🇹🇷📉❗️ — Turkish Central Bank burned $10bn just today to stabilise Turkish Lira post Imamoglu-detention news.

🇺🇸🇷🇺🇺🇦 After Trump-Putin call, Russia agrees to limited Ukraine ceasefire

A call between President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin ended with a limited agreement for Russia and Ukraine to cease attacks on energy infrastructure but stopped short of a U.S. proposal for a temporary truce.

The United States said Russia had agreed to an energy and infrastructure ceasefire. After Moscow and Kyiv agree to stop hitting each other's power plants and electric grids, negotiators would move on to a potential halt in fighting on the Black Sea − and then to a full ceasefire and peace agreement in the 3-year-old Ukraine war, a White House statement said.

Trump said on social media the talk ended "with an understanding that we will be working quickly to have a Complete Ceasefire and, ultimately, an END to this very horrible War between Russia and Ukraine. ...

"That process is now in full force and effect, and we will, hopefully, for the sake of Humanity, get the job done!"

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2025/03/18/trump-putin-ukraine-ceasefire/82512876007/

🇺🇸❌🇾🇪🇮🇷❗️ — United States President Donald J Trump says that Iran has intensified the military leasing to Houthis* in Yemen, warns that Iranian Regime will suffer from severe consequences if it doesn't stops and vows: Houthis* will be totally annihilated

On Truth Social, he said:

Reports are coming in that while Iran has lessened its intensity on Military Equipment and General Support to the Houthis, they are still sending large levels of Supplies.

Iran must stop the sending of these Supplies IMMEDIATELY.

Let the Houthis fight it out themselves.

Either way they lose, but this way they lose quickly.

Tremendous damage has been inflicted upon the Houthi barbarians, and watch how it will get progressively worse — It’s not even a fair fight, and never will be.

They will be completely annihilated!

* — Designated as a Terror organization by the U.S.

🇺🇸❌🇾🇪❗️ — Renewed U.S. Navy's Naval Aviation airstrikes reported in the Yemeni capital Sana’a as well as Sa’ada city in the northwest of Yemen

🇺🇸📞🇮🇷❗️ — Axios reports US President Donald Trump's letter to Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei included a "two-month deadline" for reaching a new nuclear deal

🇺🇸🇮🇱❌🇮🇷❗️ — Axios on Trump's deadline:

If Iran rejects Trump's outreach and doesn't negotiate, the chances of U.S. or Israeli military action against Iran's nuclear facilities would dramatically increase.

🏳💬⚡️📍🇸🇦 — 🇩🇪 BILD:

"❗️ Russian-American talks on ending the war in Ukraine will continue on Sunday, March 23 in Jeddah

The fact that a new meeting of the delegations of the Russian Federation and the United States is planned was announced by the American envoy and confidant of Donald Trump Steve Witkoff in an interview with Fox News. According to Witkoff, the parties will have to work out some details. The envoy also said that he hopes for the consent of the Ukrainians regarding a 30-day cessation of attacks on energy infrastructure.

Witkoff did not explain what details would be the subject of negotiations. It is likely that he is talking about the demands for a ceasefire that Russia has put forward. After a telephone conversation with Putin, US President Donald Trump responded to the question of why Putin agreed to an immediate end to attacks on energy facilities, but not a complete ceasefire:

"There are a lot of weapons pointed at each other right now. And a ceasefire, unless we go a little further, would be difficult."

Trump did not reveal the exact meaning of his words. They could mean that Putin convinced the American president of the need to discuss a set of conditions under which a cease-fire could be possible."

🔗 Source:

🗣🤝🗣 — 🇩🇪 BILD:

"Emmanuel Macron to meet Olaf Scholz and Friedrich Merz today to discuss European security

French President Emmanuel Macron wants to include Germany in his “coalition of the willing” to support Ukraine, which he has been forming with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for several weeks.

Macron and chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz will meet for dinner in Berlin. The topic of the talks will of course be the phone call between Putin and Trump, as well as ensuring Europe's security without the US. Ultimately, it is about war and peace and billions of euros of taxpayers' money.

It is also possible that Macron and Merz will discuss the idea of ​​deploying French nuclear weapons in Germany and other EU countries. “I want to believe that the US will remain on our side. But we must be prepared for the fact that this will not be the case,” Macron says.

📌 Critics of the idea believe that France only wants to modernize its nuclear arsenal with other people's money, without being prepared to share the sole right to make decisions on its use.

Merz is open to the nuclear shield proposal. The chancellor candidate told BILD that it is now "more than ever" in Germany's interest to have this discussion without taboos:

"Given the current situation, we need to discuss these issues not only with France, but also with the UK. Together with the US, we need a joint nuclear defense shield for Europe."

The current Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, on the other hand, considers American nuclear weapons in Germany indispensable and does not want Trump to even suggest the idea of ​​withdrawing them.

Another topic on the dinner agenda is the "White Paper on the Future of European Defense," which the European Commission intends to present. It is known that it will discuss, for example, joint air defense systems. The goal is for EU countries to prioritize the purchase of European military equipment and simplify tender procedures for the supply of weapons and ammunition. This will allow the defense industry to develop faster."

🔗 Source:

🇩🇪📃📈💸🔫 — 📰 ZeroHedge | Germany Passes Biggest Debt-Funded Spending Splurge In Its History | March 18, 2025:

"(...)

Late on Tuesday afternoon, chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz's conservatives and the centre-left Social Democrats, currently in talks to form a government following last month's election, had proposed a €500BN fund for infrastructure and changes to borrowing rules to bolster defence and revive growth in Europe's largest economy. 

The controversial legislation was approved in the lower house of parliament with 513 votes out of a total of 733, clearing the two-thirds threshold required for constitutional changes.

The bill will release defense spending from debt restrictions, creating a potentially unlimited supply of money to rearm to deter Russia, or at least limited by how long it takes for the German bond market to crack because unlike the US, the Euro is not the world's reserve currency. And judging by the recent surge in bund yields - not driven at all by a stronger economy but merely by term premium and fears of even more debt - it won't take too long."

🗄 Archive

🔗 Full:

👤📞👤 — 🇺🇦 President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky:

"Had a positive, very meaningful and frank conversation with US President Donald Trump. Thanked him for the good and productive start of the work of the Ukrainian and American teams in Jeddah on March 11. This meeting of the teams helped to make significant progress on the path to ending the war. We agreed that Ukraine and the United States should continue to work together to achieve a real end to the war and a lasting peace. We believe that together with America, with President Trump and thanks to American leadership, we can achieve a lasting peace this year.

President Trump shared the details of the conversation with Putin and the key issues they discussed. One of the first steps towards a complete end to the war could be to stop attacks on energy and other civilian infrastructure. I supported this step, and Ukraine confirmed that we are ready to implement it. Our teams discussed this step in Jeddah. The American side also proposed an unconditional ceasefire on the front line, and Ukraine also accepted this proposal. We will continue to work to make this happen. We believe that such steps are necessary to create an opportunity to prepare a comprehensive peace agreement during the ceasefire.

I also provided an update on the situation on the battlefield and the consequences of Russian strikes. We discussed the situation in the Kursk region, raised the issue of the release of prisoners of war and the return of Ukrainian children captured by Russian forces. We also discussed the state of Ukraine’s air defenses and the possibilities of strengthening them to protect people’s lives.

We instructed our teams to resolve technical issues related to the implementation and extension of the partial ceasefire. The Ukrainian and American teams are ready to meet in Saudi Arabia in the coming days to continue coordinating steps towards peace. We instructed our advisors and representatives to carry out this work as soon as possible. We noted the successful work of our advisors and representatives: Rubio, Volz, Kellogg, Yermak, Sibiga, Umerov, and Palisa. During further meetings, the teams can agree on all aspects necessary to move forward on the path to lasting peace and security guarantees.

I thanked President Trump and the American people for their support. I emphasized that Ukrainians want peace, which is why Ukraine has accepted the unconditional ceasefire proposal. I emphasized the importance of President Trump’s vision of peace through strength. We agreed to maintain ongoing contact, including at the highest level and through our teams."

🔗 Source:

🇺🇸🏴‍☠️💥🇻🇪🇻🇪 — Erik D. Prince, founder of the private army Blackwater, along with Donald Trump Jr., is discussing covert actions to remove Nicolás Maduro's regime in Venezuela, which he describes as a "narco-state" and a "communist threat to America." He claims that "processes are already underway" and mentions the fundraising campaign "Ya Casi Venezuela."

📈🌏🇪🇺 Asian defence stocks soar to record highs as Europe prepares to re-arm

Japanese and South Korean defence stocks have surged to record highs on expectations that European countries will purchase more military equipment from Asia after Donald Trump threatened to withdraw the US’s security umbrella.

Shares in Hanwha Aerospace, South Korea’s leading artillery company, are up 134 per cent this year, while Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Japan’s largest defence contractor, has gained 26 per cent.

The stocks rose 6.8 per cent and 12.2 per cent, respectively, on Monday after German lawmakers agreed to increase infrastructure and defence spending last week.

https://archive.ph/Sd80A

https://www.ft.com/content/25226697-47ca-4701-a431-4b45cb85a635

🇨🇳🚘 Cheap Chinese Cars Are Taking Over Roads From Brazil to South Africa

Donald Trump wants to keep Chinese carmakers out of the US, but that won’t stop them from taking over the rest of the world. They already are.

From Bangkok to Johannesburg to Sao Paulo, the streets are increasingly jammed with inexpensive compacts, crossovers and SUVs made by companies like Great Wall Motor Co., BYD Co., Chery Automobile Co. and SAIC Motor Corp.

While the Trump administration is expected to shield the US’s Big Three from Chinese rivals at home, and Canada and the European Union have placed tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles, buyers in emerging markets have welcomed Chinese cars and trucks with open arms — posing a new threat to growth-hungry global automakers.

China sends more vehicles abroad than any other country, and its passenger car exports surged nearly 20% to 4.9 million in 2024 alone, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers — from less than 1 million in 2020.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2025-03-17/chinese-carmakers-threaten-ford-gm-stellantis-in-global-markets

https://archive.ph/4yc6c