I am so sorry to hear about Victors passing. He ran a news aggregator that was read by thousands of people per day, year over year.

He was deeply insightful and excellent at communication.

What happened to Victor? He was healthy and never indicated that he was at risk.

Very sorry to hear about Victors passing. I did not know him personally but I read his War News Updates blog ever day for the past 10 years. He leaves a huge void to be filled. My deepest condolences to his family and friends.

Shocked and saddened to view the news of Victor's passing. I also read his War News Updates blog every day. His analysis was thoughtful and prescient. He seemed a gentle man, devoted to his mother and girlfriend and loved by his family. My kindest condolences to his friends and family.

Eternal rest, grant unto him, O LORD, And let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. Amen.

This man was a gem. A rarity in his field. I followed his blog for many years. He was both insightful and honest in his analysis. He will be dearly , and I mean dearly, missed.

But one thing you should know as one of his family members. He loved you all dearly. His comments about you were always full of concern and respect. He mentioned your trials and worries in the last three years with sadness. He also told how he was trying to help people, many who he did not even know. This man was a caring humanitarian. He loved you, and you can be proud of him.

Victor, as I said many times before, May a merciful God bless you and send his guardian Angels to you and your family to watch over you.

I will miss you., buddy

Maybe we shall meet again. We shall see.

Mr. Nobody

I'm so so sad to hear this. I have been following Victor's work for 15 years and the things I've learned were of tremendous benefit. His insights into conflict, geopolitics, and history were and are a rarity these days; his work helping those affected by war - commendable. My heart goes out to Victor's friends and family; we've lost a key pillar.

I followed Victor for many years on his war news updates blog. It was an invaluable source of information. My go too on a daily basis. He truly seemed to be a good man. I always enjoyed reading his opinions and insights on the goings on of the world, as well as his personal and family stories. His death is an immeasurable loss and I will mourn him. My deepest condolences to his mother, girlfriend, and all family and friends.

Wow.. I am shocked.. I was folllowing war news update daily for over a decade. His insight on world affairs was very fascinating. He will be missed.

My heart goes out to Victor's family and loved ones. I cannot describe how saddened I am to hear this tragic news.

I've followed his news blog religiously since probably 2009. It is my most visited site on the Internet. I often find my self going there repeatedly to re read articles and explore linked content Victor would share.

His commentary on certain posts was Always my favorite part. I think he and I had a similar viewpoint and outlook on things as did several of us that read the blog daily. It feels just like losing a close family member now. I will miss hearing from Victor on his blog and elsewhere so much. It's hard to describe. God bless you Victor and Res tIn Peace Adam

I will deeply miss his observations on current events—and his wisdom on the nature of life and the world. I cannot imagine his family’s grief. Thank-you, WNU Editor.

I am one of victors WNU followers. His blog was the first and last thing I would read every day for the last 10years. To call him irreplaceable, would be an understatement. He never missed a day without letting us know why, in advance. So it was easy to understand why his comment section started growing with comments from readers concerned about his well being. Many of us have spent the week digging around on the internet, attempting find answers, only to find his picture on this website thursday morning, confirming our worst fears. I will miss him and his blog greatly. If at all possible could we request a final update about victors passing from his family either on his blog or publicly available on his FB for his followers? My condolences to his friends and family. RIP Victor.

I have followed Victor for over 15 years. His dedication to his followers was nothing short of admirable. I was devestated to hear he passed away. I will miss him very much. Rest easy, old friend.

Very sorry for your loss. I have been reading Victors blog over 10 years. He was honest, caring and intelligent. He will be truly missed. God Bless.

OMG, shocked to hear about Victors sudden passing. I've been following him since roughly 2008. I will miss him dearly for his insight and all the work he did aggregating this. Victor is irreplaceable.

Big loss to us all.

Thank-you so much WNU Editor for keeping us informed and for your commentary, you will be missed.

Victor has been one of the most influential people in my life over the past 16 years even though I never met him. My condolences to his family and friends. The world has lost a very valuable man and he will be greatly missed.

God Bless you Victor. You truly have made a lasting impact on many people worldwide. Your blog and your analysis have been my go-to site for quality information and news since I was 15. I send my loving condolences to your family and friends who have lost a tremendous human being in their lives.

You will be missed.

Victor cared. For his family. For those in need. For thousands of strangers worldwide who followed his work and read his thoughts and opinions. It takes a great amount of effort to merely conduct oneself in life, and yet Victor also managed his multiple websites and always apologised to complete strangers for his absence when he owed them nothing. For circa fourteen years I have followed you, Victor, and enjoyed learning from you. Go with God, Victor. You will be missed.

R.I.P Victor, one of the most insightful, intelligent, compassionate freelance journalist / bloggers I've ever known, a respected former Russian diplomat, living in the chalet of Quebec. Well respected in the community. When you have the white house viewing your blog you know you've made an impact. He will be missed. I thoroughly enjoyed sharing articles with him. This man was one of my trusted sources for foreign politics. His analysis on world conflicts would prove to come true.

If you didn't know this man it's a shame. He was responsible for organizing medicinal relief to Ukraine, helped a great many of Ukrainian refugees. Ran one of the largest e-libraries on the web.. Damn.

Victor thank you for keeping the community informed and you will forever be missed. I made it a daily routine to check your blog to keep up to date; to see imminent stories that I might have missed.

Rest in power.

“Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.” Jesus (Matthew 5:4 )

Thank you so much for all your kind words about a man who was very much loved by me and my girls. It warms my heart knowing I was the last to speak with him….if I would have known that it was the last time I would have never hanged up and I would have told him I love you over and over. What I would do right now to hear his voice, his laugh, his I love you!! Thank you for allowing me to read your thoughts about a man I have loved for so long.

Sonia xoxo

It such an absolute shame to hear about Victors untimely passing. I didn't want to believe it. My heart goes out to all of his friends and family who are now confronted with this new reality. The news of his passing was very unexpected, and a real shock to everyone who followed his warnewsupdates Blog for years. Victor and all of his extensive and time consuming work has been a part of my daily morning and evening routine for close to 15 years, and I placed a very high value on his content, and appreciated all of the work that he very consistently put into it. It is truly remarkable of him to have done the breadth and scale of work that he did for people he mostly never met. On top of that, his concurrent and selfless efforts with humanitarian aid and refugees, multifaceted advisory work, dedication to his friends/family, along with everything else he had been swamped with in life made it such that his untimely passing at least reflected a fulfilled, highly productive and truly worthwhile life lived. This mans life resume couldn't fit much more before God apparently noticed and decided he needed some big help up there. Damnit Victor, you are going to be missed by so many. I really wish I could have met you in person, but I also couldn't ask you to create a 25 hour day to make that happen. Godspeed my friend, and thanks for everything!

Dear WNU and family, My most sincere condolences. This man whom I've come to know as Victor has had a profound impact on my life. Since 2006 I've been reading his blog daily. His daily posts no longer occurring will have a huge impact on my life and I'm sure of many others. May God rest his soul and comfort yours in this time of need. The world has lost a great man and heaven has gained one. He will forever be in the hearts and minds of many

We will miss Victor. WNU was one of my favorite blogs. Victor spent a lot of time and effort helping displaced peoples as well as doing his blog. He seemed to be one of those people who is admired by all sides; a true diplomat.

Greatly saddened to hear of Victor's passing.

Despite having never spoken directly, through his blog Victor was a daily part in my life. Just as his commentaries and insights kept myself and many others abreast of world affairs, so did they give hint of the person behind them - over the course of more than a decade I got to know a man who clearly cared deeply about his audience, his family and the world at large. Victor was an inspiration in many ways, and to hear the news felt much like the loss of a dear friend of many years.

His passing now leaves the world a much poorer place. My sincere condolences to his friends and family - although it may be scant comfort in this difficult time, know that Victor will be remembered the world over. RIP

I am so sorry to learn of Victor's passing. I tried to read his blog daily and learned a great deal!! My prayers and thoughts are wurh his family and friends during this very difficult time and always.

I'm truly sorry for your loss. Please accept my deepest condolences during this difficult time. Victor will be missed by many, and the impact of his writing and insights will always be remembered. My thoughts are with you and your loved ones.

I am sorry to hear about Victor's passing.

I have been following up with his blog for nearly two decades and I can say Victor's curation and commentary were so insightful that he has helped me better understand the world and geopolotics.

It was also abudantly evident how kind and understanding of different perspectives he was. A really unique mind.

I hope you can find comfort in this time. May Victor rest in peace.

When last Friday I learned of Victor’s death through this webpage, I was crushed.

This might seem strange to outsiders, as I had never met him and had only ever sent him one email message. But I knew him nonetheless.

I have the impression that, in the physical world, he was a very private person. But that was not who he was online.

I started following War News Updates only a few weeks after it launched. Until the summer of 2021, visiting the website was usually the first thing I did online in the morning and often the last at night. News from Ukraine then became too depressing, but nonetheless I continued to visit several times a week and would catch up on what I had missed.

I did not read all the reposted material in his 130-thousand-odd posts. But over the years, I did read EVERYTHING which followed “WNU Editor:”, “Update:”, “My Comment:”, or similar terms and everything he wrote about himself, his family, his friends, maintenance of his chalet, etc., etc., etc. I always found his accounts of his early career in China particularly appealing.

As a result, I knew more about his inner life than I did of all but my closest friends and family. How could I not (with posts such as https://warnewsupdates.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-german-army-invaded-soviet-union-77.html, https://warnewsupdates.blogspot.com/2014/03/russian-summer-military-camp-for-kids.html, and https://warnewsupdates.blogspot.com/2023/11/i-needed-break-tonight.html)?

I long respected Victor’s knowledge and insights, for example, his explanation of the oligarchic nature of the current regime in China (https://warnewsupdates.blogspot.com/2017/06/how-one-family-in-china-pulls-strings.html -- the first and only time I have ever encountered the role the 800 families play). But how he addressed the war in Ukraine, both online (where comments on his reporting were often vile) and his efforts to help the conflict’s innocent victims, whether refugees in Canada or through shipment of medical supplies, instilled in me the greatest admiration.

I cannot deny that I am somewhat misty eyed, writing these few words.

To his family and friends, I offer my deepest condolences. And if you are not familiar with his online presence, primarily in War News Updates, but also in Bookyards and Cool Science News, you should visit them, when you feel yourselves up to it. You will get to hear his voice again.

He will be missed. I read his stuff for years. One of a kind and a kind man

A random google search 10 +years ago landed me with him. His personal connections to everything he posted was such a treat. WNU was my morning and night read. He willed be missed RIP Victor.

Gentlemen,

I also published this on the blog site.

The following message is from: Sonia Rinella

She is Victor's soul mate. The message speaks of Victor.

Start Message

Sonia Please let everyone know on his blog that they are all welcome to reach out to me. I want to know and hear how much he gave an impact in your lives. That part of his world he did not share. I want to travel and meet with you all one day and spend his ashes with our meeting.

Message Ends

She can be reached at her Facebook page. Sonia Rinella

Please contact her. Victor was a quiet, private guy. His experiences on this blog are a mystery to Sonia. She would be very happy to hear about him from all of us.

Regards Sua Sponte

Robert Fausti LTC, IN US Army (ret)

I very much appreciated Victor’s blog. And respected his efforts to help those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. I’ll miss his insights. My condolences to his family.

You will be sorely missed Victor truly a island of honesty in a sea of lies

RIP. I've followed your content for almost a decade, and appreciated your commentary, even when I disagreed. RIP...We've never met, but I feel like I've lost a friend...

My Condolences,

I only knew of him from his blog of which he provided pertinent news and level insight. His untimely passing leaves a void that will surely not be easy to fill.

He will be missed.

I’m so sorry to hear about his Passing, I read his work daily for years and always recommended it. May he rest in peace

Victor's blog post shaped my thinking, views, and knowledge.

I remember telling him on his blog, that I used to dine out on his incredible insights - selflishly passing off his thoughts as my own.

I had a few short online converation with him over the course of 15 years - his blog was my go-to whenever I wanted to know what was really going on in the world.

Above all that, his kindness shone through.
Thank-you, Victor, thank-you.

• Craig

This is such a shock. Victor's blog, WNU, has played a huge role in my life; I've been reading it every day for over 15 years, maybe 20. I never met Victor but we did exchange emails now and then. He was such an extraordinary person. As an analyst of global affairs, he was probably the wisest I've come across (and I work in this field). He was always spot-on and very balanced in his (usually short) comments, and he had great foresight as well as a historical perspective. The sheer amount (and scope) of content on WNU every day was extraordinary. I once asked him what software he uses for collecting all the links and monitoring the news. He told me it's very simple, "I read a lot and I remember everything". He did it all manually. He came across as very generous, and willing to engage and help. He posted links to a couple of things I wrote, when I asked him. Trivial stuff, but he did it. Plus, there was all the human kindness that all of us, WNU readers, could see from his occasional posts about his family (his Mother), or the charity work he did in support of Ukrainian refugees. He promised we'd meet in London if he ever passed through. More recently I had resolved to go to Canada to meet him in person. I still can't believe he's gone and I'll never get the chance... He brought a very special, rare perspective to his analysis, all rooted in his unique background -- with his experience of China as a Soviet diplomat, with his Father's experiences from WW2, and indeed as an ethnic Russian born in Ukraine (if I'm not mistaken). Plus starting a new life in the West, in Canada. All that gave him a well rounded view of the world, which -- to my mind -- accounts for his perceptive insights. He never betrayed even an ounce of hatred or contempt for anyone and anything, always balanced and fair. He loved Canada, his adoptive country, and recorded his sadness at some of the policies of the Trudeau govt; but again, he never launched into any kind of heated comments around politics. Many (or some) readers of WNU were upset by Victor's take on the Ukraine war, i.e. that Zelensky carries much of the blame for not fulfilling the Minsk II accord as he promised, and that Ukraine cannot win. Obviously these are controversial takes in the West; but I thought he was quite right from the start. But above all, he thought the war was a tragedy. You can see his posts from around 24 Feb 2022, I still remember him writing about his vision of "entire cities on fire" etc. He lamented the destruction. He also lamented the increasing Western (esp Ukrainian) propaganda, thinking (correctly in my view) that this leads to mistaken policy decisions. Again, through all this he remained very much a Canadian patriot and devoted to the West, at least from everything he was writing; but he was despairing at the West's on ineptitude. I've never seen a more even-handed analyst of global affairs, and at the same time a more intelligent one than Victor. I thought I had more time to seek his counsel and to come over to meet him. I kept delaying it. His passing saddens me so incredibly much. I feel I haven't just lost an exceptional source of insight (and, through WNU, a tool of great help in my professional life), but also a friend. I don't think I'm exaggerating in saying that his legacy is immense, through all the people who read and loved WNU and Victor's comments. And also, from what one could glean from his occasional posts on the subject, from his charitable work. My condolences to his family. And let them know how appreciated -- indeed, loved -- Victor was, through his WNU. In fact, I would suggest maybe a Memorial Fund might be set up in Victor's name by his family, for some charitable cause. I would certainly be happy to contribute and I think there would be a good response from the rest of the WNU community. It would be a small way for us to give something back, in Victor's memory, for all the priceless insights and information that he shared with us all, for free, for decades.

Very sorry to see about Viktor death. He is WNU editor for me and many, and War News Updates is for many years the top great blog about wars and related news. Also that man was a rare example of professional quality and dedication over heartbreaking conflicts for him and his family. A good analist. And a kind man with sense of justice from his heart.

May you Rest In Peace and bless to your family.

The breadth of global topics Victor covered while simultaneously sharing his views and life made my time reading his blog feel like a coversation with a friend. They say doom-scrolling is bad for ones health but Victor made life online so much more than that.

My Condolences,

I will miss his his intelligent, objectiv and clear sighted analytics.

Intelligence, objectivity and longsightedness is what this world needs so much nowadays ...

RIP. An honest, insightful and most readable chronicler of our times. I will miss his daily report.

I feared the worst, when the blog went silent. I kept visiting the site every couple weeks, in hopes that he would have a message waiting for us all, stating that he had been on an incredible journey and was ready to offer up his benevolent services to us again.

I stumbled across his blog nearly a decade ago, while trying to find an alternative news source outside of the MSM that has become unbearable. There are articles that he shared that were so eye-opening and told the real stories of what was transpiring around the world.

Victor truly had an impact on me and I wish I would have had the pleasure of meeting him, for I would have loved to heard his insights on so many different topics. Thank you for everything, Victor. You will truly be missed by many.

Your friend, whom you never met, Danny

Victor, it has been one year since your passing. I did not know you personally, however, I followed your War News Updates website daily for about 10 years. I made sure to at least see the headline and insights you provided for every post. More often than not, I would also click on every link you provided to the story to try to learn more. Your analysis made me a better and more informed person for world news and international affairs. Even if your posts and insights are in the past, they still bring valuable insights into 2025 and beyond. I have yet to find a blog that is even close to the standard that you made yours and occasionally still check back in to War News Updates. Tomorrow is a new dawn for North America and you had a pulse on what was coming. Thank you for what you did for so many strangers across the world. My condolences to your family and friends. May he Rest in Peace.