Macron Says Russia Cannot Win Against Ukraine

After a surprise UK visit, Ukraine's President Zelensky went to Paris immediately afterward in a whirlwind European tour to meet with Western leaders. In Paris he held talks with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz

Macron asserted during the visit that Russia cannot win the war against Ukraine. "Ukraine can count on France, its European partners and allies to win the war. Russia cannot and must not win," Macron said before a working dinner among the three leaders at the Elysee Palace.

Just ahead of the meeting, Zelensky in an interview with Le Figaro hailed a change of heart in Macron. "I think he has changed, and changed for real this time," Zelensky said. "After all, it is he who paved the way for the delivery of tanks. And he has also supported Ukraine's membership to the EU. I think that was a real signal."

Macron had angered Kiev when in June he said the West must not "humiliate Russia, so that when the fighting stops we can build an exit ramp through diplomatic means."

Macron has also come under fire for being among the only Western leaders to hold frequent phone conversations with President Vladimir Putin, in order to attempt a diplomatic breakthrough towards ending the war. But Ukrainian leaders have suggested such diplomatic efforts are a form of 'capitulation'.

As for Macron's slow pivot away from pursuing a diplomatic offramp, the Associated Press now describes:

Macron has said France hasn’t ruled out sending fighter jets but set conditions, including not leading to an escalation of tensions or using the aircraft "to touch Russian soil," and not resulting in weakening "the capacities of the French army."

As for Scholz, he was cited in the following on Wednesday:

He added that Paris would "continue the efforts" to deliver arms to Kyiv. Mr Scholz also assured the Ukrainian president of enduring allied support.

"We will continue to do so as long as necessary," he told reporters, noting Germany and its partners had backed Ukraine "financially, with humanitarian aid and with weapons". He added that Ukraine belongs to the European family.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/macron-says-russia-cannot-win-against-ukraine-while-hosting-zelensky

Whistleblower reveals FBI tried to open criminal cases on 140 people just for taking bus to J6 rally

Veteran FBI intelligence analyst's testimony raises civil liberty concerns about acquisition of bank records, possible undercovers at U.S. Capitol.

A recently retired FBI supervisory intelligence analyst told Congress in a whistleblower disclosure that agents in Boston were improperly pressured by Washington to open criminal cases on 140 people who had simply taken a bus ride to the Jan. 6 rally in Washington. The agents refused because there was no evidence the attendees engaged in any criminality, the whistleblower said.

George Hill's testimony to the House Judiciary Committee also raised new civil liberty concerns about the FBI's Jan. 6 probe, including whether the Bureau mined Americans' bank records without court authority and whether the agency possesses video footage it is refusing to release because it identifies undercover agents and human sources who were at the U.S. Capitol that fateful day.

Hill, a military veteran and longtime analyst for the National Security Agency (NSA) and FBI who retired last year from the Bureau's Boston field office, told Just the News on Wednesday night that he disclosed concerns earlier this week to the House Judiciary Committee during a transcribed deposition, including that the Bureau analyzed banking data without evidence of a crime – simply to find Americans who traveled to Washington around the time of Jan. 6 or who owned a gun.

Hill said supervisors in the Washington field office pressured to open cases, first on seven individuals who came up in a sweep of bank records provided by Bank of America, and then on the larger group of 140 Americans who paid to take bus rides to President Donald Trump's now infamous rally on Jan. 6, 2021, the day a mob overran police lines and flooded into the Capitol as Congress met to certify the 2020 election results. He credited his supervisors in Boston for resisting the pressure.

"There's no evidence of a crime being committed here," he said during a wide-ranging interview on the "Just the News, No Noise" television show. "We cannot open up preliminary investigations on someone for using a financial instrument in the District. And so they pushed back, and Boston did not take any action on those names."

Hill also said the Washington field office, which led the Jan. 6 probe, did not react well to the refusal, escalating up the chain of command, but at each step of the process the Boston office held its ground. "Getting on a bus and participating in a political rally is not predication for a crime or a preliminary investigation," he said, explaining why Boston resisted.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told Just the News on Wednesday night that Hill's information provided an essential roadmap for his select subcommittee's investigation into potential weaponization of law enforcement agencies like the FBI.

"I appreciate this brave whistleblower coming forward," Jordan said in an interview. "He’s worked in the military and then as an FBI agent. And he gave us a lot of valuable information that will be the foundation for our weaponization investigation going forward."

https://justthenews.com/accountability/whistleblowers/new-whistleblower-says-fbi-tried-open-criminal-cases-140-people-just

China, Classified Docs & 2024 Election: What Did Biden Reveal in His Nightly Exclusive?

The nightly interview came a day after the American president gave his second State of the Union address before a divided Congress for the first time. The address has been hailed by observers as the commander-in-chief's foundation for his 2024 presidential election bid.

US President Joe Biden sat down for an exclusive interview with PBS' Newshour on Wednesday, touching on a variety of topics including US-China ties in the aftermath of the downed Chinese balloon and his potential 2024 election bid, among other matters.

US-China Ties Doing 'A-Okay'

Biden remarked during the interview with special correspondent Judy Woodruff that relations between the United States and China have not taken a big hit following the US downing of an alleged Chinese surveillance balloon that flew across the United States last week.

"No, no," Biden said when asked whether relations with China had been irreparably damaged after the balloon decision, or after reports indicated Chinese officials felt as though the US was smearing Beijing.

The president underscored that he's made clear to Chinese President Xi Jinping that the United States will compete fully with China but will not seek a conflict. Biden mentioned he did not talk to Xi during the incident.

Biden momentarily joked that he hadn't exchanged words with Chinese officials within the 30 minutes preceding the interview.

Talk on ties with China also saw the president indicate that he had warned Xi that investments in China may be at risk if Beijing does not maintain equal relations. "You've told me all along the reason why you need a relationship with the United States and Europe is so they invest in China. I said, 'who's gonna invest in China if you can engage with the same kind of deal,'" Biden said.

No Recession Will Come to Americans in 2023 or 2024

With concerns at an all-time high over the state of the US economy, the commander-in-chief noted that he does not believe the United States will experience a recession either this year or next, despite half of Americans believing they are financially worse off compared to last year.

"No, or next year," Biden said on Wednesday, when asked if he thinks there will be a recession this year.

Earlier Wednesday, a Gallup poll revealed that 50% of Americans believe they are worse off financially now than they were last year - the highest figure since the Great Recession era of 2008 and 2009.

https://sputniknews.com/20230209/china-classified-docs–2024-election-what-did-biden-reveal-in-his-nightly-exclusive-1107097907.html