updated 2 Apr 2025, 09:05 MDT

After our 11/15/22 emergency meeting on the Ukraine War we committed to providing near-daily updates of what we think are some of the most valuable news and analyses for fellow activists. This is that selection. If you find this page helpful please forward it to your friends and contacts. Beginning Nov 16, 2023 we will be updating this page on a semiweekly basis. Stopping this war is of critical, emergency importance. Please do whatever you can.

Unless otherwise noted, the italicized comments below are Greg Mello's.

Highly recommended resource: Judge Andrew Napolitano's video podcast on YouTube.

Highly recommended: Russophobia: Propaganda in International Politics, Glenn Diesen, 2022.
Provoked, How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine, Scott Horton, 2024.

Russia – Ukraine War Master Class: Prof. Glenn Diesen, Prof. John Mearsheimer, Ambassador Chas Freeman Prof. Jeffrey Sachs, Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, Aug 2024

Apr 2, 2025

Featured • Russia Says It Cannot Accept US Proposals on Ukraine in Current Form, Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com, Apr 1, 2025

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Tuesday that Russia couldn’t accept US proposals on ending the Ukraine war in their current form since they do not address the root causes of the conflict.

Ryabkov said Moscow hasn’t seen the US send a “clear signal” to Ukraine that it’s time to end the war.

“What we have today is an effort to find a framework that would make it possible to ensure America’s vision for a ceasefire. The idea is to then move on to some other models and frameworks, which, as far as we can see, leave no room for Russia’s core demand, that is, the need to resolve the issues stemming from the root causes of this conflict,” he said, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

Ryabkov said Russia takes the US proposals very seriously but that they couldn’t be accepted “as they are.”

Lastly, I want to alert you to a ridiculous article written by George W. Bush’s former speech writer, Marc Thiessen. To call Mr. Thiessen an ignorant hack, is an insult to the hacks that infest Washington, DC.

His op-ed in the Washington Post is titled, Putin is stalling and Trump is angry. It’s time for ‘maximum pressure.’ The accusation that Putin is stalling, which I addressed in my recent article, Trump’s Negotiators Fail to Understand Russia and Europe Crashes and Burns, is a lie. Putin is not stalling. He is waiting for the US to deliver on its part of the agreement regarding the Black Sea and exports of grains and fertilizer… namely, lift the sanctions and reconnect the Russian bank that handles payments for these exports to SWIFT. And then there is the issue of Zelensky’s decree, which makes it illegal for ANY Ukrainian to negotiate with the Russians.

I will only subject you to three paragraphs from Thiessen’s incredibly obtuse and ignorant prose...

Au contraire, Mr. Thiessen. Mr. Putin holds all the cards. Trump does not even hold a trump card. Unlike the US economy, which grew by 2.8% in 2024, Russia’s economy is clicking along at a rate of 4.1%, notwithstanding being hit with a tsunami of Western sanctions over the past three years.

The reason I’m drawing attention to the work of this cretin, is that Thiessen’s views reflect the beliefs of the Washington establishment. This wrongheaded thinking explains why Trump and his national security team are unable to hear and comprehend what the Russians are saying to them behind closed doors. When you enter negotiations armed with a mountain of false assumptions regarding Russia’s economic and military strength, then the odds that you can secure a meaningful peace deal are slim to none.

If Trump is foolish enough to ramp up military and intelligence support for Ukraine, especially in the wake of the NY Times article by Adam Entous — where a host of US officials confirmed they have planned and helped execute attacks on Russian territory and Russian personnel — and, at the same time, attack Iran, his Presidency will end in utter failure. Trump needs a serious adult capable of sitting him down and explaining reality to him, i.e., the US has limited supplies of HIMARS, ATACMS, Patriot missiles and battle tanks. He will not secure peace by threatening military action. Unfortunately, I don’t think President Trump is in the mood to listen.

Apr 1, 2025

Featured • Trump’s Negotiators Fail to Understand Russia and Europe Crashes and Burns, Larry C. Johnson, SONAR21, Mar 31, 2025

But Trump and his negotiating team have a bigger problem — they don’t understand that Russia will not, under any circumstances, accept a complete ceasefire, and it will not compromise on the positions that Vladimir Putin laid out to senior officials of the Russian Foreign Ministry in June 2024. Marco Rubio and his team fail to grasp this point...

Many inside the Trump administration, along with the pundits and analysts that populate Washington think tanks, continue to wrongly believe that Russia is suffering terrible military losses and that the Russian economy is on the verge of collapse.

You may be familiar with the old adage: a picture is worth a thousand words. If that is true, then a video must be worth a book the length of War and Peace. Check out this video, which compares the NYC subway with the Moscow metro system. Then tell me whose economy is stronger...

Our [Russian] challenges exist, ‘yes’ – “but theirs are abundant also. Western dominance is slipping away. New centres of global growth are taking centre stage”, Putin said.

These [challenges] are not the ‘problem’; they are the opportunity, Putin outlined: ‘We will prioritise domestic manufacturing and the development of tech industries. The old model is over. Oil and gas production will be simply the adjunct to a largely internally circulating, self-sufficient ‘real economy’ – with energy no longer its driver. We are open to western investment – but only on our terms – and the small ‘open’ sector of our otherwise closed economy will of course still trade with our BRICS partners’.

What Putin outlined effectively is the return to the mainly closed internally-circulating economy model of the German school (à la Friedrich List) and of the Russian Premier, Sergei Witte.

Just to be clear – Putin was not just explaining how Russia had transformed into a sanctions-resistant economy that could equally disdain the apparent enticements of the West, as well as its threats. He was challenging the Western economic model more fundamentally.

Mar 31, 2025

Featured • New York Times Fantasy Tale of Ukraine’s Almost Great Victory Over Russia, Larry C. Johnson, SONAR21, Mar 30, 2025

Adam Entous of the New York Times just published a lengthy article that pretends to tell the true history of the war in Ukraine. I can summarize the massive story in one sentence — Ukraine would have destroyed the weak, incompetent Russians if only the Ukrainian generals had followed the guidance from the US military. If you’re looking for a signal that the war in Ukraine is on its last legs, this article is it. This is a ridiculous attempt to burnish the image of the Pentagon and US European Command as strategic and tactical geniuses who could have beaten the Russians if only those damn Ukrainians had followed their advice.

...Entous appears to have another objective in mind with his article — blame Trump.

...Entous also makes sure to give the United States credit for any and all successes, whether real or not, while blaming Generals Zaluzhnyi and Syrsky for the failures. “Ain’t our fault the Ukrainians fucked this up,” is the implied lament that permeates the article. We, the US, were the backbone don’t cha know...

...The Entous article, taken as a whole, celebrates the Ukrainian illusory victories while ignoring the facts about Russia’s actual military conquests. Not one word about Russia’s taking of Mariupol early in the war. Not one word about the small size of Russia’s initial force in February 2022, which was dwarfed by Ukraine. Not one word about Russia’s rejuvenated defense industry cranking out artillery, artillery shells, tanks, armored vehicles and drones. Nope. Russia is just a weak nation that Ukraine had on the ropes, and Ukraine failed to administer the coup de grace advocated by the same US military leaders who were driven out of Afghanistan.

As seen in the above excerpt, the article is a further confirmation of what we’ve long known, that the conflict is just another in a long line of vendetta-fueled proxy wars. Unlike the others, however, this one risks igniting world-ending nuclear war between superpowers on account of the conflict being existential to Russian security.

And perhaps this is the chief point the West continues in failing to understand: they press on with support for Ukraine under the false comparison to the Afghan war, deluding themselves that flooding Ukraine with enough MIC-boosting Stinger-analogues will cause Russia to either get bored and exit, or collapse from overspending. But Afghanistan could not hold a candle to Ukraine in existential terms, and the West gravely underestimates the lengths to which Russians will go in removing the tip of NATO’s dagger from their country’s throat.

Let us look forward to the next NYT exposé sometime in 2026, detailing the late-stage Bacchanalian collapse we’re likely to soon witness in this, the West’s most brazen and hubristic folly of a proxy war.

The EU will not lift its sanctions against Russia for as long as the Ukraine conflict continues, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said. During talks in Saudi Arabia on Monday, Russia and the US agreed to move towards reviving the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which, according to the Kremlin, should include the removal of Western restrictions against Russian Agricultural Bank and other financial institutions involved in the international sale of food and fertilizers. In her interview with French broadcaster LCI on Friday, von der Leyen made it clear that Brussels will not support the idea of a maritime truce between Moscow and Kiev put forward by the administration of US President Donald Trump.

The European political and financial elite knows that the war in Ukraine is lost but wants to use it as an opportunity to reach strategic independence from the United States. As the future chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz said right after his electoral win on Feb 23: “It will be an absolute priority for me to strengthen Europe as soon as possible so much that it gradually really achieves independence from the United States.” Such strategic independence needs money and investment—a lot of it—not only to boost defense but much else, like energy and innovation; areas in which Europe is lagging behind the US and China. In order to have the pretext to implement this spending plan, the idea among the EU elite is to make sure that the war in Ukraine does not end too quickly. That way the conflict can be used to justify artificially injecting much needed money into the moribund EU economies.

...Therefore, what the EU elite has in mind now is likely to put in place what F. Merz said; a strategic independence from the US through a huge investment by joint EU bonds, released and used over the long term in order to slowly build up Europe’s industry, not only in the defense sector but also in other sectors. In a sense, this would-be debt plan is just the European Union emulating the United States playbook of using war for crony capitalist benefits, finally “understanding” how to cynically exploit the Ukraine war, just as the US has been doing since 2022 by feeding its military-industrial complex. But, in order for this to happen, the war must not end too soon for the European elite, which is why efforts are made in order to—outrageously—spoil any US peace plans and get the war to continue for now.

Mar 29, 2025

Featured • UK and France key to Kiev’s latest attack on Russian energy infrastructure – Moscow, RT, Mar 28, 2025

France and the UK actively aided Kiev in a strike on the Sudzha pipeline infrastructure in Russia’s Kursk Region on Friday, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has told journalists. Earlier the Russian Defense Ministry said that a metering facility was “de facto destroyed” in a Ukrainian HIMARS attack.

“[We] have reasons to believe that targeting and navigation were facilitated through French satellites and British specialists input [target] coordinates and launched [the missiles],” Zakharova said, commenting on the strike.

“The command came from London,” she said, branding the attack part of a Ukrainian “terror” campaign targeting Russian energy infrastructure. The spokeswoman added that such actions demonstrate that Kiev is “impossible to negotiate with.”

Although Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky “publicly supported” a temporary suspension of strikes on energy infrastructure agreed by Moscow and Washington, he “did nothing to observe it,” according to Zakharova.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has accused Brussels bureaucrats of clinging to a “failed pro-war policy” in a desperate attempt to delay the moment when European taxpayers begin asking where the money spent on bankrolling Kiev has gone. The European Union recently advised its 450 million inhabitants to stockpile essential supplies for at least 72 hours, with EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib warning on Wednesday that the Ukraine conflict threatens the bloc’s overall security. Szijjarto said he initially thought the warning was some kind of joke or “trolling,” after Lahbib posted a bizarre video showing Europeans what to pack in a 72-hour survival kit. “But why, in the 21st century, should EU citizens prepare a survival kit? There’s only one explanation: Brussels is preparing for war,“ Szijjarto wrote in a post on X on Friday.

Foreign firms that exited Russia due to sanctions linked to the Ukraine conflict are now seeking to return, according to President Vladimir Putin’s special economic representative, Kirill Dmitriev. Dmitriev, who is also the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), was responding to Korea Times report on Friday that South Korean companies are looking to resume operations in Russia, given US-led ceasefire talks between Moscow and Kiev. “Global companies are lining up to return to Russia, signaling renewed confidence and fresh opportunities in one of the world’s largest markets,” Dmitriev wrote on X on Friday.

If there were a prize for Orwellian-named conferences, then the one held this week in Paris would surely be a top contender. Over the past month, there has been a slew of such gatherings in London, Brussels, and Paris. They have been conducted in a frenzy to thwart peace and prolong war – under the guise of “seeking security” against Russia. Some 30 nations attended the latest Paris summit, convened by France’s Emmanuel Macron, and entitled “Building a Robust Peace for Ukraine and Europe”. Europe is being gaslighted to view war as peace and accept that all economic resources must be dedicated to militarism. It is an insane war footing that is beyond any democratic or moral rationale. European Union member states participated as well as NATO and non-EU nations Britain, Norway, and Canada.

We should clarify that it was the elitist leaders of these countries who were present. Their lack of democratic mandate and authority is all too obvious to the people of Europe.

...Trump’s diplomatic overtures with Moscow have sidelined the European states and have left them with an acute political problem of how to justify continuing military support for a failing Ukraine Project. The French, British and other European Russophobes do not want the war to end. That’s because they are wedded to the false narrative about defending Ukraine from “Russian aggression”. They are also committed to strategically defeating Russia using Ukraine as a proxy.

US President Donald Trump is both contemptuous of Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky and assured of Kiev’s weakness in its conflict with Moscow, The Times’ Washington reporter Hugh Tomlinson suggested in an op-ed published on Friday. In light of this, Trump aims to get back all the funds the US has spent on the Ukraine conflict during his predecessor Joe Biden’s term, Tomlinson wrote. “Convinced of Ukraine’s weakness, contemptuous of Zelensky, and enraged by the billions of dollars in aid given to Kiev by Joe Biden’s administration, Trump has set out to get it all back, and more,” he said. Last month, Trump demanded that Kiev reimburse what he claimed was hundreds of billions of dollars in US aid via Ukraine’s mineral wealth, originally focusing on “rare earths.”

...The latest version of the minerals deal proposed by the Trump administration is far harsher than earlier iterations, Reuters wrote on Thursday, citing a draft of the agreement. Under the newest terms, the US will recoup all aid money given to Ukraine since the escalation of its conflict with Russia in 2022 and charge a 4% annual interest rate on the sum before Kiev can access the fund’s profits. Zelensky has confirmed that he has received a fresh proposal from the US but insisted that the funding Kiev has received from Washington was a donation and not a loan. The US has allocated more than $123 billion to Ukraine in military and financial aid since 2022, according to data from Germany’s Kiel Institute. Trump maintains that Washington has spent more than $300 billion on supporting Kiev.

Mar 28, 2025

Featured • Key points from Putin’s speech on placing Ukraine under UN control, RT, Mar 28, 2025

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed placing Ukraine under a temporary international administration as one possible way of resolving the ongoing conflict. The idea, he said, draws on international precedent and would aim to restore legitimate governance before any peace deal could be finalized. During his meeting with Russian nuclear submarine officers on Thursday, President Putin described a possible international mechanism for stabilizing Ukraine – placing it under temporary external administration coordinated by the United Nations. Here are the key takeaways from Putin’s proposal:

1) Problem: Collapse of legitimacy in Kiev

Putin argued that Ukraine’s constitutional legitimacy has broken down due to the expiration of Vladimir Zelensky’s presidential powers last year and the lack of elections since – rendering all of his government’s claims to authority invalid.

“Presidential elections weren’t held… under the constitution, all officials are appointed by the president. If he himself is illegitimate, then so is everyone else.”

2) Consequence: Power vacuum filled by radicals

Putin has warned that groups with neo-Nazi views, such as the notorious Azov battalion – which receive Western weapons and actively recruit followers – could increasingly exert de facto control in Ukraine, potentially replacing formal civilian authorities. “Amid the de facto illegitimacy… Neo-Nazi formations are receiving more weapons,” and could take “the actual power in their hands.” Putin argued that this makes negotiating with Ukraine’s current government even more unreliable and unstable: “It’s unclear who you’re even signing any documents with – tomorrow new people could come and say, ‘We don’t know who signed this – goodbye.’”

3) Suggestion: UN-led temporary external administration

Putin proposed the use of a UN-led transitional authority, referencing prior international missions such as in East Timor, Papua New Guinea, and parts of former Yugoslavia. “In such cases, international practice often follows a known path – under UN peacekeeping, through what is called external governance, a temporary administration.”

4) Purpose: Restoring constitutional order and setting legal framework for stable peace

The main goal, according to Putin, would be to organize democratic elections and install a functioning, legitimate government trusted by citizens and recognized globally. He stated that only such leaders could sign peace agreements that would be recognized worldwide and upheld over time. “Why do this? In order to hold democratic elections, in order to bring to power a government that is capable and enjoys the trust of the people, and then begin negotiations with them on a peace treaty, sign legitimate documents that will be recognized worldwide and will be reliable and stable.”

5) Not the only option – but a viable one

Putin emphasized that this idea is not the only possibility, but an example drawn from historical precedent. “This is just one option… I’m not saying other options do not exist, but it is hard right now, or maybe even impossible, to lay everything out clearly because the situation is changing so fast,” he said.

6) Multilateral cooperation beyond the West

Putin said such an initiative should involve not just the UN or the US, but a broader coalition, including BRICS nations and others Russia considers reliable. “We will work with any partners – the US, China, India, Brazil, South Africa, BRICS countries… and, for example, North Korea.” He also stressed that Russia remains open to working with the EU, even though Moscow’s trust in the Western European countries has been fundamentally undermined by their manipulation of peace efforts as a tactic to buy time and rearm Ukraine.

The possibility of introducing temporary governance in Ukraine could be discussed under the auspices of the United Nations together with the United States, European countries and Russian partners, Russian President Vladimir Putin said. The introduction of temporary governance in Ukraine would allow democratic elections to be held in the country, Putin added. “And for what? To hold democratic elections, to bring to power a viable government that enjoys the people’s trust. And then begin negotiations with them on a peace treaty, sign legitimate documents that will be recognized throughout the world and will be reliable and stable. This is only one option, I am not saying that there are no others,” the president noted.

The Russian President made other statements regarding foreign policy and the conflict in Ukraine while talking to sailors of the nuclear-powered submarine cruiser Arkhangelsk. Russia has a strategic initiative along the entire front line, the President stressed. Russia controls 99% of the territory of the Lugansk People’s Republic and more than 70% of the territory of the DPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, Putin noted. “I said not long ago that we would push them out, but there is reason to believe that we will finish them off,” he added. Russia is ready to cooperate with all countries that want to eliminate the causes of the Ukrainian conflict for a peaceful settlement. Moscow is ready to collaborate with Europe on Ukraine, but the EU behaves inconsistently and constantly tries to “lead Russia by the nose,” he added.

“The curators from Europe have convinced Kiev to continue the war to the last Ukrainian in order to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia,” the Russian president said. Russia will no longer make mistakes based on excessive trust in its so-called partners, Putin stressed. The Russian President mentioned the BRICS countries and the DPRK among the partners Russia is ready to work with for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine.

Washington has long harbored plans to get its hands on Greenland, and the ongoing tensions around it should be taken seriously, Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned. Speaking at the International Arctic Forum in Murmansk on Thursday, Putin touched upon the ongoing tensions around Greenland, a Danish semi-autonomous territory, and US President Donald Trump’s repeated promises to annex it. Trump invoked the topic of Greenland once again on Wednesday, claiming the US ownership of the island is needed to “properly defend a large section of this Earth” and would be universally beneficial – including for Denmark. “We have to have the land because it’s not possible to properly defend a large section of this Earth – not just the US – without it. So we have to have it, and I think we will have it,” he said.

The statements of the US president should be taken seriously, Putin warned, pointing out the US has been harboring plans to annex Greenland for over a century and a half already. “Everyone knows about the US plans to annex Greenland. You know, this may surprise someone only at first glance. And it is a deep mistake to believe that this is some kind of extravagant talk of the new American administration,” Putin warned. The American plans to seize Greenland date back to 1860, but at the time they did not get supported by the Congress, the Russian president pointed out. “Let me remind you that by 1868, the Alaska purchase was being ridiculed in American newspapers. It was called madness, an ‘ice box,’ and ‘the polar bear garden’ of Andrew Johnson, then-US president. And his Greenland proposals failed,” Putin said.

The US, Germany, and Denmark also neared a land-swap deal in 1910, with the proposed agreement ceding Greenland to America, Putin noted. However, the deal ultimately fell through. From the early 19th century to the 1950s, Greenland was a territory under the full control of Denmark. During World War Two, it was occupied by the US after Denmark proper was captured by Nazi Germany. Currently, the island hosts a US military base and the infrastructure for an early warning system for ballistic missiles. In recent decades, the island has grown increasingly autonomous and was granted home rule in 1979, ultimately receiving the right in 2009 to declare independence if a referendum passes.

Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has reproached US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, accusing him of disseminating “Kremlin narratives.” Zelensky made the remarks on Wednesday in an interview with European broadcasters, including France 2. He accused Witkoff, a key official in opening negotiations on resolving the Ukraine conflict, of taking Moscow’s side and “helping” Russian President Vladimir Putin. “I believe that Witkoff really does quote Kremlin narratives very often. I believe that this will not bring us closer to peace. And I believe that, unfortunately, this will weaken the American pressure on Russia. We can only fix this information backdrop through our actions. We’re trying to do that,” Zelensky stated.

“Witkoff’s statements are very much a hindrance to us, because we are fighting Putin and we really do not want him to have many helpers,” he added. Zelensky was apparently referring to remarks made by Witkoff in a recent interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson, during which the special envoy spoke about the status of former Ukrainian territories that have joined Russia, describing the issue as “an elephant in the room” that “no one wants to talk about.” “They’re Russian-speaking. There have been referendums where the overwhelming majority of the people have indicated that they want to be under Russian rule,” Witkoff said. “The Russians are de facto in control of these territories. The question is: Will the world acknowledge that those are Russian territories? Can Zelensky survive politically if he acknowledges this? This is the central issue in the conflict,” he added.

The remarks outraged Kiev, with the head of Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Aleksandr Merezhko, condemning what he called “disgraceful, shocking statements” and urging Washington to dismiss “completely unprofessional” Witkoff from his role.

Mar 27, 2025

 • Europe Rules Out Easing Of Russian Sanctions, Killing Ceasefire Hopes, ZeroHedge, Mar 27, 2025

French President Emmanuel Macron is hosting nations in Paris who make up a 'coalition of the willing' in their continued support to Ukraine, and on Thursday he has announced that sanctions on Russia will not be lifted, as unanimously agreed to among participants.

The twenty-seven heads of mostly European states and governments represented there further agreed there will be no easing of sanctions in exchange for a Black Sea ceasefire.

A new Black Sea peb's last question ('Why even bother?") is a serious one, not rhetorical in my view. I don't know the answer. ace initiative was unveiled by Washington at the Riyadh talks, and agreed to by both warring parties as of Wednesday, and would see Russian food and agricultural sanctions lifted, as well as the reconnection of Russian agricultural banks to the international Swift payment system.

The Wall Street Journal's Yaroslav Trofimov points out that "The lifting of sanctions on banking, as demanded by Russia, cannot be done without European say so. Now what?"

Ukraine’s ongoing attacks on energy infrastructure are in breach of a US-mediated ceasefire but will not dissuade Russia from maintaining its commitment to the pause, Dmitry Peskov stated on Wednesday. The agreement to refrain from attacking such sites was brokered by US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin during a phone conversation last week. Ukraine launched three separate assaults over two days, aimed at a natural gas reservoir and two segments of the national power grid, the Russian military reported on Wednesday; the latter two resulted in supply disruptions. At a press briefing, Peskov acknowledged Kiev’s “inability to adhere to agreements,” citing the incidents as evidence. Nevertheless, the Russian military is adhering to the suspension of strikes.

Peskov expressed the Kremlin’s commitment to the moratorium, saying it signifies progress in the improvement of US-Russia bilateral relations. He reminded journalists that Moscow has specified the types of targets protected under the partial ceasefire, which were discussed during consultations in Saudi Arabia earlier this week. Moscow suspects that Kiev is attempting to derail Washington’s efforts to mediate a comprehensive truce by continuing its attacks on energy infrastructure. The Foreign Ministry had previously warned that Russia could withdraw from the agreement in response to Ukrainian “provocations.”

Mar 26, 2025

 • Trump hails ‘progress’ on Ukraine, RT, Mar 26, 2025

US President Donald Trump has hailed the outcome of Washington’s negotiations with delegations from Moscow and Kiev as a significant step forward in resolving the Ukraine conflict. Following separate talks in Saudi Arabia this week, both Kiev and Moscow expressed readiness to observe President Trump’s proposed agreement to mutually halt strikes on energy facilities, as well as to revive the defunct Black Sea Initiative – aimed at preventing the use of force and ensuring commercial vessels are not used for military purposes. “We’ve made a lot of progress on two fronts,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday, explaining that he was referring to “Russia, Ukraine, and also the Middle East.” “We’ll see what happens. We’re in deep discussions with Russia and Ukraine, and I would say it’s going well,” the US president said.

Trump declined to disclose further details about the contacts in Riyadh but acknowledged that his administration officials are “thinking” about lifting some sanctions against Moscow to facilitate progress on the Black Sea Initiative. In response, Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky accused Washington of “weakening” its position and sanctions pressure. Earlier in the day, the Kremlin released a comprehensive list of energy facilities subject to the 30-day US-brokered truce, including oil and gas processing and storage sites, pumping stations, pipelines, electricity production and distribution infrastructure, nuclear power plants, and hydroelectric dam facilities.

The approach taken by EU leaders on the Ukraine conflict directly contradicts the position of US President Donald Trump, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. In an interview with Russia’s Channel 1 on Tuesday, Lavrov said the bloc’s continued push for Ukraine’s NATO membership is the result of former US President Joe Biden’s decision to push the EU towards a confrontation with Russia. As a result, the EU is grappling with “an enormous number” of social and economic problems, which “probably partly explains why they are so fervently not giving up on Ukraine” and are calling for more military aid to the country, Lavrov said.

“In other words, they are in direct contradiction to the Trump administration,” he added, noting that the US president, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, had “made it clear that preliminary talks are underway on the parameters of the final settlement [of the conflict] and that NATO should be off the table.”

The White House has released a short statement on the US-Russia negotiations in Saudi Arabia, shedding some light on the more than 12-hour talks held on Monday. The “bilateral technical-level talks” focused on the situation in the Black Sea, as well as the agreement to halt strikes on “energy facilities of Russia and Ukraine” proposed by US President Donald Trump, the White House said on Tuesday. “The United States and Russia have agreed to ensure safe navigation, eliminate the use of force, and prevent the use of commercial vessels for military purposes in the Black Sea,” the statement reads.

The US has also pledged to “help restore Russia’s access to the world market for agricultural and fertilizer exports, lower maritime insurance costs, and enhance access to ports and payment systems for such transactions,” according to the White House. Both Moscow and Washington remain committed to “working toward achieving a durable and lasting peace” to end the Ukraine conflict, it added.

Ukraine must enlist more young men into its armed forces, as a number of units face a pressing need for reinforcements, according to Vladimir Zelensky. In a regular news briefing on Monday, Zelensky announced that the military leadership had approved an expansion of recruitment targeting citizens aged 18 to 24. While mandatory conscription applies to men over 24, the government is trying to encourage younger individuals to volunteer by offering an array of incentives. “I visited the front on Saturday. There is a demand from specific brigades, and we will be responding positively to it. There will be more brigades employing young specialists,” Zelensky stated. “This initiative will extend to the National Guard and border guard units, as all effective defense forces should be given every opportunity to enhance their capabilities.”

Under a recruitment campaign launched in February, young adults are promised 1 million hryvnia ($24,000) for a year of military service, as well as free dental care and the option to leave Ukraine after fulfilling their contract – an option not available to regular fighting-age men. The Defense Ministry is promoting the offer by showing how much recruits can buy with the money – equating it to 15,625 cheeseburgers or 185 years of Netflix subscriptions. Critics have condemned the ad campaign as demeaning to potential recruits. Last year, Zelensky reduced the minimum conscription age from 27 to 25, but refrained from further adjustments, citing concerns over the economic and demographic impact.

Mar 25, 2025

 • Guarantees for Russia From Ukraine May be Solely Result of US Order to Zelensky - Lavrov, Sputnik International, Mar 25, 2025

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that guarantees for Russia from Ukraine may be solely a result of a US order to Volodymyr Zelensky.

"We will need clear guarantees, and there may be guarantees, given the sad experience of agreements with Kiev, guarantees may be solely the result of an order from Washington to Zelensky and his team to do one way and not another," Lavrov said.

...The desire to contain and defeat Russia was the desire of Napoleon and Hitler, and we have already been through all of this, Sergey Lavrov said.

"The desire to contain Russia, not just to contain it, but to defeat it, someone even said it was necessary to humiliate [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is a desire, as it turns out, historians can probably correct me, but my sense of history is that we have all been through this before. With Napoleon and Hitler the goals were the same," Lavrov said.

Ukraine continues to attack Russian civilian infrastructure, proving that Kiev does not actually want peace, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. Last week, following a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, Moscow and Kiev agreed to a partial ceasefire and pledged to suspend strikes on each other’s energy infrastructure for 30 days. However, the Russian Defense Ministry has since reported multiple Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian energy facilities such as oil and gas pipelines. The latest attack reportedly took place at 2 a.m. on Monday on the Kropotkinskaya oil pumping station in Russia’s Krasnodar Region. The station is operated by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which works with US energy giants such as Mobil and Chevron.

...”Every time it’s the same story. Before any contacts, including during visits to Moscow by foreign delegations, the Kiev regime commits terrorist acts, attacks on civilian infrastructure, on civilian objects, extremist acts, and so on… They don’t need peace. They have stated this repeatedly,” Zakharova told reporters. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has stressed that despite Kiev’s repeated violations, Moscow continues to uphold the energy strike truce and that President Putin has not issued any new commands to the country’s armed forces. However, Zakharova warned over the weekend that Russia reserves its right to respond to Ukraine’s attacks, including “symmetrically,” if Kiev continues its “destructive course.”

US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who has played a central role in opening negotiations on resolving the Ukraine conflict, is “spreading Russian propaganda” and should be sacked, according to a senior Ukrainian lawmaker. The head of the Kiev’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Aleksandr Merezhko, made the remark in response to Witkoff’s interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson, during which the envoy spoke about the status of former Ukrainian territories that have joined Russia, describing the issue as “an elephant in the room” that “no one wants to talk about.” “They’re Russian-speaking. There have been referendums where the overwhelming majority of the people have indicated that they want to be under Russian rule,” Witkoff said.

European NATO members are willfully ignoring the “Nazi” character of the Ukrainian government, which they have empowered as an anti-Russian instrument, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has asserted.On Monday, the senior diplomat expressed concern over the “demons of neo-Nazism, Russophobia, and other hateful ideologies” spreading across multiple EU nations. Member states are deliberately overlooking Kiev’s misconduct, even as it persecutes ethnic Russians and violates human rights, he stressed. “Ukraine – ‘that’s different.’ Those Nazis have been nurtured for the latest attempt to unite all of Europe under racist, Nazi banners for a war against the Russian Federation,” Lavrov stated.

Mar 24, 2025

Featured • Trump and Putin begin addressing cumulated geo-strategic debris… amidst Trump’s ultimatum to Iran, Alastair Crooke, Strategic Culture Foundation, Mar 24, 2025
Interesting linkage. Relies heavily on three astoundingly-detailed articles by Ken Klippenstein, which convincingly show a detailed level of war planning against Iran, up to and including the use of nuclear weapons. Klippenstein mentions low-yield Trident warheads (W76-2s) as the likely choice in that regard. While unstoppable, they also have no earth-penetrating capability. The low-yield B61-12, which can be carried by B-2 stealth bombers (which may not be so stealthy these days), F-15Es, F-16C/Ds, and F-35As are also on the table.

Featured • Negotiations Continue to Go Nowhere as Europe Bashes Head Against Wall, Simplicius, Mar 23, 2025
Is peace near or far in Ukraine? It's hard to say. Meanwhile certain European and UK leaders -- Starmer especially -- outdo themselves in war posturing. Ukraine is a Gordian knot and it needs to be cut, not unraveled strand by strand while others make more knots. Alastair Crooke asks "what's the rush?" Setting aside the domestic political implications, I think the rush comes in part from getting ahead of the fractious Europeans, who can really cause trouble even if they can't actually fight -- the latter being a very good thing.

I think the best path for peace is the same as it has been for this entire U.S.-provoked war, namely cutting Ukraine off from U.S. weapons and intelligence right now, pulling out every U.S. operative, demanding elections in Ukraine, and telling Europe in a forceful way that "this is how it is going to be."

Russia has no interest in trying to digest western Ukraine, or anything else in Europe, but the possibility of Odessa and Kharkov falling into Russian hands is real. And what would be the problem with that? The former would settle the Black Sea question, which is important. I care not a whit about where the boundaries of "Ukraine" are, except insofar as they align with long-lasting peace prospects. The important thing is to stop the killing and destruction in a quasi-permanent way, and build up the institutions of peace.

The dangers written about knowledgeably by Gordon Hahn have to be addressed as well -- that is, the U.S. has to lead the de-Nazification effort in Ukraine, as the de facto greatest external influence on what happens there. This will need real leadership from the Administration in the U.S. domestic sphere as well, to overcome the Russophobia and the Ukrainian nationalism that infects Congress and society more generally.

In general, Trump has got to get ahead of the enemies of peace. In particular he has got to tell the UK that he WILL pull the rug from under them if they can't see the light of peace -- no matter what political threats they may make to him personally.

And not least he needs to reign in his Zionism, which if followed further will destroy everything else he is trying to do.

Trump has to show himself as a man of peace, if he wants to be one -- and if the U.S. is to survive. That's what "peace through strength" has to become -- strength to build and to foster life, not to kill. It could cost him his life of course, but the longer he passively empowers Mossad, the Ukrainian SBU and MI-6 the worse the overall threat will be. The alternative is for all his MAGA ambitions, good and bad, to be drowned in war.

The U.S. teeters on the brink now, not so much for the reasons ("reasons") trumpeted by Democrats, but because of militarism and war. Both major parties are largely controlled by the War Complex, which therefore largely controls the government as a whole. That complex is not a democracy and it is not dedicated to anyone's well-being -- here, in Ukraine, or anywhere. Trump has overcome many obstacles to be where he is. He is not a young man. His greatest obstacle for his last years is exactly the biggest swamp monster of them all, the one brought forth in 1947 and which has been growing ever since. Trump has,If he can bring it forth, align, and use it, a large latent majority of people who very rightly hate and fear permanent war, the greatest of maladies for any would-be democracy.

Featured • "One Trident sub could ‘incinerate 40 Russian cities’: Why Putin should fear Britain’s nuclear arsenal, Sean Rayment, The Telegraph, Mar 20, 2025

 • The Terrible Cost of Kursk, Alexander Hill and Ted Snider, Antiwar.com, Mar 24, 2025

 • President Trump is the first leader who is looking to rebuild trust with President Putin, Ian Proud, Strategic Culture Foundation, Mar 23, 2025

 • Will the Ukrainian Army Turn its Bayonets on Kiev?, Gordon Hahn, Mar 21, 2025

If or when Zelenskiy or some other Ukrainian leader signs a peace deal agreeing to forego Crimea and the four oblasts Russia has so far claimed, even if only ‘temporarily’ rather than legally, the number of enraged military men and their families will only grow, particularly among the numerous and influential ultra-nationalist and neofascist groups. Neo-fascist groups, such as Azov and, through the Volunteer Ukrainia Corps, Right Sector, are deeply embedded in the army and will be outraged about any compromises made by a Ukrainian regime with the ‘subhuman Russians’ and will seek the ‘completion of the nationalist revolution.’ Disgruntled, enraghed soldiers will be excellent recruits and fodder for the making of said revolution.

All of the above forms a matrix of potentially explosive instability and chaos that could see the substantial parts of the Ukrainian army turn it weapons against Kiev, and it informs Zelenskiy’s reluctance to participate in compromises with Russia in order to attain peace. He cannot speak about it without further demoralizing the army, outraging the neofascists, and tacitly acknowledging the power of the neofascist element in Ukrainian politics—something that Kiev has worked hard to cover up, explain away, or deny. In fact, Zelenskiy is trapped between two flames internally related to this question and in general as he is abroad caught between US pressure for peace and Russia’s advancing army. Like Ukrainian society, the Ukrainian military (and perhaps intelligence and security organs as well) are divided between those who no longer support the war or are not willing to fight, such as the coercively mobilised, and those who are virulently against peace with the Russians, such as the neofascists. This polarization of views forms the foundation of a potential civil war or at least intense internecine conflict inside Ukraine once any peace deal nears.

Mar 23, 2025

Featured • The Americans want Zelensky out – Is this woman their Plan B?, Vitaly Ryumshin, RT, Mar 22, 2025

Featured • How Zelenski Is Trying To Sabotage Trump's Negotiations With Russia, Moon of Alabama, Mar 22, 2025

During an interview of John Mearsheimer Daniel Davis played the relevant clip of Zelenski's daily address to the Ukrainian public in which he talks about a ceasefire on general 'civil' infrastructure, how his people are now putting together lists of such installations, and how this will all have to be discussed in future rounds.

There is no acknowledgement of an existing ceasefire on energy infrastructure.

Russia is currently still sticking to the agreed about temporary ceasefire with regards to energy infrastructure. Zelenski has not acknowledged that such a ceasefire is in place. He is instead talking about a ceasefire on general infrastructure which is a whole different game to play.

If the Ukraine insists on continuing its attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure Putin will have to hit back (machine translation):

...If the Trump administration is serious about seeking peace in Ukraine it will have to tell Zelenski that he will have to accept the ceasefire parameters Trump has agreed upon with Putin. (It will also have to use more precise language in its read-outs.)

There is a temporary ceasefire with regards to energy infrastructure in place. Zelenski does his best to ignore and sabotage that deal. If Trump lets him get away with this the trust that has been build up during recent U.S.-Russian talks will be gone. This would seriously impede further negotiations.

If Trump wants peace in Ukraine he has to get serious about this.

It doesn’t really pay for a liberal to see through propaganda because you either alienate yourself from all your liberal friends who are wallowing in it, or you sit in crushing silence out of fear of being ostracized. To be true to myself, I’ve opted for the former route, to speak out, liberal to liberal, about all the blather my dear liberal friends have put out regarding the Ukraine War. There was a time when we liberals stood for peace. “Give peace a chance,” “Blessed are the peacemakers,” “Peace Train,” “All We Need Is Love”: Was all that just empty slogans? Maybe I was just gullible, but I swallowed it all, hook, line, and sinker. I thought it represented the core of what it meant to be a liberal. How all this should be forfeited to Donald Trump and the Republican Party is beyond me. I recognize that Trump’s motivations are to reserve American resources for neocolonial projects elsewhere, but let’s celebrate peace where we can. Liberals are falling into a trap that is making a lie of our public professions, thereby draining attention away from our valid disputes with Republicans, but most importantly, working to make the world an even more dangerous place than it already is.

Russia could respond if Ukraine continues its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has warned.

"We clearly warn you that if the Kiev regime continues this destructive course, the Russian side reserves the right to retaliate, including symmetrically."

The destruction of the gas pumping station in Sudzha by Ukraine makes it look like Volodymyr Zelensky has “limited control” over the Ukrainian military and “limited to no control” over the neo-Nazi “Azov* forces,” USAF Ret. Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski tells Sputnik. Due to their belief in their superiority over the rest of the Ukrainian troops, Azov militants “believe that the war was theirs, always, not the politicians, and certainly not Zelensky’s as a propped-up politician who actually ran on enforcing the Minsk II treaty, a ‘peace’ platform.” “I think Azov, like many effective, violent and nationalistic military groups, disrespect politicians on principles, as compromisers and double dealers. Traditionally, these are the ‘generals’ that the politicians fear, not the other way around,” says Kwiatkowski, a former US Department of Defense analyst.

Thus, there appears to be a danger of Azov exercising the “real political power” in Ukraine. “It is a symptom of imminent collapse of what is left of Ukraine’s civil and political society, and it underlines the real problem that [US President Donald] Trump will have to face and has not yet — and that is how to help Ukraine recover a liberal and rights-based society at the conclusion of hostilities,” Kwiatkowski says. “The anger of the Azov will not be quenched, even after Zelensky is gone and a new president elected.

In a brazen act of duplicity, Ukraine has once again demonstrated that it is not a reliable partner for diplomacy – let alone peace.

Mere days after a US-brokered agreement saw Moscow and Kiev commit to a mutual moratorium on targeting each other’s energy infrastructure, Ukrainian forces reportedly launched a deliberate strike on a gas metering station in Russia’s Kursk region. This was no accident, no miscommunication, and no unfortunate timing—it was a calculated breach of trust and yet another glaring signal that Ukraine cannot be reasoned with.

The agreement in question was a result of a bold and rare diplomatic effort led by President Donald Trump, who had secured direct conversations with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky. Despite the immense complexities of this long-running conflict, Trump managed to extract a commitment from both sides: a 30-day freeze on attacks against energy infrastructure. It was a starting point – modest, but meaningful.

And yet, even that modest agreement was too much for Kiev to honor.

....For Washington – especially President Trump – this should be the wake-up call. The Kursk strike wasn’t just an attack on Russian infrastructure; it was an attack on diplomacy itself. It was an attack on the possibility of peace.

Mar 21, 2025

 • European nations plan to replace US in NATO by 2035 – FT, RT, Mar 21, 2025

Europe’s NATO members are drawing up a plan to gradually replace the US as their key defense guarantor over the next five to ten years, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing sources. The UK, France, Germany, and the Nordic nations are now in talks about a potential proposal that would shift the military and financial burden of the bloc’s defense away from Washington, four unnamed European officials told the Financial Times. The ultimate goal is to present the plan to the US before NATO’s annual summit in The Hague this June, according to the report. The effort reflects widespread fears among European NATO members that the US, under President Donald Trump, could renege on its defense commitments or leave the bloc altogether.

While the talks are reportedly being framed as offering a managed, long-term transition, European officials have admitted to the FT that the timeline of five to ten years seems extremely ambitious. “Increasing spending is the only play that we have: burden sharing and shifting the dial away from US reliance,” one official told the FT. “We’re starting those talks, but it’s such a big task that many are overwhelmed by the scale of it.” According to the paper, the plan could include EU commitments to increasing defense spending and ramping up military capabilities, which could potentially convince Trump to agree to a gradual transfer of responsibilities and allow the US to concentrate on Asia.

However, some European countries are said to be reluctant to support the talks at all, fearing they could encourage a faster US exit. Meanwhile, others are doubtful whether Washington would agree to a structured transfer of responsibilities, given the “unpredictable nature” of the Trump administration.

Ms. Baerbock, who made Germany a laughing stock on the international stage during her time as foreign minister, is cuddling up to the new Syrian government, which is made up of terrorists. For about two weeks now, civilians have been slaughtered in Syria, women and children have had their heads cut off, obviously a necessity on the road to democracy. Ms. Baerbock seems to agree with this. Incidentally, I do not recommend our readers to watch videos of these goings-on, thousands of which are posted on social media; they are nightmares that will deprive you of sleep. Ms. Baerbock is transferring 300 million euros to these very gentlemen. Ms. Baerbock, who will soon no longer have a job, seems to have special talents. She is to become the new President of the UN General Assembly.

Ukrainian forces retreating from Russia’s Kursk Region have destroyed the Sudzha gas metering station, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has reported.

The incident took place early on Friday, roughly 20 minutes after midnight, the ministry said in a statement. The facility had been previously used to deliver fuel to consumers in European nations.

It used to be quite a common thing for people in polite society to say “imagine if women ran the world…we would certainly have less wars, right?”. Wrong. Women are running the world, well, at least the EU world. Three women to be precise. Ursula von der Leyen, EU commission boss, Annalena Baerbock, Germany’s foreign minister and of course, last but not least, the EU’s own foreign affairs chief, Kaja Kallas. And what do all three of these women have in common, apart from having names which sound like sexually transmitted diseases? They all want war. In line with spectacularly poor decision making right from the beginning of the Ukraine war, with probably Russian sanctions at the top of the list of stupid ideas, the EU has only one way forward in Ukraine.

At whatever cost, it must come out at least not looking like it lost. The EU project is very much like an old man on a bike moving very slowly along a Dutch cyclists’ path. The fear from the elites in the EU is that if he falls off the bike, he will never get back on. The constant worry from top EU figures is that if the EU loses its momentum with press coverage and relevance in general, then a pause – any pause – could be devastating. This, you might be surprised to hear, is what EU officials themselves confided in me when I was based in the Belgian capital. Such an expression gives you an idea of how little confidence the EU has in itself as a worthy, stable long-term project. And so the madness escalates now to such a point where we are actually looking at draining the wallets and purses of our own very poorest people to fund the ultimate EU sex toy going: an EU army.

Despite Russia downing its own drones as part of the truce, Ukraine continues to attack Russian energy infrastructure. Let’s break it down. On March 18, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed that the first step toward peace would be a 30-day cessation of hostilities against energy and infrastructure sectors. Following the agreement, Russian military forces immediately shot down seven of their own drones that were reportedly targeting Ukrainian energy infrastructure facilities linked to the defense industry in the Nikolayev region. However, just hours after the Putin-Trump conversation, the Ukrainian regime launched a drone attack on oil facilities in the village of Kavkazskaya in Russia’s Krasnodar region on the night of March 19. UAV debris damaged a pipeline between fuel storage tanks.

A fire initially broke out over an area of 20 square meters but quickly spread to 4 square kilometers. Firefighting efforts at the oil depot in the Kavkazsky district have been reinforced, with 406 personnel and 157 pieces of equipment deployed to contain the blaze. The attacked facility handles the transfer of oil from rail tank cars to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) system. As a result, operations at the oil depot have been suspended. The Ukrainian Armed Forces’ drone attack on the energy infrastructure facility in Russia’s Krasnodar region was intended to disrupt Trump’s peace initiatives, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

Ukraine struck a major Russian strategic bomber airfield on Thursday with drones, triggering a huge blast and fire about 700 km (435 miles) from the front lines of the war, Russian and Ukrainian officials said.

Videos verified by Reuters showed a huge blast spreading out from the airfield, wrecking nearby cottages. Russia's defence ministry said air defences had shot down 132 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions.

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Other verified videos showed a giant plume of smoke rising into the dawn sky and an intense fire.

The base in Engels, which dates back to Soviet times, hosts Russia's Tupolev Tu-160 nuclear-capable heavy strategic bombers, known unofficially as White Swans.

Mar 20, 2025

Featured • Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov - w/ Judge Napolitano, Larry Johnson, & Mario Nawfal, Judging Freedom, Mar 12, 2025

 • Trump wants US ownership of Ukraine’s energy facilities – White House, RT, Mar 19, 2025

US President Donald Trump proposed an American takeover of Ukraine’s power plants during a phone call with Vladimir Zelensky, suggesting it would be the best way to protect the infrastructure, the White House has said.

The Ukrainian leader later insisted that he only spoke about the Russian-held Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) with Trump – not the whole Ukrainian power generating industry.

The US president held a phone conversation with Zelensky on Wednesday, describing it as a “very good” discussion.

Shortly after the call, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz issued a statement, saying that “President Trump also discussed Ukraine’s electrical supply and nuclear power plants. He said that the US could be very helpful in running those plants with its electricity and utility expertise.”

“American ownership of those plants would be the best protection for that infrastructure and support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure,” it read.

During a video-conference with journalists later in the day, Zelensky contradicted the US statement, stating that he and Trump “talked exclusively about one station, which is under temporary occupation by Russia.”

Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky on Wednesday reiterated his pledge to achieve a victory over Russia, as he touted an upcoming phone call with US President Donald Trump. Zelensky made the remarks during a press conference alongside Finnish President Alexander Stubb, during which he expressed hope that Trump will brief him on Tuesday’s talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Today I will have contact with President Trump. We will discuss the details with him today. I am thinking about the details of the next steps. Well, and I think I will hear from him the details of his conversation with Putin,” Zelensky stated, reiterating his determination to achieve a victory. “And we live, we defend ourselves, we survive, we fight for our sovereignty and our independence. And we will definitely win this war,” he said.

...Following Putin’s order the Russian military had to shoot down seven of its own kamikaze drones launched at Ukrainian energy facilities. A few hours after the Putin-Trump talks concluded, Kiev attacked a Russian oil pumping station with three fixed-wing kamikaze drones. The attack sparked a massive fire at the facility, the military noted, describing the incident as “yet another provocation deliberately staged by the Kiev regime to derail the peace initiatives coming from the US president.”

Mar 19, 2025

Featured • Ukraine Still Rejects Temporary, Energy Related Ceasefire Deal, Moon of Alabama, Mar 19, 2025

Ukraine's last night attack on another Russian energy facility is the third time it has prevented or abolished such a deal. Russia has however always been willing to pursue it.

Ukraine is presumably determined to blockade any deal, even a small 30 day ceasefire with regards to energy facilities.

Unless the Trump administration puts more pressure on Kiev there will be no chance to achieve any kind of ceasefire deal.

Trump seems to believe that he can gain Russia's support, or at least its neutrality, in a futile conflict with Iran, by offering to end the U.S. proxy war in Ukraine.

Russia however seems to completely reject such plans.

[T]he bulk of the Kremlin readout is very guarded, as expected:

Reaffirming his commitment to a peaceful resolution of the conflict, President Putin expressed readiness to work closely with American partners on a thorough and comprehensive settlement. He emphasized that any agreement must be sustainable and long-term, addressing the root causes of the crisis while considering Russia’s legitimate security interests.

Regarding President Trump’s initiative for a 30-day ceasefire, the Russian side highlighted key concerns, including effective monitoring of the ceasefire across the entire front line, halting forced mobilization in Ukraine, and stopping the rearmament of its military. Russia also noted serious risks due to Kiev’s history of undermining previous agreements and drew attention to terrorist attacks carried out by Ukrainian militants against civilians in the Kursk region.

It was emphasized that a crucial condition for preventing further escalation and working toward a political-diplomatic resolution is the complete cessation of foreign military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine.

... Highlights of the Trump-Putin call below:

• Limited Cease-Fire Agreement: Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to a 30-day cease-fire targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during a call with President Trump.
• Trump’s Diplomatic Effort: This marks Trump's first tangible success in securing concessions from Russia, having mainly pressured Ukraine while offering Russia improved relations.
• Cease-Fire Terms: The agreement focuses on halting strikes on energy and infrastructure facilities but falls short of a full cease-fire.
• Planned Middle East Negotiations: The U.S. and Russia will begin technical discussions in the Middle East on expanding the cease-fire to include maritime operations in the Black Sea and a broader peace agreement.
• Russia’s Additional Demands: The Kremlin stated that achieving a broader cease-fire requires Ukraine to halt military rearmament and forced mobilization.
• Prisoner Swap Agreement: Russia and Ukraine will exchange 175 prisoners each on Wednesday.
• Ukraine’s Stance: Kyiv previously agreed to an unconditional cease-fire, but Moscow rejected it, opting for a partial halt to hostilities instead.
• No U.S. Concessions to Russia: Both the White House and Kremlin confirmed the U.S. did not agree to any concessions, despite Ukrainian concerns that Trump might make compromises.
• Zelensky’s Silence: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, currently visiting Finland, has not commented but has warned the U.S. against trusting Putin.

Badmouthing Russia's economy has a certain tradition...Since the start of the Special Military operation in Ukraine many outlets joined the above doomsayers of the foreign policy blob.

Since then most reports about Russia's economy predicted a collapse or at least severe difficulties...

Meanwhile the Russian economy is doing well....

The lesson from this? Much of what one reads in mainstream media about Russia (and other so called enemies) is garbage.

Hungary expects the Russia-US talks on Ukraine to succeed and peace to return to Europe as soon as in two weeks, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said, speaking at the Raisina Dialogue international conference in the Indian capital. “I hope (...) in a couple of weeks, we can celebrate peace returning to Central Europe,” the foreign minister said, speaking about Ukraine ceasefire talks. “We are very happy that these talks have started. We’re happy to see the talks in Saudi Arabia between the US and Russia, between the US and Ukraine. We do attach great hopes to these meetings, and we do hope that a ceasefire can be established as soon as possible, and peace negotiations could be started as soon as possible. Because we want peace to come back to Central Europe,” Szijjarto noted. He recalled that from the very beginning of the conflict, the Hungarian government called for its peaceful settlement and advocated for dialogue with Russia.

Mar 17, 2025

Featured • Boots-on-Ground Theater Conceals Raging Impotence of Toothless Euro-Prats, Simplicius, Mar 16, 2025
It is difficult to absorb the puffed-up idiocy of these European and UK leaders. Ordinary people who are this stupid and addicted end up homeless. It's hard to say who's worst but my vote goes to Starmer.

 • UK mulls open-ended troop deployment in Ukraine – Times, RT, Mar 17, 2025

The UK plans to station thousands of troops in Ukraine “for years” as part of a Western peacekeeping force to oversee a future ceasefire between Moscow and Kiev, The Times reported on Sunday, citing sources. The proposal was reportedly outlined by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer at a virtual meeting of the so-called ‘coalition of the willing’ on Saturday. Starmer first announced plans for the coalition alongside France earlier this month, aiming to rally nations willing to continue military support for Ukraine amid concerns over potential US aid cuts. At a press briefing following Saturday’s meeting, Starmer said dozens of partner nations back the idea of deploying a peacekeeping force, with UK Defense Secretary John Healey set to meet with military chiefs in London this week to discuss details, including troop numbers and deployment timelines.

According to The Times, the force could comprise up to 30,000 troops, with the UK and France supplying the majority. An unnamed senior official said the British deployment in particular would be open-ended. “It would be a long-term commitment, we are talking about years. As long as it takes to preserve a peace deal and deter Russia,” the official added.

US President Donald Trump has announced that he expects to hold a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Tuesday to discuss the prospects of a peace agreement in the Ukraine conflict. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said he plans to speak with Putin on March 18, according to the AP. “We will see if we have something to announce maybe by Tuesday. I will be speaking to President Putin on Tuesday. A lot of work’s been done over the weekend. We want to see if we can bring that war to an end. We will be talking about land. We will be talking about power plants,” Trump was quoted as saying.

In the end, the “ceasefire” gambit may create more public sympathy for Ukraine. But the big question is whether it will harden Trump against Russia by continuing arms shipments and intelligence and perhaps levelling new sanctions against Moscow.

All that would do, however, is prolong the death and destruction. Without NATO’s direct participation in the war against Russia, which would risk nuclear annihilation, the outcome of the war is certain. Because of that, Trump could resume pressure on Zelensky to essentially give up instead.

The ball is now in Trump’s court.

The course of this three-year conflict since Russia’s intervention makes clear that the longer Ukraine tries to fight, the worse deal it will get, no matter how many public relations points it might win along the way.

The deployment of “peacekeepers” from NATO member states to Ukraine would trigger an all-out war between the military bloc and Moscow, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned. In recent weeks, the leaders of the UK and France have ramped up discussions about such a mission. In a post on X on Sunday, Medvedev, who currently serves as the deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, stated that French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer “are playing dumb.” “Time and again they are told that peacekeepers must be from non-NATO states. No, we will send tens of thousands – just lay it out – you want to give military aid to the neo-Nazis in Kiev,” Medvedev charged. “That means war with NATO. Consult with [US President Donald] Trump, scumbags,” he concluded.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov previously similarly argued that the deployment of NATO military personnel to Ukraine, even under the guise of peacekeepers, would be tantamount to the “direct, official, undisguised involvement of NATO countries in the war against Russia.”

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel has criticized the use of the term ‘Putinversteher’ (Putin understander) to silence those who discuss Russia’s perspective, arguing that it prevents meaningful dialogue and complicates diplomacy. In an interview with Berliner Zeitung on Friday, Merkel was asked how she felt about the term, which is often used to label people who address Russian President Vladimir Putin’s concerns over NATO expansion. “Not good, because there has to be a discussion about it. You have to plan ahead for diplomatic initiatives so that they are available at the right moment,” she said.

She also rejected the idea that seeking to understand Moscow’s position amounts to supporting it. “I find the accusation of being a Putinversteher inappropriate. It is used as a conversation-stopper, a way to shut down debate.” Asked if she has ever been called one, Merkel replied: “No one has ever called me that – it’s a strange word. Understanding what Putin does and putting oneself in his position is not wrong. It is a fundamental task of diplomacy and something entirely different from supporting him.” Her remarks come amid an ongoing debate in Germany over its policy toward Russia. The term ‘Putinversteher’ is frequently used to criticize those who advocate for diplomatic engagement with Moscow, portraying them as sympathetic to the Kremlin.

Mar 15, 2025

 • The Minsk Agreements and why they failed, Ian Proud, Strategic Culture Foundation, Mar 14, 2025

The Minsk agreements fell apart because delivering special status for the Donbas was politically too difficult in Ukraine. And because sanctions policy against Russia both disincentivized their compliance, and actively incentivised Ukrainian non-compliance. Claiming that Russia reneged on the Minsk agreements is wilfully inaccurate.

The Minsk agreements refers collectively to three sets of peace proposals between June 2014 and February 2015, which culminated in the signature of the second Minsk agreement, commonly known as Minsk 2. They had several aims, including the end the fighting, the limitation on the use of heavy weapons by both sides and to seal Ukraine’s border. Critically, all three proposals sought to maintain the territorial integrity of Ukraine by offering some form of devolution or special status to the separatist oblasts of Lugansk and Donetsk. [short 2015-2021 history follows here]

...But the Ukrainians do not fulfil their obligations. A law on special status was initially passed in Ukraine on 16 September 2014 after the first Minsk agreement was signed. This passed with a narrow majority of four votes. Promised elections in the Donbas were not held and the laws faced immediate resistance. It is quickly clear that there is little political appetite in Ukraine to push forward with special status in the Donbas and this becomes a constant theme. The reading of the special status law in the Verkhovna Rada in 2017 causes scuffles to break out and street protests in Kiev. When newly elected President Zelensky proposes adoption of a devolution law in 2019 he faced public protests by nationalist elements in Kiev and elsewhere. Just three weeks before war breaks out, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says in a press interview there will never be special status for the Donbas.

US Vice President J.D. Vance has said he would be “shocked” if President Donald Trump supported the idea of American nuclear weapons being based in Poland. In an interview with Fox News on Thursday, Vance was asked about Warsaw’s proposal to host US strategic missiles on its territory as a “deterrent against future Russian aggression.” “I haven’t talked to the president about that particular issue, but I would be shocked if he was supportive of nuclear weapons extending further east into Europe,” Vance said. Polish President Andrzej Duda has called on Washington to move some of its nuclear arsenal stored in Western Europe or the US to Poland, claiming on Thursday that he had discussed the idea with Keith Kellogg, the US special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, according to the Financial Times.

The Polish president reportedly made a similar request to the Joe Biden administration in 2022, but it was never approved. Vance argued that while “people like Joe Biden” are “sleepily walking us into the nuclear conflict,” allowing Russians and Ukrainians to “bleed out,” Trump has engaged in “tough diplomacy,” enlisting his entire administration to settle the Ukraine conflict. Polish officials are reportedly calling for militarization to address the alleged threat posed by Moscow. Prime Minister Donald Tusk claimed earlier this month that Russia could launch a “full-scale operation” against a “larger” target than Ukraine within three to four years – which Moscow has repeatedly dismissed. Tusk argued that Poland must serve as a “bastion” to protect NATO’s eastern flank and should expand its military capabilities and double the size of its army to 500,000.

Odessa is part of the extensive menu of Ukraine’s resources already, in thesis, handed over to the Brits under the shady – and completely illegal – 100-year agreement signed between Starmer and the sweaty sweatshirt in Kiev. According to the dodgy deal and its made in the shade footnotes, Zelensky already gave away to the Brits all sorts of control over minerals, nuclear power plants, underground gas storage facilities, key ports (including Odessa), and hydroelectric power plants. On the ongoing minerals/rare earth saga in 404 – or what will be left of it – the Brits are in vicious, direct competition with the Americans. The CIA is obviously in the know. This whole thing will turn very ugly in no time.

Update(1358ET): The Kremlin has responded to President Donald Trump’s request that the lives of the Ukrainian troops encircled in Russia’s Kursk Region be spared, which was conveyed in a Friday Truth Social post by the president. Moscow says it is “sympathetic” to this request, and the pattern in the battle to retake Kursk has been to take POWs if weapons are laid down.

At the same time President Putin has called immediate surrender of all Ukrainian troops remaining on Russian soil. Trump had acknowledged that “thousands of Ukrainian troops” are “completely surrounded by the Russian military” in the southwest Kursk region.

Putin said during a National Security Council meeting on Friday that Russian forces guarantee their lives if they lay down their arms, according to state media translation:

Putin responded that he was aware of Trump’s request, adding that Russia was willing to consider it. “If they lay down their arms and surrender, [we] will guarantee them their lives and dignified treatment in accordance with international law and Russian legal norms,” the president said.

But Putin also emphasized the “numerous crimes against civilians” in the region, also has hundreds of thousands of citizens have fled over the last six months of the Kursk occupation on risky operation ordered by Zelensky.

The Ukrainian leader has meanwhile rejected that he will cede territory in Ukraine for the sake of peace, and is demanding a ‘strong response’ from the US. But clearly Trump’s own words suggest he’s not ready to order some kind of greater intervention on Kiev’s behalf.

Mar 14, 2025

Featured • Ukraine & Revolution, John Wight, Consortium News, Mar 13, 2025
Superior writing, a clear-eyed critique of UK and EU leaders, and a prescient warning. Watch the video of the VERY angry Ukrainian soldier and reflect about where this might go. Zelensky may need to disappear and/or get plastic surgery to help him. That not-funny comedian and his masters are monsters. Let your reflection include what could happen if any of those unhappy soon-to-be-demobilized men decided to take vengeance on the U.S., which mercilessly used them and their country. I pray they blame the right people, not all of us.

Featured • Craig Murray: Putin Is No Hitler, Consortium News, Mar 14, 2025
Those who are interested in foreign policy, let alone arms control and disarmament, and who cannot appreciate the clarity of the facts and logic Murray and others like him are presenting are at best victims of propaganda. More realistically, they themselves are part of the bloodlust and hatred that plows the killing fields of Ukraine. Such stupidity is in many ways worse than outright evil, which can at least be opposed. Stupidity, as a social and political phenomenon, can take over an entire country as Bonhoeffer observed, even if it is not universal, provided it aligns with the desires of a powerful sociopathic elite as is the case in the US. For evil to triumph all we have to do is...nothing, as Einstein said.

Featured • Camo-Putin Emerges to Punt Ball Back to Trump, Simplicius, Mar 13, 2025
Superior analysis -- important to read if you want to understand what will and will not happen in Ukraine.

 • Ukraine's Kursk Blunder Opens The Door For Russian Invasion Of The North, ZeroHedge, Mar 14, 2025

The western media continues to promote the narrative that Russia is using thousands of North Korean soldiers as "meat waves" to run Ukraine out of Kursk. We're still waiting for any significant evidence to back this claim but none has materialized. Russia has multiple ethnic groups within the country that "look Asian" and the presence of these people on the battlefield is not proof of North Korean troops. To this day there is no evidence of "meat waves" or a large contingent of DPRK soldiers.

In any case, Kursk is lost to the Ukrainians, which will hopefully give Vladimir Zelensky and Kyiv motivation to finally agree to realistic peace negotiations. If not, then the Russians are perfectly positioned to invade Northern Ukraine and close in on Kyiv.

Putin has presented two terms for any agreement: Ukraine must give up the captured Donbas region and allow the separatists to join Russia. And, Ukraine is never allowed to join NATO.

Sadly, these were the basic terms at the very beginning of the war. Hundreds of thousands of lives (perhaps millions when the true tally is revealed) could have been saved if peace talks had not been interfered with in 2022. If peace is achieved now, at least World War III can be avoided.

Mar 13, 2025

Featured • Putin Issues US List Of Demands To Achieve 30-Day Ceasefire, ZeroHedge, Mar 13, 2025

Featured • Putin Signals He’s Open to Ceasefire as Witkoff Arrives for Talks, Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com, Mar 13, 2025

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signaled that he’s open to a ceasefire in Ukraine but that he has “questions” about the 30-day US-Ukraine proposal that need to be discussed.

“The idea itself is the right one, and we definitely support it,” Putin said, according to The New York Times. “But there are questions that we need to discuss, and I think that we need to talk them through with our American colleagues and partners.”

The Russian leader listed potential conditions for a 30-day truce, including a guarantee that Ukraine wouldn’t be supplied with more weapons. “We also want guarantees that during the 30-day ceasefire, Ukraine will not conduct mobilization, will not train soldiers, and will not receive weapons,” he said, according to RT.

Putin also said any peace deal needs to address the “root causes” of the war. He made the comments as US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Russia to discuss the proposal. Yuri Ushakov, a Kremlin official, said Witkoff would be holding a closed-door meeting with Putin.

Ushakov also said the US-Ukraine proposal would only give Ukraine a chance to regroup, and it would need to be adjusted to meet Moscow’s interests.

“As for the 30-day temporary ceasefire, what is it about? There is nothing in it for us. It will only provide the Ukrainians with the opportunity to regroup and gain strength to continue doing what they are doing,” he said, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

“These are some hasty actions that do not benefit a long-term settlement … We will need to work on it, to think it over so that it reflects our position, too. It reflects only Ukraine’s stance at this point,” he added.

Ushakov said that Russia wanted a long-term peace deal and that the “official” Russian position on the US-Ukraine proposal would be formulated by Putin.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made similar comments opposing the idea of a temporary ceasefire, pointing to the Minsk Accords, which were first reached in 2014 for a truce in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. Lavrov also mentioned the “Istanbul agreement,” referring to a peace deal that was on the table in March and April 2022, which was discouraged by the US and its allies.

“I’m talking about the Minsk Accords, the deal that was discarded after the 2014 coup, and the Istanbul agreements. All of those included a ceasefire. And every time, it turned out that they had lied to us. The Ukrainians lied with the support of their European partners,” Lavrov said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed support for a potential 30-day ceasefire in the Ukraine conflict but has raised concerns regarding how such a truce be implemented. Speaking on Thursday, Putin warned of potential loopholes and strategic disadvantages.

“We also want guarantees that during the 30-day ceasefire, Ukraine will not conduct mobilization, will not train soldiers, and will not receive weapons,” Putin said during a press briefing with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko in Moscow.

The president pointed out that Russian troops are advancing along nearly 2,000 kilometers of frontline, and halting military actions could disrupt ongoing operations. Ukrainian forces could use a ceasefire period to regroup, receive more weapons, and train fresh recruits, he warned.

“These 30 days — how will they be used? To continue forced mobilization in Ukraine? To receive more arms supplies? To train newly mobilized units? Or will none of this happen?” Putin asked.

Enforcing a ceasefire over such a vast battlefield would be difficult, he added, violations could be easily disputed, leading to a blame game between both sides. Systems of “control and verification” to monitor a ceasefire are not in place but should be agreed.

Putin also mentioned that Ukrainian troops who invaded Russia’s Kursk Region in August 2024 are now cut off. What is to be done with them in the event of a truce is unclear, he noted.

President Volodymyr Zelensky explained his understanding of the ceasefire proposed by Ukrainian and American officials this week, saying his country would not make any territorial concessions. Additionally, Kiev expects “strong steps” from President Donald Trump should Moscow reject the plan.

Discussing the ceasefire proposal on Wednesday, Zelensky said, “We are fighting for our independence. Therefore, we will not recognize any occupied territories as Russia’s,” adding, “Our people have fought for this, our heroes died. How many injured, how many passed. No one will forget about it… This is the most important red line. We will not let anyone forget about this crime against Ukraine.”

Zelensky’s refusal to give up territory makes it unlikely the Kremlin will agree to the ceasefire, as Russian officials insist the five Ukrainian provinces annexed by Moscow will never be returned to Kiev. Additionally, Russia says it is seeking a permanent end to the conflict, not a short-term truce.

The Trump administration has decided to resume the provision of weapons and intelligence to Ukraine. It is thus aiming at escalating the conflict.

The outcome of yesterday's talk between a Ukrainian and a U.S. delegation Saudi Arabia was not completely in favor of the European/Ukrainian idea of a 30 day ceasefire restricted to air and sea attacks. But it opened the desired pathway to prolonging the war.

The U.S. asked the Ukrainians to accept a 30 day long ceasefire offer. This would of course only be implemented if the Russian side agrees to it. Meanwhile the U.S. resumes all war support for Ukraine. The outcome demonstrates weakness on the U.S. side:

According to the latest from Riyadh, Ukraine says it is ready for a 30 day cease fire. If this is what Washington “extracted” from the Ukrainians, it is operationally meaningless. With Russia on the brink of winning in Kursk and elsewhere, the Russians won’t accept any such deal. If it is a ruse to allow the US to resume arms shipments to Ukraine, knowing Russia will reject it, the so-called peace initiative is a dead letter.

'The ball is now in Russia's court' was the media slogan launched by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and obediently repeated by various European underlings.

But why would or should Russia agree to this when the idea seems to be to trap Russia.

According to Reuters, both Ukrainian and Russian military bloggers are reporting that Ukrainian forces are withdrawing from the region. “Ukraine’s Armed Forces are leaving Kursk. There will be no Ukrainian soldier there by Friday,” Skadovskyi Defender, a Ukrainian military blogger, wrote on Telegram.

Yaroslav Trofimov, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, wrote on X on Wednesday that after seven months of combat in Kursk, the “Ukrainian forces are withdrawing from the Russian region of Kursk.”

US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff will be traveling to Moscow later this week to deliver the US ceasefire proposal for the Ukraine conflict, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz met with representatives from Kiev in Jeddah on Tuesday to discuss a diplomatic end to the Ukraine conflict. In a joint statement afterward, Ukraine agreed to a 30-day ceasefire, while the US resumed all military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine. Waltz held a phone conversation with his “Russian counterpart” on Wednesday to discuss the proceedings, Leavitt told journalists in a media stakeout at the White House. Trump’s envoy will be traveling to Russia in person, she added. “Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy, is making his way to Moscow this week again to urge the Russians to sign on to this negotiation,” Leavitt told Fox News on Wednesday.

Russia and the US will hold a “big meeting” on Thursday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. When asked about potential US leverage on Moscow to accept the ceasefire deal, the US president warned of “devastating” financial measures he could impose. Moscow is “carefully studying the statements that were made as a result” of the US-Ukraine talks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. He cautioned against making rushed statements, and stressed that Russia first needs to receive “detailed information” on the proposed ceasefire teased by Waltz on Tuesday. Moscow has previously opposed any temporary truce in the Ukraine conflict, saying that it would simply be a repeat of the ill-fated 2014-2015 Minsk agreements, which it claims were used by Kiev’s Western backers to rearm them.

Mar 12, 2025

Featured • US and Ukraine Hatch 'Ceasefire' Travesty, Simplicius, Mar 11, 2025

The fact that only Moscow cared about the fate of US blogger Gonzalo Lira, who died in a Ukrainian prison last year, is a sign of the “deepest crisis” affecting the international bodies that are supposed to protect journalists, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. Lira, a Chilean-American citizen, passed away behind bars in Ukraine in January 2024, while awaiting trial for “systematically justifying the Russian aggression.” Zakharova recalled the ordeal of the US journalist during a conference on the development of modern media at the Moscow School of Economics (MSE) on Tuesday. “Has anyone else talked about Gonzalo Lira? An American journalist, He had a US passport. Has anyone talked about him besides Russia? Try to remember. Nobody did,” she insisted.

Ukrainian diplomats signaled their willingness to agree to a 30-day preliminary ceasefire with Russia as part of their negotiations with American officials in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. “Ukraine expressed readiness to accept the U.S. proposal to enact an immediate, interim 30-day ceasefire, which can be extended by mutual agreement of the parties, and which is subject to acceptance and concurrent implementation by the Russian Federation,” the State Department said in a joint statement with Ukrainian officials, according to CBS News. “The United States will communicate to Russia that Russian reciprocity is the key to achieving peace,” they said. The United States also announced it would end a pause on military aid and intelligence sharing as a result of the talks.

After the negotiations, Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the effort a “concrete step” from Ukraine and expressed “hope that the Russians will reciprocate.” The Russians have not agreed to a ceasefire as of press time. They are unlikely to do so, however, without significant concessions, as the Russian army is currently making significant gains in the Kursk region against Ukrainian troops that occupied the border area. In the meantime, Russian offensives in Zaporizhzhia and the Donbas have posted modest gains in recent days and a spring offensive in expected to materialize soon.

French President Emmanuel Macron is currently completely absorbed in cosplaying Napoleon, leading the charge to put French and European boots on the ground on Ukraine’s side against the Russians. His costume needs to be taken in for resizing – downward.

Sharing the stage with “Dollar General Napoleon” is British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in the role of “Wish Wellington.” This sweatshop mail order version of the legendary British Duke of Wellington and military strategist sounds like he was knocked around and damaged during the shipping process, and has been keen to use his predecessor’s Iraq War tagline of a “coalition of the willing” for marketing purposes. Because that worked out so great the first time that reminding people of it will surely make them want to have yet another go. This time against Russia.

...Ultimately, this whole European “war for peace” thing – “for Ukraine” – is just one big pantomime to fleece the locals, with Macron, Starmer, and von der Leyen hoping they won’t notice. Backstage, a shiny, integrated EU defense and industrial stimulus is being plotted, through a military-industrial shopping spree – which probably will take so long to actually emerge through all the usual red tape and squabbling that Ukraine risks fading well into the rear-view mirror in the meantime. For example, looking forward to someone in the cheap seats – who bought into the EU’s last big obsessive scam before this one – starts heckling them about how the tanks aren’t biodegradable.

Anyway, it seems like the only thing that could ruin their charade now is if some actual shooting inadvertently broke out because Russia isn’t just a non-playable character. Or, you know, World War III.

Mar 11, 2025

 • Hyping Drone Attacks in Moscow, Larry C. Johnson, SONAR21, Mar 11, 2025

And yes, these were terrorist attacks — i.e., violence against civilians for a political purpose. There was no military objective or target. This is just a futile, desperate act by Ukraine. They are getting their ass handed to them in Kursk and losing territory in the Donbass. These attacks are an attempt to distract the West from the disaster that is unfolding for Ukrainian forces. Really does not matter what happens in Riyadh in terms of talks between the United States and the Ukrainians, because Ukraine’s fate is sealed militarily.

The following snippet from Telegram summarizes correctly, I believe, the next steps in the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia:

More and more details. Judging by this screenshot, Russia is ready to conclude a truce with further negotiations only after the withdrawal of the Ukrainian Armed Forces from its Constitutional territories (including part of the right-bank Ukraine of the Kherson and Zaporizhia regions), as well as the resignation of Zelensky and the transfer of power to the head of the Verkhovna Rada Stefanchuk.

That is, first the withdrawal of the army of the Zelensky regime to the conditionally future border and the resignation of “zeli”, and only then NEGOTIATIONS with Stefanchuk.

Let me clarify the last point. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, in order not to hold elections, but at the same time any agreements were legal (that is, to speed up the process), only Stefanchuk can sign them today.

But then the Rada will still have to adopt everything, by a constitutional majority, since this is a change to the Constitution of Ukraine.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quite clear about Russia’s conditions for pursuing negotiations with Ukraine. There are two critical, non-negotiable points — 1) Ukraine must withdraw from all Russian territory and cease military operations, and 2) Ukraine must have a legitimate government in place that is constitutionally empowered to negotiated with Russia. I do not think the Ukrainian delegation in Riyadh is prepared to meet these conditions. That means one thing — the war will continue and Ukraine’s military situation will become more precarious.

The prospect of repelling Russian forces appears bleak, especially as the Russian army continues its slow yet steady advance. The Russian defense industry is ramping up production and seems prepared to maintain its current pace. Meanwhile, Ukraine is growing weaker, and this may lead to new territorial losses. It’s true that Kiev will not bear the financial burden of restoring the territories it has lost, but it won’t have access to their resources either. Three years of warfare have significantly deepened Ukraine’s dependence on Western partners. Having retained formal sovereignty, Ukraine no longer has the freedom to choose a political and economic course. The country’s budget is critically dependent on foreign aid, and what remains of its industry is increasingly integrated into Western supply chains, making Ukraine a peripheral economy.

It’s impossible to modernize the country or even maintain its vital functions without the assistance of Western donors. Even if the EU and others were to confiscate all frozen Russian assets and transfer them to Ukraine – a scenario that currently seems unlikely – it wouldn’t resolve the issue, as decisions about future funding would still be made abroad. This dependence makes Ukraine politically vulnerable. Western allies can exert influence and claim assets they deem essential. While the EU does this gently, choosing the right words and allowing Ukraine to save face, Trump is not shy about demanding control over Ukraine’s natural resources in return for all the aid the US has provided. Kiev has become trapped in a form of debt bondage that could take decades to escape – if that is even possible.

As a result, Ukraine has become an even more vulnerable, dependent, and peripheral state than it had been before. In the early 1990s, it had very different prospects, with its large population and industrial potential inherited from the Soviet Union.

Mar 10, 2025

Featured • Kursk Collapse Accelerates as Daring Pipeline Raid Shocks AFU, Simplicius, Mar 9, 2025
We who seek peace and disarmament should reflect on the bravery of those who carried out this operation. Courage is foundational.

Featured • What Trump Needs to Know About Russia, Larry C. Johnson, SONAR21, Mar 9, 2025

 • Starlink is ‘backbone’ of Ukrainian military – Musk, RT, Mar 9, 2025

The Ukrainian military is fully dependent on the Starlink internet system, and turning it off would result in the collapse of the “entire frontline,” Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has claimed. The system “is the backbone of the Ukrainian army,” Musk said on Sunday in a post on X. “Their entire front line would collapse if I turned it off,” he wrote, claiming that the Russia-Ukraine conflict has become a stalemate and that peace must be achieved now. “What I am sickened by is years of slaughter in a stalemate that Ukraine will inevitably lose. Anyone who really cares, really thinks and really understands wants the meat grinder to stop.”

But what if we take Trump’s utopianism seriously? I believe we should, if only because behind all the pomposity and rhetorical overkill, it is easy to miss what may be the single greatest weakness of Trumpism.

Consider again that last line: “the freest, most advanced, most dynamic and most dominant civilization.” Even within the mindset of relentless bragging, choices still have to be made what exactly to brag about. And there it is, next to the freedom, the progress, and the dynamism: Dominance. Not just any dominance, but the greatest dominance ever, whether past or future.

Trump is still failing to see a very simple fact: if there is a way to make America great again, then only by letting go of the clinically insane idea that it must “dominate.” Despite its enormous problems, which Trump may diminish or make worse, the US still has much demographic, economic, and innovative potential.

But its senseless dream of dominance will always overstretch its resources. America can, perhaps, be great, but only with and no longer against other major powers and, in general, the rest of humanity. And the US will be stuck in useless, wasteful conflict with everyone as long as it does not deliberately abandon its pursuit of dominating everyone. Because guess what Americans: Everybody wants to be free, not only you. You want a “revolution of common sense”? Dominance is the first thing that needs to go.

Donald Trump’s return to the White House is shaping up to be nothing short of a political revolution. The new administration is rapidly dismantling the old order, purging the ruling elite, reshaping both domestic and foreign policy, and cementing changes that will be difficult to reverse – even if his opponents regain power in future elections.

For Trump, as for all revolutionaries, the priority is to break the existing system and consolidate radical transformations. Many of the principles that guided US policy for decades – sometimes for over a century – are being deliberately discarded. Washington’s global strategy, long built on expansive military, diplomatic, and financial influence, is being rewritten to serve Trump’s domestic political needs.

For the past 100 years, the US has functioned as a global empire. Unlike traditional empires built on territorial expansion, the American empire extended its reach through financial dominance, military alliances, and ideological influence. This model, however, has become increasingly unsustainable. Since the late 1990s, the costs of maintaining global hegemony have exceeded the benefits, fueling discontent both at home and abroad.

Trump and his allies seek to end this ‘liberal empire’ and return America to a more self-reliant, mercantilist model – one reminiscent of the late 19th and early 20th centuries under President William McKinley. Trump has openly praised this era, viewing it as the golden age of US prosperity, before the country took on the burdens of global leadership.

Mar 9, 2025

Featured • Trump Floats Denuclearization Since US Can’t Win Arms Race With Russia, China Without Going Bankrupt, Ilya Tsukavov, Sputnik International, Mar 8, 2025

...Will Trump's Nuclear Negotiations Push Succeed?

“Complete denuclearization is impossible,” Suslov stressed, since nuclear weapons serve as the “ultimate guarantee which prevents war among great powers.”

“The only [reason] why NATO and the United States have not started a direct war against Russia yet in the context of the Ukraine war is nuclear weapons,” he said.

Russia and China will be unlikely to agree to trilateral talks, the expert believes, since their relations are built on partnership, not deterrence.

As for bilateral Russia-US talks, these are possible, “but also [face] huge impediments,” including the need to include the French and British nuclear arsenals into account.

"Basically, Macron made it absolutely clear that the purpose of French nuclear weapons is to deter Russia. This is against Russia. The purpose of British nuclear weapons is also against Russia. And they plan explicitly nuclear operations, potential nuclear operations against Russia," Suslov noted.

Accordingly, Russia's strategy will continue revolving around insisting “on a comprehensive approach and taking all the factors which impact strategic stability into account,” Suslov predicts.

The greatest danger in all of this is not simply that tensions will continue to rise, but that the West has so thoroughly convinced itself of its own narratives that it has lost the ability to perceive off-ramps. Diplomacy, once an art of compromise and negotiation, has been reduced to demands for unconditional submission. Engagement is treated as weakness, de-escalation as appeasement. This is a recipe not for stability, but for catastrophe.

The only path forward is one that the West, in its current state of strategic delirium, seems unwilling to take: the recognition that neither Russia nor China is an existential enemy, that the world is not a battlefield between democracy and autocracy, and that the very survival of civilisation depends on stepping back from the brink. The alternative is a sleepwalk into war, driven not by genuine security imperatives, but by the inability of a fading hegemon to come to terms with its own limitations.

Russophobia and Sinophobia are not the causes of Western decline; they are its symptoms. And like all symptoms, they can be ignored, treated symptomatically, or cured at the root. The choice remains open, but not indefinitely. The empires of the past did not fall because they were defeated by external enemies; they fell because they mistook their own pathologies for the laws of history. The West now stands at the precipice of the same mistake. The question is whether it will recognise it before the fall becomes irreversible.

The recent suspension of US intelligence sharing with Ukraine has critically weakened Kiev’s defense capabilities, leading to substantial casualties, territorial losses – particularly in the occupied part of Russia’s Kursk Region – and plummeting morale, Time reported on Friday, citing Western and Ukrainian officials familiar with the situation. One unnamed official claimed that the lack of US intel directly resulted in “hundreds of dead Ukrainians,” adding that “the biggest problem is morale,” as Kiev is unable to effectively use some of its most powerful Western-supplied weapons. According to Time, the abrupt halt in intelligence sharing has affected the Ukrainian foothold in the Russian border region of Kursk, which Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky regards as a bargaining chip in potential peace talks with Russia.

The magazine said, citing sources, that Russia has made swift advances in the area, aiming to cut off Ukrainian supply lines into the region. According to Ukrainian media reports citing the Deep State monitoring website, Russian forces have nearly cut off Kiev’s foothold in Kursk Region from the border. The New York Post reported, citing sources, that Ukrainian forces in the region could wrap up their incursion within as little as two weeks due to supply shortages and deteriorating battlefield conditions. On Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed gains in the region, saying Russian troops had liberated three villages. Ukraine invaded Kursk Region last August, and while it initially made some gains, the advance was soon halted.

Elon Musk has suggested that sanctioning Ukraine’s top ten oligarchs could bring about a swift resolution to the conflict with Russia. He offered the unusual proposal in a post on X on Saturday.

Musk, who leads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), was responding to a discussion on US financial aid to Ukraine. He has frequently criticized US support for Kiev, while in general advocating reducing federal spending on foreign assistance.

“Place sanctions on the top 10 Ukrainian oligarchs, especially the ones with mansions in Monaco, and this will stop immediately. That is the key to the puzzle,” Musk wrote in response to a post by Senator Mike Lee, who called for the US to halt financial aid to Kiev. Musk did not elaborate on how exactly such a move would impact the conflict.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has unveiled plans to more than double the size of the country’s military to 500,000. Speaking in the Polish Parliament on Friday, Tusk said Poland must be prepared for future conflicts and strengthen its defenses. Tusk reiterated his earlier claims that Russia poses a threat to Europe, saying Moscow could launch a “full-scale operation” against a “larger” target than Ukraine within three to four years – which Russia has repeatedly dismissed as unfounded. He argued that Poland must serve as a “bastion” to protect NATO’s eastern flank and should expand its military capabilities. “We’re talking about the need to have an army of half-a-million in Poland, including the reservists,” he stated, noting that Poland’s current armed forces number around 200,000, which he compared to Russia’s estimated 1.3 million troops.

US Vice President J.D. Vance has said that a group of loud pro-Ukrainian protesters accosted him on the street and frightened his daughter.

Vance angered Kiev supporters last month when he and President Donald Trump berated Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky in the Oval Office.

“Today while walking my 3 year old daughter a group of ‘Slava Ukraini’ protesters followed us around and shouted as my daughter grew increasingly anxious and scared,” Vance wrote on X on Saturday.

“I decided to speak with the protesters in the hopes that I could trade a few minutes of conversation for them leaving my toddler alone. (Nearly all of them agreed.) It was a mostly respectful conversation, but if you’re chasing a 3-year-old as part of a political protest, you’re a s**t person,” he said.

The slogan ‘Slava Ukaini’ (Glory to Ukraine) was first popularized by Ukrainian nationalists in the early 20th century and has since evolved into a patriotic chant. Some still consider the slogan controversial because it was used by the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), whose members collaborated with Nazi Germany during World War II.

It was not the first time Vance has been targeted by Ukraine supporters. Over the weekend, hundreds of people held up pro-Kiev signs on the route in Vermont that Vance and his family were expected to take on their way to go skiing.

Ukraine’s British-provided Storm Shadow missiles are likely to be useless now that the US has paused intelligence sharing with the Ukrainian military, the Daily Mail reported on Thursday.

The report said that the UK is among several countries that have received orders from the US prohibiting the sharing of US-generated intelligence with Ukraine. The Storm Shadow missiles, which have a range of about 155 miles, rely on US satellite data to be fired.

Last year, Ukraine began firing Storm Shadows and US-provided ATACMS missiles into Russia, marking a significant escalation of the proxy war that risked provoking a direct clash between the US and Russia.

Mar 8, 2025

Featured • Ukrainian nationalists commemorate Nazi collaborator (PHOTOS, VIDEO), RT, Mar 8, 2025

Featured • Trump’s Empty Threats to Pressure Russia Falling on Deaf Ears, Larry C. Johnson, SONAR21, Mar 7, 2025

This will be short and simple — Donald Trump’s reported threat to expand sanctions on Russia if it does not halt attacks on Ukraine is empty and meaningless. As you will see in the following videos, I am currently in Moscow and participating in some public diplomacy seminars. What I have gleaned as a result of conversations with some well-informed Russian analysts is that the era of the United States being able to bully or coerce Russia is over. Donald Trump now confronts a Russia, with a government, an economy and a military, that does not need a single thing from the United States beyond mutual respect. The Russian people are prepared to live a comfortable, productive life without having to deal with the United States. That is a truth that Donald Trump needs to grasp.

Trump is signaling more bad news for Ukraine. He reportedly is considering pulling some 35,000 U.S. troops now based in Germany and redeploying them to Eastern Europe. According to the New York Post, militants holding a bridgehead in the Kursk region have found themselves under attack by a Russian counterattack. According to military analysts, Kyiv faces a choice: either retreat urgently or risk being completely surrounded. If Ukraine decides to retreat from Kursk, this would erase Kursk as a “negotiating trump card.” However, choosing to remain in place is the equivalent of a death sentence.

The situation in Kursk has deteriorated sharply in recent days: Russian forces have broken through the defenses, almost cutting the Ukrainian contingent in half. Without reliable supply routes, the militants’ chances of holding on are rapidly fading. Open sources record that the only road connecting the Ukrainian Armed Forces has been narrowed to 500 meters, — Reuters.

After seven months of fighting, Ukraine’s losses in Kursk are becoming unjustified. The Russian army is not only driving the enemy out of the occupied lines, but also blocking any attempts to replenish supplies.

In short, Trump’s efforts to arrange a ceasefire and initiate a viable negotiation between Moscow and Kiev may be overtaken by events on the battlefield and render his effort moot.

US President Donald Trump is considering withdrawing American troops from Germany and redeploying them to Hungary, The Telegraph reported on Friday, citing a person close to the White House. The US has more than 35,000 personnel stationed in dozens of bases in Germany. The NATO member also hosts American nuclear weapons. Trump reportedly could remove the troops or move them elsewhere, as his administration has split with many of its allies in Europe over how to deal with Russia and resolve the Ukraine conflict. While the US president stressed the need to reach a ceasefire as soon as possible and blamed Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky for the hostilities, the UK and many EU members reaffirmed their commitment to back Kiev.

Poland should pursue the acquisition of nuclear weapons, possibly through participation in France’s nuclear umbrella initiative, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said.

On Friday, Tusk told the Polish parliament that the country needs to access advanced military capabilities to bolster national defense.

His remarks come after French President Emmanuel Macron proposed earlier this week extending France’s nuclear deterrent to other EU members in order to address the supposed “threat” posed by Russia.

According to Tusk, Warsaw is already having “serious discussions” with Paris about the nuclear umbrella idea.

“Poland needs to pursue the most modern capabilities related to nuclear weapons as well as modern unconventional weapons,” he stated. Warsaw does not care about being criticized over its military buildup and will take whatever steps it deems necessary to strengthen its defense, the prime minister declared.

Tusk also called for Poland to withdraw from international treaties banning anti-personnel mines and cluster munitions. If enacted, this would allow the Polish military to reintroduce such weapons into its arsenal, despite widespread international opposition to their use.

On Wednesday, Tusk urged the EU to ramp up military spending in order to outpace Moscow in an arms race, suggesting on X that “Russia will lose it like the Soviet Union 40 years ago.” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has also recently called for a significant increase in EU defense spending, further reinforcing the trend toward military expansion.

Moscow has vehemently condemned Tusk’s recent statements, stressing that Russia will not engage in any sort of arms race. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said that the “confrontational, even militaristic” rhetoric coming out of Paris and Warsaw was regrettable.

Russia has repeatedly rejected claims that it poses a military threat to any European countries. President Vladimir Putin has dismissed such suggestions as “nonsense” being perpetuated by EU leaders to scare their populations and justify larger military budgets.

Calls for more defense spending in the EU come as US President Donald Trump has urged European NATO members to play a larger role in ensuring their own defense. At the same time, he has also criticized the idea of an arms race and suggested that all countries should completely get rid of their nuclear weapons.

Washington will cease all assistance to Kiev if the latter fails to demonstrate its commitment to reaching peace with Moscow, US President Donald Trump has said. Trump also stated that Russia has been more cooperative than Ukraine when it comes to a potential settlement of the conflict.

“I have to know that they want to settle [the conflict],” Trump told journalists on Friday in response to a question about US military aid to Kiev. The president said that he did not currently know if Kiev was truly committed to peace.

“If they don’t want to settle, we’re out of there, because we want them to settle.”

Washington has so far had more productive communication with Moscow on a potential resolution of the conflict, even though Russia “has all the cards” and Ukraine has none, the president said. Trump added that he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin does want peace.

“I think we’re doing very well with Russia,” the US president said, adding that he was “finding it more difficult … to deal with Ukraine.”

The Kremlin has condemned the EU’s plan to increase defense spending across the bloc, calling it a path towards confrontation that hinders peace efforts with Ukraine. During an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday, EU leaders endorsed a €800 billion plan to “rearm Europe” proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. ”The European Union is actively discussing its militarization, specifically in the defense sector,” the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated on Friday. The measures are “primarily aimed at Russia, which is, of course, a matter of deep concern,” he added.

The EU does not have the financial capacity to continue aiding Ukraine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban warned in an interview with Kossuth Radio on Thursday. He argued that the bloc’s budget will be stretched too thin if it moves forward with all its planned initiatives, including another support package for Kiev, financing its EU membership bid, and ramping up European defense spending. Orban’s remarks came after he vetoed the EU’s proposed €30 billion ($32 billion) military aid package for Ukraine at an emergency European Council meeting earlier in the day. Despite support for the proposal from the other 26 EU leaders, Orban argued that it effectively greenlighted the continuation of the conflict.

In his interview, the prime minister outlined the mounting financial burdens the bloc faces if it does not change course. First, he said, the EU would be responsible for funding Ukraine’s military, as “the Ukrainians don’t have a penny for that.” Second, Brussels would have to bankroll the Ukrainian government, including salaries and pensions, because “Ukraine, as a state, is not functioning.” Third, the bloc would need to fund Ukraine’s EU membership bid, with no clear estimate of how much it could cost. Lastly, Orban pointed out that the EU has approved the ReArm Europe initiative, which calls for up to €800 billion in new defense spending. “If I add all this up, there isn’t that much money in the bloc. So this won’t work like that… I think the bottom line is that we can’t afford this,” Orban stated, urging EU leaders to reconsider their stance on Ukraine.

Mar 7, 2025

Featured • Trump: Everybody Should Get Rid of Their Nuclear Weapons, Kyle Anzalone, The Libertarian Institute, Mar 6, 2025

President Donald Trump restated his desire to abolish nuclear weapons during a White House presser on Thursday.

“It would be great if everybody would get rid of their nuclear weapons. [I know] Russia and us have by far the most,” the president told reporters in the Oval Office. “China will have an equal amount within four to five years. It would be great if we could all de-nuclearize because the power of nuclear weapons is crazy.”

Currently, nine countries – the US, UK, France, Russia, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, and Israel – possess nuclear weapons. With global tensions on the rise, several nations, including the US, are adding to their strategic capability.

According to the Defense Intelligence Agency, Beijing is working to ramp up its production of nuclear weapons. Last year, the agency predicted that China could have over 1,000 nuclear weapons. However, that would still give Beijing a far smaller arsenal than Washington and Moscow, which each have around 1,500 deployed nuclear weapons and thousands more in storage.

US President Donald Trump’s administration is preparing to revoke the temporary legal status for all refugees, including around 240,000 Ukrainians – a move that could speed up their path to deportation, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a senior administration official and three sources familiar with the matter. Expected to come into force in April, the decision is part of a broader crackdown on immigration which Trump launched since assuming office and marks a dramatic shift from the reception Ukrainians received under the previous administration of Joe Biden. The outlet noted that the effort to revoke protections for Ukrainians was already in progress before a verbal altercation between Trump and Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky in the Oval Office last week.

Moscow sees French President Emmanuel Macron’s words on possible use of nuclear weapons as a threat, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday. “Of course, this is a threat to Russia. If he [Macron] considers us a threat, gathers a meeting of the chiefs of General Staff of European countries and Britain, says it is necessary to use nuclear weapons, prepares to use nuclear weapons against Russia, this is, of course, a threat,” Lavrov told a news conference. On Wednesday, Macron said that Russia had become a “threat” to France and Europe, therefore, it was necessary to open a discussion on the use of France’s nuclear weapons to defend the entire European Union. Emmanuel Macron has the opportunity to call Russian President Vladimir Putin anytime, and accusations that Russia is allegedly preparing a war against Europe are unwise, Lavrov said.

“Macron periodically proudly declares that he will definitely call Putin and talk to him. He has such opportunities. No one forbids it. On the contrary, the president constantly emphasizes his openness to contacts with all his colleagues. And regarding these, frankly, unwise accusations of Russia in preparing a war against Europe and France, Putin has repeatedly said, calling such thoughts delusional, nonsense. Probably, it is absolutely clear to any sane person that Russia does not need this,” Lavrov told a joint press conference with Zimbabwean Foreign Minister Amon Murwira. Russia sees no possibility for achieving a compromise on possible deployment of European peacekeepers in Ukraine, Lavrov said. “We see no room for compromise. This discussion is being conducted with an openly hostile purpose. They are not hiding what they need it for,” Lavrov.

French President Emmanuel Macron should apologize for making “misleading” claims about the origins of the Ukraine conflict, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has told RT. In particular, Zakharova criticized Macron for alleging that Russia was to blame for the failure of the Minsk Accords. The agreements were brokered in 2014 and 2015 to halt fighting between Ukraine and the now-Russian Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, with France and Germany as guarantors. They were ultimately not implemented, and Moscow later accused Kiev and the West of using them to strengthen Ukraine’s military instead of securing peace.

Macron, however, blamed Russia of violating the accords and cited them as proof that the West “can no longer take Russia at its word” when it comes to resolving the conflict. “We cannot forget that Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and that we negotiated a ceasefire in Minsk at that time. And Russia did not respect this ceasefire,” the French president alleged, claiming that Moscow poses a direct threat to France and the entire EU. Zakharova condemned Macron’s comments as “aggressive and destructive” and pointed out that former French President François Hollande and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel have “openly confessed, and not under torture or pressure” back in 2022 they never intended to enforce the accords.

The French president urged his nation to bolster its defenses against the perceived threat from Russia.

French President Emmanuel Macron’s speech focusing on Russia earlier this week was “highly confrontational,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, arguing that it signals an intent to further escalate tensions.

In his address to the nation on Wednesday, Macron labeled Russia “a threat” to the EU and called for a significant increase in defense spending to counter the perceived danger posed by Moscow. He also said that France would be prepared to deploy troops to Ukraine should a truce be reached in the conflict.

Commenting on the remarks during a regular press briefing, Peskov stressed that it hardly conveyed a message of peace: “France apparently is contemplating war, a continuation of war.” This stance naturally elicits a negative reaction in Moscow, he suggested.

The EU must escalate its military buildup and win the arms race against Russia, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said. This comes amid growing efforts by EU leaders to increase defense spending, citing what they describe as a threat from Moscow, which Russia has repeatedly denied. Tusk’s remarks also come as US President Donald Trump and his administration increasingly push European NATO members to take greater responsibility for their own defense. Washington has suggested that Europe should rely less on US military aid, particularly regarding Ukraine, and instead ramp up its own military spending. In a message posted on social media on Thursday, Tusk accused Moscow of starting a new arms race and insisted that Europe must respond.

“The war, the geopolitical uncertainty and the new arms race started by Putin have left Europe with no choice. Europe must be ready for this race, and Russia will lose it like the Soviet Union 40 years ago,” Tusk wrote, adding that from today, Europe will arm itself faster than Russia. His comments follow recent statements by French President Emmanuel Macron, who has claimed that Russia poses a threat to the EU. Macron has urged the bloc to increase defense spending and has also proposed expanding Europe’s nuclear deterrence, potentially extending France’s nuclear umbrella to other EU countries in response to the perceived risks from Moscow.

European leaders who are pushing against a peace agreement in Ukraine want a perpetual state of war, tech billionaire Elon Musk said in a statement on X on Thursday. His remarks come in response to a recent video of Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen arguing that peace in Ukraine could be more dangerous than the ongoing conflict with Russia. Musk, who is also currently a senior adviser to US President Donald Trump, has repeatedly called for a peaceful resolution of the conflict and has spoken out against continued military aid to Kiev, arguing that it could lead to an escalation and risk a nuclear confrontation. Responding to a post featuring Frederiksen’s latest remarks, he argued that some European leaders “want the forever war” and asked how many more people will have to lose their lives.

“How many more parents with no sons? How many more children with no fathers? By their logic, it never ends,” Musk wrote. Frederiksen, who stated last month that “peace in Ukraine is actually more dangerous than the war that is ongoing now,” told journalists earlier this week that “Ukraine has to win this war.” She claimed that if Russia is allowed to win, it will continue to take military action against other European countries. “If we end this war now with some kind of a ceasefire, it will give Russia the possibility to mobilize more funds, people, and maybe to attack another country in Europe,” she said.

Her statements echoed comments by other EU leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, who has recently claimed that Russia poses a threat to the entire bloc and called for defense spending to be ramped up. Russia has also rejected unsubstantiated claims that it intends to attack European or NATO countries with Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissing such statements as “nonsense” and fear mongering by EU leaders aimed at alarming citizens and raising defense budgets. Moscow has warned that one of the key reasons for the Ukraine conflict was NATO expansion towards Russia, including the bloc’s promise that Kiev would eventually become a member.

Mar 6, 2025

Featured • Europe’s Face-Saving Theater on Ukraine, Joe Lauria, Consortium News, Mar 5, 2025

In his speech following the emergency European summit he called in London on Sunday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain was prepared to send “boots on the ground” and “planes in the air” to defend Ukraine against the evil madman, Vladimir Putin.

Then Starmer added: but only if the United States joins us.

...What Starmer is really saying is: Europe stands ready to fight and die as peacekeepers to save Ukraine if necessary, but only with the Americans. So when they refuse to come and the disastrous Project Ukraine at last comes crashing on our heads, don’t blame us, blame the U.S.A.

...One wonders then why Scholz and Macron and the rest of Europe have persisted in fueling a lost cause that has since chewed up tens of thousands of additional Ukrainian lives. Could they be so corrupt that the survival of their political careers was worth the carnage of another nation’s men?

Could they have been as corrupted as Antony Blinken, who insisted to the end of his time as U.S. secretary of state that Ukraine lower the conscription age to 18, even though he knew these youth would be sent to certain death? Have Western leaders not understood that the only chance Ukraine had to win the war was with NATO’S direct participation, risking a nuclear holocaust?

It seems that U.S. and European leaders kept an unwinnable war going until now to save their own careers.

...With defeat staring them in the face, who better to blame it on than the ogre, Donald Trump, who has dared to inject realism into the twisted dream of using Ukraine to weaken and defeat Russia.

As expected, the captured media-military-industrial-complex has coordinated the signaling Europe-wide. Just look at that stupendous headline: ["Europe must trim its welfare state to build a warfare state" -- Financial Times], https://archive.ph/Nyo2t

They don’t even bother dressing it up anymore: forget welfare, social services, and prosperity—only war can save us! Have you ever witnessed such artless abandonment of common sense?

The only way to save this stricken continent now is for Trump to pull out of NATO entirely—de facto if not de jure would be just as fine—and allow the diseased compradors to take themselves down with the ship, so that a new generation can sweep through and field a return of some semblance of common sense, humanity, and civic-political responsibility.

Just consider how bad it’s gotten: the German government hates its citizens so much it is fighting to keep its own sabotaged energy systems from being restarted: ["Germany considering how to disrupt restoration of Nord Stream 2" - Bild]

What level of upside-down, Black Mirror-esque dystopia is that? It is simply inconceivable that a political union grounded in such overt bad faith leadership, and in such ideological contradiction to its own populace, can possibly survive for much longer; we are simply reaching peak levels of cruelly inhuman rule by ‘leaders’ who hate their own citizens, and view them merely as inconvenient obstacles toward monomaniacal geopolitical obsessions.

Many Americans have forgotten that it was the US that helped overthrow the legitimate Ukrainian government in 2014, plunging the country into turmoil for years to come, Elon Musk has said. On Monday, Musk responded to a clip of US Senator Chris Murphy discussing Washington’s role during the 2013-2014 Maidan protests in Kiev which led to the ouster of then-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich. The video featured the Democrat admitting that the US had “not sat on the sidelines” during the unrest. Murphy also recalled that “we have been very much involved,” with top US lawmakers and officials attending the protests on the Maidan square. He further explained that “the Obama administration passed sanctions [against Ukrainian officials]… I really think that the clear position of the United States has in part been what has helped lead to this change in regime.”

Murphy also noted that the US had a vested economic interest in Ukraine’s turn to the West, which was the key goal of the protesters. “If Ukraine is part of the European Union and thus is part of this new trade agreement with the United States, that could result in billions of dollars in new economic opportunities for the US,” he explained. “We shouldn’t be shy about making clear that interest.” Musk responded to the clip, writing on X: “Still very few people know about this.” In February 2023, Musk, one of the closest allies of US President Donald Trump, suggested there “no question that there was indeed a coup” in Kiev in 2014. The Tesla and X owner’s remarks come after a heated clash in the White House between Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky and Trump, during which the US president accused Zelensky of ingratitude for American aid and reluctance to make peace with Russia.

The jingoism is at a fever pitch, with the usual warmongers and reality-deniers salivating at the idea of young men who don’t know each other shooting each other for no reason. This is what everybody wants you to think about. It has flooded the news and social media world like nothing has since the early days of Covid. And, not since those early Covid days, has the truth/coverage ratio been so low. Even more so than most news, no reality makes it into the discourse, rather there is simply an endless exchanges of one set of myths banging against another. Two teams fighting with invisible swords. Nobody is even mentioning nuclear war, except in stories about surviving it or rebuilding after it, which is weird. But what do we think is really going on? Are we really headed to World War III?

Or is this the managed-decline of America is simply taking another step forward while the financial burden of the forever-war necessary to secure a dystopian global state is being shifted to the EU? Whether that’s the only aim or not, it’s certainly what’s about to happen. Predictably, all the “anti-billionaire”, “save the planet”, “eat the rich” pretend liberals are cheering it on. Because they don’t really care about the billionaires who own Boeing or Lockheed Martin raking in their tax revenue, they don’t really care about the impact of war on the environment, and they don’t really care about the corrupt rich making bank on both sides of the supposed “conflict”. They are just Pavlov’s Pundits, conditioned to disapprove of everything Donald Trump says he wants just because he says he wants it. Even peace. Which isn’t to say Trump really wants peace. But you know what I mean. Also, I wouldn’t rule out a “nuclear near miss” or a “limited nuclear engagement” to try and scare people into global cooperation or something. When the media gets this hysterical, everything is on the table.(emphasis added)

Mar 5, 2025

Featured • Zelensky’s Oval Office Melt-Down, David Stockman, Antiwar.com, Mar 5, 2025

So President Trump’s history-changing mission at the present hour is crystal clear. He needs to make War & Peace the preponderant issue on the banks of the Potomac and send the UniParty remnants into spasmodic apoplexy by winning the Nobel Peace Prize for ending this needless war with the same dispatch that Eisenhower did with Korea in 1953.

So doing, he can accomplish the great mission for which is was apparently chosen against all odds by the gods’ of history. That is, to decisively splinter the Uniparty, thereby gathering refugees from both sides of the aisle into a revitalized political force that can enable the the people of Flyover America to reclaim their democracy from the corrupt, self-perpetuating ruling class that arose on the Potomac.

(The following are Greg Mello's original comments in English that were provided to TASS for this article and used extensively.)

The 50th anniversary of the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons [or NPT if you wish] should be the occasion for serious reflection and self-assessment on the part of the world's nuclear powers especially, but also for other states parties.

The Treaty was built on concepts of shared responsibility, mutual respect, and mutual security, rather than dominance, aggression and demonization. It's not perfect but neither were the times in which it was negotiated.

Article VI requires all states parties "to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament, and on a treaty on general and complete disarmament." Serious negotiations are more important than ever and they haven't happened for years despite regularly-scheduled NPT conferences, which have been useless.

Preliminary negotiations between the leaders of the nuclear armed states, especially the U.S. and Russia which together possess roughly 90% of the world's nuclear weapons, should begin immediately. This appears to be happening. All parties should applaud and assist these bilateral negotiations, which must naturally consider mutual security holistically, including but not limited to peace in Ukraine.

The Treaty's linkage between nuclear disarmament and general disarmament is important. Where great disparities in conventional arms and other forms of state power exist, and especially if the more powerful state shows a pattern and practice of aggression, the state with fewer conventional defenses may believe there is no alternative but to rely on a strong nuclear deterrent.

In this regard, President Trump's mention of possible negotiations regarding deep cuts in conventional militaries is very welcome. It is obviously the United States which has by far the farthest to go.

Successful arms control and disarmament negotiations require trust, which needs to be based on recognized and mutual self-interest. Recent efforts by President Trump to reestablish normal relations with the Russian Federation are very welcome, but widespread Russophobia in U.S. leadership and even more so in Europe will need to be replaced by respect, and quickly. Overcoming the hatred that propaganda has created will be gradual but it must be quick, because powerful forces here and in Europe thrive on hatred and paranoia. Symbolic steps taken at the highest level are very important, as well as economic ties. But ordinary citizens, local jurisdictions, and enterprising journalists can help lead also.

The practice of basing nuclear weapons in other countries is arguably a violation of articles I and II, as Russia in the past has argued in NPT conferences. The U.S. has practiced this basing for decades in five European countries. In response Russia is also now doing it in Belarus. Where control over these weapons can pass to soldiers of other countries, as I believe is the case for four of these U.S. allies, the violation is worse. It is time to discuss repatriation of nuclear weapons, as the short flight time of these weapons is a major cause of insecurity. Russia has neither any reason, nor any means, of "invading Western Europe." That's ridiculous. It's long past time to bring those weapons home. By the same token, the U.S. missile batteries in Romania and Poland play a negative, not a positive, security role for Europe and the U.S.

Finally, the possibility of French nuclear weapons being stationed farther east in Germany, in order to better threaten Russia and make her less secure, is crazy as far as stability and security are concerned. It appears that some European leaders are afraid of peace breaking out. Europe needs peace very badly, whether these leaders understand that or not.

Additional comments by Greg Mello: The 50th anniversary of the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons [or NPT if you wish] should be the occasion for serious reflection and self-assessment on the part of the world's nuclear powers especially, but also for other states parties.

The Treaty was built on concepts of shared responsibility, mutual respect, and mutual security, rather than dominance, aggression and demonization. It's not perfect but neither were the times in which it was negotiated.

Article VI requires all states parties "to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament, and on a treaty on general and complete disarmament." Serious negotiations are more important than ever and they haven't happened for years despite regularly-scheduled NPT conferences, which have been useless.

Preliminary negotiations between the leaders of the nuclear armed states, especially the U.S. and Russia which together possess roughly 90% of the world's nuclear weapons, should begin immediately. This appears to be happening. All parties should applaud and assist these bilateral negotiations, which must naturally consider mutual security holistically, including but not limited to peace in Ukraine.

The Treaty's linkage between nuclear disarmament and general disarmament is important. Where great disparities in conventional arms and other forms of state power exist, and especially if the more powerful state shows a pattern and practice of aggression, the state with fewer conventional defenses may believe there is no alternative but to rely on a strong nuclear deterrent.

In this regard, President Trump's mention of possible negotiations regarding deep cuts in conventional militaries is very welcome. It is obviously the United States which has by far the farthest to go.

Successful arms control and disarmament negotiations require trust, which needs to be based on recognized and mutual self-interest. Recent efforts by President Trump to reestablish normal relations with the Russian Federation are very welcome, but widespread Russophobia in U.S. leadership and even more so in Europe will need to be replaced by respect, and quickly. Overcoming the hatred that propaganda has created will be gradual but it must be quick, because powerful forces here and in Europe thrive on hatred and paranoia. Symbolic steps taken at the highest level are very important, as well as economic ties. But ordinary citizens, local jurisdictions, and enterprising journalists can help lead also.

The practice of basing nuclear weapons in other countries is arguably a violation of articles I and II, as Russia in the past has argued in NPT conferences. The U.S. has practiced this basing for decades in five European countries. In response Russia is also now doing it in Belarus. Where control over these weapons can pass to soldiers of other countries [in wartime], as I believe is the case for four of these U.S. allies, the violation is worse. It is time to discuss repatriation of nuclear weapons, as the short flight time of these weapons is a major cause of insecurity. Russia has neither any reason, nor any means, of "invading Western Europe." That's ridiculous. It's long past time to bring those weapons home. By the same token, the U.S. missile batteries in Romania and Poland play a negative, not a positive, security role for Europe and the U.S.

Finally, the possibility of French nuclear weapons being stationed farther east in Germany, in order to better threaten Russia and make her less secure, is crazy as far as stability and security are concerned. It appears that some European leaders are afraid of peace breaking out. Europe needs peace very badly, whether these leaders understand that or not.

A very unexpected and unlikely development and plan is being widely reported Tuesday: Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to help the Trump White House broker talks with Iran on curtailing the country’s nuclear program. Trump reportedly relayed the request for Putin to play a direct role in new negotiations with Iran during their February phone call. The topic was further broached and more details were discussed during the US-Russia Riyadh talks which followed, reports Bloomberg on Tuesday. Neither the Iranian nor US governments have publicly commented on the Bloomberg report specifically, which was based on anonymous sourcing. But Russian state media did quickly acknowledge that Moscow stands ready to help the US and Iran resolve their issues through talks.

A TASS headline issued almost simultaneous to the Bloomberg report says as follows: “Moscow believes that Washington and Tehran should settle all their differences through talks and is ready to contribute to this, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Bloomberg. “Russia believes that the United States and Iran should resolve all problems through negotiations,” he said, adding that Moscow “is ready to do everything in its power to achieve this.” This response from Peskov appears to support the Bloomberg report. This response marks something unexpectedly positive given that both Russia and Iran are heavily sanctioned by the United States – measures put in place under the Biden administration.

Kallas has called for NATO troops to be deployed to Ukraine, to ensure Russia’s total defeat. She has suggested that Russia be broken up into a series of smaller states. She once implied that Ukraine should inflict more civilian casualties on Russian citizens, to balance the number of casualties in Ukraine. Even as President Trump has said that NATO membership for Ukraine is unrealistic, she has continued to push for this to be kept on the table, despite it having been a redline for Russia for nineteen years. Almost everything that she says is rooted in her unshakeable belief that defeating Russia is vital for the world to become a safer place. The world is full of extremists, of course. However, she claims to be the leading diplomat of Europe. She seems singularly ill-suited to that role. But will nonetheless still support Zelensky, I’m sure.

Which ushers in her second problem, the absence of a democratic mandate. Countries that are sceptical about the European project often express concerns about the lack of democratic accountability of EU institutions. No one voted for Kallas to occupy her office in Brussels. While Zelensky has only been unelected since May of 2024, Kallas will only ever be an unelected apparatchik.

Russia has informed the Trump administration on Tuesday that any normalization of relations with the United States must be accompanied by the lifting of sanctions against Moscow. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to Monday reports saying Trump has ordered options be drawn up to potentially give Russia sanctions relief amid ongoing direct talks to prepare for peace negotiations to end the Ukraine war. “It is probably too early to say anything. We have not heard any official statements, but in any case, our attitude towards sanctions is well known, we consider them illegal,” Peskov said. “And, of course, if we talk about normalizing bilateral relations, they need to be freed from this negative burden of so-called sanctions.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed that member states spend about $840 billion on defense to strengthen their military self-sufficiency – an amount more than double total EU defense expenditure in 2024. In a statement on Tuesday, the EU chief cited the “most dangerous of times” and the “grave” threats facing the bloc as reasons to assume greater responsibility for its own security. “We are in an era of rearmament,” von der Leyen declared, adding that she had sent a letter outlining her ‘ReArm Europe Plan’ to member state leaders ahead of the European Council meeting later this week. “ReArm Europe could mobilize close to €800 billion ($840 billion) for a safe and resilient Europe,” she said. “This is a moment for Europe. And we are ready to step up.”

Friday night’s dramatic events at the White House, featuring Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky, have placed Western Europe in an extremely difficult position. Many of the region’s leaders, who range from moderate to intense skeptics of US President Donald Trump, have nonetheless attempted to preserve the traditional transatlantic alliance. They have pushed Washington to find a resolution to the Ukraine conflict that aligns with European interests. But the now-public rupture between Zelensky and Trump has stripped them of that opportunity. Whether by design or by accident, Zelensky has forced the United States to clarify its stance: Washington is a mediator, not a combatant, and its priority is ending escalation, not taking sides.

This marks a stark departure from the previous position, in which the US led a Western coalition against Russia in defense of Ukraine. The message is clear – American support for Kiev is not a matter of principle but merely a tool in a broader geopolitical game. The EU has loudly declared that it will never abandon Ukraine. But in reality, it lacks the resources to replace the United States as Kiev’s primary backer. At the same time, reversing course is not so simple. The price of trying to defeat Russia is too high, and the economic toll too severe, but a sudden shift in policy would force Western European leaders to answer for their past decisions. In an EU already grappling with internal unrest, such a reversal would hand ammunition to the political opponents of the bloc’s leaders.

Another key reason Western Europe remains on this path is its post-Cold War reliance on moral arguments as a political tool – both internally and in its dealings with external partners. Unlike traditional powers, the EU is not a state. Where sovereign nations can pivot and adjust policies with relative ease, a bloc of more than two dozen countries inevitably gets bogged down in bureaucracy. Decisions are slow, coordination is imperfect, and mechanisms often fail to function as intended. For years, Brussels attempted to turn this structural weakness into an ideological strength. The EU, despite its complexity, was supposed to represent a new form of cooperative politics – a model for the world to follow. But it is now clear that this model has failed.

At best, it may survive within Western Europe’s culturally homogeneous core, though even that is uncertain. The world has moved on, and the inefficiencies remain. This makes the dream of an independent, self-sufficient “Europe” – one capable of acting without American oversight – an impossibility. Western Europe may attempt to endure the turbulence of another Trump presidency, just as it did during his first term. But this is not just about Trump. The shift in US policy is part of a deeper political realignment, one that ensures there will be no return to the golden age of the 1990s and early 2000s.

More importantly, Ukraine has become the catalyst for these changes. The EU does not have the luxury of waiting things out. Its leaders must decide – quickly – how to respond. Most likely, they will attempt to maintain the appearance of unity with Washington while adapting to new US policies. This will be painful, especially in economic terms. Unlike in the past, modern America acts solely in its own interests, with little regard for the needs of its European allies. One indicator of Western Europe’s shifting posture may be the upcoming visit of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to Washington. At present, Merz presents himself as a hardliner. But if history is any guide, he may soon shift positions, aligning more closely with Washington’s new direction.

On Monday, Trump reportedly ordered a temporary halt to all US military aid to Ukraine, aiming to pressure Zelensky into negotiations to end the conflict with Russia. An unnamed senior administration official told Fox News that military assistance would stay suspended until the Ukrainian leadership demonstrates a genuine commitment to peace talks. “Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer,” Zelensky continued on X, offering his appreciation for Washington’s support. “My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump’s strong leadership to get a peace that lasts,” he added.

“’Ready’ is good, it is positive,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reacted to the statement. During the Friday meeting, Trump accused Zelensky of ingratitude and “gambling with World War III” by refusing to work towards a halt to hostilities. On Sunday, Zelensky told reporters that “an agreement to end the war is still very, very far away, and no one has started all these steps yet.” Trump condemned his statement on social media, promising that “America will not put up with it for much longer.” Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated Moscow’s readiness to resolve the Ukraine conflict through peaceful means. He emphasized Russia’s aim of establishing an international system that ensures a balanced and mutual consideration of interests, creating a long-term, indivisible European and global security framework. (emphasis added)

"We are in an era of rearmament," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels Tuesday. "Europe is ready to massively boost its defense spending."

Toward this end, the EU is set to propose extending €150 billion ($158 billion) in loans to boost defense spending at a moment the Trump administration is clearly pulling back commitment for security on the continent, she announced, and at a moment of broader accusations that Trump is 'turning his back' on Ukraine.

Bloomberg commented on the newly unveiled plan, writing "After decades of underinvestment, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU also plans to activate a mechanism that would allow countries to use their national budgets to spend an additional €650 billion on defense over four years without triggering budgetary penalties."

The package and new plan could mobilize nearly €800 billion in combination with new defense spending loans, von der Leyen explained. The euro jumped as a much as 0.3% to $1.0521 immediately on the headline, reaching its highest level since Feb.26.

...Commenting on the conundrum, Jana Puglierin, head of the Berlin office of the European Council on Foreign Relations wrote on X: "It seems to me that many have still not fully accepted that Trump simply does not want to play the role that Europeans want him to play."

"No 'strong US backing' will materialize," she stated.

As a consequence of Friday's Oval Office Shouting Match President Trump has halted military aid to Ukraine.

Just hours later the (former) President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelenski agreed to submit to Trump's wishes...

...Zelenski agrees to the 'mineral deal' but inserts language that implies the agreement is a step towards 'security guarantees' which Trump had rejected explicitly:

Regarding the agreement on minerals and security, Ukraine is ready to sign it in any time and in any convenient format. We see this agreement as a step toward greater security and solid security guarantees, and I truly hope it will work effectively.

The White House is likely to reject Zelenski's attempt to make nice with Trump. It will want to 'cook' him a bit longer.

If only to demonstrate to Europeans and other recalcitrant figures that any resistance to Trump is futile.

Former Supreme Allied Commander Admiral James Stavridis earlier warned that the end of NATO could be “days away.” Before entering office, then-President-elect Donald Trump vowed to consider withdrawing the US from NATO. However, the US won’t leave the alliance abruptly, Come Carpentier de Gourdon, a geopolitical analyst and the convener of the editorial board of World Affairs journal, told Sputnik.The US may “gradually starve NATO of funds and other resources by repatriating most of the US personnel from bases in Europe, for instance,” which would prod European states to maintain the alliance at their costs, Gourdon said.

Washington may also push NATO members to raise their defense budgets to 5% which “would probably put an unacceptable burden on those states,” he went on. “In that situation, NATO would become moribund and many of its countries would look for alternative arrangements,” the analyst concluded. It looks like US President Donald Trump has decided NATO’s “free ride is over,” Michael Shannon, political commentator and Newsmax columnist, said in an interview with Sputnik. “NATO has been ‘unified’ for the past 40 years in letting the US foot the bill and supply the manpower for Europe’s defense,” he noted.

The alliance “can pay its fair share in troops, money and equipment or it can watch the US leave them to their feckless fate. US taxpayers get nothing from this arrangement while EU taxpayers get everything,” Shannon stressed. It’s unclear if the US will formally withdraw from NATO, but one can see “a major cutback in NATO spending and a drawdown of US manpower in the EU,” according to the analyst. “When that happens and the other NATO members fail to shoulder their own burden, I can see NATO slowly collapsing like a balloon with a slow leak,” the commentator pointed out.

Mar 4, 2025

Featured • Suddenly, Leaving NATO Is on the Table!, Ron Paul, Antiwar.com, Mar 4, 2025

Over the weekend, President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency head Elon Musk made quite a stir with just two words posted on his social media platform, X. Responding to a post that, “It’s time to leave NATO and the UN,” Musk replied, “I agree.” The comment immediately made the rounds on social media and also on mainstream and alternative media.

Was this the Elon Musk who owns X speaking, or was it the Elon Musk who has become one of President Trump’s closest advisors? Does it even matter? Having someone so close to the US president who advocates finally extracting the US from these international organizations is a significant and very positive shift for the United States.

....I have long advocated our exit from NATO. At the end of the Cold War, with its very reason for existence gone, NATO decided to look for other ways of stirring up trouble. First NATO involved itself in the first Gulf War and then it decided its mission should be to bomb Serbia to smithereens – in the name of “human rights.” I agree with the late Sen. Robert Taft, who argued at the time NATO was formed that we should not join the “Atlantic Alliance.”

It has become much clearer these past few months just how far NATO has shifted away from US interests. Even though the United States funds a whopping 70 percent of NATO’s cost, our own NATO “allies” are working against the United States as President Trump attempts to pull us back from the brink of war with Russia.

...To add insult to injury, right at the center of the table in Paris was none other than the Secretary General of NATO himself, former Dutch politician Mark Rutte! The message was very clear: “we are working against you – we push war while you push peace – but you must keep footing the bill.”

What a day. The fallout from Friday’s rumble in the Oval Office continues and it is not good news for Ukraine. Although Zelensky caught some love from a motley collection of Eurocrats over the weekend in London, it was meaningless. More empty promises from European countries with no military clout and floundering economies, all vowing to support Ukraine, maybe. The UK’s Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, promised to provide troops and planes to secure a peace in Ukraine and then, moments later, conceded it would only be done if the US provided firm security guarantees. Trump already has said, “NO,” to that proposal and is not going to reverse position.

Then, late this afternoon, news broke that Trump had pulled the plug on providing further military and financial assistance to Ukraine. While Trump suggested this might be only a temporary hold, provided that Zelensky get on his knees and return to the Oval Office to kiss Trump’s ass, I think it is unlikely that the Kievan Cocaine Cowboy will wipe the white powder from his nostrils, clear his head, and apologize to Mr. Trump. Zelensky is too far gone.

Zelensky will bear the blame in Ukraine for alienating the Trump administration and you can bet that senior intelligence and military officers, who will now be denied assistance they were counting on, will turn their wrath on Zelensky. Whatever tantrum or defiant show of resistance Zelensky decides to present to the outside world, that will be short-lived.

Russia will likely further intensify its military operations against the Ukrainian forces, which already are suffering significant losses all along the line of contact. And the prospect for a quick collapse of Ukraine’s military appears more plausible as compared to the situation one month past.

At the same time that President Trump is turning up the heat on Ukraine, he has ordered the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of State to review existing sanctions on Russia and submit a list recommending which ones to lift. I think one of the first to fall will be air travel between the two countries.

When the full truth of US financial support for Ukraine is eventually revealed, Americans will be shocked to learn that USAID played a pervasive and powerful role in funneling money to whip up public enthusiasm for Ukraine and to entice mercenaries to enlist. In addition, USAID funding to media outlets in Ukraine was a critical element in pushing memes proclaiming Ukraine as a democracy, Zelensky as a popular leader and Russia as military and economic basket case. With Trump pulling the plug on that operation, the facade of lies is being exposed and starting to crumble.

Finally, there is a prospect for bringing the war in Ukraine to an end. President Trump and his foreign policy team have created the conditions for a negotiated end to the war, replacing a fundamentally flawed and dangerous set of policies adopted by his predecessors including, ironically, the Donald Trump of his first administration.

This is true even after the very public blowout in the Oval Office on Feb. 28. What brought on Trump’s ire was Zelensky’s comments on the minerals deal and then his repeated complaints about negotiating with Putin, something Trump has made clear he will do. Trump had apparently expected a quick signing ceremony to convince Ukraine supporters in his own party like Senator Lindsey Graham — who were invited to witness — that a negotiated peace would be advantageous to the United States. When Zelensky turned the meeting into a debating session and aroused Trump’s memories of the bogus “Russiagate” charges that plagued his first administration, Trump reacted predictably.

Indeed, anyone interested in peace rather than the threat of nuclear war should be congratulating President Trump. After all, if the war does end and Russia is brought back into cooperative economic relations with Europe and the United States, everyone will benefit. If the war and the attempted isolation of Russia continues, all will suffer and cooperation to deal with common problems such as environmental degradation, mass migration and international financial crime will become impossible.

...We cannot know what deal President Trump has in mind or how President Putin will respond. The negotiations will be difficult and, most likely, lengthy. But, at last, the American president has defined a viable road to peace and the Russian president has greeted this effort. This is a welcome start of a process Americans and Europeans should support.

President Trump has paused all military aid to Ukraine, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing a senior Pentagon official.

The pause applies to all US military equipment bound for Ukraine that’s not currently in the country, including weapons that are in transit on aircraft and ships or waiting in Poland to be delivered.

The Pentagon official said the US was pausing all military to Ukraine until the country’s leadership demonstrates a good faith commitment to peace. A senior Trump administration official told Fox News, “This is not permanent termination of aid, it’s a pause.”

So long as the US provides an expensive and robust support for Europe’s defense, oligarchs based in Europe can continue business as usual, living their lavish lifestyles and provoking their nuclear neighbor, Wall Streest analyst Charles Ortel says. “Our European ‘partners’ seem to want ‘war at all costs,’ believing that America will do the paying and Americans will do the dying,” Wall Street analyst Charles Ortel told Sputnik, commenting on Europe’s demonstrative support for Volodymyr Zelensky, who rejected a Trump-brokered ceasefire in Ukraine. The UK and EU feel free to provoke Russia – a nuclear power – because they believe their security is guaranteed by Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which would obligate the US to come to their defense, according to the analyst.

Europe’s proxy, Zelensky, “is behaving like an old-fashioned mafia goon, demanding protection money,” Ortel says. US involvement in the Ukraine conflict would mean increased protection for Europe and further US taxpayer money flowing into European coffers. But that won’t happen under Donald Trump and JD Vance, Ortel underscores. As Europe’s reckless warmongering continues, the US may have no choice but to leave the transatlantic alliance, he believes. “The US has no business subsidizing Europe and defending it,” Ortel says. “Indeed, I believe we have a duty to our own citizenry to significantly reduce our defense commitments to Europe and rescind NATO treaty assurances — if not exit NATO altogether under present circumstances.”

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has lashed out at Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky in a series of X posts, accusing him of prolonging the conflict with Russia by refusing to negotiate. Musk’s comments follow a tense White House meeting on Friday between Zelensky, US President Donald Trump, and Vice President J.D. Vance. The meeting ended abruptly without a planned minerals agreement. During a heated exchange, Zelensky resisted Trump’s demand to negotiate with Moscow, leading Trump to accuse him of ingratitude, “gambling with World War III,” and lacking the willingness to end the conflict. After Zelensky’s “fiasco” in Washington, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called an emergency summit in London on Sunday to discuss Western support for Ukraine. Some European leaders raised the possibility of sending ground troops.

Early Sunday, Musk reposted a statement made by Balazs Orban, political director of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, calling for “direct negotiations with Russia” and an “immediate ceasefire and peace.” He then re-shared his 2022 peace proposal, suggesting referendums in Russian-controlled territories, the recognition of Crimea as Russian, and Ukraine’s neutrality. The Donetsk People’s Republic, Lugansk People’s Republic, Kherson Region and Zaporozhye Region—formerly part of Ukraine—became federal subjects of Russia after referendums in 2022. Crimea and Sevastopol had previously voted to join the country in 2014. However, Kiev continues to assert sovereignty over these territories.

“What I said over 2 years ago was that Ukraine should seek peace or suffer severe loss of life for no gains. The latter was Zelensky’s choice. Now, he wants to do that again. This is cruel and inhumane,” Musk wrote in a pinned post. Musk followed up with a meme of a tram running over people, with Zelensky at the control lever. Another post showed a blood-stained chessboard next to a dining table, captioned: “The reality of war.” He later reposted the image, adding: “The EU leaders and Zelensky having fancy dinners while men die in trenches. How many parents will never see their son again?” Musk’s remarks come as Zelensky demands more funding from Western backers while resisting talks with Moscow. Reports indicate Washington is unwilling to approve further aid unless Ukraine agrees to negotiations.

In the latest indication that we’re entering a new, less adversarial era of US-Russia relations, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered a suspension of offensive cyber operations against Russia. The length of the pause is uncertain but the purpose seems clear: To demonstrate good will as the Trump administration earnestly seeks a negotiated end to the three-year-old war in Ukraine, which has been costly not only to the two warring countries, but to the United States and Western European countries that first precipitated that conflict, and then perpetuated it. The pause will continue as long as negotiations move forward, according to the Washington Post’s sources. US officials tell various media outlets that the stand-down order was issued to US Cyber Command in late February.

Appearing on ABC’s This Week on Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back on leftist hysterics about Trump’s eagerness to reach a negotiated ceasefire and lasting peace in Ukraine — consistent with his campaign pledges:

“If this was a Democrat that was doing this, everyone would be saying, well, he’s on his way to the Nobel Peace Prize. This is absurd. We are trying to end a war. You cannot end a war unless both sides come to the table, starting with the Russians, and that is the point the president has made. And we have to do whatever we can to try to bring them to the table to see if it’s even possible.”

Mar 3, 2025

 • Starmer's Summit Gives Birth To A Mouse - It's Stillborn.,Moon of Alabama, Mar 3, 2025

 • European Reality Check: Without The US There Is No NATO And No Ukraine, ZeroHedge, Mar 3, 2025

To be clear, Ukraine is not entitled to US tax dollars or US military aid. Europe insists that the war must continue even without US help, but their ability to fund and fight the war is limited. They would trigger WWIII in the process, and they would lose. [Everyone would lose.] The belief that more money or more armaments will prevent a Ukraine loss or land concessions to Russia is irrational. Ukraine's biggest problem is manpower, not money, and no amount of money is going to triple Ukrainian forces on the eastern front.

A peace deal should have been negotiated a long time ago.

For now it appears that the European elites are frantically trying to rally public support around extending the conflict and forming a centralized EU military. This will take them years and it will never come close to the same funding levels that the US provided. Not to mention, younger native born Europeans have no interest in joining to fight.

The western split over Ukraine is a profound event in history. Some will say it was the moment the US "abandoned their allies" and let Russia win. Those with sense will say that this was the moment the US stopped contributing to the problem and offered a solution while Europe foolishly refused to listen.

Mar 2, 2025

Featured • The Oval Office Shouting Match - Wrap-Up, Moon of Alabama, Mar 1, 2025

Trump and Vance tried to tell him [that he was out of options] - Zelenski exploded. Some say this was trap or set up. I and others disagree. It was Trump who wanted the 'mineral deal' to be signed. Why would he sabotage that?

It would have been easy for Zelenski to not react to Vance's interdiction but he instead started a fight. He even might have dreamed of a knock out.

The incident, in full view of the U.S. public, will allow Trump to drop Ukraine as the bad asset that it now is. As I commented yesterday:

What will Trump do now?

Best guess:

• He will walk away from Ukraine. (No rare earth deal or anything else.)
• Europeans will be ignored (Macron had urged him to meet Zelenski ---› bad!)
• He will make a deal with Russia. Rare earth, lifting sanctions and much more.

There seems to be no regret by Zelenski who has failed to apologize.

Meanwhile USAID has stopped repairs of Ukraine's energy grid. Other U.S. support is highly endangered:

Trump administration press secretary Caroline Leavitt stated that the U.S. will no longer provide military assistance to Ukraine because their priority is peace negotiations. This decision came after the controversy during Zelensky’s visit.

"We are no longer going to just write blank checks for a war in a very distant country without a real, lasting peace," Leavitt said.

Zelenski hopes that Europe will back him. But while some European bots claim to stand by Ukraine they have neither the men, money nor weapons to do so. There is no European unity on it:

Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia are 'very unhappy' they were betrayed by being excluded from tomorrow's Ukraine summit in London. They 'have a plan... but they weren't invited' - Sky News

Zelenski will have to go - one way or the other.

...The Russians are the big winner in this. Ukraine is in a scuffle with its main sponsor. The western alliance has splintered. The enemies' frontline is falling apart.

Russia is opposed to Trump's main demand of a cease-fire along the current frontline. But Zelenski is blamed for sabotaging it.

I do not see how Zelenski can escape from this.

The fierce clash between President Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky on live TV shocked US allies and prompted devastated Washington pundits to start writing requiems to ‘Pax Americana’. Sputnik reached out to a pair of veteran observers of international politics and defense policy to explain the blowup, and what comes next. “Zelensky came all the way to Washington to sign an open-ended, financially unlimited, no security-guarantee deal marketed in his own country as the opposite. Trump and Vance openly declared that he’s been defeated, is gambling with the lives of his own people, that he has no men left and that peace must be made,” renowned Turkish journalist Ceyda Karan told Sputnik, commenting on Friday’s epic slugfest.

“They said outright that Zelensky is going to drag the whole world into World War III. What’s striking here is that Trump is presenting the truth to the Western world, which has become accustomed to political correctness,” Karan stressed, outlining the most important takeaway from the verbal altercation. Zelensky tried “to play the role of a ‘hero being mistreated’ by the US president. The issue of Trump demanding the rights to Ukraine’s resources has been presented to the world as if Zelensky were a victim. However, he himself has been talking about this throughout the past year. When the US Congress had difficulty allocating new military aid to Kiev, it was Zelensky who offered resources, sitting next to Senator Lindsey Graham and listening to his rhetoric about ‘fighting to the last Ukrainian’,” the observer recalled.

He repeated this idea while meeting Trump on the eve of the 2024 election at Trump Tower in September, and again before Ukraine’s parliament at the end of last year during his speech on his so-called ‘victory plan’, “which was ridiculed even by Western media,” Karan said. “To replace the US, Europe at least has to double its support for Ukraine,” Swedish Armed Forces veteran and politician Mikael Valtersson told Sputnik, commenting on European leaders’ plans to organize a hasty summit on Ukraine support in the fallout from the Trump-Zelensky blowup. “Picking up the slack for the US would be “a very heavy burden for Europe to carry,” Valtersson explained, particularly amid “growing resistance among the European population to spending huge amounts of money on Ukraine,” which would only increase further if spending did.

Some EU countries would favor the conflict between Russia and Ukraine dragging on longer with the idea of weakening Moscow, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has charged, stressing that Washington’s goal is to end the hostilities. Rubio’s comments came after a heated meeting between President Donald Trump and Vladimir Zelensky on Friday, which triggered accusations from American officials that the Ukrainian leader showed “disrespect” and ingratitude towards the US. In an interview with CNN on Friday, Rubio emphasized that Washington is seeking peace for Ukraine, adding that if there’s even a 1% chance of that happening, it “needs to be explored.” He also suggested that some of his EU counterparts are not exactly on board with this approach.

He cited an unnamed European foreign minister as saying that the EU’s plan is to allow “the war go… on for another year and at that point Russia will feel so weakened that they’ll beg for peace.” Rubio criticized this approach, stating, “That’s another year of killing, another year of dying, another year of destruction, and by the way, not a very realistic plan in my point of view.” Rubio has also called on Zelensky to apologize for what he called an “antagonistic” approach during the meeting, rebuking him for his stance on an agreement granting the US rights to Ukraine’s natural resources, which was set to be signed at the White House but ended up in limbo due to the spat that ensued. While Zelensky – who urged the US to continue military support for Ukraine while warning that the failure to do so would backfire – was heavily criticized by Trump administration officials and Republicans, many EU leaders rallied to his support.

Russian air defenses have intercepted three drones near a key compressor station in Krasnodar Region servicing the TurkStream gas pipeline, in what the Defense Ministry in Moscow has described as a Ukrainian sabotage attempt.

The pipeline delivers Russian natural gas to Turkish customers and several European countries, including Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Greece. Operational since January 2020, it has an annual capacity of 31.5 billion cubic meters.

In a statement on Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that “on the night of February 28, against the backdrop of [Ukrainian leader] Vladimir Zelensky’s visit to Washington, the Kiev regime carried out yet another attempt to attack the Russkaya gas compressor station in the village of Gaikodzor… with the help of three fixed-wing UAVs.” Moscow suggested that Kiev had sought to disrupt the delivery of Russian gas to European nations.

Key German industrial leaders have expressed their desire to see Russian gas return to Europe once a resolution to the Ukraine conflict is found, Bloomberg has reported. Chemical and manufacturing sector representatives argue that affordable energy is crucial for Germany’s economy to recover, the agency wrote on Friday. European gas prices surged after the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022. Pipeline gas imports from Russia mostly ceased due to sanctions and the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines in 2022. Nevertheless, EU nations have still been buying record volumes of Russian LNG, the cost of which has nearly quadrupled in three years, according to Eurostat. Christian Gunther, managing director of the Leuna chemical park, emphasized that bringing back Russian gas would be a logical step if peace is achieved.

“We must ensure the damage caused by this conflict is repaired,” he told Bloomberg, adding that resuming deliveries “would be the logical consequence.” In 2021, Russian pipeline gas accounted for 32% of the total demand of the EU and UK, while Germany relied on Russia for 55% of its consumption, according to the European Council and Statista. Since cutting ties with Russian energy, the EU has turned to expensive LNG imports, primarily from the US. The shift has driven natural gas prices on the continent to their highest levels in two years, prompting discussions in Brussels about price caps. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has warned that soaring energy costs could cripple the EU economy.

The problem of course is that this sets the EU off on a collision course with Trump, which many would argue threatens to be the start of an unprecedented rift, only corrected by him being replaced by a democrat President. Europe has never been so isolated from the U.S., as of now with its blinded dogma over Ukraine and a war it cannot stop fighting and losing. The more a rich man spends on a fake painting, the less inclined he is to accept its lack of authenticity. This is where Europe is now, with Starmer leading the pack of mad wolves talking about sending British troops there. Insane.

Of course, Trump and Putin will put an end to these wet dreams – would British soldiers even agree to go there? – by simply creating a peace plan which the rest of Europe will have to respect. To do this, priorities have to be drawn up. Trump gets his payback on minerals. Putin concedes this small request. Next, do we work with Zelensky or bypass him? Will Russian sanctions be part of a bigger deal? Almost certainly as it is no coincidence that Trump has already indicated in mainstream media that at some point these will be tackled head on. The delay is Trump working out what benefits he can extract from Putin if he is to lift sanctions. The important thing is that for the first time in contemporary history U.S. is not the belligerent buffoon starting wars around the world to embolden its hegemony and show the world what it can do with just mere military might. It is a peace broker, ending wars. And with the help of Russia.

Where does Europe stand in all this? Like children who have been left at a kiddies birthday party with no cake. Petulant, juvenile and completely deluded about who they are and what their capabilities are. Europe bays for more blood and even greater economic decline, while their own people suffer more and more. The most insincere aspect of Starmer’s speech in the parliament is when he talks about poor people suffering for the Ukraine war. His own government has gone from denying old people a heating subsidy to now his own police force threatening them with jail time if they don’t stop their mean tweets about Labour officials. Is it perhaps that Zelensky is so admired for being a dictator in Europe who has achieved so much more than his western counterparts, why he is so revered?

Lukyanov: “Vladimir Zelensky underestimated the scale of the shift that occurred in American politics after Donald Trump’s arrival. He was misled by the fact that for three years, no one in the West considered it acceptable to publicly contradict Ukrainian representatives, especially Zelensky himself. Diplomats, politicians, and cultural figures from Ukraine were allowed almost anything. They are victims; they have the right. Permissiveness played a cruel joke on the Kiev leader. But the issue is not just about someone’s bad manners; that is a private matter. Such a model of behavior was possible as long as the Ukrainian conflict was perceived in the West as a battle of the right side of history against the wrong one. And in such a battle, almost anything is allowed. And no one will condemn it.

Trump views the war as an annoying nuisance, a mess in which all participants are to blame, especially his predecessor. The key takeaway from Trump during this truly historic interaction in the White House was: I am a mediator; I am not on anyone’s side; I want the war to end. And this is a fundamental shift. Strangely enough, Trump has taken a position of classic diplomacy, which is necessary to end wars. Zelensky and his supporters reject it, counting on a clear victory. But that is unattainable. Zelensky’s problem now is that, having made a fatal mistake in his choice of strategy in the White House, he has disarmed even his support group in Europe and within the US itself.

They may express as much outrage as they want about Trump and demand continued aid for Ukraine, but Zelensky’s mistake is glaring. The opportunity to sway the American president to a more favorable position has been lost.

Grishanov: “Zelensky had a chance to conduct his conversation with Trump and Vance differently. As recently as Thursday, the American leader predicted ‘a very good meeting’ and spoke of his continued respect for his Ukrainian counterpart. However, Zelensky clearly lost his grip on reality. Upon arriving at the White House, he made every possible mistake, failing to recognize hints from the other side and missing the opportunity to remain gratefully silent and humbly keep his head down. In international affairs, one must pay for foolishness and excessive self-confidence.

Of course, one episode alone is not enough to draw long-term conclusions, but in the short term, this tragicomic conversation will undoubtedly weaken Zelensky’s position within Ukraine and give Russian diplomacy additional leverage in its dealings with the US. However, the positions of Moscow and Washington on the peace process still diverge, and Trump’s unpredictable temperament may bring many surprises on the road to ending the conflict.”

Mar 1, 2025

Featured • A dose of reality for the West’s spoiled brat: What now for the humiliated Zelensky?, Tarik Cyril Amar, RT, Mar 1, 2025
Probably the single best commentary we have seen today.

Featured • BLOODBATH IN THE OVAL OFFICE, Simplicius, Feb 28, 2025
Pretty good overall. We can read Simplicius for the excellent array of data he provides without sharing all of his conclusions. That said, many of his insights are excellent.

 • Trump names conditions for resuming talks with Zelensky, RT, Mar 1, 2025

US President Donald Trump has outlined his expectations for any future engagements with Vladimir Zelensky, stressing that further negotiations depend on a clear commitment to peace.

Speaking to reporters after a tense meeting with Zelensky at the White House on Friday, Trump accused the Ukrainian leader of “overplaying his hand” and failing to demonstrate a genuine desire to end the conflict with Russia.

“We’re looking for peace,” Trump stated. “We’re not looking for somebody that’s going to sign up a strong power and then not make peace because they feel emboldened… He’s looking to go on and fight, fight, fight. We’re looking to end the deaths.”

"You saw what I saw today. This is a man that wants to get us signed up and keep fighting.

The European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, has suggested that the United States can no longer act as the “leader of the free world,” after President Donald Trump publicly scolded Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky for his disrespect and ingratitude toward the American people. The meeting between Zelensky, Trump, and Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday descended into an openly hostile exchange. Zelensky was asked to leave the White House early without signing an agreement that would have granted the US rights to Ukraine’s natural resources, or holding a joint press conference. In response to the scandal, Kallas, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy and former Estonian prime minister, took to X to express her support for Zelensky, writing, “We stand by Ukraine.”

US President Donald Trump’s administration is considering ending all ongoing shipments of military aid to Ukraine, The Washington Post wrote citing sources. Military supplies could be halted “in response to remarks” by Vladimir Zelensky at a meeting with Trump in the White House and “his perceived intransigence in the peace process,” according to the publication. The decision, if made, would apply “to billions of dollars of radars, vehicles, ammunition and missiles awaiting shipment to Ukraine through the presidential drawdown authority,” an official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive topic, was quoted as saying.

Earlier on Friday, Zelensky met with Trump at the White House. Their televised exchange suddenly unraveled into a shouting match, with Trump scolding Zelensky for being disrespectful to the US, and Vice President JD Vance saying that Zelensky had never thanked the country for all the support provided to Kiev. A news conference scheduled to follow the meeting was canceled, and the Ukrainian delegation left the White House earlier than planned. Bilateral talks and the scheduled signing of the deal on Ukrainian mineral resources were thwarted.

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 • Peace in Ukraine - How Do We Get There?, LASG virtual discussion with Scott Ritter and Dr. Dmitri Trenin, Jan 15, 2025
 • "Peace in Ukraine -- How Do We Get There?" A discussion in Los Alamos with Scott Ritter and Dmitri Trenin, Jan 7, 2025
 • Stop the War in Ukraine While We Can, Greg Mello, LASG Vlog, Jun 24, 2024
 • What we’re up to, and reflections on some opportunities and dangers at hand, Greg Mello, VFP Webinar, Jun 20, 2024
 • Can U.S. seize the moment for peace?, Greg Mello, Santa Fe New Mexican, Jun 16, 2024
 • Bulletin 346: Momentous events, and two op-eds, Jun 16, 2024
 • Press backgrounder: U.S. Considers Expanding Its Nuclear Arsenal, Jun 10, 2024
 • Bulletin 345: Ukraine strikes Russian early-warning radar against nuclear attack, May 25, 2024
 • "Russophobia, the Ukraine war, and nuclear weapons," LASG presentation, Peter Kuznick, Steven Starr, & Greg Mello discuss the dangerous phenomenon of "Russophobia" in the West in the context of the potentially widening war in Ukraine, with its attendant nuclear dangers, video, Apr 16, 2024
 •Bulletin 342: Russophobia, the Ukraine war, and nuclear weapons," panel discussion in Santa Fe Tuesday April 16, 6 pm / Pit production: myths and contradictions, Apr 10, 2024
 • LASG friends ltr: "Russophobia, the Ukraine war, and nuclear weapons" -- panel discussion Tuesday April 16, 6 pm, St. John's United Methodist Church, Santa Fe, Apr 8, 2024
 • Bulletin 341: Pit seminar materials available; Russophobia seminar postponed; big jump in FY24 warhead spending as arms race takes hold; Ukraine losing war sparking panic in West, Mar 4, 2024
 • Bulletin 340: "Year in Pits;" Zoom update & discussion on pits 2/27; rich opportunities in the land of nuclear (dis)enchantment; end the Ukraine carnage and genocide in Gaza, Feb 22, 2024
 • The Real Purpose In Making The Bomb Was To Subdue The Soviets. Now Its Happening Again, On A Vast Scale. Why? July 22 At Fuller Lodge, Los Alamos Reporter, Jul 19, 2023
 • LASG friends ltr: Ukraine over the tipping point; more on July 22 event in Los Alamos; comment on generic "nuclear disarmament," Jul 12, 2023
 • Bulletin 330: "'The real purpose in making the bomb was to subdue the Soviets.'* Now it's happening again, on a vast scale. WHY?" A conversation with acclaimed historian Peter Kuznick and Greg Mello in Los Alamos, July 22, Jul 7, 2023
 • Ukraine War Makes it Harder to be a Nuclear Dove | Our Land, Laura Paskus, New Mexico in Focus, Jun 30, 2023
 • Bulletin 329: Russia rules out nuclear disarmament negotiations; second week of Ukrainian offenses fail; what will US and NATO do? Build 60 projects in LANL's Pajarito Corridor?, Jun 17, 2023
 • LASG friends ltr (06/15/2023) Pit production zoom today; halt military "aid" to Ukraine, which just kills more Ukrainians, accept peace
 • Ukraine; Biden's Manicheism; the U.S. cannot even conduct a nuclear arms race, let alone win one, LASG friends ltr, Mar 16, 2023
 • Ukraine protest and updates, pit production delays and cost increases in NNSA's new budget, LASG friends ltr, Mar 14, 2023
 • Antiwar rally 2 pm Saturday in Albuquerque; LANL pits delayed, endorse the "Call for Sanity"; Ukraine update; the Nordstream investigation (and likely impeachment) "imperative" LASG friends ltr, Mar 11, 2023
 • Ukraine losses mount toward critical point; ANSWER rally against the war is now 2 pm (not 1 pm), March 18, Albuquerque; nearly half U.S. citizens believe WWIII is near, LASG friends ltr, Mar 7, 2023
 • Ukraine news and views; antiwar rally March 18; pending guest editorial; pit production precis, LASG friends ltr, Mar 3, 2023
 • Bulletin 325: Understanding the Nordstream sabotage and punishing those responsible, Feb 18, 2023
 • Ukraine news with comments and excerpts; bookmark for future reference if desired,LASG friends ltr, Feb 8, 2023
 • Bulletin 324: Opposition to Ukraine war gains visibility in New Mexico and via our web site, more broadly, Feb 6, 2023
 • Anti-nuclear activist opposes helping Ukraine, encourages peace, Santa Fe New Mexican, Feb 5, 2023
 • Bulletin 323: "Nuclear Hotseat" interview / Ukraine war updates, Feb 4, 2023
 • Bulletin 322: Right and Left To Join in D.C. Protest: Not One More Penny for War in Ukraine / Bulletin of Atomic Scientists resets clock, blames Russia, Jan 25, 2023
 • $10 Trillion for Nuclear War: Racing to the Nuclear Cliff, The Socialist Program with Brian Becker, Jan 10, 2023
 • Bulletin 321: Last day for 2022 donations! / A few quick updates, Dec 31, 2022
 • Bulletin 320: Neocon humiliation -- or nuclear exchange / The centrality of war resistance in moral politics / 3 days left for 1:1 donation match!, Dec 29, 2022
 • Bulletin 319: Ukraine; NDAA: omnibus appropriations bill; fundraising --thank you; some matching funds still available, Dec 21, 2022
 • Stop the war now, Jean Nichols, The Taos News, Dec 19, 2022
 • Bulletin 318: Speak out now against further U.S. escalation in Ukraine; daily updates for your use, Dec 14, 2022
 • Agenda for tonight's emergency Ukraine meeting in Albuquerque, and by Zoom, Nov 15, 2022
 • Bulletin 314: Reminder re next week's antiwar, disarmament, & nuclear safety events: come if you can or tune in, outreach needed; pit interview on KNME tonight 7 pm; fundraising drive continues; erratum, Nov 11, 2022
 • Bulletin 313: Important meeting about Ukraine next week; DNFSB hearing in Santa Fe; more, Nov 7, 2022
 • Biden Administration releases aggressive nuclear strategy envisioning "first use" of nuclear weapons in wars like Ukraine, press release, Oct 27, 2022
 • Bulletin 310: Speak up! We urge you to take up the call for peace in Ukraine, Sep 25, 2022
 • Pope Francis: "World War III has been declared." We agree. Stop LANL's pit factory; Stop the U.S. war against Russia, presentation, Jun 15, 2022
 • Bulletin 301: Oppose the war! Demand and create accountability for lawmakers who fund and promote more war in Ukraine, May 16, 2022
 • Grave dangers loom in Ukraine war votes and escalations; opportunities open for journalists and citizens; We urge news media to widen debate, pose questions, create accountability, press release, May 16, 2022
 • LASG friends ltr: Thursday evening public discussion in Albuquerque: Ukraine, propaganda, progressives supporting Nazis and war, May 10, 2022
 • Escalation in Ukraine: The Nuclear War Danger is Real, Brian Becker & Greg Mello discuss the U.S. policy of waging proxy war on Russia, BreakThrough News, May 4, 2022
 • Bulletin 299: Emergency call to action: stop Biden's proposed $33 billion war escalation, Apr 28, 2022
 • Bulletin 298: Talk on pits & renewed U.S. nuclear weapons production Tuesday evening 4/26/22; antiwar billboard; what you can do, Apr 25, 2022
 • The core debate, Searchlight New Mexico, Mar 23, 2022
 • Bulletin 294: Please consider forwarding this fine statement from UNAC re Ukraine, Mar 23, 2022
 • Nuclear expert speaks on the dangers of war between the US and Russia, World Socialist Website, Mar 15, 2022
 • A Proposed Solution to the Ukraine War, Consortium News, Greg Mello, Mar 7, 2022
 • Bulletin 293: Ukraine conflict: If you want a ceasefire (as we do), stop firing, Mar 5, 2022
 • Bulletin 292: Statement on the Ukraine conflict and war with Russia, Mar 1, 2022
 • "What can we in New Mexico do?," LASG letter, Feb 23, 2022
 • Bulletin 288: US nuclear weapons since 2020: continuity and change, Dec 7, 2021 (see discussion of US, NATO, and Russia)
 • Nuclear experts speak on the dangers of war between the US and Russia, World Socialist Web Site, Apr 15, 2017
 • US Leaders Reject “Nuclear Winter” Studies, Ignore Existential Danger of Nuclear War. Turn a Blind Eye towards Armageddon, Steven Starr, Global Research, Nov 1, 2016
 • The Ukraine Conflict: What's Behind It? Why Is It Important?, Sep 26, 2015
 • Bulletin 200: Warhead budget bloat; U.S.-caused Ukraine catastrophe at the brink; hello peak oil, Feb 8, 2015