In case you needed evidence that Trump has completely sidelined Congress and rules by decree

try to make sense of it

Poland 🇵🇱 builds an anti drone wall. "As long as Ukraine is defending itself and fighting Russia, Europe is not at risk of war in the strict sense of the word. But we will face instead provocations & acts of sabotage” www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...

According to British intelligence, Russia’s losses since the beginning of the war have exceeded 400,000 killed and wounded. x.com/DefenceHQ/st...

To our American friends: "censorship isn’t where you think it is.” #disinformation www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

The Adler, a 🇷🇺 sanctioned ship is anchored in Sweden (technical difficulties?) 🇸🇪 can now inspect and potentially detain it. EU sanctions should be much stronger, e.g. forbid all sanctioned ships to pass through EU territorial waters. That would stop all oil transports from Ust Luga / St Petersburg

Russia's immense power & advantage over Ukraine are a myth. Let's face it: 🇷🇺 is a petrol station with an army. The country has the economy of a African nation (dependency on raw materials, small services economy), but less promising: denied market access, shrinking population, growing deficit.

Contrary to Belgium's claimd, legal opinions argue that 🇧🇪 would not be on the hook to pay damages to Moscow. Russia cannot start case at e.g. the EU Court of Justice or the International Court of Justice as 🇷🇺 doesn't accept their jurisdiction (we all know why...) www.politico.eu/article/lega...

In a world first, Ukrainian underwater drones struck & disabled a Russian #Kilo-class attack submarine. Following Ukraine’s repeated attacks, the 🇷🇺 navy moved from Sevastopol to the port of Novorossiysk ...but Ukraine 🇺🇦 can now reach them there as well. www.reuters.com/world/europe...

There is overwhelming evidence that Russia 🇷🇺 - with Putin's knowledge- planned the attack on ex-spy Sergei Skripal that led to Sturgess’s death in 2018, due to #novichok disguised as a Nina Ricci perfume www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Hit Putin where it hurts! Ukraine 🇺🇦 can stop passage through Black Sea for sanctioned Russian oil tankers EU 🇪🇺 @kajakallas.bsky.social must BLOCK passage through Great Belt & other 🇩🇰 straights (60%of 🇷🇺 seaborne oil exports) in the next EU sanctions package www.independent.co.uk/news/world/e...

"This one (🇷🇺 war in 🇺🇦 ) is more difficult than I thought" he said. He had no clue. He still hasn't.

We see a new level in Russia's aggression against Europe as a whole, writes @alanderminna.bsky.social It's clear that Putin is "boiling the frog" and checking how far he can go. We need to unite and call his bluff, but EU politicians act too little, too slow 1/2 open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

This is not normal. (Nothing in 🇺🇸 or 🇷🇺 is these days)

Lavrov: "Sending European troops to Ukraine as part of security guarantees would amount to foreign military intervention, which Moscow won't support." Well, f*ck it - we didn't support Russia's military invasion in Ukraine either! kyivindependent.com/russia-oppos...

Isn't it about time that, instead of responding to Russian proposals and vetos, the West pushes ITS proposals for a ceasefire, ELSE (secondary) sanctions expand, etc? Only a show of force can move Putin!

Some poor African soldiers or even better, Chinese or North Korean, are certainly a great security security guarantee for Ukraine ☠ This is where NEGOTIATIONS should start - but not where they will finish

Nothing good happened in Anchorage The U.S. has no cards because Trump had been giving them away. To bring peace, 🇺🇸 needs to arm Ukraine, expand sanctions, stop the drone swarms, break the Russian economy & win the war, says @anneapplebaum.bsky.social www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

How to solve the Gordian knot? A quick look at a first step to reconcile the unreconciliable Ukraine 🇺🇦 objectives Restore pre 2014 borders EU & NATO membership Russia 🇷🇺 objectives Recognize Crimea + ALL Kherson/Zaporizhzhia/Donetsk/Luhansk as RU Demilitarize UA No UA membership NATO A few ideas ⤵️

"Putin is in love with a legend. Historically speaking, this is very familiar: new regimes, such as Putin's, seek compensation in myths of ancient origin."

Nobody can still pretend that ICE is "just immigration control." It is becoming a tool for the President to exercise power and intimidate opppnents when no such power legally exists. Call it Godwin's Law if you must, the list of actions/statements that link Trump to Hitler's playbook is growing.

Interesting summer reading onbthe extraordinary influence Robert Moses had on NY state & City. One quote that struck me: "he is a liar the way Hitler was a liar. He doesn't lie because he can't help it. He lies as a matter of policy." The same can be said of today's U.S. President.

America's lost separation of powers, as it happens. An essential part of being a #democracy is no more, taken over by a strongman with "a mandate from the people " (just as Adolf Hiitler claimed ...)

Trump's new definition of #HumanRights is a fraud El Salvador 🇸🇻 gets whitewashed Brazil 🇧🇷 is called "antisemitic" for calling Gaza a genocide Germany 🇩🇪 has " #FreedomOfSpeech issues" for keeping social media platforms responsible for hate speech www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

The rumour is the Putin wants ALL of Donbas (Luhansk + Donetsk) as the price for a ceasefire. That would destroy Ukraine's strong defensive "fortress belt" & is an open invitation to a new attack in the future. It's unacceptable. understandingwar.org/backgrounder...

This If Putin is willing to sit down now to negotiate anything, that's not due his good nature. It is because a thousand Russians get killed by Ukrainian defenders every day, and because of the resolve of 🇺🇦 's allies to provide weapons & slap sanctions on Russia that bite. 🇪🇺 🤝 🇺🇦

Satellite images show at least 12 air defense units — mostly Pantsir-S1 systems — positioned near Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence in Valdai. meduza.io/en/news/2025...

Has China's Wirtschaftswunder run out of steam? From a peak of 18.5% of world GDP in 2021, China 🇨🇳 is back to 16.5%. After raising millions from poverty to the middle-income, macro-economic hiccups stall the rise. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

The swapping of territories Trump alluded to is still a mystery. I think this is will be offered: a) Kherson & Zaporizhzhia: frontline as is b) Sumy & Kharkiv, return to the intl border c) in return for (b), Putin asks all of Donetsk & Luhansk, incl de iure. www.politico.eu/article/euro...

Pessimism As a Self-Fulfilling Prophecy? When you look better, we're not doing that bad, says @alanderminna.bsky.social: Europe has the money, the know-how, and the industry to tackle the challenge. The only thing stopping Europe is lack of faith. open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

Overproduction is the structural flaw in China’s economic model. To solve the issues this brings at home & abroad, 🇨🇳 needs to switch to a more consumer- and services-based model - but that's unlikely to happen under Xi's Leninist/mercantilist policies. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

The most corrupt White House in history. Here is an account of what people are paying, directly to a PAC called MAGA Inc, in order to meet the president, get pardons, change policy www.nytimes.com/2025/08/02/u...

. @anneapplebaum.bsky.social rightly states that the West does not yet fully understand how broad Putin's goals are. "If you really want peace, you must arm Ukraine and defend it until Putin releases the war is over & he CANNOT win it."

#Israel must #StopGenocide in Gaza, even if Hamas committed horrific crimes on 7 Oct  2023. The only peaceful way forward—for both Jews & Palestinians—is a #TwoStateSolution.⁣ Worldwide voices insist: end this war, recognise #Palestine & secure a lasting peace.🇮🇱🇵🇸 apnews.com/article/un-i...

You have to admire the Scots ....

Since the end of the Cold War, the centre of power in Europe has shifted - for the better. Not only do the Nordic-Baltic 8 🇪🇪🇱🇻🇱🇹🇫🇮🇸🇪🇩🇰🇳🇴🇮🇸 recognize the risk of Russia next-door, Poland 🇵🇱 is also becoming a heavyweight in its own right + as a partner of 🇬🇧 🇫🇷 🇩🇪 open.substack.com/pub/phillips...

This is excellent. In three minutes she explains how democracies become dictatorships. It's happened so many times, yet in each country, most people said, 'it can't happen here'

Crazy sycophants Apart from suggesting to rename the Kennedy Center after Melania Trump, Republicans introduced legislation to rename the Washington Dulles Int'' Airport after Trump, get his face on the $100 bill & turn his birthday into an international holiday. www.politico.com/live-updates...

Europe 🇪🇺 should take pride in our unique balance of #freedom, #justice & knowledge - our #civilisation. "To speak in the name of European civilization thus becomes, at the same time, a way for China to take its interlocutor seriously and to recognize it as a peer." big-europe.eu/publications...

A thoroughly depressing story: Russia's military-industrial complex is pulling young people out of high school so they can build instruments of death. For motivation, they're telling these teenagers that "Stalin's DNA" courses through their veins. Poor kids. meduza.io/en/news/2025...

Make America Great Again #MAGA, you say? Let's face it, USA is in many respects a THIRD WORLD country (ridiculously low annual leave for employees, ZERO maternity leave, sharia like religious bigotry, crazy expensive education and health care, etc) and Trump adds insult to injury.

Already in Olaf Scholz' govt, Pistorius clearly wanted to do more than his boss. The new Bundeskanzler, Friedrich Merz, has no such constraints 👍👍. Great news for Ukrainian 🇺🇦

Brazil and South Korea both dunking on America historically hard, showing what rule of law democracy looks like. Yes, future historians, the US response to high level lawbreaking and an attempted coup was to coddle the putschists, and make special exemptions for them. It happened. I was there.

Apart from Nordic solidarity, also note France's 🇫🇷 growng attention for the Artic. France has recently strategically reoriented towards Northen Europe & increased its presence significantly in the new NATO members 🇫🇮 🇸🇪 Great views from @alanderminna.bsky.social open.substack.com/pub/minnalan...

When China talks about #OneChina, they mostly mean "Taiwan 🇹🇼 is a part of China 🇨🇳 " But don't forget Hong Kong 🇭🇰. By any standard, HK is not part of the PRC. Its society is different, and Beijing comes down hard on any independent thinking. #ManyChinas

Finally, the EU Commission intends to take action against the dumping practices and unnecessary/ unhealthy products that Temu, Shein and others dispatch by the million to Europe. I am against tariff walls, provided all EU rules are fully applied. If not, there should be a wall, full stop.

The videos of @jameskerlindsay.bsky.social always reveal what the news headlines miss. Apart from explaining the past that still devides Croatia 🇭🇷, I agree that ALL countries have dark chapters in their history. Some are at peace with it, others deny it (like Russia 🇷🇺) youtu.be/DXGH4FEAIOM?...

Finally, Taurus for Ukraine 🇺🇦?

If you can’t be like Finland, then be like Denmark! Denmark's attitude to re-building its military capabilities and supporting Ukraine should be an example for all European countries, suggests @alanderminna.bsky.social