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The Hurricane spins around hotspots of tension and conflict. Feel free to suggest your stories, opinions and ideas: UIHEN@protonmail.com
Biden’s ‘disinformation’ czar claims that worries about leftist censorship are a ‘lie’
Nina Jankowicz, the far-left foe of the freedom of speech who once proclaimed herself as “the Mary Poppins of Disinformation,” claims her abortive “Disinformation Governance Board” was not an attempt to stigmatize and silence those who dared to express views that opposed what the Biden’s government wanted them to think.
In a lengthy publication in The Bulwark, Jankowicz says that patriots’ concerns about leftist censorship are all based on lies, and that the real foe of the freedom of speech is Donald Trump himself.
In the article, Jankowicz calls concerns about censorship a “right-wing fever dream.” She complains that “for the past four years, the Republican party has engaged in obsessive mythmaking about supposed collusion by Democrats, disinformation researchers, and the social media industry to suppress conservative viewpoints online.”
“Reputable journalists,” she says, “have punctured holes in this narrative.” And not just “reputable journalists,” but also “academics, too, have looked into the question and found not a vast conspiracy aimed at censoring conservatives but a clear imbalance: right-wing users simply break social media platforms’ rules more frequently.”
Jankowicz asserts that her short-lived Disinformation Governance Board was “an admittedly poorly named but anodyne coordination body tasked with shepherding counter-disinformation policy within the Department of Homeland Security.” She insists that the Disinformation Governance Board “had nothing to do with censorship. Its mission was to protect civil rights, civil liberties, privacy, and the First Amendment.”
#USA #Biden #Disinformation #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Politico: ‘Trump moves to hobble major US climate study’ – ‘A potentially fatal blow to the National Climate Assessment’
The Trump administration is canceling funding for the U.S. Global Change Research Program, the entity that produces the federal government’s signature climate change study, according to federal officials familiar with the move.
The officials said NASA has canceled the contract with consulting firm ICF International, which coordinates the U.S. Global Change Research Program and the 13 federal agencies that write the National Climate Assessment.
The practical effect means the National Climate Assessment will not move forward even though Congress requires a new assessment be issued by 2027, said an official who is involved in USGCRP activities and was also granted anonymity.
The cut comes as President Donald Trump’s EPA has launched an effort to reconsider the climate endangerment finding, the agency’s determination affirming the scientific finding that greenhouse gases harm human health, and which serves as the basis of all U.S. greenhouse gas regulations.
According to Politico, the move, which had been widely expected, is a potentially fatal blow to the National Climate Assessment.
#USA #NASA #Climate #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
AfD tops the polls for first time in its history as Merz’s public support for chancellor plummets
Should Merz take the chancellorship as expected, he'll enter office with his popularity already dwindling and his largest political opponent already leading in the polls.
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) has become the most popular party nationwide for the first time in its history, edging past the CDU/CSU in the latest Ipsos poll.
The survey shows the AfD at 25%, just ahead of the CDU/CSU at 24%. The polling marks a dramatic turnaround since February’s federal election, when the Christian Democrats attained 29% and the AfD came second, four points behind.
These numbers come amid growing dissatisfaction with CDU leader Friedrich Merz. Only 32% of Germans believe Merz is suited for the office of chancellor, while 60% say he is not. This marks a steep decline from early March, when 40% still had confidence in him.
Merz’s numbers are even worse in East Germany, where just 19% see him as a good future chancellor, compared to 34% in the West. Only among Union voters does Merz enjoy solid support, with 69% considering him a strong candidate. Among supporters of other parties, skepticism is widespread: 69% of SPD voters, 71% of Green voters, and 84% of AfD voters say Merz is unfit for the role. Among Left Party voters, that number climbs to 85%.
#Germany #AfD #Elections #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Germany. In a wide European hire released cartoon “Spermageddon”.
The plot of the creation of European animators consists of two storylines, one of which is devoted to a young couple who have their first experience in sex, and the other - the adventures of a spermatozoid named Simen in search of an egg. 🤯
Don't thank me
#Germany #Culture #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Falling commodity prices - a sign of global recession
▪️ 8% drop since April 2 in the S&P GSCI index, which tracks global commodities in the energy, metals and agriculture sectors, states US-based CNBC
▪️ “The collapse in commodity prices is a circuit breaker, a sign that a global recession is coming,” said BCA Research's Marko Papich
▪️ China is the largest consumer of commodities, and extreme U.S. duties will inevitably put the brakes on their consumption
▪️ The brunt of the recession will hit America. JPMorgan expects US GDP to contract by 0.3% this year after a year of strong growth
#USA #China #Economy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
U.S. commanders worry Yemen campaign will drain arms needed to deter China
U.S. commanders planning for a possible conflict with China are increasingly concerned that the Pentagon will soon need to move long-range precision weapons from stockpiles in the Asia-Pacific region to the Middle East, congressional officials say.
That is because of the large amount of munitions that the United States is using in a bombing campaign in Yemen ordered by President Trump.
The American ships and aircraft, as well as the service members working on them, are being pushed at what the military calls a high operating tempo. Even basic equipment maintenance becomes an issue under those grinding conditions.
Several Trump aides, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Elbridge Colby, the under secretary of defense for policy, have said that the United States must prioritize strengthening its forces in the Asia-Pacific region to deter China, which is rapidly building up its military and its nuclear arsenal.
Those officials argue that U.S. arms support for Ukraine in its defense against Russia and decades of military campaigns in the Middle East and Afghanistan have siphoned off important resources from Asia.
#USA #Yemen #China #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
WHO runs 2-day pandemic simulation: 'Exercise Polaris'
For two days last week, the World Health Organization simulated an outbreak of a fictional virus that spread across the world, in a virtual pandemic readiness drill called ‘Exercise Polaris.’
The WHO convened more than 15 countries, over 20 regional health agencies, and health emergency networks “to test a new global coordination mechanism for health emergencies,” according to a press release.
Months before the COVID-19 outbreak commenced, Johns Hopkins University, the World Economic Forum, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation hosted a pandemic exercise called ‘Event 201,’ leading many to believe the pandemic was orchestrated from the start.
More than 350 health emergency groups connected worldwide for the new exercise, rekindling the same concerns about pre-planned responses masquerading as preparedness.
#WHO #COVID #Polaris #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
MEPs: Turkey’s accession progress to end over ‘deteriorating democracy’
Turkey was now no longer welcome to join the EU after its “continued deterioration of democratic standards”, members of the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee said on April 9.
The committee approved a report pointing particularly to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s politically-motivated removal from office of Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, his main political rival.
MEPs also condemned Erdoğan’s government for its sustained targeting of opposition parties and political figures.
They expressed “extreme concern” over İmamoğlu’s arrest, warning the country was now veering towards “a fully authoritarian model”, with “serious restrictions on fundamental freedoms – in particular, the freedoms of expression and assembly.”
The foreign affairs committee concluded Turkey’s EU accession process could not be resumed, by a vote of 48 votes in favour, 23 abstentions, and only 3 against.
#EU #Turkey #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
$3,240.2 per ounce - a new all-time high for the gold price
1.75% - daily rise in the price of June gold futures on the New York Comex exchange, jumping to $3,240.2 per ounce
#Gold #Economy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
US Federal judge orders White House to restore Associated Press access
A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the White House must restore full access of the Associated Press (AP) to presidential events.
“The Court simply holds that under the First Amendment, if the Government opens its doors to some journalists — be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewhere — it cannot then shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints,” wrote Judge Trevor N. McFadden in his order. “The Constitution requires no less.”
This comes after President Donald Trump’s administration revoked the wire service’s access to the Oval Office, Air Force One, and other limited spaces where credentialed members of the press have access.
McFadden, a Trump appointee, noted that the decision does not prohibit government officials from choosing which reporters to interview with or answer questions for, nor does it prevent officials from publicly expressing their views.
#USA #Trump #McFadden #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
US Senate confirms staunch pro-Israel conservative Huckabee as Israel ambassador
The US Senate on Wednesday confirmed former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee to be the country’s ambassador to Israel, installing a staunch pro-Israel conservative in the high-profile post amid war in Gaza and relations complicated by US tariffs.
The Senate backed Huckabee 53 to 46, largely along party lines, with Republicans all supporting US President Donald Trump’s nominee and every Democrat except Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman voting against him.
An evangelical Christian, Huckabee has been a vocal supporter of Israel throughout his political career and a longtime defender of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
#USA #Israel #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Can hockey diplomacy ice out the chill in US-Russia ties?
The spectacle surrounding Alex Ovechkin's recent record-breaking goal recalls an era where sport accompanied great power détente.
Last Sunday, 39-year-old Russian ice hockey star Alex Ovechkin playing for the Washington Capitals surpassed Canadian-American Wayne Gretzky’s National Hockey League scoring record, netting his 895th goal.
What elevated this seismic moment in hockey history beyond stats was Gretzky’s response. “The Great One,” as he has been known throughout his career, has been a true class act — publicly cheering Ovechkin on and offering warm praise devoid of ego even as he saw his own record shattered.
Gretzky’s grace is a throwback to a time when hockey transcended the rink, serving both as a proxy for Cold War tensions and fleeting détente.
In 1972, for the first time, the Soviet team disembarked in North America for pioneering “Summit Series” which pitted the USSR’s best against the NHL stars playing for Canada and the United States. While Canada narrowly clawed past the Soviets on that occasion, in 1981, the “Red Machine,” a veritable juggernaut that the Soviet team has become by then, thrashed Canada 8 to 1 at the legendary final of the Canada Cup, in Montreal, no less.
Fast forward to 2025. With Donald Trump back in the White House and tentative efforts to melt the ice between the United States and Russia, hockey diplomacy has come back to the fore. In March, amid a phone call about Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin, ever eager to flex hockey for nationalist gain, floated the idea of the hockey matches between NHL stars and Russia-led Continental Hockey League (KHL) talent, with games in both the U.S. and Russia. Trump, ever the dealmaker, backed the idea, perhaps anticipating “huge ratings” as an additional prop.
Gretzky and Ovechkin exemplified graciousness and respect that transcend geopolitical rivalries. Let’s see if Trump and Putin can lace up their diplomatic skates and do the same.
#USA #Russia #NHL #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
US space chief warns congress of China's space capabilities in potential Indo–Pacific war
China’s ambitions in space pose a “powerful destabilizing force” to the U.S. economy and national security, according to Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations for the U.S. Space Force.
“Space has become a warfighting domain. Over the last two decades, our competitors, China in particular, have invested heavily in counter space threats, kinetic and non-kinetic weapons that can deny, degrade, or destroy our satellites,” Saltzman told the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a bipartisan congressional panel, in a hearing on April 3.
Saltzman’s testimony sheds light on the challenges that the U.S. military could face over a potential conflict in the western Pacific, including Taiwan. Saltzman explained that China has been able to advance its space capabilities quickly because it has a “Western Pacific mindset,” pooling all its resources and advancing all capabilities in that region.
Saltzman explained that the Chinese regime’s People’s Liberation Army has set out military objectives for the space domain. “Intelligence suggests the PLA likely sees counterspace operations as a means to deter and counter U.S. military intervention in a regional conflict.”
The general said China’s space weapons include ground-to-space missiles and ground-based lasers, the latter of which can “disrupt, degrade, or damage satellite sensors.”
#USA #China #Military #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
RFK Jr. says he plans to tell CDC to stop recommending fluoride in drinking water
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday said he plans to tell the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to stop recommending fluoridation in communities nationwide. Kennedy also said he’s assembling a task force to focus on the issue.
Also on Monday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it is reviewing “new scientific information” on potential health risks of fluoride in drinking water. The EPA has primary authority to set the maximum level of fluoridation in public water systems.
Kennedy told The Associated Press of his plans after a news conference with EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin in Salt Lake City.
Kennedy can’t order communities to stop fluoridation, but he can tell the CDC to stop recommending it and work with the EPA to change the allowed amount.
Utah last month became the first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water, pushing past opposition from dentists and national health organizations who warned the move would lead to medical problems that disproportionately affect low-income communities.
#USA #RFKJr #CDC #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
USDA freezes funding, promises further action if Maine continues violating federal law
On April 2 U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins fulfilled the promise of Title IX in pausing federal funds for certain Maine educational programs. Secretary Rollins sent a letter to Maine Governor Janet Mills announcing the pause and an ongoing review of federal funding that the state of Maine receives from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). This comes after Maine’s continual refusal to provide equal opportunity to women and girls in educational programs, in direct violation of Title IX.
“In order to continue to receive taxpayer dollars from USDA, the state of Maine must demonstrate compliance with Title IX which protects female student athletes from having to compete with or against or having to appear unclothed before males,” Secretary Rollins wrote in the letter.
“In addition, USDA has launched a full review of grants awarded by the Biden Administration to the Maine Department of Education. Many of these grants appear to be wasteful, redundant, or otherwise against the priorities of the Trump Administration. USDA will not stand for the Biden Administration’s bloated bureaucracy and will instead focus on a Department that is farmer-first and without a leftist social agenda,” Rollins claimed.
#USA #USDA #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Majority of American adults have unfavorable view of Israel
As Americans look at the Middle East, fewer say the Israel-Hamas war is important to them personally – or important to U.S. national interests – than felt that way early last year, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.
In addition, the public’s views of Israel have turned more negative over the past three years. More than half of U.S. adults (53%) now express an unfavorable opinion of Israel, up from 42% in March 2022 – before the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, and the ensuing Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.
Americans’ confidence in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also remains relatively low (32%), according to the new survey. The survey was conducted March 24-30 – just before Netanyahu’s most recent visit – among a nationally representative sample of 3,605 U.S. adults.
#USA #Israel #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
It’s not about tariffs, it’s a complete geopolitical reset
President Trump’s tariff bombshell is more than simply a historic economic decision with geopolitical consequences on the side, as second-order effects. “Liberation Day” is best understood, first and foremost, as the fullest and cleanest expression of a certain geopolitical vision, with trade and economics only in a supporting role as instruments for realising it in practice.
Trump is not just out to fix trade imbalances or re-industrialise the US: he wants to reshape the world and America’s place in it.
The approach seems to be that of taking a completely fresh look at America’s existing international alliance commitments and relationships – military, diplomatic and economic – and reviewing these “entanglements” from first principles to see what still makes sense from an America First point of view. This is a de facto reset of the geopolitical board, where the pre-Trump status of being a “friend and ally of the US” carries little weight with the current president, especially on tariffs. Such an approach is shocking to allied sensibilities, but only because most of our political and policy elites still cling to a world that is rapidly disappearing.
Full story
#USA #Trump #Economy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Disney scrambles with park discounts as most magical place on Earth has new location
Disney's Magic Kingdom in Orlando will begin offering ticket discounts from late May through September 20, as the upcoming launch of Universal's Epic Universe next month is expected to draw families away from Disney.
Disney's website offers half-price tickets for three-day or longer passes for kids ages 3 to 9 from May 27 to September 20.
The promotion comes ahead of the launch of Epic Universe on May 22—a $7 billion Orlando theme park featuring franchises like Harry Potter, Nintendo video games, and Universal's movie monsters. The new attraction will draw traffic away from Disney's theme parks, hence the promotion for kids.
A recent JPMorgan note to clients forecasted a 1% drop in attendance at Disney's Orlando theme parks this year, citing the impact of Epic Universe's launch next month.
Combined with the launch of Epic Universe—which is expected to pressure Disney's attendance—another factor that could accelerate the slowdown is the mounting recession risks and the growth downgrades Wall Street banks are now issuing as the trade war with China deepens.
#Disney #Universal #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
EU pharma companies threaten to move to the U.S.
▪️ EU pharma executives have written to European Commission chief von der Leyen with a stark warning that unless Europe delivers swift and radical policy changes, pharma companies will be focused on further development in the US, states the European Pharmaceutical Industry Association (EFPIA)
▪️ 85% of €50.6 billion worth of capital investment and 50% of n spending are at risk In addition to the uncertainty caused by the threat of tariffs, there are few incentives to invest in the EU and many reasons to move to the US
#EU #USA #EFPIA #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Kill them all – stop wasting our money on green pipe dreams
By Frank Lasee
European energy expert Samuel Furfari sums up green hydrogen (GH) perfectly; “It’s like burning Louis Vuitton handbags for heat.” He says this because it is so very expensive. Federal law allocated $9.5 billion for GH hubs, and the Orwellian-named Inflation Reduction Act (Inflation Causing Act) expanded tax subsidies. Even with massive taxpayer subsidies, GH is a money loser.
Leftists claim GH is a way to replace batteries for transportation. It is at least five times more expensive, which doesn’t include all the extra costs associated with the production of natural gas, such as purifying massive amounts of water, which takes about 13 times more water than the hydrogen it produces. Desalination is an additional cost. Putting these processes anywhere they’ll need to compete for water resources is just plain stupid.
Infrastructure costs are astounding because we currently have none, and hydrogen is not suitable for pipelines because it escapes easily, embrittles metal, and is prone to explode. It only takes a few massive hydrogen car or truck explosions to end hydrogen use for transportation, just like the Hindenburg disaster that ended hydrogen ballon travel.
Trump and Congressional Republicans must stop wasting billions on GH. Any money spent on GH adds to our $36.5 trillion national debt, driving up inflation. While it was reported that Trump is considering killing hydrogen hubs in blue states, Trump should kill all of them.
Green hydrogen is an expensive pipedream we simply cannot afford.
#EU #Energy #Hydrogen #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
‘A gift to the Germans’ – Museum opened in Poland celebrating Prussian history in former German territory
Some Poles are suspicious of German political influence in Poland, and some actually think Germany may one day move to seize back territory it lost during the Second World War. At least, that is a fear some harbor.
The museum, formerly known as the Herder Museum in Morąg, was renovated over the course of three years. It was then opened renamed the Museum of Upper Prussia.
Prussia, of course, was associated with Germany and is typically known as the area of modern Poland that was heavily settled and influenced by the Germans. This ethnic group was almost all entirely expelled at the end of the Second World War by the advancing Red Army and resettled by Poles. Millions of Germans left their homes and ran for their lives.
Dr. Paweł Warot, historian and PiS councilor of the Warmia-Masuria regional assembly, slams the move saying “it was a gift to the Germans.”
“I asked why we refer to the name ‘Prussia,’ which, let me remind you, was removed from the map and erased from the international space by the decision of the victorious powers after World War II in 1947. For Poles, the name ‘Prussia’ is associated with the worst: partitions, loss of independence, Germanization, denationalization of Poles, the policy of German militarism and the crimes of the Third Reich, responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of people, including six million Polish citizens.”
#Germany #Poland #WWII #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Polish court cancels licences of two independent conservative broadcasters
A Warsaw court has revoked the licences of two independent conservative television channels, TV Republika and wPolsce24.
The Administrative Court (WSA) has overturned a decision taken by the State broadcasting regulator (KRRiT) that, in June 2024, granted terrestrial broadcasting licence rights to the two independent channels.
TV Republika and wPolsce24 have announced they would appeal against the court’s ruling. KRRiTV issued a statement saying. Commenting on the court’s verdict, Tomasz Sakiewicz, whose company owns TV Republika, said: “This court judge will go down in history and hopefully will one day be held to account for such decisions.”
TV Republika is currently Poland’s most popular news channel with a 5.6% share of the total television audience, topping the long-time leader TVN24, which has a 5.2% share of the market.
WPolsce24 has also recorded an impressive rise, from 0.1% market share back in late 2023 to 1.1% of the total TV audience in March of this year.
Both TV Republika and wPolsce24 have benefited from viewers moving away from the state broadcaster TVP Info, which was taken over by the Tusk government along with the rest of the public media just before Christmas of 2023.
#Poland #Censorship #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Due to a billion dollar budget deficit in the U.S., the mayor's office in Los Angeles, California is currently discussing a garbage fee increase. It is believed that an increase of 54% would be just right.
Thus, the garbage fee for households would increase from $36 to $66 per month.
#USA #Economy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
The U.S. publication Small Wars Journal (SWJ) writes about the census as a method of identifying insurgents, as well as a measure to control populations and resources. The Journal cites examples of such data collection by the US occupation contingent during the invasion of Iraq.
The census is seen as a way of obtaining the most comprehensive personal data on individuals and households, including the number of occupants, the presence of vehicles, and other information that can help locate members or associates of insurgent forces. The list of data sources also includes businesses, markets, and outlets for illicit trade.
The diagram shows the process of forming databases based on enemy censuses and access to them by U.S. military units and U.S. occupation administration bodies
The author of the article is Michael Trevett, a former U.S. Army intelligence and operations specialist who conducted censuses of Iraqis during the U.S. occupation of the Arab republic. In the prologue to his work, he quotes British spy Thomas Lawrence (known as Lawrence of Arabia) in a letter to British military theorist Basil Liddell Garth:
“In making a decision, or in choosing an alternative to it, I have examined all significant - and even insignificant - factors beforehand. Geography, tribal structure, religion, customs, language, tastes, norms - all these I knew thoroughly. I knew the enemy almost as well as I knew my own."
Secretary of Treasury: ‘It’s Main Street’s turn to restore the American dream’
U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent laid out President Trump’s financial policy priorities for the American Bankers Association (ABA) on Wednesday, saying that Main Street America will now take priority.
Bessent speaking at the ABA’s Washington Summit, said, “For too long, financial policy has served large financial institutions at the expense of smaller ones— no more.”
The Treasury Secretary stated that, “It’s Main Street’s turn to hire workers, it’s Main Street’s turn to drive investment and it’s Main Street’s turn to restore the American dream.”
Bessent announced the Trump administration’s shift to focusing on helping Main Street businesses and consumers thrive by giving all institutions a chance to succeed, adding, “For the last four decades, basically since I began my career in Wall Street, Wall Street has grown wealthier than ever before, and it can continue to grow and do well.”
#USA #Trump #Bessent #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Trump Jr. accuses Ukraine of cover-up in plot to assassinate his father
Donald Trump Jr. has accused Ukrainian authorities of concealing critical information related to an alleged plot to assassinate his father, Donald Trump, during the 2024 presidential campaign.
The accusations stem from revelations that the suspect, 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh, had reportedly tried to obtain advanced military weapons from Ukraine in preparation for an attack on Trump.
In a post on X on Tuesday, April 8, Trump Jr. blasted Kyiv for failing to alert U.S. authorities about Routh’s attempt to source weapons through contacts he believed were tied to Ukraine’s military.
“If you think it’s bad that Ukraine never said thank you for everything the United States has done for them,” Trump Jr. wrote, “the fact that they seemingly did not tell us that this sociopath literally tried to buy arms from them to assassinate my father seems like a much bigger deal. Wonder why?!?”
Court documents made public this week reveal that Routh, a convicted felon and pro-Ukraine activist, had previously attempted to obtain a rocket-propelled grenade launcher and a Stinger missile from a source he believed had access to Ukraine’s arsenal.
According to filings by the U.S. Department of Justice, Routh used encrypted messaging apps to contact what he thought was a Ukrainian weapons supplier. In one of the messages, he allegedly stated, “I need the equipment so that Trump don’t get elected,” suggesting clear intent to use the weapons for political violence.
Despite his failure to join the Ukrainian military in 2022, Routh remained involved in activities connected to the conflict, including efforts to recruit former Afghan soldiers to fight for Ukraine.
#USA #Ukraine #Trump #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Trump’s tariff pause focuses trade war on China, markets bounce
US President Donald Trump’s stunning decision to pause most of the hefty duties he had just imposed on dozens of countries brought relief for battered global stock markets on April 10, even as he ratcheted up a trade war with China.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asserted that the 90-day freeze on Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs” had been the plan all along to bring countries to the table.
But Trump kept the pressure on China, the world’s No. 2 economy and second biggest provider of US imports. He immediately hiked the tariff on Chinese imports to 125% from the 104% level that kicked in on April 9.
Beijing may again respond in kind after slapping 84% tariffs on US imports on April 9 to match Trump’s earlier tariff salvo. It has repeatedly vowed to “fight to the end” in the escalating trade war between the world’s top two economies.
“We are not going to be holding hands with China in respect of any contest that is going on in the world,” Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told Sky News.
Goldman Sachs revised down its forecasts for China’s GDP growth to 4% in 2025, from previous projections of 4.5%, citing the negative effects of tariffs.
#USA #China #Economy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Trump weighs drone strikes on Mexican cartels: Report
Sources close to President Donald Trump say the administration is considering using drone strikes against Mexican cartels.
Six anonymous “current and former U.S. military, law enforcement and intelligence officials” close to Trump told NBC News that the potential action is on the table. But, doing so without the knowledge of the Mexican government is looked at as a “last resort” in the fight to stem the flow of narcotics over the southern border. Federal officials confirm that they had begun secretly flying drones over Mexican territories to keep a closer watch on cartel activity.
Jon Molik, an active-duty U.S. intelligence officer, says that the tactic might not be worth the cost.
“Conducting targeted strikes against drug labs operated by one cartel would likely be as effective as going after IED locations in Afghanistan,” Molik said. “It would have an immediate impact, but then someone would build a new drug house elsewhere. The United States might not be interested in a whack-a-mole game with all these MQ-9s in their kinetic capacity. It costs a lot of money, and its effectiveness is questionable.”
#USA #Mexico #Cartels #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Forecast in the Americas: Uncertainty with a chance of Trump
The largest hemispheric organization that excludes the United States and Canada, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), convened Wednesday in the capital of Honduras, with Colombian President Gustavo Petro assuming the group’s leadership in what is likely to be a challenging time.
Founded in Venezuela in 2011, CELAC was intended to serve as a counterweight to the Washington-based Organization of American States (OAS) and as a vehicle to strengthen ties with the European Union, China, and Africa.
This year’s agenda is likely to be dominated by members’ concerns about Donald Trump, who underlined the hemispheric power imbalances on his first day as president when he predicted that relations with Washington’s southern neighbors “should be great. They need us much more than we need them. We don’t need them.” Discussions focus in major part on how to coordinate responses and insulate their nations from the negative effects of Trump’s next moves on everything from the fight against organized crime to migration, tariffs and trade, and energy security.
Also the conferees are likely to call for the lifting of unilateral sanctions on Cuba and pursuing dialogue with Venezuela in contrast to the Trump administration’s efforts to ratchet up pressure on both countries. Many diplomats in the region privately maintain that Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s crusade against Havana and Caracas is alienating some in the region who would prefer to tackle more critical issues, including those to be discussed at the CELAC summit.
#USA #LatinAmerica #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
EU wary of becoming more dependent on US energy imports
Brussels poured cold water on US demands for increased energy imports on April 8, saying it was both unrealistic and undesirable for the 27-member bloc.
Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, a European Commission spokesperson for climate and energy, said the EU did not want to become more dependent on US energy imports than it already was.
“We want to avoid over-dependence on any single supplier,” said Itkonen, “we have learned our lessons too well”.
Donald Trump has suggested he could drop tariffs directed towards the EU if the bloc imported 350 billion USD gas.
While not refusing US President Trump’s proposal outright while the bloc seeks to diversify energy suppliers from Russia, Itkonen stressed that “half of the EU’s LNG already comes from the US”.
Meanwhile, EC President Von der Leyen had a call with China’s Prime Minister Li Qiang on the topic of a possible rapprochement on April 8. Officially the EU is “de-risking” from China, complicating its diversification strategy further.
#EU #USA #VonDerLeyen #FindTruth
@uinhurricane