Following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, food prices have shot up around the world. Cindy McCain, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture, referred to the disaster as “the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II.” Straight Arrow News contributor Peter Zeihan agrees with McCain’s assessment that some countries in Africa…

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., believes it is possible for Ukraine to retake Crimea. Blumenthal just returned from his third trip to the country, a bipartisan delegation that included Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I. “Everything I have come to learn about the will and determination of the Ukrainians leads me to conclude, retaking…

The FBI has another black eye. Over the weekend, former agent Charles McGonigal was arrested at JFK airport in New York while returning from a trip to the Middle East. Federal prosecutors said McGonigal, the former head of counterintelligence for the FBI’s New York field office, laundered money for a sanctioned Russian oligarch. Not only…

Ukraine needs modern tanks. Great Britain and France are sending some, but so far the U.S. and Germany have balked at the idea. Almost since the start of the war, the Ukrainians have been pleading with the West for tanks to help fight off the Russian invasion. Ukraine had some Soviet-era T-72s when the war…

Russia is one step closer to arming the world’s largest submarine with the world’s deadliest torpedoes. At least according to Russian state media it is. This week, Russia’s Tass News Agency reported the country completed the first batch of Poseidon nuclear-capable torpedoes for its Belgorod nuclear-powered submarine. Launched in 2019, the Russian navy’s Belgorod is…

A renewed Russian offensive is putting greater pressure on Germany to supply Ukraine with its heavy battle tanks. So far, Berlin has resisted sending its Leopard 2 tanks amid concerns such a move will more directly involve them in the war. The recent resignation of Germany’s Defence Minster, Christine Lambrecht, might signal a policy reversal…

The small village of Lutzerath, in western Germany, is at the center of a heated clash between police and environmental activists. The hamlet is set to be demolished by German multinational energy company RWE, as part of a deal struck by the local and national governments. The reason for the destruction of the village is…

Vladimir Putin’s proposed cease-fire in Ukraine was over before it started. Ukraine flatly rejected the idea, and reports from the frontline said both sides were firing artillery even after the supposed cease-fire was supposed to start. Ukrainian leadership and President Joe Biden both think Putin’s cease-fire was a ruse to buy Russia time to reinforce…

On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a 36-hour ceasefire in Ukraine. The ceasefire comes at a good time for Russia, as Ukraine’s military said this week it killed 800 Russian soldiers in a single day. Most of those deaths came in the eastern Donetsk region. Russia is intent on capturing the Bakhmut sector, and…

The $1.7 trillion government spending bill signed; Trump taxes released; and a soccer legend dead at 82. These stories and more highlight your morning rundown, aimed straight down the middle, for Friday, Dec.30, 2022.  Biden signs $1.7 trillion spending bill While on vacation on Thursday, President Biden resumed official business just long enough to sign…