27 Jan, 2025 15:46

EU officials suffering from Trump ‘cold shower’ – Politico

The new US president reportedly represents “a radical shift” from the previously “friendly” policies of Joe Biden, the outlet has claimed

European Union officials are increasingly concerned that the administration of US President Donald Trump “just isn’t interested” in engaging with the bloc, Politico reported on Monday.

Tensions between Washington and Brussels are reportedly rising amid Trump’s threats to annex Greenland and impose trade tariffs.

According to a Politico newsletter published on Monday, the lack of communication between the EU and the US since the start of Trump’s second term in office on January 20 has come as a “cold shower” for the bloc's officials.

“It’s a radical shift from the friendly relationship that Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and other top EU figures had with Joe Biden’s administration,” the outlet reports.

The EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, issued an open invitation to new US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week to attend a meeting in Brussels. According to Politico, she has yet to receive a reply.

The lack of response highlights a concern that the EU is being rejected by Trump’s administration in favor of national leaders.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was the only EU leader present at Trump’s inauguration.No high-level EU representatives, including von der Leyen, were invited to the ceremony.

Rubio has since had calls with four EU foreign ministers, namely Poland’s Radoslaw Sikorski, Latvia’s Baiba Braze, Lithuania’s Kestutis Budrys, and Italy’s Antonio Tajani, but none with EU officials.

The bloc has been bracing for possible trade restrictions under the new administration for months after Trump issued multiple threats to impose tariffs on the EU unless specific conditions are met.

During his address at the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, Trump criticized Brussels’ trade practices and threatened to impose tariffs on EU firms that choose to produce their goods outside of the US.

In December, Trump demanded that the EU reduce its trade deficit with the US by significantly increasing purchases of American oil and gas. Failing to do so would result in tariffs, he warned.

Greenland presents another wedge between the US and the EU. Trump had a phone conversation about the Arctic island with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen the week before his inauguration, which according to multiple media outlets, was “horrendous” and left the Danes “utterly freaked out.” Copenhagen has repeatedly stated that Greenland is “not for sale.”

According to Trump, the territory is of key importance to US national security due to its strategic location and abundant natural resources. Situated between North America and Europe, Greenland already hosts a US military base. Trump has not ruled out using military force to acquire it.

The EU’s military chief, Gen. Robert Brieger, suggested last week that the bloc should deploy military forces to Greenland.

https://www.rt.com/news/611724-trump-eu-lack-communication/

27 Jan, 2025 23:23

Ukrainian politician calls for military dictatorship

A full mobilization of society is needed for the war effort, hardline nationalist Dmitry Korchinsky has said

Ukraine must become a military dictatorship, diverting any resources it still has toward the conflict with Russia, Dmitry Korchinsky, a radical Ukrainian nationalist and longtime proponent of war with Russia, has said.

The politician, who leads the far-right Bratstvo (Brotherhood) party, made the remarks in an interview with the Govorit Veliky Lviv YouTube channel on Monday.He lamented the state of Ukrainian society, saying a significant part of it still believes it is “possible to turn a blind eye to the war.”

“Data from sociological surveys, especially during wartime, their open publication, all of this benefits the enemy. This should be banned, people should be imprisoned for this,” he said,expressing regret that many people “still expect some kind of peace.”

Korchinsky condemned any criticism of the Ukrainian military and political leadership, as well as enlistment officers, insisting this behavior must be punished and those responsible targeted by the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU).

“These people need to be placed in the SBU basements, and the fact that they are still not detained is concerning,” he said, referring to the unlawful detentions widely used by Kiev’s intelligence and military since the early stages of the Donbass conflict, which broke out after the 2014 Western-backed coup in Kiev.

The entirety of Ukrainian society must mobilize to enable the country to prevail in the conflict, Korchinsky argued, adding that any civilian spending must be cut, with the military taking over, he said.

“This disaster simply means that society is not at war. Generally, the armed forces are at war. They bleed out, while society is not at war at this moment,” he said.

“We need a military dictatorship, we need a military regime, we need to replace all the mayors with colonels.”

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky, whose term in office expired in May 2024, claims that martial law prevents him from holding new elections. Support for Zelensky and his Servant of the People party has dwindled, according to opinion polls, while members of the military are broadly popular in Ukraine.

Last May, Zelensky dismissed Valery Zaluzhny as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, prompting some observers to link the general’s departure to his popularity, which reportedly surpassed that of Zelensky.

https://www.rt.com/russia/611738-ukraine-military-dictatorship/

28 Jan, 2025 11:18

Kiev drama students accuse teachers of sympathizing with Russia – media

Students have reportedly complained to the Security Service of Ukraine that their teachers “support aggression”

A prominent Ukrainian drama school has come under scrutiny by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) after students accused some teachers of harboring pro-Russian sentiments, according to local media.

The SBU’s involvement was revealed by Inna Kocharyan, the head of the Kiev National Theatre Cinema and Television University (KNUTKiT), the news outlet Strana.ua reported on Monday. Kocharyan reportedly said thatsome students had filed complaints with the agency, alleging that certain teachers “support Russian aggression.”

The incident is not an isolated case. In November, a teacher at a medical university in the city of Ivano-Frankovsk resigned after being accused of delivering a lecture on neurosurgery in Russian. Similarly, last December, a history teacher in Odessa was reportedly dismissed following an accusation of refusing to speak Ukrainian and “spreading Russian narratives.” In another case in 2023,a drama school in the same city dismissed an 82-year-old teacher after complaints that she plays the music of Russian composers in her classes.

The issue of language has been one of the most contentious in Ukraine since the collapse of the Soviet Union, ultimately contributing to a Western-backed coup in Kiev in 2014.

Kiev has enacted laws in recent years banning languages other than Ukrainian in education, with a few exceptions, as part of a broader effort to promote the state language. However, Ukrainian language ombudsman Taras Kremen noted last month that despite these efforts, there has been a “slowdown in Ukrainization” among young people.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has criticized Ukraine’s language policies, claiming they are a significant obstacle to resolving the current armed conflict. Lavrov argues that since the 2014 Western-backed coup, Ukrainian authorities have sought to “destroy everything Russian” in the country.

https://www.rt.com/russia/611757-ukraine-drama-school-sbu/

28 Jan, 2025 10:23

Biden administration tried to kill Putin – Tucker Carlson

The American journalist denounced the alleged plan as “insane,” citing concerns about the fate of Russia’s vast nuclear arsenal

The administration of former US President Joe Biden tried to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin during the Ukraine conflict, American journalist and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson has claimed.

In an interview with journalist Matt Taibbi on Monday, Carlson suggested thatmany former and current US officials have been rattled by President Donald Trump’s campaign to declassify numerous government papers, as they see the potential fallout as extremely dangerous.

“I think this was one of the reasons [ex-Secretary of State] Tony Blinken was pushing so hard for a real war, trying to kill Putin, for example… The Biden administration did [it], they tried to kill Putin,”Carlson said, without providing any further details about the alleged assassination plot.

Carlson, who broadcast a bombshell interview with Putin last February, described the alleged move as “insane,” pointing to the potentially cataclysmic fallout for global security.

“Who takes over Russia? What happens to the nuclear arsenal in a country so complex that outsiders can’t even understand… That’s demented that you would even think about something like that,” he added.

US officials have never publicly acknowledged plans to assassinate Putin, or any other Russian or Soviet leaders.

However, Newsweek reported in September 2022 that US defense officials had discussed a “decapitation strike” if Russia used nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly denied that such an option has ever been on the table, arguing that there are no targets in the neighboring country for such a weapon.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov interpreted the allegations of a “decapitation strike,” as “a threat to assassinate the head of the Russian state.”

“If such ideas are really being considered, those involved must carefully think about the possible consequences,” he said at the time.

In May 2023, Russia accused Ukraine – which has received massive aid from the US –of attempting to assassinate Putin in the Kremlin using a drone strike, although the aircraft was neutralized.

While Ukraine has denied any involvement, Blinken said at the time that Washington had no prior warning of the raid, adding that Kiev was free to defend itself in any way it saw fit.

https://www.rt.com/news/611770-biden-kill-putin-carlson/

Trump fires Jack Smith staffers in ‘UNPRECEDENTED’ move

Fox News contributor Byron York discusses the Justice Department's decision to fire employees who worked for former special counsel Jack Smith in prosecuting President Donald Trump on ‘America’s Newsroom.

5:08

https://youtu.be/KwUk4-tGy60?si=OPpf6CsaiMz7eOmn

BREAKING: Sean Duffy confirmed as Trump Transportation secretary

3 minutes ago

Former Wisconsin Rep. Sean Duffy was confirmed as the next Transportation secretary under President Donald Trump. The 'Outnumbered' panel reacts to the confirmation vote and the status of the president's other nominee

6:48

https://youtu.be/0uTxTo7No6I?si=JDaUhcOBpDJJ25v2

Judge Jeanine: The left won't be able to stop this

'The Five' co-host' Jeanine Pirro joined 'Fox & Friends' to discuss the legal bounds for federal authorities conducting mass deportation raids and her new Fox Nation special on the Karen Read murder case. Supremacy Clause overrides over state laws. How Trump wrote this, he can do anything, without the state's permission.

4;36

https://youtu.be/0YzCxtRYwWo?si=XCvxPRvgxujZ_Yun

'UNPRECEDENTED': ICE director praises Trump WH for taking 'handcuffs off' agency

ICE Chicago field office director Sam Olson joins 'Fox & Friends' to discuss deportation efforts continuing in Chicago as DHS eyes New York as next target city.

4:58

https://youtu.be/7SSkIZk37bI?si=LquZS-zfK7C87jem

>>22453157

These ICE guys are so grateful to work with all the other agencies out in the field, they never had this before so ICE would be held up for weeks to get approval. Trump did a whole of government approach and put those agents out in the field with ICE to speed it.

Border encounters do a 'complete 180' in Trump's first days

The day before the inauguration on Jan 19th , they caught of daily crossing, 1,352 Illegals, now a week later it’s dropped per day, they caught 582, a week later

Terrell County, Texas Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland joined 'Fox & Friends First' to discuss the early success of the Trump administration at the border and an incident in which cartel members shot at border agents.

4:53

https://youtu.be/RR4A5T0N8ms?si=fXczos2qVntw3zlb