3 Jul, 2025 10:32

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Trump should ‘knock the f**k out’ of EU disinfo law – ex-State Dept official

The US president should use “every tool in the hardball diplomacy toolkit” against Brussels, Mike Benz has said

US President Donald Trump must urgently threaten to “knock… the f out” of a newEU law on disinformation that requires online platforms and search engines to restrict content deemed ‘fake news’ by the bloc, former State Department official Mike Benz has said.

The formerly voluntary Code of Conduct on Disinformation, which was integrated into the Digital Services Act (DSA) by Brusselsearlier this year, became mandatory as of July 1. Under the law, major online platforms and search engines, mostly owned by US tech firms, are obliged to follow EU content rules or face penalties.

Benz, who worked on cybersecurity and internet policy at the State Department during Trump’s first term, took to X on Wednesday towarn that the likes of YouTube, X, Facebook, and Google would “now get whipped by huge EU fines.”

The Code of Conduct on Disinformation, which he described as a “Global Censorship Law,” had been the “secret weapon” of Brussels for a long time, but is now “fully unleashed,” the head of the self-described pro-free speech website Foundation For Freedom Online said.

Trump must “act urgently, top priority, to apply massive diplomatic, trade, aid and security muscle, every tool in the hardball diplomacy toolkit – up to and including our participation in NATO – to knock this law the f out,” he insisted.

The disinformation code came into effect amid trade talks between Washington and Brussels, with Trump threatening toimpose 50% tariffs on all imports from the EU if no deal is reached by the July 9 deadline.

The European Commission’s tech chief, Henna Virkkunen, said on Monday that content moderation anddigital competition are “not part of trade negotiations from our side” because they are “based on our European values.”

https://www.rt.com/news/620925-eu-disinformation-code-trump/

3 Jul, 2025 11:56

Biden claims European leaders want him back in action

The former US president has said he is “giving advice” but steering clear of direct involvement

Former US President Joe Biden has claimed that foreign leaders have been urging him to reengage in global affairs, despite his retirement from public office.

Speaking at the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) conference in San Diego on Wednesday,Biden, 82, said “I’m getting calls – I’m not going to go into them, I can’t – from a number of European leaders asking me to get engaged.”

The ex-president said that he declined to do so “because things are different.” At the same time, Biden acknowledged thatwhile he is “not actively involved with NATO issues,” he is still “giving advice.”

Biden also said he remains in touch with lawmakers from both sides of the aisle. “I’ve been dealing with a lot of Democrat and Republican colleagues calling me… wanting to talk and bounce things off of me,” he said, adding that he remains involved in political discussions “because I really cared about what I was doing.”

Biden went on to voice frustration over the rollback of several of his administration’s policies under President Donald Trump, although he avoided mentioning his successor by name. “Many of the things I worked so damn hard [on] that I thought I changed in the country are changing so rapidly,” he said.

The Democrat noted that he was focused on completing a memoir about his four years in the White House, adding thathe is “working like hell with a publisher to write another 500-page book.”

Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race in the face of widespread criticism over recurring public gaffes and his disastrous debate performance against Trump, which raised concerns in his own party about his age and mental acuity. He formally withdrew from the contest in July 2024, endorsing his vice president, Kamala Harris, who lost the November vote to Trump.

In May 2025, Biden revealed that he had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. He continues to appear in public and has struck an optimistic tone when speaking about his chances of beating the disease.

(He should be arrested and charged with treason against the U.S., he’s insinuating he’s interfering in the President Donald J Trump’s Administration. He’s fully gone in his delusional idea he was a great leader. Jill is trying to rewrite his history because he is a demented dictator.)

https://www.rt.com/news/620927-biden-european-leaders-want-comeback/

3 Jul, 2025 12:04

iPhone maker sends India-based Chinese employees home – Bloomberg

Foxconn has reportedly sent over 300 engineers and technicians back to China

iPhone maker sends India-based Chinese employees home – Bloomberg

iPhone manufacturer Foxconn has sent more than 300 Chinese engineers and technicians back home from its factories in India, a Bloomberg report said on Thursday.

The bulk of theTaiwanese electronics manufacturer’s Chinese staff at iPhone plants in southern India were told to leave, in a move that began about two months ago, the outlet said, citing people familiar with the matter. At the moment, only support staff from Taiwan are in India, the report said.

The reason for Foxconn’s decision to send the employees back is unclear; however, it comes amid reports that Chinese officials verbally urged regulatory agencies and local governments to restrict technology transfers and equipment exports to India and Southeast Asia, the report said.

This move may be an attempt to discourage companies from shifting manufacturing operations away from China, according to industry watchers.

While Foxconn still makes most iPhones in China, it has gradually built sizable assembly operations in India in recent years. It had deployed a large number of experienced Chinese engineers in the country to help speed up its expansion.

The sudden removal of these workers from India's manufacturing operations is likely to hinder the training of local employees and the transfer of manufacturing technology from China, potentially increasing production costs, the report said.

While the departure of Chinese workers is not expected to impact the quality of production in India, it may affect the efficiency of the assembly line, Bloomberg said. In May, the Taiwanese manufacturer said that it would invest $1.5 billion in India in an attempt to mitigate potential American tariff risks in China. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook has also confirmed a production shift to India. During the company’s quarterly earnings call in May, he said, “the majority of iPhones sold in the US will have India as their country of origin.”

https://www.rt.com/india/620934-iphone-maker-sends-india-based/

3 Jul, 2025 07:16

Ukraine trying to bypass US weapons freeze – Politico

Several EU members are considering whether to buy American weapons for Kiev, according to the outlet

Ukraine wants its EU backers to purchase American-made weapons on its behalf in order to offset the suspension of key US arms deliveries to Kiev, Politico reported on Wednesday.

US media outlets reported earlier this week that supplies of Patriot missile interceptors – touted as important in repelling Russian strikes – as well as GMLRS rockets, Hellfire missiles, and thousands of 155mm artillery shells have been put on hold. NBC noted that some US cargo had already reached Europe but was being withheld from transfer to Ukrainian forces.

US officials later confirmed the development, portraying it as part of the “America first” policy and stating that the country must maintain its weapons stockpiles to ensure “our own success on the battlefield.”

The freeze “blindsided top Ukrainian officials”and has prompted Kiev to ask Washington “to let Europe purchase US weapons for Ukraine,”several Politico sources claimed.“We don’t have a choice,” an unnamed Ukrainian official added.

Several European countries are reportedly reviewing potential purchases.However, the weapons transfers would still require US approval, one person told Politico, indicating that Ukraine’s attempts to keep weapons flowing could become mired in additional negotiations.

Part of the push involves overcoming export restrictions that Washington typically imposes on foreign use of its arms. Under the administration of former US President Joe Biden, even British deliveries of Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine were initially delayed because the systems contained American components, Politico noted. A Ukrainian official told the outlet that similar hurdles could be addressed during the talks, although it remains unclear whether the US would sign off on deliveries.

The administration of US President Donald Trump appears to be warming up to the idea of direct military sales to Kiev, according to the magazine. Politico in particular cited a recent meeting between Trump and Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky on the sidelines of the NATO summit in the Netherlands, with one person briefed on the talks claiming that Trump seemed “compassionate” and “understanding,” although no specific commitments were detailed.(Trump was acting, he didn’t want anything to do with Zelensky and made that clear.)

The US weapons freeze has caused frustration in Kiev, with Ukrainian MP Mariana Bezuglayaproclaiming that the country “is no longer our ally.”The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry also summoned US chargé d’affaires John Ginkel to underscore “the critical importance” of deliveries and warn against any “delay or procrastination.”

(Kiev still does not understand that Z and others criticism, ingratitude and arrogant attitude while playing the victim is not effective, on the Trump Admin. They are not willing to pay the U.S. back on prior Bidan donations, who would trust them to pay their debts on new arms.)

Russia has consistently denounced Western arms deliveries to Ukraine, insisting they will only drag out the conflict without changing its eventual outcome.

https://www.rt.com/russia/620921-ukraine-eu-bypass-us-aid-freeze/

3 Jul, 2025 01:10

US is no longer our ‘ally’ – Ukrainian MP

Multiple Kiev officials have criticized the halt of American weapons supplies

Kiev is no longer a “priority” at the center of US foreign policy, several Ukrainian MPs have lamented after Washington suspended the supply of certain categories of weapons as part of its “America First” shift.

Washington scaled back critical military aid to Kiev, reportedly halting deliveries of air defense ammunition, missiles, and artillery shells. While the exact list of suspended weaponry remains unclear, US envoy to NATO Matthew Whitaker said on Wednesday that the move was part of President Donald Trump’s domestically focused policy shift.

“The United States is no longer our ally,”Ukrainian legislator Mariana Bezuglaya wrote on social media. She followed up with a comment that her earlier postsuggesting US President Trump should “go f**k himself” was now even more relevant.“(she is saying what Zelensky and team had already acted on foryears, “Trump is their enemy”, after being involved in assassination attempts and starting the Ukraine and Russia Hoax in terms 1, and worked with democrats to impeach him. Ukraine the “welfare queen” of all countries in Europe, Ukraine never has gratitude nor do they have humility. The FBI and IC agencies should investigate all of them.)

Despite the MP’s remarks,Ukraine and the US have never entered any formal alliance;Washington has also so far refused to provide Kiev with any NATO-style security guarantees.

Bezuglayawent on to accuse Trump of “helping Russia move towards Dnepr and Sumy,” apparently referring to Moscow’s ongoing push to create a “buffer zone” intended to protect Russian border areas from attacks.

“Ukraine is no longer a priority, no longer at the center of US foreign policy…(they never were)

At least Trump is very honest about this with the Ukrainians,”another legislator and member of the defense and intelligence parliamentary committee, Solomiya Bobrovskaya, told the New York Times.

Earlier on Wednesday, Kiev summoned the US chargé d’affaires in Ukraine, John Ginkel, to lecture him about “the critical importance of continuing the deliveries of previously allocated defense packages” and to warn against “delay or procrastination in supporting Ukraine’s defense capabilities.”

Kiev has repeatedly voiced frustration over what it sees as dwindling support from Washington. Ukraine's VladimirZelenskymet with Trump at the NATO summit in The Hague last weekto demand more Patriot air defense systems but received no firm promises. Trump said the systems were “very hard to get” and that the US needed them for its own defense and for Israel.

Russia has consistently condemned Western arms shipments to Ukraine, arguing they only serve to prolong hostilities and increase bloodshed without altering the ultimate outcome of the conflict.

Kremlin officials have also accused Western backers of encouraging Kiev to fight to the last Ukrainian in the empty hope of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia.

President Vladimir Putin said last month that Russian forces currently hold the strategic initiative across the entire front.

After expelling Kiev’s invasion force from Russia’s Kursk Region in March 2025, the fighting quickly spilled across the border into Ukraine’s Sumy Region.

Moscow officially described its objective as the creation of a buffer zone intended to safeguard the resumption of peaceful civilian life in Russia’s border regions.

(Their Jewish sounding guilt tripping, and threats are pathetic, their ingratitude and whining means nothing to the U.S. and the people. All citizens of the U.S. and Europe hate the idea Kiev has already been giving billions of aid over their own.Kiev and the leaders there better watch what they say, Trump will respond in an unexpected way if you piss him off.)

https://www.rt.com/news/620914-us-no-longer-ally-kiev-mp/

(Russian woman are more beautiful than any Ukrainian female, especially if these women are in the Zelensky government, KEK)

3 Jul, 2025 10:11

Telegram targeted by smear campaign – Durov

The founder and CEO of the messaging app has cited a surge in Telegram-related ‘media mistakes’ that spread rapidly despite swift denials

Telegram has been subjected to a coordinated smear campaign, CEO Pavel Durov has suggested,citing the rapid spread of bogus reports about the company’s plans and policies.

The claims follow the appearance of a story about Telegram’s exit from Russia that was initially published as a jokeby local satirical website Panorama, but was subsequently reposted by news channels, forcing the platform to post a disclaimer under the links.

“We’re probably not dealing with innocent journalistic errors, but with a targeted campaign to discredit Telegram,” Durov said on Wednesday in a post on the messaging platform, urging users to stay alert.

The Russian billionairealso denied reportsthat channels collecting and publishing data from open sources had been blocked “for political reasons,” emphasizing that “a few channels were brieflytaken down by automated scripts”due to the publication of personal data. Durov stressed that some media reports emerged after the channels had been restored but failed to mention the fact.

The tech entrepreneur also mentioned “a technically illiterate investigation” revealed in June which claimed that Telegram’s IP addresses put user data at riskand accusing the platform of having ties to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB). Durov specifiedthat publications citing “independent experts”debunking the claimshaven’t received as much media coverage as the original report.

“For more than 12 years, Telegram has defended people’s right to privacy and free access to information,which is why we have often become the target of media pressure from various sides,” Durov concluded.

Last month, the billionaire, who is under investigation in France, accused the French daily Le Monde of waging a smear campaign against his messaging platform. Durov said that the newspaper had published 40 negative articles about Telegram in the seven weeks following his arrest at a Paris airport in August 2024.

Detained on charges of complicity in crimes allegedly committed by Telegram users, including extremism and child abuse, Durov was later placed under judicial supervision and released on bail.

https://www.rt.com/news/620926-telegram-targeted-smear-campaign-durov/

The DS and Dictators WW really hate free speech and are willing to do anything to stop it.

3 Jul, 2025 13:34

Putin announces phone call with Trump

The Russian and US presidents have held several conversations in recent months, mainly discussing the Ukraine conflict

Putin announces phone call with Trump

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that he will hold a phone call with his US counterpart, Donald Trump, on Thursday.

The Russian leader made the announcement while touring an exhibition in Moscow of emerging Russian brands,adding that he “will definitely suggest that he use this material to promote it on the American market.”Putin did not provide further details on the agenda of the call.

Trump has confirmed the plans for a conversation, which he said will take place at 14:00 GMT.

Since Trump returned to the White House in January 2025,he and Putin have held at least five official phone calls. The discussions have focused on efforts to negotiate an end to the Ukraine conflict, arms control, and restoring bilateral ties, which sank to an all-time low during the previous US administration. The latest phone call took place on June 14 and revolved around Israel’s strikes on Iran’s nuclear program as well as retaliation from Tehran. (“At least five official phone calls”, seems to me they had more official and personal calls.

Earlier in the day, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not comment when asked if Putin was planning to congratulate Trump on US Independence Day, celebrated on July 4.

On June 12, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio congratulated Russia on its national day, voicing hope for a lasting peace between Moscow and Kiev. Ukraine, however, criticized countries that extended messages to Russia, claiming that Moscow should not be “rewarded” on the world stage.

Speaking at the forum, Putin asked attendees for questions he could potentially pose to his US counterpart.One guest asked the Russian leader to raise the topic of exchanging films that could shed light on the cultural values of both countries.

DETAILS TO FOLLOW

https://www.rt.com/news/620945-putin-trump-call/

Sundance was rightabout Trump and Putin speaking soon, after the release of CIA info:

>>23269241 (You), >>23269758 ICYMI: CIA Director John Ratcliffe Declassifies Review of 2016 Intelligence Weaponization and Post-Election Intelligence Community Assessment/ Clapper/Clinton-Steele dossier

3 Jul, 2025 08:40

Hiroshima mayor scolds Trump

Kazumi Matsui has criticized the US president’s comments likening strikes on Iran to the 1945 atomic bombing of Japan

Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui has criticized US President Donald Trump for comments comparing American strikes on Iranian nuclear sites to the atomic bombings of Japan during World War II.

Speaking on Wednesday, Matsui claimedTrump “does not fully understand the reality of the atomic bombings, which, if used, take the lives of many innocent citizens, regardless of whether they were friend or foe,and threaten the survival of the human race,” according to the Japan Times. He invited the US leader to visit the city to learn more.

Trump last week defended US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, framing the action as a demonstration of overwhelming military force intended to hasten the resolution of a 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran. The conflict began after an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear program.

Israel is broadly believed to lack the capability to destroy Iran’s fortified Fordow enrichment site. The US deployed its bunker-buster weapons from strategic bombers to hit the facility. Trump claimed the campaign “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, after which he publicly pressured Israel to cease its military operations.

”I don’t want to use an example of Hiroshima. I don’t want to use an example of Nagasaki. But that was essentially the same thing. That ended that war,” Trump said during a NATO summit in the Netherlands.

The Western narrative maintains that the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which killed an estimated 210,000 people, compelled Japan to surrender, thereby avoiding a prolonged invasion and saving American soldiers’ lives.

However, historical evidence has challenged that account. A 1946 US Strategic Bombing Survey concluded that “Japan would have surrendered even if the atomic bombs had not been dropped, even if Russia had not entered the war, and even if no invasion had been planned or contemplated.”

The Soviet Union declared war on Japan on August 8, 1945, and launched a rapid offensive on the Asian mainland. The US dropped nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, respectively, with the missions conducted amid a broader bombing campaign. Japan announced its unconditional surrender on August 15 and signed it on September 23. A pro-American government was later installed in the country.

https://www.rt.com/news/620923-hiroshima-mayor-trump-remarks/

(Yes that was awkward, to even mention atomic bombs.)

3 Jul, 2025 02:39

EU lawmakers back ‘no confidence’ vote against von der Leyen – media

The European Commission president has been damaged by the ongoing Pfizergate Covid-19 vaccine scandal

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are set to vote on a motion of no confidence against European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen next week, citing her refusal to share details of a controversial, multi-billion euro Covid-19 vaccine deal, according to multiple media reports.

The motion, brought forward by Romanian MEP Gheorghe Piperea, is scheduled for debate on July 7, followed by a vote on July 10 during the European Parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg, Politico reported on Wednesday.

Von der Leyen has beenaccused of a lack of transparency and mismanagement during the pandemic, specifically over her refusal to disclose text messages exchanged with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla during 2021 negotiations over a contract for millions of Covid-19 vaccines.

The move follows a ruling by the EU’s Court of Justice, which found that theEuropean Commission had failed to provide credible justification for not releasing the texts.

“The Commission cannot merely state that it does not hold the requested documents but must provide credible explanations, ” the court ruled in May.

The refusal to share the messages, even after the court order,showed “a continued pattern of institutional overreach, democratic disregard, and erosion of public trust in the Union’s governance,” Piperea argued last month.

Despite collecting the required 72 signatures to trigger the motion,the vote is expected to be largely symbolic. A double majority is required for it to pass: two-thirds of votes cast must support the motion, representing a majority of the Parliament’s 720 seats.

Piperea acknowledged the vote’s long odds butdescribed it as a “crucial opportunity for constructive and substantiated criticism towards President von der Leyen.”

Von der Leyen’s European People’s Party and other centrist groups that form the current parliamentary majorityhave indicated they will not support the motion, even as some members expressed frustration over the Commission’s hypocritical stance on transparency.

If the motion were to succeed, the entire European Commission would be required to resign, triggering the appointment of 27 new commissioners. The only time the EC has resigned en masse was in 1999, under President Jacques Santer, amid a corruption scandal.

The last similar motion, filed against former Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker in 2014 over tax avoidance allegations, failed by a wide margin.

(How do EU leaders get away with Federal and State massively illegal crimes, they get no legal punishmentbut LePen gets accused of an accounting errors and gets booted from the French election with and by Macron? And then charged with a crimes? Or when Trumps gets impeached for a phone call, and none of EU slimy oligarchs are never punished and sent to jail?)

https://www.rt.com/news/620915-von-der-leyen-confidence-vote/

3 Jul, 2025 13:27

Armenia to nationalize power grid owned by jailed Russian businessman

The National Assembly has passed a bill targeting the utility that belongs to Samvel Karapetyan

The Armenian National Assembly has adopted a draft law allowing for the nationalization of a major electricity provider owned by businessman Samvel Karapetyan, who was arrested last month on charges of calling for the overthrow of the government.

Karapetyan, who owns the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA), holds Russian and Armenian citizenship and has a net worth of some $5 billion. His detention came after he voiced support for the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) in its conflict with the country’s authorities, led by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

The standoff began when Pashinyan accused the AAC of corruption and called on its leader, Catholicos Garegin II, to resign, citing alleged moral misconduct. The AAC rejected the accusations and claimed the government was acting under the influence of “Armenophobic”foreign forces.

In a statement earlier thisweek, Karapetyan described Armenia as “surrounded by hostile nations” and said it had become “a center of geopolitical conflict.” He denounced the government’s “exceptional political incompetence,”particularly its move to distance the country from Russia.

A heated altercation broke out during Thursday’s debate in the National Assembly, when independentMP Hovik Aghazaryan alleged that the legislation was designed to stoke anti-Russian sentiment.

Karapetyan’s detention has triggered criticism from prominent members of the Armenian diaspora and the Orthodox Christian community, both at home and abroad.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow would assist Karapetyan if needed. “For us, he is a Russian citizen,” Peskov told reporters last week, while adding that Russia did not wish to interfere in Armenia’s internal affairs.

Lawmakers passed the bill on Thursday in its second and final reading, with 65 votes in favor and 27 against. For the law to come into force, it must be signed by the president.

https://www.rt.com/russia/620941-armenia-nationalization-utility-karapetyan/

>>23270407

30 Jun, 2025 07:52

Conflict between government and church in Armenia stirred by same forces as in Ukraine – ex-diplomat

The standoff is a civil war in the making, Andrey Telizhenko has told RT

An ongoing assault on the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) has been orchestrated by the =same forces in the West that fueled religious tensions in Ukraine==, a former diplomat from the country, Andrey Telizhenko, has told RT. The unrest could result in an armed civil conflict, he warned.

The standoff between Armenia’s authorities and the AAC has escalated over the past few weeks, as Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan repeatedly attacked the church, accusing it of various violations and corruption.

The situation further deteriorated after the arrest of Samvel Karapetyan, a prominent Russian-Armenian businessman, who voiced his support for the AAC and was immediately detained and accused of calling for the overthrow of the government.

This week, Armenian authorities arrested two prominent clerics:Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, the leader of the Sacred Struggle opposition movement, and Archbishop Mikael Adjapahyan, accusing them of plotting a coup. This sparked protests that devolved into clashes with police.

Speaking to RT on Sunday, Telizhenko condemned the latest arrests, warning the conflict between the government and the church could potentially have severe implications for Armenia.

“This is a tragedy for the people of Armenia because when the government is going after the clergy, going after the church, the main church of the country, and trying to break it. This is like almost terrorism,” he said.

What’s happening in Armenia is a part of a broader “chain of events that is happening throughout Eastern Europe,” Telizhenko added, suggesting that the West “is behind all this.”

Telizhenko drew parallels between the situation in Armenia and the events his country endured over the past decade, namely the state-led assault on the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), originally subordinate to the Moscow Patriarchy.

While the UOC severed ties with the patriarchate shortly after the conflict between Moscow and Kiev escalated in early 2022, the move did not save it from further persecution.

“This happened in Ukraine, where we had the fake OCU church formed under [the]Poroshenko regime by the Democrats and the deep state, and [Nancy] Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, and [Victoria] Nuland, they formed a church. And that’s when they started to break the Orthodox Church, the real Orthodox Church in Ukraine, which is the Russian Orthodox Church,”Telizhenko said, adding thatthe only difference now was that the EU became the “new swamp for the deep state.”

The events in Ukraine, Armenia, and Moldova, which has also experienced tensions between state and the church,have been guided by the same “puppeteers,” he suggested, warning that the unrest could ultimately lead to civil wars.

=“If [the deep state opts to] go out of Ukraine, because it’s all interconnected… they’re going to try to make civil wars in these regions,”== Telizhenko claimed.

https://www.rt.com/russia/620750-armenia-church-civil-conflict/

Rubio and the FBI needs to track down the DS that were at the DOS that is still causing Color Revolutions in Europe

3 Jul, 2025 14:49

US drops sanctions on Russian ex-world chess chief

Donald Trump has lifted restrictions on former FIDE head Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who called it proof of Washington’s desire for new relations

Former World Chess Federation (FIDE) president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov has been removed from the US sanctions list following an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on Monday.

The decision came as part of Trump’s move to end the US sanctions program on Syria. The measures involved restrictions being lifted on several Russian banks and individuals, including Ilyumzhinov. The businessman, who also formerly served as head of the Russian republic of Kalmykia, had been on the US Treasury blacklist since 2015.

The original sanctions accused Ilyumzhinov of involvement in financial dealings with the Syrian government, claims he has consistently denied. Following the designation, he stepped back from his responsibilities at FIDE, which he had led since 1995.

Ilyumzhinov described his removal from the blacklist as a “fair” and “courageous” move by Trump, crediting the US leader with a willingness to reevaluate global diplomacy.==

“As the first president of the Russian republic of Kalmykia,I consider this decision a serious signal for a possible improvement in US-Russian relations,” Ilyumzhinov told Interfax, describing Trump as a man ready to correct “historical injustices.”

In a statement on Telegram, Ilyumzhinov also expressedhis desire to personally thank the US presidentand suggested a symbolic meeting to share his vision of today’s international developmentand play a game of chess with Trump.

“I hope President Trump accepts the invitation,”Ilyumzhinov told Interfax, adding that “a game of wits can sometimes achieve more than ten diplomatic notes.”

(That would be fun to watch!)

https://www.rt.com/russia/620952-us-lifts-sanctions-russian-chess-chief/

House Takes Final Vote on Big Beautiful Bill – Livestream Link

July 3, 2025 | Sundance |

The House of Representatives has voted to advance President Donald Trump’s $3.3 trillion “big, beautiful bill” to its final phase in Congress. After a long night of debate and amendment votes, the House is set to deliver the final vote this morning.

After it appeared to be derailed late Wednesday by hard-right holdouts, Republicans advanced the bill around 3:30 a.m. and are set to vote on final passage. During the all-nighter, GOP leaders kept the procedural vote open for almost six hours as they worked to flip 12 votes. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) was the lone Republican to vote “no” at the end.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2025/07/03/house-takes-final-vote-on-big-beautiful-bill-livestream-link/

https://www.youtu.be/XzTEA34vuQU

>>23270294 its 12 now consequential moments, the bill is passing this am

'IT WON'T WORK!': Stephen A. Smith gives NYC's Zohran Mamdani a reality check

ESPN host Stephen A. Smith has a warning for the Democratic Party and weighs in on opposition to the 'big, beautiful bill' on 'Hannity

11:16

https://youtu.be/7d0GrUDnS8k

>>23270532 hmm perfect timing 11:167 post number for video that is 11:16 long

>>23270532 smith is pretty funny, surprised those two have been friends for 20 years

Pentagon reveals brand-new details on status of Iran nuclear program

Former Assistant Secretary of State Robert Charles joins 'Fox & Friends First' to discuss his take on the new details regarding the damage to Iranian nuclear sites following American airstrikes

3:14

https://youtu.be/GwEkcRjaLw8

Mamdani turns up heat in war of words against Trump

Fox News' Bryan Llenas reports the latest on the Mamdani-Trump feud. Fox News contributor Joe Concha and New York Post columnist Rikki Schlott also weigh in on the war of words and an apology from the Columbia University president.

8:23

https://youtu.be/VufCLTCrE4U

VP Vance reveals congressman's text from House floor

Fox News' Peter Doocy and Mark Meredith report the latest on the effort to advance President Donald Trump's 'big, beautiful bill.' (Does anyone in the Dem party in the house want their leader to cry on the floor of the house. They are trying the most sad and pathetic tricks and none or working. Dems are lost and can’t find their way back)

6:01

https://youtu.be/4r88YFaFTDo

California may drop life sentences for violent criminals | Wake Up America

California is considering a bill that would allow parole for violent offenders, reigniting trauma for victims' families. NEWSMAX Crime Correspondent Jason Mattera has the details.

3:01

https://youtu.be/JpCGyH2Bbjg

>>23270671 Newscum is just trying to save state money do he can waste it on other things

New Tucker

Rob O’Neill: Shocking Stories From SEAL Team 6 & What Politicians Should Know Before Starting Wars

Fourteen years after he killed Osama bin Laden, former SEAL Rob O’Neill can say with authority that the warmongers pushing for regime change in Iran are disgusting.

Rob O'Neill is a former member of Navy SEAL Team 6 who participated in some of the world's most successful missions, including the rescue of Marcus Luttrell, the Lone Survivor, the rescue of Captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates, and the elimination of Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attack on America. Rob is currently the host of The Operator podcast, is a NYT Best Selling author, and the father of four amazing daughters.

2:18:29

https://youtu.be/N3z_kpaLmFo