Chinese state media calls for the world to sue US over gun crime and ‘terrorism’

A Chinese state-run media outlet published an article this week in which select “experts” called for countries around the world to sue the U.S. for gun crimes and racial unrest that they say is causing terrorism around the world.

On Wednesday, China’s state-run Global Times tabloid cited unnamed “analysts” who said the U.S. should be treated as the “biggest producer of the terrorism” in the world. They further encourage victims around the world to sue the U.S. government through any relevant international legal institutions.

Throughout the article, the Global Times cited unnamed “analysts” and Lü Xiang — a researcher on the U.S. at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences — who argued a link between gun crimes and race-related conflict in the U.S. and violence and war around the world.

“Analysts said the U.S. government who fails to protect its own people from gun shootings and spreads chaos worldwide is the ‘biggest producer of the terrorism,’ whether within or outside the U.S.,” the Global Times article reads.

The article goes on to state, “The [U.S.] president is unable to solve the problem and the two-party political structure of Congress just makes all gun control efforts about ‘fixing the surface’ and a gun ban is impossible for the country with such a special culture and an ‘out-of-date’ Constitution, analysts said.”

Global Times then went on to quote Lü saying U.S. politicians are sincere about addressing gun violence within the country “but on the issue of weapons exports to other countries that would kill non-Americans, U.S. politicians never care, and they even try to maximize their profits.” The article then notes examples of U.S. lawmakers owning stock in U.S. and aerospace firms like Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon

https://americanmilitarynews.com/2022/06/chinese-state-media-calls-for-the-world-to-sue-us-over-gun-crime-and-terrorism/

NATO Chief Says West Must Brace for ‘Long Haul’ in Ukraine

The US and its allies are escalating their support for Ukraine

On Thursday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the military alliance must be prepared to support Ukraine for the “long haul.”

“We just have to be prepared for the long haul,” Stoltenberg said. “Because what we see is that this war has now become a war of attrition.”

Over three months into the war, the military situation is not looking good for Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday that Russia and the Donbas separatists control about 20% of Ukraine’s territory, including the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow took in 2014.

Zelensky also said this week that between 60 and 100 Ukrainian soldiers are dying each day. Stoltenberg said that Ukrainians are “paying a high price for defending their own country on the battlefield, but also we see that Russia is taking high casualties.”

Stoltenberg’s comments came after a meeting with President Biden. Both the NATO chief and Biden have reiterated this week that they don’t seek direct war with Russia, but Western military aid and other support for Ukraine continues to escalate, which risks provoking Moscow.

Neither Stoltenberg nor Biden have shown interest in pushing for a negotiated solution to end the fighting and have made clear that they believe arming Ukraine will give them more leverage in potential talks.

“Most wars — also, most likely this war — will at some stage end at the negotiating table, but what we know is that what happens around the negotiating table is very closely linked to the situation on the ground, on the battlefield,” Stoltenberg said.

The US announced Wednesday a new $700 million weapons package for Ukraine, including High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, known as HIMARS, which are capable of striking targets up to 50 miles away.

https://news.antiwar.com/2022/06/02/nato-chief-says-west-must-brace-for-long-haul-in-ukraine/

US envoy praises White Helmets in Syria

The US Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, has praised the humanitarian contributions made by the Syrian Civil Defence, known as the White Helmets. She also praised the group for documenting war crimes committed by the regime of President Bashar Al-Assad.

According to US spokesperson Olivia Dalton, Thomas-Greenfield met with the head of the White Helmets, Raed Al-Saleh, on Wednesday along with other leaders of the organisation. They discussed "the US commitment to implement all aspects of Resolution 2585 and determination to continue the UN-facilitated cross-border mechanism to address the dire humanitarian situation in Syria."

They also discussed the US announcement of more than $800 million in new humanitarian assistance for the Syrian people at the Brussels VI Conference in May.

The White Helmets were thanked for their contributions to humanity, "including their emergency response efforts, work to document potential war crimes in Syria, and strong network of centres dedicated to serving the needs of women and children." The United States, said the ambassador, is proud to support their lifesaving work.

On 10 January, the UN extended the cross-border mandate contained in Security Council Resolution 2585 for six months. It expires in July.

The White Helmets rose to international prominence due to their contributions towards rescuing civilians in rebel-held areas bombed by the Syrian regime and Russian warplanes with barrel bombs.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20220602-us-envoy-praises-white-helmets-in-syria/

Russia ready to support grain export via ports under its control — Putin

"We will support peaceful carriage, we guarantee security of approaches to these ports, we will support the call of foreign vessels and their traffic in the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea in any direction," the Russian leader said

Russia is ready to support smooth export of Ukrainian grain via ports under its control, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with the Rossiya-1 TV Channel.

"We will support peaceful carriage, we guarantee security of approaches to these ports, we will support the call of foreign vessels and their traffic in the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea in any direction," the Russian leader said.

Russia will not put forward "any conditions," Putin stressed.

"Plenty of vessels are delayed in Ukrainian ports," the Russian leader noted. Dozens of them are there, according to his estimate. "They are merely locked there and, by the way, crews are held there as hostages until now," Putin added.

https://tass.com/politics/1460545

Overdoses Up 700% After Oregon Decriminalizes Hard Street Drugs. Officials Mystified.

In November 2020, Oregon voters approved ballot measure 110, making Oregon the first state in the nation to decriminalize the possession of hard drugs. M110 made the possession of personal use amounts of hard street drugs like heroin or meth punishable by a citation of up to $100, and directed funding to drug treatment programs. The voters bought the argument that the state could better disburse resources to treatment rather than prosecuting offenders criminally. In addition, the citation and fine could be waived if the offender called a hotline that would offer a “health assessment.”

Guess what happened next?

Officials at the Oregon Health Authority testified to legislative committees this week about the results of the program. It isn’t good. According to the Daily Mail:

Oregon’s first-in-the-nation scheme to decriminalize drugs and encourage those caught possessing them to seek medical help has been blighted with problems, officials admitted on Thursday – as one Republican politician said there had been a 700 percent in overdoses in her district in the last year.

Of the 1,885 people who got tickets in the first year of the program, only 91 called the hotline. Of those who called, only a handful had any interest in getting treatment.

According to an earlier report in January by Oregon Catalyst, of the 68 people who had called the hotline by that point, 49 expressed zero interest in getting help, and only 11 got connected to treatment services.

Eleven.

A report by OPB notes that the program comes with some hefty strings, with rural areas struggling to provide sufficient resources:

Under the measure, providers applying for funds in different regions of the state, in many cases by county, must jointly form “Behavioral Health Resource Networks.” Each network must provide a range of services that includes needs screening, intervention planning, low-barrier substance use treatment, peer support, housing services, harm reduction and supported employment.

And, providers must provide services in a way that aligns with the spirit of Measure 110. For example, services must be culturally competent, inclusive and low barrier. This means that programs can’t eject a patient for a single relapse, and that harm reduction services — such as overdose reversing drugs, fentanyl testing strips and clean syringes — should be available for people who are not ready to abstain from substance use. In some regions, a single provider serves as the entire network.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/jeff-reynolds/2022/06/03/overdoses-up-700-after-oregon-decriminalizes-hard-street-drugs-officials-mystified-n1602995

CBP Officers Seize $7.1 Million in Methamphetamine at Laredo Port of Entry

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Office of Field Operations (OFO) officers assigned to the Juarez-Lincoln Bridge seized methamphetamine that totaled over $7,100,000 in street value.

“Narcotic interdiction continues to be vital to the CBP border security mission,” said Port Director Alberto Flores, Laredo Port of Entry. “This enforcement action illustrates the excellent work undertaken by our Laredo CBP officers, and their tireless dedication that helps stem the flow of contraband entering the country.”

Buckets containing 356 pounds of methamphetamine seized by CBP officers at Juarez-Lincoln Bridge.

Buckets containing 356 pounds of methamphetamine seized by CBP officers at Juarez-Lincoln Bridge in Laredo, Texas.

The enforcement action occurred on Tuesday, May 31, when a CBP officer assigned to the Juarez Lincoln Bridge referred a 2006 Nissan Titan making entry from Mexico for secondary inspection. Following a canine and non-intrusive inspection system examination, CBP officers discovered a total of 356.15 pounds of alleged methamphetamine concealed within personal belongings.

The narcotics have an estimated street value of $7,123,062.

CBP seized the narcotics and the vehicle. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) special agents took the case.

https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/cbp-officers-seize-71-million-methamphetamine-laredo-port-entry

Senator Lindsey Graham Says He Is Ready to Vote on ALL Gun Control Proposals Mentioned by Joe Biden

GOP Senator Lindsey Graham (SC) on Thursday evening said he is ready to vote on ALL gun control proposals mentioned by Joe Biden.

Lindsey Graham also urged Schumer to bring the gun control proposals forward for votes.

“I stand ready to vote on ALL the proposals mentioned by President Biden tonight and encourage the Democratic Leader to bring them forward for votes.” Lindsey Graham said.

Senator Graham also added he is ready to “work across the aisle to find common ground” on gun control legislation.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/06/senator-lindsey-graham-says-ready-vote-gun-control-proposals-mentioned-joe-biden/

kek