🇫🇷 Sixty-nine percent of French citizens have condemned the attacks on police stations, arson and damage to public property by protesters in the ongoing riots sparked by the death of a teenager at the hands of police, a poll by the French Institute of Public Opinion (IFOP) showed on Monday.

At the same time, 32% of respondents said law enforcement officers made them fearful or uncomfortable, the poll said, adding that 57% still have trust or sympathy for the police.

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🗣️ On the reason for Biden’s reelection attempt:

“The main reason that Biden is insisting on running again and the main reason that it seems like the Democratic Party has been okay with that is not about Joe Biden. It is about who will be his running mate, Kamala Harris,” Caleb Maupin, journalist, and political analyst, told Sputnik.

🎧Listen to more of Maupin’s analysis in our podcast The Critical Hour

🇿🇼 Zimbabwe invites observers from Russia and other countries for August elections

Over 64 countries and international organizations, including Russia, Belarus, the US, the UK have been invited to observe the presidential election that will take place on August 23, Zimbabwe's Foreign Ministry announced.

Zimbabwe's Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Amon Murwira urged the incoming EU observers to "maintain strict impartiality, objectivity and independence" when discharging their mandate.

🗣 "No foreign power is a stakeholder in Zimbabwe's electoral processes; therefore, foreigners come by invitation and participate as observers and not as monitors," Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa stated

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Chinese economic rebound might trigger upsurge in global energy prices

"In a scenario where the Chinese economy is very strong, buys a lot of energy from the markets, and we have a harsh winter, we may see strong upward pressure under natural gas prices, which in turn will put an extra burden on consumers," Turkish economist and head of the International Energy Agency Fatih Birol said.

Birol reportedly suggested that countries such as the UK should "continue to push measures to save energy” and consider "alternative energy options," adding that blackouts during the winter period may occur.

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🗣️ On the French protests:

“The French authorities are scrambling to set up barricades and bring in as many of their security forces to the streets of Paris. There's already upwards of 6,000 security forces on the streets of Paris right now preparing themselves for the onslaught of Arab and African youths that are going to come for revenge for their dead,” Laith Marouf, a broadcaster and journalist, told Sputnik.

🎧Listen to more of Marouf’s analysis in our podcast The Critical Hour

Ukraine has only one option: all-in offensive before NATO summit in Vilnius

Kiev is preparing the second stage of the counteroffensive because the first, despite using huge amounts of Western military equipment and Ukrainian troops, did not bring results, Leonid Reshetnikov, a veteran Russian foreign intelligence official, told Sputnik.

Read his full analysis

📹 Footage showing the combat work of the crews of Russia's Ka-52 helicopters in the zone of the special military op

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🇧🇷 Paleontologists in Brazil discovered that one of the earliest-known dinosaurs, Macrocollum itaquii, had large air spaces in its backbone like gigantic species, helping it grow to enormous sizes. These sinuses lightened the bones and aided respiration, allowing them to reach lengths of over 30 meters.

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🔺Russian Defense Minister Shoigu: “Ukraine's counteroffensive failing in all directions”
🔺Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen jets to Beijing this week seeking better relations with China
🔺The US is stoking tensions with Japan and South Korea, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi claimed

The Critical Hour will cover these and more stories! Tune in to Radio Sputnik at 6pm EST|3pm PST|12am CET via the website or app

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🇷🇺 🌍 BRICS Expansion Could Be Discussed at Second Russia–Africa Summit

This issue may be raised at the Russia-Africa summit at the request of the African partners, Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador Oleg Ozerov said in an interview with media.

In addition, the issue of bilateral relations, including in the economic sphere, will be discussed at the summit to be held in St. Petersburg at the end of July, he explained

👉 Read to know more!

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🗣️ On the indifference of the US government to the interests of the population:

“We have a situation here where Biden is wildly unpopular, but it looks like he may be the next president of the United States, even though he's polling very low… That's a situation where the desires of the people are just completely cut off. The government seems unconcerned with the frustration and anger of the population,” Caleb Maupin, a journalist and political analyst, told Sputnik.

🎧 Listen to more of Maupin’s analysis in our podcast The Critical Hour

📹 Russia’s T-72B3M in action in the zone of the special military op

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Ukraine will receive dozens of Leopard 1A5 tanks from Germany and Denmark in the coming weeks, the German defense minister says

Boris Pistorius did not specify the exact number of tanks but said that his country provides the second-largest military assistance to Kiev as part of EU support.

In early May, Berlin announced a new €2.7 billion armament package for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which includes IRIS-T SLM air defense systems.

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🗣️ On the US-Saudi relationship:

“The US is trying as hard as it can, offering as much as it can to Saudi Arabia just so it can continue with this normalization process. But the Saudis are being offered more by Iran, offered more by China and Russia. So the US can't even offer anything,” Laith Marouf, a broadcaster and journalist, told Sputnik.

🎧Listen to more of Marouf’s analysis in our podcast The Critical Hour

Two drones were shot down in Moscow, there were no casualties or damage, a spokesman for emergencies services told Sputnik

"Two UAVs were shot down near the locality of Valuyevo in New Moscow. They fell in an open field. There were no casualties or damage," the spokesman said.

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Another drone has been shot down near the town of Kubinka in the Moscow Region - Emergency Services

Poland will deploy a special forces unit to Lithuania to strengthen the security of the upcoming NATO summit

The special forces unit will include up to 75 servicemen and other military personnel, two S-70i Black Hawk and one Mi-17 helicopters as well as an anti-drone system.

The Polish military will ensure the safety of the Lithuanian airspace as well as protect the population of the country and its key facilities.

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⚡ Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin has described this incident as yet another Ukrainian drone attack against the Russian capital. According to him, the attack was successfully repelled as all enemy UAVs were eliminated by Russian air defense units

Two more UAVs have been shot down by air defense system near Moscow, no one was injured, Emergency Services told Sputnik

In total, 4 drones have been shot down near Moscow this morning

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemns latest drone attacks outside Moscow

💬 The Kiev regime’s attempted attack on an area where civilian infrastructure facilities are located, including an airport, which by the way accepts foreign flights, is another act of terrorism. Given that Zelensky is committing these terrorist attacks with weapons supplied by the West or with Western funds, this is international terrorism. The world community must realize that the United States, Britain, France - permanent members of the UN Security Council - bankroll this terrorist regime.

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This morning an attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack targeting infrastructure outside Moscow using five drones has been foiled, the Russian MoD said