It is not Moscow, but rather the Kiev regime and its backers who are using children as “pawns of war”
It’s not clear if the Trump administration wants to genuinely resolve the proxy war with Russia, or if it is merely trying to extricate itself from the mess Washington helped instigate. But one thing is clear: the major Western European capitals are desperate to keep the war going.
Various pretexts are being used to frustrate a diplomatic process. NATO-like security guarantees to Ukraine pushed by Berlin, London, and Paris are likely to be a non-starter for Moscow. So too are moves by the Europeans to use Russia’s seized wealth as a “reparations loan.”
Another issue that Europeans are dredging up is the allegation that Russia has abducted Ukrainian children. This emotive issue has support in Washington among the hawkish anti-Russia factions in the US establishment opposed to Trump’s diplomacy with Moscow.
Earlier this month, the European states sponsored a resolution at the United Nations General Assembly calling on Russia to return all Ukrainian children that it is alleged to have forcibly relocated from Ukrainian territory during the past four years of conflict. The president of the UNGA is former German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.
An article published by the Washington DC-based Atlantic Council contended: “The issue of abducted Ukrainian children is especially relevant for Ukrainians as they debate painful political compromises, territorial concessions, and security guarantees premised on Western assurances. If world leaders cannot secure the return of the most vulnerable victims of Russia’s aggression, how could Ukrainians trust that those same leaders can prevent Russia from reigniting the war or committing new atrocities?”
In other words, the allegation of child abduction is being made into a condition for Russia to fulfill for the diplomatic resolution of the conflict. The trouble is that the condition is impossible to fulfill because the allegation is so vague and unfounded. Russia has denounced the accusation that it forcibly relocated Ukrainian children as a “web of lies.”
In March 2023, the Hague-based International Criminal Court indicted Russian President Vladimir Putin, along with Russian Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova, of war crimes related to the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Moscow is not a member of the ICC and rejected the charges as null and void.
Still, however, the Kiev regime and its Western sponsors continue to level the accusations. The Western media, as usual, serve to amplify the narrative despite the lack of evidence.
At the recent UN General Assembly debate, British representative Archie Young stated: “Today is a moment to reflect on the plight of Ukrainian children who have become victims of Russia’s illegal invasion. We all have an obligation to protect children and must not allow Russia to use them as pawns of war. According to the government of Ukraine, corroborated by independent mechanisms, more than 19,500 Ukrainian children have been forcibly deported to Russia or within the temporarily occupied territories.”
Note how the British official peddles a series of disputable claims that are transformed into normative facts by the Western media’s repetition.
It is not Russia, but rather the Kiev regime and its Western backers who are using children as “pawns of war.”
Moscow has openly stated that up to 730,000 children have been relocated to the Russian Federation since hostilities erupted in February 2022. Most of the children are accompanied by parents and come from the territories that seceded from Ukraine in legally held referenda.
Of the nearly eight million people who fled Ukraine, the largest share of them – an estimated 35% – have taken shelter in Russia. The second and third biggest host countries for Ukrainian refugees after Russia are Poland and Germany. But the European governments and media are not accusing Warsaw or Berlin of “child abductions.”
In a war zone affecting millions of people, it is absurd to make out that displaced families and their children are being kidnapped. The vast majority of people have willingly sought shelter within Russian territory to escape the violence on the frontlines – violence that has been fueled by NATO states pumping hundreds of millions of dollars’ and euros’ worth of weapons into Ukraine.
Moscow points out that the figure of 20,000 to 35,000 that the Western governments and media claim for children “abducted by Russia” is never substantiated with names or identifying details.
Russian authorities say that the Kiev regime has provided the names of just over 300 individuals. Moscow has endeavored to return individuals where it is mutually requested, although some of the identities provided by the Kiev regime have turned out to be adults or they are not present in Russian territory.
In the chaos of war, it is all too easy to throw around vague numbers and exploit the imprecision for propaganda. The European governments and media are doing that and embellishing the emotive issue with dark claims that Russia is sending masses of Ukrainian children to “re-education camps” for “indoctrination.”
One of the main sources for such claims is the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab. It has produced unverified reports that Russia has sent 35,000 Ukrainian children to hundreds of brainwashing centers all across Russia to erase their national identity.
A major supporter of the Yale research group is former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. This association strongly suggests that the group is a CIA-sponsored propaganda tool. But the US and European media regularly cite the research and amplify its claims as reliable facts.
The exploitation of children for war propaganda is a staple of Western intelligence agencies and the media.
A classic case was in Vietnam in the 1950s and 60s when the Western media were replete with horror stories of the Viet Cong torturing Vietnamese children, as recounted by James Bradley in his book, ‘Precious Freedom’. The supposed communist guerrillas reportedly stabbed Vietnamese children with chopsticks in their ears so that they could not hear the Bible being preached. Such alleged atrocities were widely published by the Western media to whip up public support for the US military deployment “to save Vietnam from evil communists.” But it was all CIA-orchestrated lies. More than three million Vietnamese were killed in a war based on American intelligence and media lies.
A re-run of the psychological operation today is the lurid claims that Putin’s evil Russia has kidnapped tens of thousands of children for brainwashing in detention camps. Some reports even claim Russia has sent the children to North Korea.
The Western media are doing their usual service of peddling war propaganda and ensuring diplomacy is rendered impossible because Russia is portrayed as monstrous.
The funds reportedly play a key role in President Donald Trump’s Ukraine peace plan
The EU’s insistence on seizing Russian central bank assets stands in the way of US President Donald Trump’s attempts to resolve the Ukraine conflict, Politico and The Times have reported, citing officials in Washington.
EU leaders are meeting in Brussels on Thursday to debate using an estimated €210 billion ($246 billion) in Russian assets to back a so-called “reparations loan” for Kiev – a move Moscow has condemned as “theft.” Belgium, where most of the assets are held, has demanded that the legal risks be shared among bloc members.
“The EU’s problem isn’t really Belgium, it’s Trump,” Politico wrote on Wednesday. The US administration’s “backchanneling with capitals” has led to Italy, Bulgaria, Malta, and the Czech Republic joining the group of EU nations opposing the grab, the outlet wrote.
Even if the money is successfully seized, “the Europeans are going to have to give it back,” The Times cited a source close to the US discussions as saying. The frozen Russian funds are seen by Washington as a “crucial part of Trump’s proposed settlement plan,” it wrote on Wednesday.
Trump has proposed that Russia’s assets be unfrozen and invested in US-led reconstruction efforts in Ukraine, as well as joint projects with Moscow, according to an early draft published by the media last month.
While not commenting on Trump’s plan regarding Russian assets, officials in Moscow said the US-backed peace talks have been continually obstructed by Kiev’s European sponsors.
Western Europe is attempting to “scheme against the US” and maintain its proxy war in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said earlier this week.
To bypass the need for unanimous approval, the EU invoked controversial emergency legislation last week to lock the assets in place temporarily, arguing that any subsequent steps can be approved separately by a qualified majority of 15 out of 27 member states representing at least 65% of the EU’s population.
In response, the Russian central bank filed lawsuits against Belgian-based Euroclear, where most of the funds are held, as well as several European banks.
The measure sponsored by congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene would introduce prison terms for performing sex change operations on children
The US House of Representatives has passed legislation that would criminalize performing gender transition treatments on minors, approving a bill sponsored by Georgia Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.
The measure passed the House by a narrow 216-211 vote on Wednesday. To become law, it would also need to clear the Senate, a step widely seen as unlikely because it would require the backing of a bipartisan coalition to advance.
The bill, titled the “Protect Children’s Innocence Act,” seeks to impose penalties of up to 10 years in prison for “genital or bodily mutilation” or “chemical castration” of a minor. The text covers a range of medical interventions, surgeries, and the admission of puberty blockers and hormones for gender-changing purposes.
”Children are NOT experiments. No more drugs. No more surgeries. No more permanent harm. We need to let kids grow up without manipulation from adults to make life-altering decisions,” Greene said on X ahead of the vote, urging Congress to “protect America’s children.”
The House action comes amid a broader push by US President Donald Trump to reverse federal policies on transgender issues. Since returning to office, he has signed executive orders ending government support for gender transition procedures for people under 19 and directing federal agencies to withdraw policies that recognize gender identity beyond biological sex.
Trump has also ordered bans on transgender participation in women’s sports at federally regulated events and reinstated restrictions on transgender individuals serving in the US military. The Pentagon has since barred anyone with a current or past diagnosis of gender dysphoria from enlisting or continuing service, with the Supreme Court upholding the ban.
In an address to Congress in March, Trump also urged lawmakers to adopt legislation “permanently banning and criminalizing sex changes on children.”
Democrats criticized Greene’s bill during debate on Wednesday, claiming Republicans were “obsessed” with transgender people and focusing on what they described as a “misunderstood and vulnerable 1 percent of the population.” Other legislators argued that the bill would interfere with parental decision-making and expose doctors to prosecution for following established medical practices.
Lawmakers shared photos of themselves with slanted eyes in protest of the punishment Miss Finland received over a similar picture
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has apologized to people in Asia after several politicians, including members of his governing coalition, posted photos of themselves with slanted eyes.
The scandal began in November, after 22-year-old beauty queen Sarah Dzafce was stripped of her Miss Finland title over a photo in which she was seen pulling up the corners of her eyes – a gesture widely regarded as mocking Asians. Critics of the decision say the punishment was excessive and have responded by posting similar images in protest.
Among those who shared such self-portraits were lawmakers from the right-wing Finns Party (PS), including Kaisa Garedew, Juho Eerola, and Sebastian Tynkkynen.
Orpo heads a four-party coalition government in which the PS controls ten cabinet posts, including the position of deputy prime minister. In a statement circulated by Finnish embassies in China, Japan, and South Korea on Wednesday, Orpo said the posts “do not reflect Finland’s values of equality and inclusion.” He added that his government “takes racism seriously and is committed to combatting the issue.”
The rise in influence of right-wing political parties across Europe has been linked to government policies encouraging mass migration from other regions. Many EU governments tend to dismiss public fears about the loss of national identity, rising crime, and labor market disruption, branding them unfounded or unacceptable. However, critics argue that this stance is contributing to the radicalization of segments of society, as well as rising xenophobia.
When the future becomes unaffordable and saving money is pointless, a $30 poke bowl makes complete sense
The great baseball legend and jokester Yogi Berra once quipped that a restaurant had become so crowded that nobody goes there anymore. Here’s a version for today: young people in America have such dismal economic prospects that they spend more money than ever.
A Reddit thread appeared recently in which a man posed the question of where kids in America are getting the money to live a DoorDash lifestyle. DoorDash is one of several smartphone apps in the US that deliver restaurant meals to your door for a steep premium. The thread went viral but was subsequently deleted for reasons that are unclear to me, though many screenshots exist.
The post was from a 44-year-old man with no kids: “[I] own and operate a fast casual restaurant with four locations. I’m intimately familiar with the insane amount of money it costs to have food to your front door. At my own restaurant; a $16 poke bowl, delivered, with tip is gonna run you close to $30. For someone making six figures? Sure, have at it. But trust me when I tell you, almost every high school aged kid these days seems to use DoorDash multiple times a week.”
This thread got ping-ponged around on X and one user jumped in with an explanation that caught my eye. “They’re behaving like people living in a post-middle-class economy…where ownership is unattainable, savings are pointless, buying a home is impossible, and upward mobility is gone. So what happens? They shift to a present-maximization mindset. If the future is unaffordable anyway, why not buy the burrito now? Younger people are not reckless. They are rational inside a broken incentive system.”
Luke Gromen, one of today’s most incisive financial analysts, chimed in: “Watch the movie ‘Cabaret’ – the youth in Weimar Germany behaved similarly.”
For most of the post-war period, saving money made sense. A young person or family would convert savings into a down payment and pay it off gradually thanks to a stable and reliable job. There was a direct connection between the ability to save and prospects for future prosperity. The value of money was proportional to the middle-class goodies that one sought. This rewarded discipline and delayed gratification, and it also attested to people’s optimistic view of the prospects for stability.
This world is shattered and broken. For starters, home ownership is an ever receding mirage for many. Bankrate recently released a report claiming that the average American household has been priced out of 75% of the housing market.
The homeownership rate for households under the age of 35 fell again last year, while the share of first-time buyers of all ages has plummeted to a historic low of 21-24%, well below the historical average of 40%.
Even Charles Schwab published a piece advising Gen Zers how to avoid “doom spending,” defining it as “responding to a poor outlook on the future of your finances or the planet we live on by saying, ‘What’s the point of saving for the future?’”
Financial analyst Demetri Kofinas coined the term“financial nihilism,” to describe how individuals who, having lost faith in the real value of money and in the traditional ways of earning it, turn to various high-risk behaviors. The old trades of gambling and prostitution return in new guises: reckless Crypto speculation, betting on the outcome of real-world events via Kalshi, and, of course, OnlyFans.
What this points to is a disconnect between the wealth that can be generated by earning hourly wages, working the gig economy, or relying on sporadic Venmo transfer from family members, and what can be generated by holding assets – such as the real estate that nobody can afford. These two parallel tracks are diverging more and more as the real economy diverges from the financialized paper economy. We still benchmark everything to the dollar. However, because the dollar as a store of value is being debauched faster than an ordinary person can earn dollars through labor, the path to success lies in asset ownership and not in simply in earning marginally more dollars.
In the current American economy, it is asset ownership that matters (or a very high wage in an industry in the business of asset ownership). Accordingly, Gen Zers correctly identify $30 as not being worth much more than a poke bowl.
For a good comparison, in 17th-century England, historians estimate that beer and ale could account for as much as 10-25% of a laborer’s cash outlays. This wasn’t because England was populated by inveterate drunks or fantastically irresponsible people, but because there was no point in saving the marginal unit of money in a rigid, hierarchical system in which the barriers to true social advancement were too high. DoorDash culture is the digital version of that.
If this sounds a bit like feudalism, it is because that is exactly what it is. Or more precisely, it’s a hybrid of feudalism and the type of pre-Weimar detachment that arises when wages don’t match prices, the currency is being debauched, and the future is profoundly uncertain and ominous.
To take the analysis a step further, think of the US economy as not just a post-middle-class economy but a post-growth economy. Let’s run a simple comparison of two different eras.
The 1960s were a time of growth driven by manufacturing, industrial innovation, infrastructure, and rising productivity; GDP gains largely reflected the expansion of real-world economic activity; markets functioned without hand-holding by central banks; debt levels were manageable; high interest rates rewarded saving. Housing was affordable for working families.
The 2020s are a time of growth driven primarily by financial services, asset inflation, and debt-fueled consumption, with government spending and central bank liquidity the primary engines rather than real productivity gains; central banks engage in all manner of gimmicks to prop up a system that no longer self-corrects. Asset prices are inflated; housing is unaffordable, while real wages are declining.
These days, there just isn’t much growth, and whatever there is has to be squeezed with great exertion as if out of an empty toothpaste tube. And it takes a whole lot of debt to even attempt the squeeze. The US economy managed to expand at a clip of 2.4% in 2024 – hardly an impressive figure – but it did so with deficit spending reaching a staggering $1.8 trillion and by vastly understating systemic inflation.
It also bears keeping in mind that the 2.4% figure is already distorted because GDP makes no distinction between organic growth and the growth created by debt-fueled consumption.
This brings us back to the notion of feudalism. This is the type of system that coalesces in one form or another when an economy exits a growth phase and enters zero-sum mode. Periods of economic expansion are dynamic and tend to reshuffle the cards. Avenues appear for upward mobility, new elites are created, and savings can be deployed to productive endeavors. In the post-growth world, by contrast, the main mechanism defining economic relations becomes rent rather than production.
The period from about 950 to 1250 in Europe was very economically dynamic. The heavy plow became widespread, which allowed northern Europe’s heavy soils to be brought under cultivation. The three-field system replaced the two-field system, which increased yields. The horse collar, horseshoes, and windmills all appeared or spread widely during this period. These were incremental but transformative innovations. Deforestation and reclamation advanced. Lots of forest and swamp were converted into farmland across France, Germany, England, and Poland. Europe’s population roughly doubled between the years 1000 and 1300.
The great cathedral-building boom of the 12th and 13th centuries was a direct expression of this surplus. The Reconquista in Spain, German eastward expansion, and the Crusades all represented outlets for surplus population and ambition.
By the late 13th century, however, the limits of this expansion were being reached. Virtually all arable land had been brought under cultivation. Marginal lands were being farmed, temporarily increasing output but with falling yields. Population growth began to outstrip food supply.
It was this world of economic stagnation after a long period of expansion that produced the feudalism of the High Middle Ages. Hierarchies hardened and social structures rigidified as mobility and opportunity shrank. The feudal pyramid “froze”: a static hierarchy of rent-seeking landed elites presided over a peasantry with declining freedom. Cities and noble courts were often fiscally overextended and clung tenaciously to existing structures because change felt dangerous.
We are exactly at that point, except the feudalism of today isn’t recognizable to us. But how different are things, really? In the rearview mirror are the dynamic post-war decades. Now, meanwhile, we’ve settled into a system where the elites own the scarce assets while everyone else pays ever more in participation costs while securing less ownership. Perpetually rising asset values are a perfect defense against those rising participation costs – if, that is, you’re fortunate enough to be part of the asset-owning class. What’s 8% inflation and 15% higher childcare costs if your stock portfolio is up 25% and your home is now worth nearly $2 million?
Asset prices are always rising because the system is designed to prioritize preserving balance-sheet stability. Markets are always too big to fail and a disorderly decline in asset prices is treated as a systemic emergency requiring intervention. But this means that losses are socialized on the downside whereas gains remain private. The result: asset prices trend upward over time almost by definition.
To put it bluntly, central banks and governments guarantee that asset prices stay ahead of inflation – an updated form of the old noble privileges dished out by medieval kings.
We can extend the analogy. Power is tied to control finite resources, not so much land but financial claims and, maybe even more importantly, access to credit. Whereas average people who need funding pay 25% on credit card debt, too-big-to-fail banks get to post underwater bonds as collateral at full face value – not to mention a full bailout if things go awry. This becomes even more perverse when you realize that this abundant and essentially free credit provided to certain institutions is being used to bid up asset prices even more.
Elites, meanwhile, protect their assets via political capture, while the rest of society pays rents rather than shares in growth. In medieval feudalism, power was decentralized: nobles had their own justice systems, militias, and taxes. Today, corporations and asset-holders function like mini-sovereigns. Hedge funds and private equity control housing and employment structures. The list goes on.
However, this is not the feudalism of the Arthurian legends that can exist in a state of bucolic stasis for centuries. This version is perched precariously on a highly financialized economy that itself is kept afloat by unsustainable debt levels. It is a system that is both highly unstable and quite rigid at the same time, however paradoxical that sounds. And Generation Z senses both sides of that equation. This is where feudalism meets Weimar Germany.
The US is nowhere near hyperinflation. But DoorDash culture points to the psychological pre-conditions of a world that can quickly turn very inflationary. Spending money because saving it is pointless is a self-fulfilling prophecy. But Weimar was more than wheelbarrows of devalued money: it was an era drenched in a deep cynicism and foreboding, and nihilism (financial or otherwise) was rampant.
This brings us to the sudden strangeness of the moment. Underneath the glittering digital panacea of food delivery apps and instant friction-less tap-to-pay everything, and despite the familiar signposts of American life, lies an economic system now operating under very different premises.
The French first lady used a slur against feminist activists who disrupted the show of an actor-comedian previously accused of rape
The wife of French President Emmanuel Macron, Brigitte, is facing a legal complaint after being filmed referring to feminist protesters as “stupid b***hes” at a Paris theater earlier this month.
A group of feminist associations filed a complaint against France’s first lady for public insult on Tuesday, “on behalf of 343 women and associations, who collectively and individually declare themselves to be affected by [Macron’s] remarks,” wrote French legal think tank Le Club des Juristes.
The controversy stems from a since-deleted clip showing Brigitte Macron chatting privately backstage with actor and comedian Ary Abittan, whose stand-up show had been disrupted the previous night by feminist activists calling him a ‘rapist.’ He had previously been accused of rape, but the case was dropped due to a lack of evidence.
In the leaked video, Abittan jokes about his nerves, prompting Macron to respond: “If there are any stupid b***hes, we’ll kick them out.”
A spokesperson for the French presidency said the first lady had been attempting to calm the actor’s nerves and had intended only to criticize what she viewed as radical methods used to disrupt the performance.
Despite that explanation, criticism mounted rapidly, with politicians across party lines as well as activists and figures from the film industry condemning the remark. Macron later apologized, describing the comments caught on video as “private” remarks.
It remains unclear where the complaint was filed. Under French law, the president’s spouse has no legal immunity, but laws against “public insult” only target remarks which are made in public, raising questions over whether a privately spoken comment later leaked online meets that threshold. Private insults may instead constitute a lesser offence, punishable by a small fine.
One feminist group, called The Hysterical Knitters, noted that feminist organizations had supported Macron for years in response to “relentless harassment fueled by a transphobic rumor.”
Macron has previously been at the center of a long-running legal dispute linked to online conspiracy theories falsely claiming she is transgender. A court ruling this year fined the originators of the rumor and renewed the debate over digital harassment targeting public figures.
Washington has approved its largest-ever package of advanced weapons for the island, worth over $11 billion
China has condemned the US decision to approve a record $11.1 billion weapons sale to Taiwan on Thursday, urging Washington to “immediately stop” arming the island.
The warning follows the Department of War greenlighting a massive package of advanced weaponry for Taiwan. China, which views the self-governing island as part of its territory, called the move a “dangerous act” and an infringement of its sovereignty.
”China urges the United States to abide by the one-China principle … and immediately stop the dangerous actions of arming Taiwan,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told reporters on Thursday.
Announced on Thursday and still awaiting US congressional approval, the package would be the second arms sale since US President Donald Trump returned to office in January, after a $330 million deal in November for parts and components.
The deal spans eight separate purchases, including the sale of 82 HIMARS rocket systems and 420 ATACMS missiles valued at more than $4 billion, anti-tank and anti-armor missiles, loitering munitions, howitzers, military software and spare parts, according to details released by both governments.
Urged by Washington, Taiwan has stepped up arms purchases in recent years. While the US officially adheres to the One-China policy, it has continued to supply arms to the island and maintain military ties with the government in Taipei.
China says it seeks “peaceful reunification” but has repeatedly warned it will use force if Taiwan formally declares independence.
Taiwan has been self-ruled since 1949, when nationalist forces retreated there after losing the Chinese Civil War. Although several countries formally recognize the island, most of the international community, including Russia, abides by Beijing’s One-China policy.
Azerbaijani prosecutors have charged Ruben Vardanyan with grave crimes tied to the now-defunct Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
An Azerbaijani state prosecutor has requested a life sentence for Ruben Vardanyan, a billionaire and former Russian citizen standing trial in Baku on multiple charges, as reported by local media.
The Armenian-born businessman gave up his Russian citizenship after relocating to the Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2022, which had long been at the center of a dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia. He went on to serve in the administration of a self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. Baku restored control over the territory through military action in 2023, after which Vardanyan was detained while attempting to leave.
At a hearing before a military tribunal in Baku on Thursday, prosecutors reiterated claims that Vardanyan, in his capacity as state minister of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, also known as Artsakh, bore responsibility for a range of crimes. These included crimes against humanity, war crimes, terrorism, and financing of terrorism, the prosecution said, urging the court to impose a life sentence. Vardanyan’s trial began in January.
In a statement released earlier the same day through Vardanyan’s family, he repeated his characterization of the proceedings as an “imitation of justice” and proclaimed that “Arstakh was, is, and will be.”
Vardanyan, 57, amassed his fortune in the 1990s as a co-founder of the investment firm Troika Dialogue. In 2011, the company was acquired by Russia’s largest lender, Sber, in a deal valued at $1.4 billion.
By tapping Russian assets frozen in the bloc, its members aim to boost their own defense industry while arming Kiev
The EU wants to retain proceeds from frozen Russian assets by introducing a “Buy European” boost for its own defense industry as it arms Ukraine, and is moving to lock in strict procurement rules for a potential loan for Kiev, Bloomberg has reported.
EU members have long debated tapping Russian central bank funds frozen in the West as part of a “reparations loan” to Kiev. The bloc’s leaders hope to clinch the plan at a summit this week. Moscow has condemned any use of its immobilized funds as “theft.”
The draft would steer up to €210 billion ($246 billion) over the next five years to defense suppliers based in the EU and Ukraine, with a limited carve-out for non-EU members such as Norway. Brussels is reportedly seeking to ensure that any boost to Ukraine’s military capacity directly supports the bloc’s own defense industry, the outlet said on Wednesday, citing a proposal circulated to member states this week.
Participation by non-EU countries would be tightly capped and regulated, a condition that would sharply limit Kiev’s ability to use the loan to buy US-made weapons, the outlet said, citing the proposal.
Earlier this year, US President Donald Trump rolled out a new Ukraine arms-supply scheme under which Washington sells weapons sought by Kiev to NATO members, who then deliver them to the country.
In November, Trump said the US was no longer “spending” money on Ukraine and was instead taking in funds through weapons sales to NATO countries.
The reported proposal would also give the European Commission the power to require European defense manufacturers to prioritize orders for Ukraine and to impose penalties for non-compliance.
Last week, the EU member states voted on the latest temporary freeze on Russian sovereign funds. The bloc’s leadership had to invoke emergency powers to overcome the opposition of member states, including Hungary and Slovakia.
The initiative has faced mounting resistance from several member states, who argue the move risks undermining the bloc’s legal foundations, damaging confidence in the Eurozone and exposing European institutions to costly lawsuits.
Russia has steadfastly opposed EU moves to “steal” the funds, warning of economic and legal consequences.
Last week, the Bank of Russia filed a lawsuit seeking $230 billion in compensation from Euroclear. The first hearing has been scheduled for January 16.
The attack on the alleged narco-trafficking vessel comes amid rising tensions in the region and an ongoing standoff with Venezuela
The US has destroyed another alleged narco-trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing several people, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday. The strike comes amid spiraling tensions in the region and a standoff between the US and Venezuela.
US Southern Command reported that a “lethal kinetic strike” was carried out against a vessel allegedly operated by a designated terrorist organization as it was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route in international waters. Four male “narco-terrorists” were killed in the strike, it added.
The attack was part of Operation Southern Spear, an anti-drug campaign launched by US President Donald Trump during which Washington has significantly expanded its military presence in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, deploying naval and air assets. At least 99 people are said to have been killed in strikes on suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the region since September.
The operation has drawn criticism internationally, with Venezuela and Colombia arguing it is an attempt by Washington to begin a resource grab in the region rather than a counter-smuggling effort.
On Dec. 17, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organizations in international waters. Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was transiting along a known… pic.twitter.com/Yhu3LSOyea
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has also argued that the act of sinking civilian chips without trial is “illegal.”
The latest strike was reported just ahead of Trump’s prime-time address to the nation on Wednesday night, during which many had speculated the president would declare war on Venezuela – although this did not happen.
Last month, the US designated the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles as a terrorist organization, alleging links to Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, an accusation rejected by Caracas. This week, Trump went further by declaring the Venezuelan government itself a foreign terrorist organization and ordering a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving the country.
The moves have sparked concerns of a direct military conflict between the US and Venezuela. However, during his Wednesday address, Trump focused on domestic and foreign policy priorities and made no reference to the escalating standoff with Caracas.
Maduro has condemned the blockade as illegal under international law and has accused Washington of seeking regime change to seize Venezuela’s natural resources. He has called on the United Nations to respond to what he described as an escalating threat to regional peace.
