🇺🇸📞🇺🇦🇷🇺 — Senator Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for Secretary of State, before the Senate Committee for his confirmation hearing :

There is no way Russia takes all of Ukraine.

The Ukrainians are too brave and fight too hard. It's also unrealistic that Ukraine will push Russians back to where they were on the eve of the invasion

This conflict needs to end.

🔗 Ostap Yarysh (@OstapYarysh)

🇺🇸❌🇻🇪🇮🇷 — Senator Marco Rubio denounces Iranian's presence in Venezuela, says that the Islamic Regime of Iran is developing a drone factory in Venezuela and accuses the Chavista regime of providing illegal passports to Hezbollah

“In Venezuela you have the Russian presence, you have a very strong Iranian presence, the Iranians in fact are beginning to build drone factories for the manufacture of Iranian drones in our own hemisphere, not to mention the long practice of the Venezuelan regimen of providing real but illegitimate Venezuelan passports to operatives of Hezbollah”

🔗 VOZ (@VozMediaUSA)

🇺🇸❌🇻🇪🇻🇪 — Senator Marco Rubio discussed about the takeover of the Venezuelan State Apparatus by the Cartel of the Sun and denounces the failed Barbardos Agreement by the US Administration, which were based on making oil concessions to Maduro for empty promises of a free election.

Venezuela is not governed by a government. It is governed by a narco trafficking organization that has taken control of the national state

And we have seen, I believe, that more than seven, eight, or nine million Venezuelans have left the country.
And more people are expected to leave the country

They (Biden administration) got played the way I knew they would get played

🔗 POLARIS (@polarisnatsec)

🇺🇸🇺🇸❗️🇧🇷🤡 — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is considering imposing trade tariffs on Brazil and other countries that, according to allies, are using the judicial system to persecute political opponents, according to information released by the Wall Street Journal

🇧🇷 According to the WSJ, this move comes after the former president Jair Bolsonaro was prevented from traveling to the United States to attend Trump's inauguration. Bolsonaro had his passport seized in February 2024 by a decision from Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Alexandre de Moraes, within the framework of Operation Tempus Veritatis, which investigates alleged plans for a coup and other accusations.

⚖️ The WSJ, citing sources close to Trump’s team, states that the lack of a decision from the STF on whether or not to authorize Bolsonaro's trip to Washington could worsen the already fragile relations between the Lula government and the incoming U.S. administration. "The worst way for the Lula government to start its relationship with the Trump administration is to instrumentalize the government against a political opponent."

🤝 Trump, who the American newspaper also reports identifies himself as a victim of judicial persecution in the United States, sees similarities between his situation and Bolsonaro's. As a result, people close to the Republican indicated that he is willing to use trade tariffs as a means of pressuring governments around the world that adopt what is called "lawfare" — the use of the judicial system to persecute political rivals.

❌ The WSJ notes that relations between Brazil and the U.S. were already under tension due to actions by the STF against 𝕏, alleging that it is combating "hate speech," and cites Elon Musk, who is now part of the new Trump administration's team, as having strongly criticized Justice Moraes, calling him a "dictator."

Source 🖇

🇺🇸📝 — President-elected Donald J. Trump just announced on Truth Social platform that he is appointing Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone as Special Ambassadors to Hollywood, California!

It is my honor to announce Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone, to be Special Ambassadors to a great but very troubled place, Hollywood, California. They will serve as Special Envoys to me for the purpose of bringing Hollywood, which has lost much business over the last four years to Foreign Countries, BACK—BIGGER, BETTER, AND STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE! These three very talented people will be my eyes and ears, and I will get done what they suggest. It will again be, like The United States of America itself, The Golden Age of Hollywood!

#BREAKING
🇮🇱🎙❗️ — Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir:

We will resign from the government immediately after the ceasefire begins, and if the war resumes, we will return to it

https://news.1rj.ru/str/BellumActaNews/138748

🇮🇱🎙❗️ — Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir:

The deal that is taking shape is irresponsible and includes the release of hundreds of murderers, the return of hundreds of thousands of Gaza residents to the northern Gaza Strip, including thousands of terrorists, a retreat from the Philadelphi Corridor, and a cessation of war

🇮🇱🎙❗️ — Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir:

This deal will eliminate all the achievements we have made for the Jewish state and will not lead to the release of all prisoners.

🇮🇱🎙❗️ — Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir:

If the deal is approved, we will submit our resignation letters to the Prime Minister.

The Otzma Yehudit party will withdraw from the government.

🇺🇸🤝🇻🇪 — Venezuelan President-elected Edmundo González will attend Donald J. Trump's inauguration on Monday in Washington DC

🇷🇸🇨🇭🆗🇷🇺💬🇺🇦 — 🇺🇸 The Epoch Times | Switzerland, Serbia Offer to Host Trump–Putin Ukraine Peace Talks | Switzerland has often served as a venue for diplomatic meetings and peace talks because of its reputation for neutrality | January 13, 2025:

"Switzerland and Serbia have both offered to host a potential meeting between President-elect Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, following recent discussions about the possibility of such talks.

The Swiss Foreign Ministry said on Jan. 12 that it is willing to host talks between Trump and Putin, while Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said on the same day that his country would be an “extremely suitable” venue for such a meeting given that both men are highly popular in the Balkan country.

Switzerland, which is not a member of NATO or the European Union, is widely recognized as a neutral country and has maintained a policy of neutrality for centuries. The country has often served as a venue for diplomatic meetings and peace talks because of its reputation for neutrality.

Serbia, which is also not a NATO member, is in the process of joining the EU, with talks at an advanced stage. The country has historically maintained close ties with Russia and has not imposed sanctions on Moscow over the Ukraine conflict."

🗄 Archive

🔗 Full:

🇨🇭🤝🇪🇺🚫🇷🇺 — 🏴 ZeroHedge | In Historic Breach With Neutrality, Switzerland Joins EU In Sanctions On Russia | February 28, 2022:

"Switzerland's historic neutrality is no longer: moments ago Reuters reported that the Swiss government had joined the EU in adopting sanctions on Russia, freezing assets of targeted companies and people effective immediately:

SWISS GOVERNMENT SAYS ADOPTS EU SANCTIONS ON RUSSIA
SWISS GOVERNMENT SAYS FREEZES ASSETS OF TARGETED PEOPLE AND COMPANIES EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY
SWISS GOVERNMENT SAYS ADOPTS FINANCIAL SANCTIONS AGAINST PRESIDENT PUTIN AND OTHER RUSSIAN OFFICIALS

Swiss President Ignazio Cassis said that adopting the EU sanctions against Russia was a unique, difficult step that required careful consideration. Previously, on Sunday, he said that Switzerland’s neutrality must be preserved and it stood ready to offer its good offices for diplomacy if talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials on the Belarusian border do not succeed, for example by reaching an armistice."

🗄 Archive

🧠📈🔝 — 🏴 ZeroHedge | TSMC's Outlook Beats Estimates; Goldman Tells Clients Puts Cheap, Citing "Potential De-Gross Sell-Off Risk In Q1" | January 16, 2025:

"Shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) trading in New York climbed as much as 7.5% in premarket trading after the chipmaker, the leading supplier for Apple and Nvidia, issued 2025 sales and capital expenditure forecasts that topped Bloomberg Consensus estimates.

TSMC projected revenue of $25 billion to $25.8 billion in the first quarter, exceeding the Bloomberg Consensus estimate of $24.3 billion estimate. Management expects capital expenditure between $38 billion and $42 billion for the year, far surpassing the $35.2 billion estimate.

TSMC's Year Forecast

Sees capital expenditure $38 billion to $42 billion, estimate $35.15 billion (Bloomberg Consensus)

TSMC's First Quarter Forecast

Sees sales $25 billion to $25.8 billion, estimate $24.43 billion

Sees gross margin 57% to 59%, estimate 56.9% * Sees operating margin 46.5% to 48.5%, estimate 46.4%"

#Geoeconomics

🗄 Archive

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🇺🇸🪶😬🇨🇳 — 🏴 ZeroHedge | 'It Was The Most Tense Moment': U.S. Ambassador Reveals Deteriorating Relationship With China Worse Than Previously Known | January 15, 2025:

"In his final interview as U.S. Ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns told the Wall Street Journal’s Jonathan Cheng that Chinese officials severed communication with the U.S. after President Biden’s order to shoot down China’s spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina, calling it “the most tense moment” of his tenure in Beijing."

🗄 Archive

🔗 Full:

🚀🚀📹 — On today, January 16, 2025 AD, SpaceX launched Starship for seventh time, but lost contact with spacecraft

➡️ SpaceX said it lost contact with the Starship, the upper part of the spacecraft, after separation. The spacecraft had undergone several changes, and the company believes there was a failure in the engines.

➡️ SpaceX quality engineering manager Kate Tice said that after the two stages separated, they lost communication with the spacecraft. “This was a new version of Starship. The intent of the test was to understand the limits of this vehicle’s ability to fly and understand where those limits are,” she said. “We always knew that excitement would be guaranteed today. Success is not guaranteed.”

🔗 SpaceX (@SpaceX)

🚀🚀📹 — Video: Starship’s Raptor engines ignite during hot-staging separation. Super Heavy is returning to launch site for catch attempt

🔗 SpaceX (@SpaceX)

🚀🚀📹 — Video: Mechazilla has caught the Super Heavy booster!

🔗 SpaceX (@SpaceX)