RT News - June 28 2024 (early) Trump V Biden, Failed Bolivia Coup, IDF strikes kill first responders

Trump -v- Biden, round 1. RT analysts consider what was said and how this first private debate may affect the coming US elections. There were a few gaffes and with nobody to challenge either candidate, it degraded to a mud-slinging and fairly un-useful event. Caleb Maupin and other analysts comment.

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More deaths recorded as IDF strikes take the lives of first responders who went to aid victims of Israel's attacks/bombings.

In Bolivia, the people have won over foreign interference. (At some stage I will write about the significance of this and maybe make a short video. It's really good news for the Bolivians and bad news for those malevolent forces seeking to regime change and cause havoc)

In Kenya, the calls for Ruto to go continue, despite his rescinding of the Finance Bill. Trust is hard to regain (and this was the first time he has acted away from the interests of the people who pay for him)

Iran elections. More coverage through the day via RT's live stream and all the latest news https://rumble.com/v35waq4-rt-news-livestream-247.html

Below: 1) Ukraine does not want to ‘prolong war’ - Zelensky
2) Asset theft and arrests could be grounds for war – Medvedev
3) Russia preparing to ban ‘extremist’ child-free ideology
4) US can’t trace $62 million of military aid sent to Ukraine – watchdog
5) Russia comments on coup attempt in Bolivia
6) Why the Russia-US conflict will outlast the Ukraine (Analysis)
7) Trump says he will accept election results
7a) Biden ‘could be convicted’ – Trump
8) EU nominates Russia hawk to be bloc’s next top diplomat

Short take: The highly anticipated debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden turns into a name-calling match, with both candidates hurling insults at each other. Biden’s poor performance drives democrats into a total panic, with mainstream media now questioning if Biden is still a good fit for the country’s top job. That’s the Bolivian President’s exclusive comment to RT after his leadership successfully withstood an attempted military coup on Wednesday. Iranians head to polling stations as the nation votes for a new president after the untimely death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash last month.
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1) Ukraine does not want to ‘prolong war’ - Zelensky 27 Jun, 2024 22:01

Kiev has ‘many killed and wounded’ in the hostilities, the Ukrainian leader has admitted

A settlement plan to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict should be tabled within the next few months, Vladimir Zelensky has said, claiming Kiev does not actually seek to prolong hostilities for years to come.

He made the remarks on Thursday during a joint press conference with European Council President Charles Michel. Zelensky had traveled to Brussels to sign a security deal with the European Union guaranteeing defense assistance to Kiev, including weapons deliveries and training.

Zelensky used the opportunity to claim that he is not actually seeking to prolong hostilities for years to come.

“Ukraine does not want to prolong the war. We do not want it to last for years,” Zelensky stated, making a rare remark on the extent of damage and casualties suffered during the two and a half-year-long conflict.

We have many wounded and killed on the battlefield. We must put a settlement plan on the table within a few months,” he added without providing any exact figures.

Kiev has long kept silent on the casualties it has suffered in the conflict, insisting instead that it has inflicted massive damage on Russian troops. In February of this year, Zelensky claimed as few as 31,000 Ukrainian troops had been killed in the two years of conflict.

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Belousov estimated recently that Kiev had lost 35,000 troops in May alone while his predecessor Sergey Shoigu claimed in February that Ukraine had lost more than 440,000 soldiers throughout the conflict.

The extremely heavy losses suffered by the Ukrainian military are implicitly corroborated by the ever-intensifying forced mobilization drive in the country as well as frequently reported attempts by draft dodgers to escape the country.

The recruitment drive, launched early into the conflict, has been growing increasingly violent, with numerous videos circulating online showing enlistment officers snatching would-be recruits in the streets, brawling with them, threatening them with firearms, and subjecting them to other forms of abuse.
https://www.rt.com/russia/600126-ukraine-zelensky-long-war/
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2) Asset theft and arrests could be grounds for war – Medvedev 27 Jun, 2024 16:40

The former Russian president has also warned the West about illegal sanctions

The sanctions and targeting of property practiced by the US and its allies could be considered acts of aggression and grounds for declaring war, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has said.

Medvedev, who currently serves as deputy chair of the Russian Security Council, spoke at the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum (SPILF) on Thursday. A legal scholar by training, he addressed the current clash between international law and the ‘rules-based world order’ championed by the West.

“The seizure and forfeiture of state assets could be qualified, under certain circumstances, as an act of aggression, and could even be considered casus belli,” Medvedev told the SPILF plenary session, using the Latin term for an event that justifies war.

“No country is safe from confiscation of its assets, under the ‘order’ that is based on US domination,” Medvedev noted, pointing out that Afghanistan, Venezuela and Iran all had their funds seized before the West turned its eye on Russia.

The US and the EU illegally froze an estimated $300 billion in Russian sovereign assets in 2022, accusing Moscow of “invading” Ukraine. While the EU has so far resisted demands from Kiev and Washington to confiscate the frozen assets outright, it has agreed to seize the interest and proceeds from them and hand the money over to Ukraine.

According to Medvedev, this is an outright violation of both international and their domestic law, under which state assets enjoy sovereign immunity. The same principle applies to public officials, yet the West has sought to charge Russian President Vladimir Putin – and more recently, former Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov – with war crimes.

Medvedev reminded the SPILF that attempts to assert ICC’s jurisdiction over Russian officials – as Moscow is not subject to the court – could also be considered a “declaration of war” and grounds for invoking the right of self-defense.

The former Russian president (2008-2012) also pointed that the kind of economic embargoes practiced by the US and its allies also represent a form of warfare and require resistance within the framework of international law.

“Unilateral sanctions must end. They are an instrument of political coercion against those opposed to the ‘rules-based world order’, contrary to both the spirit and letter of the UN Charter,” Medvedev said.

Countries subjected to sanctions should join together in consultations on “collective defense” against the countries that imposed the restrictions against them, Medvedev said. Russia will demand not just the lifting of all sanctions as the precondition for any negotiations on ending the Ukraine crisis, but intends to demand compensation for all the damages, he added.
https://www.rt.com/russia/600113-medvedev-sanctions-assets-war/
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3) Russia preparing to ban ‘extremist’ child-free ideology 27 Jun, 2024 14:51

The country needs tools to protects its traditional values, the deputy justice minister has said

Russian lawmakers have prepared a draft bill that would ban child-free ideology in the country, Deputy Justice Minister Vsevolod Vukolov has said.

The active promotion of childlessness has become increasingly common over the past decade, and is an “extremist ideology” that Russia should resist, Vukolov argued on Thursday in a speech at the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum.

“We are now actively preparing bills to prevent the spread of child-free ideology,” he said. One should not be able to promote ideas that “nowadays girls, especially young ones, do not need to give birth, they can do without children,” the official added.

A legislative system should be created to counter such negative social trends in Russia and other countries that share the same traditional values, the deputy minister argued. “These laws must be worked out and promoted. And they must become the tools to protect our values. This is the main task,” he explained.

Speaking to journalists after his speech, Vukolov confirmed that a bill banning the promotion of a child-free lifestyle has been put forward in the Russian parliament. The legislation will now be studied by experts in the field, he added.

The Justice Ministry will react when “concrete proposals” are presented, he stressed.

Vukolov added that the state should not only operate through bans, but also do more to create social conditions that encourage couples to have children.

In November last year, Russia’s Supreme Court outlawed the “international LGBTQ public movement” in the country, designating it an extremist organization. The move followed a law banning sex-change operations, signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier in 2024.

In February, the state statistics agency Rosstat revealed that only 1.264 million babies were born in Russia in 2023, the lowest number since 1999. According to the agency’s forecast, birth rates will only start growing after 2028. By 2046, the Russian population is projected to decline to 138 million.

During an address to the Federal Assembly in February, President Putin said that “a large family with many children should become the norm, the philosophy of social life, the guideline of the entire strategy of the state.” According to the Rusian leader, over the next six years, the population should achieve a sustainable increase in its birth rate.
https://www.rt.com/russia/600105-childfree-ban-values-vukolov/
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4) US can’t trace $62 million of military aid sent to Ukraine – watchdog 27 Jun, 2024 13:24

The Pentagon does not know whether defence items were “lost or destroyed,” an investigation has found (smaller arms)

The US Defense Department is unable to locate $62 million worth of weapons given to Ukraine, according to a report released on Wednesday.

The conclusions were presented by the Pentagon inspector general after an assessment on whether the DoD is effectively monitoring defense items provided to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The watchdog found that as of late November last year, a total $62.2 million in hardware designated for enhanced end-use monitoring (EEUM) was reported as missing. Among them are night vision devices, Javelin anti-tank missiles, and missile launch units.

According to the report, the US Office of Defense Cooperation (ODC) in Ukraine “cannot tell which of these items were lost and which were destroyed.” The Ukrainian army has not yet provided clarification, it adds.

The ODC works in partnership with Ukraine’s Defense Ministry and Armed Forces to provide equipment and training to Kiev in its conflict with Russia. Ukraine’s army reports to the ODC on the use of the American-supplied equipment.

The Office of the Inspector General also found that loss reports were filed after an average of 301 days, approximately 10 times longer than the required timeframe.

”This increases the risk that the DoD could lose accountability over EEUM designated defense articles provided to Ukraine,” the document reads.

The report noted that it was beyond the scope of the probe to determine whether there have been “diversions” of military assistance. Allegations of criminal conduct regarding US arms sent to Ukraine are being investigated, it added.

In January, the watchdog reported that the Pentagon had failed to properly track $1 billion worth of military supplies given to Ukraine, and that much of the equipment sent was “delinquent.”

Between February 2022 and June this year, Washington provided approximately $51.2 billion in military assistance to Ukraine, including air defense systems and munitions, anti-aircraft missiles, artillery rockets, anti-armor systems, tanks, and helicopters.
https://www.rt.com/news/600100-us-military-aid-millions-missing-ukraine/

(Comment - see yesterday's post re US diplomat found dead in Kiev Hilton)
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5) Russia comments on coup attempt in Bolivia 27 Jun, 2024 12:24

Domestic politics should not face “destructive interference” by foreign actors, Moscow has said

Moscow has pledged its “unwavering support” for Bolivian President Luis Arce after his government faced an attempted military coup on Wednesday.

The failed putsch was led by the commander of the Armed Forces, General Juan Jose Zuniga. His troops occupied Plaza Murillo, the central square in the Bolivian capital La Paz, and broke into the presidential palace, but faced resistance at home and rebukes internationally.

Russia has condemned the attempted coup and considers it imperative that internal political disputes be settled within the framework of constitutional law, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

”We warn against attempts at destructive foreign interference in the domestic affairs of Bolivia and other nations. Such actions have previously led to tragic consequences for a number of countries and peoples, including in the Latin American region,” the ministry added.

The statement called Bolivia a “strategic partner.” Arce reiterated in late May his country’s intention to join BRICS, a group of not-Western economies that includes Russia among its founding members.

Bolivia fell prey to a coup in 2019, which ousted then-President Evo Morales and put into power the government of Senator Jeanine Anez. She is now serving a prison term for crimes that her regime committed during its deadly crackdown on mass protests.

Arce, who assumed office in 2020, and his mentor Morales, have been at odds over the future of their political force, the Movement for Socialism. However, Morales has unequivocally condemned the attempt to oust his former ally and urged the public to mobilize against General Zuniga. The coup leader was arrested hours after he tried to usurp power.
https://www.rt.com/russia/600094-russia-condemns-bolivia-coup/
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6) Why the Russia-US conflict will outlast the Ukraine crisis 28 Jun, 2024 07:28

Moscow must look at Washington as a long-term threat ****ANALYSIS****
By Andrey Sushentsov, program director at the Valdai Club.

The desire of the US to dominate and its refusal to see other countries as equals, willing and able to assume equal responsibility for peace and stability, is the short answer to the question of why Moscow-Washington relations cannot get out of the current state of crisis. This attitude also leads the US to the same difficulties in its relations with China, India and even some of its own allies, such as Turkey.

The Russian and Chinese position is buttressed by the principle that peace is the result of compromise between the major centers of power, and that without their mutual agreement – without equality, mutual respect, a willingness to recognize each other’s interests, and adherence to the principle of non-interference in internal affairs – a stable order is impossible. The US believes, however, that peace is a deterministic given, and that no special effort is needed to maintain it. This leads to paradoxical solutions: the more weapons, the more peace. The West is not yet ready to become just one of the Atlanteans holding up the sky. It still believes it should be in charge.

Are changes in relations between Moscow and Washington possible with a change of administration in the United States? I expect that this will not have a significant impact on the American line towards Russia. It is useful to look at American politics as an independent factor in our planning – we need to assume we cannot rely on the US elites. Washington will in most cases act with hostility towards Russia, in some cases opportunistically, engaging Moscow at time when it suits its own interests.

There is still a paradigm gap between Russians and Americans in their understanding of the world in the 21st century. US experts believe that Russia is part of the West and will inevitably end up in the Western camp at the end of this crisis, with China as its opponent. This set of paradoxical ideas has been present in the American narrative since the early 1990s.

The Americans believe that ultimately Russia has no alternative, and will therefore accept any offer from Washington. With the dollar sure to remain as the dominant currency for the medium term, the US will be an important country. And much depends on its turbulent domestic political life.

When it comes to Ukraine, the Americans think in investment banking terms and say straight out that Ukraine is a fairly cheap instrument that serves two purposes: to weaken Russia and to stifle any voices in Europe calling for strategic autonomy from the US.

Over the past two years, Washington has found this method of mobilisation quite cheap. Indeed, Russia-EU relations have been disrupted, the main gas pipeline linking the Russian and Western European energy systems has been destroyed, Eastern Europe has been militarised, the US military-industrial complex has been strengthened, and economic activity has flowed from Europe to the US. The American economy has gained from this crisis, while the Western European economy has suffered badly.

What are the US objectives in the Ukraine crisis? It wants a weakened Russia, which has lost control of key advantages in the Eurasian space, such as in transport, economics, production and energy. The US wants to knock Russia out of the top five world powers and make it strategically secondary.

However, the US is beginning to realize that Ukraine as an instrument of deterrence against Moscow is no longer a cheap resource. Kiev’s own military, material and human resources are close to exhaustion, and maintaining the viability of the Ukrainian state is becoming increasingly expensive for the US and the EU.

The US has been looking at Russia as a declining strategic player for some time. They were waiting for the moment when the country would leave the top-five leading countries in order to deal with China. Why did the US abandon negotiations with Moscow at the end of 2021, push Ukraine towards a military solution to the crisis, and then forbid it to negotiate with Russia? They believed that a quick victory over Russia was achievable, that the 52 countries the US had gathered in a coalition around Ukraine – their economies, resources, military arsenals, intelligence, satellite constellations, arms supplies, political intelligence and other support – would be enough to defeat our country. The West had not properly assessed Russia’s potential and that of their own coalition, and the short-term goals they set themselves have proved unattainable. They believe that a country whose economy apparently accounts for 3% of the world’s nominal GDP cannot fight the entire grand coalition on its own. But when Western countries have 65-80% of their GDP in the service sector, rather than in heavy industry and weapons-related areas, a situation arises in which Russia alone produces more artillery shells than all the Western states. This is a paradox that the US has not taken into account.

The US-Russian standoff should be seen as a long-term confrontation. It will continue even after Washington realizes that Ukraine has lost its importance as a tool. As a result, the US will shift the center of anti-Russian activity to another country that, like Ukraine, is willing to sacrifice itself and be at the forefront of the fight against Moscow. The US will not cease to be a strategic rival, and therefore we cannot afford to ignore it in our planning. We must regard the Americans as a constant threat, and prepare for a long confrontation.

This article was first published by Valdai Discussion Club, translated and edited by the RT team. https://www.rt.com/russia/600132-russia-us-ukraine-conflict/
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7) Trump says he will accept election results 28 Jun, 2024 07:40

However, the former US president has insisted that the vote must be “fair and legal, and good”

Former US President Donald Trump has said he will accept the results of the November 5 election, but only under certain conditions. He made the comments during the first presidential debate with Joe Biden, hosted by CNN in Atlanta, Georgia on Thursday.

During the event, moderator Dana Bash asked Trump three times if he would accept the outcome of the vote. The 78-year-old dodged the question twice, but eventually replied that “if it’s a fair and legal, and good election, absolutely.”

Trump never publicly conceded defeat to Biden in the 2020 election. He claimed that the vote had been “stolen” from him and challenged its results in court, but without success.

“I would have much rather accepted these [results], but the fraud and everything else was ridiculous,” Trump said on Thursday, referring to the 2020 election.

“It would be much easier for me to do that than running again. I wasn’t really going to run until I saw the horrible job he did. He’s destroying the country,” the presumptive Republican nominee said of Biden.

Trump claimed he “would be very happy to be someplace else – in a nice location,” instead of having to face indictments and other “opponent stuff” during the campaign.

“It’s the only way he [Biden] thinks he can win, but unfortunately it’s driven up my numbers,” Trump added, referring to polls which show him leading Biden.

A New York Times/Siena College survey released on Wednesday suggested that Trump is polling at 48%, with Biden lagging 4% behind.

“Let us see what your numbers are when the election is over,” Biden replied, branding his opponent a “whiner” over his reaction to the outcome of the 2020 vote.

“When you lost the first time you… appealed and appealed to courts all across the country. Not one single court in America said any of your claims had any merit,” the US president recalled.

As for the 2024 vote, Biden told Trump: “I tell you what – I doubt whether you’ll accept it because you’re such a whiner. The idea if you lose again, you accepting anything... you can’t stand the loss. Something snapped in you when you lost the last time.”

According to CNN Flash Poll, 67% of registered voters who watched the debate thought Trump outperformed Biden during their first face-off.
https://www.rt.com/news/600135-trump-biden-us-election/
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7a) Biden ‘could be convicted’ – Trump 28 Jun, 2024 03:45

The former US president has hinted that his rival may be prosecuted in the future

US President Joe Biden could be criminally prosecuted in the future, former President Donald Trump warned during a televised debate on Thursday.

During the CNN-moderated debate in Atlanta, Georgia, Trump was asked about his past statements, in which he indicated that he would prosecute Biden if he wins the election in November.

Trump first brought up how a jury recently found the president’s son, Hunter Biden, guilty of violating federal gun laws when he bought a revolver in 2018, while struggling with drug addiction.

“His son is a convicted felon at a very high level. His son is convicted, going to be convicted probably numerous other times,” Trump said. He then switched to Biden, saying: “But he could be a convicted felon as soon as he gets out of office. Joe could be a convicted felon with all of the things that he’s done. He’s done horrible things.”

Trump leveled numerous accusations against his opponent during the 90-minute clash, sharply criticizing Biden’s policies on the economy and immigration, as well as his response to the Ukraine conflict and the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. Biden defended his record as president, arguing that Trump had left the country “in chaos.”

Biden attacked Trump for his own troubles with the law. “Only one of us is a convicted felon, and I’m looking at him,” the 46th president said, referring to this month’s jury verdict, in which Trump was found guilty of falsifying business records during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Biden also noted that Trump is currently being investigated for other crimes, and that in January he lost a civil lawsuit to columnist E. Jean Carroll, who accused the former president of sexually assaulting her in the 1990s. “The crimes you are still charged with — and think of all the civil penalties you have,” Biden said.

Trump has denied wrongdoing and maintains that all cases against him are part of a politically motivated “witch hunt”. On the debate stage, he again accused Biden of “going after his political opponent.”

On the campaign trail, Trump has promised “a judgment day” for his opponents if he gets reelected.
https://www.rt.com/news/600130-joe-could-be-convicted-trump/
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8) EU nominates Russia hawk to be bloc’s next top diplomat 27 Jun, 2024 22:02

Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has vowed to unify members on external policy

EU leaders have officially nominated Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas to replace Josep Borrell as the bloc’s top diplomat. Kallas is known for her hawkish position on Russia and has been one of the most outpoken proponents of tougher sanctions on Moscow.

The leaders also backed Ursula von der Leyen to serve a third five-year term as president of the European Commission, and named former foreign minister of Portugal Antonio Costa as the new president of the European Council.

The nominations for Kallas and Von der Leyen are not final, and require approval by the European Parliament at a vote next month. However, Costa is automatically elected by the leaders of the 27 member states.

Euronews cited two sources as saying that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni voted against Kallas, while Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban abstained.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kallas wrote that the potential new post would be “an enormous responsibility at this moment of geopolitical tensions.”

“The war in Europe, increasing instability in our neighborhood and globally are the main challenges for European foreign policy,” she wrote, promising to “work on achieving EU unity” and “protect the EU’s interests and values in the changed geopolitical context.”

Kallas has repeatedly called for stronger sanctions on Moscow and backed the idea of using frozen Russian assets to fund aid for Kiev. In May, Estonia’s parliament passed a law allowing the use of seized Russian assets to fund the reconstruction of Ukraine.

She has urged the EU to boost deliveries of weapons to Ukraine and increase the bloc’s own defense capabilities. “Our aim must be to manufacture more munitions than Russia,” the Estonian prime minister said in March.

Russia blacklisted Kallas earlier this year and issued a warrant for her arrest, citing “hostile policies towards Russia.
https://www.rt.com/news/600127-eu-nominates-kaja-kallas/
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