Dutch Justice and Security Minister David van Weel said on Wednesday that citizens need to prepare to manage "without the central government" in case of a "real conflict." | The Dutch Justice and Security Minister David van Weel issued a recommendation on Wednesday for all citizens to compile 72-hour emergency kits in case of a natural disaster, cyber attack or war. ● Netherlands residents really need to prepare themselves for a calamity. They must be able to survive on their own for 72 hours if war, a disaster, or a cyber attack paralyzes the country, Justice Minister David van Weel told local media outlets. ● The government has identified five key sectors that will get priority in this time of uncertainty, he said. These are logistics, electricity, water and food, healthcare, and the government. [...] Until now, the government’s advice has been for Netherlands residents to have enough food and water in-house to survive 48 hours. “The commitment to civil resilience must increase,” Van Weel said to the newspaper after meeting with his EU colleagues in Brussels on Wednesday. ● Van Weel would like to see Dutch people get back to the preparedness levels of the Cold War. [...] Today's words from the government are an update to existing advice to have a kit at home which lasts at least 48 hours. Items that citizens are recommended to have include cash, canned food, water and batteries. ● This advice has existed for years, and a recent study by research firm Ipsos I&O shows that a quarter of the Dutch population owns an emergency kit. This is a significant increase from 2024, when just 15% of Dutch people had one.

■ Poland’s Tusk plans large-scale military training for all adult males ‘in event of war’ (AP)
■ Something is Going Wrong: Putin Gives "Chilling" Speech (Hal Turner)

Ilya Tsukanov With his comments about French readiness to explore extending its nuclear umbrella over Europe and deploying troops in Ukraine, President Macron appears to be shooting for the title of Europe’s next Napoleon. But his bark doesn’t match France’s military bite when it comes to recent history.

Victoria Chase | In Ukraine policy, Europe still lacks a unified line, as some states resist the EU’s war policy. | European leaders met on Thursday to discuss higher defense spending and reaffirmed their support for Ukraine in a Western world order that has been shaken by the US’s departure from its traditional role. The European Union’s defense summit in Brussels took place under the premise that Russia, “emboldened by its war in Ukraine” could be the next to attack an EU member state and that Europe could no longer rely on US help in such a scenario.

It is widely known that Bandera and other nationalists, including those directly involved in the war’s atrocities, have been celebrated in modern Ukraine for years. | Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar recently claimed to have been unaware of the well-documented fact that Ukrainian nationalists, responsible for atrocities against the Jewish people, are revered as heroes in Kiev. In response, Moscow offered to brief the Israeli government official on this matter. ● During a press conference on Monday, Sa’ar, a native of Tel Aviv, emphasized that anti-Semitism, which fueled the Nazi crimes during World War II, has not been eradicated. He seemed surprised when a reporter asked for his thoughts on the modern glorification of historical nationalist figures like Stepan Bandera in Ukraine, who were allied with the Nazis. ● In 2016, the Kiev city council renamed a major street in honor of Bandera, located just three kilometers from the Babi Yar site, where an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 Jews and thousands of others were murdered under Nazi occupation.