🗣 Trump convinced Russia and Ukraine ‘both want peace, but have to get to the table’

🔸 Speaking to Norway’s prime minister in Washington on Thursday, Trump complained about the “long time” his administration has waited for talks to start and said “I don’t like that it takes long at all.”

🔸 “We have…about 5,000 young people a week that are dying in that ridiculous war. I started out because I didn’t like all the money that we were paying and then I realized how many people were dying, and that’s by far the more important element right now.”

🔸 Trump confirmed that he had his own “deadline” for reaching an agreement, but did not name a date.

🔸 He added that he believes there's a consensus in NATO on ending the conflict.

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🤔 US to demand Russia acknowledge Ukraine’s right to a military

Trump special envoy is planning to ask President Putin to accept Ukraine’s “right to have its own army and defense industry” during the next talks.

That's according to sources speaking to Bloomberg on condition of anonymity.

Russia has made its conditions for ending its special military operation crystal clear: demilitarization, de-Nazification, and a non-aligned, non-nuclear Ukraine.

In the spring of 2022, Russia laid out a peace agreement, but according to President Putin, the Zelensky regime and the West tossed it “into the dustbin of history.” The deal? A Ukrainian army capped at 85,000 troops and a 15,000-member National Guard.

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😏 How do you like it, Donald? Iran building massive border wall with Afghanistan🇮🇷🇦🇫

The new $3.4B barrier is designed to help fight drugs and weapons smuggling, human trafficking and illegal immigration, prevent border clashes with terrorists and criminal gangs, and secure the movement of people and goods between the two countries.

🔸 The wall consists of reinforced concrete slabs measuring 4 meters high and 1.1 meters thick, with a razor wire topper.

🔸 It’s also being fitted with equipment the Army Ground Force engineers responsible for construction say is “at the cutting edge of technology,” including cameras and sensors, other smart electronic monitoring and surveillance equipment, precision-guided and network-centric defenses.

🔸 When all is said and done, the wall will span over 900 km. Up to 75 km have been completed to date, with 300 km+ more under construction in northern Iran’s Razavi Khorasan province. The project is set to be completed in three years.

🔸 Local authorities have dubbed the wall “one of the most important active and strategic projects” being undertaken by Iran today, given the pressing need to deal with border issues.

🔸 Besides security, Iran has struggled to accommodate an influx of up to 5 million Afghan refugees who fled Afghanistan after the collapse of the US puppet government and rise of the Taliban in 2021.

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🚨📹 India stops flow of Indus River to Pakistan

Social media footage allegedly shows one of the four dams on the Indus river, which is flowing from India to Pakistan.

Pakistan's National Security Committee said earlier that any attempt to divert the water flow would be considered an act of war.

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❗️ Russian FM Lavrov: Russia is ready to reach a deal on Ukraine, but some of its elements need to be "fine-tuned".

"There are several signs that we are moving in the right direction. First of all, because President Trump is probably the ONLY leader on earth who recognized the need to address the root causes of this situation," Lavrov told CBS News.

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🤪 So, Trump’s selling “Trump 2028” hats now - third term, anyone?

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🚨 West creates proxies, then blames Pakistan - Pakistani Defense Minister

"It is very convenient for the big powers to blame Pakistan... [These terrorist organizations] were being used as proxies by the United States," Khawaja Asif told Sky News.

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💥 Houthis' air defenses making the US sweat — 22 drones downed and counting

The Houthis' takedown of scores of MQ-9s and the US’s growing use of standoff munitions and B-2 bombers signal a growing threat from the Yemeni militia’s air defenses.

According to The War Zone, the Houthis’ ability, "at least to a degree," to domestically develop and field missiles is making them a significant challenge.

While not “super technologically advanced,” the Houthis are considered “pretty innovative,” a senior US defense official said.

🔶 Among their most modern weapons are the Barq-1 and Barq-2 SAMs, with a 50-70 km range and a 15-20 km altitude. They're believed to be upgrades of Soviet-era Kub and Buk systems.

🔶 Additionally, the Houthis have developed the Meraj “guerrilla air defense” missile, an upgraded Badr 1-P SAM.

🔶 They also use the Saqr (358) loitering missile, which tracks targets in a figure-eight pattern with infrared sensors resistant to countermeasures.

🔶 Some Houthi SAMs, like the Thaqib series, were created by repurposing old Soviet air-to-air missiles intended for Yemen's MiG-29 fleet, with one even capable of locking onto targets outside the line of sight and behind its launcher.

This week, pro-Houthi media reported a militia attempt to intercept a B-2 stealth bomber using air defenses, forcing it to retreat. The US, reluctant to even admit the use of B-2s in Yemen, has yet to comment.

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🚨 White House launches probe into 'straw donors' - ActBlue in hot water?

A new memorandum targets "unlawful" contributions in US elections, including those made by foreign actors.

"ActBlue has been caught funneling money from foreign countries, blatantly exploiting our campaign finance laws," Speaker Mike Johnson wrote on X, referring to the largest Democratic fundraising platform.

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❗️ Starmer hopes the ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached by the summer, he told the Telegraph.

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💥 India reports firing from Pakistan, no injuries

Small arms fire erupted at border posts between Pakistan and India, NDTV reported, citing army sources.

📹 Social media footage reportedly captures the sounds of gunfire from one of the border checkpoints.

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🔥RUSSIAN SPECIAL OP FIGHTER DODGES DRONE STRIKE

A Russian special forces soldier (Spetsnaz) on a quad bike swiftly evaded a Ukrainian drone strike near the settlement of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk People's Republic.

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