NATO has agreed to upgrade its decades-old Baltic air policing mission into an active air defense operation, providing allied fighter pilots with a wider mandate to destroy aerial objects that pose an immediate threat, Reuters reported on July 8.

The mission, which monitors the skies over Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, was originally launched in 2004 when the three Baltic nations joined the alliance without operating domestic fighter fleets.

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Meanwhile, the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian charges d'affaires in Moscow submitted a joint demarche to Russia's Foreign Ministry rejecting allegations that the Baltic states had opened their airspace for attacks on targets in Russia.

The diplomats reiterated that public statements made by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin on July 4 were false.

"Despite the fact that Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania have consistently expressed their official positions at various levels, the Russian side continues to spread false information and escalate tensions. The Baltic states reject Russia's accusations as completely groundless," a joint Baltic statement said.

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cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/10115052

The European Parliament emphasises that hybrid threats, mainly from Russia, China and Belarus, represent an escalating security challenge for the EU, and calls for a comprehensive EU response, stronger EU–NATO coordination, enhanced resilience and civil preparedness, targeted countermeasures, and closer cooperation with partner countries.

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In a report (opens pdf) the parliament emphasizes that hybrid attacks have become significantly more frequent and sophisticated, where through a combination of political, economic, cyber, informational and military instruments, the aim is to weaken citizens' trust in institutions and destabilize European societies, without crossing the threshold of an open armed conflict.

It is particularly noteworthy that Russian hybrid activities in Europe quadrupled between 2022 and 2023, and then tripled again during the period 2023–2024, especially in countries that provide political, financial, and military support to Ukraine.

The document recalls that the concept of hybrid warfare gained importance after Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, when Moscow combined the engagement of so-called "little green men" with other unconventional methods of action. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 further demonstrated that covert operations can be combined with conventional military actions within a single strategy.

Cyberspace as the main battlefield

The authors of the document assess that the cyber domain remains one of the most important areas of hybrid action. State and non-state actors use cyber attacks for espionage, intelligence gathering, disruption of the functioning of institutions, and influence on public opinion.

Examples include the Iran-linked cyberattack on Albanian state institutions in 2022, the attack on the European Parliament website after Russia was declared a state sponsor of terrorism, and the DDoS attack on the French National Assembly in 2023, for which the pro-Russian group NoName057 claimed responsibility.

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The report names Russia and China as leading actors conducting coordinated campaigns to distort public debate, undermine trust, and influence democratic processes, while also noting a significant rise in AI-enabled techniques and procedures.

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Archived

cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/67878956

The Hungarian parliament has voted to remove President Tamás Sulyok from office, who was widely seen as a loyalist of former prime minister Viktor Orbán who lost power in April after 16 years.

Prime Minister Péter Magyar's Tisza party used its two thirds majority to steamroll through the 17th amendment to the constitution, ending the term of Sulyok and the head of the Constitutional Court Péter Polt.

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Orbán himself has hardly been seen in public, and refused to take his seat in parliament. On Monday, he left Hungary to watch the finals of the football World Cup in the US.

There is growing anger with Orbán within what is left of Fidesz. Many feel bewildered by his absence.

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Archived

Der angesprochene Beitrag*: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDUdPuvf_4w

Nicht die Infos die ich erwartet habe, aber interessant war die Anleitung auf jeden Fall. Danke dafür BR.

* Den Beitrag an sich würde ich eher nicht empfehlen, aber ist einfach lustig, wie die das mal so ganz entspannt nebenbei erklären wo man diese Anleitungen dafür findet.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.online/post/1828014

Barn Owl out in the day time again

Taken with my xh2s and faithful Tamron 150-500mm

How infuriating. He's in among the bros who hedged so much on fucking crypto believing they'll "hit the moon".

Like the question implies, I really want too get off of instagram. Its not the same space anymore, especially with the consistent push from Meta to use AI. Ive even made my profile private so those features don't automatically turn on. Its gotten crazy there.

cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/67878956

‼️ "Let's ask these commander-in-chiefs where they were in '22, when this whole ruckus was starting? <...> Where were all of you, these armchair commentary experts?"

Volunteer Trifonov Alexey Petrovich, born June 29, 1990, spoke about cases of alcohol abuse among servicemen during combat missions and stated that without the help of volunteers, the supply of Russian units would have been significantly worse.

The volunteer stated that military personnel consume alcohol in the SVO [Special Military Operation] zone, which forces commanders to take harsh disciplinary measures. He also noted that discipline problems and individual violations are no secret.

"Because they got so fucking wasted, holy mother of god. And right in front of me, this guy just shot up their Niva [car] with a rifle so they couldn't drive away."

In addition, Trifonov emphasized that representatives of the high command are not personally present in the combat zone.

https://telegram.me/ne_zhdi_novosti/6914