6 Sep, 2025 21:16

Israel backs away from West Bank annexation plan after UAE warning – WaPo

West Jerusalem was taken by “surprise” by the admonition, the Washington Post has reported

A public warning from the United Arab Emirates prompted the Israeli government to drop a planned discussion on annexing the West Bank, the Washington Post has reported.A senior UAE diplomat reportedly told Israeli media earlier this week that such a move would be a “red line”that would block Israel’s path to regional integration.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was scheduled to discuss the issue at a major government meeting on Friday, according to local media. On Wednesday, UAE special envoy Lana Nusseibeh told the Times ofIsrael that annexation would “foreclose the idea of regional integration.”

“For every Arab capital you talk to, the idea of regional integration is still a possibility,but annexation to satisfy some of the radical extremist elements in Israel is going to take that off the table,” she stated.

The UAE was the first Arab nation to normalize relations with Israel in over a quarter century under the Abraham Accords brokered by President Donald Trump during his first term in office.

The public warning from Abu Dhabi “came as a surprise,” an Israeli official told the Post, calling the situation “very unusual.”

On Thursday, the issue of annexation was removed from the Israeli ministerial meeting agenda, according to the newspaper.

Washington has not taken a stance on the issue so far. Secretary of State MarcoRubio described potential annexation as “not a final thing” earlier this week, adding that he was “not going to opine on that.”

The West Bank returned to the spotlight earlier this year after a group of Israeli ministers urged that the territory be formally annexed. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich claimed control could be asserted at any moment.

Israel seized the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and has been actively building settlements there– which is widely regarded as illegal by the international community. It was close to annexation in 2020 but dropped the idea in exchange for normalizing relations with the UAE and Bahrain.

https://www.rt.com/news/624223-israel-west-bank-annexation-uae/

6 Sep, 2025 13:03

Trump threatens to shoot down Venezuelan planes

The US recently deployed a large naval and air force not far from the South American country

The US military is authorized to shoot down Venezuelan aircraft if commanders judge them a threat, President Donald Trump has said.His warning followed reports that Venezuelan aircraft had buzzed American warshipstaking part in what Washington describes as an anti-drug mission near the South American country.

Asked by reporters on Friday what the US would do if Venezuelan jets fly near US naval vessels again, Trump warned that“they’re going to be in trouble.” “If they do put us in a dangerous position, we’ll shoot them down,” he stressed.

Trump rejected claims by Caracas that Washington was seeking to topple the government of President Nicolas Maduro. “Well, we’re not talking about that, but we are talking about the fact that you had an election which was a very strange election,” he said.KEK

He instead framed the USmilitary presence near Venezuela as part of a crackdown on drug trafficking. “Billions of dollars of drugs are pouring into our country from Venezuela. The prisons of Venezuela have been opened up to our country,” Trump said, adding that US forces would target boats suspected of carrying narcotics.

In recent weeks, theUS deployed at least eight warships and an attack submarine in the Caribbean, while sending ten F-35 stealth fighters to Puerto Rico to deter further Venezuelan flyovers. Earlier this week, the US struck a boat it claimed was linked to a drug operation, killing 11 people.

As tensions with the US soared,Maduro warned that his country would move to a stage of “armed struggle” if it were attacked.

Relations between the United States and Venezuela have been tense for years. Washington refused to recognize Maduro’s reelection in 2018, instead backing the country’s opposition. Successive US administrations have imposed sweeping sanctions on Venezuela’s oil sector and financial system.

In August, the US announced a reward of $50 million for any information leading to Maduro’s arrest, whom it labeled “one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world.”

The Venezuelan president rejected the allegation, saying his country is “free from coca leaf production [and] cocaine,”and is fighting against drug trafficking.

https://www.rt.com/news/624211-trump-threatens-shoot-venezuela-planes/

5 Sep, 2025 21:36

US generals involved in European plan to send 10,000 troops to Ukraine – WSJ

The scheme is a part of security guarantees for Kiev advocated by Paris and London, the Wall Street Journal has reported

Top US military officials have been involved in drawing up a plan for “security guarantees” for Kiev advocated by Paris and Londonthat includes a massive troop deployment to Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing a European diplomat.

The scheme drawn up primarily by European army chiefsincludes two groups of forces that are to be sent to Ukraine, according to the report.One of them would be tasked with training and assistance to the Ukrainian military, while the second would serve as a “reassurance force” for Kiev. The troops are to be deployed once Moscow and Kiev reach a peace deal.

A total of 26 nations agreed to contribute to “security guarantees” for Ukraine in various ways, French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this week, following a meeting of the so-called ‘coalition of the willing’ – a group of Kiev’s European backers.

The current commitments would allow for a deployment of over 10,000 troops to Ukraine, the WSJ source said,adding that the plan “received input from some US generals,” including the US head of the NATO Allied Command Operations.

The level of US involvement in the scheme remains unclear, the report said, adding that there have been no clear statements from President Donald Trump.

Russia has expressed strong opposition to any NATO troop deployment to Ukraine. On Friday, President Vladimir Putin warned that foreign soldiers would either become targets for Russian forces or serve no purpose if a genuine peace agreement were reached.

He added that “the West’s dragging of Ukraine into NATO was one of the causes of the conflict” and said any settlement would have to include security guarantees for both Russia and Ukraine.

NBC News also reported on Friday that Kiev’s European backers want troops from non-NATO countries such as Bangladesh or Saudi Arabia to be sent to a “buffer zone” between Russia and Ukraine overseen by the US in the event of a peace deal.

Fuck Ukraine they have sucked the world dry

https://www.rt.com/news/624198-us-generals-troops-ukraine-plan/