Russia urges the United States to continue to respect its commitments regarding the ban on nuclear tests, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.

"The Russian Federation calls on Washington to continue to follow its obligations in the field of the ban on nuclear tests, as well as to abandon the destructive policy towards the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and take urgent measures to ratify the treaty," she said.

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World leaders know Ukrainian conflict can only be resolved by US-Russia talks

The upcoming summit in Switzerland, ostensibly intended to help achieve a peaceful resolution of the Ukrainian conflict, appears to have been snubbed by many of the prospective participants due to the “unrealistic approach” adopted by the event’s organizers, says Paolo Raffone, a strategic analyst and director of the CIPI Foundation in Brussels.

During an interview with Sputnik, Raffone points out that not only Russia was not invited to the summit, but the conference itself is aimed at promoting the so-called Zelensky ‘peace formula,’ a scheme that includes the demand for Russia to cede a part of its territory to Ukraine as a precondition for ending the Ukrainian conflict.

“Such an unrealistic approach is the reason for many invitees not attending. The countries that have chosen not to attend are aware that a dialogue in the absence of Russia does not represent ‘the legitimate interests of the parties’,” he explains.

“Moreover, no peace talks are well funded if not based on reality. Any meaningful peace talks imply that the Ukrainian government must recognize the ‘new territorial realities’.”

“World leaders are aware that any resolution to the war in Ukraine can only find a settlement between the real world powers underpinning the events, notably Russia and US,” he adds.

“While behind the scenes contacts and talks are continuing, the majority of world leaders believe that the time is not yet ripe for ‘peace talks’ and that in any case the starting point cannot be other than the document drafted and mostly agreed in Turkiye in March 2022.”

The analyst also observed that the implementation of Zelensky’s plan would be impossible without the “direct military intervention of Western countries,” and that it has already become clear that “none of the Western countries will officially send troops to fight in Ukraine against Russia.”

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The Milad TV Tower in Iran's capital of Tehran went dark as a sign of grief over the death of Raisi and those accompanying him

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"At present, we see that the strategy of domination has been defeated and that the US is at its weakest. Independent states are going through their historical period of development."

Late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi spoke out openly and sharply against current US and collective Western policies, criticizing their position on the conflict in Gaza. He also brought Iran into the SCO and BRICS, and called on the countries of both associations to abandon the dollar.

Sputnik has collected Raisi's most striking quotes in one video.

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The United States rejects allegations that Washington's sanctions on the supply of spare parts to Iran may have led to the breakdown of Raisi's helicopter, the White House said.

According to the State Department, Iranian authorities themselves are to blame for using the 45-year-old helicopter in bad weather conditions.

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Three US citizens arrested in Democratic Republic of Congo after failed coup

Congolese authorities have arrested three US citizens after a shootout in the capital Kinshasa on Sunday, alleging them to be CIA agents. After stopping the coup, the DRC Armed Forces announced that they had arrested 50 people, including three US citizens, Congolese army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Sylvain Ekenge told media.

The orchestrator of the coup, Christian Malanga, a Congolese with US citizenship, was killed during the confrontation with security forces. General Ekenge confirmed Malanga’s death, stating that he had been "definitively neutralized" in the operation.

Malanga’s son was one of the three US citizens arrested following the attack, Ekenge added.

Social media videos allegedly show one of the US citizens sitting on the ground, appearing to beg his Congolese soldiers to spare him.

US Ambassador Lucy Tamlyn said in a post on social media that she was “very concerned” by reports that US citizens had allegedly been involved in the events.

The attempted coup in the DRC occurred on May 19, 2024. Its target was President Felix Tshisekedi and his Economy Minister Vital Kamerhe, but local security forces quickly crushed the rebellion.

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▪️Iran president’s death may have ‘serious consequences internationally’

▪️Late Iran foreign minister’s drive to bolster ties with Saudi Arabia was ‘thorn in Israel’s side’

▪️What could have caused Raisi’s helicopter crash? Veteran Russian pilot weighs in

▪️Who is Iran's Interim President Mohammad Mokhber?

▪️Sputnik has collected Raisi's most striking quotes in one video

▪️World leaders know Ukrainian conflict can only be resolved by US-Russia talks

▪️Are G7 countries happier to steal Russian assets after US ‘diplomatic push’?

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🥴 The US Congress is exploring all options against the International Criminal Court (ICC) if it proceeds with arrest warrants for Israeli officials amid the war in Gaza, House Speaker Mike Johnson has said.

"In the absence of leadership from the White House, Congress is reviewing all options, including sanctions, to punish the ICC and ensure its leadership faces consequences if they proceed," he said.

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Polish premier rejects EU’s common migration policy but wants Brussels to fortify eastern border

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk refused to receive illegal migrants sent to Poland under the EU-established quotas, even though Warsaw has a legal obligation to do so. At the same time, Tusk wants the EU’s help in building “impenetrable” walls on the borders with Russia and Belarus.

Receiving its portion of migrants coming to the EU from Africa and the Middle East is obligatory for each EU member country according to the EU’s New Pact on Migration and Asylum (NPMA), adopted in April 2024.

A refusal to receive a migrant for whom the EU earmarked Poland as the new motherland should cost Poland €20,000 (about $21,000) - the norm established by the NPMA. But Tusk objects.

“We won’t pay for anything, and we won’t take any migrants that arrive from other directions [except the Ukrainian one]. And the EU will not impose any migrant quotas on us,” Tusk said in a statement published on his office’s Twitter account. “But Poland will require financial support from the EU, because Poland became a host country for hundreds of thousands of migrants from Ukraine.”

This stance obviously contradicts the norms of the New Pact. But it is popular in Poland, where public opinion strongly disapproves of hosting migrants from far away countries.

Simultaneously, a recent survey by SW Research indicates that 67% of Poles favor enhancing border security with Russia and Belarus. The building of a 5.5 meter high and 400 kilometers long wall separating Poland from Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad region will be costly. On Saturday, Tusk said in his speech in Krakow that Poland would invest $2.5 billion (about €2.3 billion) in these “dissuasion” fortifications. Poland already spends 4% of its GDP on defense, so Tusk’s promise to get the EU’s participation is weak solace to the electorate.

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Iranian media have shared the first piece of footage from the helicopter crash site where Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his delegation died.

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What fate awaits the Slovakian repair hub for Ukraine's Western-supplied weapons

As Western powers continue to send whatever weapons and military hardware they manage to scrounge up to Ukraine, the fate of a European facility created to aid the regime in Kiev may be hanging in the balance.

Germany and Slovakia are currently negotiating a lease extension for a repair hub established on Slovak soil to repair military vehicles supplied to Ukraine by Germany and France.

The facility was built in 2022 by a European defense contractor called KNDS (a product of a merger between German arms manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and French weapon maker Nexter Systems), and its lease is due for renewal this year.

While all parties involved seem to be “supportive” of the lease’s extension, “lot of complications have arisen” since this scheme was enacted two years ago, says international consultant and US Army veteran Ret. Lt. Col. Earl Rasmussen.

Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico and President Peter Pellegrini, both of whom were elected after the KNDS facility was built, favor a peaceful resolution of the Ukrainian conflict and do not advocate further military aid to the regime in Kiev, Rasmussen explains.

“So we have a complete changeover, both from the presidential side as well as the parliamentary and the prime minister side from when the contract was initially put together,” he surmises. The recent assassination attempt on Fico may also complicate this situation further, he points out.

Rasmussen does argue, however, that the lease on the KNDS facility will likely be extended, though Bratislava would probably continue to oppose sending Slovakian weapons to Ukraine. “I think they'll be very cautious what type of weapon systems are actually repaired there as well,” he adds.

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