President Biden wants every allocated dollar spent by the time he leaves office, Jake Sullivan has said
Outgoing US President Joe Biden will use every opportunity to deliver more weapons to Ukraine in the final days of his administration, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has pledged.
With 50 days left, the Biden administration is working to “get Ukraine all the tools we possibly can to strengthen their position on the battlefield,” the senior official told ABC News on Sunday.
“President Biden directed me to oversee a ma...moressive surge in the military equipment that we are delivering to Ukraine so that we have spent every dollar that Congress has appropriated to us by the time that President Biden leaves office,” he said.
President-elect Donald Trump has claimed that he could end the Ukraine conflict in 24 hours after he is sworn in on January 20. Biden’s stated strategy has been to stand with Ukraine “for as long as it takes” to defeat Russia.
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White House comments on nukes for Ukraine
Kiev will eventually have to engage Moscow diplomatically, Sullivan acknowledged on Sunday, and the purpose of the US military aid is to “give Ukraine as many tools as possible so that they could go into that negotiation and feel they could achieve the outcome that they would like to see.”
Ukraine’s stated goal has been to retake all lands it claims under sovereignty, an aim that Russia considers detached from reality. When asked by anchor Jonathan Karl about the possibility of territorial concessions, Sullivan said it was up to Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky to decide that. He mused that the “key thing” in the situation is that Ukraine’s destiny should “not be imposed by outside powers, including the United States.”
In 2022, Kiev and Moscow preliminarily approved a draft peace agreement that would have ended the hostilities in exchange for Ukraine renouncing its ambition to join NATO and accepting a cap on the strength of its army. Russia was willing to offer it security guarantees in exchange.
READ MORE: Boris Johnson admits Ukraine conflict is a ‘proxy war’
However, Kiev dropped the proposal after then-British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the Ukrainians to “just fight,” as Kiev’s top negotiator later put it. Western officials have denied that the Ukrainian government was pushed to continue fighting, though Johnson last week described Ukrainian soldiers as “our proxies” as he urged giving them more arms to “do the job.”...
The United States is not considering returning to Ukraine the nuclear weapons it gave up after the Soviet Union collapsed, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday (Dec 1). Sullivan made his remarks when questioned about a New York Times article last month that said some unidentif
A former US official said that the terrorist group rampaging through northern Syria is “an asset” of Washington
The US and Israel are responsible for the resurgence of Salafist terrorism in Syria, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has claimed, adding that Tehran will support the efforts by the government in Damascus aimed to to halt the ongoing jihadist offensive.
Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS), the terrorist group formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, attacked government-controlled territory in northern Syria on Wednesday alongside a collection...more of allied militias, breaking a fragile truce brokered by Russia and Türkiye in 2020. By Friday, HTS fighters had entered Aleppo, which had been under Syrian government control since 2016.
In a phone call with his Syrian counterpart, Bassam al-Sabbagh, on Friday, Araghchi called the offensive “an American-Zionist” plot. According to Iran’s PressTV, Araghchi noted that the attack took place immediately after Israel struck a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah in Lebanon, suggesting that Washington and West Jerusalem were using HTS as proxies to strike a blow against Syria’s government, which supports the Palestinian cause.
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Russian jets strike jihadists near Aleppo and Idlib in Syria – military
Araghchi told al-Sabbagh that Iran continues to support the “Syrian government, nation, and army towards fighting terrorism and protecting regional security and stability,” PressTV paraphrased.
Before adopting its current name in 2017, Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham was known as Jabhat al-Nusra. Indirectly armed by the US and allegedly backed by Türkiye, the terrorist group was one of the main factions opposing Bashar Assad’s government during the Syrian Civil War. Russia intervened in the conflict in 2015, helping Damascus retake much of the country from Jabhat al-Nusra, Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS), and dozens of US-supported armed groups deemed “moderate rebels” by Washington.
Iran also played a key role in helping the Syrian government hold back the jihadists, with the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps providing weapons and training to the Syrian Army and sending thousands of military advisers and volunteers to assist Assad’s forces on the battlefield.
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Dozens of civilians killed by militant assault in Syria – UN
While the US waged war against IS fighters in Syria, it overtly supported other anti-Assad militias and covertly backed some jihadist groups. Despite Washington placing a $10 million bounty on the head of Al-Qaeda’s commander in Syria in 2013, current US National Security Adviser and then-State Department staffer Jake Sullivan had written to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton several months earlier, explaining that “AQ [Al Qaeda] is on our side in Syria.”
Al-Qaeda’s Syrian commander, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, broke ties with the organization in 2016 and went on to lead HTS. In an interview in 2021, Former US Special Representative for Syria Engagement James Jeffrey described HTS as “an asset” to American strategy in Syria, saying that supporting the jihadist commander was “the least bad option” for keeping Idlib out of Syrian government control.
While the US officially considers al-Jolani a ‘Specially Designated Global Terrorist&rsqu...
The parade is over. The plates have been cleared. The family is gone, and you're full. Not just on turkey, mashed potatoes, and whatever cranberry atrocity is traditional for your clan, but also just full up on the holiday cheer. Sure, there's plenty of funny Thanksgiving TV specials to indulge in, family-friendly Belcher antics to binge-watch, and even Christmas movies to marathon. But maybe you're hungering for something dark and grim. For this acquired taste, I recommend biting into Denis Villeneuve's twisted crime-thriller, Prisoners. Why? Well, for starters it's seasonally set. Prisoners ...moreis a Thanksgiving movie from the start. Prisoners begins on a Thanksgiving that no one in this quiet Pennsylvanian town will soon forget. This is a place of cozy Americana, where neighbors gather together for the holiday feast and bring to the table good manners, warmth, and the freshly slaughtered venison from the deer snagged while hunting. Proud patriarch Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) is deeply devoted to his family, doting on his young daughter and intently instructing his teen son that a man's role is as protector, no matter what. So, when his little girl and her best friend Joy go missing — ironically while in search of the "safety whistle" dear old dad gave her — it shatters something inside Keller. As his wife (Maria Bello) crumbles into despair, he cannot leave this missing-persons case up to the police. So while headstrong hotshot Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) chases down leads both winding and grotesque, Keller tails his own prime suspect (Paul Dano). But this leads him down a slippery slope of vigilantism, vengeance, and possible damnation.
Hugh Jackman roughs up Paul Dano in "Prisoners."
Credit: Moviestore / Shutterstock
Long before delving into the world of Dune, Villeneuve absolutely stuffed this film with heralded performers, including David Dastmalchian, Terrence Howard, and Academy Award–winners Viola Davis and Melissa Leo. Each actor sinks their teeth into a drama that oozes with grief, regret, and almost radioactive rage. Prisoners is a tale of rage and vengeance. This intense ensemble engages in a game of cats-and-mice that involves stalking, drugging, battery, torture, and more. Yet Prisoners is not about grisly spectacle. Aaron Guzikowski's riveting screenplay asks the question: In the face of your worst nightmare, how might you behave?While each performance is strong (even more so on a rewatch), the grudge match here is not between Keller and the man he believes took his child. It's between Keller and Loki, two tough-as-nails men who want the same thing but take radically different routes to getting it.
In the face of your worst nightmare, how might you behave?
The growling wrath Jackman channeled into Wolverine feels more dangerous in this context, probably in part because an R-rating means that the film is not restrained by the MPAA's standards when it comes to intense on-screen violence. But Prisoners is not so much visually gory as it is psychologically disturbing. Over the week its story spans, we are helpless witnesses to a good-hearted family man who transforms into an impulsive monster in the face of what he can't control. Though Villeneuve doggedly grounds the film in realistic settings and with a tooth-gritting tone, Prisoners is in part a fable about how wild the world can be, even in our own front yards. Gyllenhaal is the perfect foil to Jackman, delivering a performance that's still fed by...
Jake Loosararian, the 33-year-old co-founder of Gecko Robotics, says he wouldn't have succeeded if he weren't willing to "go into the unknown and the dirty and unexplored."
Moscow has warned that the transfer of such weapons to Kiev would be treated as a nuclear attack
The US is not considering giving Ukraine nuclear arms, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has said. Last month, a New York Times report claimed that some officials in Washington wanted to arm Kiev with atomic weapons.
Speaking to ABC News on Sunday, Sullivan said that the idea is “not under consideration.”
“What we are doing is surging various conventional capacities to Ukraine so that they can effectively defend themselves an...mored take the fight to the Russians, not [giving them] nuclear capability,” he told the network.
Less than two weeks earlier, the New York Times claimed that President Joe Biden “could allow Ukraine to have nuclear weapons again, as it did before the fall of the Soviet Union,” citing anonymous US officials.
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Fyodor Lukyanov: How likely is a nuclear exchange over Ukraine?
The newspaper described the prospect of a nuclear-armed Ukraine as “an instant and enormous deterrent” to Russia, but noted that “such a step would be complicated and have serious implications.”
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev spelled out some of these implications, warning that “transferring such weapons may be considered as the launch of an attack against our country” in accordance with Russia’s recently revised nuclear doctrine.
Russia’s nuclear doctrine allows for the use of atomic weapons in the event of a first nuclear strike on its territory or infrastructure, or if Russia’s sovereignty or territorial integrity is critically threatened by either nuclear or conventional weapons. The most recent iteration of the doctrine also allows Moscow to treat an attack by a non-nuclear state backed by a nuclear power as equivalent to direct nuclear aggression.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the report as the “absolutely irresponsible deliberations by people who probably have a poor understanding…of reality, and who do not feel a shred of responsibility” for the consequences of their proposals.
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Transfer of nukes to Kiev would be viewed as attack on Russia – Medvedev
Ukraine was left with around 1,700 nuclear warheads after the collapse of the Soviet Union. While this stockpile technically made Ukraine the world’s third-largest nuclear power, the weapons themselves remained under the operational control of Russia, and were surrendered under the 1994 Budapest Memorandum. This agreement involved the US, UK, and Russia providing security assurances to Kiev in return for the removal of the arms.
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has expressed regret that his country surrendered its nuclear weapons, declaring in 2022 that Kiev had “every right” to reverse the decision. Back in October, he declared that has only two options to ensure its security: join NATO or obtain nuclear weapons. He later clarified that he considers NATO membership his only choice.
A month later, however, a Ukrainian military think tank called on Zelensky to raid the country’s nuclear reactors for the plutonium needed to craft a “simple atomic bomb,” like the one the US dropped on Nagasaki during the Second World War. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated that Kiev would not heed this advice, and do...
Looking to fuel up your Netflix queue with some high-octane action?Whether you're a fan of wild Westerns, cunning detectives, high-swinging superheroes, ravenous zombies, rowdy thieves, or hard-hitting heroines, Netflix has a movie pitch-perfect for every kind of adrenaline seeker. We know scrolling through the streaming app can be a chore when all you want to do is Netflix and chill. So, we've taken out the hard step by highlighting the most stunt-stuffed, battle-powered, high-speed films the streamer has to offer.
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Here are the 20 best action movies on Netflix, streaming right now. 20. JawsIn 1975, Steven Spielberg gave rise to the blockbuster with this iconic creature feature. Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, and Richard Dreyfuss star as an unlikely trio of sheriff, sea captain, and shark expert. Together, they brave the waters off Amity Island to do battle with a man-eating great white shark. Though not as action-packed as today's blockbusters, this nerve-rattling adaptation of Peter Benchley's beach read was scary enough to drive audiences wild and turn the tide of shark sentiment against the sea beast for decades. Yet nothing in the fear-mongering Shark Week can compete with the man-versus-sea-beast action that goes down here. And every time, you'll be tempted to cheer when Brody snarls, "Smile, you sonovabitch!" —Kristy Puchko, Entertainment EditorHow to watch: Jaws is now streaming on Netflix.19. 21 Jump Street
Credit: Moviestore / Shutterstock
It seemed highly unlikely that anyone could update a ludicrous TV show where grown-ass adult cops go fight crime in high schools into anything resembling a good movie. Yet, somehow Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs helmers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller's live-action debut was equal parts hilarious, smart, bro-ishly sweet (as all Channing Tatum flicks should be), and packed full of action.With a goofily propulsive script by co-star Jonah Hill — back when he was still getting typecast as that Superbad dork — and Michael Bacall, and strong supporting performances by Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, Brie Larson, Holly Robinson Peete, and yes, Ice Cube, 21 Jump Street had its very own mid-aughts moment worth revisiting. And keep your eyes peeled for a now-controversial cameo. — Jenni Miller, Contributing WriterHow to watch: 21 Jump Street is now streaming on Netflix. 18. Bad Boys: Ride or Die
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence return in "Bad Boys: Ride or Die."
Credit: Frank Masi / Sony Pictures
Nearly 30 years after their first adventure as cop buddies Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are back with the Bad Boys' franchise's fourth installment. Bad Boys For Life co-helmers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah also returned, bringing their high-octane brand of action into a stunt-packed epic about loyalty and redemption. When the late Captain Howard (Joe Pantoliano) gets dragged for alleged ties to corruption, it's up to Mike and Marcus to find the truth and clear his name. In her review of this action-comedy, Mashable contributor Monica Castillo praised this rousing return, writing, "Bad Boys: Ride or Die is an entertaining reminder of what made the original movie work all those years ago." — K.P.How to watch: Bad Boys: Ride or Die is now stream...
When it comes to streaming, viewers are spoiled for choice between Hulu, Netflix, Max, Disney+, Apple TV+, Prime Video, Shudder, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. And that's before you even look at the vast libraries of movies and television within each one!Don't be overwhelmed or waste an hour scrolling through your services trying to determine what to watch! We've got your back whatever your mood. Mashable offers watch guides for all of the above, broken down by genre: comedy, thriller, horror, documentary, animation, and more. But if you're seeking something brand spanking new (or new to strea...moreming), we've got you covered there, too.
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Mashable's Entertainment Team has scoured the streaming services to highlight the most buzzed-about releases of this week and ranked them from worst to best — or least worth your time to most watchable. Craving something Christmassy of the Lindsay Lohan-starring persuasion? Hankering to stay afloat with either yacht rock or yacht horror? In need of some wholesome docuseries bliss? Even if you're seeking a Vatican thriller or an animated dream, we've got what you're looking for. Here's what's new on streaming, from worst to best.12. Dead Calm
If you thought you were safe from deranged killers on a yacht in the middle of the ocean, you haven't watched Dead Calm. Directed by Phillip Noyce and produced by Mad Max's George Miller, the film channels a little Cape Fear in the big blue. Sam Neill and Nicole Kidman are grieving parents traumatised from their son's death, and taking some time to heal on their boat. But when a man (Billy Zane) washes up from a nearby sinking ship, they're not ready for the hell he's about to inflict on them. Three boats become the stage for this thriller-horror, as Kidman gives a really strong performance early in her career, despite her character being forced to do whatever she can to survive. It's not one of the best Australian horror movies of all time, but it's decent. — Shannon Connellan, UK EditorStarring: Nicole Kidman, Sam Neill, Billy ZaneHow to watch: Dead Calm is streaming on Shudder Dec. 1.11. Nutcrackers
After rebooting Halloween with a hard-hitting trilogy, director David Gordon Green has pivoted to a heartfelt, family-friendly movie with Nutcrackers. Ben Stiller stars as a metropolitan real-estate-developer, who's lost touch with his rural sister and her free-spirited kids. But when a car collision leaves his nephews orphaned, it's up to Uncle Michael to fill the void. Green found inspiration for the movie in four charismatic siblings he knew in his personal life. This led to him building an Uncle Buck premise around real-life brothers Homer, Ulysses, Atlas Janson, and Arlo Janson. But as I warned out of Nutcrackers TIFF premiere, the feel-good movie Green aspires to make never really comes together. "Sure, the Janson boys are winsome," I wrote, "but there are only so many times the same poop joke works. Perhaps Green didn't allow himself the distance to find the path in this terrain that fascinated him, leaving his audience lost in the ideas or intentions that go nowhere." — Kristy Puchko, Entertainment EditorStarring: Ben Stiller, Linda Cardellini, Edi Patterson, Tim Heidecker, Toby Huss, Homer Janson, Ulysses Janson, Atlas Janson, and Arlo JansonHow to watch: Nutcrackers is now streaming on Hulu and Disney+.10. Our Little Secret
Between 2022's Falling for Christmas and the upcoming Our Little Secret, Lindsay Lohan i...
Christmas movies are about shameless joy, uninhibited sweetness, and guaranteed happy endings. We don’t always have to be challenged. We don’t always have to learn more about the human condition. Sometimes we just want to be happy, and this list of yuletide films, from the classics to the unconventional, are sure to spark that cozy feeling of twinkling lights and sugar plum dreams in your tired, old candy cane bones.The best part? They're all streaming on Hulu, so you can watch 'em ASAP, from the comfort of your very own Grinch cave, er, couch.1. Elf (2003)
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Will Ferrell in "Elf."
Credit: Alan Markfield / New Line Prods / Kobal / Shutterstock
Will Ferrell’s Buddy will stand for no man sitting upon a throne of lies and pretending to be his beloved Santa, and he will launch into a full-on brawl in front of children to prove it. Ferrell playing a full-grown adult man who’s spent his life believing he was an actual elf in the North Pole in Jon Favreau’s Elf is, undoubtedly, peak Christmas comedy. When Buddy finally learns he’s a human who was an orphan, he sets out to find his real father in New York City — and it turns out he's a workaholic publishing exec played by James Caan. There’s epic snowball fights, a romance with Zooey Deschanel, and every kid’s dream: spaghetti candy breakfast. With any other actor in the lead, Elf could have easily been an obnoxious, forgettable family comedy, but it’s Ferrell’s goofball antics and total commitment to the bit that make the film funny as heck, even 20 years later. — Oliver Whitney, Freelance ContributorHow to watch: Elf is streaming on Hulu.2. Die Hard (1988)Forget fresh baked cookies and decorating the tree. The one true way to tap into the Christmas spirit each year is watching Bruce Willis climb elevator shafts and run barefoot through broken glass. It’s December 24, 1988, and NYPD detective John McClane (Willis) has just arrived at the Nakatomi Corporation Christmas party to reconnect with his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia) — ya know, to come out to the coast and have a few laughs. Unfortunately (or rather, fortunately for our viewing pleasure) Alan Rickman’s Hans Gruber has decided to crash the party with his long-haired German henchmen to steal some bearer bonds. “It’s Christmas, Theo,” Hans tells his safecracker. “A time for miracles!” Too bad for him this Christmas miracle arrives in a bloody tank top and sporting a cranky disposition; McClane won’t let these thieves get away easily. — OWHow to watch: Die Hard is streaming on Hulu.3. A Christmas Story (1983)Every kid remembers that one toy they desperately wanted more than anything else for Christmas. It dominates every moment of your young life as you plead for it and shake presents to guess at what's inside. For the nine-year-old Ralphie (Peter Billingsley), that Christmas gift fixation is a BB gun. Unfortunately, everyone from his mom to the local department store's grumpy Santa rejects his wish by looking out for his safety. “You'll shoot your eye out!” they shout.A Christmas Story is in many ways the perfect movie to watch on Christmas Day. It's warm and nostalgic, wacky and playful, and accurately captures a child's view of Christmas. Plus, it's one of a kind — no other holiday movie features a leg lamp, tongues stuck on a frozen pole, and elves shoving screaming children down a giant sli...
Our panel discuss topics related to Jake Paul's quest for a title, Emanuel Navarrete's rematch with Oscar Valdez, a potential Katie Taylor-Amanda Serrano trilogy, and more.
