❗️"We shouldn’t be intimidated by China’s rhetoric": John Kirby comments on Pelosi's potential Taiwan visit.

The White House national security spokesman claimed that there's no reason for harsh criticism, as it is not "uncommon" for US congressional leaders to travel to Taiwan.

"It is very much in keeping with our policy and consistent with our support to Taiwan under the Taiwan Relations Act,” he told CNN.

Referring to Beijing's warning that Pelosi's trip would have a “severe negative impact” on China-US relations, he said, "We shouldn’t be intimidated by that rhetoric or those potential actions."

❗️ Taiwan's Foreign Ministry refuses to comment potential visit of Nancy Pelosi

❗️ Pelosi is expected to arrive in Taiwan on August 2, 10:30 pm - report

According to the Taiwanese TV channel Set News, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to arrive at Taipei Songshan Airport on August 2 at 10:30 pm local time. As per the report, she will stay in the Grand Hyatt Taipei hotel for one night and meet Taiwan's president Tsai Ing-wen at 8 am on August 3, before leaving the island the same day.

🗣 Vladimir Putin has said that there could be no winners in a nuclear war and it should never be unleashed, noting that Russia consistently followed the letter and spirit of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).

"Our obligations under bilateral agreements with the United States on the reduction and limitation of relevant weapons have also been fully fulfilled. We proceed from the fact that there can be no winners in a nuclear war, and it must never be unleashed, and we stand for equal and indivisible security for all members of the global community," the Russian president said.

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❗️ North Korea intends to conduct its seventh nuclear test, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday.

"As we gather today Pyongyang is preparing to conduct its seventh nuclear test," Blinken said at the NPT Review Conference at the United Nations in New York.

❗️ Employees of Taiwan's Grand Hyatt evade question about potential Pelosi stay

Staff of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Taiwan, where Taiwanese media report Pelosi may stay tomorrow night, avoided answering Sputnik's question about the House speaker's potential arrival.

Employees first passed the request to each other, promising to find a person who can help, but then hung up. Sputnik correspondents called the hotel several times, but each time the staff avoided answering the question about Pelosi or did not pick up the phone.

🇹🇼🇺🇸 "Little more than a goodbye tour for Pelosi": In an exclusive comment for Sputnik, retired US Air Force Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski, a former analyst for the US Department of Defense discusses the situation around Pelosi's alleged visit to Taiwan, its goals and consequences.

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👀 "Taiwan will be next": Nancy Pelosi trip could wind up proving Donald Trump's predictions of a Chinese "invasion" of Taiwan right after Russia started its special operation in Ukraine.

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⚡️⚡️White House says US Speaker Pelosi has not confirmed any travel plans to Taiwan, but she has right to visit

❗️White House: If Pelosi goes to Taiwan it does not change US position on territory

❗️ White House denies US military urged Pelosi not to go to Taiwan

❗️ White House on China's comments concerning Pelosi's possible trip to Taiwan: We will not take the bait or engage in saber-rattling or be intimidated, [we] aim to keep lines of communication open.

❗️ Biden did not directly speak with Pelosi about her plans for her trip to Taiwan

❗️ Blinken says that if Pelosi decides to visit Taiwan and China creates tension, the responsibility will sit entirely with Beijing.

🇷🇸 "The US is trying to harass Serbia in Kosovo": key points from Sputnik’s interview with the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Yugoslavia Vladislav Jovanović.

▪️ “The United States is trying to harass Serbia with petty provocations to test the waters and find out to what extent Belgrade is ready to protect the Serbs in Kosovo. Their goal, with the help of constant threats and pressure, is to gradually break Serbia down and force it to agree to participate in the implementation of American goals in the Balkans."

▪️ "The US is knocking us [Serbs] out of our comfort zone: faced with the urgent need to protect the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, we are in a more vulnerable position."

▪️ "They [the US] can take advantage of it both inside and out. It will be a policy of wearing Serbia down, not only with Kurti's help and his periodic provocations in Kosovo, but also with the reduction of investments, if we do not fulfill their demands in relation to Russia and China."

▪️ "Serbia is not alone today, and the United States does not like it. They need to solve the problem of the Balkans as soon as possible, and for this, I believe, they will have to reconsider their policy towards Serbia and Kosovo.”

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🐥 USDA getting tougher on salmonella products

The federal government on Monday announced proposed new regulations that would force food processors to reduce the amount of salmonella bacteria found in some raw chicken products or risk being shut down.

USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety Sandra Eskin said it marks the beginning of a broader agency effort to curtail illnesses caused by the salmonella bacteria, which sickens 1.3 million Americans each year. It sends more than 26,000 of them to hospitals and causes 420 deaths, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

The CDC says approximately one in every 25 packages of chicken sold at grocery stores contains salmonella bacteria. An outbreak last year tied to frozen breaded raw chicken products caused 36 illnesses in 11 states and sent 12 people to hospitals.

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🚨 BREAKING | White House: US conducted ‘successful' weekend counterterrorism strike in Afghanistan