conflict
Is Ukraine War a Money-Sucking Charade?

By John Leake
This morning I perused the Getty Archive for images of the Battle of Stalingrad (1942-43) and the Battle of Kursk (1943) — two of the biggest between Hitler’s Germany and Stalin’s Russia. The archive contains thousands of images of men in combat, bombed out wreckage, and dead soldiers.
I then did a webs search for Battle of Kursk 2024 and got a few images of a solitary howitzer.
The most vivid footage I have seen of the current war in Ukraine has been taken from killer drones in the act of killing individual soldiers or small groups of soldiers in the field. However, I’ve still not seen anything even remotely approximating the panoramic views of destruction that were captured by film cameras at Stalingrad in 1942-1943.
Pondering this reminded me of an old friend who specializes as a leasing agent for warehousing facilities near major international airports. In early 2022, she got a call from a man who claimed his company was a Pentagon contractor in the business of transporting military supplies from the United States to Ukraine. He was seeking a large warehouse adjacent to an east coast international airport, preferably around Baltimore. When she asked him about the leasing term he wanted, he replied without hesitation, “ten years.”
“Ten years?” she asked incredulously.
“Yes, ten years.”
Another thing that struck me as incomprehensibly strange during the Biden years was the extraordinary confidence and bravado about the prospect of escalating war with Russia. The EXACT same people who had expressed mortal terror about COVID-19—which posed zero risk to the young and healthy—expressed zero fear about the prospect, however remote, of an eventual nuclear exchange with Russia.
A dear (and now former) friend in Austria who has earned a tidy living as a lobbyist had, between March 2020 and February 2022, repeatedly expressed his opinion that Covid lockdowns and compulsory vaccination were necessary to stop the spread of the deadly virus.
However, in February 2022, he told me that he and his family were willing “to lose everything to defend Europe against Russia.” How to reconcile his terror of COVID-19 with his extraordinary sang-froid about escalating with Russia instead of seeking a neutrality deal for Ukraine similar to that of Austria in 1955?
Is it possible that globalists like my ex friend aren’t worried about escalation because they believe the war in Ukraine is a relatively contained affair in the eastern provinces that is being sustained primarily to suck money out of western treasuries, especially the U.S.?
Where exactly have all of the money and weapons gone? Elon Musk’s DOGE has given us glimpses into where U.S. taxpayer money may go when no one is watching. I wonder if he can put some scrutiny on the tens of billions that have purportedly gone to Kiev.
Another little clue is evidence that much of Ukraine’s wealthy elite has left the country and is partying in Switzerland and the South of France. The French paper Le Monde published a report about the fun they are having in France (see Ukrainian oligarchs’ secret escape to the French Riviera).
Please note that I am NOT declaring anything; I am merely asking questions. Five years after the COVID-19 debacle, it’s become clear that Western governments and their mainstream media propaganda organs told hundreds of massive lies to their citizenries. As soon as the Covid Crisis showed major signs of abating in the winter of 2022, the EXACT SAME guys and girls lurched us into the Ukraine Crisis, and the money floodgates opened yet again, just as they had in March 2020.
Were the producers of the The Wizard of Oz and The Matrix telling us something about the way the world works in the era of photographic and electronic representations of reality?
Invite your friends and earn rewards
conflict
Zelensky Alleges Chinese Nationals Fighting for Russia, Calls for Global Response

Sam Cooper
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Tuesday that his forces have captured two Chinese citizens fighting as part of the Russian army in eastern Ukraine, alleging “there are many more Chinese citizens in the occupier’s units.” The stunning revelation could inject a volatile new dimension into ceasefire negotiations between the United States and Russia—and intensify already fraught tensions over Taiwan.
Zelensky shared the news in an X post, accompanied by video of one of the captured men—an Asian male in beige fatigues, hands bound with zip ties, visibly distressed as he gestures to a Ukrainian camera operator. The video shows the man making whirring sounds, crouching instinctively as if a drone is circling above and opening fire—then glancing up and uttering the English word, “commander.”
“We have information suggesting that there are many more Chinese citizens in the occupier’s units than just these two,” Zelensky wrote on X. “We are currently verifying all the facts—intelligence, the Security Service of Ukraine, and the relevant units of the Armed Forces are working on it.”
The president said he has instructed Ukraine’s foreign minister to urgently contact Beijing to clarify how China intends to respond.
“Russia’s involvement of China, along with other countries, whether directly or indirectly, in this war in Europe is a clear signal that Putin intends to do anything but end the war,” Zelensky wrote. “He is looking for ways to continue fighting. This definitely requires a response. A response from the United States, Europe, and all those around the world who want peace.”
Zelensky added that Ukrainian authorities had recovered documents, bank cards, and personal data from the two prisoners—material that could be pivotal in discovering the nature of China’s involvement.
If verified, the presence of Chinese nationals fighting for Russia could carry sweeping geopolitical implications. It would complicate delicate U.S.-Russia negotiations aimed at exploring a conditional ceasefire, and could have indirect ramifications on the plans of Washington, Tokyo, and Taipei in their growing confrontation with Beijing.
China has repeatedly denied providing direct military support to Russia. Zelensky’s statement marks the first time Ukraine has publicly alleged that Chinese nationals are embedded in Russian combat units—an allegation that, if substantiated, could alter the strategic calculus in both Eastern Europe and the Indo-Pacific.
Responding to Zelensky’s claims, Tom Shugart, a senior defense analyst at the Center for a New American Security and a former U.S. Navy officer, emphasized that the strategic implications hinge on whether the Chinese nationals were acting as mercenaries or state-directed personnel. “If the PRC is actively providing soldiers to fight in Ukraine, that would be altogether different—a possible sign of a real Axis that may best be resisted wherever it is fighting,” he wrote on X.
This is a developing story. The Bureau will continue to report as further details emerge.

Recommend The Bureau to your readers
conflict
“HELL WILL RAIN DOWN”: Trump unleashes U.S. military on Yemeni Houthis

MxM News
Quick Hit:
President Trump ordered a massive military assault on Iranian-backed Houthi forces in Yemen on Saturday, vowing to unleash “overwhelming lethal force” after months of attacks on American and allied vessels in the Red Sea.
Key Details:
-
Trump announced the strikes in a Truth Social post, stating, “Today, I have ordered the United States Military to launch decisive and powerful Military action against the Houthi terrorists in Yemen.”
-
He criticized former President Joe Biden for failing to contain the Houthis, saying his response was “pathetically weak” and emboldened the group’s ongoing attacks on commercial and military vessels.
-
The U.S. Navy’s USS Harry S. Truman carrier strike group, along with three destroyers and a cruiser, launched the assault, targeting radars, air defenses, and missile systems used to disrupt shipping lanes.
CENTCOM Forces Launch Large Scale Operation Against Iran-Backed Houthis in Yemen
On March 15, U.S. Central Command initiated a series of operations consisting of precision strikes against Iran-backed Houthi targets across Yemen to defend American interests, deter enemies, and… pic.twitter.com/u5yx8WneoG
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 15, 2025
Diving Deeper:
President Trump escalated U.S. military action against Iran-backed Houthi rebels on Saturday, ordering airstrikes on targets in Yemen in response to the group’s repeated attacks on Red Sea shipping. Trump, in a Truth Social post, declared that the U.S. military would not tolerate continued aggression and vowed an overwhelming response.
“The Houthi attack on American vessels will not be tolerated,” Trump wrote. “We will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective.” He directly warned the Houthis, stating, “YOUR TIME IS UP, AND YOUR ATTACKS MUST STOP, STARTING TODAY. IF THEY DON’T, HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE!”
The strikes, carried out by U.S. Central Command, targeted missile sites, drone launch facilities, and command centers used by the Houthis to strike commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea. U.S. warships and carrier-based fighter jets participated in the mission, marking a significant escalation in efforts to protect international shipping routes.
Trump also issued a direct warning to Iran, demanding that its support for the Houthis “must end immediately.” Addressing Tehran, Trump wrote, “Do NOT threaten the American People, their President…or Worldwide shipping lanes. If you do, BEWARE, because America will hold you fully accountable and we won’t be nice about it!”
The strikes come after more than a year of escalating attacks by the Houthis, who have targeted over 100 merchant vessels, sunk at least two, and killed multiple sailors since the Israel-Hamas war began. Trump pointed to Biden’s failures in handling the crisis, noting that “it has been over a year since a U.S.-flagged commercial ship safely sailed through the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, or the Gulf of Aden.”
With Trump’s order, the U.S. is making clear that hostile actions in the Red Sea will not go unanswered. As military operations continue, all eyes will be on whether the Houthis and their Iranian backers heed the warning—or face even greater firepower from the U.S. military.
-
2025 Federal Election23 hours ago
RCMP memo warns of Chinese interference on Canadian university campuses to affect election
-
2025 Federal Election2 days ago
Conservative Party urges investigation into Carney plan to spend $1 billion on heat pumps
-
Alberta1 day ago
Alberta takes big step towards shorter wait times and higher quality health care
-
2025 Federal Election2 days ago
Fifty Shades of Mark Carney
-
2025 Federal Election2 days ago
Corporate Media Isn’t Reporting on Foreign Interference—It’s Covering for It
-
2025 Federal Election13 hours ago
Researchers Link China’s Intelligence and Elite Influence Arms to B.C. Government, Liberal Party, and Trudeau-Appointed Senator
-
Business1 day ago
Trump raises China tariffs to 125%, announces 90-day pause for countries who’ve reached out to negotiate
-
2025 Federal Election23 hours ago
The status quo in Canadian politics isn’t sustainable for national unity