The wars in Ukraine and in Gaza are very different; yet, they are definitely linked as two flashing indicators of how the change in the world order is proceeding. Regrettably but unsurprisingly, the relatively peaceful previous power transition that followed the end of the Cold War is unlikely to be repeated. The slow end of the American Century is already being marked by hostilities and tensions involving some of the major powers. With more likely to come.

The ongoing conflicts in Eastern Europe and the Middle East have the same root cause. Essentially, the self-proclaimed victors in the Cold War - above all, the United States of America - have singularly failed in creating a lasting international equilibrium to succeed the post-WWII bipolar setup. Moreover, the innate arrogance of its elites, their complete disregard for the interests of others and unlimited self-righteousness have gradually undermined their own once unchallenged position of power and dispelled a lot of respect and goodwill that many other countries initially had for them.

In Ukraine, the geopolitically and geo-economically sound idea of a militarily neutral country enjoying the trade, investment, and logistical benefits of its position between Russia and the European Union was dismissed by Washington as "giving the Kremlin a veto right" over its neighbor's security status. Instead, NATO's unrestrained expansion was upheld as almost a sacred principle. This led to an outcome that many had predicted: Moscow's pushback.

Rather than reaching for a compromise settlement via the Minsk accords, the West and its Ukrainian protégés used diplomacy as a foil to win time to better arm and train Kiev's army. Russia's security demands were largely dismissed, and its humanitarian concerns were ridiculed. Moscow's warning in the form of a display of military power along Ukraine's border did not impress Washington either. Americans had probably calculated that by entering Ukraine in force Russia would walk into a trap, opening a chance for the coveted regime change in the Kremlin.

The spectacular "success" of Kiev's counter-offensive, which echoed throughout the geopolitical galaxy, has predictably engendered what everyone with a brain was expecting: a dogfight...

Enter the Zelensky-Zaluzhny Show - especially after the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) admitted on the record that the war has "reached a stalemate" - code for "we're deeply in trouble". He also referred to "positional defense" - code for "we're gonna keep losing more and more territory."

The dogfight comes complete with Mafioso overtones, as in 39-year-old Zaluzhny assistant Gennady Chistyakov "accidentally" detonating a grenade received as a gift, seriously injuring his daughter and duly blowing himself up.

This might be seen at face value as yet another wacky Pulp Fiction-style sketch involving the top dogs (with no Winston Wolf to "solve problems"). But it does carry an ominous message to Zaluzhny: once again, Mafia-style, from now on he'd better beware of friends bearing gifts.

As for the "counter-offensive", the file, for all practical purposes, seems to be closed. There won't be another one - because there are no more weapons, assets or troops to carry it, except the odd Ukrainian elderly citizens and unsuspecting housewives chased by the "security services" as they exit the supermarket.

The idea of peace talks between Moscow and Kiev has become a "prevalent narrative" in the West, Oleg Soskin believes...

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky's unwillingness to consider peace talks with Russia might lead him to being ousted to make such negotiations possible, Oleg Soskin, an adviser to two former Ukrainian presidents, said on Saturday.

Zelensky, who continues to maintain that victory should be achieved on the battlefield, simply "cannot" enter peace talks with Moscow, Soskin said on his YouTube channel. Such actions, he believes, are pushing Russia and at least some of Ukraine's Western backers to think that they need someone else to represent Kiev who can "agree on even a temporary truce." In order to achieve that, the current Ukrainian leadership needs to be "neutralized," the former presidential aide added.

The idea of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine has become a "prevalent narrative" not only in Russia but in the West as well, Soskin suggested. He noted that French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed such ideas not so long ago.

Israel has agreed to put in place four-hour daily humanitarian pauses in its assault on Hamas in northern Gaza, the White House said Thursday, as President Joe Biden pressed Israelis for a multi-day stoppage in the fighting in a bid to negotiate the release of hostages held by the group.

Biden had asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to institute the daily pauses during a Monday call and said he had also asked the Israelis for a pause of at least three days to allow for hostage negotiations.

When asked whether he had asked Israel for a three-day pause, Biden said:

"Yes. I've asked for even a longer pause for some of them. No possibility of a formal cease-fire at the moment. Took longer for Israel to agree to humanitarian pauses."

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said a daily humanitarian pause would be announced Thursday and that the Israelis had committed to announcing each four-hour window at least three hours in advance. Israel, he said, also was opening a second corridor for civilians to flee the areas that are the current focus of its military campaign against Hamas, with a coastal road joining the territory's main north-south highway.

The country's location between Russia and China and its natural resources make it a valuable target for American influence operations...

The US, true to its modus operandi of instigating "color revolutions" and interfering in the domestic affairs of other countries, could be in the initial stages of preparing a Ukraine-style coup in Mongolia, Russian officials believe.

Alexey Tsydenov, the head of Russia's Republic of Buryatia, which is located along the eastern side of Lake Baikal and borders Mongolia, in an interview with RIA Novosti on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok in September, said:

"The situation in Mongolia is very difficult in terms of the fact that all this hypocritical US policy, which it is pursuing where it needs to realize its interests in any way, is now being transferred to Mongolia."

According to him, Acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, who played a key part in the US-backed Euromaidan coup in Ukraine in 2014, is now trying to indoctrinate the Mongolian people and "shake up the youth." He is confident, however, that the Americans will not succeed:

"I believe that in Mongolia the leadership understands everything, and the people and youth are literate and understand when they are simply [being] used and manipulated. I hope they will have enough strength to resist this in order to remain an independent state, and not become a puppet in the hands of the United States."

The No. 3 House Republican leader is wading into the dramatic New York civil trial of former President Donald Trump, accusing the judge involved of exhibiting "bias" and "bizarre behavior" in the courtroom.

Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., filed an ethics complaint against Judge Arthur Engoron on Friday morning in a letter to the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct.

"I write today to express my serious concerns about the inappropriate bias and judicial intemperance shown by Judge Arthur F. Engoron in New York's lawsuit against President Donald J. Trump and the Trump Organization. This judge's bizarre behavior has no place in our judicial system, where Judge Engoron is not honoring the defendant's rights to due process and a fair trial. These serious concerns are exacerbated by the fact that the defendant is the leading candidate for President of the United States, and it appears the judicial system is being politicized to affect the outcome of the campaign."

This historic trial over whether the Trump Organization and its top officials knowingly misrepresented the value of multiple real estate holdings over the years has seen Trump and his three adult children all testify in a downtown New York City courtroom this month.

New York State Attorney General Letitia James brought the civil case, which is now in non-jury trial in Engoron's court.

West Jerusalem has claimed credit for foiling a terrorist attack and linked the case to its Gaza operation...

Brazilian authorities have warned against jumping to conclusions after Israel claimed to have foiled a terrorist attack by an Iran-funded Hezbollah cell in the South American country. The case is ongoing and must not be used by outside governments to promote their own interests, Brazilian Justice Minister Flavio Dino said.

In a social media post on Thursday, Dino called the claim that a cell linked to Lebanon-based Hezbollah had plotted to kill Jews in Brazil a "hypothesis," stressing that no foreign agency could presume the outcome of the investigation.

Without directly mentioning Israel, the minister said:

"We appreciate appropriate international cooperation, but we reject any foreign authority that would consider directing Brazilian police bodies, or use investigations in our responsibility for the purposes of promoting their political interests."

The remarks appear to be a reaction to claims by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, who said:

"Mossad intelligence service had helped Brazil stop a terrorist attack... planned by the Hezbollah terrorist organization, directed and financed by Iran.

"Given the backdrop of the war in Gaza against the Hamas terrorist organization, Hezbollah and the Iranian regime are continuing to operate around the world in order to attack Israeli, Jewish, and Western targets."

Dino stressed that the Brazilian investigation had started "before the outbreak of the ongoing tragedies on the international scene."

One problem Israel keeps running into is how the institutionalized dehumanization of Palestinians which keeps the apartheid state operational also causes Israelis to say things that non-Israelis will find extremely shocking, which hurts Israel's PR interests.

We saw this illustrated in a recent New Yorker interview with Daniella Weiss, a leader of the push to build illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. Weiss stated frankly and unapologetically that she supports apartheid, that she doesn't believe Palestinians should have any sovereignty anywhere, that she doesn't believe Palestinians should have voting rights, that she wants the population of Gaza to be replaced by Israeli settlements, and that she is untroubled by the killing of children in Gaza because she feels it's being done in the interests of Israeli children.

Asked where the Palestinians in Gaza should go, Weiss replied, "To Sinai, to Egypt, to Turkey." When the interviewer said the Palestinians are not Egyptian or Turkish, she contended that "The Ukrainians are not French, but when the war started they went to many countries."

The scale of US intelligence support for Kiev's murderous operations has been brought to light at a very interesting moment

As Ukraine slips quietly from the top of the Western media's news agenda, fascinating insights into the granular nature of the CIA's involvement in Kiev's assassination program are being revealed. By the very same outlets that had previously suggested Ukraine was on a solo run with its slew of extrajudicial killings and terror attacks.

Western media has routinely ignored the brutal exploits of Kiev's successor to the KGB, the SBU. When they are reported upon, instead of calling out the illegal killing of journalists and activists, the press seeks to frame them as masterful operations of a band of freedom fighters administering tough justice to the "enemies of Ukraine." A key element of that narrative was that while the US, British, and French intelligence services worked closely with the SBU, they didn't have any direct control of its actions, particularly when those actions involved assassinating unarmed civilians. However, a recently published article in the Washington Post has now revealed that the CIA had, and continues to have, a central role in the group's most disturbing activities.

A Washington Post article "Ukrainian spies with deep ties to CIA wage shadow war against Russia" outlines a labyrinthine relationship between the two intelligence agencies, and while the CIA still maintains it doesn't sanction particular operations, the details revealed in the telling article suggest that this is nothing more than the usual stock disclaimer which accompanies most of Langley's covert operations. The article is based on interviews with "more than two dozen current and former Ukrainian, US and Western intelligence and security officials" and its revelations are both shocking and fascinating.

The recent honoring of a Waffen-SS veteran in Canada's House of Commons was hardly surprising, given the country's history of harboring Nazi collaborators after World War II, a senior Russian diplomat told RIA Novosti on Monday.

The descendants of these people lobby the government to have their ancestors whitewashed and celebrated, Dmitry Polyansky, Russia's first deputy permanent representative to the UN, explained, referring to an incident in September involving an elderly Ukrainian-Canadian man named Yaroslav Hunka.

"Neo-Nazi ideology or nationalist ideology, unfortunately, has a very strong influence in Canada. I think this is obvious," the Russian official said. "The [Justin] Trudeau government is somewhat a hostage [to the situation]."