Russian Drone Swarms Overwhelm Ukraine's Defences, Pushing Kyiv Towards 'Defence-Less State'?
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov clarified that BRICS nations don't aim to replace the US dollar, but rather seek alternatives for mutual settlements to circumvent US sanctions. He stated BRICS intends to trade in national currencies, with Russia already conducting 90% of payments with partners in local denominations. This counters US President Trump's concerns and threats of tariffs on BRICS countries, who are also developing "BRICS Pay," a decentralized blockchain payment system for cross-border transactions.
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First Post
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What is MAX, the state-owned app Russia's Vladimir Putin is trying to replace WhatsApp with?
Russia has ordered its officials to switch over to the Max app by September 1. Moscow has, in recent years, been trying to reduce its use of foreign apps such as Telegram, WhatsApp, and YouTube. Russia, after the invasion of Ukraine, designated Meta – which owns Facebook and WhatsApp – as an 'extremist organisation'. What is the Max app? read more Russian President Vladimir Putin has given Russian officials until September 1 to switch over to Max. Reuters Russia is set to ban WhatsApp in favour of its own chat app. This comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered officials to switch to a Russian app being developed known as Max. But what happened? What do we know about the Max app? Let's take a closer look: What happened? Russia has been trying to reduce its use of foreign apps such as Telegram and WhatsApp. Facebook and Instagram are already banned in Russia. Russia in 2024 blocked Viber messenger. Russia after the invasion of Ukraine designated Meta – which owns Facebook and WhatsApp – as an 'extremist organisation'. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Moscow is now set to ban WhatsApp, which is used by around 68 per cent of Russians every day. Putin in June signed a law mandating the development of a state-sponsored messenger. The Max app is being designed by state-run VK Company, which owns VK Video, a rival to YouTube. VK Company was founded by Pavel Durov, the creator of Telegram. The law also calls for apps to be banned from nations that have imposed sanctions on Russia. He gave Russian officials until September 1 to switch over to Max. Authorities are now telling WhatsApp to be prepared to stop services in Russia. Moscow is now set to ban WhatsApp, which is used by around 68 per cent of Russians every day. AP "The presence of such services in Russia's digital space is, in fact, a legal violation of national security," Anton Nemkin, a member of the State Duma IT Committee, said. The Kremlin this week published a list of instructions from Putin, including an order to introduce additional restrictions on the use in Russia of software, including communication services, produced in 'unfriendly countries' that have imposed sanctions against Russia. Russian lawmakers also approved sweeping legal amendments, proposing fines of up to $63 for anyone searching for material online that the government deems extremist - which includes not just the likes of Instagram and Facebook, but many opposition politicians and activists. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The move drew criticism, including from some Kremlin backers such as Margarita Simonyan, a state media executive who said journalists would be unable to investigate activities of opposition groups such as the Anti-Corruption Fund of late opposition figure Alexei Navalny. What do we know about Max app? Not much. Officials say it is a messaging app much like WhatsApp, but with a huge difference. The Max app is said to have full control over users' microphone, camera, contacts, geolocation and files. It does not turn off by standard means, uses root access and system files. It also sends data automatically to its parent company which is controlled by Russian authorities. quoted one official as saying, 'The authorities have already created a new element of the centralised digital tracking system – messaging app Max from VK. All officials were ordered to switch to Max. The application has full access to the microphone, camera, contacts, geolocation and files. Does not turn off by standard means, uses root access and system jar files – signs of malicious software. The data is automatically transmitted to servers linked to VK, which is under the control of the secret services of the Russian Federation". STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Many are worried that the state is going to use Max to further tighten its grip on the lives of its citizens. Some also fear that the authorities could hinder access to WhatsApp to encourage people to switch to Max. Russia has done this in the past. YouTube has seen its audience in Russia drop sharply after Russia has slowed download speeds. The user base, which was over 40 million daily users in mid-2024, is now just under 10 million. Anton Gorelkin, deputy head of the lower house of parliament's information technology committee, said in a statement on Telegram that the state-backed app, MAX, could gain market share if WhatsApp left. 'It's time for WhatsApp to prepare to leave the Russian market,' Gorelkin said. Russian Senator Artem Sheikin last year had said that Moscow may block the app if it refuses to fall in line with Russian laws. Telegram, ironically, is also under the eye of the authorities. The app was created by Russian entrepreneurs Pavel and Nikolai Durov. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While it does not have end-to-end encryption by default, it is known for its 'secret chats' that can protect users' privacy. With inputs from agencies
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First Post
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Epstein was 'terrified' of Trump in his last days, reveals author Michale Wolff
Author Michael Wolff claimed that friendship between Trump and Epstein, which began in the 1980s, was marked by rivalry over money, women, and social status read more A protest group called "Hot Mess" hold up signs of Jeffrey Epstein and President Donald Trump in front of the Federal courthouse on July 8, 2019 in New York City. File Photo/AFP Journalist and author Michael Wolff has claimed that Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier, was reportedly 'afraid' of Donald Trump, whom he knew 'better' than most and whose rise to power deeply unsettled him. Wolff, author of the bestselling Fire and Fury, revealed on his podcast that Epstein was a key behind-the-scenes source for the book. The author discussed hours of private conversations with Epstein before he died in 2019. 'When I was writing Fire and Fury, I became an outlet for Epstein to express his incredulity about someone whose sins he knew so well, and then this person actually being elected president,' Wolff stated. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Epstein was utterly preoccupied with Trump, and I think, frankly, afraid of him.' According to Wolff, Trump and Epstein's friendship, which began in the 1980s, was marked by rivalry over money, women, and social status. 'I think Epstein saw Trump as essentially Bush League,' Wolff noted. 'Epstein knew him, really, I think, better than most. I mean, this was a true BFF situation: two playboys very much styling themselves as playboys in that (Hugh) Hefner sense, who palled around for the better part of 15 years.' Their relationship reportedly deteriorated in 2004 when Trump outbid Epstein on a luxurious Palm Beach property. 'He was really, really, really p****d,' Wolff recalled Epstein saying. The rift widened after Trump's 2016 presidential victory. 'When Epstein and I were talking about this, Trump was now the president of the United States, and I think frightening,' Wolff said. 'Because the most inappropriate person to be the president of the United States was probably Donald Trump.' 'I was always startled how afraid he seemed about Trump. And I've Focal I've spoken to several other people who knew Epstein well. They make the same point. And I know that Epstein would emphasize how he believed Trump was capable of doing anything. He had no scruples.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Wolff urged Epstein to share his story publicly. 'I urged Epstein to go public with everything I've told you here, but Epstein's attitude was that I was unaware of how the real world operated,' Wolff recounted.
Economic Times
2 minutes ago
- Economic Times
The Crime Of The Century: Trump explodes on Truth Social, says Obama manufactured Russia hoax after Tulsi Gabbard releases files
AP President Donald Trump did not hold back on his Truth Social, Tuesday, July 22, by attacking Obama, Hillary and all Democrats through a post. this comes a day after 100-pages of documents published by DNI Tulsi Gabbard exposing "treasonous" intelligence interference amongst Obama-era officials and Obama at the end of 2016. The contention among the governments has increasingly become volatile amid a deep divide, when the country still debates about Russia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) President Donald Trump went on full rampage on his Truth Social, on Tuesday, July 22, with a post attacking all democrats at once on his Truth Social. Calling allegations of Russian interference in the US presidential election 2016 when Barack Obama was at the helm 'THE CRIME OF THE CENTURY', Trump called it a major threat to America. Trump's explosive Truth Social post Below is US President Donald Trump's Truth Social post dated July 22, 2025: Obama himself manufactured the Russia, Russia, Russia HOAX. Crooked Hillary, Sleepy Joe, and numerous others participated in this, THE CRIME OF THE CENTURY!. Irrefutable EVIDENCE. A major threat to our Country!!! The post comes after Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard made certain contentious and classified documents public. From July 18-21, Gabbard declassified, and publicly released over 100 pages of documents, including memos and internal assessments, alleging the Obama administration manipulated intelligence in late 2016. What caused this furoreThe office of then-DNI James Clapper on December 7, 2016, stated, "We have no evidence of cyber manipulation of election infrastructure intended to alter results" and "Foreign adversaries did not use cyberattacks on election infrastructure to alter the US Presidential election outcome." Obama's Presidential Daily Brief the next day merely mentioned the "likely" hacking of an Illinois voter registration database, which had "unsuccessfully attempted" in other states and had no bearing on the electoral brief's draft said, "Criminal activity also failed to reach the scale and sophistication necessary to change election outcomes."But once the FBI, under Director James Comey, declared it would "dissent" from the draft's conclusions "based on some new guidance," those results were then led an alternative intelligence report asserting that the Kremlin manipulated the presidential election to Trump's advantage and planned the hacking of DNC emails, thousands of which were ultimately made public by Wikileaks. Several officials, including CIA Director John Brennan, Secretary of State John Kerry, and FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, gathered at the White House on Dec. 9, 2016, where Obama began 'tasking' each to look into 'Russia Election Meddling.' Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, National Security Advisor Susan Rice, and White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonogh were also present at the meeting. How Obama's intelligence agencies gradually changed course By early January, 2017, former president, Barack Obama, ordered the CIA, FBI, NSA, and DHS to produce a new intelligence assessment that included detailed information about Russia's involvement in the US presidential race. This assessment ultimately included the now-debunked dossier created by former MI6 spy Christopher that same day, an email from Clapper's executive assistant stated that the new intelligence assessment needed to outline the "tools Moscow used and actions it took to influence the 2016 election."Later, intelligence community leakers told the media that Obama voiced public concerns about hacks impacting the vote-counting process and that officials had "a high level of confidence" that Russian President Vladimir Putin was personally involved in the "U.S. Election Hack."According to a National Security Council document, the participants in the White House meeting also "agreed to recommend sanctioning of certain members of the Russian military intelligence and foreign intelligence chains of command responsible for cyber operations as a response to cyber activity that attempted to influence or interfere with U.S. elections, if such activity meets the requirements." The Intelligence Community Assessment of January, 2017 According to Gabbard, the end result was an Intelligence Community Assessment on January 7, 2017, which "directly contradicted the IC assessments that were made throughout the previous six months."CIA Director John Ratcliffe published a shocking analysis of the 2016 assessment earlier this month, concluding that Clapper, Brennan, and Comey purposefully tainted it for "possible political motive[s]."Later, more than eight years ago, the Trump Justice Department opened an investigation into Brennan and Comey for possible criminal offences connected to the preparation of that data will be sent to the Department of Justice "to deliver the accountability that President Trump, his family, and the American people deserve," Gabbard said in a statement. Gabbard's declassification bombshell The declassification is based on shocking new information unearthed by an Office of the Director of National Intelligence whistleblower who told Clapper that there was "no indication of a Russian threat to directly manipulate the actual vote count through cyber means." The National Intelligence Officer for Cyber pushed the whistleblower to believe the conclusions of the later Obama intelligence assessment, which included Moscow's preference for whistleblower's superior told him, "You need to trust me on this," referring to reports that the informant was "not allowed to see," most likely the Steele dossier. Whistleblower testimony challenges 2017 assessment The whistleblower wrote in one of their emails, "As for the 2017 ICA's judgement of a decisive Russian preference for then-candidate Donald Trump." Based on the material at hand and my professional analytical opinion, I was unable to concur in good documents claim an earlier finding (around September-December 2016) which showed no evidence of direct Russian cyber interference, but Gabbard says intelligence officials suppressed it in favor of a new assessment accusing Russia of meddling to aid of Friday, July 18, Gabbard has called for prosecution against Obama-era officials, namely, James Clapper, John Brennan, Susan Rice, Andrew McCabe, and the man himself, after alleged 'treasonous' intelligence interference. FAQs 1. What did President Trump post on Truth Social on July 22?Trump made a post attacking Democrats, especially during the Obama-era, after DNI Tulsi Gabbard recently declassified several contentious documents in reference to the Russian interference in the 2016 elections.2. What was in those documents?Gabbard released a 100-page document, which essentially claim that intelligence officials suppressed the truth when it came to the 2016 election interference and hence claiming authority.3. Alleged role of whistleblowerThe whistleblower was allegedly threatened by intelligence officers to support unsubstantiated claims of Moscow's interference.4. Why was the January, 2017 Assessment a key detail?Gabbard claimed that this particular assessment had contradicted previous findings from the intelligence officials, then. She claimed those findings were a result of political pressure.5. Who has Tulsi Gabbard called for prosecution? Gabbard has called out the former president, Barack Obama, and Obama-era officials, James Clapper, John Brennan, Susan Rice, Andrew McCabe, alleging they played a role in manipulating intelligence.
