4 Mar, 2025 21:52

Musk wants ‘actions, not words’ from Zelensky

The Ukrainian leader has claimed Kiev is ready for an immediate ceasefire with Moscow

Words alone would not be enough to restore trust in Kiev, Elon Musk has said in response to Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s announcement that he was ready to sign a deal with the US on rare-earth minerals and agree to a ceasefire with Moscow.

“Actions, not words, are what matter. Let’s see what actions take place,” the billionaire and top adviser to US President Donald Trump wrote on X on Tuesday.

Zelensky earlier expressed his regret that last Friday’s meeting in Washington “did not go the way it was supposed to.”

The US and Ukraine were supposed to sign a rare-earths deal during Zelensky’s visit to the White House. The signing was abruptly canceled following a heated argument in the Oval Office, during which Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance accused Zelensky of not being grateful for American aid to Kiev. Trump later claimed that Zelensky was acting disrespectfully and did not want to achieve peace with Russia.

On Tuesday, Zelensky said that Kiev was ready to sign the minerals agreement at “any time and in any convenient format.” He stated that Ukraine was also ready for a prisoner exchange and a truce with a “ban on missiles, long-ranged drones, bombs on energy, and other civilian infrastructure.” He thanked Trump, US Congress, and the American peoplebut stopped short of formally apologizing for the Friday incident.

Following a shouting match in the White House, Trump told reporters that Zelensky would need to be ready for a peace with Russia if he wanted to be welcomed back.

Fox News cited a senior US official on Monday as saying that Zelensky should make a public apology if he wants to sign the minerals deal.Later reports said, however, that Trump was planning to announce the agreementduring his address to Congress on Tuesday evening.

Moscow welcomed Zelensky’s overtures as a “positive” development. “It is good that he [Zelensky] is ready [to go back to the talks with the US],”Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalist Pavel Zarubin of the Rossiya-1 TV channel on Tuesday.

Moscow has insisted that peace should be made on its terms, including the transformation of Ukraine into a neutral country. The Kremlin also said that Kiev must renounce its claims on Crimea and four other regions that have voted to become part of Russia.

I hope Trump has Zelensky, is called up to apologize to the President, Vice President and America tonightBut I wouldn’t be surprised its about the microchip factory.

https://www.rt.com/news/613690-musk-zelensky-actions-not-words/

This is truly funny

Tyrus: This just drives me crazy

Gutfeld!’ panelists dissect a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed that lambasts White men for feeling victimized.

4:54

https://youtu.be/0w2HC0AaT8A

Tom Homan: I am bringing hell to BostonKEK

Trump border 'czar' Tom Homan responds to Massachusetts governor Maura Healey accusing him of 'trying to pick a fight' on 'The Story.'

(I actually think these governors and mayors should stfu, you don’t want to piss off this guy)

5:20

https://youtu.be/hvtI1rsIYkA

https://x.com/jrpsaki/status/1896975489475973496

Jon Stewart on Trump’s Heel Turn on Zelenskyy In Favor of Putin’s New World Order | The Daily Show

Jon Stewart dives into the Oval Office meeting between Trump, Vance, and Zelenskyy, which shocked viewers more than John Cena's heel-turn. Plus, Jon calls bulls**t on Elon Musk's challenge to an interview

24:06

I don’t find him very funny anymore

https://youtu.be/OeUZI5RnYGg

26 Feb, 202521:54

Read next article related

US can no longer subsidize NATO – Rubio

The military bloc’s European members have underfunded their militaries for decades, the top diplomat has said

Washington can no longer allow its wealthy Western European NATO allies to take advantage of US taxpayers to fund their defense budgets, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News on Wednesday.

The top US diplomat was responding to comments by Friedrich Merz, whose Christian Democratic Union (CDU) won last week’s elections in Germany. Merz claimed that the US-led military bloc is in “jeopardy” due to Washington’s “indifference” toward Europe’s security.

“NATO is not in jeopardy,” Rubio said. “The only thing that puts NATO in jeopardy is the fact that we have NATO allies who barely have militaries or whose militaries are not very capable because they’ve spent 40 years not spending any money on it.”

The current US administration considers it unfair that some wealthy Western European member states only spend 1% to 1.5% of their GDP on defense, Rubio added.

“We just can’t keep subsidizing that,” he stressed. “These are rich countries, especially in Western Europe. They have plenty of money. They should be investing that in their national security, and they’re not.”

US President Donald Trump has argued that NATO’s current defense spending target of 2% of GDP per year – already a challenge for a number of member states – is too low and should be raised to 5%. During his reelection campaign, Trump said he would “absolutely”consider leaving the bloc if members do not “pay their bills.”

The US allocates around 3.4% of GDP to military expenditures, according to a 2023 estimate by the World Bank. In contrast, European NATO members spend an average of 1.9%, less than 60% of the US’ spending, Reuters reported earlier this month, citing S&P Global.

Meeting Trump’s proposed 5% military spending goal would cause France and Germany’s budget deficits to rise to 4.6% and 8.9% in 2025, respectively, compared to the current projections of 1.7% and 6%, S&P estimated.

Since 2022, the US and its allies have provided more than $258 billion in aid to Ukraine, including over $134 billion in military assistance, according to Germany’s Kiel Institute. Western nations have depleted their military stockpiles and struggled to increase arms production due to deindustrialization, offshore manufacturing, green policies, and sanctions on Russian energy.

Trump claims that Washington spent up to $350 billion on Ukraine under the administration of his predecessor, Joe Biden, and has vowed to recover this money.

Moscow has warned that NATO’s military aid to Ukraine effectively makes member states parties to the conflict. Trump is the first and only Western leader to acknowledge that one of the root causes of the Ukraine conflict was “the previous administration’s ‘pushy’ policy of dragging Ukraine into NATO,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said last week.

https://www.rt.com/news/613363-us-subsidize-nato-rubio/

>>22702524

4 Mar, 202519:17

EU’s von der Leyen proposes $840bn rearmament plan

The massive defense spending hike is crucial for European security, the bloc’s commission president has claimed

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed that member states spend about $840 billion on defense – an amount more than double total EU defense expenditure in 2024.

In a statement on Tuesday, von der Leyen cited the “most dangerous of times” and the “grave”threats facing the bloc.

“We are in an era of rearmament,” she declared, adding that she had sent a letter outlining her ‘ReArm Europe Plan’ to member state leaders ahead of the European Council meeting later this week.

“ReArm Europe could mobilize close to €800 billion ($840 billion) for a safe and resilient Europe,” she said. “This is a moment for Europe. And we are ready to step up.”

Official data shows the bloc’s total defense spending reached an estimated $344 billion last year, an increase of more than 30% since 2021.

The new plan includes $158 billion in loans available to member states to invest in what von der Leyen described as “pan-European capability domains,” including air and missile defense, artillery systems, missiles and ammunition, drones, and anti-drone technology.

The proposed five-part strategy is also designed to address the “short-term urgency” of supporting Ukraine, the EU chief said.

Von der Leyen did not specify a detailed timeline, but emphasized that defense spending must increase “urgently now but also over a longer period over this decade.”

Her announcement came just hours after news agencies reported on Monday that US President Donald Trump had ordered a pause on military aid to Ukraine. Trump has repeatedly accused Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky of refusing to negotiate peace with Russia and exploiting US support for his own gain.

The EU has historically depended significantly on the US for its security, primarily through the NATO. However, the Trump administration has recently signaled a major policy shift, urging European nations to take the lead in their own defense, as well as Kiev’s. Last month, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said that Washington intended to refocus its military priorities on countering China,warning the EU not to assume that American forces would remain in the region indefinitely.

Trump has previously warned that under his leadership the US would not defend NATO countries that fail to meet their financial commitments. He has floated the idea of raising mandatory defense spending by members to 5% of GDP, though none – including the US – currently meet that threshold.

https://www.rt.com/news/613676-eu-defense-spending-increase/

When is Trump coming on?

>>22702546

Ty the notices said 6:30

Shell-Shocked at CBS

As Paramount’s merger with Skydance nears the finish line, CBS News chief Wendy McMahon and “60 Minutes” bossBill Owens have faced escalating pressure to settle Donald Trump’s lawsuit—including from incoming president Jeff Shell.3/3/25

Last October, Jeff Shell, the veteran media executive set to serve as president of Paramount Global after its merger with Skydance Media is finalized, convened a meeting with CBS News chief Wendy McMahon, "60 Minutes" boss Bill Owens, and government relations officials.

At the time, Donald Trump was loudly railing against "60 Minutes" over its interview with Kamala Harris, fixating on a baseless editing gripe that he absurdly claimed amounted to “election interference.”

He demanded that CBS News release an unedited transcript of the sit-down—despite there being no evidence of the journalistic malpractice he accused the newsmagazine of.

At the meeting, Shell requested that McMahon and Owens comply with Trump's demand and release the transcript, according to people familiar with the matter.

Shell’s involvement in the editorial matter immediately set off alarm bells. McMahon and Owens later told associates they were disturbed that Shell was inserting himself into the newsroom’s decision-making, given that Paramount’s merger with Skydance has yet to close and that corporate interference in journalistic matters is traditionally anathema.

Even more troubling, Shell seemed to believe CBS News should have simply appeased Trump, despite the dangerous precedent it would set.

https://archive.is/77Qyf