US begins withdrawal of its troops from Niger

The US has begun withdrawing its troops from Niger with the departure of the first aircraft, the two countries' defense ministries said in a joint statement.

"The US Department of Defense and the Nigerien Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Niger announce that the withdrawal of US forces and assets from Niger has progressed from initial preparations to redeployment. This significant transition began with the departure of a US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III from Air Base 101 in Niamey on June 7, 2024," the statement read.

Moreover, some US forces have already redeployed from Niger to their home stations after concluding their missions, the statement read. At the same time, a small contingent of US military personnel arrived in the African country to assist with the withdrawal of troops from Air Bases 101 and 201, it added.

The US and Niger agreed to complete the withdrawal of US troops from the African country no later than September 15.

There is an estimated 1,100 US personnel in Niger. The military pullout was initiated in March after a Nigerien military spokesperson said the country's transitional government, which took power in July 2023, had terminated the military agreement with the US with immediate effect, citing the interests of the Nigerien people.

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US failed to threat Hamas leaders with sanctions via Qatar and Egypt, report says

Qatar and Egypt, at the "behest"of the US administration, have threatened the leaders of the Palestinian Hamas movement to impose restrictions against them if they do not agree to a cease-fire deal with Israel, the Wall Street Journal newspaper writes, citing sources.

“Qatar and Egypt have told Hamas leaders in recent days that they face possible arrest, freezing of their assets, sanctions and expulsion from their haven in Doha if they don't agree to a cease-fire with Israel,” the newspaper said.

It was noted that the effort has had the opposite result, with Hamas saying it will not go for a deal that does not meet their terms.

According to the newspaper, the threats were "made at the behest” of the US President Joe Biden's administration, which is looking for a way to persuade Hamas to make a deal that the White House boss needs amid a “political maelstrom”.

Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid al-Ansari said earlier that the mediators are still waiting for a Hamas' response to the proposal for a truce in the Gaza Strip, as well as the exchange of hostages and prisoners.

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Missiles strike two cargo ships in Gulf of Aden near Yemen

A missile struck an Antigua and Barbuda-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden, in what is suspected of being an attack by Houthi rebels in Yemen, authorities reported on Sunday.

The missile hit the ship's forward station, causing a fire that was later extinguished by the crew, according to private security firm Ambrey. A second missile fired at the ship missed, and individuals on small boats nearby opened fire on the vessel, although no injuries were reported.

UK Maritime Trade Operations reported late on Saturday that another ship 70 nautical miles southwest of the port of Aden was hit, resulting in a fire. The Houthis could have been behind this attack as well, media reported.

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◾️ Ukraine is directly controlled and fully maintained by the US and NATO countries today – deputy head of the Russian Security Council

◾️ US failed to threat Hamas leaders with sanctions via Qatar and Egypt

◾️ Why Israel can’t win all-out war against Hezbollah

◾️ US has begun withdrawal of its troops from Niger

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Ukraine has not attacked unrecognized Transnistria yet only because de jure, the region is a part of Moldova - ex-president of Moldova

"But if Transnistria were independent, the Ukrainians would have attacked long ago, from the beginning of the special military operation. So there is a threat, but I'm sure that the Ukrainians, in order to start this adventure, they need the consent of Chisinau [Moldova]. Otherwise it is aggression against the independent country of the Republic of Moldova, of which Transnistria is a part,” former Moldovan president and head of the Party of Socialists, Igor Dodon, said in an interview with Sputnik at the SPIEF.

Transnistria, 60% of whose inhabitants are Russians and Ukrainians, sought secession from Moldova during the last years of the Soviet Union. The 5+2 talks involve Moldova and Transnistria as parties to the conflict, Russia, Ukraine, the OSCE as mediators, and the EU and the US as observers.

#SPIEF2024

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Moldova-Russia discord due to "Soros puppets" but relations can be restored - ex-president of Moldova

The current discord between Russia and Moldova happened because of “Soros puppets” – offspring of the funds of financier George Soros, but relations can be restored, former Moldovan president and head of the Party of Socialists, Igor Dodon, said in an interview with Sputnik at SPIEF.

"....For the last three years, Moldova has completely ruled out any contacts with Russia. And this did not happen through the fault of the Russian or Moldovan people. Those who are to blame for this we usually call ‘Soros puppets,’ because they all worked in Soros foundations, [they are] all from NGOs. All the top leadership and most of the ministers worked in NGOs, they were raised for this,” Dodon said.

Moldova has lost billions of dollars because it ignores participation in the EAEU and CIS, and it should return to these platforms, he added.

#SPIEF2024

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Ukrainian forces are running out of men, meat assaults on the front line are becoming fewer, the governor of Russia's Zaporozhye region, Evgeny Balitsky, said in an interview with Sputnik at the SPIEF.

According to him, the enemy has switched to defense in almost all directions and is running out of steam.

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What tensions lurk behind Biden-Macron toasts & backslapping?

Behind the toasts and pageantry accompanying President Joe Biden’s state visit to France on the anniversary of the D-Day landing of Allied troops 80 years ago, there is an undercurrent of tension between him and French leader Emmanuel Macron.

France’s strive for less US-dependent policy

Frictions have been mostly driven by Macron’s thirst for a more assertive role, independent of the US, The New York Times reported. On the quiet, US officials roll their eyes “in exasperation” with regard to their French counterparts, while the French side is “frustrated” at the Biden administration’s “overbearing approach to trans-Atlantic leadership.” Europe must show that "it’s never going to be a vassal for the United States" has been Macron’s mantra of late. He has urged for the continent to stop “delegating our defense to the US.”

Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza

France and the US reportedly do not see eye to eye on the degree of Washington’s support for its ally Tel Aviv, and Gaza’s post-war future either. France believes that Biden failed to put enough pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop the Israeli advance into Rafah, which would have prevented numerous civilian casualties.

Escalating proxy conflict in Ukraine

Although both the US and France are fueling the proxy conflict in Ukraine, Macron wants to be ahead of the curve. He was the one who refused to rule out the possibility of sending NATO troops into Ukraine earlier, and has since backed the idea of sending military trainers to Kiev. He has also committed to sending his country’s Mirage 2000 warplanes to Ukraine.

Despite underlying tensions, the US and France have joined forces to fuel the conflict in Ukraine, seemingly hell-bent on provoking World War III. “NATO representatives, especially in Europe, should be aware of what they are playing with,” Russia's President Vladimir Putin warned recently.

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The number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip by Israeli shelling has surpassed 37,000 in more than eight months, the enclave's Health Ministry said

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Russian Railways to develop Eastern polygon

In the next few years, Russian Railways plans to increase the carrying capacity of railroads in the direction of ports by 200 million tons from the current 450 million tons, said Alexey Shilo, deputy general director of the company.

He recalled the record volume of Russian Railways’ investment program, in particular the development of the Eastern polygon, which includes Baikal-Amur Mainline and Trans-Siberian Railway.

"We are developing approaches to other ports, through which export-import interaction can also be built today. The total volume of railway infrastructure to our ports already amounts to 450 million tons and the nearest plans, in the next few years we expect to expand throughput capacity in the direction of all major ports by another 200 million tons,” Shilo said at an SPIEF session noscriptd “Russia – China.”

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🇷🇺🪖 Latest statements from the Russian Defense Ministry’s daily briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

◾️ Units of Battlegroups Sever and Yug improved their position along the front line, striking Ukrainian forces and repelling counterattacks.

◾️ Battlegroups Zapad and Vostok also occupied more advantageous positions, while Battlegroup Tsentr’s tactical position was improved.

◾️ During the day, the enemy lost up to 1,475 military personnel in various areas.

◾️ Russian air defenses shot down a Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter.

◾️ Russian troops hit the locations of UAV operators and foreign mercenaries, as well as accumulations of Ukrainian manpower and military equipment in 131 areas.

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‘New global majority already formed’, as world rejects disastrous US dictate – senior Russian MP

Leonid Slutsky, head of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, spoke at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum session ‘World Order Architecture: A View from Russia’.

💬 "As for the export of democracy from the United States — we all see it, and there is no need to dwell on it today — I think we all agree here that there is no democracy, first and foremost, in the United States itself,” Slutsky said. “This was demonstrated by the recent presidential elections, and the realities of the United States demonstrate it to us essentially every day."

Slutsky noted that "countries of the collective West... which would like to create, indeed, a unipolar world, where Washington will be the sole center of power, influence, and decision-making," stressing the destructive outcomes of the unipolar system.

The MP also stressed that every nations wants to decide its own fate, instead of following the Washington’s diktat, pointing to the disastrous consequences of US policies in Iraq and Libya.

Earlier, at the concluding press conference of SPIEF-2024, Anton Kobyakov, Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation and responsible secretary of the organizing committee, stated:

"The President of Russia has called on national forces worldwide to strengthen their sovereignties and develop their own national economies. There is confidence that a multipolar world will be able to defend its economic and political sovereignty and prevail over the unipolar structure subordinate to the American sovereign, as never before. The world has changed and is becoming increasingly unified!"

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🇮🇷 The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Council has announced the names of six candidates for the 14th presidential election:

◾️ Mostafa Pourmohammadi - former minister of justice

◾️ Masoud Pezeshkian - former minister of health

◾️ Amirhossein Ghazizadeh-Hashemi - first deputy speaker of parliament

◾️ Alireza Zakani - mayor of Tehran

◾️ Saeed Jalili - representative of Iran's Supreme Leader in the Supreme National Security Council

◾️ Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf - speaker of parliament

According to the law, once the names of the candidates are announced, the election campaign begins and ends 24 hours before the June 28 presidential election.

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The majority of Germans are in favor of the return of compulsory military connoscription, a poll shows

The return of universal connoscription was generally supported by 60% of respondents, with 28% choosing the option “fully support” and 32% “partially support,” according to the results of a survey conducted by the YouGov public opinion research institute on behalf of the newspaper Welt am Sonntag. The initiative was opposed by 32%, including 18% “partly against” and 14% “completely”.

The poll also showed that almost half of German citizens (49%) currently believe that Germany is threatened by foreign armed forces. By contrast, slightly fewer (40%) see no threat to the country's security.

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🇱🇧🇮🇱 Gaza will 'look like a playground compared to Lebanon' if Israel-Hezbollah clashes escalate

Further regional war may “end in the destruction of entire regions in Israel, but also in colossal destruction in Lebanon and Iran,” Dr. Shaul Bartal, a retired lieutenant colonel and researcher at Israel's Bar-Ilan University’s Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, told Sputnik.

Gaza will “look like a playground compared to Lebanon” if the current cross-border skirmishes between Israel and Hezbollah escalate, the researcher said.

With PM Benjamin Netanyahu threatening to expand the Gaza conflict into Lebanon against Hezbollah, the only solution to the current crisis is “a political agreement between Israel and the Lebanese government that keeps Hezbollah away from the border,” Dr. Bartal concluded.

If current Israel-Lebanon tensions were to spiral out of control, that could “impose a heavy toll on both countries in this conflict,” agreed Joseph Helou, assistant professor of political science and international affairs in the Department of Social and Education Sciences at the Lebanese American University.

💬 “Hezbollah has developed enormous capabilities in terms of techniques and military strategies, not only weaponry, which makes a conflict between two strong actors quite destructive,” the pundit remarked. According to Helou, the international community needs to quickly intervene to avoid further dangerous escalation.

“This international political sponsorship for the resolution of the conflict does not currently dominate the political horizon. It has yet to be achieved,” Helou noted. “But without such backing, the Middle East is unlikely to witness an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict.”

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