Amidst the furor over unilateral recognitions of Palestinian statehood, the NY Declaration at the UN is remarkable, and if the Israeli govt has any strategic thinking left in its collective brain, it should treat this as an unprecedented accomplishment https://t.co/BlVT6YYuZn
Today they have crossed a deep red line.
We, the people, must hold the president and his appointees accountable for this outrageous abuse against American liberty.
Tass have published Russia's memorandum, which it refused to hand over to Ukraine until the peace talks in Istanbul today.
The demands basically amount to surrender, regime change, and putting Ukraine back in Russia's grip. They are:
1) Ukraine withdraws from four partially occupied regions (Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia) and lets Russia have them. "International recognition" follows.
2) Ukraine pledges never to join any military alliances or coalitions (NATO etc). No foreign boots on the ground or military infrastructure either.
3) Any current or future efforts to this end are rolled back or banned.
4) No nuclear weapons for Ukraine.
5) Caps on Ukraine's military. Far-right units are disbanded.
6) "Full guarantee of rights for Russian speakers." Russian becomes an official language.
7). Ban on "glorification and promoting of Nazism and neo-Nazism." Nationalist parties and groups are disbanded.
8) All western sanctions are lifted. No sanctions can be introduced in future either.
9) "Resolution of issues" with family reunification and displaced persons.
10) Both sides agree not to demand reparations.
11) Ukraine rolls back its restrictions on the Russian Orthodox Church.
12) Full restoration of diplomatic and economic relations, "including gas transit," as well as transport and "other ties, including with third countries."
There are two paths to a ceasefire:
Either: Ukraine withdraws from the four partially occupied regions within 30 days.
Or: the "package option" – Ukraine does a bunch of other things first, including holding elections, and then withdraws from those regions later. All within 30 days.
Russia's vision for Ukraine's future is pretty clear here: a rump state run by a quisling that accepts Moscow's diktat.
Viktigt av Lars Jonung om Sveriges moderna ekonomiska utveckling i DN och Ekonomisk Debatt. För pedagogikens skull har jag ringat in vad Socialdemokraterna kallar "Sverige" när de säger att "Sverige ska bli mer som Sverige".
Lavrov basically tells Trump to get lost: Russia’s conditions for peace include full international recognition and actual control over 5 Ukrainian regions, demilitarization and “denazification” — aka regime change in Kyiv — plus rollback of European military buildup on Russian borders. Also official status for Russian and for the Russian church and full sanction relief. Same as in 2022. Great success all around. Now what?
Massive decline in consumer sentiment and highest inflation expectations since 1981. And about half these interviews were conducted *before* "Liberation Day".
https://t.co/o0niWBA8Vb
Gut-wrenching video of first responders trying to save the life of 3-year-old Ukrainian boy Tymofiy, He was declared dead soon after this video was taken in Kryvyi Rih yesterday. One of nine children confirmed killed by Russia's ballistic missile cluster munition attack on a densely populated residential neighborhood.
Russian ballistic missile hits a restaurant on Friday night in Zelensky’s home town of Kryvy Rih. At least 12 people killed including children. Russia clearly wants peace.
Of course Putin is happy to use President Trump’s appetite for Greenland as cover for his attack on Ukraine. Xi Jinping will make the same link with respect to Taiwan.
Putin is effectively offering to support/acknowledge an American sphere of influence in the Western hemisphere (in exchange for the support/acquiescence of establishing Russia’s in Eastern Europe)