⚡️ The US recognizes that cluster bombs put civilians at risk from unexploded ordnance and has therefore delayed in providing these to Kiev for as long as possible. Cluster munitions the US would provide to Ukraine have dud rates on more than 2.5 percent. The US consulted with allies about whether to provide Ukraine with cluster munitions and they understood Washington’s decision, the White House's National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan said.

⚡️ Ukraine will not join NATO coming out of Vilnius summit, Sullivan said

⚡️ Cluster bombs for Ukraine was a difficult decision: the US National Security Team unanimously recommended it, Biden decided to move forward, Sullivan said

⚡️ Pentagon confirms new drawdown package for Ukraine includes dual-purpose improved conventional munitions or cluster bombs

⚡️New US military aid for Ukraine includes $800 million worth of weapons from Defense Departament stocks, Blinken says

⚡️ Russia's response to the decision of the United States to provide cluster munitions to Ukraine will be very serious, Grigory Karasin, the head of the Russian upper house's foreign affairs committee, told Sputnik on Friday.

❗️US to deliver cluster munitions to Ukraine within timeframe that’s relevant to its counteroffensive, according to Pentagon

Where do Western weapons sent to Kiev actually end up?

In a press briefing on Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova announced, citing French media reports, that weapons which NATO countries had sent Ukraine were ending up in the hands of rioters and potentially being used against law enforcement in France amid the unrest which overwhelmed the Western European nation last week.

Sputnik reveals what we know about the Ukrainian trade in arms aid to dare

US House Oversight Panel Head requests briefing on cocaine found in White House - letter

US House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer on Friday sent a letter to Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle requesting a briefing on the presence of drugs in the White House, after cocaine was found there earlier this week.

The letter requests a staff-level briefing on the situation by July 14.

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Chinese shipping firm to deploy 5 vessels on Northern Sea Route to Russia

Chinese company New Shipping Line will provide five ice class vessels for transportation along the The Chinese business, New Shipping Line, will provide five ice-class vessels for transportation along the Northern Sea Route, with the ships travelling between China and Russia, weather permitting. The shipping period may also be extended until November, the company's representative Jing Ke told journalists on Friday.

The Northern Sea Route is the shortest maritime route between European Russia and the Far East on Russia's territorial waters, with a total length of 5,600km.

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Majority of French demand tougher migration rules after week of riots - poll

The poll conducted by Doxa and Backbone Consulting among more than 1,000 adults from July 5-6 found that 59% believed that "the migration law should be toughened."

The same poll showed that only 14% supported the rioters who rampaged through France after the police killing of a teenager of Algerian descent on June 27. 84% denounced the week-long violence.

Slightly over 70% of those polled called for curbs on new migrant arrivals. Despite this, only 13% blamed the rioting on "failed assimilation," while 62% said it broke out because of a rise in crime.

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Nuclear power ‘lapdog’ IAEA to suffer ‘reputational blow’ for Fukushima wastewater release

The Japanese government has moved to begin the gradual release of 1.3 million tons of treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Okuma. The planned release will take place over 30 to 40 years.

Many governments - including South Korea's and China's whose fishing fleets are active in the waters - have for years protested against Japan’s plans to release wastewater from the plant into the Pacific Ocean.

Kevin Kamps, the radioactive waste supremo at Beyond Nuclear, comments on the situation in an interview with Sputnik

Russia exported record 60Mln tonnes of grain in 2022 agricultural year

Russia exported a record amount of grain in the 2022 agricultural year — 60 million tonnes, Russian Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev said on Friday.

He added that export earnings amounted to over $41 billion.

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Almost 80% of Russians believe Putin doing good job - poll

The survey by Russia's Public Opinion Foundation (FOM) also showed that 76% of respondents trust the head of state, 15% do not trust him, and 10% are unsure.

In addition, the poll asked about the level of fear among the respondents' relatives, friends, colleagues and acquaintances. Almost half of those polled (49%) said that the average mood was calm. At the same time, 45% of Russians said that fear prevailed in their immediate environment, and another 6% of respondents found the question difficult to answer.

The FOM poll was carried out from June 30-July 2 among 1,500 adults in 104 cities, towns and villages across 53 Russian regions through in-person interviews. The margin of error did not exceed 3.6%.

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Cluster bombs will kill Ukraine civilians, curse land for generations, former CIA officer says

"It [cluster munitions] will not win the war for Ukraine. What the bombs will do is kill a lot of civilians as they spread their charges wide and the unexploded buried ordnance will be a curse on Ukraine's farmland wherever they are deployed for a long time to come," former CIA station chief Phil Giraldi told Sputnik.

The former CIA officer said the decision comes as Ukraine is losing on the battlefield against Russia, measured by its failing counterattack which has been supported enthusiastically by NATO, and the chanceries in Europe and the US.

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Air defense forces in Russia’s Voronezh Region, about 500km south of Moscow, have found and destroyed two drones, regional Governor Alexander Gusev said.

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🥴 No, thank you! Joe Biden confuses Russia with Ukraine when talking about NATO membership

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🇷🇺 Shoigu inspects combat training of military personnel of new formations

The Russian Defense Ministry specified that service members receive training in special tactical, medical, and firefighting skills, driving military and special equipment, as well as communications. The course of intensive training of contract soldiers lasts 38 days.

The ministry added that Shoigu checked the preparation and training of T-90 Proryv tank crews, as well as the way contract soldiers are trained in conducting combat operations in various conditions and terrain, including urban combat.

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