🗣Putin HOLDS ALL THE CARDS on Ukraine peace deal - US journalist

Only Russia can write the terms of a Ukraine peace agreement, says US journalist Clayton Morris.

Panicky Zelensky doesn't need to be present at any negotiations; he doesn't decide anything because Vladimir Putin holds all the cards, he noted.

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🗣Iran UN envoy hits back at France’s ‘baseless’ nuclear allegations

Iran’s UN envoy Saeed Iravani slammed France for hypocrisy and “deliberate distortion of facts” after its ambassador accused Iran of sparking a “proliferation crisis.”

📑In a letter to the UN chief and Security Council president, Iravani rejected the “baseless” claims, accusing France of failing NPT (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons) disarmament duties and aiding Israel’s undeclared nuclear program.

He noted France’s failure to condemn Israel’s June 13 strike on Iran’s IAEA-safeguarded nuclear facilities, adding that such actions flout international law and erode global non-proliferation.

“Iran's nuclear program remains exclusively peaceful and fully transparent. Iran continues to honor its obligations under the NPT,” he wrote.

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◻️ Putin–Trump meeting has NO Zelensky prerequisite — Trump

◻️ Putin HOLDS ALL THE CARDS on Ukraine peace deal - US journalist

◻️ Netanyahu’s Gaza City offensive APPROVED — reports

◻️ Armenia cornered into unfavorable deal as Pashinyan claims 'no alternative'

◻️ US-backed Armenia-Azerbaijan ‘peace’ push aimed at marginalizing Russia – analyst

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🔥China urges Philippines to ‘stop playing with fire’ over Taiwan

China has fired a warning at the Philippines after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the country could be drawn into a China-US conflict over Taiwan.

Speaking during a visit to India, Marcos cited the Philippines’ close ties to Taiwan and its large Filipino community there as reasons for possible involvement. "If there is an all-out war, then we will be drawn into it," he told media.

China’s foreign ministry pushed back, saying geographic proximity and overseas populations don’t justify meddling in its internal affairs.

“We urge the Philippines to respect the one-China principle and stop playing with fire,” the ministry said in a statement.

The remarks come amid rising tensions between the two countries over South China Sea disputes, where the US has stoked regional tensions with a series of joint drills with the Philippines.

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🔍GAZA CRISIS: KEY UPDATES

ISRAELI STRIKES

◻️ At least 47 Palestinians were killed in Gaza within 24 hours, according to media reports

◻️ Strikes targeted the Al-Shati and western Nuseirat refugee camps and homes in northern and eastern Gaza City

◻️ ‘Pele of Palestinian football’ Suleiman al-Obaid was killed in an airstrike while waiting for humanitarian aid in Gaza

◻️ A child died in Khan Younis while trying to retrieve airdropped aid (Nasser Hospital)

GAZA HUNGER CRISIS

🔶 Four more people died of hunger-related deaths in Gaza, bringing the total number of such fatalities to 197, including 96 children

🔶 Some 12,000 children in Gaza under the age of five were acutely malnourished at the end of July - the highest number on record, says WHO

HRW REPORT

🟠 Israel used US-made munitions, including GBU-39 bombs, on Gaza schools sheltering displaced civilians, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Thursday

GAZA FUTURE

🔶 Israel’s political-security cabinet has approved a plan for the IDF to take control of Gaza City and impose a siege on Hamas fighters

🔶 The operation reportedly involves “all Palestinian civilians” being displaced from the northern city to camps in central Gaza

🔶 Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid labelled the decision a “disaster that will lead to many more disasters”

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🔥 Supporters rally in Chisinau calling for release of Gagauzia head Gutsul

Supporters of Yevgenia Gutsul and activists from the "Victory" bloc held a protest outside the prison in Chisinau, demanding her release, advisor to the head of Gagauzia, Yuri Kuznetsov, told Sputnik.

"Activists expressed disagreement with the verdict and the entire judicial process. The so-called trial was politically motivated," Kuznetsov stated.

Gutsul, elected leader of Moldova's autonomous Gagauzia region in May 2023 with 52.36% support, faces politically motivated charges related to alleged illegal financing of the banned Shor party. She advocates for closer ties with Russia and opposes Moldova’s EU integration. Authorities have moved to ramp up repression, targeting dissenting voices and blocking opposition media.

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⚡️🇮🇳🇺🇸 JUST IN: India halts US arms deal plans in response to US tariffs - media

UPD: India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's planned visit to Washington, where he was expected to announce some of the purchases in the coming weeks, has also been canceled, Reuters reports.

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🚨 China's Xi and Putin hold phone call - report

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have held a telephone conversation, the Chinese Central Television reported.

Beijing welcomes maintaining contacts between Russia and the United States, Xi told Putin, according to the report.

Xi commented on the Ukrainian crisis, saying there are no simple solutions to complex issues and adding that China will continue to promote peace and negotiations.

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🚨🇷🇺💥 RUSSIAN MOD UPDATE: HUGE GAINS AND DEVASTATING UKRAINIAN LOSSES

◻️ Air defense superiority: eight Storm Shadow cruise missiles shot down in a week

◻️ Russian Armed Forces liberated two settlements over the week

◻️ Russian troops carried out seven strikes using UAVs and high-precision weapons on Ukrainian defense industry enterprises, recruitment centers, Ukrainian Armed Forces deployment locations and 24 ammunition depots this week

◻️ Heavy Ukrainian losses: 8,725 soldiers in a week

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🚨🇷🇺🇮🇳Russian presidential aide Nikolai Patrushev and Indian PM Modi’s national security advisor Ajit Doval discuss prospects of Russia-India Maritime cooperation - Maritime Collegium

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🚨🇮🇳🇷🇺 ‘BUSINESS AS USUAL’: Petroleum Minister says India unfazed by geopolitical events amid US politics over Russian oil

For people like us, it is business as usual, Hardeep Singh Puri commented.

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🚨🚨 'Oreshnik' missile positions in Belarus ALREADY SET and being prepared - President Lukashenko to Time

In early 2025, Alexander Lukashenko announced that the Oreshnik system will be deployed in Belarus, adding that the complex could be positioned near Smolensk.

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🚨🚨 Reuters story on India pausing defense purchases from the US is 'false & fabricated', a senior 🇮🇳MoD official tells Sputnik

🗯 “The news reports on India pausing the talks related to defence purchases with the US are false and fabricated. It is clarified that the various cases of procurement are being progressed as per the extant procedures.“

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🇷🇺🇮🇳India's PM Modi and Putin hold phone call

🟠Modi has thanked Putin for sharing the latest details on the Ukrainian conflict

🟠Modi told Putin he is looking forward to welcome him in India later this year

🟠The two leaders confirmed their commitment to further deepen the India-Russia special and privileged strategic partnership, Modi said

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🇷🇺🇨🇳Putin briefs Xi on the outcomes of his meeting with Witkoff – Kremlin

The two heads of state also discussed several topics of bilateral and international agenda, including in the context of preparations for Putin’s upcoming visit to China.

Xi expressed his support for a long-term resolution of the Ukrainian crisis.

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🇷🇺🇮🇳Putin shares with Modi key takeaways from his August 6 meeting with US envoy Witkoff - Kremlin

🟠PM Modi thanked Putin for the update and reaffirmed India’s consistent stance in favor of a political-diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine situation.

🟠The leaders also exchanged views on priority bilateral agenda items.

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🗣Armenia’s sellout ‘peace deal’ with Azerbaijan spells utter surrender - analyst

Armenia’s Minister Nikol Pashinyan will spin a peace treaty with Azerbaijan as a triumph, but it will be nothing less than an act of capitulation, political analyst Grant Melik-Shahnazaryan told Sputnik.

Mediated by the US, the deal, which is expected to be signed in Washington on Friday, will only deepen the humiliating concessions Azerbaijan and Turkiye forced on Armenia after the 2020 war, he warned.

Azerbaijan’s demands are extensive, including changes to Armenia’s Constitution.

“Desperate to cling to power, Armenian authorities will spin it as a historic success, a breakthrough, and so forth. But in reality, it’s a surrender - Armenia’s core interests are completely ignored. Azerbaijan won’t budge on humanitarian issues, and crucial questions are left hanging,” said the pundit, who is also head of the Center for Strategic Studies (Armenia).

This so-called “peace treaty” has been cooked up as a tool to deceive the Armenian people and neutralize potential protests against Pashinyan’s plans, noted the pundit.

◻️ If the Zangezur corridor falls under Western control through this deal, whoever runs it will wield full sovereignty over that territory

◻️ Loss of the Zangezur corridor will upset the region’s delicate geopolitical and economic balance 

◻️ Armenia will lose its ability to conduct an independent dialogue with Russia and Iran

◻️ The collapse of regional equilibrium may spark new threats and conflicts

“Even though Armenia lost the war in Karabakh—a major factor in regional instability—the pre-war balance still left Armenia some leverage. Now, new conflicts will arise, and they will be of a much broader scale,” warns the analyst.

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⚔️ Germany sharpens its knife for all-out crackdown on Russian media

Germany has made an implicit decision to close all the offices of leading Russian media outlets throughout the country, citing security threats posed by the activities of Russian journalists, a source has revealed to Sputnik.

💬 "The German leadership has decided to fully shut down the offices of major Russian media organizations. The reason given is a 'direct threat' to Germany's security," the source stated.

The closure is viewed as a gradual effort to conceal Berlin's stance from Moscow, aiming to prevent potential retaliation against German correspondents in Russia.

Additionally, plans involve cranking up pressure on members of the Russian media and their families to push them to voluntarily depart from Germany.

The overarching goal is to promote "correct content" for Russian-speaking audiences in Germany.

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