Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov has been appointed Commander of the Joint Group of Troops in the zone of SMO.

Surovikin will become the commander-in-chief of the Russian Air and Space Forces and will be appointed Gerasimov's deputy.

Turkish forces have targeted military positions of the Damascus government in the village of Mayasa, located in the Afrin countryside of the northern Aleppo region.

Pro-government sources have confirmed the death of Brigadier General Ammar Jawdat Tishuri, a member of the Republican Guard, in the attack. Additionally, 4 injuries have been reported among Assad government soldiers as a result of the bombardment.

@KurdishFrontNews

🇹🇷 ❌️ 🇸🇾 Syrian sources claim Brig. General Omar Tishuri, commander of the 135th brigade of the Republican Guard, was killed today in a Turkish artillery strike in outskirts of Nubul-Zahraa (NW. Aleppo). First SAA General killed on the NW. Syrian front since last summer, he was from Tartus province.

📎 QalaatM

🇺🇸 🇹🇷 🇸🇾 The American offer to Turkey:

⬛️ Withdrawal of the SDF from the Syrian-Turkish borders
⬛️ Open airspace to a depth of 50 km

⬛️ Raqqa and Deir Ezzor are to be handed over to an FSA unit led by Abu Issa
⬛️ Al-Hasakah and Qamishli remain in the hands of the SDF
⬛️ Giving the coordinates of five PKK leaders and expelling the rest from Syria
⬛️ Support for Turkey in Idlib and to reduce Iran's influence in Aleppo
⬛️ In exchange for Turkey stopping normalization talks with the Syrian Government.

*Terms may change greatly during negotiations.

🇹🇷 🇸🇾 Turkey wants to host the Syrian Foreign Minister in Ankara for the second round of reconciliation meetings, sources say

• The meeting may happen in early February in Ankara if Russia puts enough pressure on Assad

• But Damascus wants Moscow

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/turkey-syria-reconciliation-next-top-meeting-host

🇱🇾🇺🇸 GNU leader held a meeting with CIA Director

The Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) William Burns arrived in Libya's capital Tripoli on Thursday and met with the Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity of Libya Abdul Hamid Dbeibah.

Burns goal during this visit is to meet with local leaders to discuss efforts to resolve the political crisis and stabilize the country. During meeting with Abdul Hamid Dbeibah he reiterated the need for joint security and economic cooperation, hailing the stability and development that Libya had been going through recently.

This is the first visit by a senior US official to the Libya since the inauguration of the president Joe Biden.

#Libya #USA

@africaintel

ℹ️ Confirmed: #Bolivia is currently experiencing a major internet outage affecting multiple operators; real-time network data show national connectivity at 65% of ordinary levels with internet providers reporting issues affecting international fiber links 📉

#Russia / #Ukraine 🇷🇺🇺🇦: Combatants of #Ukrainian Forces released a new video from the frontlines in #Bakhmut (#Бахмут).

UA combatants are armed with a NSV HMG, PKM MGs, a Soviet DP-27 LMG, Bulgarian Arsenal RTB-7MA Thermobaric rocket and AK-74 rifle with GP-25 UBGL.

https://twitter.com/war_noir/status/1613933834487173128

🇱🇹🇱🇻 BREAKING: A gas pipeline connecting Lithuania and Latvia has exploded.

Public broadcaster LRT reports that the entire town of Pasvalys, located in northern Lithuania, has evacuated due to the situation.

🌍 @European_Insider | 🕊 Retweet

🇰🇷 Will South Korea acquire nuclear weapons?

President Yoon Suk Yeol made remarks regarding the deployment of nuclear weapons in the Republic of Korea. The government doesn’t rule out the possibility of obtaining such weapons either from the US, as its main military ally, or with its own capabilities, because, according to Yoon, the country has the scientific potential to have a nuclear program. So, will the country acquire such powerful weaponry?

I have no doubt about South Korean scientists - they seem to be able to do anything. But under the circumstances there is another very important factor to consider. It is the US position on the issue. I wrote about the confusion that has happened recently regarding the joint exercises involving nuclear weapons between the US and Korea - Yoon and his administration said negotiations were under way and Joe Biden and other US officials said the exercises in question were tabletop, where there is only simulating of scenarios in which nuclear weapons could be used. Sides, especially the USA, didn’t consider any nuclear deployment on the territory of the ROK.

That makes one important point clear - Washington opposes the possession of nuclear weapons by Seoul. Why? North Korea would make it clear right away that the South should not have done so. Of course, it will not lead to a full-scale war, but relations between the DPRK and South Korea, which are already at their worst, will deteriorate completely, leading to more instability in the region. Does the US need this? I don’t think so.

Yoon Suk Yeol can say what he wants. This is his way of trying to intimidate North Korea, which has broken all records for missile launches that year. The country ended 2022 with the successful launch of drones into the South, which the South Korean army failed to shoot down. The statements about nuclear weapons can kill two birds with one stone - reassure South Korean people and frighten the North. It is that simple, in my opinion.

#SouthKorea

@asianomics