Do not involve your countries in a war that is not yours — Yemeni Armed Forces issues warning to the Saudi Coalition members
The kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Friday hosted a meeting of Chiefs of Staff and representatives from 43 countries and the European Union to discuss Riyadh’s initiative to establish a Multinational Maritime Defense Alliance.
The Saudi initiative aims to protect international maritime routes and counter threats targeting global commercial shipping and navigation.
The meeting discussed the alliance’s founding arrangements, including Saudi Arabia serving as the founding and leading nation.
Fourteen participating countries, including Egypt and Turkey, expressed support for the Multinational Maritime Defense Alliance initiative
Yemeni Armed Forces issues warning to the Saudi Coalition members
To the countries that have declared their alliance with the Saudi enemy and whose names were mentioned within the coalition and aggression against Yemen:
We clarify that the decision to impose a transit ban only included Saudi ships, in response to the brutal aggression that targeted our country.
Accordingly, we warn these countries against engaging in or participating in protecting Saudi ships or supporting their operations, and against dragging their countries into a confrontation that has nothing to do with them.
Any direct participation in protecting or supporting Saudi ships, as stated in the statement, will render the ships of those countries subject to the expansion of the ban decision to include them.
This is a final warning and a clear message: Do not involve your countries in a war that is not yours.
The Red Sea is not an open arena for those who wish to escalate, and any new step will be met with corresponding steps.
Do not involve your countries in a war that is not yours — Yemeni Armed Forces issues warning to the Saudi Coalition members
The kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Friday hosted a meeting of Chiefs of Staff and representatives from 43 countries and the European Union to discuss Riyadh’s initiative to establish a Multinational Maritime Defense Alliance.
The Saudi initiative aims to protect international maritime routes and counter threats targeting global commercial shipping and navigation.
The meeting discussed the alliance’s founding arrangements, including Saudi Arabia serving as the founding and leading nation.
Fourteen participating countries, including Egypt and Turkey, expressed support for the Multinational Maritime Defense Alliance initiative
Yemeni Armed Forces issues warning to the Saudi Coalition members
To the countries that have declared their alliance with the Saudi enemy and whose names were mentioned within the coalition and aggression against Yemen:
We clarify that the decision to impose a transit ban only included Saudi ships, in response to the brutal aggression that targeted our country.
Accordingly, we warn these countries against engaging in or participating in protecting Saudi ships or supporting their operations, and against dragging their countries into a confrontation that has nothing to do with them.
Any direct participation in protecting or supporting Saudi ships, as stated in the statement, will render the ships of those countries subject to the expansion of the ban decision to include them.
This is a final warning and a clear message: Do not involve your countries in a war that is not yours.
The Red Sea is not an open arena for those who wish to escalate, and any new step will be met with corresponding steps.
Russia has authority that the United States and France are directly helping Ukraine to target facilities in Russia federation.
' The assets in the crosshairs include Russia’s oil refineries, depots, and plants of the military-industrial complex, FT admits.
The new Western plot is to try attacking the facilities in such a way so as to keep them damaged for as long as possible, in hopes to make the conflict "more costly" for Russia.
The campaign reportedly has two objectives: limit Russia’s oil trade and reduce its ability to supply troops with weapons.
Another new aspect pointed out by the outlet is that Ukrainian drone units get advice from energy Ukraine’s specialists "on which components are indispensable to refinery operations and which would take the longest to replace" — using the fact both Russia and Ukraine have similar Soviet-designed energy systems.
On June 5, 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that deep strikes against Russian facilities are impossible for Ukraine to conduct on its own. Thus, such attacks transform the West into direct belligerents in the conflict.
"If we see that these countries are being drawn into a war against us, and this is precisely their direct participation in the war against the Russian Federation, then we reserve the right to act in a similar manner," Putin said.
The war against Russia in Ukraine hg as long been sustained by NATO and EU.
Russian response:
Russia Strikes on Ukraine’s military-industrial facilities to severely degrading the Ukrainian military’s ability to carry out deep strikes inside Russia, military experts tell Sputnik.
It is quite possible that the strikes were deliberately aimed at dismantling the production chain behind Ukraine's missile programs – Flamingo, Neptune, FP and Grom-2, notes retired Russian Navy Captain First Rank Vasily Dandykin
Degrading Ukraine’s production infrastructure has become a primary objective, as it cripples Ukraine's ability to target Russia's rear areas, military-political observer Mikhail Onufrienko says
The strikes will continue — and the heavier they become, the greater the Russian gains along the front line
Source: Sputnik
Russia has authority that the United States and France are directly helping Ukraine to target facilities in Russia federation.
' The assets in the crosshairs include Russia’s oil refineries, depots, and plants of the military-industrial complex, FT admits.
The new Western plot is to try attacking the facilities in such a way so as to keep them damaged for as long as possible, in hopes to make the conflict "more costly" for Russia.
The campaign reportedly has two objectives: limit Russia’s oil trade and reduce its ability to supply troops with weapons.
Another new aspect pointed out by the outlet is that Ukrainian drone units get advice from energy Ukraine’s specialists "on which components are indispensable to refinery operations and which would take the longest to replace" — using the fact both Russia and Ukraine have similar Soviet-designed energy systems.
On June 5, 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that deep strikes against Russian facilities are impossible for Ukraine to conduct on its own. Thus, such attacks transform the West into direct belligerents in the conflict.
"If we see that these countries are being drawn into a war against us, and this is precisely their direct participation in the war against the Russian Federation, then we reserve the right to act in a similar manner," Putin said.
The war against Russia in Ukraine hg as long been sustained by NATO and EU.
Russian response:
Russia Strikes on Ukraine’s military-industrial facilities to severely degrading the Ukrainian military’s ability to carry out deep strikes inside Russia, military experts tell Sputnik.
It is quite possible that the strikes were deliberately aimed at dismantling the production chain behind Ukraine's missile programs – Flamingo, Neptune, FP and Grom-2, notes retired Russian Navy Captain First Rank Vasily Dandykin
Degrading Ukraine’s production infrastructure has become a primary objective, as it cripples Ukraine's ability to target Russia's rear areas, military-political observer Mikhail Onufrienko says
The strikes will continue — and the heavier they become, the greater the Russian gains along the front line
Following the Ukraine's attack on Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, Tehran has saut it will not go unattended to.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov described the strike as a “blatant UN Charter violation," asserting it was carried out at Israel’s urging in an effort to pull Europe deeper into the middle east conflict.
Earlier, Ukrainian forces targeted an Iranian commercial ship in the Caspian Sea, resulting in one fatality and multiple injuries.
Araghchi on his X post lashes out at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calling him the “freeloader in Kyiv” as he accuses Ukraine of carrying out a deadly attack on an Iranian commercial vessel and warns that it “cannot go unanswered.”
Iranian FM said he had made it clear during phone calls with European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that “what the freeloader in Kyiv did cannot go unanswered.”
An Iranian military sources are suggesting IRGC may soon directly strike Ukraine interests or supply Russia with short-range ballistic missiles, in response to Kyiv's drone attack on an Iranian vessel in the Caspian Sea that killed a sailor, per Iranian outlets.
Having formally notified Russia and the EU. The IRGC is reportedly considering a retaliatory ballistic missile strike against a strategic target in Kyiv, with the Khorramshahr-4 missile capable of reaching Ukraine.
The source suggests Iran could also escalate by sending short-range ballistic missiles to Russia. The conflict is expanding — and Tehran is weighing its options.
Iranian FM
Following the Ukraine's attack on Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, Tehran has saut it will not go unattended to.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov described the strike as a “blatant UN Charter violation," asserting it was carried out at Israel’s urging in an effort to pull Europe deeper into the middle east conflict.
Earlier, Ukrainian forces targeted an Iranian commercial ship in the Caspian Sea, resulting in one fatality and multiple injuries.
Araghchi on his X post lashes out at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calling him the “freeloader in Kyiv” as he accuses Ukraine of carrying out a deadly attack on an Iranian commercial vessel and warns that it “cannot go unanswered.”
Iranian FM said he had made it clear during phone calls with European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that “what the freeloader in Kyiv did cannot go unanswered.”
An Iranian military sources are suggesting IRGC may soon directly strike Ukraine interests or supply Russia with short-range ballistic missiles, in response to Kyiv's drone attack on an Iranian vessel in the Caspian Sea that killed a sailor, per Iranian outlets.
Having formally notified Russia and the EU. The IRGC is reportedly considering a retaliatory ballistic missile strike against a strategic target in Kyiv, with the Khorramshahr-4 missile capable of reaching Ukraine.
The source suggests Iran could also escalate by sending short-range ballistic missiles to Russia. The conflict is expanding — and Tehran is weighing its options.
Tehran now considers all European Union militaries to be terrorist groups, the speaker of its parliament says, days after the EU declared Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to be a terrorist group.
Iran's speaker of parliament Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf has said that the Islamic Republic now considers all European Union militaries to be terrorist groups.
The comment by Speaker follows an EU agreement last week to list Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist group over its part in the bloody crackdown on nationwide protests in the country.
Qalibaf cited a 2019 law as authorization for the announcement. That law was passed after the U.S. listed the Guard as a terrorist group and allows for reciprocal action by Iran against any nations that follow that decision.
Qalibaf made the announcement as he and others wore Guard uniforms in parliament. Qalibaf was a commander in the Guard.
Iran's ballistic missile
Tehran now considers all European Union militaries to be terrorist groups, the speaker of its parliament says, days after the EU declared Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to be a terrorist group.
Iran's speaker of parliament Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf has said that the Islamic Republic now considers all European Union militaries to be terrorist groups.
The comment by Speaker follows an EU agreement last week to list Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist group over its part in the bloody crackdown on nationwide protests in the country.
Qalibaf cited a 2019 law as authorization for the announcement. That law was passed after the U.S. listed the Guard as a terrorist group and allows for reciprocal action by Iran against any nations that follow that decision.
Qalibaf made the announcement as he and others wore Guard uniforms in parliament. Qalibaf was a commander in the Guard.
The entire leadership of the Nepal including the President, cabinet Ministers and other Politicians have Fled the country after Massive protests by the Youths .
The youths complained about Politicians’s kids schooling abroad and living lavishly while they suffer back home and the government ignored . They complained about corruption and they ignored . T hey said they can’t keep suffering while Politicians’kids enjoy outside of the country while they pay tax.
After an endless ranting on the social media, the Nepal's government wants to shut them up by banning social media in the country. That was the genesis of the ongoing protests in the country.
Similar to the case of Nigerians, people are suffering and life is getting difficult for the common citizens but the Tinubu lead APC government is not doing anything to easy the suffering of the more than majority. The purchasing power of the people has been drastically reduced as Naira is worthless.
The Opposition political parties have been intentionally crippled and crumbled. Insecurities are on the rise.
Should Nepal's Youths actions motivate Nigeria Youths to rise and challenge this bad governance or keep on praying without action?
What do you think?
The entire leadership of the Nepal including the President, cabinet Ministers and other Politicians have Fled the country after Massive protests by the Youths .
The youths complained about Politicians’s kids schooling abroad and living lavishly while they suffer back home and the government ignored . They complained about corruption and they ignored . T hey said they can’t keep suffering while Politicians’kids enjoy outside of the country while they pay tax.
After an endless ranting on the social media, the Nepal's government wants to shut them up by banning social media in the country. That was the genesis of the ongoing protests in the country.
Similar to the case of Nigerians, people are suffering and life is getting difficult for the common citizens but the Tinubu lead APC government is not doing anything to easy the suffering of the more than majority. The purchasing power of the people has been drastically reduced as Naira is worthless.
The Opposition political parties have been intentionally crippled and crumbled. Insecurities are on the rise.
Should Nepal's Youths actions motivate Nigeria Youths to rise and challenge this bad governance or keep on praying without action?
American billionaires Elon Musk has pressed for the United States' withdrawal from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), questioning the logic of America shouldering the cost of Europe's defence
American billionaires Elon Musk has pressed for the United States' withdrawal from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), questioning the logic of America shouldering the cost of Europe's defence
Schools the EU Parliament on the reasons behind the Russia Ukraine Conflict.
This doesn’t even include some of the more grotesque activities Ukraine has been well documented as being involved in.
For years, he was hailed a hero. For some, he still is. Now he's exposed.
Here’s the history of the Ukraine & Volodomyr Zelenskyy you won't hear from the media.
Zelenskyy has never had the cards. He isn’t some brave leader calling the shots. He’s a desperate man, clinging to power in a collapsing regime—propped up by Western money, weapons & propaganda. And with Ukraine losing the PR war & real war, he's panicking.
Ukraine wasn't an independent actor in this war. The real power brokers are in Washington, Brussels & London, playing their geopolitical games.
This war was engineered to weaken Russia. To understand that, you need to understand the history that they’ll never tell you.
Ukraine and Russia have been bound together for over 1,000 years. Kiev, Ukraine’s capital, once the heart of Kievan Rus—the first great Slavic state—laid the foundations for Russia itself. Ukraine’s very name means "borderland"—which means the borderland of Russia.
For centuries, it was an integral part of the Russian Empire, not some “oppressed” nation. Even during the Soviet era, Ukraine wasn’t occupied—it was central to the USSR. Even Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev was Ukrainian.
When the USSR collapsed, Ukraine became independent and Washington stepped in—not to help Ukraine, but to weaponise it against Russia.
The U.S. & NATO lied to Gorbachev, promising they wouldn’t expand “one inch eastward." Yet NATO moved into Poland and the Baltic States.
Ukraine was the ultimate NATO prize.
The West poured billions into Ukraine—funding pro-NATO political groups, NGOs & media to manufacture an anti-Russian state.
In 2004, the CIA backed the "Orange Revolution," overturning an election that favoured a pro-Russian candidate.
The real coup came in 2014.
Ukraine’s democratically elected president, Viktor Yanukovych, rejected an EU trade deal that would have destroyed Ukraine’s economy. That was unacceptable to Washington. So they removed him via a manufactured colour revolution.
The so-called "Maidan Revolution" wasn’t a grassroots movement. It was a CIA-backed coup—orchestrated by officials like Victoria Nuland. So brazen was Washington, that Nuland was even caught on a leaked call, handpicking Ukraine’s next leader before Yanukovych was gone.
The violent mobs that took over Kiev weren’t peaceful protesters. They were led by neo-Nazi groups like Azov Battalion—groups that openly celebrate Nazi collaborators and wear SS insignia.
These same groups now receive Western weapons.
The post-coup regime then banned the Russian language—directly attacking millions of Russian-speaking Ukrainians in the east.
That’s when Donbass & Crimea said enough. Crimea held a referendum—over 90% voted to return to Russia. The Donbass also voted for independence.
The people of the Donbass rejected Kiev—but Kiev wouldn’t let them go. Instead, they launched a brutal war on their own people, shelling civilians for eight years. Where was the Western outrage? Nowhere!
And what about Zelenskyy? Who is he? Is he an organic leader who came from nowhere or was he installed?
Covert Action reported that, in 2020, Zelenskyy secretly met with MI6 head Richard Moore. Why would a foreign president meet with the UK’s top spy instead of its PM?
Is Zelenskyy a UK asset? According to reports, he is personally protected by British, not Ukrainian security. When he visited the Vatican, he snubbed the Pope and met with a British bishop. Guess who else was there? Richard Moore from MI6 again! That's some coincidence.
Before politics, Zelenskyy was a comedian and actor—literally playing the president on a TV show. Then, with the help of Western PR teams, fiction became reality.
His campaign was funded by oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, who owned Ukraine’s largest oil company and bank.
Once in power, Zelenskyy’s priority wasn’t fighting corruption—it was making sure BlackRock & Western banks took over Ukraine’s economy.
Meanwhile, he funnelled millions into offshore accounts, and is alleged to have acquired a $34m mansion in Miami as well as a £multi London apartment. Nothing would surprise me if he did.
By 2022, NATO had armed Ukraine to the teeth, and Kiev had amassed forces near Donbass.
Russia had a choice:
Let Donbass face ethnic cleansing;
Let NATO turn Ukraine into a military base;
Or,
Intervene.
They intervened, just as other nations would in those circumstances.
The media screamed “unprovoked invasion.” But NATO expansion, the 2014 coup, eight years of war on Donbass—this war was provoked every step of the way.
Ukraine was set up as a pawn.
With Ukraine losing, Zelenskyy is being abandoned. Donald Trump told him: "You don’t have the cards." And he’s right. This war was engineered. Ukraine needed Western intervention to win and that would mean that WW3 would/could be inevitable. It’s time the world wakes up to that reality.
The war in Ukraine was deliberately provoked by the West. Zelenskyy is just another puppet—his time is running out...and Trump knows that.
Know who the true good guys and the bad guys are as regards the Russian vs Ukraine conflict before you take sides.
Credit: James William Keyler
Geo-Political Scholar Jeffrey Sachs
Schools the EU Parliament on the reasons behind the Russia Ukraine Conflict.
This doesn’t even include some of the more grotesque activities Ukraine has been well documented as being involved in.
For years, he was hailed a hero. For some, he still is. Now he's exposed.
Here’s the history of the Ukraine & Volodomyr Zelenskyy you won't hear from the media.
Zelenskyy has never had the cards. He isn’t some brave leader calling the shots. He’s a desperate man, clinging to power in a collapsing regime—propped up by Western money, weapons & propaganda. And with Ukraine losing the PR war & real war, he's panicking.
Ukraine wasn't an independent actor in this war. The real power brokers are in Washington, Brussels & London, playing their geopolitical games.
This war was engineered to weaken Russia. To understand that, you need to understand the history that they’ll never tell you.
Ukraine and Russia have been bound together for over 1,000 years. Kiev, Ukraine’s capital, once the heart of Kievan Rus—the first great Slavic state—laid the foundations for Russia itself. Ukraine’s very name means "borderland"—which means the borderland of Russia.
For centuries, it was an integral part of the Russian Empire, not some “oppressed” nation. Even during the Soviet era, Ukraine wasn’t occupied—it was central to the USSR. Even Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev was Ukrainian.
When the USSR collapsed, Ukraine became independent and Washington stepped in—not to help Ukraine, but to weaponise it against Russia.
The U.S. & NATO lied to Gorbachev, promising they wouldn’t expand “one inch eastward." Yet NATO moved into Poland and the Baltic States.
Ukraine was the ultimate NATO prize.
The West poured billions into Ukraine—funding pro-NATO political groups, NGOs & media to manufacture an anti-Russian state.
In 2004, the CIA backed the "Orange Revolution," overturning an election that favoured a pro-Russian candidate.
The real coup came in 2014.
Ukraine’s democratically elected president, Viktor Yanukovych, rejected an EU trade deal that would have destroyed Ukraine’s economy. That was unacceptable to Washington. So they removed him via a manufactured colour revolution.
The so-called "Maidan Revolution" wasn’t a grassroots movement. It was a CIA-backed coup—orchestrated by officials like Victoria Nuland. So brazen was Washington, that Nuland was even caught on a leaked call, handpicking Ukraine’s next leader before Yanukovych was gone.
The violent mobs that took over Kiev weren’t peaceful protesters. They were led by neo-Nazi groups like Azov Battalion—groups that openly celebrate Nazi collaborators and wear SS insignia.
These same groups now receive Western weapons.
The post-coup regime then banned the Russian language—directly attacking millions of Russian-speaking Ukrainians in the east.
That’s when Donbass & Crimea said enough. Crimea held a referendum—over 90% voted to return to Russia. The Donbass also voted for independence.
The people of the Donbass rejected Kiev—but Kiev wouldn’t let them go. Instead, they launched a brutal war on their own people, shelling civilians for eight years. Where was the Western outrage? Nowhere!
And what about Zelenskyy? Who is he? Is he an organic leader who came from nowhere or was he installed?
Covert Action reported that, in 2020, Zelenskyy secretly met with MI6 head Richard Moore. Why would a foreign president meet with the UK’s top spy instead of its PM?
Is Zelenskyy a UK asset? According to reports, he is personally protected by British, not Ukrainian security. When he visited the Vatican, he snubbed the Pope and met with a British bishop. Guess who else was there? Richard Moore from MI6 again! That's some coincidence.
Before politics, Zelenskyy was a comedian and actor—literally playing the president on a TV show. Then, with the help of Western PR teams, fiction became reality.
His campaign was funded by oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, who owned Ukraine’s largest oil company and bank.
Once in power, Zelenskyy’s priority wasn’t fighting corruption—it was making sure BlackRock & Western banks took over Ukraine’s economy.
Meanwhile, he funnelled millions into offshore accounts, and is alleged to have acquired a $34m mansion in Miami as well as a £multi London apartment. Nothing would surprise me if he did.
By 2022, NATO had armed Ukraine to the teeth, and Kiev had amassed forces near Donbass.
Russia had a choice:
Let Donbass face ethnic cleansing;
Let NATO turn Ukraine into a military base;
Or,
Intervene.
They intervened, just as other nations would in those circumstances.
The media screamed “unprovoked invasion.” But NATO expansion, the 2014 coup, eight years of war on Donbass—this war was provoked every step of the way.
Ukraine was set up as a pawn.
With Ukraine losing, Zelenskyy is being abandoned. Donald Trump told him: "You don’t have the cards." And he’s right. This war was engineered. Ukraine needed Western intervention to win and that would mean that WW3 would/could be inevitable. It’s time the world wakes up to that reality.
The war in Ukraine was deliberately provoked by the West. Zelenskyy is just another puppet—his time is running out...and Trump knows that.
Know who the true good guys and the bad guys are as regards the Russian vs Ukraine conflict before you take sides.
France captain Kylian Mbappe said Thursday it was “really urgent” to vote in the second round of legislative elections in the country after the far-right National Rally emerged as the biggest party in last weekend’s first round. “I think more than ever we need to go out and vote. We can’t leave our country in the hands of these people,” Mbappe said at a press conference in Hamburg ahead of France’s Euro 2024 quarter-final against Portugal there on Friday.
France captain Kylian Mbappe said Thursday it was “really urgent” to vote in the second round of legislative elections in the country after the far-right National Rally emerged as the biggest party in last weekend’s first round. “I think more than ever we need to go out and vote. We can’t leave our country in the hands of these people,” Mbappe said at a press conference in Hamburg ahead of France’s Euro 2024 quarter-final against Portugal there on Friday.
In pictures: Slovak president transported on hospital bed
Pictures have just been released of Robert Fico being transported on a hospital gurney.
The Slovak prime minister is covered by a white sheet.
Multiple emergency service workers are seen pushing the hospital bed after Mr Fico arrived at the Banska Bystrica Hospital after being transported via air ambulance.
Slovakia's government office said earlier (see our 3.07pm post) that Mr Fico is a life-threatening condition.
Credit: Sky News and AP
In pictures: Slovak president transported on hospital bed
Pictures have just been released of Robert Fico being transported on a hospital gurney.
The Slovak prime minister is covered by a white sheet.
Multiple emergency service workers are seen pushing the hospital bed after Mr Fico arrived at the Banska Bystrica Hospital after being transported via air ambulance.
Slovakia's government office said earlier (see our 3.07pm post) that Mr Fico is a life-threatening condition.
The attack on Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico is appalling.
We strongly condemn this act of violence against our neighboring partner state's head of government. Every effort should be made to ensure that violence does not become the norm in any country, form, or sphere.…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 15, 2024
The attack on Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico is appalling.
We strongly condemn this act of violence against our neighboring partner state's head of government. Every effort should be made to ensure that violence does not become the norm in any country, form, or sphere.…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 15, 2024
Slovakia’s populist prime minister, Robert Fico, was injured in an attack on Wednesday, according to multiple sources.
Local media, according to the New York Times, reported that Mr. Fico, a veteran politician, had been shot and wounded in the central Slovakian town of Handlova, where he had been meeting with supporters.
President Zuzana Caputova, whose pro-Western stance has put her at odds with Mr. Fico, condemned what she described as a “brutal and reckless attack.”
“I am shocked,” she wrote in a message on Facebook. “I wish Robert Fico a lot of strength in this critical moment to recover from the attack.”
The extent of Mr. Fico’s injuries was not immediately known. There was no immediate comment from the prime minister’s office or from the police.
Images from the scene published by the Reuters news agency showing what appeared to be members of Mr. Fico’s security detail running around a black sedan. Other images showed a person handcuffed on the ground at the scene.
Ms. Caputova, whose term ends in June, has used her limited powers to resist Mr. Fico’s drift toward Russia and his efforts to limit the judiciary’s ability to prosecute corruption.
Mr. Fico has aligned with the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, in opposing aid to Ukraine and challenging mainstream opinions within the European Union.
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission who has butted heads with Mr. Fico in the past, said she strongly condemned the “vile attack.”
“Such acts of violence have no place in our society and undermine democracy, our most precious common good,” she wrote on social media.
I strongly condemn the vile attack on Prime Minister Robert Fico.
Such acts of violence have no place in our society and undermine democracy, our most precious common good.
My thoughts are with PM Fico and his family.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) May 15, 2024
Mr. Fico, who ended an earlier stint as prime minister by resigning in 2018 amid a swirl of corruption accusations, has also followed Mr. Orban in trying to neuter his country’s judiciary and in casting supporters of Ukraine as disloyal lackeys of the United States.
Mr. Fico returned to power after a general election in September, reviving a political career that many had considered over when he quit amid large street protests after the killing of an investigative journalist who had been looking into government graft.
Slovak president-elect says 'assassination attempt' a threat to democracy
Slovak president-elect Peter Pellegrini says the suspected assassination attempt on Robert Fico is "a threat to everything that has adorned Slovak democracy so far".
He said he learned the news of an attack on the prime minister "with horror".
"I am horrified by where the hatred towards another political opinion can lead," he said in a post to X.
"An assassination attempt on one of the highest constitutional officials is an unprecedented threat to Slovak democracy."
Slovakia’s populist prime minister, Robert Fico, was injured in an attack on Wednesday, according to multiple sources.
Local media, according to the New York Times, reported that Mr. Fico, a veteran politician, had been shot and wounded in the central Slovakian town of Handlova, where he had been meeting with supporters.
President Zuzana Caputova, whose pro-Western stance has put her at odds with Mr. Fico, condemned what she described as a “brutal and reckless attack.”
“I am shocked,” she wrote in a message on Facebook. “I wish Robert Fico a lot of strength in this critical moment to recover from the attack.”
The extent of Mr. Fico’s injuries was not immediately known. There was no immediate comment from the prime minister’s office or from the police.
Images from the scene published by the Reuters news agency showing what appeared to be members of Mr. Fico’s security detail running around a black sedan. Other images showed a person handcuffed on the ground at the scene.
Ms. Caputova, whose term ends in June, has used her limited powers to resist Mr. Fico’s drift toward Russia and his efforts to limit the judiciary’s ability to prosecute corruption.
Mr. Fico has aligned with the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, in opposing aid to Ukraine and challenging mainstream opinions within the European Union.
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission who has butted heads with Mr. Fico in the past, said she strongly condemned the “vile attack.”
“Such acts of violence have no place in our society and undermine democracy, our most precious common good,” she wrote on social media.
I strongly condemn the vile attack on Prime Minister Robert Fico.
Such acts of violence have no place in our society and undermine democracy, our most precious common good.
My thoughts are with PM Fico and his family.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) May 15, 2024
Mr. Fico, who ended an earlier stint as prime minister by resigning in 2018 amid a swirl of corruption accusations, has also followed Mr. Orban in trying to neuter his country’s judiciary and in casting supporters of Ukraine as disloyal lackeys of the United States.
Mr. Fico returned to power after a general election in September, reviving a political career that many had considered over when he quit amid large street protests after the killing of an investigative journalist who had been looking into government graft.
Slovak president-elect says 'assassination attempt' a threat to democracy
Slovak president-elect Peter Pellegrini says the suspected assassination attempt on Robert Fico is "a threat to everything that has adorned Slovak democracy so far".
He said he learned the news of an attack on the prime minister "with horror".
"I am horrified by where the hatred towards another political opinion can lead," he said in a post to X.
"An assassination attempt on one of the highest constitutional officials is an unprecedented threat to Slovak democracy."
Former Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who warned that Liz Truss’s economic plans for Britain were a “fairy tale,” is now the new Prime Minister of the UK taking over the world’s sixth-biggest economy at a time of deep financial and political turbulence.
Mr. Sunak’s rise to the top job in Britain marks a historic moment.
The grandson of Indian immigrants to Britain, the 42-year-old will be the first person of color and the first Hindu to lead the U.K. He will also be the youngest prime minister since Robert Banks Jenkinson, Earl of Liverpool, in 1812.
The former hedge-fund manager arrives with a mandate to bring calm to the ruling Conservative Party following a period of unparalleled chaos that will see the country run by three prime ministers in seven weeks—a first for the U.K.
Mr. Sunak takes over from Ms. Truss, who became the shortest-serving prime minister in British history after her flagship economic program to stimulate the economy with tax cuts at a time of high inflation was rejected by investors, causing the pound to sink to a record low and the Bank of England to intervene in bond markets to stabilize the price of U.K. government debt. Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who warned that Liz Truss’s economic plans for Britain were a “fairy tale,” is now the new Prime Minister of the UK taking over the world’s sixth-biggest economy at a time of deep financial and political turbulence.
Mr. Sunak’s rise to the top job in Britain marks a historic moment.
The grandson of Indian immigrants to Britain, the 42-year-old will be the first person of color and the first Hindu to lead the U.K. He will also be the youngest prime minister since Robert Banks Jenkinson, Earl of Liverpool, in 1812.
The former hedge-fund manager arrives with a mandate to bring calm to the ruling Conservative Party following a period of unparalleled chaos that will see the country run by three prime ministers in seven weeks—a first for the U.K.
Mr. Sunak takes over from Ms. Truss, who became the shortest-serving prime minister in British history after her flagship economic program to stimulate the economy with tax cuts at a time of high inflation was rejected by investors, causing the pound to sink to a record low and the Bank of England to intervene in bond markets to stabilize the price of U.K. government debt.
Former Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who warned that Liz Truss’s economic plans for Britain were a “fairy tale,” is now the new Prime Minister of the UK taking over the world’s sixth-biggest economy at a time of deep financial and political turbulence.
Mr. Sunak’s rise to the top job in Britain marks a historic moment.
The grandson of Indian immigrants to Britain, the 42-year-old will be the first person of color and the first Hindu to lead the U.K. He will also be the youngest prime minister since Robert Banks Jenkinson, Earl of Liverpool, in 1812.
The former hedge-fund manager arrives with a mandate to bring calm to the ruling Conservative Party following a period of unparalleled chaos that will see the country run by three prime ministers in seven weeks—a first for the U.K.
Mr. Sunak takes over from Ms. Truss, who became the shortest-serving prime minister in British history after her flagship economic program to stimulate the economy with tax cuts at a time of high inflation was rejected by investors, causing the pound to sink to a record low and the Bank of England to intervene in bond markets to stabilize the price of U.K. government debt. Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who warned that Liz Truss’s economic plans for Britain were a “fairy tale,” is now the new Prime Minister of the UK taking over the world’s sixth-biggest economy at a time of deep financial and political turbulence.
Mr. Sunak’s rise to the top job in Britain marks a historic moment.
The grandson of Indian immigrants to Britain, the 42-year-old will be the first person of color and the first Hindu to lead the U.K. He will also be the youngest prime minister since Robert Banks Jenkinson, Earl of Liverpool, in 1812.
The former hedge-fund manager arrives with a mandate to bring calm to the ruling Conservative Party following a period of unparalleled chaos that will see the country run by three prime ministers in seven weeks—a first for the U.K.
Mr. Sunak takes over from Ms. Truss, who became the shortest-serving prime minister in British history after her flagship economic program to stimulate the economy with tax cuts at a time of high inflation was rejected by investors, causing the pound to sink to a record low and the Bank of England to intervene in bond markets to stabilize the price of U.K. government debt.
German industrial production dropped beyond expectations
Aggressive sanctions against Russia are sending financial shockwaves through Germany
Germany will be battered with a wave of bankruptcies due to Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia, according to Commerzbank Chief Executive Officer Manfred Knof.
“The energy supply in Germany is at risk, supply chains are breaking down, we have high inflation,” Knof was quoted by the Handelsblatt daily as saying.
According to the executive, almost a third of Germany’s foreign trade has been impacted, forcing companies to navigate complex issues with customers, including surging commodity prices and supply-chain bottlenecks.
“We shouldn’t delude ourselves: the number of insolvencies in our markets will probably increase and the risk provisions of the banks with it,” Knof said.
On Friday, top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said the bloc’s foreign ministers will meet next week should member states fail to reach an agreement by the weekend on banning Russian oil.
Brussels unveiled plans for a Russian oil embargo earlier this week. The measure is expected to come into force within nine months, with the timeframe varying for different petroleum products.
Several EU nations including Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic are seeking an exemption from the ban.
Already for Germany which is the largest Europe's economy, industrial production dropped more than expected in March, data released on Friday by the country’s statistics office shows. According to Destatis, Covid-related supply chain issues have been exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine.
Production slid by 3.9% last month following a 0.1% increase in February, far outstripping expectations of a one-percent decline. On an annual basis, industrial output slumped by 3.5% in March following a 3.1% jump the month before.
Manufacturing production lost 4.6% in March and energy production was down 11.4%, while construction output gained 1.1%, according to the data. On Thursday, it was reported that manufacturing orders logged a 4.7% month-on-month decline in March.
The largest drop was recorded for capital goods, used by businesses in production, which tumbled by 8.3%.
“In these politically and economically difficult times, the decrease also shows a growing reluctance to invest,” the statistics office said in a statement.
Foreign orders from outside the eurozone nosedived 13.2% in March, while demand from inside the area strengthened by 5.6%. Domestic orders edged down by 1.8%.
“Many enterprises still have problems completing their orders because of interruptions in supply chains, which is due to continuing Covid-19 crisis restrictions and the war in Ukraine,” Destatis said.
German industrial production dropped beyond expectations
Aggressive sanctions against Russia are sending financial shockwaves through Germany
Germany will be battered with a wave of bankruptcies due to Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia, according to Commerzbank Chief Executive Officer Manfred Knof.
“The energy supply in Germany is at risk, supply chains are breaking down, we have high inflation,” Knof was quoted by the Handelsblatt daily as saying.
According to the executive, almost a third of Germany’s foreign trade has been impacted, forcing companies to navigate complex issues with customers, including surging commodity prices and supply-chain bottlenecks.
“We shouldn’t delude ourselves: the number of insolvencies in our markets will probably increase and the risk provisions of the banks with it,” Knof said.
On Friday, top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said the bloc’s foreign ministers will meet next week should member states fail to reach an agreement by the weekend on banning Russian oil.
Brussels unveiled plans for a Russian oil embargo earlier this week. The measure is expected to come into force within nine months, with the timeframe varying for different petroleum products.
Several EU nations including Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic are seeking an exemption from the ban.
Already for Germany which is the largest Europe's economy, industrial production dropped more than expected in March, data released on Friday by the country’s statistics office shows. According to Destatis, Covid-related supply chain issues have been exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine.
Production slid by 3.9% last month following a 0.1% increase in February, far outstripping expectations of a one-percent decline. On an annual basis, industrial output slumped by 3.5% in March following a 3.1% jump the month before.
Manufacturing production lost 4.6% in March and energy production was down 11.4%, while construction output gained 1.1%, according to the data. On Thursday, it was reported that manufacturing orders logged a 4.7% month-on-month decline in March.
The largest drop was recorded for capital goods, used by businesses in production, which tumbled by 8.3%.
“In these politically and economically difficult times, the decrease also shows a growing reluctance to invest,” the statistics office said in a statement.
Foreign orders from outside the eurozone nosedived 13.2% in March, while demand from inside the area strengthened by 5.6%. Domestic orders edged down by 1.8%.
“Many enterprises still have problems completing their orders because of interruptions in supply chains, which is due to continuing Covid-19 crisis restrictions and the war in Ukraine,” Destatis said.
Washington Post reports at the weekend confirmed that a renewed buildup of Russian troops near the Ukrainian border has raised concern among some officials in the United States and Europe who are tracking what they consider irregular movements of equipment and personnel on Russia’s western flank.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's defence ministry on Monday denied any media report of a Russian military buildup near its border, saying it had not observed an increase in forces or weaponry, Reuters reported on Monday
"As of November 1, 2021, an additional transfer of Russian units, weapons and military equipment to the state border of Ukraine was not recorded," the Ukrainian defence ministry said in a statement.
However, accordint to the WP reports, the US officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly, said the troop movements have reignited concerns that arose in april, when the largest buildup of troops by russia near the ukrainian border in years sparked an international outcry.
The renewed movements of russian forces in the area come as the kremlin embraces a harder line on ukraine. Russian officials from president Vladimir Putin on down have escalated their rhetoric in recent months, attacking kyiv’s western ties and even questioning its sovereignty.
Putin has warned that any expansion of NATO military infrastructure on ukrainiayn territory represents a “red line” for moscow.
The situation also comes as the simmering 7½-year conflict between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists in the eastern Donbas region enters a new stage. On Oct. 26, Ukraine’s military confirmed it had used a Turkish-made drone against a position in Donbas, the first time Kyiv has employed the technology in combat, prompting an outcry from Moscow.
Relations between Moscow and NATO are especially tense. Russia suspended its mission to NATO in Brussels on Oct. 18 after the alliance expelled eight members of the Russian mission on accusations of espionage.
What the Russian forces gathering near the Ukrainian border are doing is unclear.
Videos have surfaced on social media in recent days showing Russian military trains and convoys moving large quantities of military hardware, including tanks and missiles, in southern and western Russia.
"The point is: It is not a drill. It doesn’t appear to be a training exercise. Something is happening. What is it?” said Michael Kofman, director of the Russia studies program at the Virginia-based nonprofit analysis group CNA.
Officials in the United States and Europe began noticing the movements particularly in recent weeks, after Russia concluded a massive joint military exercise with Belarus known as Zapad 2021 on its western flank in mid-September.
According to Kofman, publicly available satellite imagery shows that forces from Russia’s 41st Combined Arms Army, normally based in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, didn’t return to Siberia after the exercises, and instead linked up with other Russian forces near the Ukrainian border. Kofman also said footage posted online appears to show that Russia’s 1st Guards Tank Army, an elite unit based outside Moscow, is moving personnel and materiel toward Ukraine.
Washington Post reports at the weekend confirmed that a renewed buildup of Russian troops near the Ukrainian border has raised concern among some officials in the United States and Europe who are tracking what they consider irregular movements of equipment and personnel on Russia’s western flank.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's defence ministry on Monday denied any media report of a Russian military buildup near its border, saying it had not observed an increase in forces or weaponry, Reuters reported on Monday
"As of November 1, 2021, an additional transfer of Russian units, weapons and military equipment to the state border of Ukraine was not recorded," the Ukrainian defence ministry said in a statement.
However, accordint to the WP reports, the US officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly, said the troop movements have reignited concerns that arose in april, when the largest buildup of troops by russia near the ukrainian border in years sparked an international outcry.
The renewed movements of russian forces in the area come as the kremlin embraces a harder line on ukraine. Russian officials from president Vladimir Putin on down have escalated their rhetoric in recent months, attacking kyiv’s western ties and even questioning its sovereignty.
Putin has warned that any expansion of NATO military infrastructure on ukrainiayn territory represents a “red line” for moscow.
The situation also comes as the simmering 7½-year conflict between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists in the eastern Donbas region enters a new stage. On Oct. 26, Ukraine’s military confirmed it had used a Turkish-made drone against a position in Donbas, the first time Kyiv has employed the technology in combat, prompting an outcry from Moscow.
Relations between Moscow and NATO are especially tense. Russia suspended its mission to NATO in Brussels on Oct. 18 after the alliance expelled eight members of the Russian mission on accusations of espionage.
What the Russian forces gathering near the Ukrainian border are doing is unclear.
Videos have surfaced on social media in recent days showing Russian military trains and convoys moving large quantities of military hardware, including tanks and missiles, in southern and western Russia.
"The point is: It is not a drill. It doesn’t appear to be a training exercise. Something is happening. What is it?” said Michael Kofman, director of the Russia studies program at the Virginia-based nonprofit analysis group CNA.
Officials in the United States and Europe began noticing the movements particularly in recent weeks, after Russia concluded a massive joint military exercise with Belarus known as Zapad 2021 on its western flank in mid-September.
According to Kofman, publicly available satellite imagery shows that forces from Russia’s 41st Combined Arms Army, normally based in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, didn’t return to Siberia after the exercises, and instead linked up with other Russian forces near the Ukrainian border. Kofman also said footage posted online appears to show that Russia’s 1st Guards Tank Army, an elite unit based outside Moscow, is moving personnel and materiel toward Ukraine.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has expressed his government’s intention to temporarily host evacuated Afghan nationals who have worked for the European Union.
“Spain offers the high representative of the EU Josep Borrell to temporarily host Afghans who have worked for the European Union, before they are distributed among the member states,” Sánchez tweeted Tuesday.
The Prime Minister’s remarks come after a virtual meeting of EU foreign ministers to discuss the current situation in Afghanistan.
In an earlier statement, EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said Member States would make “every possible effort” to ensure the security of all Afghan nationals who have worked with the EU, including offering them shelter within Europe.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has expressed his government’s intention to temporarily host evacuated Afghan nationals who have worked for the European Union.
“Spain offers the high representative of the EU Josep Borrell to temporarily host Afghans who have worked for the European Union, before they are distributed among the member states,” Sánchez tweeted Tuesday.
The Prime Minister’s remarks come after a virtual meeting of EU foreign ministers to discuss the current situation in Afghanistan.
In an earlier statement, EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said Member States would make “every possible effort” to ensure the security of all Afghan nationals who have worked with the EU, including offering them shelter within Europe.
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