Aletho News

ΑΛΗΘΩΣ

‘Prepare to face consequences’: Yemen warns UK after attacks on Sanaa

The Cradle | April 30, 2025

The Yemeni government issued a statement on 30 April warning the UK against its continued participation in the US campaign of deadly airstrikes against Yemen that began last month.

“In a display of typical British arrogance, the UK Ministry of Defense announced participation in a joint military operation with the US enemy against our country, targeting areas south of Sanaa … The Government affirms that the British enemy must carefully consider the consequences of its involvement and be prepared to face the repercussions,” the Sanaa government said.

“While we pledge to respond to this unlawful and unjustified aggression, we stress that this attack is part of ongoing Anglo-American efforts to support the Israeli enemy by attempting to block Yemen’s support for Palestine – enabling the Israeli enemy to continue its genocide in Gaza,” it added.

The government statement also said Yemen will stand against the “trio of evil,” referring to the US, UK, and Israel, as well as “those who orbit around them.”

The statement came hours after the UK announced its first joint attack against Yemen with Washington since US President Donald Trump entered office this year.

The UK Defense Ministry claimed the strikes targeted a “cluster of buildings” used by the Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) and Ansarallah movement for storing drones, adding that the attack came after “very careful planning” to avoid civilian casualties.

London played a primary role in the initial campaign against Yemen, launched in January 2024 by the former US administration of Joe Biden.

Yemeni forces targeted UK vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden a number of times last year in response.

The UK announcement came after at least six US airstrikes struck the Sanaa governorate on 29 April.

Two days ago, around 70 African migrants were killed in US strikes on a detention center in Saada governorate. Dozens of others were injured.

The Interior Ministry of the Sanaa government said the shelter, located in Saada’s reserve prison, was supervised by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Red Cross.

In response, the YAF said it targeted the USS Harry Truman in the Red Sea with missiles and drones, adding that it forced the aircraft carrier to retreat northward. It also said it targeted a “vital” Israeli site in the city of Ashkelon.

US warplanes have been launching deadly attacks against Yemen every day since 15 March, when Trump intensified the campaign that was started by the former administration last year.

The bombing campaign comes in response to Yemen’s reimposition of a ban on Israeli shipping in the Red Sea and elsewhere, as well as its renewal of drone and missile attacks on Israel after Tel Aviv restarted the war on Gaza last month.

Yemen has repeatedly targeted US aircraft carriers in response to Washington’s campaign, which has cost around $1 billion and has depleted weapons stocks, while failing to significantly impact the YAF and Ansarallah.

April 30, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, War Crimes, Wars for Israel | , , , , | Leave a comment

Aggressive Rhetoric of NATO, EU Hinders Russia, US’s Risk Mitigation Efforts – Shoigu

Sputnik – 30.04.2025

Militarization of Europe and aggressive rhetoric on the part of NATO and the EU hinder the success of Russia and the United States’ efforts to reduce strategic risks, Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu said on Wednesday.

“Today we continue to consistently convey to the Americans the need to work together on comprehensive reduction of strategic risks, which should have positive impact on the international security. However, militarization of Europe and aggressive rhetoric of NATO and the EU hinder achievement of positive results in this area,” Shoigu said at the meeting of high representatives of BRICS countries in charge of security issues, which is taking place in Brasilia.

Using Terrorist Proxies for Geostrategy

Some European countries are increasingly using terrorist groups for their geostrategic purposes, and the most prominent example is Ukraine, Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu said on Wednesday.

“Some European states are increasingly using terrorist groups for their geostrategic purposes, primarily in confrontation with countries that do not recognize dominance,” Shoigu said at a meeting of the BRICS countries’ high representatives in charge of security issues, adding that the most striking example is Ukraine because Kiev uses NATO weapons to shell residential neighborhoods, commits sabotage and political assassinations.

The most serious challenges to global security come from ISIS and Al-Qaeda, because they are quickly adapting to changing geopolitical conditions, Shoigu added.

April 30, 2025 Posted by | Militarism | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mossad agents, warmongers trying to derail Iran-US talks: Trump allies

Press TV – April 30, 2025

US President Donald Trump’s closest media allies and supporters say “Mossad agents” and “warmongers” are pushing the US into a conflict with the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Last week, conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson featured a senior Pentagon official who he claimed was ousted because he was seen as an obstacle to hostile US measures against Iran.

Dan Caldwell, a top advisor to Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, was removed earlier this month on charges that he allegedly leaked classified information about Hegseth’s use of a Signal chat, according to several media outlets.

Not so by Carlson’s telling, who has unparalleled access to Trump.

“You did make maybe one career mistake by giving on-the-record interviews describing your foreign policy views… that are out of the mainstream among warmongers in Washington,” Carlson said to Caldwell.

On Sunday, another conservative podcaster, Clayton Morris, a former Fox News anchor, said pro-Israel voices were “working overtime” to destroy the “anti-war team” that Trump has assembled at the Pentagon.

“We’ve learned here at Redacted that former Israeli Mossad agents are working overtime on social media and behind the scenes trying to discredit Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth,” Morris said, referring to his show.

Trump’s administration is reportedly divided between more traditional Republicans like US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security advisor Mike Waltz, and “America First” isolationists like White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

Pro-Trump media personalities have singled out Merav Ceren, who was nominated to head Iran and Israel at the White House National Security Council, for criticism.

Ceren was born in Haifa, and worked in the Israeli ministry of military affairs. On his show, Morris said that, “Neo-con Mike Waltz has now hired basically a dual citizen and former IDF (Israeli army) official to work under him.”

According to a Pew Poll published in April, 53 percent of Americans now express an unfavorable opinion of Israel, up from 42 percent in March 2022.

On Iran, Trump’s closest envoys have been left contradicting themselves.

Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy who has emerged as his go-to global troubleshooter, suggested earlier this month that Washington would allow Iran to enrich uranium at low levels.

After backlash from pro-Israel voices, he flipped, saying that Tehran “must stop and eliminate” its nuclear enrichment program fully.

This week, Secretary Rubio said the US could re-enter a deal that sees Iran keep a civilian nuclear program – so long as it halts enrichment, and instead ships it in from abroad.

American and Iranian technical teams met in Oman on Saturday for their third round of talks. Trump told reporters on Monday that the talks are going “very well” and that “a deal is going to be made there”.

“We’ll have something without having to start dropping bombs all over the place,” he said.

April 30, 2025 Posted by | Wars for Israel | , , , | Leave a comment

White House calls out ‘media cover-up’ on Biden’s health

RT | April 30, 2025

The “cover up” of former US President Joe Biden’s poor mental and physical health has led to a decline of public trust in “legacy media”, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has claimed.

Throughout Biden’s time in office, Donald Trump and his allies repeatedly argued that he was unfit for the job – claims the Biden administration and US media vociferously denied. Biden only withdrew from the presidential race when he faced pressure from within the Democratic Party and major campaign donors after a disastrous debate performance against Trump last June, in which he appeared confused and struggled to finish his sentences.

“Millions of Americans watched our mentally incompetent president [Biden] struggle with his day-to-day duties of this office. We watched our country be run into the ground as a result. And nobody in the media wanted to write about that,” Leavitt said during a White House briefing on Monday.

The spokeswoman recalled how during Trump’s campaign her warnings about Biden’s “clear mental incompetence” led to her being “accused by people in this room [journalists] of manufacturing deepfake videos trying to persuade the public into not believing what they saw with their own eyes for many years.”

“I think it is about time the legacy media finally admits that was one of the greatest cover-ups and scandals that ever took place in American history,” she insisted.

Leavitt said that the reluctance to report on Biden’s actual physical and mental condition “certainly did contribute to the decline in the trust that Americans have for the legacy media.”

A poll by Gallup earlier this year suggested that confidence in fair reporting of the news by US media has dropped to its lowest point in five decades. Only 31% of those surveyed said they trust the mainstream media “a great deal” or “a fair amount,” while 36% said they do not trust it “at all.”

April 30, 2025 Posted by | Deception, Fake News, Mainstream Media, Warmongering | | Leave a comment

On Free Speech, Trump’s as Bad as Biden

By Jack Hunter | The Libertarian Institute | April 30, 2025

In September, candidate Donald Trump vowed, “I will bring back free speech in America…I will sign an executive order banning any federal employee from colluding to limit speech, and we will fire every federal bureaucrat who is engaged in domestic censorship under the Harris regime.”

Trump was addressing the clear danger that Democrats posed to the First Amendment.

The Republican presidential nominee was talking about the Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, who had once threatened to sic the Justice Department on social media platforms that “profit off hate.” In 2022, her choice for running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, said that “there’s no guarantee to free speech on misinformation or hate speech.” In 2021, Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said that the government needs to figure out how to “rein in the media environment.” The Biden administration had not only proposed a new federal agency that would regulate citizens’ speech, but was revealed to have pressured private social media companies to censor users’ speech, as revealed by the Twitter Files.

All of these anti-First Amendment actions, among many others, were not at all controversial to Democrats. In their blind hatred for Trump, the party had become one that began to see government censorship and regulation of speech as a positive good in their efforts to defeat or at least contain MAGA. As Hillary Clinton put it one month before the 2024 election, allowing free speech on social media was too dangerous because it means “we lost control.”

Luckily free speech mostly prevailed during that time period, but Clinton was right: The free flow of news and ideas coming from populist social media and alternative podcast worlds would end up helping to defeat Democrats in 2024.

Democracy prevailed, despite Democrats being so eager to suppress it.

Now, President Donald Trump is behaving like these Democrats.

The ACLU’s Allegra Harpootlian writes, “On March 25, [Rümeysa Öztürk] was planning to go to an iftar dinner with friends. Instead, while walking near her apartment, she was approached and then grabbed by a hooded man. Other figures soon closed in, including several wearing face coverings and dark clothing. Finally, one officer flashed a badge…”

Öztürk has not been charged with a crime. By all of the available evidence, she is seemingly being held for being a co-author of an op-ed that was critical of the Israeli’s government’s actions in Gaza.

Öztürk is but one of a number of those in the United States on student visas who have been arrested without charge for criticizing Israel’s government. Secretary of State Marco Rubio now brags that he has revoked over 300 student visas. “It might be more than 300 at this point. We do it every day,” Rubio said at a press conference in March.

“Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visa,” he said.

You’re a “lunatic” if you criticize Israel’s government?

Rubio continued, “At some point, I hope we run out because we’ve gotten rid of all of them, but we’re looking every day for these lunatics that are tearing things up.”

They should be charged with vandalism if they are literally tearing this up. But it was not clear that physical destruction or violence is what Rubio meant.

“We gave you a visa to come and study and get a degree, not become a social activist that tears up our university campuses,” he added. “And if we’ve given you a visa and you decide to do that, we’re going to take it away.”

To note, the Supreme Court decided long ago that anyone in the United States has First Amendment protections, citizen or not.

Rubio would add, “We don’t want it in our country. Go back and do it in your country. But you’re not going to do it in our country.”

The Trump administration framing the suppression of free speech as a matter of non-citizens’ rights vs. those of citizens is a cheap way of ignoring the First Amendment, no different than the Biden administration holding up the supposed threats of “misinformation” and “disinformation” in the name of doing the same.

Republicans and Democrats have created spectres supposedly so threatening to convince enough people that the First Amendment no longer applies.

Bullshit.

Many Republicans right now argue that criticizing Israel’s government is inherently anti-semitic, which is about as ridiculous as arguing that every conservative talk host who criticizes the United States government is anti-American.

And if they genuinely were anti-semitic, that’s still protected by the First Amendment.

“Hate speech” is protected speech. Do Trump Republicans now agree with Biden-Harris Democrats like Tim Walz that there are no First Amendment protections for hate speech?

Apparently they do.

With Trump’s speech precedent, it’s not hard to imagine a future President Harris targeting conservative college students who challenge DEI or trans ideology. Leftists could argue—and do—that speech against minorities or LGBTQ members constitutes violence and therefore, somehow, falls outside of First Amendment protections.

So many of the Republicans who defend the arrest and deportation of those who criticize Israel’s government sound pretty much like identity politics-driven lefties. Their subjects are different but the logic is the same. Safe spaces, all around.

There are other examples of where the Trump administration has reneged on his free speech promises, and now just offers mirror images of Joe Biden’s censorship regime. I’m just focusing on one aspect.

One glimmer of hope is that while Democrats appeared to have reached a consensus over the last decades that censorship is a positive good, there is a loud and growing debate on the right over Trump’s affronts to free speech, with some of the most high profile personalities pushing back.

Still, Donald Trump campaigned vowing to protect the First Amendment. He’s not delivering. Quite the opposite.

He should do what he promised, not just be another Joe Biden.

April 30, 2025 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , | Leave a comment

Israelis faced no serious pressure from Biden regime to stop war: Officials

Al Mayadeen | April 28, 2025

Former Biden officials admitted that Netanyahu rejected a ceasefire, prolonged the Gaza war for political reasons, sabotaged a Saudi normalization deal, and faced no serious pressure from Washington to stop the assault.

Senior officials from the former Biden administration have acknowledged in a revealing interview aired Sunday by “Israel’s” Channel 13 that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu actively derailed efforts to reach a normalization deal with Saudi Arabia and prolonged the Gaza war for political survival, all while rejecting any serious move toward a ceasefire.

The officials revealed that in 2023, “Israel” was presented with an opportunity to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia. The proposed deal, brokered by Washington and Riyadh, would have required a ceasefire, the release of captives, and a political commitment toward the establishment of a Palestinian state. Netanyahu rejected these conditions outright. Following the October 7 events, he entrenched his refusal, dismissing any discussion of Palestinian rights as “a prize for terrorism.”

Biden aides noted that advancing Palestinian self-determination was not framed as an Israeli concession but as a necessary step to weaken Hamas and empower a reformed Palestinian Authority. Still, “Israel” refused.

“I don’t understand the decision not to grab that opportunity as the most important strategic move Israel can make,” former senior US envoy Amos Hochstein said. “I think it was missed before. I hope Israel doesn’t miss that opportunity moving forward, even if it means doing things that politically are uncomfortable.”

Throughout the course of the war, “Israel” consistently rejected calls for a ceasefire, not once requesting one itself, even as the Palestinian death toll climbed into the tens of thousands. Despite widespread destruction in Gaza, Netanyahu’s government pursued a military strategy without any political plan for what would follow, a choice Biden officials now admit was deliberate.

Former US national security adviser Jake Sullivan expressed frustration at Netanyahu’s attacks on the US, saying, “Having the prime minister of Israel question the support of the United States after all that we did, do I think that was a right and proper thing for a friend to do? I do not. [However], I will always stand firm behind the idea that Israel has a right to defend itself and that the United States has a responsibility to help Israel.”

In internal discussions, Washington briefly considered more forceful measures, including a speech from Biden to pressure Netanyahu or even encourage Israeli elections. But the US ultimately chose not to directly confront Netanyahu’s extremist coalition, enabling continued escalation in Gaza without a coherent exit strategy.

Officials further revealed that Netanyahu sabotaged diplomatic efforts by falsely accusing the US of a broad weapons freeze, leading to the collapse of negotiations to release a shipment of 2,000-lb bombs. This, despite the fact that Washington had already pushed through $19 billion in new security assistance to “Israel.”

Behind the scenes, Biden aides said they struggled to secure basic humanitarian aid entry into Gaza, facing Israeli obstruction and attacks on aid convoys by far-right settlers, actions enabled by ministers inside Netanyahu’s own government. Although the US signed memoranda requiring the State Department to monitor whether Israeli behavior violated US arms laws, whistleblowers like Stacy Gilbert resigned after accusing the Biden administration of manipulating findings to continue arms shipments to “Israel.”

Despite recognizing these realities, Biden officials continued unconditional political and military support for “Israel” throughout the war. While they claim to have privately voiced concerns, there was no serious pressure on “Israel” to halt its attack or pursue a ceasefire.

Discussions with Saudi Arabia over normalization continued during the war, but ultimately faltered because “Israel’s” leadership refused to accept any framework that would guarantee Palestinian rights. “The fact that there wasn’t a way in the Israeli political system for anyone to navigate a space to allow for that is kind of shocking,” former US ambassador Jack Lew said.

Even in ceasefire talks, Biden officials acknowledged that Netanyahu’s internal political considerations often obstructed possible deals. US negotiators admitted that Netanyahu added new conditions at critical moments, disrupting progress aimed at securing the release of captives.

While some former Biden officials sought to portray President Biden’s loyalty to “Israel” as an act of courage, the interviews paint a different reality: Biden’s refusal to apply meaningful pressure allowed Netanyahu’s government to escalate the devastation in Gaza without restraint.

Former Israeli ambassador Michael Herzog summed up this perspective when he said, “God did the State of Israel a favor that Biden was the president during this period, because it could have been much worse. We fought [in Gaza] for over a year, and the administration never came to us and said, ‘ceasefire now.’ It never did. And that’s not to be taken for granted.”

The reality, confirmed even by officials closest to Washington and Tel Aviv, is that “Israel’s” attack on Gaza was never accompanied by any serious plan for peace, only the relentless continuation of genocide, enabled and shielded by unconditional US support.

April 28, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Timeless or most popular, War Crimes | , , , , | Leave a comment

US, Israel led record-breaking surge in military spending in 2024

Israel boosted its military spending by 65 percent, reaching 8.8 percent of its GDP, to finance genocide against Palestinians

The Cradle | April 28, 2025

Global military expenditure surged to a record $2.7 trillion in 2024, marking a 9.4 percent increase over the previous year – the steepest annual rise since the end of the Cold War, according to new data published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

Military budgets rose across all regions, with especially sharp increases in Europe and West Asia, driven by the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza.

The five largest military spenders — the US, China, Russia, Germany, and India – accounted for 60 percent of total global spending. The US alone spent $997 billion, or 37 percent of the global total – dedicating a significant portion of its budget to modernizing its military capabilities and nuclear arsenal to maintain strategic superiority over Russia and China.

Europe saw a particularly dramatic rise, with military spending increasing by 17 percent to $693 billion. Germany’s military expenditure rose by 28 percent to $88.5 billion, making it the largest spender in Western Europe and the fourth-largest worldwide, thanks largely to a €100 billion (around $107 billion) special defense fund established in 2022. Poland and Sweden also posted significant increases, with spending up by 31 percent and 34 percent, respectively.

Ukraine had the highest military burden in the world in 2024, with military spending amounting to 34 percent of its GDP. All of Ukraine’s tax revenues were absorbed by defense needs, while social and economic spending relied entirely on foreign aid, including $7.7 billion from Germany.

In West Asia, military expenditure rose by 15 percent, reaching $243 billion. Israel led the regional increase, boosting its military spending by 65 percent to $46.5 billion amid its wars on Gaza and Lebanon. Israel’s military burden rose to 8.8 percent of GDP, the second highest in the world.

Lebanon, despite ongoing political and economic instability, raised its defense budget by 58 percent to $635 million.

Iran’s military spending fell by 10 percent in real terms to $7.9 billion in 2024 despite its support for regional allies resisting Israel, including Hezbollah and Yemen. The impact of sanctions on Iran severely limited its capacity to increase spending.

Elsewhere, China continued its large-scale military modernization, spending an estimated $314 billion in 2024, with developments in stealth aircraft, unmanned systems, and a rapidly expanding nuclear arsenal. Japan also raised its military budget by 21 percent to $55.3 billion, further heightening concerns of a potential arms race in the Asia-Pacific region.

SIPRI researchers warned that as governments prioritize military security, often at the expense of social and economic programs, societies could face significant long-term consequences. With over 100 countries increasing their military budgets, 2024 marked the tenth consecutive year of rising global military expenditure – a trend that analysts expect will persist amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.

April 28, 2025 Posted by | Economics, Militarism | , | Leave a comment

Civic groups in Taiwan rally protest against DPP amid growing wave of opposition

By Shen Sheng | Global Times | April 26, 2025

Several civic groups on the island of Taiwan launched a protest event on Saturday, opposing the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and condemning Lai Ching-te for inciting hatred within Taiwan island and forcibly pushing the public toward the brink of war. They also denounced the DPP for damaging cross-Straits economic and trade exchanges, making it difficult for agricultural and fishery products from Taiwan to be exported.

The event comes as the Lai’s series of regressive actions have triggered a growing wave of denunciations from people across Taiwan Straits, who condemned his trampling of democracy and the rule of law, as well as its damage to the peace across the Straits.

Speakers at the event warned that if the DPP continues to rely on foreign powers and provoke confrontation with Chinese mainland, there will be no space left for peace in Taiwan island, and young people will face an unstable future. They called on the people of Taiwan to transcend ethnic and political divides and stand up against the DPP’s attempt to seek “Taiwan independence.” They urged all Chinese people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits to share a sense of historical responsibility and jointly resist forces driving them toward disaster, according to a press release sent to the Global Times on Saturday by the Labor Party.

Wang Chuan-pin, Vice Chairman of the Labor Party, emphasized at the event that the DPP is actively cooperating with the US to hollow out Taiwan’s industries. She emphasized the need to defend the rights of small and medium-sized enterprises and grassroots workers and urged everyone to courageously stand up against DPP’s harmful actions.

Wang Wu-lang, secretary-general of the Labor Party, noted that Lai Ching-te has damaged cross-Straits economic and trade exchanges, making it difficult for agricultural and fishery products in Taiwan island to be exported, while industrial goods are now subject to high US tariffs. These developments have severely harmed the interests of farmers and workers in the island.

People are now facing stagnant wages, soaring housing prices, and rising living costs, signaling that the DPP is ruining the lives of the people through its political agenda, said Wang.

Xu Mengxiang, Deputy Secretary-General of the Labor Party, stated that the DPP, under the pretext of “security,” is inciting hatred within the island of Taiwan and forcibly pushing the public toward the brink of war. This undermines the progressive values of democracy and leads the entire island down a dangerous path of historical regression.

Participants further stressed that the DPP’s “green terror” has already targeted mainland spouses and other political groups and may extend even further. They warned that if the public does not rise up, everyone could eventually become victims of this “green terror.” They invoked the memory of those who once stood against “white terror” in Taiwan’s history, calling on current and future generations to continue fighting against today’s oppression, and to defend democracy and the rule of law.

Addressing the livelihood issues that concern the public most, speakers at the event repeatedly pointed out that the DPP places ideology above people’s welfare. Its anti-China stance has crippled Taiwan’s economy and society, misallocating resources and distorting internal policies, thereby intensifying livelihood and economic crises.

They stressed that the Lai Ching-te administration is using an anti-China strategy as a cover for its governance failures, leading to worsening economic decline, rising energy risks, and widespread public hardship.

At the conclusion of the event, the civic groups issued an appeal to people in Taiwan, chanting slogans such as “both sides of the Taiwan Straits are of the same family” and “we are all Chinese,” which received strong and enthusiastic support from the public.

Meanwhile, the Kuomintang (KMT) party also held a protest against DPP on the same day, Taiwan-based outlet ETtoday reported. Ma Ying-jeou, former chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang party, attended the protest and delivered a speech. In his remarks, Ma expressed his dissatisfaction with DPP’s actions, and criticized Lai’s incompetence, stating that he cannot bear it anymore.

Taiwan-based media reported that Ma expressed concern that Lai’s recent words and actions could lead Taiwan to a rapid decline. He mentioned that while the US imposed heavy tariffs, Lai and DPP authorities are helpless.

April 28, 2025 Posted by | Economics | , , | Leave a comment

White House preparing for possible Trump-Kim talks – Axios

RT | April 28, 2025

US President Donald Trump’s team is considering a new strategy for North Korea, potentially mirroring the diplomatic engagement of his first term, according to sources cited by Axios.

Trump met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in person multiple times, including in Singapore in 2018, Hanoi in 2019, and within the demilitarized zone on the Korean Peninsula later that same year. He is the first sitting US president ever to sit down at the negotiating table with his North Korean counterpart.

Trump has told his team that he wants to reconnect with Kim, potentially face-to-face, Axios reported on Sunday. The administration is “convening agencies to understand where the North Koreans are today,” said a senior official speaking on condition of anonymity. “A lot has changed in the last four years. We are evaluating, diagnosing and talking about potential avenues, including engagement.”

Currently, this initiative is not among the White House’s top priorities and involves consultations with external experts, including former officials and think tanks, the outlet said. Axios suggested that Washington holds less leverage over Pyongyang now than it did in the late 2010s, as North Korea has bolstered its military capabilities, including nuclear forces, and forged stronger ties with China and Russia.

Last year, North Korea and Russia signed a bilateral treaty that includes mutual defense provisions. Shortly thereafter, Ukraine started an offensive into Russia’s Kursk Region, aiming to gain leverage over Moscow in future negotiations.

North Korean troops were deployed to Russian territory to assist Moscow in repelling Ukrainian forces, culminating in the complete liberation of the region last week, according to Moscow. Over the weekend, President Vladimir Putin acknowledged the contribution of North Korean troops, commending their bravery and referring to them as brothers in arms.

The Trump administration is seeking a compromise deal to end the Ukraine conflict. Trump has accused Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky of undermining his efforts by publicly challenging key aspects of what media outlets describe as his peace plan.

The two leaders met on the sidelines of Pope Francis’ funeral in the Vatican on Saturday, with Zelensky pleading for more US weapons, according to Trump.

April 28, 2025 Posted by | Militarism | , , , | Leave a comment

Kiev has escalated attacks on civilians – Moscow

RT | April 28, 2025

Kiev has reacted to diplomatic reengagement between Moscow and Washington by intensifying attacks against civilians, a senior Russian diplomat has claimed.

American and Russian officials have held multiple rounds of discussions aimed at restoring bilateral relations and resolving the conflict between Moscow and Kiev since US President Donald Trump’s second term in office started in January.

Rodion Miroshnik, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s ambassador-at-large overseeing investigations of war crimes, has accused Kiev of trying to derail the dialogue through military provocations. Since late March, the number of Ukrainian attacks against civilian targets has significantly increased, he said during a briefing on Monday.

”That was Kiev’s reaction to the start of the negotiations between Moscow and Washington,” Miroshnik claimed, noting that the number of Ukrainian attacks has risen by a quarter, compared to January and February.

Miroshnik stated that during the first three months of 2025, Ukrainian forces had fired more than 22,000 munitions at Russia’s civilian infrastructure.

”In the period from January 1 to March 31, Ukrainian military action has hurt at least 1,489 civilians,” Miroshnik reported. The casualties included 292 deaths and 1,197 who were wounded, according to the official. Five children were killed in the three months and 63 others were injured, he added.

Kiev is deliberately targeting non-combatants in order to terrorize the Russian population, the diplomat alleged, citing statements by Ukrainian officials and interviews with troops captured in Kursk Region.

One Ukrainian soldier claimed he had been ordered to “shoot all encountered civilians,” Miroshnic said, adding that the “political regime in Kiev is relaying to its units guarantees of impunity for their crimes secretly offered by Western sponsors.”

The Trump administration has changed the US approach to handling the crisis, which previously promised Kiev unwavering military support. Moscow is concerned that Kiev will resort to provocations in an attempt to influence American policy, Miroshnik said.

April 28, 2025 Posted by | War Crimes | , , | Leave a comment

Fyodor Lukyanov: Forget land – this is Russia’s main demand from the West

By Fyodor Lukyanov | RT | April 28, 2025

Everyone is expecting news on a Ukrainian settlement this week. The diplomatic activity is real and intense, and the visible signs suggest something significant is underway. There is little point in trying to guess which of the leaked plans are genuine and which are misinformation. What is clear is that Russia is being offered a choice between “a bird in the hand and two in the bush.” The trouble is, the elements necessary for any sustainable agreement are still scattered among the various birds.

Currently, discussions naturally revolve around territory. This is a sensitive subject, particularly since the territories under consideration are already under Russian control. The bird’s wings are clipped, however: legal recognition of Russia’s sovereignty over these lands seems unrealistic, at least in the near term. De facto recognition, with a pledge not to attempt to return them by force, could be the achievable result. In today’s global atmosphere, it is naive to view any legal agreement as genuinely final.

Yet territory was not the true cause of this conflict. The deeper issue was decades of unresolved security contradictions. ‘Demilitarization’ – so prominently featured in Russia’s original demands – encompasses both Ukraine’s neutral status and the broader limitation of its military capabilities, whether through curtailing domestic production, cutting off external supplies, or reducing existing forces.

This demand is far from cosmetic. Fulfillment would overturn the international order that has reigned since the end of the Cold War – an order based on NATO’s unchecked expansion across Europe and Eurasia, without regard for Moscow’s objections. The military campaign thus became a way of exercising a “veto” that the West had long denied Russia. True demilitarization of Ukraine would, in effect, force international recognition of that veto. But many in the West remain unwilling to accept such a precedent.

As discussions have moved toward territorial issues, the central problem of military security seems to have been relegated to the background. Perhaps US President Donald Trump’s administration – more skeptical of NATO itself – views it as less fundamental. Or perhaps it simply finds it easier to force Ukraine to cede territory than to make Western Europe recognize Russia’s security rights. Nevertheless, for Moscow, military security remains a matter of principle. Even if Washington offers major concessions – lifting sanctions, formalizing territorial changes – Russia cannot abandon this core demand.

This creates a divergence in diplomatic tempo. Washington wants a quick deal; the Kremlin believes that haste will not produce a reliable settlement. Yet Moscow also knows that the political stars – especially in Washington – have aligned in a uniquely favorable way, and it does not want to miss the moment.

The outcome will be known soon enough. However, some important lessons from history should be remembered.

First, achieving political goals often takes more than one campaign. A pause in fighting is not necessarily a resolution.

Second, there is no such thing as an open-ended, unchangeable agreement. If a deal does not truly satisfy all parties, it will eventually collapse. The struggle will resume – though not necessarily through military means.

Third, Ukraine is only one piece of a much larger process of global transformation in which Russia intends to play a central role. These changes are already underway, and will continue to deepen. Reaching some degree of understanding with the United States is important. Interestingly, the NATO issue might resolve itself over time, not because of Russian pressure but due to the alliance’s own growing irrelevance.

But for now, that remains a matter for the future. In the immediate term, Russia faces a choice between the imperfect birds on offer – and must weigh carefully which to catch and which to let fly.

Fyodor Lukyanov is the editor-in-chief of Russia in Global Affairs, chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, and research director of the Valdai International Discussion Club.

April 28, 2025 Posted by | Militarism | , , , | Leave a comment

« Previous Entries     Next Entries »