CC™ VideoSpective
CREDITS: HISTORYVILLE
Thursday
Wednesday
Tuesday
It’s not for Russia to decide on peacekeepers in Ukraine – French President Macron
CC™ Global News
By Matthew Atungwu
French President Emmanuel Macron said the stationing of peacekeeping troops in Ukraine, as proposed by Britain and France as part of a ceasefire agreement with Russia, is a question for Kyiv to decide and not Moscow.
Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer have reportedly been rushing to consolidate military support for Ukraine as US President Donald Trump presses for a peace deal with Russia.
It could be recalled that Starmer hosted a virtual meeting on Saturday with Macron and other non-US allies of Ukraine.
“Ukraine is sovereign. If it asks for allied forces to be on its territory, it’s not something for Russia to accept or not,” Macron said.
Russia has repeatedly rejected the idea of soldiers from countries belonging to the NATO alliance being stationed in Ukraine.
According to Macron, any peacekeeping force would consist of a few thousand troops per country to be deployed at key locations, adding a number of European and non-European countries were interested in participating.
However, like other aspects of a potential truce, the form of any peacekeeping force remains uncertain.
Finland’s President Alexander Stubb has said that that any firm commitments would come once there was a clear plan.
“There are anywhere from zero to 50 different ways they can help, boots on the ground is only one way. You can talk about intelligence, you can talk about different types of things but it’s too early to commit right now,” he said.
Britain and France both stated that they could send peacekeepers to Ukraine, while Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his country was also open to requests.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that he supported in principle Washington’s proposal for a 30-day ceasefire with Ukraine but that his forces would fight on until several crucial conditions were worked out.
DAILY POST
Monday
Sunday
Friday
Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship explodes in space
CC™ Global News
SpaceX’s massive Starship spacecraft exploded in space on Thursday, minutes after lifting off from Texas, marking the second consecutive failure this year for Elon Musk’s Mars rocket programme.
The explosion prompted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to halt air traffic in parts of Florida.
Several videos circulating on social media showed fiery debris streaking across the dusk skies near South Florida and the Bahamas after the spacecraft broke apart.
SpaceX’s live stream of the mission captured the moment Starship began to spin uncontrollably, with its engines shutting down before contact was lost.
The failure of this eighth Starship test comes just over a month after the seventh ended in a similar explosive failure.
Both incidents occurred during early mission phases that SpaceX had previously surpassed with ease, presenting a setback for Musk’s ambitious timeline to accelerate the program this year.
The 403-foot (123-meter) rocket system remains central to his plan to send humans to Mars by the turn of the decade.
The FAA briefly grounded flights at Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach, and Orlando airports due to “space launch debris.” It later announced an investigation into the mishap.
The launch took place at around 6:30 p.m. ET (2330 GMT) from SpaceX’s Boca Chica, Texas, facilities. The Super Heavy first-stage booster successfully returned to Earth as planned and was caught midair by a SpaceX crane.
However, the upper stage of Starship encountered issues shortly after reaching space, Reuters reported.
SpaceX’s live feed showed the vehicle spinning uncontrollably, with a visualization indicating multiple engine shutdowns.
Soon after, the company lost contact with the spacecraft. Referencing the previous failure, SpaceX spokesperson Dan Huot remarked on the live stream, “Unfortunately this happened last time too, so we’ve got some practice now.”
TRIBUNE
Thursday
Trump blinks, backs off Mexico, Canada tariffs after market blowback
CC™ PersPective
US President Donald Trump on Thursday unveiled a temporary rollback to steep tariffs targeting Canada and Mexico, providing some reprieve to companies and consumers after sustained blowback on global markets.
After his sweeping tariffs of up to 25 percent on the two US neighbors took effect Tuesday, stock markets tumbled, as economists warned that blanket tariffs could weigh on US economic growth and raise inflation in the near-term.
Though the Republican president dismissed suggestions that his trade decisions were linked to market turmoil, he decided to pause the levies for trade with Canada and Mexico that falls under a regional pact.
Trump also lowered the new 25 percent levy on Canadian potash, a key element of fertilizer which US officials said their country does not produce much of.
The tariff halt — which lasts until April 2 — came one day after the White House also announced a temporary reprieve for automakers.
The moves make conditions “much more favorable for our American car manufacturers,” Trump said Thursday.
But he added that major moves would be unveiled on April 2, the date that he has promised updates on “reciprocal tariffs” to remedy practices Washington deems unfair.
At that point, Canadian and Mexican goods could still face levies.
The US president also said he would not modify tariffs for steel and aluminum, which are due to take effect next week.
– ‘Good’ relationship with Mexico –
On the tariff halt for some Mexican goods, Trump said earlier on Truth Social that he “did this as an accommodation, and out of respect for” President Claudia Sheinbaum, adding: “Our relationship has been a very good one.”
His remarks stood in sharp contrast to the simmering tensions with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Trudeau said Thursday that Ottawa will remain in a trade war with Washington for “the foreseeable future” even if there are “breaks for certain sectors.”
“Our goal remains to get these tariffs, all tariffs removed,” Trudeau added.
– ‘Economic reality’ –
For Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics at the Cato Institute, Trump’s easing of tariffs on Mexico was “a recognition of economic reality.”
The move was an acknowledgment that tariffs disrupt supply chains, that the burden of levies fall to consumers, and “that the market doesn’t like them and certainly doesn’t like the uncertainty surrounding them,” Lincicome told AFP.
Since taking office for his second term in January, Trump has made a series of tariff threats on allies and adversaries alike.
Trump justified the tariffs on Washington’s two neighbors and vital trade partners, along with China, as a way to stop illegal immigration and trafficking of the deadly drug fentanyl.
However, Canada contributes less than one percent of fentanyl to the illicit US supply, according to Canadian and US government data. It is also a relatively minor source of illegal immigration, compared to flows across the Mexican border.
China, meanwhile, has pushed back on US allegations of its role in the fentanyl supply chain, calling this a domestic issue that tariffs will not resolve.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday that he was not concerned Trump’s tariffs would be inflationary, adding that any impact on prices would likely be temporary.
Trump has referred to tariffs as a source of US government revenue, and a way to remedy trade imbalances and unfair trade practices.
The US trade deficit surged to a new record in January, according to government data released Thursday.
The overall trade gap of the world’s biggest economy ballooned 34 percent to $131.4 billion, on the back of a jump in imports for the month, said the Commerce Department.
Analysts say the US deficit was likely bolstered by gold imports, but data also suggests businesses were importing more goods to try to get ahead of potential tariffs.
VANGUARD
Wednesday
Canada retaliates, issues 25% tariffs on $155B of American goods
CC™ PersPective
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced 25 percent tariffs on United States’ goods in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Trudeau said Canada is imposing tariffs on $155 billion worth of US goods from Tuesday.
Trump had signed an executive order authorizing an additional 25 percent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico.
The US President also imposed an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports.
Energy imported from Canada, including oil, natural gas and electricity, would also be taxed at an additional 10 percent.
However, Trudeau said “there is no justification for these actions,” dismissing the White House’s argument about the flow of drugs, including fentanyl, into the US.
Trudeau said Canada “will not let this unjustified decision go unanswered”.
He announced that tariffs on American goods would go into effect at 12:01 a.m. if the Trump tariffs go into effect at midnight as promised.
According to the statement, Canada will start with tariffs on $30 billion worth of American goods, followed by tariffs on $125 billion of American products in 21 days.
Monday
Accessory to Genocide in Gaza - U.S. delivers $4 billion in military aid to Israel
CC™ PersPective
United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio has signed a declaration to expedite delivery of approximately $4 billion in military assistance to Israel.
In a statement, Rubio said the Trump administration, which took office on January 20, has approved nearly $12 billion in major foreign military sales to Israel.
He added that the administration will continue to use all available tools to fulfill America’s long-standing commitment to Israel’s security, including means to counter security threats.
The US Secretary of States said he had used emergency authority to expedite the delivery of military assistance to Israel to its Middle East ally, now in a fragile ceasefire with Hamas militants in their war in Gaza.
The Pentagon on Friday said the State Department had approved the potential sale of nearly $3 billion worth of bombs, demolition kits and other weaponry to Israel.
The administration notified Congress of those prospective weapons sales on an emergency basis.
This is sidestepping a long-standing practice of giving the chairs and ranking members of the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations Committees the opportunity to review the sale and ask for more information before making a formal notification to Congress.
The announcements on Friday marked the second time in recent weeks that President Donald Trump’s administration has declared an emergency to quickly approve weapons sales to Israel.
NEWSPOST
Sunday
Starmer rejects calls to cancel Trump’s state visit amid Ukraine row
CC™ PersPective
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday dismissed calls to cancel the offer of a state visit to U.S. President Donald Trump following his extraordinary row with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House.
At a meeting in Washington last week, Starmer used a combination of flattery and an invitation from the royal family for an unprecedented second state visit to try to secure a commitment from Trump for a U.S. security guarantee to protect Ukraine if a deal to end the war with Russia can be reached.
Some British politicians, including the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), have called for the offer to be withdrawn after Trump accused Zelenskyy of not being sufficiently grateful for U.S. support in Ukraine’s war.
When asked if the state visit should be canceled, the prime minister criticized politicians who, he said, were trying to deepen divisions with Washington at a time when Europe faces a moment of real fragility.
“I’m not going to be diverted by the SNP or others trying to ramp up the rhetoric without really appreciating what is the single most important thing at stake here. We’re talking about peace in Europe,” Starmer said.
NEWSPOST
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