“Former CIA station chief: After Ukraine, more countries may be in Moscow’s crosshairs”
⚠️When did it become clear that this was not merely a theory?
The first evidence (of Putin’s plan to rebuilding the Soviet empire) was the invasion of Georgia. Six years later came Ukraine, which they tried to conceal through the appearance of the so-called little green men and hybrid warfare.
But the West did not respond appropriately. We did nothing about Georgia, and in 2014 we did not do enough to defend Ukraine.
🚨Putin concluded from this that the West was weak, Europe was weak, the United States was weak, and no one would stop him.
👇Above and below quotes from a very nice interview out today with the Hungarian news service, Origo.HU with Tamas Balogh. We covered a lot of good ground on Russia, the Ukraine War and their intelligence services reckless escalation.
☑️A few more of my quotes from the interview:
🔸In Russia, you cannot have a free and fair election, because if you did, Putin would not be in power. That is why they launched what, for more than 20 years, they have referred to as a constant second front with information warfare.
🔸The biggest problem with the system is that Russian intelligence does not necessarily seek the truth. I spent three decades working against Russian intelligence officers.
🔸My experience is that one of their greatest weaknesses over the past quarter-century has been their increasing tendency to just want to please the boss.
⚠️They (the RIS) call Putin “Nachalnik,” meaning “the boss.” He is the center of the system. They march to his tune…
👇MUCH MORE in below, great interview, hit the translate button and check it out, please.
#HybridWarfare #Russia #Putin #UkraineWar #GreyZone #Deterrence #Geopolitics #ForeignPolicy
👉LINK to the interview:
origo.hu/kulpol/2026/09/oros…— @Wiswesser Sep 7, 2026
Month: September 2026
Zelensky says the U.S. is exploring a winter de-escalation between Ukraine and Russia while trying to restart broader peace talks.
After Witkoff and Kushner met Putin in Moscow and Zelensky in Kyiv, Zelensky said the message was that “the Russians are ready to negotiate,” though he remains skeptical given Russia’s continued attacks.
Possible confidence-building steps could involve energy infrastructure, grain shipments, electricity, and oil and gas. Zelensky said the aim is to find measures “which can bring [the] sides closer to the peace.”
He believes Putin may be more flexible because “Putin needs Trump” and “doesn’t want … to upset him” before the U.S. midterms.
At the same time, Zelensky warned that Russia sees winter as a chance to pressure Ukraine: “Russia really thinks that this winter can help them to break us.”
Kyiv wants talks restarted in September or October. “Without dialogue … we will not have [a] result,” Zelensky said.
Source: Axios
— @clashreport Sep 7, 2026
President Trump’s pool of most ardent supporters is shrinking, according to a new poll, as Americans give him low marks on his overall job performance and his handling of the Iran war. nbcnews.com/politics/trump-a…
— @NBCNews Sep 7, 2026
Ukraine strikes Russian oil refineries after Kushner, Witkoff visit Moscow and Kyiv trib.al/JEDZrIq
— @nypost Sep 7, 2026
Friedrich Merz has warned that the future of Germany is at stake after his party suffered a humiliating defeat to the hard-Right AfD in a key state election.
The chancellor pledged to limp on as leader, but said he was “deeply unsettled” by the result and blamed Russia for helping Alternative for Germany (AfD) clinch victory against his Christian Democratic Union (CDU)🔗
— @Telegraph Sep 7, 2026
#Russia
The “Platformization” of #Sabotage
The most significant shift in #GRU tradecraft is the transition to a “gig-economy” model for kinetic sabotage and espionage. Instead of deploying elite operatives from units like 29155 across borders, the GRU now heavily leverages encrypted platforms like Telegram to recruit expendable local proxies.
Proxy Recruitment:
Operations are highly compartmentalized. Recruiters target disenfranchised individuals, teenagers, migrants, or low-level criminals, offering cryptocurrency payments for specific, escalating tasks.
share.gemini.google/BmHC4K7I…Pic.; atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ne…
— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) Sep 7, 2026
The “Platformization” of Sabotage – Google Search google.com/search?q=The+%22P…
— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) Sep 7, 2026
From #Russia with “LUFF”: the #GRU and #Sabotage thenewsandtimes.blogspot.com…
Global Strategic Briefing: September 7, 2026 share.gemini.google/cPiUq9Ww…
Requirements for Defeating Russia Militarily share.gemini.google/JaeHua5B…
Evolution of GRU Shadow Operations share.gemini.google/myDzRKV9…
— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) Sep 7, 2026
Evolution of GRU Shadow Operations share.gemini.google/myDzRKV9…
— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) Sep 7, 2026
The German Chancellor, Merz, says:
”Russia is celebrating the AFD victory.”That should tell you everything you need to know about AFD.
It’s funded by Putin, a war criminal.
— @Elizabeth71729 Sep 7, 2026