❗️Biden administration moves toward allowing American military contractors to deploy to Ukraine, reports CNN, citing four US officials familiar with the matter

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❗️Kenya mobilizes army to quell protests that have turned violent

Meanwhile, Kenyan President Ruto said he was open for talks with the opposition.

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Macron’s disastrous reign: highest deficit in EU, eviction from Africa, conflict with Russia

French President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to dissolve the parliament and call snap elections is a gamble, observers say. Macron hopes that his Renaissance party, which performed badly during the European elections and is now trailing the far-right National Rally — 15% versus 40% — will win back support by June 30.

However, Macron has ruled out resigning, promising to stay until May 2027. Sputnik sums up seven years of his rule, judging his legacy and French domestic and foreign policy.

◻️ According to the latest data from Agence France Trésor, France now has the largest public debt in Europe at €2.3 trillion ($2.5 trillion).

◻️ In 2023, the French budget deficit rose to 5.5% of GDP, from 4.8% in 2022, due to large loans that overtook the EU-imposed limit of 3%. Although Macron blamed the extra spending on COVID-19 measures, the EU recommended disciplinary action against Paris over its debt.

◻️ Le Monde reports that in an average French region, Brittany, “food prices have risen by 20% over two years and electricity by 70%” — showing how inflation, which hit 6% in 2023, has penalized the average French citizen.

◻️ During Macron’s seven years in office the number of violent crimes in France rose from 225,000 in 2016 to 384,000 in 2024, which means a growth by 1.7 times, according to Statista.

◻️ Macron’s presidency was also marked by massive protests, including by the Yellow Vest movement which opposed rises in fuel tax, and residents of the French overseas territory of New Caledonia over controversial changes to the constitution.

◻️ In foreign policy, Macron’s France wrecked relations with Russia by arming Ukraine and failing the guarantor mission entrusted to it by the Minsk accords of 2015.

◻️ Paris has also lost its influence in Africa, where the French military were evicted from Mali in June 2021 and Niger in December 2023.

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❗️Ninety Russian servicemen have been returned from territory controlled by Kiev in exchange for 90 Ukrainian Armed Forces prisoners of war. The UAE mediated the return of the Russian soldiers from captivity, according to the Russian Ministry of Defence.

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◻️ Assange plea deal: Biden’s ploy or a threat for future journalists?

◻️ What did Assange and WikiLeaks reveal to the world that global elites tried to hide? Part 1|Part 2

◻️ Assange, Snowden, Manning: Why does the West hate whistleblowers so much?

◻️ EU accelerates global move away from dollar and euro by grabbing Russia's funds

◻️ Macron’s disastrous reign: highest deficit in EU, eviction from Africa, conflict with Russia

◻️ Pepe Escobar: BRICS+ cities unite in Kazan, ushering in new era of cooperation

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❗️ US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, discussed the conflict over Ukraine and emphasized the importance of maintaining communications between the US and Russian militaries, Pentagon said.

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❗️ The Pentagon denied reports that it had changed its position on sending US troops or contractors to Ukraine: Biden's position has not changed, the Defense Department told Sputnik.

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The conversation between Austin and Belousov was initiated by the US, Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder said.

The last contact between the Russian and US defense ministers was on March 15 of last year, Ryder said.

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❗️ The US has no plans to send American troops to Ukraine now or in the future, the Pentagon said.

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"'Make Europe Great Again'. That sounds like a plan, if only anyone was on hand to implement it," concludes a disappointed The Economist.

The newspaper notes that Europe has many presidents but lacks a clear leader:

"Alas, all the putative leaders are currently hobbled. The most swiftly debased leader of Europe is Emmanuel Macron," sighs the author of the article.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz could fill the void, but his weak commitment to the EU and fragile coalition in Berlin limit his influence, writes the publication. It adds that with national capitals failing to perform their duties, Brussels has a chance to seize power. However, the terms of the EU's institutional leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, are coming to an end. The meeting on 17 June, aimed at appointing "three presidents"(to lead the commission, chair meetings of EU leaders and preside over the parliament), failed to reach a consensus.

Most likely, her candidacy will be nominated, the author predicts, noting that "even assuming the parliament backs her next month—which is not yet guaranteed—Mrs von der Leyen will spend much of the rest of the year haggling with national capitals and MEPs to build a team of commissioners."

In the interim, the EU's rotating presidency offers a temporary figure. From 1 July, this role will be taken on by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, known for his eurosceptic stance. On 18 June, he introduced the council's new slogan: "Make Europe Great Again." "That sounds like a plan, if only anyone was on hand to implement it," concludes the author.

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Russian Defense Ministry published video of Russian military personnel returned from Ukrainian captivity. Ninety Russian servicemen have been returned from territory controlled by Kiev in exchange for 90 Ukrainian Armed Forces prisoners of war.

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❗️Law enforcement personnel are present in the area of Gadzhiyev and Korkmasov streets in Russia's city of Makhachkala and asking the population to leave the area, the city authorities said.

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The head of the press service of the Dagestani Interior Ministry told Sputnik a manhunt had not been launched in the Russian city of Makhachkala.

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The situation on University Square in the Russian city of Makhachkala is calm and security measures have been strengthened as law enforcement personnel patrol the streets, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the scene.

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❗️ Police officers inspected the territory of the university square in Russia's Makhachkala and no violations of public order were found, the Dagestan Ministry of Internal Affairs reported.

A witness reported sighting an armed man on the street in Makhachkala but the information was not borne out, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Dagestan said.

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❗️ The plane carrying Julian Assange has landed on the island of Saipan, where the WikiLeaks founder is expected to be released after a hearing, Flightradar data shows.

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The beach was not the intended target of the Ukrainian attack on Sevastopol that killed four civilians and the Kiev regime chooses targets itself, the Pentagon told Sputnik.

On Sunday, the Ukrainian armed forces attacked Sevastopol, the largest city on the Crimean Peninsula, using US-supplied ATACMS missiles with cluster warheads, killing four people, including two children, and injuring 153 others.

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North Korea launched an unspecified ballistic missile toward the Sea of Japan, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported, citing the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The launch has been detected by the South Korean military but there are no further details on the matter, the news agency reported.

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The US government's case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange brought to light the importance of protecting free speech and freedom of the press in the United States, Congressman Paul Gosar's office said in a statement to Sputnik.

“The case against Julian Assange brought to light the importance of protecting free speech and free press and the consequences of restricting them," the statement said. "Assange had been unjustly imprisoned for daring to expose government misconduct and the true nature of the United States military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan and for releasing emails showing the Democratic National Committee colluded with Hillary Clinton."

Gosar's office added that although Assange will be free, he spent five unnecessary years in prison in the United Kingdom.

The US Justice Department expects Assange's guilty plea and sentencing to happen on Wednesday morning at a federal court in the Northern Mariana Islands, according to a court document provided to Sputnik.

Assange is expected to return to Australia at the conclusion of the proceedings, the Justice Department noted.

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