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Independent researcher/writer based in Hong Kong since 1997. Reformed academic. My long-form, analytical articles are collected here https://laura-ruggeri.medium.com/ email: lauraru852@yandex.ru
And as expected, the writer of this article can't see, or doesn't want to see, the big elephant in the room. Read the next post for clues. 👉/channel/LauraRuHK/9498
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A huge queue of journalists has formed at Gostiny Dvor in Moscow for President Vladimir Putin's annual year-end summary and Q&A Session. The Q&A session was started by Putin in 2001 and has since become a tradition. ▪️The Russian president will cover the current situation in the country, answer journalists and citizens’ questions, express his views on various topics of domestic and international importance.
The call center has already received over 1.8 million requests. For the first time, artificial intelligence helps to process requests.
As the press secretary of the president Dmitry Peskov noted, Russians are mainly interested in issues related to healthcare, transport infrastructure and the economy. Questions are received not only from Russia, but also from other countries. /channel/zvezdanews/152471
Creating BRICS own system of payments and settlements is not hypothetical, but real, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and BRICS Sherpa Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview.
This plan is now on the table and is not dollar substitution in all settlements. It is the creation of an additional circuit for work in conditions when the dollar channel is failing for reasons beyond the control of BRICS.
"We also need clearing mechanisms - we are also working on them - transaction insurance systems, including insurance for the movement of goods and cargoes, which would also not depend on harmful external influences," the Deputy Foreign Minister noted.
According to Ryabkov, "all together this is the minimum that could allow the 'BRICS' to say that things have moved forward and a real alternative has emerged." (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK
NATO is going to play a more direct role to ensure the war against Russia won't stop under Donald Trump. Reuters reports that NATO is taking over coordination of Western military support to Ukraine. This criminal 'protection racket' will continue to bleed European vassals and fatten the US military-industrial complex. @LauraRuHK
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Tonight i'll have a fantastic opportunity to hear world-renowned Russian musicians Denis Matsuev and Yury Bashmet, opera singers Ildar Abdrazakov and Olga Peretyatko, and Hong Kong opera singer Warren Mok play at an open-air concert venue in Hong Kong. The event is part of the 2024-25 Russian-Chinese Years of Culture which i wrote about in this long article. https://medium.com/p/ced41a872084
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The BBC is whitewashing terrorism...again! Igor Kirillov and his aide Ilya Polikarpov were killed outside a residential building at a time when people were going to work, children were heading to school. Would these presstitutes talk about a "legitimate target" if the explosion occurred in London?
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Sources in Ukraine's security services (SBU) have admitted the SBU is behind the terrorist attack that claimed the lives of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov and his aide, Ilya Polikarpov. ▪️Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev warned
"Attempts to intimidate our nation, stop the Russian offensive or sow fear are doomed. Certain punishment awaits Banderite Nazis, including the top military and political leaders of a crumbling country. This terrorist attack demonstrates the agony of the Banderite regime, which is struggling to justify its shaky existence in the eyes of its Western patrons and prolong the deadly hostilities while delivering cowardly attacks."
Rumours about the construction of a gas pipeline from Qatar to Turkey and further to Europe have grown to the size of an almost tangible reality. Sergey Savchuk separates the grains of truth from the chaff of hype. To begin with, the project to build a gas pipeline from Qatar towards Europe was discussed several years before the Arab Spring. That is, in the mid-late noughties. At that time,
two options for laying the gas pipeline were discussed. The first route under discussion was from Qatar to Turkey via Saudi Arabia and Iraq. In the second scenario, the pipe was to run through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and then to Turkey. The option of building an LNG liquefaction terminal on the Syrian coast for its subsequent transportation by sea to Europe was speculatively considered.
Both then and as of the end of 2024, all these calculations remained purely theoretical, not a single binding document was signed. There are a number of problems. Firstly, when drawing lines on the map, everyone forgot to ask the opinion of the owner of the key logistics hub, namely Saudi Arabia. Just as it was forgotten that in 2017 Riyadh partially, and in 2019 completely terminated diplomatic relations with Doha. The Saudis accused their neighbors of deliberately patronizing and consolidating various terrorist groups whose goal is to destabilize the region and overthrow the current Saudi dynasty. Saudi Arabia, with the support of the UAE and Bahrain, imposed a trade blockade on Qatar. 80 percent of food to Qatar was supplied through the Saudis, as a result of which there was a real food crisis in the country, Qatari oil fell in price, and the local rial depreciated to a ten-year low.
In 2021, air traffic between the countries was restored, but relations are still far from warm. Secondly, Doha has never shown a strong desire to switch to pipeline gas. Over the past twenty years, Qatar has tripled its own liquefied natural gas production capacity. Investments totalling $ 65 billion, and according to the plan, should increase production from the current 77 to 142 billion cubic meters by 2030. For the same period, it has planned to launch six QC-Max megatankers. They are ordered by the Chinese shipbuilding company CSSC, and after the completion of the contract, Qatar will have its own fleet of 128 gas carriers, including the 24 mentioned QC-Max mastodons. Qatar has already invested over eight billion dollars in the creation of the fleet. Thirdly, it is absolutely unclear at whose expense this entire pipe banquet is planned. Qatar spends money on the development of LNG and gas carriers, since the lion's share of its exports goes to the Asia-Pacific region. Turkey, as the main potential beneficiary, is floundering in a storm of 70% inflation. The main beneficiaries would be the European Union and its companies. The EU badly needs cheaper gas. But it takes years to build gas pipelines and bank loans are taken for each such project with a minimum horizon of 10-15 years. However, banks before allocating money want to see signed long-term contracts that guarantee the operation of the infrastructure. Fourth, today no one can guarantee the safety of critical facilities in Syria: the opposition that has taken power conditionally controls only large cities, and uncontrolled armed chaos is taking place in all other territories.
Such a significant factor as the Kurds, of whom about 28 million live in Turkey and the Syrian border lands, cannot be thrown out of this equation. This is roughly comparable to the current population of Ukraine. It is impossible to count on a peaceful solution to the long-standing problem, and therefore the existence of any projects in favor of Turkey in the direct reach of the Kurdish armed groups is under a very big question mark.
In general, the Middle East is a boiling cauldron, and if the gas pipeline project is ever implemented, it will certainly not be in the near foreseeable future. @LauraRuHK https://ria.ru/20241217/siriya-1989547190.html
Russia must be prepared for conflict with NATO – defense minister
The “tough struggle” between Moscow and the US-led military bloc continues to intensify, Andrey Belousov has said
A direct clash between Russia and NATO could happen within the next ten years and the country must be prepared for it, Defense Minister Andrey Belousov has said.
He was speaking at a meeting of top defense officials in Moscow on Monday, which was chaired by commander-in-chief, President Vladimir Putin. Belousov said the Russian military had executed its tasks in the Ukraine conflict and elsewhere this year against the backdrop of a “tough struggle with the collective West.”
Moscow’s ongoing standoff with the US and its allies “continues to intensify and expand,” he warned.
In such conditions, one of the main goals for the Russian Defense Ministry “is ensuring full readiness for any development of the situation in the medium term,” the minister said.
This includes “a possible military conflict with NATO in Europe in the next decade,” he added.
The possibility of such a conflict is “indicated by the decisions that were made at the NATO summit in July. This is also reflected in the doctrinal documents of the US and other NATO countries,” he explained.
He noted that NATO was currently switching to a new combat readiness system that is expected to allow it to deploy a 100,000-strong grouping along Russia’s western borders within ten days, a 300,000-strong grouping within a month, and a 800,000-strong grouping within 180 days.
In the final declaration of its summit in Washington, NATO member states pledged to continue supporting Ukraine in its conflict with Russia. The document blamed Moscow for seeking to “fundamentally reconfigure the Euro-Atlantic security architecture.” The bloc’s members also described Russia as “the most significant and direct threat to allies’ security” that “will persist into the long term.”
During his speech at the same meeting, Putin said the US was seeking “to weaken our country and inflict a strategic defeat” on Russia by continuing “to pump a de facto illegitimate ruling regime in Kiev with weapons and money, sending mercenaries and military advisers, thereby encouraging further escalation of the conflict.” Washington’s strategy is to deliberately “push us to the red line” and, when Moscow begins to respond, use it to “frighten their population,” he said. (Source: RT) @LauraRuHK
In this letter Bashar Assad explains that he remained in Damascus until the morning of December 8 and had no plans to leave the country. https://x.com/SputnikInt/status/1868641024773661147/photo/2
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Looking Forward to ASEAN-BRICS Synergy: Southeast Asia in a Multipolar World
The 15th Asian Conference of the Valdai Club was held in Kuala Lumpur on December 9-10, 2024. The event was organized in partnership with the Bait Al-Amanah Foundation (Malaysia), the Sasakawa Peace Foundation (Japan) and the Institute for Strategic Analysis and Policy Research (INSAP, Malaysia). It was attended by over 100 experts, including high-ranking guests – Malaysian Foreign Minister Dato’ Seri Utama Haji Mohamad Bin Haji Hasan and Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Andrey... Read more »
Washington is trying to bring the Asia-Pacific region into NATO's orbit and pit states against each other. Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev devoted an article to Taiwan and the West's attempts to divide and rule the Asia-Pacific region. "The Anglo-Saxons have set themselves a specific political goal to comprehensively reformat 'Taiwan's identity.’ This would make it possible to erode the principle of one China, declare Taiwan's independence under the Kosovo scenario and undermine the status quo in the Taiwan Strait. Next up would be to create an outpost in East Asia that would be formally dependent on the US."
According to the official, the plan is "quite in line with Washington's aspirations to bring the Asia-Pacific region into NATO's orbit and pit states against each other."
Medvedev said that in order to achieve these goals, "the tools that are employed include the cultivation of local nationalism and the promotion of pro-Western values and ideas that are alien to Chinese traditional national culture." These tactics are similar to those that are used in Ukraine, according to the official.
Medvedev said the Anglo-Saxons, in addition to funneling arms into Taiwan, deliberately turn a blind eye to the efforts of Taiwan's administration aimed at the de-Sinification of the island by implementing a policy of nurturing the so-called "Taiwanese identity" (or "Taiwanese self-consciousness") - the self-identification of its inhabitants as the Taiwanese detached from their Chinese roots. According to Medvedev, there are efforts to back up this idea with various Taiwan-centric pseudoscientific concepts, such as the concept of the Taiwanese nation and its variations in the form of the theories of the Taiwanese nation by blood, Taiwanese nation by culture, the political and economic Taiwanese nation, a new rising nation, and a community of common destiny - all of which were first put forward in the early 2000s.
The Chinese culture is cast as just one of many cultures on the island, which supposedly doesn’t form the core of Taiwanese cultural identity. The efforts of the current Taiwanese authorities to highlight the differences between the island’s and mainland languages look like an integral part of attempts to create a Taiwanese identity, according to Medvedev. @LauraRuHK Read more here https://tass.com/politics/1887229
More than 84,000 Russians visited Hong Kong between January and September this year—a 153% increase compared to the same period last year. And this trend keeps growing. That explains why on the hiking trails of the small island where i live, a 25 min. ferry ride away from Hong Kong island, i come across Russian tourists every day. And if you are in Moscow you must have noticed the presence of Chinese tour groups. In the first half of 2024, the number of tourists visiting Moscow from countries outside the CIS increased by 70% compared to the same period last year. Among the largest groups of visitors were tourists from China, Turkey, and India. @LauraRuHK
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Russia hits Ukraine's power grid after Kiev attacks airfield in Taganrog with ATACMS
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the attack was carried out with the help of high-precision long-range airborne and sea-based weapons, as well as strike drones.
- In the morning, an air alert went off throughout Ukraine. Explosions occurred in several areas, including the Lvov Region.
- Ukrenergo announced restrictions on power supply.
- Infrastructure damage was reported in a number of regions.
- Russian missile strikes hit a UAV production facility in the city of Borispol and a Ukrainian heavy equipment repair facility in Pereyaslavl, said Vladimir Rogov, Chairman of the Civic Chamber Commission on Sovereignty, Patriotic Projects, and Support of Veterans.
- According to him, more than 120 attacks using various weapons, including hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, were carried out.
- Rogov added that the Russian Armed Forces had launched a missile strike on the facilities of an airport in Kiev, where pilots of F-16 fighter jets were undergoing training. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK
⚡️A suspect in the terrorist attack in Moscow, in which Igor Kirillov and his aide were killed, has been detained.
He is a citizen of the Republic of Uzbekistan born in 1995.
During the interrogation, he explained that he had been recruited by the Ukrainian special services.
He rented a carsharing vehicle to watch the house of General Igor Kirillov.
A surveillance camera was installed in the car and the attack was broadcast online to his handlers in the city of Dnipro.
The perpetrator was promised a reward of USD 100 thousand and a free pass to a European country. /channel/rt_russian/224517
BRICS member states would gain from the establishment of an informal human rights organization within the association, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and BRICS Sherpa Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with TASS.
"BRICS is widely recognized and popular, as evidenced by the fact that many have started using this label or 'trademark' for their own initiatives," Ryabkov said, summarizing the outcomes of Russia's presidency in the association. "I am not sure that this adds momentum — but if it does, it may be useful to create an informal network that would bring together all those who regularly engage in such activities on a professional basis. This is another area where we need an objective perspective, free from the distortions of Western ideology," Ryabkov noted. (Source: TASS) @LauraRuHK
Ahrar Al Sham were responsible for some of the worst sectarian massacres in #Syria .
Nubbul and Zahraa:
The terrorists of al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham launched heavy attacks against the Syrian forces in the Southern parts of Hama province, occupied the town of Zara and killed most of its residents.
Facing the surprise offensive, the Syrian troops were forced to withdraw from Zara towards Hor Benafseh town.
The sources affiliated to the terrorists confirmed occupation of Zara, and local sources said that a number of families, including women and children, residing in the small town were massacred by the militants and others were held captive.
2024:
Ahrar al Sham leader Amir al Sheik appointed as Governor of Countryside of Damascus.
Former Ahrar al Sham leader Hassan Suffan appointed as Governor of Lattakia.
Former PM of Salvation Government Fawwaz Hilal appointed as Governor of Aleppo.
🇺🇳 UN Adopts Russian Resolution to Combat Neo-Nazism 🇷🇺
The UN General Assembly has adopted a Russian-led resolution aimed at combating neo-Nazism. The vote breakdown:
🔹 119 countries supported the resolution.
🔹 53 countries voted against, including Germany, Italy, Canada, the USA, Ukraine, and Japan.
🔹 10 countries abstained.
So there it is, Washington, Berlin, and Kiev voting against a resolution to combat neo-Nazism. The irony is almost unbearable. Germany’s historical memory conveniently erased, Ukraine’s role as NATO’s extremist proxy exposed, and the “rules-based order” revealing itself yet again: when it’s not useful, principles don’t apply.
The West, voting with Nazi apologists, isn’t just hypocrisy but a declaration. The lines are drawn, and the Global Majority has spoken: there’s no place for the dark ghosts of the 20th century in a multipolar future.
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Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzia at the meeting of the UN Security Council.
"No schemes for freezing the conflict will suit Russia. The example of the Minsk agreements have fully convinced us that neither the West, nor the Kiev junta, can be trusted. And we understand well that the purpose of this exercise is to give the Kiev regime a much needed respite on the battlefield in order to rearm and lick its wounds."Читать полностью…
❓Why is America beefing up its military grip on Guam & other unincorporated US territories?
Washington is pouring billions into a military build-up on its unincorporated organized territory of Guam.
Here’s a brief breakdown:
⚪️The 2025 National Defense Authorization Act proposes over US$2 billion in spending for Guam, citing its proximity to China.
⚪️The first 100 US Marines from the Okinawa base in Japan were relocated to Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz on December 14, with more to follow.
⚪️The US Missile Defense Agency successfully intercepted an intermediate-range ballistic missile launched by the Aegis Guam System during a maiden test at Andersen Air Force Base.
What are unincorporated US territories?
The term refers to territories with their own local governments, where portions of the US Constitution may be suspended (such as automatic US citizenship).
Check out other unincorporated US territories:
⚪️Puerto Rico: Home to Fort Buchanan and the Punta Borinquen Radar Site, with ports and airstrips. The island provides significant numbers of servicemen to all branches of the US military. It also serves as a federal tax haven, offering incentives that make manufacturing cheaper.
⚪️The Northern Mariana Islands: Will receive $800 million as part of a US military upgrade, including an airport rehabilitation project, a joint combat training site, and wharf improvements for vessels at Tinian Harbor, according to Joint Task Force-Micronesia.
⚪️US Virgin Islands: Located in the Caribbean, these islands host the Air National Guard on St. Croix and offer a strategic location with access to major North and South American markets.
⚪️American Samoa: A strategic naval outpost with one of the South Pacific’s largest and most highly protected natural harbors at Pago Pago. The US Army recruiting station here ranked first in enlistment for 2021.
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🇪🇺🇸🇾 The EU’s “Conditions” for Syria: Sanctions, Surrender, and the Smell of Betrayal
The European Union, faithful lapdog to its Zionist-DC masters, dangles a poisoned carrot in front of Syria: lift the crushing sanctions, but only if Russian troops withdraw. Bloomberg reports Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp's conditions with a straight face: Syria’s sovereignty must be exchanged for submission, Russian bases dismantled, and the terrorists-for-hire of HTS must respect “minority rights.” Yes, the same HTS, fresh off its rebranding spree, whose hands drip with the blood of innocents.
But let’s not pretend there's sovereignty on the table, either way. If Russia were to leave, does anyone believe that the EU’s technocratic elite, servants to Tel Aviv’s ambitions and Washington’s empire, would usher in a Syria reborn? No. The terrorists would deliver exactly what’s expected of them: another Libya. A failed state, torn apart, and the people? Collateral damage.
Western-led regime change has one track record, one pattern, and one guarantee: chaos. Not once, not once has the regime-change playbook improved lives, brought security, or delivered freedom. Instead, it creates carcasses. It breeds playgrounds for imperial vultures to feast and terrorist proxies to train for their next Western-sponsored adventure. Iraq. Libya. Afghanistan. Syria, each intervention a bellwether for deeper suffering and greater betrayal.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t about lifting sanctions to “help” Syria. This is about dismantling the Resistance. It’s about resources, oil, gas, water and the theft of a nation’s future, leaving the wreckage for vassals to squabble over. And while Europe plays diplomat, it’s only stripping off the mask. The stench of betrayal is impossible to ignore.
The silver lining? Perhaps more will wake up. Perhaps the world will finally smell the rot emanating from these so-called liberators.
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⚡️ IGOR KIRILLOV, THE HEAD OF THE NUCLEAR, CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL PROTECTION TROOPS OF THE ARMED FORCES OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION, WAS KILLED IN AN EXPLOSION ON RYAZANSKY PROSPEKT IN MOSCOW. Another man also lost his life in this terror attack. According to some reports an explosive device was hidden in a scooter near the entrance of a residential building. (Source: RIA Novosti)
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The pie is shrinking. Liberal extremists squabble among themselves after mismanaging the economy - Canadian Finance Minister and notorious Ukronazis cheerleader Chrystia Freeland quit after clashing with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on issues including how to handle possible US tariffs. Freeland quit just hours before she was due to present an economic update to parliament. The document showed the minority Liberal government had run up a 2023/24 budget deficit of C$61.9 billion, ($43.45 billion) - about 50% more than what was projected and missing one of the three key fiscal objectives Chrystia Freeland had set to achieve. @LauraRuHK
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In this interview with Al Mayadeen Prof. Karaganov offers his views on the use of nuclear and non-nuclear deterrence as a wake-up call to the West to restore common sense, and underlines Russia’s continuing pivot away from the West to the East and the South. "Sooner or later, we will restore some of our relations with the West, all the more with the culture – as we are largely a European country. Of course, with very special traits. And we do not share current post-European and post-human values. But politically and socially, we are more Asian. We are the proud heirs of two great civilisations: one was Mongol and the second was Byzantine." I am glad that Prof. Karaganov, among others, is prompting a critical reassessment of the much demonized Mongol empire. Its contribution in connecting the eastern and western worlds via expanded trade routes and diplomatic relations deserves to be acknowledged as it influenced the political development of China, Russia, Iran, Turkey, India, and other countries. It also contributed to the promotion of religious tolerance and interfaith dialogue, diffusion of art forms such as painting, calligraphy, music, literature, architecture and paved the way for scientific advances throughout Eurasia. @LauraRuHK https://eng.globalaffairs.ru/articles/navigating-the-fog-karaganov/
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🗳 Georgian parliament, not the people, to elect president – first time in history
On December 14, for the first time in Georgia's history, the president will be chosen by an electoral college in parliament, rather than by popular vote.
The only candidate is former football player and current MP Mikheil Kavelashvili, nominated by the ruling Georgian Dream party.
Opposition parties that entered parliament following the election results have refused to engage with the legislature, calling the elections fraudulent, and have not put forward any candidates.
Acting President Salome Zurabishvili has insisted that she will not step down. She reaffirmed her intention to remain in office a day before the election, also declaring herself the only legitimate representative of power in Georgia.
On Saturday, a panel of 300 parliamentarians and deputies will elect the new president for a five-year term in the Georgian parliament building. The entire process will be broadcast live on the parliament's website and on social media.
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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said China supports peace efforts in Syria and a rebuilding plan that meets the wishes of the people. Wang made the remarks when asked about China's views on the current situation in Syria during a joint press conference with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty after the China-Egypt foreign ministers' strategic dialogue in Beijing on Friday.
We support Syria in realizing peace at the earliest, implementing Security Council resolution 2254, advancing the domestic political process in accordance with the principle of 'Syrian-led, Syrian-owned', and finding a rebuilding plan that meets the wishes of the people through inclusive dialogue,"
Syria today reminds me of "Theater of the World", a disturbing work by Huang Yong Ping. The conceptual artist filled a large, cage-like structure with insects and reptiles that fought for survival and devoured each other for the duration of the exhibition. @LauraRuHK
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"Expect power outages" - the population of NATO countries has to be convinced that the enemy is at the gate. In Germany, for instance, The Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK) is advising people to prepare for the failure of essential infrastructure. "I appeal to the citizens: Prepare for emergencies, this can also be a prolonged power outage," BBK Vice President René Funk told the portal "t-online". Emergencies do not have to occur, but they are possible at any time."
"Every German household should be equipped so that it can take care of itself independently for three days," Funk recommended. This also applies to prolonged power outages. "Many people don't think about what would then no longer work: the light, the stove, some of the water supply, the Internet, the ATMs."
The preparations do not have to cost much, Funk continued,"light sources that are not dependent on electricity – for example, battery-operated lamps, candles or matches" are important. Funk recommended to stockpile 1.5 liters of water per day and person, as well as food that doesn't require cooking. @LauraRuHK https://www.spiegel.de/panorama/bundesamt-fuer-bevoelkerungsschutz-menschen-in-deutschland-sollen-sich-auf-notlagen-vorbereiten-a-e163da86-1a9f-42d2-907c-7b3bc442d406