.S.-Russia ties under Trump — and inadvertently re-uniting the West against Russia under his leadership.
“If we miss this window of opportunity, Trump won’t just lose interest in the deal — he could explode in anger. And then Biden will seem like a kind Santa Claus compared to an enraged Trump.
I hope our leadership bears this in mind,” a source close to the Kremlin’s foreign policy team warned.
Speaking to NBC News on Sunday, Trump threatened to hit Moscow with secondary tariffs if the peace talks on Ukraine fall through.
“if Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it was Russia’s fault — which it might not be — but if I think it was Russia’s fault, I am going to put secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia,” Trump said.
According to political analyst Georgy Bovt, Putin’s proposal for external governance in Ukraine signals that the Kremlin now seeks to cast the country as a failed state.
“But no UN external administration has ever been implemented on a truly failed state — not even attempted. And if Ukraine really is one, then it makes no sense to sign a ceasefire agreement with it either,” Bovt said of the logic behind Moscow’s position.
2/2
American Woman Freed by Taliban After Drone Arrest
March 29, 2025 10:18 pm
Faye Dail Hall, an American woman detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan since February, was released this weekend following a Qatar-mediated agreement, marking a rare diplomatic success in strained U.S.-Taliban relations.
According to a source familiar with the negotiations—who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the talks—Hall had been accused of using a drone without authorization, a serious charge under Taliban-imposed regulations.
Her release comes after weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations led by Qatari diplomats, who have increasingly played the role of intermediary between the United States and Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban regime.
Following her release, Hall was transferred to the Qatari Embassy in Kabul, where she is reportedly in good physical condition, and preparations are underway for her return to the United States.
On social media, former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad posted a photograph of Hall and confirmed her release.
“She is now in the care of our friends, the Qataris in Kabul, and will soon be on her way home,” Khalilzad wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Details Still Emerging
As of Saturday, the U.S. State Department had not issued a formal statement or provided further information about Hall’s background, including the purpose of her trip to Afghanistan or the specifics of her detention.
It is believed that Hall is the fourth American to be released from Taliban custody in 2025. Earlier this month, George Glezmann, an airline mechanic from Atlanta, was freed after more than two years of detention. His release also followed Qatari mediation.
In late January, two other Americans—Ryan Corbett and William McKenty—were freed in what was described as a last-minute agreement finalized at the end of the Biden administration, again with assistance from Qatar.
These successful negotiations are seen as part of a gradual thaw in post-war U.S.-Taliban relations, which have been frozen since the fall of Kabul in 2021 and the collapse of Afghanistan’s Western-backed government.
Signs of Easing Tensions?
In recent weeks, officials in Kabul have pointed to signs of a potential shift in U.S. posture, including the removal of bounties on three senior Taliban officials, among them the interior minister, who also leads the Haqqani network—a group long accused of carrying out high-profile attacks against NATO forces and Afghan civilians during the war.
Zakir Jalaly, a Foreign Ministry official, characterized the reciprocal releases and easing of punitive measures as signs that both nations are “moving beyond the effects of the wartime phase” and beginning to take “constructive steps” toward progress in bilateral ties.
Still, Washington has not formally recognized the Taliban as Afghanistan’s legitimate government, and international sanctions continue to severely limit the Taliban’s access to global aid, investment, and finance.
Human rights concerns—particularly over women’s education and political repression—remain major barriers to normalization.
However, Qatar’s role as a go-between continues to prove critical in navigating diplomatic stalemates. Doha hosts Taliban political leaders and has successfully brokered multiple prisoner releases since the U.S. withdrawal.
Outlook and Next Steps
The release of Faye Dail Hall adds to a growing list of American detainees freed through diplomatic channels rather than public confrontation, signaling a shift in how such situations are handled under the Trump administration’s second term.
Though the U.S. has yet to publicly confirm whether additional deals are in the works, the increased pace of high-level releases may indicate that the Biden-era emphasis on limited engagement is giving way to more pragmatic diplomacy.
For now, Hall’s safe transfer into Qatari hands and her impending journey home represent a relief for her family, a diplomatic win for Qatar, and a potential opening for future U.S.-Taliban dialogue, however limited.
https://www.newslooks.com/american-woman-freed-by-taliban-after-drone-arrest/
Yemen attacks US warship with cruise missiles, drones
Mar 30, 2025, 9:11 AM
Issuing a statement on Sunday morning, the Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) Spokesman Yahya Saree said that the Yemeni forces have clashed three times with the American aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman and its accompanying warships in the Red Sea over the past 24 hours.
"With the help of God Almighty, our forces are responsibly and effectively confronting the ongoing American aggression against our country, Yemen, for the third consecutive week," Saree stressed.
He further stressed that they will continue to expand defensive operations and "respond to tension with tension." "We will never retreat from supporting and advocating for the oppressed Palestinian people until the aggression stops and the siege on the Gaza Strip is lifted."
Yemenis have declared their open support for Palestine’s struggle against the Israeli occupation since the regime launched a devastating war on Gaza on October 7 after the territory’s Palestinian Resistance movements carried out a surprise retaliatory attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, against the occupying entity.
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/230043/Yemen-targets-US-warship-with-ballistic-missiles-drones
https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article301111954.html
https://nuforc.org/subndx/?lat=36.7377981&lon=-119.7871247
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzR25yEyk-8
More than 200 UFO sightings reported in Fresno County since 1950s. Is it a hotspot?
Updated March 29, 2025 9:54 AM
On a clear December night in 2011, something strange appeared in the sky above Fresno. “I was driving home when my family and I noticed three bright orange lights shaped in a triangle,” an observer recalled in an anonymous report to the National UFO Reporting Center.
As they got closer, “another bright orange light” showed up ahead of the trio of lights, the observer wrote. “The strange thing about it (was) they were all moving at the same time and pace. … It was clear it wasn’t a plane.”
Then, they wrote, the lights “just vanished. It was pretty cool.” As of Thursday, March 27, a total of 16,735 sightings of unidentified flying objects had been reported in California since the 1970s, according to The National UFO Reporting Center.
In January, there were more than 40 UFO sightings reported in California, including one in Fresno, the National UFO Reporting Center said.
More than 20 UFO sightings were reported across the state in February, according to the center, and 18 had been reported so far in March.
Fresno ranked No. 6 in terms of California cities with the most UFO sightings, according to the National UFO Reporting Center, trailing San Jose and San Francisco.
That should come as no surprise, given Fresno-area residents’ fascination with the paranormal, otherworldly and just plain weird.
After all, Fresno County has its own famous cryptid, the Fresno Nightcrawler, and was once home to one of the most haunted places in the nation, Wolfe Manor.
What is a UFO sighting? In 1947, pilot Kenneth Arnold attracted national attention when he reported seeing nine objects, glowing bright blue-white and flying in a “V” formation over Washington’s Mount Rainier, according to the History Channel.
Arnold compared the objects’ motion to “a saucer if you skip it across water,” the History Channel said.
Contemporary newspaper reports misinterpreted this as meaning that the objects were shaped like saucers, the History Channel explained, “leading to the popularization of the term ‘flying saucer’ as a synonym for UFO.”
Since then, UFO sightings have become an American obsession, with many television shows, movies and music focusing on visitors from beyond the stars.
Works inspired by extraterrestrials range from Radiohead’s song “Subterranean Homesick Alien” to “The X Files,” the hit TV series about FBI special agents investigating the unexplained that spawned comics, novels and two films.
“People are obsessed with topics like UFOs (because) they deal with that age-old question: ‘Are we alone in the universe?’ ” Michael Banti, founder of Weird Fresno, told The Fresno Bee.
“If UFOs are indeed from outer space, then that question is answered and a new one is brought up. What is our purpose in the universe?”
How many UFO sightings have there been in Fresno area? As of Thursday, March 27, a total of 189 UFO sightings had been reported in Fresno from 1953 to 2024, according to the National UFO Reporting Center.
That’s in addition to 52 UFO sightings in Clovis reported since 1968, National UFO Reporting Center records showed.
In comparison, more than 500 UFO sightings had been reported in Los Angeles since 1942, the center said. According to the center, the earliest sighting of a UFO in Fresno was in June 1953.
An unidentified person reported hearing an “extremely loud whirring, rotating sound” accompanied by a disc-shaped UFO with “white fluorescent-type light completely around the middle of it.”
Since then, Fresno-area residents have reported at least one UFO sighting per month, according to center data, with the most sightings reported on the month of April.
The discussion about UFOs has spread to social media. “Is anyone aware of any spots in the Central Valley where UFO sightings have occurred?” a Reddit user asked in 2021.
“I’ve never seen anything but have friends and family who swear they have seen unusual things in the sky here,” Reddit user bravo2505 wrote. A Selma resident shared a similar experience in a comment.
“I was looking up in the sky and saw a dot of light, like an airplane but a little bigger, as bright as a star, zigzag fast in the sky, then zoom off and disappear,” Reddit user tubesocks111111 wrote in 2021. “It was going faster then any aircraft I’ve ever seen fly.”
1/2
Even celebrities have gotten in on the act. NBA star Shaquille O’Neal recalled spotting something strange in the sky in Madera in 1997.
“Right when we passed the fairground, I could swear I saw a flying saucer come down with all the lights and it was spinning and then it took off,” O’Neal told late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” in 2021.
“We all looked at each other and it was like, I know it was a UFO. I don’t care what anybody says.”
Was there a recent UFO sighting in Fresno? Fresno television station KMPH-TV, also known as Fox 26 News, said it caught “unusual aerial phenomena” on camera in mid-January, when a tower camera recorded footage of a light appearing to hover over downtown Fresno.
A day later, Fox 26 photojournalist Anthony Guevara said he captured footage of a similar object. Earl Grey Anderson of the Mutual UFO Network said he could “technically call (the object) a UFO.”
“We’ve seen a few odd things … strange lights over the horizon at strange times of the day,” said Keith Quattrocchi, founder of Sierra Remote Observatories, a five-acre facility for hobbyist astrophotographers and others near Auberry in eastern Fresno County.
“By definition, some of the things that we’ve seen are unidentified flying objects, because they’re flying, and we don’t know what they are,” Quattrocchi said.
Sam Miller, a technician at Sierra Remote Observatories, said he first got interested in UFOs in 2021, when he saw some odd objects in the sky.
Since then, Miller said, he’s set up extra-sensitive cameras at his Auberry home and worked to compare findings. He also has a YouTube channel where he posts videos of unusual aerial sights.
“These strange lights look like satellites, but the frequency and orientation does not match satellite behavior,” Miller wrote in the caption for one of his videos.
Are unidentified flying objects real or a hoax? The U.S. Department of Defense releases a yearly report of “unidentified anomalous phenomena.”
“Airborne unidentified anomalous phenomena continue to dominate reporting,” according to the federal agency’s latest report, released in November.
Of the 757 reports the agency logged from May 1, 2023, to June 1, a total of 708 involved objects in the “air domain,” the report said, including balloons, satellites, aircraft and unmanned aircraft systems.
Quattrocchi said he’s received emails from people misidentifying everything from drones to planets as UFOs.
When Venus is visible overhead, he said, “They tell me they’ve seen an orb that’s standing still in the sky. … It’s a very bright planet that is amazingly bright, and (if) it’s on a really good evening, it really looks strange.”
He said it’s getting harder to discern if UFOs are fact or hoax as technology advances. “Naval pilots … have seen things that really we cannot explain in our radar systems,” Quattrochi said. “These things were making very strange maneuvers.”
People can argue, ‘Well, maybe they’re mistaken with what they’re seeing,’ ” he added, but “our radar operators … (are) saying these things are doing pretty much what the pilots are able to visually see. It’s starting to become a little harder to discern.”
2/2
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14543759/Were-Pyramids-built-aliens-Inside-bizarre-conspiracy-theory-backed-Elon-Musk-experts-make-astonishing-discovery.html
Were the Pyramids built by aliens? Inside the bizarre conspiracy theory 'backed' by Elon Musk - after experts make astonishing discovery
Updated: 08:58 EDT, 30 March 2025
They were not, so the polemic went, the work of 'puny' man, but instead those 'giants of Mars'.
Yes, the Pyramids of Giza - those monuments to god-like splendour that have stood for more than 4,000 years - were built by aliens.
That was the 'claim' made by American astronomer Garrett P. Serviss in his 1898 book Edison's Conquest of Mars.
Perceptive readers will have noted that Serviss's work - an unauthorised re-write of HG Wells' 1897 alien invasion novel The War of the Worlds - was fictional.
But it did popularise a theory that, even in more recent years, has continued to find traction.
In 2020, billionaire Tesla boss Elon Musk drew the scorn of experts when he took to Twitter - the social network that he bought in 2022 for $44billion - to write: 'Aliens built the pyramids obv'.
Now, the discovery this month that an 'underground city' lies in a 'hidden world' beneath Egypt's most famous pyramids has again focused attention on the structures that have obsessed experts and amateurs alike for millennia.
Just what could the vast network, which descends more than a mile into the sands, have been used for?
Musk's comment five years ago prompted Egypt's international co-operation minister to say that seeing the tombs of the pyramid builders would be the proof that aliens did not construct them.
Rania al-Mashat said: 'I follow your work with a lot of admiration. 'I invite you & Space X to explore the writings about how the pyramids were built and also to check out the tombs of the pyramid builders. Mr. Musk, we are waiting for you.'
Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass also waded into the bizarre row, saying in a video that Mr Musk's argument was a 'complete hallucination'.
The largest of the three pyramids at Giza - the Great Pyramid - was built more than 4,500 years ago in around 2560BC for King Khufu, who was the second pharaoh of Ancient Egypt's fourth dynasty.
Until the completion of Lincoln Cathedral in the 14th century, it was the tallest building in the world.
The pyramid, which was topped with a gold or electrum capping stone, was built as a sacred tomb for Khufu, who believed himself to be divine.
The other two pyramids, built for pharaohs Menkaure and Khafre, were constructed decades later.
The notion that the structures were built by or with the help of aliens gained further traction with Swiss author Erich von Däniken's influential 1968 book Chariots of the Gods.
He argued that Giza's Great Pyramid could not have been built without the help of advanced alien technology.
The author wrote: 'If we meekly accept the neat package of knowledge that the Egyptologists serve up to us, ancient Egypt appears suddenly and without transition with a fantastic ready-made civilization.
'Great cities and enormous temples, colossal status with tremendous expressive power, splendid streets flanked by magnificent sculptures, perfect drainage systems, luxurious tombs carved out of the rock, pyramids of overwhelming size - these and many other wonderful things shot out of the ground, so to speak.
'Genuine miracles in a country that is suddenly capable of such achievements without recognizable prehistory!'
He added: 'An artificial mountain, some 490 feet high and weighing 6,500,000 tons, stands there as evidence of an incredible achievement, and this monument is supposed to be nothing more than the burial place of an extravagant king!
'Anyone who can believe that explanation is welcome to it…' The late Belgian author Philip Coppens was similarly forthright in his 2011 book The Ancient Alien Question.
He said in one passage: 'If aliens built the Great Pyramid, then it needs to be argued that they were also responsible for at least some of the other pyramids in ancient Egypt.'
1/2
But experts have rubbished any notion that beings from other planets might have been involved in the construction of the pyramids.
Speaking on the BBC's History Extra podcast, British Egyptologist Professor Joyce Tyldesley said: 'It's almost almost sort of a bit like a form of racism, isn't it, that these people couldn't do it, so someone else must have done it.'
'But I think there's a bit more to it than that. Because prior to the idea of aliens helping build the pyramids, we had the idea that maybe people from Atlantis might have helped build the pyramids, and prior to that, we had the idea that God inspired builders to use the pyramid inch, a divinely inspired measurement to build the pyramids.
'So I think it's that there's always been a long succession of theories about how the pyramids might have been built, and as one is sort of superseded by the other.
'So it doesn't just come out of nowhere. I think it's a sort of changing and evolving belief as how the pyramids might have been built, and that's just the latest one that we have.
'As we become more interested in space and aliens, then they've sort of been attached to this theory as well.'
However, mystery over the pyramids' construction remains. The Great Pyramid was supposedly completed in 24 years.
But it was built from 2.3million limestone blocks, with each one weighing between 2.5tons 70 tons.
British writer Graham Hancock noted: 'Assuming the masons worked ten hours a day, 365 days a year, they would have needed to place one block every two minutes.'
Writing more than 1,000 years ago, historian Abul Hasan Ali Al-Masudi invoked the notion of 'acoustic levitation' - the use of sound waves to make the blocks weightless.
Al-Masudi said that an inscription written on papyrus was slipped beneath each block. When a note sounded, the stone would lift off the ground and then float into space.
The latest discovery that cavernous spaces exist beneath the pyramids was made by researchers from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow and the Italian University of Pisa.
'When we magnify the images we will reveal that beneath it lies what can only be described as a true underground city… an entire hidden world of many structures,' said Corrado Malanga, one of the archaeological researchers.
It remains a mystery how much older than the pyramids the structures are. It is also unknown was their purpose is, but they are connected by geometric passages.
Even more spectacular are eight vertical columns that descend 2,1245feet into a pair of huge chambers.
The depth is is almost five times the height of the Khafre Pyramid. The cylinders are aligned in two rows of four that run north to south.
Given that the edges of the Great Pyramids face exactly north, south, east and west, the arrangements of the cylinders is certain to be significant.
And around each pillar is a staircase-like walkway. The discovery of the underground structures piles further intrigue on a subject that is endlessly fascinating.
Scholars all over the world - and amateurs who follow every development avidly - will be waiting to see what findings emerge next.
2/2
Satellite Imagery Reveals STRANGE Sky Activity NEAR Burma During 7.7M Quake!
Mar 29, 2025
Bright Burst and Bizarre Gravity Wells!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3mFcKjCvpA