Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov:

Nobody in Ukraine would agree to lose even an inch of territory.

Nobody wants to deal with the weak — international law doesn’t work here.

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov:

We will never renounce our territories. Never recognize occupation.

This is our land, we cannot trade it.

Ukraine carried out another drone strike on Russia’s Tuapse oil refinery, marking the third major attack this month.

The strike hit remaining fuel storage tanks, causing new explosions and large fires.

The facility was already heavily damaged.

Israelis were surrounded and shouted at by locals in Cusco, Peru, who accuse them of being “murderers”, “baby killers” and “war criminals” and tell them to leave.

Trump is weighing two paths in dealing with Iran: escalating with military strikes or continuing his “maximum pressure” sanctions to force negotiations.

He has at times taken a hard line, telling one adviser, “All [Iran’s leaders] understand is bombs.”

But advisers say he remains cautious about actually launching new attacks. As one described it, he is “frustrated but realistic… He doesn’t want to use force. But he’s not backing down.”

Source: Axios

WATCH: The village of Al-Khiam in southern Lebanon after extensive Israeli destruction.

Argentina’s Vice President Victoria Villarruel says Falkland Islanders who feel British to “go back to England”:

The Kelpers are English people who live in Argentine territory; they are not part of the discussion.

If they feel English, they should go back to the thousands of miles away where their country is.

Today, more than ever, the Malvinas are Argentine.

NEW: Russia claims a coup attempt in Mali was stopped.

Russia’s Defense Ministry says its “African Corps” helped stop a large-scale attack on April 25.

Around 12,000 fighters reportedly hit four major cities, including the capital.

Russia claims ~2,500 attackers were killed.

It also alleges the fighters were trained by Ukrainian and European instructors.

NEW: Poland and Belarus just swapped prisoners, 5 for 5.

Both sides exchanged 5 prisoners each at the border.

Belarus released 3 Poles (including journalist Andrzej Poczobut) and 2 Moldovans.

Poland returned 5 Belarusians, reportedly linked to intelligence activities.

The deal was partly facilitated with US involvement.

Timothy Ash | Russia & Eurasia Expert | Chatham House:
 

Von Der Leyen's comments on Türkiye were extraordinary & disappointing. 
 
After 4 years of war in Ukraine, European politicians should understand the existential threat from Russia - & that America is no longer there for Europe's defense.
 
Türkiye's response was grown up. 
 
The quickest way to build Europe's defense is with Türkiye. A major partner, EU candidate & deeply integrated into Europe.
 
Europeans pushed back on EU accession & Türkiye understood Europe was double faced.
 
But in the end, Türkiye & Europe's future is together.

FULL INTERVIEW

BREAKING: UAE says it will quit OPEC and OPEC+.

This means the UAE can pump more oil independently.

It also weakens OPEC+ control and signals more tensions with Saudi Arabia.

UAE Energy Minister says the decision was made independently and no direct consultations were held with others, including Saudi Arabia.

Source: Reuters

In China, you can buy 5 electric cars for the price of 1 average US car.

Average US car: about $51,000.

Many Chinese EVs: $6,000–$12,000.

Over 200 EV models under $25,000 in China.

Source: Reuters

Timothy Ash | Russia & Eurasia Expert | Chatham House:
 

It would be idiotic to ignore what Türkiye brings to the table. 400,000 battle-hardened soldiers, thousands of main battle tanks & armored personnel carriers - & a military industrial complex built over 20 years while Europe was de-industrializing.
 
The quickest way for Europe to rebuild defense capability is through Türkiye's defense manufacturing base.
 
Two-thirds of Türkiye's foreign investment, financing & trade is with Europe. Türkiye is the largest military force in European NATO.
 
Von Der Leyen's comments make no sense. European politicians are still living in a fantasy land - not understanding the threats they face.
 
When presented with solutions, they find excuses to ignore them.

FULL INTERVIEW

Serbia’s Jewish Foreign Minister, Marko Đurić, opens his statement in Hebrew during a joint press conference with his Israeli counterpart:

I want all Israelis to know—you have true friends.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar implies Ukraine should be grateful for “Israeli support”:

It’s a bit surprising coming from a country that we supported in international forums, supported in so many ways, including humanitarian help…

But probably this is life.

Trump:

I’ve always wanted to live in Buckingham Palace!!!

I’ll talk to the King and Queen about this in a few minutes!!!

Timothy Ash | Russia & Eurasia Expert | Chatham House:
 

Question: Could European reluctance toward Türkiye be just outright racism?
 
There is quite a lot of that. In continental Europe, there is institutional racism against Türkiye. Let's be honest about it.
 
Remember Chirac's comments on Turkish-EU accession - "the French people will decide." Then Sarkozy & Merkel with the privileged partnership. The pattern is clear.
 
The irony - in recent months we saw Türkiye deploy its drone carrier with significant troop deployments in defense of Germany during Baltic military exercises.
 
Türkiye can provide quick solutions to Europe's defense problems. Europe just needs to get over its Türkiye-phobia.

FULL INTERVIEW

Trump:

Iran has just informed us that they are in a “State of Collapse.” They want us to “Open the Hormuz Strait,” as soon as possible, as they try to figure out their leadership situation (Which I believe they will be able to do!). Thank you for your attention to this matter!

Timothy Ash | Russia & Eurasia Expert | Chatham House:
 

Türkiye's first decade under Erdoğan was a real reform agenda - anchored by EU accession & the IMF program.
 
There was record foreign investment, investment grade rating & the only time the central bank hit its 5% inflation target. The EU anchor drove that.
 
It went off track when France & Germany started talking about a "privileged partnership." Türkiye realized it wasn't a level playing field.
 
Bulgaria & Romania were let in to EU despite being poorer & having serious rule of law issues, while Türkiye brought more to the table.
 
With US disengagement from Europe, I hope Europe finally reawakens to the opportunities of deeper engagement with Türkiye - for Europe's defense & for Türkiye's reform process itself.
 
But first, Europe must battle its own prejudices.

FULL INTERVIEW