⚡️ WAR IN UKRAINE & RUSSIA — NOV 17, 2025 (1/2) ■ Engagements and casualties are above the 7-day average ■ Both drone and land-based equipment losses remain well below average ■ Visually confirmed losses over the last 30 days dip below 1.0× ■ ... 📈 lookerstudio.google.com/s/gqfEmsPlh6I

Drones attacked the 500-kV Veshkayma substation in Russia’s Ulyanovsk Oblast — a key link in the Volga power ring that connects the energy systems of Ulyanovsk, Mordovia, Chuvashia, and Samara.

⚡️ BREAKING: Ukraine to purchase 100 French Rafale jets, Zelensky says. Reuters previously reported that Zelensky and Macron are expected to sign deals on air defenses, missiles, and a 10-year strategic aviation agreement signalling the provision of Rafale jets.

⚡️ Russia's largest silicon plant 'forced' to halt output as demand collapses. Kremniy, located in east-central Irkutsk Oblast, is the country's largest refined silicon producer with a yearly capacity of 34,000 tons.

It took Russians less than an hour to release a disinformation operation regarding today's historic France-Ukraine defense agreement, fabricating a quote from the Ukrainian ambassador and spreading it widely across several networks.

Hello again on a chilly start to the new week. This is the daily Ukraine thread on Day 1363 of Russia's full invasion of its peaceful neighbour. It's also week 195 of the suffering endured by the Ukrainian public, oh, and it's the 1363rd daily thread I've compiled without fail!

🤝 Agreement with France provides for purchase of up to 100 Rafale fighter jets for Ukraine

The struggle for freedom and respect for the law is the same in the USA, Ukraine and all of Europe. You cant say you stand with Ukraine and want freedom and rule of law there, and then turn around and praise Trump and ignore his massive corruption. There is only one side--pick yours.

Since his return to the White House, Trump has made it clear suppressing votes is a top priority — and he’s stacked his administration with election deniers who are leading the charge. Here are some of the top figures working to disenfranchise voters👇 https://bit.ly/3LKeRz6

Russian aviation may soon have guided aerial bombs capable of reaching Kyiv. Overall, in 2025 the enemy is expected to produce 120,000 guided aerial bombs (KABs) and about 70,000 long-range UAVs, including 30,000 Shaheds, according to Skibitskyi, Deputy Head of GUR.

⚡️Blackout in occupied Donetsk amid reported strike on electric substation. Blackouts have been reported in occupied Donetsk amid a strike on a nearby electric substation, local media reported late on Nov. 16.

Jim Ryan's letter is not just surreal and troubling; it provides a series of deeply sobering lessons—about the perils facing public universities today; about what it means to "work with" this Department of Justice; & about what leadership does (and doesn't) entail at this especially fraught moment.

Trump lost his trade war in every possible sense. It hurt the economy; it made us look ludicrous and lawless; and it gave Beijing a chance to reach for world power. And there is nothing Trump can do about any of this except back down and blame others. (1/2)

NEW: Russian forces are attempting to complete their encirclement of Ukrainian forces in Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad.🧵(1/5) Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, November 16, 2025: isw.pub/UkrWar111625 Other Key Takeaways:

Trump is panicking but this raises more question than it answers. And I plan on asking them in a special edition of my Democracy Docket weekend round-up. Only for subscribers. Sign-up now. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0

A gentle word of advice for friends throughout Europe who are praising Trump regularly thinking it will gain results. It won’t. Only corruption works. And right now the US is locked in a struggle to see if corruption will win out.

"The Grift Bubble: A Political Theory of American Collapse" "Those who work against the grifters... may be acting from love, or from law, because they know that these things are real. And so they should also know, in acting thus, that they are the patriots." snyder.substack.com/p/the-grift-...

Oh Lordy! Are There Missing James Comey Grand Jury Tapes? youtu.be/Ei6xrAwKBR4?...

If democracy dies in darkness, we have seen that the legacy media is willing to turn off the lights. I founded Democracy Docket in 2020 to shine a spotlight on the most important fights for democracy— those taking place in court. Sign-up now to stay informed and support its work. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0

After the Supreme Court announced it would consider a case that could eliminate mail-in ballot grace periods, key Republican players immediately jumped at the chance to lay the groundwork for their next target: early, in-person voting.

The thermal power plant in Oryol, Russia, has been hit.

⚡️Europe must stay patient as prospects for Ukraine-Russia ceasefire remain distant, Finnish president says.

After a short hiatus on YouTube, I am back with a Q&A video. I discuss missiles, Russia's war economy, who is winning the war, and whether Denmark can close the straits to Russian ships. Watch it here.

In Trump’s America, “struggling” billionaires need a giant tax cut, but working people don’t deserve support to keep their health care premiums from going up.  We have to keep fighting to give Americans relief from rising costs, because they’re not going to get it from Trump.

After a Ukrainian strike Russian-occupied Donetsk lost all power.

We’ve been warning for months that President Donald Trump and the GOP are coming hard for mail voting — and this week saw a major development in the campaign. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...

⚡️Ukraine strikes major oil refinery in Russia’s Samara Oblast, hits elite Rubikon drone base, Ukraine's General Staff says

🛡️ Most of Kupiansk under Kyiv's control, but Russians pretending to control city – Ukrainian military

This year, North Korea has more than halved its supply of ammunition to Russia and has been sending mostly outdated shells, as Pyongyang has exhausted its stockpiles, – GUR.

How Democracy Docket and the New York Times are covering Epstein today. Support independent, pro-democracy media. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0

😎It looks like that historic military aviation deal with France is indeed Rafales, based on the latest reports:

With Russia throwing enormous forces into Pokrovsk to finally capture the eastern coal-mine city, questions are rising over what will happen next and whether Ukraine is ready.

🤬 DeepState analysts report that Russian forces have once again violated the rules and customs of war by executing two Ukrainian soldiers on the outskirts of Zatyshshya in Zaporizhzhia region. 📹 DeepStateUA/Telegram

I’ve reported on so many regular people being threatened and villified by conspiracy theories and hatred for people, many times spread by MTG. It’s awful when anyone has to deal with harassment and threats and I wonder if the congresswoman can look inward, too

Anne Applebaum as usual on the mark. I would add: most elected Republicans quietly fold the millisecond this happens to them. So in speaking up MTG is GOP unusual.

Just in the past 3 days, I happened to speak to an academic, a US politician and a former Biden official who had all received death threats and severe harassment from the MAGA movement. It's now a common experience. I am sorry MTG has to live through the same thing, but she can't be surprised

Oh lordy, are there audio recordings missing from the James Comey grand jury proceedings? My conversation with Newsweek. www.newsweek.com/judge-drops-...

Well, we finally have an answer about what MAGA believes. It has one and only one philosophical position, and that is that Trump’s lies about having nothing to do with Epstein must be accepted unquestioningly. It’s the whole movement distilled.

No one should have to face such threats. It would’ve been nice if Greene had realized this before she amplified and endorsed calls for executing Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama.

Targets in Volgograd, Russia, are currently under attack by UAVs. Russian air defense is active but is causing a lot of collateral damage.

As Trump & Bondi Work To Traumatize DOJ Attorneys, There's An Organization Stepping In To Help youtu.be/Qobamja3cSM?...

📽️VIDEO: Trump has tried to keep the Epstein Files hidden — but could his fear of their release be far more influential than we realize? I explain what the released emails reveal and how the shutdown may have been a tool for Trump all along. youtu.be/iVJ21BDzJJs?...

I am spending Saturday night writing about all the people Trump is targeting with politically motivated criminal investigations and prosecutions. Legacy media has largely whitewashed these stories with both sides coverage. Subscribe to Democracy Docket now, because I never will. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0

NEW: Russian forces used weather conditions to exploit vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s drone-based battlefield defenses in the Novopavlivka direction, highlighting Ukraine’s need for traditional weapons systems. 🧵(1/7) Read the full update: isw.pub/UkrWar111525 Other Key Takeaways ⬇️

⚡️Pro-Ukrainian partisans sabotage rail equipment in Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast, group claims. The sabotage operation blocked Russian military trains, making them a clear target for a Ukrainian attack, the Atesh partisan group said.

My regular update on global conflict is now available. This week: Russia close to full envelopment of Pokrovsk, and China's plan for long-term confrontation, as well as my recommended war & natsec reads. You can read my full update at the following link: mickryan.substack.com/p/the-battle...

Satellite pictures obtained by TG channel Exilenova confirm substantial damage to the important oil terminal in Novorossiysk, Russia. It completes the picture that the Ukrainian operation against Novorossiysk was a full success.

More pictures of the destruction of the Novorossiysk oil export infrastructure have been released. That blackened and charred pile of scrap metal highlighted in the image was formerly critical oil export measurement equipment. Looks like exports will be stopped for a long time.

🛡️ Ukrainian forces cut off Russian route into Pokrovsk by destroying key road

💔 Russian soldiers execute two Ukrainian POWs in Zaporizhzhia Oblast