Joe Biden showed the world the US & NATO are paper tigers

US President Joe Biden revealed to the world that the US military is no longer the giant that woke up on December 7, 1941, but a paper tiger unable to exert the power it once held.

The attack from Iran on Israel showed the world “that US defense capabilities,” are “not there,” retired senior security policy analyst Michael Maloof told Sputnik’s The Critical Hour.

“The ability to have a strong missile defense is not there, and the Russians [also] have these hypersonic capabilities,” Maloof explained. “[Iran] did hit their targets, and they did it with hypersonics and there was no defense.”

Meanwhile, the failure of NATO equipment in Ukraine has done the same.

“We saw, as with pretty much every type of tank we’ve seen in this combat that relatively cheap, $500, $1,000 a pop, Kamikaze drones can seriously damage a tank fairly easily,” Security and International relations expert Mark Sleboda told Sputnik’s Fault Lines.

“The days of US dominance [are] over, and we're seeing this now as some 40 countries want to join BRICS and get out from under the dollar,” Maloof explained. “So, all of this is interrelated. It's all playing [out] in real-time, before our very eyes, and it's happening very rapidly.”

Follow the link to learn more

*Image is AI generated

Democrats are criticizing Netanyahu to avoid ‘paying the price’ for Israel support during November’s election

“The Democrats, they know that they will pay the price during the election. So, they are trying to stay away from Netanyahu,” journalist Mohamed Gomaa told Sputnik’s Fault Lines. “On the other hand, they continue to support Israel, not Netanyahu, not the government. They speak on Israel [only].”

In March, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called for new elections to be held in Israel. A few weeks later, US President Joe Biden offered his sharpest public criticism of Netanyahu, saying “I think what he’s doing is a mistake. I don’t agree with his approach.”

“Anywhere there are protests against their government to stop supporting… Netanyahu, they [also] ask to stop [the] support of Israel, which,” will be difficult for those governments, Gomaa explained. “That’s why they changed their tone to criticize Netanyahu or criticize the government, [but] not Israel.”

Hit the link to learn more

Columbia University of New York President Minouche Shafik has asked police to remain on campus until May 17 to enforce order amid pro-Palestinian protests.

Meanwhile, NBC News quoted a city police spokesman as saying that about 100 people have already been detained during pro-Palestinian protests in New York.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Armenian Parliament refuses to discuss opposition's draft statement on border delimitation

The ruling majority of the Armenian parliament has refused to discuss a draft statement on delimitation and demarcation of the border with Azerbaijan submitted by the opposition "Armenia" faction.

"27 members of parliament voted in favor of the decision to include the draft statement 'On Demarcation and Delimitation Between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan', authored by the 'Armenia' faction, 51 voted against. No decision was made," Armenian Parliament Veep Ruben Rubinyan said.

Artur Khachatryan, a member of the "Armenia" faction, said that according to Armenia's laws, PM is given the right to form only consultative bodies, but a special commission headed by Deputy PM Mher Grigoryan cannot decide where the border runs. Any change of the border should be approved by referendum, he added.

The authors of the draft statement believe that the demarcation of the border should be based on international documents, in particular, the United Nations Charter, the Vienna Convention and the Helsinki Final Act. The demarcation should be based on the border as of September 24, 1993 - the day of Azerbaijan's accession to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Khachatryan said.

The ruling "Civil Contract" faction, which voted against submitting the draft statement for discussion at the plenary session, said it did not contribute to "the peace process declared by the Armenian government and contradicted the state interests of Armenia."

On April 19, Armenia and Azerbaijan held the eighth meeting of the commissions on border delimitation. The countries agreed on the demarcation of part of the border, which will result in the handover of four villages that had been under Armenian control since the early 1990s. Last Tuesday, the first boundary marker was placed on the border. The developments, however, sparked protests in Armenia.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

US students pro-Palestine protests: political fallout and Biden admin's dilemma

Across the US students are taking to the streets to voice their opposition to Israel's recent actions in the Gaza Strip, thus sparking political debates and posing political challenges for all.

The progressive wing of the Democratic Party is increasingly at odds with Israel's policies, viewing them as inconsistent with principles of equality and human rights, according to constitutional historian and political commentator Dan Lazare.

"This is particularly the case for American Jews who know all too well that their community can only prosper and survive in a society based on equal treatment for all. This puts them at odds with the Netanyahu government in Israel and is causing them to part ways as well," stated Lazare.

Lazare notes that while Democratic leaders like Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi are attempting to downplay the significance of the protests, they are facing pressure from both within their party and from Republican opponents.

Meanwhile, political commentator Michael Shannon offers a contrasting perspective, suggesting that Republicans should refrain from intervening in what he describes as "Blue State intramural conflicts among leftists".

Shannon predicts that the duration and impact of the protests will largely depend on Israel's actions in Gaza and "if they [IDF] finish Hamas quickly, then the media backdrop disappears".

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Ukrainian media have reported a bright flash without an explosion that was observed at night over several regions at once.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Russia’s military strikes Ukrainian Armed Forces headquarters in Odessa

“The Odessa resistance writes that three explosions were heard, the second very powerful, in the area of Kulikovo Pole, where the headquarters of Pivden' [South] operational command is located,” the coordinator of the Nikolayev underground, Sergey Lebedev, cited sources as saying.

On April 30, Russia’s military also struck the port area of the city of Chernomorsk in the Odessa region.

In response to deliberate attacks by Kiev’s forces on civilian targets, Russian troops regularly carry out strikes on personnel, including mercenaries, and equipment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Trophy American M1 Abrams tank delivered to the exhibition of captured Western military equipment on Poklonnaya Hill

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

The Ukrainian Security Service said it was conducting “planned counterintelligence activities” in Kiev’s central Shevchenkivsky district.

At the same time, according to the Nikolayev underground, the Ukrainian Security Service is “looking for citizens disloyal to the authorities in anticipation of Zelensky's complete illegitimacy.”

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

New equipment for combating Ukrainian drones presented to Russian defense minister

Sergei Shoigu has held a meeting at the headquarters of the United Grouping of Forces and received reports on the situation in the special military operation, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Specialists demonstrated new means of combating drones of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, including an anti-aircraft machine gun with a new scope.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Biden is not capable of resolving the situation with pro-Palestinian protests in the US - Trump

"We have to stop the anti-Semitism that is spreading in our country right now. Biden has to do something. Biden is supposed to be the voice of our country... but that voice is not being heard. I don't think he's capable of doing anything," Trump said when asked by a reporter what he thought about events in New York.

According to the former US president, it is "impossible to believe" what is happening.

"Three, four, five years ago it was impossible to even think that something like this would happen," the politician stressed.

Earlier, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) set up cordons two blocks away from Columbia University, where students opposing Israel's operation in the Gaza Strip barricaded themselves in.

Numerous pro-Palestine demonstrations have emerged on US college campuses in recent days against the US military, financial, and diplomatic support for Israel's operation in Gaza, which has resulted in the death of more than 34,000 Palestinians and wounding over 77,000 more.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt