US, Israel said to discuss additional attacks on Iran
Officials from the United States and Israel are supposedly considering possible additional attacks on less-damaged Iranian nuclear infrastructure if Tehran doesn’t resume negotiations with the US soon, or starts reconstruction of nuclear facilities, NBC News reported on Thursday. According to the media outlet which cited sources with knowledge of the matter, the latest assessment from the US showed that only one of the three nuclear sites in Iran is significantly damaged, while the other two could potentially resume uranium enrichment in several months. NBC News also shared that US President Donald Trump was allegedly briefed on a more complex military campaign against Iran that would last for a couple of weeks and include hitting three additional sites, but he ultimately rejected it.
NN; The only way with Iran is to bomb them out of the nuclear bossiness.
Israel strikes in Damascus as clashes between government and Druze minority rage on
Violence erupted in the predominantly Druze city of Suweida on Sunday, two days after a Druze merchant was reportedly abducted while travelling by road to Damascus. On Tuesday, after two days of the deadly clashes, Israel said it had bombed Syrian government forces around Suweida. Syrian forces have been accused of also attacking the Druze. The government has not responded to then specific allegations, but has condemned the attacks on Druze people and said its troops are there to restore order.
IDF confirms it carried out strike near presidential palace. Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered strikes on forces and weapons in the area because the government “intended to use [them] against the Druze”. Syria has condemned Israel’s involvement. At least 200 people have been killed since the clashes started on Sunday, the UK-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Tuesday. Israeli strikes have killed one civilian and injured 18 more people in Damascus, according to an update from the Syrian health ministry. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it targeted the area around Syria’s presidential palace in strikes earlierIn a post on social media, the IDF says “a military target was struck in the area of the Syrian regime’s Presidential Palace in the Damascus area”. It also confirmed Syria’s defence ministry headquarters was hit in the attacks on the capital. Earlier this year, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned he would not “tolerate any threat to the Druze community in southern Syria” from the country’s new security forces. He also demanded the complete demilitarisation of much of the south, saying Israel saw Syrian president Ahmed al-Sharaa’s Sunni Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), as a threat.
NN: War is breaking out all over. Peace is the illusion of our time. Bet on war and plan for oil supply disruptions..
Putin, unfazed by Trump, will fight on and could take more of Ukraine
MOSCOW, July 15 (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin intends to keep fighting in Ukraine until the West engages on his terms for peace, unfazed by Donald Trump’s threats of tougher sanctions, and his territorial demands may widen as Russian forces advance, three sources close to the Kremlin said. Trump on Monday expressed frustration with Putin’s refusal to agree a ceasefire and announced a wave of weapons supplies to Ukraine, including Patriot surface-to-air missile systems. He also threatened further sanctions on Russia unless a peace deal was reached within 50 days.
The three Russian sources, familiar with top-level Kremlin thinking, said Putin will not stop the war under pressure from the West and believes Russia – which has survived the toughest sanctions imposed by the West- can endure further economic hardship, including threatened U.S. tariffs targeting buyers of Russian oil. “Putin thinks no one has seriously engaged with him on the details of peace in Ukraine – including the Americans – so he will continue until he gets what he wants,” one of the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation.
Despite several telephone calls between Trump and Putin, and visits to Russia by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, the Russian leader believes there have not been detailed discussions of the basis for a peace plan, the source said.
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly blamed former President Joe Biden for allowing the war to erupt during his administration. “Unlike Biden, President Trump is focused on stopping the killing, and Putin will be faced with biting sanctions and tariffs if he does not agree to a ceasefire,” she said. Two sources said that Russia has the upper hand on the battlefield and its economy, geared towards war, is exceeding the production of the U.S.-led NATO alliance in key munitions, like artillery shells.
Russia, which already controls nearly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, has advanced some 1,415 square km (546 square miles) in the past three months, according to data from the DeepStateMap, an open-source intelligence map of the conflict. However, Trump told the BBC in an interview published on Tuesday that he was not done with Putin and that a Ukraine deal remained on the cards.Despite existing sanctions and the cost of fighting Europe’s biggest conflict since World War Two, Russia’s $2 trillion economy has performed far better than many in Russia or the West expected. The economic ministry forecasts a slowdown to 2.5% annual growth in 2025 from 4.3% last year.
NN: Russia is not Iran. And Putin is not the Ayatollah. Russia will not go quietly. He already has nukes, over 5,000 of them. And Putin who is winning is not going to fold when he has most of the asses. How much resolve does Trump have here remains to be seen. This is the build up to the main event. The Battle in the Baltic
Trump may allow Ukraine to use ATACMS on Russia
United States President Donald Trump could allow Ukraine to use ATACMS missiles for strikes deep into Russia’s territory, the Washington Post reported, citing people familiar with his plans. According to the source, Trump’s newly announced military assistance to Kiev will be worth $10 billion and
may include authorization to use the 18 ATACMS missiles already in Ukraine at their full range of 300 kilometers, as well as more ATACMS missile supplies to Kiev.
On Monday, Trump announced that the US will send Ukraine Patriot missile systems that will be funded by NATO
NN: Trump gave Iran 60 days, on day 61 he bombed the shit out of them. He gave Russia 50 days. Tell me what do you think will happen on day 51?
Trump to supply missiles to Ukraine, gives Russia 50-day ultimatum
Trump Threatens 100% Tariffs on Russia, Pledges Arms for Ukraine
US President Donald Trump threatened to impose stiff financial penalties on Russia if it does not end hostilities with Ukraine, while pledging fresh weapons supplies for Kyiv.
“We’re going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don’t have a deal in 50 days, tariffs at about 100%,” Trump said Monday during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House.
Trump said the levies would come in the form of “secondary tariffs,” without providing details. The US president has used the term in the past to describe duties imposed on countries for trading with American adversaries. Asked later if Trump meant to refer to the more widely known tool “secondary sanctions,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters that sanctions and tariffs were “both tools in his toolbox” and that “you can do either one.” A White House official said Russia could face both measures if it fails to sign a ceasefire deal by early September. The threats echo punishment spelled out in a bipartisan bill in Congress that would impose 500% tariffs on countries that buy Russian oil and gas. Trump also vowed earlier this year to tariff imports from countries that buy Venezuelan oil. Trump did not elaborate on the powers he would use to impose secondary tariffs. He said he wasn’t sure “we need” Congress to act in order to move forward but said the legislation “could be very useful.” The comments mark the latest signal of Trump’s growing impatience with Moscow’s war in Ukraine, which has dragged on since 2022. But the arrangement also risks Moscow continuing its barrage on the battlefield before it returns to talks. Trump said the US was sending a “top-of-the-line weapons” package that includes Patriot air defense batteries. The president said that NATO member states will pay for the weapons to be sent to Ukraine. “We’re not buying it, but we will manufacture it,” Trump said. “They’re going to be paying for it.” Much of what Kyiv will receive will depend on Europe’s ability and willingness to make the purchases. Ukraine needs air defence systems and drone interceptors as well as a constant supply of artillery shells and missiles as Moscow unleashes record air strikes. Trump hailed the move as a major shift in course as he looks to push Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the hostilities. But the details of the decision also reflect Trump’s priorities: it won’t cost the US anything and Trump is not dedicating any new US funding to Ukraine, at least for no w “I’m disappointed in President Putin because I thought we would have had a deal two months ago, but it doesn’t seem to get there,” Trump said. The White House didn’t immediately explain how Trump envisioned the secondary tariff program working. Oil futures fell to session lows, down more than 1%, after Trump made the threat. The president’s remarks in recent weeks make clear that his willingness to deal with Putin is being tested. Trump directed most of his ire at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during the first several months of his term but has grown increasingly frustrated that Putin is still refusing his ceasefire demands.
WTI down 2% as Trump announcements disappoint
The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 2% on Monday after US President Donald Trump did not announce further sanctions on Russian oil, disappointing markets who had been expecting more stringent measures after he touted a “major statement” on the country. The lack of prompt action The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 2% on Monday after US President Donald Trump did not announce further sanctions on Russian oil, disappointing markets who had been expecting more stringent measures after he touted a “major statement” on the country. The lack of prompt action affected prices even though Trump threatened to impose 100% secondary penalties on Russia if a ceasefire wasn’t established within 50 days. WTI for settlements in August decreased by 2.02% at 1:16 pm ET, selling for $67.07 per barrel. Brent for deliveries in September lost 1.58% and went for $69.25 per barrel at the same time. affected prices even though Trump threatened to impose 100% secondary penalties on Russia if a ceasefire wasn’t established within 50 days. WTI for settlements in August decreased by 2.02% at 1:16 pm ET, selling for $67.07 per barrel. Brent for deliveries in September lost 1.58% and went for $69.25 per barrel at the same time.
nn: an emergency reality tv broadcast to announce massive Russian sanctions in 5 months
Netanyahu: Trump has ushered in ‘a different America’ the ‘free world has longed to see’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu encourages the nomination of President Donald Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize for his support of peace in the Middle East, how personal his country’s fight is and more on ‘Life, Liberty & Levin.
nn: forget the strike job o the peace prize. Listen to the clarity of thought..
Gaza truce talks faltering over withdrawal; 17 reported killed in latest shooting near aid
CAIRO/JERUSALEM/GAZA, July 12 (Reuters) – Talks aimed at securing a ceasefire in Gaza are stalling over the extent of Israeli forces’ withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave, Palestinian and Israeli sources familiar with the negotiations in Doha said on Saturday. The indirect talks over a U.S. proposal for a 60-day ceasefire are nonetheless expected to continue, the sources said. In Gaza, medics said 17 people trying to get food aid were killed on Saturday when Israeli troops opened fire, the latest mass shooting around a U.S.-backed aid distribution system that the U.N. says has resulted in 800 people killed in six weeks. Witnesses who spoke to Reuters described people being shot in the head and torso. Reuters saw several bodies of victims wrapped in white shrouds as family members wept at Nasser Hospital. The Israeli military said its troops had fired warning shots, but that its review of the incident had found no evidence of anyone hurt by its soldiers’ fire. Delegations from Israel and Hamas have been in Qatar for a week in a renewed push for an agreement which envisages a phased release of hostages, Israeli troop withdrawals and discussions on ending the war. U.S. President Donald Trump, who hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the past week, had said he hoped for a deal soon. But the Israeli and Palestinian sources described longstanding issues that remain unresolved. A Palestinian source said that Hamas had rejected withdrawal maps which Israel had proposed that would leave around 40% of Gaza under Israeli control, including all of the southern area of Rafah and further territories in northern and eastern Gaza. Two Israeli sources said Hamas wanted Israel to retreat to lines it held in a previous ceasefire before it renewed its offensive in March.
The Palestinian source said matters regarding aid and guarantees on an end to the war were also presenting a challenge. The crisis could be resolved with more U.S. intervention, the source said. Hamas has long demanded an agreement to end the war before it would free remaining hostages; Israel has insisted it would end the fighting only when all hostages are released and Hamas is dismantled as a fighting force and administration in Gaza.
nn: this is going nowhere fast
Oil Rises on Looming US Russia Sanction Threats
Oil gained as traders braced for fresh US efforts to crimp Russian energy exports. West Texas Intermediate advanced almost 3% to settle above $68 a barrel after President Donald Trump said he plans to make a “major statement” on Russia on Monday and reiterated criticism of President Vladimir Putin. One sanctions bill, which at least 85 senators have endorsed, would levy 500% tariffs on China and India if they make any purchases of Russian energy. “The US could decide to impose new sanctions on Russia as early as the beginning of next week,” according to a report from Commerzbank AG. “Lower oil supply from Russia is probably one reason why oil prices have so far been able to absorb the significant increase in OPEC+ production so well.” Limiting the rally, Trump also threatened a 35% tariff on some Canadian goods. The tax doesn’t apply to goods that are traded within the rules of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, and the exclusion is poised to remain in place. The US is also expected to keep a lower 10% tariff on some energy-related imports Saudi Arabia boosted its oil production above supply levels “briefly” in June amid heightened geopolitical tensions in the Persian Gulf, the country’s energy minister said in a post on X. The comments followed a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency that Saudi Arabia raised crude output far above its OPEC+ output quota, joining other producers in a rush to export oil out of the region as Israel went to war with Iran.
“Traders are looking through the report, recognizing that the increase came during a period of extreme regional risk and strong local demand,” said Rebecca Babin, a senior energy trader at CIBC Private Wealth Group. “Notably, Saudi flows to China appear set to increase in August, with pricing remaining firm — a more important signal for the market than June’s overproduction.”
Separately, OPEC+ has been discussing a pause in further production increases from October, by which time it may have completed its planned revival of 2.2 million barrels a day of idle capacity. World oil consumption will grow by just 700,000 barrels a day in 2025, the slowest pace in 16 years excluding the 2020 pandemic slump, according to the IEA.
NN: oil supplies are Ver tight. Something BIG is bot to happen!