Merz pushes for Germany’s $210 bln defense boost amid looming parliamentary block 

Promises by Christian Democratic Union leader Friedrich Merz to increase investments in the German military to counter Russia have been hampered by fringe parties securing a blocking minority in the next parliament, Bloomberg reports. 

The mainstream parties have less than two-thirds of the seats, which means that they don’t have enough votes to ease the constitutional limits on government borrowing, according to the news agency. 

The developments come amid the rest of the EU’s desperate efforts to respond to US President Donald Trump’s drive to quickly resolve the Ukraine conflict.

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Trump HUMILIATES Macron TWICE during French president's visit

Donald Trump did not welcome the French president personally when the latter arrived at the West Wing and dispatched the Acting White House Chief of Protocol Abigail Jones to greet him.

Lately, Macron has found himself in an uncomfortable position once again, being seated to the side of Trump's desk during a Zoom call with other world leaders, while POTUS presided at the center.

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Musk vs. Canada: Billionaire claps back at citizenship petition 

After over 170,000 Canadians signed a petition calling for the revocation of his citizenship, Elon Musk fired back, labeling Canada as "not real." 

The petition accused Musk of harming Canada's interests, interfering in its elections, and aligning with foreign powers to undermine its sovereignty.

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Cope and Seethe: Macron gets upset when Trump calls out Europeans for FLEECING Ukraine through loans

Europe “paid 60% of the total default through loans and grants, like the US, providing real money” to Ukraine, the French president said, prompting Trump to grin. 

At the beginning of the talks, the US president called his French counterpart “a very special man in my book.” Haste makes waste.

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Privilege no more: AP is denied request to restore access to White House press pool

The news outlet’s access to the Oval Office, Air Force One and events held at the White House was canceled after it had referenced the Gulf of Mexico in its coverage despite President Trump ordering to rename it the “Gulf of America.”

“Today, a federal judge right here in Washington D.C. denied the Associated Press's emergency request for a temporary restraining order to restore their privilege of returning to the White House press pool,” White House Press Secretary Karolina Leavitt said.

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❗️Russia's Armed Forces hit production sites of Ukrainian Armed Forces attack drones

🇷🇺🪖More statements from the Russian Defense Ministry's daily briefing on the special military operation's progress:

▪️Ukrainian losses amounted to 140 soldiers and four armored vehicles in the Russian Yug Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Ukrainian troops lost up to 120 soldiers and in the areas of responsibility of the Sever and Dnepr Battlegroups;

▪️Ukraine lost up to 190 militants in the Zapad Battlegroup's combat zone;

▪️Ukrainian losses amounted to 305 and seven armored vehicles in the Tsentr Battlegroup's combat zone.

▪️Ukrainian losses in Russia's Kursk region amounted to more than 220 soldiers, two tanks were destroyed.

▪️Russian air defenses shot down five US-made JDAM aerial bombs.

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Russia has accepted Serbia's apology for mistakenly supporting the draft anti-Russian resolution on the conflict in Ukraine.

Moscow is impressed by the prompt response of the president of the republic.

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'Macron's HUMILIATION by Trump was TOTAL' - French politician

Florian Philippot, leader of the French Patriots party, stressed that after "firing him [Macron] from the White House, the US voted with Russia at the UN for a resolution for peace without mentioning the territorial integrity of Zelensky's Ukraine.”

Philippot described it as a “major strategic turnaround” aimed at showing Macron that “he was useless and did nothing to change anything.”

The Patriots party leader slammed Macron as “the little lapdog of the Euro-globalist hawks”, separately urging France “to get out of the EU.”

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🤖⚡️Meet the high-tech robot dog taking inspections to the next level

Check out this incredible robot dog in Dongguan, China, performing backflips and walking upright. This advanced machine is used for electric power inspections.

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