F-35 ‘Kill Switch’ Fears Shake Berlin

Germany plans to buy 35 F-35A fighter jets from the U.S. for €8.3 billion, plus additional infrastructure costs. However, fears are growing that Donald Trump could remotely disable these jets.

At the core of the debate is a potential “Kill Switch”, which could let the U.S. deactivate the aircraft if its strategic interests change.

Joachim Schranzhofer, communications chief at Hensoldt, stated:

“The ‘Kill Switch’ in the F-35 is more than just a rumor. A simpler way is through the mission planning system, which would keep the jet grounded.”

Wolfgang Ischinger, former diplomat and Munich Security Conference chief, warned:

“If we fear that the U.S. could do to Germany’s F-35s what they did to Ukraine, we should consider canceling the contract.”

Source: Bild

The armed group Common Resistance Front (FCR), active in the Kivu region, has officially joined the ranks of the AFC/M23. The AFC/M23 has also called on other Congolese armed groups and political actors to join its cause.

A remnant of the ousted regime hid weapons in Qadmus before making their escape.

Source: Inside Idlib

Iran, Russia, and China to hold joint naval drills off Iran’s coast this week, starting Tuesday in Chabahar port. The exercises in the northern Indian Ocean aim to boost cooperation and counter U.S. influence, Iranian media reports. Warships from all three nations, including Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, will take part.

Observers include Azerbaijan, South Africa, Oman, and more.

Source: Naval News, Iranian media reports

Ukrainian media report that the U.S. has stopped supporting electronic warfare (EW) systems on transferred F-16 jets.

Before delivery, the jets were upgraded with AN/ALQ-131 pods, PIDS+, and ECIPS+ systems, enhancing their ability to counter Russian EW threats.

The U.S. Air Force modernization provided updated data on Russian EW and SIGINT systems, enabling Ukrainian jets to record enemy signal emissions.

As U.S. and Ukrainian officials gear up for talks in Saudi Arabia, President Trump has told aides that a minerals deal with Kyiv won’t restart aid or intel sharing unless Ukrainian President Zelenskyy shifts his stance on peace talks, per U.S. officials.

Source: NBC

Sudan’s Combatting Violence Against Women Unit said on Saturday that 1,138 rape cases had been documented in areas controlled by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) between April 2023 and February 2025.

This is what Ukraine's former nuclear shield looked like—surrendered for security guarantees, given away for free, with nothing in return.

Ukraine once held the world’s third-largest nuclear arsenal, inheriting 1,900 strategic and up to 4,200 tactical warheads from the USSR in 1991.

Under the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, Ukraine gave up its nuclear arsenal for security assurances.

By 1996, all warheads were sent to Russia, making Ukraine a non-nuclear NPT state.

Russian soldiers capture the epic detonation of their Pantsir-S1 air defense system in Kursk.

These are literally children.

According to Zaman Al-Wasl newspaper, the PKK/YPG/SDF terror group is forming an Arab-only battalion to fight against the Syrian Army.

Former regime officers, soldiers, and local tribal leaders played a key role in its creation.

The terrorist group aims to pit Arabs against each other, using this battalion to further disrupt the region’s demographic balance.

Türkiye and Jordan hold high-level 3+3 meeting

Turkish FM Hakan Fidan, Defense Minister Yasar Güler, and MIT Chief Ibrahim Kalın met with Jordanian FM Ayman Safadi, Gen. Yousef Huneiti, and Intel Chief Ahmad Husni in Amman.

Discussions focused on regional security, defense cooperation, and intelligence.

Ukrainian Katran-Venom USV launching a torpedo (or another small USV) during an attack on Russia's Chernomorneftegaz drilling platforms in the Black Sea.

This heavy USV is armed with a Minigun, a 12.7mm Browning machine gun, two Polish Piorun MANPADS, and two torpedoes.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski to Elon Musk:

Poland’s Digitization Ministry funds Ukraine’s Starlink at $50 million annually.

The ethics of threatening the victim of aggression apart, if SpaceX proves to be an unreliable provider we will be forced to look for other suppliers.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz:

We will soon allow Druze workers from Syria to work in communities in the Golan Heights, Israel.

Trump:

I think Zelensky will come back to sign the metals deal.

Trump:

No one has been tougher on Russia than me and Putin said so.

Trump:

I would love to cut defense spending but not now.