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Category: World

juncker ukraine
October 6, 2023
Jack Montgomery
News
Politics
World

Ex-EU Prez Says Ukraine Shouldn’t Join Bloc, Is ‘Corrupt at All Levels of Society’.

Jean-Claude Juncker, the previous President of the European Commission, has said there is no chance of Ukraine joining the European Union in the near future, as “[a]nyone who has had anything to do with Ukraine knows that this is a country that is corrupt at all levels of society.”

Juncker, an old rival of Brexit champion Nigel Farage, urged European leaders not to “make false promises to the people in Ukraine who are up to their necks in suffering.”

“I am very angry about some voices in Europe who are telling Ukrainians that they can become members immediately,” he said. “That would be neither good for the EU nor for Ukraine,” he said, referencing its issues with endemic corruption and stating flatly it is “not eligible to join and needs massive internal reform processes.”

Internal EU assessments have indicated Ukraine would be an enormous financial burden to the bloc, sucking €186 billion (~$195 billion) out of its budgets over seven years and depriving existing members, particularly relatively less-developed former communist countries, of substantial funds.

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Jean-Claude Juncker, the previous President of the European Commission, has said there is no chance of Ukraine joining the European Union in the near future, as "[a]nyone who has had anything to do with Ukraine knows that this is a country that is corrupt at all levels of society." show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
Ukraine joining the European Union would also risk escalating the country’s conflict with Russia, as the EU treaties increase a NATO-like mutual defense clause
for exclusive members-only insights
Ukraine joining the European Union would also risk escalating the country’s conflict with Russia, as the EU treaties increase a NATO-like mutual defense clause show more
for exclusive members-only insights
Prigozhin's Plane
October 5, 2023
William Upton
News
World

Putin Says Inebriated Passengers Playing With Grenades Blew Up Wagner Chief Prigozhin’s Plane.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed the investigation into the death of Wagner mercenary group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin found his aircraft was brought down after those on board became intoxicated and set off hand grenades. According to Putin, investigators found pieces of metal from exploded grenades in the human remains recovered from the plane’s crash site. Trace amounts of drugs and alcohol were found in blood samples taken as well.

Prigozhin, a former confidant of Putin turned political and military critic, died on August 23, 2023 when a private jet carrying him and nine others crashed about 15 kilometers from Khotilovo, a Russian airbase in the Russian region of Tver. In the immediate aftermath of the incident, it was speculated Russian air defenses may have brought the jet down.

On June 24, 2023, Wagner mercenary forces, who had spent much of the near year-and-a-half prior fighting alongside the Russian military in Ukraine, unexpectedly crossed back into Russia. Under the command of Prigozhin, the mercenaries quickly occupied the Russian city of Rostov and began an over 1,000 kilometer march towards Moscow – initially encountering little resistance. The mercenary – turned rebel – leader inexplicably stood down hours later, ending his quasi-coup with a negotiated surrender.

Prior to his death, Prigozhin had  been spotted in the African nation of Niger. In August, Niger’s military regime appealed to Wagner for help against the Nigeria-led, West-aligned ECOWAS threats to invade the country in order to restore its ousted president.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed the investigation into the death of Wagner mercenary group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin found his aircraft was brought down after those on board became intoxicated and set off hand grenades. According to Putin, investigators found pieces of metal from exploded grenades in the human remains recovered from the plane's crash site. Trace amounts of drugs and alcohol were found in blood samples taken as well. show more
October 5, 2023
Jake Welch
News
World

German Populist Leader Says He Was Stabbed With Syringe Before Going Into Shock.

Tino Chrupalla, a member of the German parliament and co-chairman of the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD), was rushed to intensive care after being reportedly “stabbed with a syringe” at a political event in Ingolstadt on Wednesday afternoon.

Chrupalla – who only last week was “debanked” – was taken to hospital after he reportedly went into an anaphylactic shock just moments before he was due to give a speech.

It is believed upon feeling sick, Chrupalla pointed to two men in the crowd who were subsequently arrested, though many details of the attack remain unclear. The Bavarian police have opened an investigation into the incident.

The attack comes just hours after the AfD’s other co-chairman, Alice Weidel, was forced into hiding with her family after authorities found credible evidence of a planned assassination attempt on her life. Weidel was due to give a speech at an AfD event celebrating the German Day of Unity on Tuesday and instead spoke via a video message.

There have been a number of attacks on AfD politicians in recent months, with the Bavarian-based party member Andrea Jurca receiving two black eyes and being forced to walk on crutches after a random attack in August. The party’s deputy leader, Beatrix von Storch, was similarly attacked after she was smeared with dog faeces while giving a talk last month.

Meanwhile, the German establishment’s anti-AfD rhetoric is becoming increasingly inflammatory, with multiple senior politicians and lawmakers attempting to ban the party.

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Tino Chrupalla, a member of the German parliament and co-chairman of the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD), was rushed to intensive care after being reportedly "stabbed with a syringe" at a political event in Ingolstadt on Wednesday afternoon. show more
ukraine's offensive
October 5, 2023
Jack Montgomery
News
Politics
World

DATA: Support for Arming Ukraine Collapsing.

Support for arming and funding Ukraine in another seemingly endless war is collapsing, with only 41 percent of respondents to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll agreeing that America “should provide weapons to Ukraine”.

Support for U.S. participation in the Ukraine war is falling among supporters of both major political parties. Among Democrats, 52 percent support arming Ukraine, but this is down from 61 percent as recently as May. Among Republicans, support for arming Ukraine stands at just 35 percent, down from 39 percent.

An outright majority of Republicans, 56 percent, believe the Ukraine war is “none of our business and we should not interfere,” as do more than a third of Democrats.

The fall in support for the war follows the apparent failure of a large-scale Ukrainian counter-offensive, involving modern Wester weapons and Western-trained forces, appearing to fail, with no significant breakthroughs anywhere along the front as the rainy season approaches.

Russian forces have in fact gained more territory than they have lost in 2023, capturing 331 square miles since January to Ukraine’s 143.

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Support for arming and funding Ukraine in another seemingly endless war is collapsing, with only 41 percent of respondents to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll agreeing that America "should provide weapons to Ukraine". show more
October 5, 2023
Jake Welch
News
World

Ukraine Joining EU Would Cripple Smaller Nations, Cost Near $200Bn.

Ukraine’s accession to the European Union (EU) would cost the bloc a whopping €186 billion ($195 billion) over seven years and require root and branch reform of the entire union, according to an internal note of the Council of the EU.

The document claims all member states would have to pay more into the EU and receive less upon Ukraine‘s incorporation, with many current net receivers forced to become net contributors. Germany, France, and the Netherlands would be required to “significant[ly] increase” their contributions as wealthier nations.

Kiev would instantly qualify for €61 billion ($64 billion) from the EU’s Cohesion Fund – allocated to many of the poorer member states to improve their infrastructure – which would render nine members, including the Czech Republic, Estonia, and Slovenia, ineligible for the funding.

It would also receive €96.5 billion ($101.5 billion) from the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy, which would cut current farming subsidies given to members by 20 percent, alongside several other projects costing tens of billions.

The estimates come as the EU discusses expansion further east into Ukraine as well as eight other states, such as Moldova, Georgia, and six Balkan countries. The total cost of incorporating all nine nations would be around €250 billion ($262.9 billion). There was no consideration given to Turkey’s potential membership.

“Whilst for several policies, opportunities may outweigh the costs/risks, and enlargement will bring benefits to the current member states, enlargement will also have far-reaching impacts on the EU budget,” the document states.

Meanwhile, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban warned that plans for Ukraine’s accession are currently “going nowhere,” highlighting Ukraine’s long-standing oppression of its Hungarian minority as a key factor.

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Ukraine's accession to the European Union (EU) would cost the bloc a whopping €186 billion ($195 billion) over seven years and require root and branch reform of the entire union, according to an internal note of the Council of the EU. show more
October 3, 2023
Jake Welch
News
Religion
World

Pope Francis Opens Door To Catholics Blessing Gay Relationships.

Pope Francis has suggested that the Catholic Church may take the unprecedented step of blessing homosexual relationships on a case-by-case basis, putting the Pontiff at odds with many of his own denomination’s doctrines and followers.

Francis made the suggestion in response to five conservative Cardinals, who wrote a letter to the Pope – known as a “Dubia” – demanding clarity on his various progressive stances such as allowing women to assume the priesthood and whether he intended to bless gay relationships.

Pope Francis explained regarding homosexuality that the Catholic clergymen “cannot be judges who only deny, push back, exclude” and, therefore, the clergy must demonstrate “pastoral prudence [to] adequately discern if there are forms of benediction, requested by one or more persons, that do not transmit a mistaken conception of marriage.”

Pope Francis has repeatedly shown his liberalism regarding homosexuality over the past several decades, including his statement “Who am I to judge?” in 2013. He has also voiced his support for homosexual civil unions – a position that often draws criticism from within his own church – though he remains publicly opposed to gay marriage.

The Pope has become more openly political in recent years and is quick to participate in various globalist initiatives, such as sitting down with former President Bill Clinton in September to discuss Europe’s migration crisis and climate change, among other things. He also recently referred to American Catholic conservatives as “backward.”

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Pope Francis has suggested that the Catholic Church may take the unprecedented step of blessing homosexual relationships on a case-by-case basis, putting the Pontiff at odds with many of his own denomination's doctrines and followers. show more
October 2, 2023
Jack Montgomery
Immigration
News
World

WATCH: Polish Border Guards Forcefully Repel Migrants As Govt Rebukes EU.

Poland’s government has published video of Middle Eastern migrants attempting to violently breach their border, being repelled with tear gas while trying to pelt border guards with improvised missiles and felled trees.

“Defending the inviolability of the border is an obligation, but also the right of every state,” wrote the Ministry of National Defense on Monday, rebuking those in the European Union who have criticized a robust approach to securing borders.

“Soldiers and service officers defending the Polish border faced and still face a real threat,” they added.

The Polish approach contrasts sharply with that of the Joe Biden regime in America, which has sued state governments in Arizona and Texas to remove border barriers made from shipping containers and water buoys, and had federal agents have cut razor wire installed by state authorities to allow migrants through.

Poland has completed over 155 miles of Trump-style border wall to reinforce its frontier.

 

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Poland's government has published video of Middle Eastern migrants attempting to violently breach their border, being repelled with tear gas while trying to pelt border guards with improvised missiles and felled trees. show more
October 2, 2023
Jake Welch
News
World

German Populist Leader ‘Debanked’.

Tino Chrupalla, a member of the German parliament and co-chairman of the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, says he has been “debanked” due to his political affiliations and status.

Chrupalla claimed in an interview last week “on Friday, my account was terminated by Postbank because I am an AfD member,” before going on to explain that it further proves “how [the AfD] are excluded, discredited” and that people are no longer able to express their opinions freely.

Postbank’s decision to remove Chrupalla’s account would be in contravention of German federal law, which, according to a landmark case adjudicated by the Federal Court of Justice, refers to the practice as an “inadmissible interference in the private sphere.”

One German news outlet further explains that “conservatives, right-wingers, and identities have had their bank accounts canceled for years… Left-wing networks and journalists are already working diligently to nationalize repression.”

Debanking came into the political mainstream across the world after Brexit leader Nigel Farage had his private bank accounts terminated by Coutt’s bank in the summer because of his friendship with former President Donald Trump and Tennis player Novak Djokovic, among other trivial reasons.

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Tino Chrupalla, a member of the German parliament and co-chairman of the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, says he has been "debanked" due to his political affiliations and status. show more
October 2, 2023
Jack Montgomery
News
Politics
World

Pentagon Begs Congress for MORE Ukraine Cash as Biden Warns of ‘Urgency’. 

Joe Biden and his Pentagon are both warning and begging the U.S. Congress over the stream of arms and financial support for the Ukrainian war machine, with the President insisting that U.S. aid “cannot under any circumstance” be interrupted. The Pentagon has admitted that the U.S. has “completely run out of long-term funding for Kyiv through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which provides money to contract for future weapons.”

“We have already been forced to slow down the replenishment of our own forces to hedge against an uncertain funding future,” said Pentagon Comptroller Michael McCord. “Failure to replenish our military services on a timely basis could harm our military’s readiness.”

“The vast majority of both parties – Democrats and Republicans, Senate and House – support helping Ukraine and the brutal aggression that is being thrust upon them by Russia,” Biden himself insisted this weekend. “We have time, not much time, and there’s an overwhelming sense of urgency.”

Further aid for Ukraine may struggle to pass the House of Representatives, where America First conservatives appear unwilling to agree to send further assistance to the Eastern European country as part of any deal Speaker Kevin McCarthy may broker with House Democrats, especially while the southern border remains unprotected.

It has been revealed that U.S. aid for Ukraine is being used not only for humanitarian and military purposes, but to prop up the Ukrainian economy more generally, with Americans funding the salaries of almost 60,000 public officials, subsidizing Ukrainian businesses, and purchasing seed and fertilizer for Ukrainian commerical farmers.

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Joe Biden and his Pentagon are both warning and begging the U.S. Congress over the stream of arms and financial support for the Ukrainian war machine, with the President insisting that U.S. aid "cannot under any circumstance" be interrupted. The Pentagon has admitted that the U.S. has "completely run out of long-term funding for Kyiv through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which provides money to contract for future weapons." show more
soros ukraine
October 1, 2023
Jake Welch
News
Politics
World

Soros Groups Demand NO ELECTIONS Be Held in Ukraine… to Preserve Democracy?

Over 100 Ukrainian NGOs – including those financed by George Soros’s Open Society Foundations – have signed a public appeal to demand there be no national elections in the country next year, suggesting that holding a democratic election in which Zelensky‘s position as President would be in doubt could cause a “loss of legitimacy” in the electoral process.

The NGOs made the bizarre claim that “elections alone do not constitute democracy” and that voting is not necessarily the only means of showing a country is “truly democratic.”

They also gave a number of other reasons to postpone a general election until after the war in Ukraine is over, including the inability to ensure that all voters can participate, undermining national unity, the fact that a potential Russian missile strike could make voting impossible on election day, and that it would cost too much.

Ukraine is due to hold national elections in March next year, yet remains under martial law following President Zelensky’s swift decision to introduce it hours after Russia invaded on February 24, 2022. The Ukrainian government also banned the country’s second-largest party, “For Life,” in June last year, as well as 11 others it claimed were linked to Russia.

However, there have been growing calls among Ukrainian allies to ensure the elections go ahead next year, with figures such as U.S. Congressman Lindsey Graham arguing, “I want free and fair elections to occur in this country, even under attack… I believe it’s time for Ukraine to take the next step in its democratic development.”

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Over 100 Ukrainian NGOs – including those financed by George Soros's Open Society Foundations – have signed a public appeal to demand there be no national elections in the country next year, suggesting that holding a democratic election in which Zelensky's position as President would be in doubt could cause a "loss of legitimacy" in the electoral process. show more