🇷🇺💬🇺🇸❗️🗳🇺🇦 — 🎤 Fox News | US, Russian officials propose peace plan, lay 'groundwork for cooperation' in Riyadh | Russian officials are pushing for new elections in Ukraine | February 18, 2025:

"U.S. and Russian officials held diplomatic talks in Saudi Arabia without any Ukrainian officials present on Tuesday.

The groups, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, are seeking terms for a peace agreement in Ukraine as well as negotiating a potential meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. They have proposed a framework that could involve a ceasefire, elections in Ukraine followed by the signing of a peace agreement.

State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce also confirmed that Rubio's team agreed to "lay the groundwork for cooperation" with Russia on various issues in addition to Ukraine. They also agreed to appoint "high-level teams" to begin working on a path to ending the conflict in Ukraine.

Reports from multiple foreign diplomatic sources say forcing Ukraine to hold new elections could be a key part of a peace deal. Both the U.S. and Russia believe Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has a low chance of winning re-election, the sources say.

"Putin assesses the probability of electing a puppet president as quite high and is also convinced that any candidate other than the current President of Ukraine will be more flexible and ready for negotiations and concessions," the diplomatic sources said in a readout of the meeting."

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😵‍💫❗️🇺🇸🤝🇷🇺 — 📰 Bloomberg | Zelenskiy Excluded as US Discusses Ukraine Fate With Russia | February 18, 2025:

"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy unexpectedly canceled his visit to Saudi Arabia after he was shut out of talks there between the US and Russia on the future of his country.

Zelenskiy’s trip was due to follow Tuesday’s meetings in Riyadh, where US Secretary of State Marco Rubio sat down with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to discuss an end to the war — though without the participation of anybody from Kyiv. Those conversations have fueled concerns about US President Donald Trump’s rapprochement with Russia and his readiness to push for a deal over Ukraine’s head.

That’s left Zelenskiy out in the cold. On Tuesday, the Ukrainian president was in Turkey as part of a regional tour to drum up international support. He’d been scheduled to travel onwards to Saudi Arabia, hoping for a readout on the US-Russia talks from Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. Late on Tuesday, he changed his mind against going."

📰🥴 — #VÆ: Conflict between headlines in the current version of this article against its counterpart in its Telegram thumb version says it all in the regards of what its writer intended to pass as an actual news.

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😵‍💫❗️🇺🇸🤝🇷🇺 — 📰 Bloomberg | Zelenskiy Left in the Dark About US-Russia Talks | Get caught up | February 18, 2025:

"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was left casting around for scraps of second-hand information today after US and Russian officials convened today in Riyadh to discuss the future of his country. Zelenskiy, who was in Turkey seeking international support, heads to the Saudi capital tomorrow where he’s hoping for a readout on the US-Russia talks from Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.
“I will ask what he knows about this,” Zelenskiy said. “Just curious.”

After four hours of meetings, the US and Russia agreed to more talks but set no date for a summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

That Zelenskiy has been reduced to asking an intermediary about talks that may affect his nation’s survival underlines the seismic shift in US diplomacy since Trump spoke with Putin last week.

Zelenskiy had argued that the US, Ukraine and Europe should agree a position before talking to Russia. After speaking by phone with French President Emmanuel Macron — who is trying to get Europe to the negotiating table — Zelenskiy said they “share a common vision” about the need to ensure robust security guarantees for Ukraine. Anything else, such as a fragile ceasefire, would be “a prelude to a new Russian war against Ukraine or other European nations,” he said."

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😵‍💫🤝🗣 — 🇺🇦 President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky:

"For Ukraine, for our region and for Europe, it is of fundamental importance that any negotiations on ending the war do not take place behind the backs of key actors affected by the consequences of Russian aggression.

Ukraine, Europe – in a broad sense, which includes the European Union, Turkey and Britain – must be involved together with America in the talks and development of the necessary security guarantees that concern the fate of our part of the world.

For the war to end with a reliable and lasting peace, no mistakes must be made. This is possible only when the negotiations are fair and the guarantees are developed with the participation of all those who are actually able to provide them. Today we discussed this issue with President Erdoğan, and I am grateful to him for his understanding."

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🇺🇸🇷🇺 U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio after meeting with Russian officials in Riyadh:

There is an incredible opportunity to partner with the Russians geopolitically, on issues of common interest, and, frankly, economically.

🔗 Clash Report

🇪🇺 EU pushes ‘Buy European’ quotas in major plan to revive industry

The European Commission is planning to introduce “Made in the EU” quotas and carbon product labels as it tries to revive ailing manufacturers while hitting climate targets.

The proposals are laid out in a draft of the Commission's Clean Industrial Deal, obtained by POLITICO ahead of its Feb. 26 unveiling. The document offers the EU executive’s grand strategy for weaving together the bloc’s efforts to decarbonize and revitalize its heavy industry, setting out the steps it plans to take in the coming years.

The plan lands at a precarious political moment. European manufacturers in sectors such as steel and cement say excessive bureaucracy and high energy costs are leaving them unable to compete with the U.S. and China. Exacerbating the problem, both Washington and Beijing are spending lavishly on their companies, with new President Donald Trump in particular employing a “Buy American” rhetoric.

https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-europe-major-plan-industry-clean-industrial-deal-climate-targets-donald-trump/

📈 Gold closes at an all time high above $2,930 as another 160,000 oz of physical gold are delivered to Comex vaults, bringing total to 37.6 million troy oz, with "big 3" vaults at all time high

https://fxtwitter.com/zerohedge/status/1891972365510177266

🇺🇸🇺🇦 Trump wants elections in Ukraine before a peace deal

🔗 Visegrad24

🇺🇸🇵🇸 — The Trump administration has stopped all funding to the Palestinian Authority security forces.

— The Washington Post

🇪🇺🆓🚫🇷🇺 — 🇬🇧 Financial Times | EU agrees new Russia sanctions package | Move takes aim at the country’s aluminium industry and further tightens restrictions on its oil exports | February 19, 2025:

"EU capitals have agreed a fresh sanctions package against Russia, as Brussels vows to step up pressure on Moscow and support for Kyiv despite US-led negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

The bloc’s 16th package of sanctions against Russia since it launched its full-scale war takes aim at the country’s aluminium industry and further tightens restrictions on its oil exports.

The sanctions target 13 more banks, 73 more so-called shadow fleet tankers used by Moscow to export crude oil, and a “phased-in” ban on EU countries buying certain types of Russian aluminium products, according to people briefed on its contents.

The package, which the people said was endorsed by ambassadors from all the EU’s 27 countries on Wednesday morning, also targets more individuals and companies deemed to be helping Russia prosecute its war against Ukraine."

#Sanctions

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🇺🇸🇺🇦 Trump goes after Zelensky this morning, calling him a "dictator without elections" and saying "he refuses to have Elections, is very low in Ukrainian Polls, and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden 'like a fiddle.'"

🔗 Natasha Bertrand

🇨🇴 — Gustavo Petro warns that drug traffickers have acquired two missiles to shoot down his plane and assassinate him.

🇧🇷⚖️👮🤝📱 — The messaging app Telegram provided information on 1,008 Brazilian users to authorities throughout 2024. This data, sourced from the platform’s transparency reports, was accessed in cases involving Brazilian jurisdiction

⛓ Last year alone, Telegram received 302 police or judicial requests for user details in Brazil. The data shared includes phone numbers or IP addresses and is only provided when official investigations are confirmed.

❗️ These disclosures mark a shift in Telegram's policy regarding cooperation with legal investigations. The platform was previously known for resisting or limiting the release of user data, even in cases involving criminal suspects.

This stance changed significantly after August 2024, when Telegram's co-founder and CEO, Pavel Durov, was arrested in France. Durov still faces six charges, including being an "accomplice in managing a platform that enabled illicit activities" and obstructing authorities’ access to user data despite legal procedures.

Shortly after his release, Durov announced policy changes, including increased moderation and expanded cooperation with law enforcement worldwide. Telegram has also intensified efforts to dismantle groups and channels distributing illegal content, including child abuse materials, in collaboration with specialized agencies.

Source 🖇

🇧🇷⚖️❌ 🇧🇷— LAWFARE: Alexandre de Moraes' strategy to persecute opponents

This report presents the studies of lawyer and researcher Enio Viterbo on how Alexandre de Moraes uses lawfare to persecute the Brazilian right and former president Jair Bolsonaro.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

🇺🇸🇲🇽 The U.S. has officially declared the following as Foreign Terrorist Organizations:

Tren de Aragua, MS-13, the Sinaloa Cartel, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the United Cartels, the Gulf Cartel, the Northeast Cartel, and the Michoacán Family.

⛓️‍💥 Rapid Response 47

🇺🇸▶️❗️🇧🇷⚖️ — Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has become the target of a lawsuit in the United States, filed by the Trump Media and Technology Group Corp., linked to the American president, and the video platform Rumble

📝 The companies accuse the Supreme Court justice of:

➡️illegally attempting to impose “Brazilian censorship laws” on companies based in the United States;

➡️violating freedom of speech, a right guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In the document, the companies state that Moraes ordered the suspension of accounts belonging to a Brazilian political commentator exiled in the U.S. The individual was not identified. They also cite the suspension of nearly 150 accounts critical of Lula;

➡️violating the CDA (Communications Decency Act). This legislation regulates internet content in the U.S. It includes Section 230, which exempts online service providers from liability for user-generated content;

➡️exercising jurisdiction beyond Brazil by attempting to regulate digital content in the United States. According to the companies, the gag orders issued by Moraes cannot be enforced in the U.S. “No extraterritorial decree or judicial overreach from abroad can override the freedoms protected by the U.S. Constitution and law,” they argue;

➡️violating U.S. sovereignty by attempting to impose sanctions and fines on American companies without adhering to international treaties between the two countries, such as the MLAT (Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty).

‼️ The companies claim that if Rumble does not comply with the order, Moraes could pressure companies like Apple and Google to remove the Rumble app from their stores, harming the platform’s global operations.

🖥 Although not directly affected, Truth Social, Trump's social media network, states that it relies on Rumble’s technology for video hosting, which would negatively impact it if the platform’s operations were disrupted.

⚖️ Here are the requests made in the lawsuit:

➡️ a declaration that Moraes’ orders cannot be enforced in the U.S.;

➡️a ban on companies like Apple and Google removing the Rumble app due to orders from the Supreme Court;

➡️egal protection to ensure that Rumble and TMTG are not forced to comply with foreign censorship.

Source 🖇

🇺🇸▶️❌🇧🇷⚖️ — The CEO of the video platform Rumble, Chris Pavlovski, made a post on the social network 𝕏 following the revelation that his company is filing a lawsuit alongside former President Donald Trump’s media conglomerate against Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes:

"Hello, Alexandre [de Moraes]. Rumble will not comply with your illegal orders. Instead, we will see you in court. Sincerely, Chris Pavlovski."

💬 The businessman refers to court orders he considers "illegal," which were issued under secrecy by Moraes against his company. These orders involved the blocking of accounts linked to Brazilian journalist Allan dos Santos and other digital influencers.

➡️ Among other measures, Rumble faced the risk of heavy fines and service interruptions in Brazil if it failed to comply or disclosed the details of the rulings. In 2023, the company decided to cease operations in the country but recently resumed its activities.

➡️ Trump's media company and Rumble are suing Moraes for allegedly "violating American sovereignty" through his rulings in the Brazilian judicial system.

Chris Pavlovski (@chrispavlovski) 🖇