EU preparing COUNTERMEASURES to 20% US TARIFFS on European goods

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called Trump's universal tariffs a MAJOR BLOW to businesses and consumers worldwide.

"We are prepared to respond; we are finalizing the first package of countermeasures in response to tariffs on steel, and we are now preparing for further countermeasures to protect our interests and our business if negotiations fail," von der Leyen added.

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🇯🇵↘️ Japan's benchmark stock index COLLAPSES after Trump’s tariff blow

The Nikkei 225, which includes Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, and Nissan stocks, plunged as much as 4.35% in early trading, in an eight-month low.

The US president on April 2 imposed hefty reciprocal tariffs on over 180 countries and territories, several of which, including Japan, are in the Asia-Pacific region.

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Since Pelosi left, Dems 'COMPLETELY FELL APART' — Rep. Mark Mullin

The Democratic Party is led by socialists: Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Jasmine Crockett, the US senator said.

"That tells you the DISARRAY of the Democrats' party. We assumed Nancy Pelosi was the leader; since she left, they completely fell apart," he said, adding that Cory Booker ranted for 25 hours, and Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer aren’t leading either as their favorability is 21%.

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🔸Trump signs executive order on Reciprocal Tariffs

🔸Hegseth to SKIP Ukraine support meeting, marking US policy shift – reports

🔸Iran to REVISE defense doctrine if threats to nuclear program are carried out – IRGC

🔸Netanyahu visits Europe DESPITE the ICC arrest warrant against him – reports

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🇨🇳🏝Revolutionizing afforestation: China’s Inner Mongolia uses DRONES AND ROBOTS to green the desert

A video shows intelligent tree-planting machines embedding saplings with precision and drones transporting seedlings across sand dunes.

The footage was shared by Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian, who stressed that the drones and the robots help bolster “afforestation efficiency and tree survival rates” in northern China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

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'USAID is all over these drug networks' — former state dept. official 

The agency bought two CIA proprietary aircraft for the CIA mercenary army in Cambodia and Laos in order to transport drugs from Cambodia into Vietnam to sell them retail onto the market, Mike Benz said.

"USAID was caught spending hundreds of millions of dollars irrigating all of the heroin, the poppy fields in Afghanistan. It's hard to squint and look for a drug network that USAID is not directly or indirectly capacity building and providing financial support to," he added.

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❗️Special Envoy of Russian President for investment and economic cooperation holds meetings in Washington with reps of Trump administration on Putin's instructions

Kirill Dmitriev emphasized that the dialogue between Russia and the United States—crucial for the entire world—was completely broken under the Biden administration.

"Restoring dialogue is a difficult and gradual process. But each meeting, each candid conversation, helps move things forward," he added.

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🇭🇺Hungary withdraws from International Criminal Court  — Orban's Office

"The withdrawal process will begin on Thursday, in line with Hungary’s constitutional and international legal obligations," Hungarian PM spokesman Zoltan Kovacs announced.

Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for whom the ICC issued an arrest warrant in November 2024, came to the country for a visit. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in November 2024 that the decision of the ICC would not be implemented on the state's territory.

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❗️Lavrov meets with foreign ministers of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger to strengthen ties with Russia

The minister emphasized that the Sahel countries’ alliance is developing dynamically, which opens up opportunities for strengthening cooperation with Moscow.

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❗️Over the past 24 hours, Ukrainian forces have attacked Russian energy infrastructure FOUR TIMES despite the moratorium on attacks on energy facilities, the Defense Ministry said.

A branch of Russia's power company Rosseti was attacked in the Kursk region, leaving more than 1,200 consumers without power.

Another Rosseti branch was attacked in the Belgorod region, leaving more than 1,700 consumers without power.

In addition, the Vasilyevka electrical substation was attacked in the Zaporozhye region, and the Svatovo gas distribution station in Lugansk, where the gas supply to more than 11,000 consumers was cut off.

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🇮🇷🗣 Foreign threats to bomb Iran's nuclear energy infrastructure will inevitably lead to IRREVERSIBLE consequences and are unacceptable, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

Moscow is committed to finding negotiated solutions to eliminate Western prejudices regarding Iran's nuclear program, the ministry added.

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🗣 Foreign companies from Europe and the US have shown interest in the St. Petersburg Economic Forum (SPIEF) before, but not publicly, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.

Earlier, the Roscongress Foundation said that US companies are planning to participate in SPIEF-2025 and that applications have already been received.

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