#Ukraine Foreign Minister

[tomorrowusa]

Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock replies to Putin’s declaration of a pseudo-ceasefire.

Direkt am, Frau Ministerin!   👍🏼🇩🇪

Putin’s Russian Christmas “ceasefire” is at best a public relations stunt and at worst a ploy to resupply his sordid troops with ammunition and military hardware.

Putin’s so-called Christmas ceasefire, explained

Putin could stop this war at any moment by simply getting out of Ukraine. Remember that this is an unprovoked invasion of a peaceful neighbor in violation of international law. Putin has no fucking business in Ukraine. Ukrainians are fighting for their existence, Russians are fighting for Putin’s ego.

Putin doesn’t care the least about saving lives. That includes Russian lives; over 100,000 Russians have been killed since February 24th. He continues to send poorly trained conscripts and mercenary convicts to Ukraine where they specialize in committing atrocities.

[stillunusual]

Battle of Klushino vibes….

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Dana Summers

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LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

April 11, 2024

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

APR 12, 2024

When Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida addressed a joint meeting of Congress today, he tried to remind lawmakers of who Americans are. “The U.S. shaped the international order in the postwar world through economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power,” he reminded them. “It championed freedom and democracy. It encouraged the stability and prosperity of nations, including Japan. And, when necessary, it made noble sacrifices to fulfill its commitment to a better world.”

He explained the bigger picture. “The United States policy was based on the premise that humanity does not want to live oppressed by an authoritarian state, where you are tracked and surveilled and denied from expressing what is in your heart and on your mind,” he said. “You believed that freedom is the oxygen of humanity.” 

Keenly aware that MAGA Republicans have rejected the nation’s role in protecting freedom and democracy and are standing between Ukraine and U.S. aid, Kishida said: “The world needs the United States to continue playing this pivotal role in the affairs of nations.”

“Freedom and democracy are currently under threat around the globe,” he said. “Climate change has caused natural disasters, poverty, and displacement on a global scale. In the COVID-19 pandemic, all humanity suffered. Rapid advances in AI technology have resulted in a battle over the soul of AI that is raging between its promise and its perils. The balance of economic power is shifting. The Global South plays a greater role in responding to challenges and opportunities and calls for a larger voice…. China's current external stance and military actions present an unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge, not only to the peace and security of Japan but to the peace and stability of the international community at large.”

In the midst of all this dramatic change, Kishida said, “the leadership of the United States is indispensable. Without U.S. support, how long before the hopes of Ukraine would collapse under the onslaught from Moscow?” he asked. “Without the presence of the United States, how long before the Indo-Pacific would face even harsher realities?”

He noted that Japan has pledged $12 billion to Ukraine and “will continue to stand with” the vulnerable country. In this fraught hour, he said, “[t]he democratic nations of the world must have all hands on deck. I am here to say that Japan is already standing shoulder to shoulder with the United States. You are not alone. We are with you.”

As Kishida gently warned lawmakers that the United States is abdicating its role in world affairs by its apparent abandonment of Ukraine, Russian forces last night destroyed the largest power plant in the Kyiv region. U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Bridget A. Brink reported that “Russia last night launched more than 40 drones and 40 missiles into Ukraine…. The situation in Ukraine is dire; there is not a moment to lose,” she wrote. 

House speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) surely knows the situation in Ukraine is dire; he has held up U.S. aid for six months. The Senate passed a national security supplemental bill that would provide aid to Ukraine back in February, but while Johnson has said he would bring the supplemental bill to the House floor, where it will certainly pass, somehow it has never been the right time.

American refusal to support Ukraine is causing global concern. When British foreign secretary David Cameron came to the U.S. this week, he not only met with lawmakers and State Department officials, but also traveled to Florida to meet with former president Trump at Mar-a-Lago in hopes of persuading him to support additional U.S. military aid to Ukraine. That Johnson refused to meet with Cameron when he returned to Washington, D.C., the next day suggests that Cameron’s effort achieved little. 

Johnson is facing pressure from extremists in his conference like Georgia representative Marjorie Taylor Greene who oppose aid to Ukraine and who are threatening to challenge his speakership if he brings the bill to the floor of the House. Those extremists fired another shot across his bow today when they blocked a law to extend a section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act after Trump urged them to kill it. 

When the measure failed, security expert and former Trump administration official Miles Taylor wrote: “The House’s failure to renew FISA is *BAD.* If these powers lapse, it would be like blind-folding U.S. spies and tying their hands behind their backs as they try to protect Americans from China, Russia, terror groups & beyond. Get it together, Congress.”

To enable Johnson to ignore the extremists if it means getting aid to Ukraine, Democrats have thrown Johnson a lifeline, if only he will use it. House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) suggested today that Democrats would vote against a challenge to Johnson’s speakership, keeping him in place. Jeffries said: “If the speaker were to do the right thing and allow the House to work its will with an up or down vote on the national security bill, then I believe there are a reasonable number of Democrats [who] would not want to see the speaker fall as a result of doing the right thing.” 

But instead of actually doing the people’s business and passing a measure the White House, Pentagon, and a majority of Congress think is vital to our national security, MAGA Republicans appear to be consumed by the effort to get Trump back into the presidency. 

Today the House Rules Committee got a new chair as Michael Burgess (R-TX) took the reins from Tom Cole (R-OK). Burgess will oversee his first hearing on Monday as the committee meets to examine six bills that appear to be designed to feed the Republicans’ culture wars by denying the secretary of energy’s power to establish new energy conservation standards. Those bills are the “Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act,” the “Liberty in Laundry Act,” the “Clothes Dryers Reliability Act,” the “Refrigerator Freedom Act,” the “Affordable Air Conditioning Act,” and the “Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act.” 

Johnson is also in on the act. He is scheduled to visit Mar-a-Lago tomorrow to promote a bill to prevent noncitizens from voting. This is purely political theater: it is already illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections. Trump seems eager to push the idea of “election integrity” to bolster his lie that the 2020 election was stolen and the 2024 election will be too, evidently trying to chum up distrust of American elections.

Under its new co-chairs, Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump and Trump loyalist Michael Whatley, the Republican National Committee last week sent out a robocall to voters’ phones saying that Democrats committed “massive fraud” in the 2020 presidential election and that “If Democrats have their way, your vote could be canceled out by someone who isn’t even an American citizen.” This is a straight-up lie, of course—Trump and his loyalists have never produced any evidence for their accusations and lost more than 60 court cases over it—but Trump clearly intends to make it a centerpiece of his campaign. 

While Republicans are pushing the Big Lie, in The Bulwark today, conservative commentator Mona Charen noted that Ukraine president Volodomyr Zelensky this week warned the U.S. that Ukraine will lose the war against Russia’s aggression if it does not get U.S. aid. 

“Putin seems to have pulled off the most successful foreign influence operation in American history,” Charen wrote. “If Trump were being blackmailed by Putin it’s hard to imagine how he would behave any differently. And though it started with Trump, it has not ended there. Putin now wields more power over the [Republicans] than anyone other than Trump…. [T]hey mouth Russian disinformation without shame. Putin,” she said, “must be pinching himself.”

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[t-jfh]

What makes Zelenskyy an exceptional leader, according to four experts who’ve seen him up close and personal.

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It’s Not Enough for Ukraine to Win. Russia Has to Lose.

Anything less will encourage Russian imperialism and embolden autocrats around the world.

The Atlantic

Shared via Apple News

[immaculatasknight]

Lame joke

[loudlylovingreview]

Jessica Corbett: Russia's Foreign Minister Warns US That World War III Wouldn't Be Confined to Europe

“They have a mindset of a master sitting somewhere out there overseas and believing to be totally safe and secure, thinking that not only Ukrainians, but also… Europeans would be willing to do the dirty work and die for them.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum 2024 on March 1, 2024 in Antalya, Turkey.  (Photo: Mert Gokhan Koc/ dia images via Getty…

[cinemafromcinema]

Scott Ritter: "…a Palestinian state; we couldn’t be talking about where we are today with the promise of a Palestinian state, the hope of a Palestinian state without the efforts of Iran…"

[newsmrl]

रूसी राष्ट्रपति पुतिन की सऊदी अरब और UAE की यात्रा के वैश्विक स्तर पर क्या मायने हैं ?

UAE : रूस के राष्ट्रपति व्लादिमीर पुतिन ने बुधवार को सऊदी अरब और संयुक्त अरब अमीरात की यात्रा शुरू की। इस यात्रा से सऊदी अरब की प्रसन्नता का अंदाज़ा मीडिया समेत दुनिया को तब लग गया जब पुतिन अपने विमान की सीढ़ियों से नीचे उतरे और संयुक्त अरब अमीरात के विदेश मंत्री शेख अब्दुल्ला बिन जायद अल नाहयान मुस्कुराते हुए उनसे मिले। सऊदी अरब और यूएई दोनों ने ही आईसीसी की संधि पर हस्ताक्षर नहीं किए हैं। इसका…

[minnesotafollower]

Cuban Foreign Minister: Cubans May Not Legally Participate in Foreign Wars

Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, on September 15 publicly stated, “The unequivocal and invariable position of the Cuban Government, in accordance with national legislation, is contrary to the participation of Cuban citizens in any conflict, against mercenarism and against human trafficking.”[1] This statement apparently was based on “section eight and Article 135 of…

[tomorrowusa]

The brand new French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné made a point of making Kyiv his first official visit since taking office this week.

On Friday morning, Séjourné said support for Ukraine was one of his priorities alongside working toward the reform of international institutions and promoting Europe as "a powerhouse." "Helping Ukraine guarantees the victory of democracy over totalitarianism," he said as he took over responsibilities at the foreign ministry. Séjourné's trip to Ukraine comes on the heels of a visit from U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who pledged to give Kyiv £2.5 billion in military aid in 2024/25. The former Renew Europe Group president also said he would visit Warsaw and Berlin in a bid to "revive the Weimar triangle," a reference to the regional alliance between France, Germany and Poland set up after the Cold War.

Along with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, Mr. Séjourné visited the Memory Wall in Kyiv.

[faultfalha]

Rumors spread like wildfire among the diplomatic circles that South Africa's Foreign Minister had whispered something about the BRICS Bloc's possible expansion. Though no one could confirm what exactly it was, the suspicion that it involved a substantial number of new members was enough to get people buzzing. Of course, that was no surprise, as the BRICS alliance had been gaining momentum for years, ever since it was founded just a short decade ago. What could the foreign minister's statement mean? Speculation ran rampant, and the possibilities were endless. Was it the dawn of a new era, or an ominous sign of things to come? The details remain wrapped in mystery, and only time will tell as to what this sudden announcement could portend. It's only certain that those within the diplomatic circles must've sensed a shift in the winds, and the ripples of the turmoil are sure to spread far and wide. What the future holds is still unknown, and the truth may never be revealed. But as the speculation rages on, one thing is abundantly clear: the BRICS Bloc is about to become something entirely new.

[niveditaabaidya]

Moldova To Reduce Number Of Russian Embassy Staff. #news #youtube #ukrai...

[bikerpoliticalreport]

Russians, Ex-US Officials Secretly Discussing Ukraine

  Former senior U.S. national security officials have been holding secret talks with key Russians said to be close to the Kremlin, including in one case, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, in hopes of preparing for negotiations that could end the war in Ukraine, according to people briefed on the discussions.

   The Lavrov meeting, held in New York in April, involved Richard Haass, a former diplomat and the outgoing president of the Council on Foreign Relations, along with Europe expert Charles Kupchan and Russia expert Thomas Graham, who are former White House and State Department officials and fellows with the Council of Foreign Relations, according to NBC News sources, described as four former and two current officials.

   In that meeting, the participants reportedly discussed the fate of Russian-held territory in Ukraine and the search for a diplomatic solution that both sides could approve.

   Lavrov was in the United States to chair the U.N. Security Council. At about that time, Haass and Kupchan wrote a lengthy article in Foreign Affairs, a publication by the Council on Foreign Relations about “a plan for getting from the battlefield to the negotiating table.”

   They predicted a stalemate after the Ukrainian counteroffensive and recommended the U.S. start with the groundwork to propose a cease-fire leading to a demilitarized zone that would be monitored by either the UN or the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. After that, they wrote, “Peace talks should follow.”

   The former officials involved in the meeting either did not respond to requests for comment from NBC News or declined to comment on the record, and the network’s sources declined to be named while confirming confidential talks.

   Two sources said the Biden administration is aware of the talks but has not been directing them. The officials who met with Lavrov briefed the White House National Security Council after the talks took place.

   In diplomatic talk, such discussions are known as “Track Two diplomacy,” which takes place when there is unofficial engagement involving private citizens, and in Lavrov’s case, the term “Track 1.5” is used, which means current officials are involved in at least one end of the conversation.

   It was not made clear how often the discussions have been taking place with the Russians, or if they are being undertaken through an organized effort to bring about diplomatic talks, NBC noted.

   Two people briefed on the talks, though, say the discussions have also included some former Pentagon officials, including former U.S. assistant defense secretary Mary Beth Long, who is experienced in issues involving NATO.

   The Russians involved in the talks, along with Lavrov, have included think tank or research institute leaders, academics, and others who are believed to be in close touch with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin. The Russian participants were not identified by name, out of concern for their safety.

   A spokesman for the White House National Security Council declined to comment, and the Russian Embassy in Washington, D.C., did not respond to a request to speak.

   Further, an official in the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said there would be no comment on news reports based on unnamed sources, but insisted that Ukraine’s “position is unchanged.”

   “The fate of Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine,” the official said. “Many times the president and all our official speakers spoke about it. Not anonymously, but quite specifically and publicly.”

   There are signs that the U.S. and its allies want the two countries to move toward having peace talks this fall.

   In May, CIA Director William Burns heard from Ukrainian officials during a secret trip to Kyiv about pushing Moscow toward peace talks before the end of the year, according to reporting from The Washington Post.

   There are questions about whether the secret talks will continue after the revolt waged by Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. The discussions are also taking place while other conversations are being held between the United States and Russia concerning detained U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich, which Putin’s spokesman revealed this week.