Tag: perpetual war

Does No One Want Peace in Ukraine?

Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have been rare since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Part of the blame falls on Europe and the mainstream media for attempting to suffocate diplomacy.

When the first bilateral talks occurred in the early weeks of the war, the West, led by the United States, Britain and Poland discouraged them and nudged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky off the promising path of peace and along the path of war with promises of whatever Ukraine needs for as long as they need it. An initialed draft of a peace plan yielded to three years of war.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that Russian President Vladimir Putin “should be pressured, not negotiated with” and told Zelensky that Ukraine should “just fight.” The Americans, rather than encouraging diplomacy that could have saved hundreds of thousands of lives, prevented the poisoning of international relations and prevented the real risk of World War III, ramped up military aid and provided Ukraine with the most advanced weapons NATO had to offer.

Now there is hope of a resumption of those talks. Russian and Ukrainian delegations have met for the first time since those early talks for a first round of direct negotiations. And, once again, rather than nurturing them, Europe and the Western media are dismissing and suffocating them.

Rather than throwing their influential weight behind Ukraine negotiating with Russia, Europe has pushed Ukraine to adopt maximalist terms that they know will force Russia to go on fighting. They try to convince the Trump administration that Putin is bent on conquering Europe and is only faking interest in peace. They push for more sanctions on Russia and more military aid for Ukraine.

Instead of pushing for peace, Germany’s new chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said on May 26 that Germany had removed range restrictions on weapons sent to Ukraine, restrictions that his predecessor, like the United States, had insisted on to avoid crossing red lines that could draw NATO into war with Russia and into a third world war.

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If Only Ukraine-Loving Senate Republicans Put Americans First For Once

Senate Republicans and their majority leader are Johnny-on-the-spot when it comes to punishing Russia with sanctions after bad Vlad Putin and crew upped their missile strikes against Ukraine. Political strongmen tend to get a little testy when they suspect the countries they’re attacking of trying to blow them up.  As Axios reported earlier this week, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., was “ready to move on a popular, bipartisan sanctions bill if Russia won’t come to the table in good faith” on a peace deal. 

“Senate Republicans are seizing on President Trump’s growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin to argue the time to impose fresh sanctions on Russia is now,” the news outlet reported. Axios apparently carpooled with the rest of the corporate news gang on the “angry” “frustration” talking points expressway.

Senate Republicans are mad as hell, and they’re not going to take it anymore.

Tough-talking Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is buddying up with Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., on an economic sanctions bill aimed at bringing Russia to the negotiating table. Graham says there’s a “new sheriff in town. The old playbook won’t work this time.”  

But the old playbook remains sadly in fashion in so many ways in Washington, D.C. 

Wouldn’t it be swell if Senate Republicans displayed the same level of passion and urgency when it comes to cutting taxes, shrinking government, and protecting our borders? While a lot of Americans agree with Trump that “crazy” Putin may be “playing with fire,” they would like to see their representatives in Washington, D.C., take some interest in pressing matters at home.

Whatever you think of President Trump’s “One, Big, Beautiful Bill,” and the House-passed reconciliation package as it stands is colossal, it does deliver on key policy issues Americans overwhelmingly support. Topping that list is the huge provision that locks in the wildly popular tax cuts Trump signed in his first term. When the clock strikes 2026, the law preventing the IRS from grabbing more of your hard-earned money turns back into a pumpkin without action from Congress. 

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China Has ‘Aggressively Penetrated’ Whole of UK Economy, Admits Govt.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has successfully penetrated every sector of the United Kingdom (UK)’s economy as a result of the government’s willingness to accept Chinese money without asking questions, so says the UK Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee in a report published Thursday.

The CCP has “prolifically and aggressively” targeted Britain’s industrial and energy sectors as a means of gaining control and influence over the British nation and its interests. It has also been “particularly effective” at using its money and influence to buy up universities and academia to ensure criticism of the party is suppressed and that Chinese values and narratives are pushed “at the expense of the West,” the report states.

The UK is one of China’s main targets due to its close relationship with the United States as well as the UK’s position as an “opinion former,” claims the Intelligence and Security Committee’s chairman, Julian Lewis.

The UK government has done little to counter the threat, instead choosing to take Chinese money while turning a blind eye to “China’s sleight of hand.” The report explains:

“The lack of action similarly to identify and protect UK assets from a known threat is a serious failure, and one that the UK may feel the consequences of for years to come.”

The UK is now “playing catch up,” but “[t]here is no evidence that Whitehall policy departments have the necessary resources, expertise or knowledge of the threat to counter China’s approach,” the report adds.

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Israeli Drone Strike Killed South Lebanon Municipal Worker Fixing Water Well

Israel continues to carry out its daily airstrikes against southern Lebanon, and continues to claim they’re killing Hezbollah figures despite evidence to the contrary. Thursday, the deadly drone strike came against the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa.

The strike hit a forest on the town’s periphery, killing one person who Israel described as a “Hezbollah terrorist” and was working on restoring some sort of Hezbollah site involved in firing on Israeli territory. That’s the official Israeli story at least, and as usual, they provided no evidence to confirm it.

Mayor Zein Ali Ghandour was quick to offer a correction, however. Ghandour reported that the man killed was Mahmoud Hasan Atwi, a municipal employee, and that he was in the forest to work on a water well in the area.

This is just the latest of several thousand Israeli ceasefire violations since the truce went into effect in November. Those strikes have killed over 200 people, most of whom have never been conclusively identified.

The IDF though, when it comments at all on who they killed, virtually always declares the slain to be Hezbollah commander of some sort or another, and declares their very existence to be a violation of the ceasefire.

Since the ceasefire, Hezbollah has not launched a single strike on Israel. The group has handed over functionally all of its sites south of the Litani River to the Lebanese Army, and the Lebanese government reported some 80% of those sites have already been dismantled.

It’s difficult to say Lebanon will ever destroy all those sites to Israeli satisfaction, however, because every time a Lebanese government bulldozer is clearing a farmer’s field, Israel declares it to be the revitalization of a Hezbollah infrastructure and attacks the bulldozer.

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Smotrich Calls For ‘Rebuilding Temple’ During Jerusalem Day Celebrations

Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has called for the rebuilding of a Jewish temple on the site of Al-Aqsa Mosque and for the expansion of Israel’s borders and Jewish settlements in Gaza.

In speech addressing crowds at a Jerusalem Day rally on Monday, which celebrates Israel’s occupation of the old city of Jerusalem, Smotrich also called for “complete redemption” and reconstruction of “the Temple here,” referring to Al-Aqsa Mosque, which settlers had raided earlier.

“We are conquering the Land of Israel, liberating Gaza, settling Gaza and defeating the enemy,” Smotrich said to crowds that had chanted “death to Arabs” as they marched through Jerusalem’s Old City and attacked Palestinians. 

“With God’s help, we will expand Israel’s borders, bring about complete redemption, and rebuild the Temple here,” he said.

Smotrich also reiterated his calls for Jewish settlement in Gaza, declaring that “Israel is not afraid of the word occupation”.

“Some people are afraid of victory. We are not afraid of victory,” he said. “Lets give strength to our brave and heroic fighters”.

Several attacks and brawls were caught on film during Jerusalem Day marches…

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Trump Admin Refuses To Confirm Whether It’s Lifted Range Restrictions On Missiles To Ukraine

Press pool reporters were left frustrated Tuesday afternoon when during a State Department briefing the Trump admin spokesperson refused to comment on German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s announcement that the United States and European allies had lifted “absolutely” all restrictions on the range of arms sent to Ukraine.

State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce said when pressed by reporters, “I’m not going to discuss that. I’m not going to confirm that.” The Kremlin has responded by saying the decision was potentially dangerous and runs counter to attempts at a settlement. Still, there’s been no confirmation from the governments named by Merz, especially the US. Here is how Russia’s RT presented the televised exchange:

German chancellor says US, UK and EU all gave Kiev permission to fire longer-range missiles at Russia Trump’s government sounding more and more like Biden’s…

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Israeli Bombs, Gas Nearly Killed American Held By Hamas in Month Before Release

The father of Israeli-American IDF soldier Edan Alexander revealed that his son was nearly killed in an Israeli attack one month before Hamas released his son. The attack happened after Tel Aviv shut down the initial talks between Hamas and the Trump administration to ensure his release. 

According to an account by Alexander’s father, on April 14, Israel dropped multiple bombs above the tunnels where his son was held. The bombing created a toxic gas that nearly suffocated Edan to death. A second strike caused the tunnel he was in to collapse as he was fleeing the gas, nearly burying Alexander. 

In a statement from Edan relayed through his father, he explained how he was nearly killed by Israel. “I thought that was it, I’m dead. I managed to miraculously survive for a year and a half, but now it’s the end. I’m going to suffocate here in the tunnel,” he said. 

“We started to run away, and there was some kind of corridor — a very, very long corridor — I don’t know what was there on the other side, probably a connection to another route. We started running in that direction and then, suddenly, another bomb fell right above.” He added, “When the second bomb fell, and everything collapsed and we were buried underneath. It was the scariest moment of all time in captivity.”

Alexander is an American who was born in New Jersey. He enlisted in the IDF and was serving in a tank unit on October 7 when he was captured by Hamas. Alexander sustained injuries to his shoulder and hands during the Israeli attack that he is still recovering from. 

The date of the attack that nearly killed Alexander is notable as that same day, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said that Tel Aviv knew the location of the hostages and the operations would not endanger their lives. 

Additionally, the attack followed the initial push by the Trump administration to secure the release of Alexander, who was the only living American held by Hamas. In March, Trump’s Hostage Envoy Adam Bohler engaged in direct talks with Hamas on securing Alexander’s freedom. 

However, at that time, Tel Aviv lashed out at Bohler for attempting to make a deal and the talks ended. Early this month, the talks resumed when Hamas agreed to release Alexander as a unilateral show of good faith. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tel Aviv would not make any concessions to facilitate the release of Alexander. 

An official told The Times of Israel that Tel Aviv opposed Alexander’s release out of concern that Trump may lose interest in Gaza if there are no American hostages.

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Germany Deploys Permanent Troops To Lithuania As Russian Offensive Builds

Germany has deployed a permanent military brigade beyond its borders for the first time since the end of World War II, with troops dispatched to the capital of Lithuania.  The event was inaugurated by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said during a military ceremony in Vilnius that “the security of our Baltic allies is also our security.” 

The decision is part of a series of actions in recent months by European nations to “bolster defenses” on NATO’s eastern flank amid claims that Russia intends to invade greater Europe if they defeat Ukraine.  The “domino theory” remains unfounded and the Kremlin has never threatened to attack any country outside of Ukraine.  The move to shift troops to Lithuania places them near the border of Belarus (a Russian ally) and within striking distance of Ukraine or the Russian border. 

European governments have been threatening an escalation by eventually moving NATO troops into Ukraine in direct confrontation with Russian forces.  Vladimir Putin has previously warned that NATO troops in Ukraine represent a red line which could result in nuclear conflict. 

Putin asserted that if Ukraine’s Western backers deepened their involvement in the war, such as sending troops, the consequences for the “invaders” would be “tragic”. 

“They must realize that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory,” Putin said, in apparent reference to increasingly lethal Western weapons provided to Kyiv. “What they are now suggesting and scaring the world with — all that raises the real threat of a nuclear conflict that will mean the destruction of our civilization.”

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Teaching Or Treason? U.S. Alleges Fed Economist Spied For Beijing

In May 2013, John Rogers, a longtime Federal Reserve economist, was in Shanghai for an academic forum when he received an email that would eventually alter the course of his life and career.

The message was from someone claiming to be a Chinese graduate student. Rogers says he declined an offer of payment but kept in touch, later accepting an all-expenses-paid invitation to return to China. That visit, U.S. prosecutors allege, marked the beginning of a yearslong effort by Chinese intelligence to extract sensitive information from inside one of the most important economic institutions in the United States.

In January of this year, Rogers was arrested by the FBI on federal charges of economic espionage, the Wall Street Journal reports. He is accused of conspiring with Chinese operatives posing as students, handing over internal Federal Reserve materials in hotel rooms in China, and accepting travel accommodations arranged by his handlers. Authorities said they found $50,000 in cash at his Washington-area apartment, which his wife claimed as hers.

Rogers, who left the Fed in 2021, has denied all charges, maintaining that he never knowingly assisted a foreign government. His attorney argues that the indictment is misleading and lacks critical context. “The indictment presents an overly-simplistic, one-sided, and skewed version of events,” the lawyer said, adding that the defense team would mount a full rebuttal in court.

The case is one of the most detailed yet in exposing Beijing’s efforts to cultivate informants within U.S. institutions not traditionally seen as espionage targets, such as the Federal Reserve. American officials say China has broadened its intelligence gathering under President Xi Jinping, targeting not just defense contractors and tech companies, but also government economists and financial policymakers.

A 2022 Senate committee report alleged a coordinated campaign by China dating back at least to 2013 to gain insight into the Fed’s internal operations and decision-making. In one incident cited by the report, Chinese authorities allegedly detained a Fed employee in a hotel and threatened to jail him unless he shared economic data. The Chinese Foreign Ministry at the time dismissed the allegations as “political disinformation.”

In response to the report, Fed Chair Jerome Powell defended the central bank’s security policies, noting that staff travel and contacts with foreign nationals are subject to strict review. The Fed tightened its rules further in 2021, banning staff from accepting gifts or compensation from individuals or organizations in countries under U.S. export controls, including China.

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CCP Mounting Unrestricted Warfare to Suppress Shen Yun, Lawmaker Says

The Chinese regime’s growing campaign to suppress a New York-based performing arts firm is tantamount to unrestricted warfare, according to Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.).

“They fight on every single inch of the battlefield,” Perry told The Epoch Times, referring to the Chinese Communist Party.

Unrestricted warfare is a doctrine that leverages all available nonmilitary means to subdue an enemy. Under such tactics, China is taking advantage of the U.S. judicial system and the freedom of the media, Perry added.

Shen Yun showcases dance and music performances under the tagline “China before communism.” The company was founded in 2006 by practitioners of Falun Gong—a faith group brutally persecuted by the Chinese regime since 1999—and has been a target of the CCP since.

Over the past year, the regime’s effort targeting Shen Yun has escalated significantly, with dozens of bomb and death threats aimed at intimidating theaters that host Shen Yun performances along with the company’s training facilities in upstate New York. Following a secret directive from top leadership in Beijing, Chinese agents in the United States have tried to bribe the IRS to open a probe against Shen Yun. They also went to Orange County, where Shen Yun is based, to surveil local Falun Gong practitioners. Attack articles targeting Shen Yun appear on Western media, which are then boosted on social media X by thousands of accounts with suspected links to Beijing.

Perry, who sits on the House foreign affairs and intelligence committees, said it was important to take these threats seriously.

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