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‘It doesn’t make sense’: Experts question the Kremlin’s account of that drone strike

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When it comes to symbolic, made-for-TV moments, the alleged drone strike on the Kremlin early Wednesday morning ticks almost all of the boxes.

Foreign policy and defence experts say the dramatic, full-colour, unverified CCTV camera footage of some kind of object exploding in the predawn darkness just below a fluttering Russian flag is a propagandist’s dream — at least for ultra-nationalists in Moscow worried about maintaining the morale of a war-weary public ahead of a planned Ukrainian counteroffensive.

The fact that Russian media quickly claimed it was an attempt by Ukraine to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin (who was not at home in the Kremlin at the time) and the fact that the explosion caused no casualties and little damage have only deepened the experts’ suspicion that the flag pole blast was (ironically) a false flag operation by Moscow’s security services.

Ukraine vehemently denies it was responsible.

 

Unverified video of drone striking Kremlin

9 hours ago

Duration 0:09

Ukraine has denied having any role in an alleged drone attack that struck the Kremlin just below a flying Russian flag this week

President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, who is in Helsinki for meetings with allies, said he believes Moscow staged the attack to galvanize public opinion in Russia.

“We don’t attack Putin or Moscow,” Zelenskyy said. “We fight on our own territory.”

What’s interesting to many observers is how there are just as many disadvantages as advantages for the Kremlin in accepting Russia’s version of events.

‘Military failure’ or false flag?

Yes, it could whip the Russian public into a frenzy ahead of the annual May 9 Victory Day celebrations, commemorating the Nazis’ defeat in the Second World War. It also looks like an enormous embarrassment for a defence and security establishment that has sustained a series of humiliations since the full invasion of Ukraine began, said a Kyiv-based defence expert.

A drone crashing into the flagpole at the Kremlin — slipping through the air defences of one of the most heavily guarded districts on the planet — would represent a major “military failure” of the sort that typically leads to heads rolling, said Oleksandr Musiienko, the head of the Center for Military and Legal Studies in Kyiv.

It wouldn’t even be the first time Russia has been embarrassed from the air. In 1987, a German teenager named Mathias Rust evaded Soviet air defences to land a rented Cessna light aircraft near Red Square — an event that prompted the sacking of a number of high-level Russian military leaders.

You want to tweak the Russian bear’s nose? Okay, fair enough. But this doesn’t seem to accomplish anything.– Sean Maloney

Both Musiienko and Sean Maloney, a historian and expert on Soviet Cold War tactics, said they don’t accept the Russian version of events — including the claim that it was an attempt on Putin’s life.

“It’s either reflexive to deflect on their part, to deflect against weakness, or it’s all part of something they’ve already pre-scripted. It’s one or the other, probably,” said Maloney.

He said the initial Kremlin reports were stilted and made little military sense.

“That’s my gut feel on this. Looking at it … it doesn’t make sense,” he said. “Like, why? If you’re going to assassinate Putin … what would you do? Fly that [drone] through a window? Like what room is he in? Like, come on.”

Maloney said Ukraine would have nothing to gain and absolutely everything to lose from launching such a strike on the Kremlin.

“I don’t think the Ukrainians did it,” he said. “We’re back to, what purpose does this serve? You want to tweak the Russian bear’s nose? Okay, fair enough. But this doesn’t seem to accomplish anything.”

Musiienko said the alleged attack could accomplish more for Russia than for Ukraine. A statement from the Kremlin said Russia reserved the right to retaliate — and hardliners demanded swift retribution against Zelenskyy.

It all reopens the door to a darker prospect, Musiienko said — that Moscow staged the attack to generate a pretext for renewing the use of nuclear threats against the West and Ukraine.

A technician inspects a missile underneath a fighter jet.
In this photo taken from video provided by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022, a Russian military technician checks a MiG-31K fighter of the Russian air force carrying a Kinzhal hypersonic cruise missile parked at an airfield. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service/The Associated Press)

“They will say it was dangerous to the Russian state’s sovereignty and they will look into their nuclear doctrine, Russian nuclear doctrine, and they will tell you that they have a right to use nuclear weapons,” he said.

Musiienko said we should expect to see ultra-nationalists like Dmitry Medvedev, the former prime minister who now heads Russia’s national security council, begin rattling the nuclear saber on social media.

The war has seen an increasing number of attacks within Russia and Russian-occupied territory in recent weeks. An oil refinery in Crimea was hit by a drone strike last weekend.

According to a batch of Pentagon documents leaked online over the last few months, American intelligence agencies believe Ukrainian agents have conducted drone attacks inside Belarus and Russia — against the wishes of their western allies.

Two documents, reported on by NBC News, suggest Ukraine launched provocative operations inside the neighbouring countries. Some allied nations have said any such actions might cause them to reconsider their ongoing support for Kyiv.

 

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‘Disgraceful:’ N.S. Tory leader slams school’s request that military remove uniform

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says it’s “disgraceful and demeaning” that a Halifax-area school would request that service members not wear military uniforms to its Remembrance Day ceremony.

Houston’s comments were part of a chorus of criticism levelled at the school — Sackville Heights Elementary — whose administration decided to back away from the plan after the outcry.

A November newsletter from the school in Middle Sackville, N.S., invited Armed Forces members to attend its ceremony but asked that all attendees arrive in civilian attire to “maintain a welcoming environment for all.”

Houston, who is currently running for re-election, accused the school’s leaders of “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country” in a post on the social media platform X Thursday night.

“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” Houston’s post read. There were also several calls for resignations within the school’s administration attached to Houston’s post.

In an email to families Thursday night, the school’s principal, Rachael Webster, apologized and welcomed military family members to attend “in the attire that makes them most comfortable.”

“I recognize this request has caused harm and I am deeply sorry,” Webster’s email read, adding later that the school has the “utmost respect for what the uniform represents.”

Webster said the initial request was out of concern for some students who come from countries experiencing conflict and who she said expressed discomfort with images of war, including military uniforms.

Her email said any students who have concerns about seeing Armed Forces members in uniform can be accommodated in a way that makes them feel safe, but she provided no further details in the message.

Webster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

At a news conference Friday, Houston said he’s glad the initial request was reversed but said he is still concerned.

“I can’t actually fathom how a decision like that was made,” Houston told reporters Friday, adding that he grew up moving between military bases around the country while his father was in the Armed Forces.

“My story of growing up in a military family is not unique in our province. The tradition of service is something so many of us share,” he said.

“Saying ‘lest we forget’ is a solemn promise to the fallen. It’s our commitment to those that continue to serve and our commitment that we will pass on our respects to the next generation.”

Liberal Leader Zach Churchill also said he’s happy with the school’s decision to allow uniformed Armed Forces members to attend the ceremony, but he said he didn’t think it was fair to question the intentions of those behind the original decision.

“We need to have them (uniforms) on display at Remembrance Day,” he said. “Not only are we celebrating (veterans) … we’re also commemorating our dead who gave the greatest sacrifice for our country and for the freedoms we have.”

NDP Leader Claudia Chender said that while Remembrance Day is an important occasion to honour veterans and current service members’ sacrifices, she said she hopes Houston wasn’t taking advantage of the decision to “play politics with this solemn occasion for his own political gain.”

“I hope Tim Houston reached out to the principal of the school before making a public statement,” she said in a statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Saskatchewan NDP’s Beck holds first caucus meeting after election, outlines plans

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REGINA – Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she wants to prove to residents her party is the government in waiting as she heads into the incoming legislative session.

Beck held her first caucus meeting with 27 members, nearly double than what she had before the Oct. 28 election but short of the 31 required to form a majority in the 61-seat legislature.

She says her priorities will be health care and cost-of-living issues.

Beck says people need affordability help right now and will press Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government to cut the gas tax and the provincial sales tax on children’s clothing and some grocery items.

Beck’s NDP is Saskatchewan’s largest Opposition in nearly two decades after sweeping Regina and winning all but one seat in Saskatoon.

The Saskatchewan Party won 34 seats, retaining its hold on all of the rural ridings and smaller cities.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Nova Scotia election: Liberals say province’s immigration levels are too high

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia‘s growing population was the subject of debate on Day 12 of the provincial election campaign, with Liberal Leader Zach Churchill arguing immigration levels must be reduced until the province can provide enough housing and health-care services.

Churchill said Thursday a plan by the incumbent Progressive Conservatives to double the province’s population to two million people by the year 2060 is unrealistic and unsustainable.

“That’s a big leap and it’s making life harder for people who live here, (including ) young people looking for a place to live and seniors looking to downsize,” he told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

Anticipating that his call for less immigration might provoke protests from the immigrant community, Churchill was careful to note that he is among the third generation of a family that moved to Nova Scotia from Lebanon.

“I know the value of immigration, the importance of it to our province. We have been built on the backs of an immigrant population. But we just need to do it in a responsible way.”

The Liberal leader said Tim Houston’s Tories, who are seeking a second term in office, have made a mistake by exceeding immigration targets set by the province’s Department of Labour and Immigration. Churchill said a Liberal government would abide by the department’s targets.

In the most recent fiscal year, the government welcomed almost 12,000 immigrants through its nominee program, exceeding the department’s limit by more than 4,000, he said. The numbers aren’t huge, but the increase won’t help ease the province’s shortages in housing and doctors, and the increased strain on its infrastructure, including roads, schools and cellphone networks, Churchill said.

“(The Immigration Department) has done the hard work on this,” he said. “They know where the labour gaps are, and they know what growth is sustainable.”

In response, Houston said his commitment to double the population was a “stretch goal.” And he said the province had long struggled with a declining population before that trend was recently reversed.

“The only immigration that can come into this province at this time is if they are a skilled trade worker or a health-care worker,” Houston said. “The population has grown by two per cent a year, actually quite similar growth to what we experienced under the Liberal government before us.”

Still, Houston said he’s heard Nova Scotians’ concerns about population growth, and he then pivoted to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for trying to send 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, an assertion the federal government has denied.

Churchill said Houston’s claim about asylum seekers was shameful.

“It’s smoke and mirrors,” the Liberal leader said. “He is overshooting his own department’s numbers for sustainable population growth and yet he is trying to blame this on asylum seekers … who aren’t even here.”

In September, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said there is no plan to send any asylum seekers to the province without compensation or the consent of the premier. He said the 6,000 number was an “aspirational” figure based on models that reflect each province’s population.

In Halifax, NDP Leader Claudia Chender said it’s clear Nova Scotia needs more doctors, nurses and skilled trades people.

“Immigration has been and always will be a part of the Nova Scotia story, but we need to build as we grow,” Chender said. “This is why we have been pushing the Houston government to build more affordable housing.”

Chender was in a Halifax cafe on Thursday when she promised her party would remove the province’s portion of the harmonized sales tax from all grocery, cellphone and internet bills if elected to govern on Nov. 26. The tax would also be removed from the sale and installation of heat pumps.

“Our focus is on helping people to afford their lives,” Chender told reporters. “We know there are certain things that you can’t live without: food, internet and a phone …. So we know this will have the single biggest impact.”

The party estimates the measure would save the average Nova Scotia family about $1,300 a year.

“That’s a lot more than a one or two per cent HST cut,” Chender said, referring to the Progressive Conservative pledge to reduce the tax by one percentage point and the Liberal promise to trim it by two percentage points.

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Houston announced that a Progressive Conservative government would make parking free at all Nova Scotia hospitals and health-care centres. The promise was also made by the Liberals in their election platform released Monday.

“Free parking may not seem like a big deal to some, but … the parking, especially for people working at the facilities, can add up to hundreds of dollars,” the premier told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

— With files from Keith Doucette in Halifax

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