>>22932113 ICYMI: State Department Axes $214 Million in Foreign Grants, From Cash for 'Newsroom Sustainability' inMoldova to 'Media Diversity' in the UKPNarticle related below, EU, UK oppose any Baltic country that are not an enemy of Russia. They are trying to destroy Christianity there.

19 Apr, 2025 11:06

Moldova launched ‘malicious attack’ on Orthodox Church – Moscow

Chisinau has disrespected the Moldovan people by preventing a bishop from traveling to Jerusalem, the Russian Foreign Ministry has said

The authorities in Moldova have launched a deliberate attack on the canonical Orthodox Churchby barring a bishop from attending an Easter ceremony in Jerusalem, the Russian Foreign Ministry has said.

Bishop Marchel of the Moldovan Orthodox Church was scheduled to fly to Israel on Thursday to attend the Holy Fire ritual on April 19 and bring back part of the flame believed to descend miraculously at the site of Christ’s crucifixion.

He told the media that border police at Chisinau airport searched him and returned his passport only after his plane had departed, despite finding nothing suspicious.His second attempt to board a flight was also “unjustifiably”blocked by Moldovan authorities.

Moscow views “this deliberate step… as another manifestation of the course taken by the Moldovan government against their people, their policy of double standards,” Gennady Askaldovich, special representative of the Russian foreign minister for freedom of religion, told TASS on Saturday.“There is no doubt that this is a malicious attack against the canonical Orthodox Church of Moldova,”he stressed.

The official called on international bodies to “take note of what happened and give a principled assessment of the outrageous actions of the Moldovan authorities.”

In recent years, Moldova has faced religious tensions involving two major Orthodox factions: the Moldovan Orthodox Church – affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate – and the Metropolis of Bessarabia – under the Romanian Orthodox Church – which is being backed by the pro-EU government in Chisinau.

Askaldovich stressed that “a representative of the Metropolis of Bessarabia was the one, who eventually went to collect the Holy Fire,” despite the fact that 70% of worshipers in the former Soviet republic belong to the Moldovan Orthodox Church.

The treatment of Bishop Marchel was “an attempt to destroy the unity of the Orthodox world on Moldovan soil,” he said. “For the Moldovan people, their faith is the basis of their moral guidelines, traditional values and cultural code. It is regrettable that the government in Chisinau shows disrespect for its own citizens by irresponsibly manipulating such sensitive issues,” the representative stressed.

(Rubio needs to get involved, Blinken prevented the winner of the election to take office and the EU friend that was President cheated again to take over the country. Blinken the SOS was on the ground preventing the winning party to take over. Rubio needs to fix the interference of the U.S. in that country and stop this insanity. Romania is going through the same EU takeover)

https://www.rt.com/russia/615984-moldova-launched-malicious-attack-on-church/

19 Apr, 2025 06:18

Kiev opens LGBT film festival on Good Friday

Critics have called the Easter week timing of ‘Sunny Bunny’ offensive while organizers have defended it as a scheduling coincidence

Ukraine’s LGBTQ community has sparked outrage by scheduling its top film festival, Sunny Bunny, to coincide with Easter week.

The event opened on Good Friday, April 18, and will run through April 25 in Kiev.In 2025 all Christian denominations are celebrating Easter on the same day, and the festival’s timing and queerly seasonal namehave drawn a backlash from conservative politicians and religious figures.

Former Ukrainian PM Yulia Tymoshenko, who now leads the opposition Fatherland (Batkivshchyna) party, expressed outrage over the festival’s opening on Good Friday. In a social media post, she criticized the decision, rhetorically asking, “Do you know what ‘nothing sacred’ literally looks like?”

Several other members of Ukraine’s parliament have also voiced disapproval. MP Aleksey Goncharenko described theevent as “a provocation against Ukrainian traditions, faith, and the frontline soldiers who have died with a prayer on their lips.”Writing on his Telegram channel, he added, “This is a disregard for the millions of people for whom Good Friday is a day of silence, sorrow, and prayer.”

Launched in 2008 as part of another event,Sunny Bunny became a standalone festival in June 2023—one year after the conflict in Ukraine escalated.

Ukrainian MP Daniil Getmantsev also condemned the timing,saying it damages the public image of the LGBTQ community.

Festival organizers stated the timing was not intended to offend religious groups. They explained that the dates were selected based on the international festival calendar and logistics, emphasizing that Ukraine is a secular country. Organizers also described some of the criticism as homophobic, arguing references to Christian holidays were being used to “mask homophobia and hatred.”

The festival has previously required heightened security. In 2023, before its opening, two cinemas in Kiev received threats of attacks and arson over their involvement.

The LGBTQ movement in Ukraine has sought to raise its profile amid the conflict with Russia, with supporters framing it as a defiant statement. Ukrainian LGBTQ groups have also launched fundraisers to purchase drones for Kiev’s armed forces and encouraged supporters to contribute.

Russia banned “LGBT propaganda” in 2022 and designated the LGBT movement as a terrorist organization in 2024.

Russian MP Sergey Mironov denounced the festival, claiming it reflects a rejection of traditional values. He said,“Today, people with traditional beliefs are no longer needed in Ukraine,” calling LGBT culture a threat to civilization and describing the situation as “lunacy.” He added, “Thank God we in Russia are spared from this.”

(The EU will try launch this in every Baltic state that are Christian based. The EU people don’t believe in God, they consider themselves, God.)

https://www.rt.com/russia/615982-kiev-opens-lgbt-film-festival/

19 Apr, 2025 15:14

Moscow and Kiev hold major prisoner swap – Russian MOD

The two sides have returned 246 prisoners of war each, according to the Defense Ministry

Moscow and Kiev have held a major prisoner of war swap, with each side returning 246 captives, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Saturday.

Russia has given Ukraine an additional 31 gravely wounded servicemen, receiving some 15 wounded soldiers in return, the military said. The exchange has been mediated by the United Arab Emirates, the Defense Ministry noted.

The freed Russian servicemen are currently in Belarus, where they are receiving all the necessary medical treatment and psychological support, the military said. The former prisoners will be transferred to Russia shortly for treatment and rehabilitation.

The Russian Defense Ministry has released a short video showing the freed servicemen boarding buses in an undisclosed location, apparently as they set off for the transfer home.

The announcement comes shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a temporary pause in fighting with Ukraine.The Easter truce is set to run from 6:00pm Moscow time on Saturday until midnight on April 21.

The Russian president has expressed hopes Kiev will agree to the truce, stating that its attitude toward the pause in fighting will demonstrate whether it is genuinely interested in resolving hostilities through diplomacy. At the same time, Putin instructed the country’s troops to stay on high alert and be ready to respond to potential violations of the ceasefire.

https://www.rt.com/russia/616002-moscow-kiev-prisoner-swap/

>>22932785

19 Apr, 2025 13:55

Russia announces Easter ceasefire

Moscow will pause hostilities with Kiev for 30 hours, Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced a temporary Easter pause in hostilities with Ukraine, which is slated to begin at 18:00 Moscow time on Saturday and last until midnight on April 21.

The announcement came during his meeting with Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov in Moscow.Putin expressed hope that Kiev would demonstrate goodwill and adhere to the ceasefire.

”At the same time, our troops must be prepared to respond to any violations or provocations by the adversary, to any aggressive actions,” he said.

Putin stated that Ukraine’s reaction to the ceasefire would be a clear indicator of whether Kiev is sincerely willing to engage in negotiations to end the conflict.

The president referenced the US-brokered 30-day energy infrastructure truce agreed to on March 18, accusing Ukraine of violating it.

“We know that the Kiev regime has violated the agreement on pausing energy infrastructure strikes more than a hundred times,” Putin explained. “Therefore, I ask you [Gerasimov] to remain extremely vigilant and prepared for an immediate and full-force response.”

Shortly after Putin’s statement, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed the ceasefire, calling on Kiev to reciprocate.

”The ceasefire is being introduced for humanitarian purposes and will be observed by the Russian Joint Group of Troops, provided it is mutually observed by the Kiev regime,” the ministry said.

While Kiev did not immediately provide a clear responseto Putin’s announcement,it appeared to reject the temporary truce. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky branded it an attempt to “play with human lives,” claiming that swarms of Russian kamikaze drones were detected in the country’s skies at 17:15 Moscow time.

The drones “in our skies show Putin’s true attitude to Easter and human lives,” Zelensky said in a statement.

According toRT war correspondentAndrey Filatov, reporting from the Pokrovsk (Krasnoarmeysk) area in Donetsk People’s Republic,multiple violations of the ceasefire were observed within an hour of it taking effect. Ukrainian forces in the area have been actively using drones, mortars and heavy artillery, striking Russian positions with cluster munitions.

Earlier this week, Moscow suggested a full long-term ceasefire with Ukraine was highly unlikely, given Kiev’s long history of broken promises and violations of previous deals. Speaking to reporters at UN headquarters on Thursday, Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia said there are “big issues with the comprehensive ceasefire,”referencing the fate of the long-defunct Minsk agreements, as well as repeated violations of a US-brokered 30-day moratorium on energy infrastructure strikes.

In the meantime,Washington has signaled that time is running out for finding a solution to the Ukraine conflict. On Friday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration was prepared to throw in the towel soon.

“We need to figure out here now, within a matter of days, whether this is doable in the short term. Because if it’s not, then I think we’re just going to move on,”Rubio stated.

(This is the prompt the final salvo, Rubio knows Ukraine will never seek peace. As Sundance said yesterday, this could be a sign the U.S. withdraws completely from Ukraine and that allows Russia to finish it off. The whole Paris meeting was a waste of time because Ukraine will never be honest and will never stop the war, while trying to suck dry America. Let the corrupt CIA in Ukraine try to save them from Russia. PS: The EU is tired of the leaders in Ukraine and being involved in the country, many EU countries are opposed to more aid being sent there and wants the EU war with Russia to end, done by the proxy Ukraine.)

https://www.rt.com/russia/615998-russia-announces-easter-ceasefire/

President Trump Delivers an Easter Message

April 19, 2025 | Sundance | 14 Comments

The White House provides the following Easter message from President Donald Trump.

“As we approach this joyous Easter Sunday, I want to wish Christians everywhere a happy, and beautiful, and blessed holiday. America is a nation of believers. We need God. We want God. And with His help, we will make our nation stronger…” –President Donald J. Trump

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2025/04/19/president-trump-delivers-an-easter-message/

https://youtu.be/s–7aZlXkZM

19 Apr, 202517:06

Ukraine again violated US-brokered energy ceasefire – Russian MOD

Kiev has launched ten strikes within the past 24 hours, targeting power lines and a gas pipeline, the Defense Ministry has said

The Ukrainian militaryhas targeted power lines and a gas pipeline in several Russian regions, again violating a US-mediated moratorium on such strikes, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has claimed.

Moscow and Kiev agreed to halt attackson each other’s energy infrastructure for 30 days following a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, on March 18.

In a statement on Saturday, the Defense Ministry said that the “Kiev regime continues unilateral attacks on Russian energy infrastructure,” reporting ten such strikes within the past 24 hours alone.

According to officials in Moscow, Ukrainian attacks damaged a power line and a gas conduit in Belgorod Region, with six more instances,mostly involving Ukrainian drones, reported in neighboring Bryansk Region, where power lines and several substations also sustained damage.

On top of that, Ukrainian shelling damaged a power line in the Donetsk People’s Republic and a substation in Kherson Region during the same period.

On Friday, Kremlin spokesman DmitryPeskov announced that the “month [of moratorium] has indeed expired,” adding that “as of this moment, there have been no other instructions from the supreme commander-in-chief, President Putin.”

The official stated that Moscow viewed the US-brokered initiative positively and acknowledged “certain progress” despite Kiev’s violations.

”The Russian Federation adhered to this moratorium, which cannot be said about the Ukrainian side,” Peskov told reporters. (Russia did not bomb or destroy infrastructure as promised.)

Since March 18, the Russian Defense Ministry has on multiple occasions accused Kiev’s forces of violating the partial ceasefire concerning energy infrastructure, while Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has maintained that Kiev’s forces have abided by the moratorium.

On Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a temporary Easter truce effective from 18:00 Moscow time through midnight on April 21.

While he expressed hope that Ukraine would reciprocate, he also said that the “Kiev regime has violated the agreement on pausing energy infrastructure strikes more than a hundred times.”

Putin stated that Ukraine’s reaction to the ceasefire would be a clear indicator of whether Kiev is sincerely willing to engage in negotiations to end the conflict, adding that “[Russian] troops must be prepared to respond to any violations or provocations.”

(It’s all out war now, and this where Rubio said the U.S. will withdraw since they are not seeing progress in the talks, mainly by Ukraine. Wait till Kiev understands the U.S. will withdraw all the support in Ukraine, including personnel. And when that happens the EU will slowly withdraw. It really seems like it God’s will since Ukraine will not engage in ceasefire for Easter, Putin requested. If they cannot honor Jesus the son of God during this time, they have brought their own demise upon themselves.)

Note all the Russian territories Kiev are attacking, are the ones they demand back. It’s insane to think Ukraine could rule over the ethnic Russians that live there, when they killed 8-10,000 citizens there since 2014. The absolute evil of Joe Bidan and Zelensky were determined to wage war to the last Ukrainian, and Kiev seems determined to do that.

https://www.rt.com/russia/616003-russian-mod-ukraine-violates-energy-truce/

Russian President Vladimir Putin Announces Easter Ceasefire

April 19, 2025Sundance

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced an Easter ceasefire of all hostilities in order to celebrate the holiest of Christian holy days. According to his announcement the ceasefire will last from 6 p.m. Moscow time (1500 GMT) on Saturday, to midnight (2100 GMT) Monday, following Easter Sunday.

“We assume that the Ukrainian side will follow our example. At the same time, our troops must be ready to repel possible violations of the truce and provocations from the enemy, any of its aggressive actions,” Putin said at a meeting with Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, in a video shared by the Kremlin’s Press Service. WATCH: https://youtu.be/aCHA5RGdt4I

Whether the CIA, NATO and European control agents will also stop hostilities is an unknown. However, the move by Russia does appear to be an earnest show of good faith representative of the growing faith evident in the modern federation.

Russia has some of the most inspiring orthodox Christian churches in all of Eastern Europe, and they are being well attended and beautifully restored/maintained.

(Ukraine rejected the Easter Ceasefire)

https://youtu.be/aCHA5RGdt4I

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/

Promoting Accountability for the Ortega-Murillo Dictatorship

PRESS STATEMENT

MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATE

APRIL 18, 2025

The United States is taking decisive steps toimpose visa restrictions on more than 250 regime officials of the Nicaraguan dictatorship. With this new set of restrictions, the U.S. government has now takensteps to impose visa restrictions on over 2,000 officials in Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo’s regime, which has deprived the Nicaraguan people of their fundamental freedoms and forced so many into exile.

As we mark seven years since the Ortega and Murillo regime’s brutal wave of repression against protestors, we reflect on the protestors’ courage and desire to live in a Nicaragua free from tyranny. The United States will not stand for Ortega and Murillo’s continued assault on Nicaragua.

This action was taken pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 10309, which suspends entry into the United States as immigrants and nonimmigrants for members of the Government of Nicaragua and other individuals who formulate, implement, or benefit from policies or actions that undermine democratic institutions. For questions, please reach out to WHA-PDA-Press@state.gov.

https://www.state.gov/promoting-accountability-for-the-ortega-murillo-dictatorship/?utm_source=homepage&utm_medium=news_bar&utm_campaign=visa_restrictions

Darren Beattie

SENIOR OFFICIAL

UNDER SECRETARY FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

FEBRUARY 4, 2025 - PRESENT

Darren Beattie joins the State Department from the private sector, where he worked as a media entrepreneur and political strategist. He has served in government previously as a White House speechwriter and policy aide, and by presidential appointment to the Commission for the Preservation of American Heritage Abroad.

A former academic, Beattie has taught political theory at Duke University and Humboldt University in Berlin. He holds a B.S. in mathematics from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. in political theory from Duke University, where he wrote his dissertation on mathematics and the structure of modernity.

As the State Department’s Senior Official in Public Diplomacy, Beattie is passionate about affirmatively advancing free speech as a diplomacy tool, and marshalling America’s exceptional cultural achievements in the arts, music, and academia in furtherance of the safety, strength, and prosperity of the American people.

https://www.state.gov/biographies/darren-beattie/

I’m happy for Darren Beattie, he’s brilliant and astute and was targeted by the Generals at the WH the first term.

>>22933251

Anons remember Michael Anton, at the State Department also

Michael Anton

DIRECTOR

POLICY PLANNING STAFF

JANUARY 20, 2025 - PRESENT

Michael Anton became the 33rd Director of the Secretary’s Policy Planning Staff on January 20, 2025.

Before returning to government, Anton was a Senior Fellow at the Claremont Institute, where he taught in the Institute’s five fellowship programs, wrote for the Claremont Review of Books, and was researching a book on the state of California. Anton was concurrently a Lecturer in Politics at Hillsdale College, for which he designed and hosted the College’s online course “American Foreign Policy” and taught courses on national security, grand strategy, and political philosophy at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Anton has served a total of nine years in government, in the administrations of California Governor Pete Wilson, New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, President George W. Bush, and President Donald J. Trump.In President Trump’s first administration, Anton served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communication on the National Security Council Staff at the White House.He also served for four years on the NSC staff in the George W. Bush administration. Between those two administrations, Anton spent 12 years in the private sector in various roles in media and finance.

Anton is the author of three books and co-editor of one essay collection. He also has two books of his own previously published essays forthcoming. In addition, Anton has been widely published in the mainstream and academic presses, including in the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, Interpretation, and Perspectives on Political Science. Anton’s numerous articles on foreign and national security policy include “America and the Liberal International Order” (American Affairs, 2017), “The Trump Doctrine” (Foreign Policy, 2019), and “The Containment of George Kennan” (Claremont Review of Books, 2023).He is perhaps best known as the author of “The Flight 93 Election,” the 2016 viral essay that galvanized many to support then-candidate Trump.

https://www.state.gov/biographies/michael-anton/