After a sobering trip to #Kyiv, Secy of State Antony J. #Blinken is urging #POTUS#Biden to lift some restrictions on how Ukraine can use American arms.
Since the 1st US shipments of sophisticated weapons to #Ukraine, #POTUS#Biden has never wavered on 1 prohibition: President #Zelensky had to agree to never fire them into Russian territory, insisting that would violate Biden’s mandate to “avoid World War III.”
But consensus around that policy is fraying. Propelled by the State Dept, there is now a vigorous debate inside the admin over relaxing the ban to allow Ukrainians to hit missile & artillery launch sites just over the border in #Russia….
The #UnitedStates should slap sanctions on ICC ofcls who seek an #arrest#warrant for PM Benjamin Netanyahu, a top foreign policy adviser to #Republican presidential #candidate Donald Trump said on Tues after meeting the Israeli leader.
3 fmr #UnitedStates foreign policy ofcls in Trump's admin met w/ Benjamin Netanyahu & other public figures in #Israel on Mon….
The delegation was comprised of Robert O'Brien, who served as Trump's 4th & final #NationalSecurity adviser, as well as fmr Ambassador to the #UAE John Rakolta & fmr Ambassador to #Switzerland Ed McMullen….
In addition to #Netanyahu, the #Trump delegation met Israeli opposition ldr Yair Lapid & several other Israeli ofcls….
[They say] Among the main goals of the trip was to obtain a better understanding of #Israel's domestic #political situation…. Netanyahu's coalition is beset by internal disagreements, w/many Israelis blaming his govt for failing to prevent the #Hamas attack.
…[the meeting] took place amid strains between Israel & the #Biden admin about Israel’s conduct …in #Gaza.
2 years ago, #Germany’s chancellor Olaf Scholz outlined bold, long-term goals: Strengthen the country’s depleted military with extraordinary investments and adopt an assertive foreign policy defending global norms.
And he has mostly delivered on that promise, explains an expert on international security, who says the ‘legacy of his strategic pivot is likely to endure’
When you elect magats to congress, whether or not they decide to do anything at all depends on whether or not they think it will further their plans for dominion and armageddon. Literally. Johnson only capitulated on Ukraine because he thinks it will lead to more people converting to his cult and pushing his cult's unpopular policies.
Not because the safety of the free world depends on it. Right wing christians couldn't care less about that.
These whackadoodles have no business being in Congress or any government position. They're insane. They are letting bronze age fairy tales decide 21st century issues. It's deranged.
An army of Jesus”: Inside Mike Johnson’s come-to-Jesus moment ahead of Ukraine reversal - Johnson met evangelical leader of Ukraine’s National Prayer Breakfast before last week's press conference
By Jonathan Larsen, Published April 22, 2024
@shekinahcancook what will this people do if they succeed in making Trump president again and he abandons Ukraine? They will say “lol jk”?
It seems pretty clear their preferred presidential candidate was against Johnson doing this? I know they have cognitive dissonance/hypocrisy as a fundamental character trait., but this seems a new level?
#House Speaker #MikeJohnson is plowing ahead on a #ForeignAid plan that has roiled his conference & prompted 2 #Republicans to push an effort to oust him….
But instead of the complex 4-part plan he floated this week, Johnson now intends to try to pass 5 bills — 1 each for #aid to #Ukraine, #Israel, & #IndoPacific allies, …a #GOP wish list of #ForeignPolicy priorities & a 5th…to address widespread Republican… [#border ] demands….
The #House#legislation turns a portion of the #aid, the money sent directly to #Ukraine, into a * #loan* & is endorsed by #Trump. It also includes just over $9B in #humanitarian aid for #Gaza, the #WestBank, Ukraine & other places in need, which #Democrats have demanded as a condition of any support from them. #MikeJohnson signaled Wed evening that there would probably be an amendment to the package to strip the #HumanitarianAid, which he said he has “concerns” with.
[the good Christian] #GOP
#Russia’s Foreign Ministry has been drawing up plans to try to weaken its Western adversaries, including the #UnitedStates, & leverage the #Ukraine#war to forge a global order free from what it sees as American dominance, acc/to a secret Foreign Ministry document.
The doc for the 1st time provides ofcl confirmation & codification of what many in the Moscow elite say has become a hybrid #war against the West. #Russia is seeking to subvert Western support for #Ukraine & disrupt domestic #politics in the #UnitedStates & European countries, thru #propaganda campaigns supporting #isolationist & #extremist policies….It is also seeking to refashion #geopolitics, drawing closer to #China, #Iran & #NorthKorea in an attempt to shift the current balance of #power.
" 'I think Trump and Grenell would upend American leadership of the free world, from Truman on the left to Reagan on the right, and replace it with something much darker,' said Daniel Fried, who spent four decades in top State Department posts, including as an assistant secretary of state and a director of the National Security Council. 'It’s transactional. Democratic values are irrelevant, and it’s isolationist.' ”
While in #Lebanon, Dimitri Lascaris caught up with Laith Marouf, a #Canadian of #Palestinian#Syrian origin. Marouf has long been an outspoken #defender of the Palestinian cause & a prime target of #Canada's #ZionistLobby#CIJA. During their visit to the Beqaa Valley, Lascaris & Marouf talked about #Zionists' extraordinary efforts to silence Marouf.
We've got a #Czech-focused podcast for you this week. We're discussing what happened when the Wall Street Journal rather patronisingly described Czechia as 'a small ex-Soviet satellite state'. Plus, why the Czech government is so much less scared of China than others in Europe.
[Foreign Policy Live Podcast]: Is the World Prepared for More Terrorism?
Counterterrorism analyst and regular FP contributor Colin P. Clarke shares his insights with Ravi Agrawal. Clarke also serves as a senior research fellow at the Soufan Center.
During #Biden’s speech on #healthcare yesterday he was interrupted by protesters advocating for #Palestinians in #Gaza. Instead of ignoring them & moving on, #POTUS responded, “They have a point; we need to get more care into Gaza.” He added, “Everybody deserves healthcare.”
Remarks by #Gallant & #LloydAustin before the meeting underscored the divide. While both noted their countries’ commitment to #Israel’s #security, Gallant emphasized what he said was the urgent need to destroy #Hamas, secure the release of Israeli #hostages & “ensure Israel’s military edge & capabilities.”
#LloydAustin focused on the dire consequences the #war has had for #Palestinian#civilians. “The number of civilian casualties is far too high, & the amount of #HumanitarianAid is far too low,” he said. The safety of #Palestinians in #Rafah, where >1 million people are holed up, was a “top priority,” he added.
#Palestine / If Biden Wants Israeli-Palestinian Peace, He Must Break With the Past (Prof Avi Shlaim, December 22, 2020)
Shlaim argued back in 2020 that only by breaking from past failed policies of coddling Israel can #Biden capitalize on new regional dynamics to make meaningful progress toward a two-state solution.
Shlaim suggested that the traditional U.S. approach of unconditional support for Israel, while posing as an "honest broker" in peace negotiations, has been incoherent and self-defeating. The Oslo peace too was a charade that allowed Israel to continue expanding settlements while paying lip service to a two-state solution that became increasingly untenable.
#Palestine / If Biden Wants Israeli-Palestinian Peace, He Must Break With the Past (Prof Avi Shlaim, December 22, 2020)
Shlaim argued back in 2020 that only by breaking from past failed policies of coddling Israel can #Biden capitalize on new regional dynamics to make meaningful progress toward a two-state solution.
Shlaim suggested that the traditional U.S. approach of unconditional support for Israel, while posing as an "honest broker" in peace negotiations, has been incoherent and self-defeating. The Oslo peace too was a charade that allowed Israel to continue expanding settlements while paying lip service to a two-state solution that became increasingly untenable.