https://archive.ph/QLFo4 weapon line go down

France, Italy, Czech Republic, Hungary don’t plan to participate in NATO program to purchase weapons from USA for Ukraine

Denmark and Germany have so far agreed to participate in the new format of arms supplies to Kyiv, proposed by US President Donald Trump, while France, Italy, the Czech Republic and Hungary have refused, Western media reported on Wednesday. In addition, Bloomberg noted on Wednesday that Europe increasingly feels the need to end its dependence on American weapons.

"Europe relies heavily on the US defense industry. However, due to trade tariffs, President Trump's attitude toward NATO and his lack of commitment to defending the alliance's countries, European countries will increasingly prioritize investments in their own defense complexes," the agency's sources said.

According to the European portal Politico, France has refused to participate in the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine. The publication's sources reported that the country's government intends to focus instead on increasing its own defense budget, which last weekend the president of the republic, Emmanuel Macron, promised to increase by 2027 almost twice as much as the 2017 budget. In addition, Paris wants to support European manufacturers who previously supplied Ukraine with anti-missile systems and other weapons.

Italy also does not intend to purchase weapons from the USA for delivery to Ukraine, but will continue to provide military assistance to Kyiv. Unnamed representatives of the Ministry of Defense told the ezine La Stampa - the department has never discussed purchasing American weapons for Kyiv. The ezine also notes that Italy does not have the means to carry out such operations. According to the publications’ sources, this problem is so acute that the only purchase from the USA that Italy has planned for the next ten years is a batch of F-35 fighters for its own needs.

The Czech government, in turn, stated that military aid to Kyiv would continue, but through participation in other initiatives and purchases from Czech, not American, manufacturers.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that Budapest does not intend to participate in the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine.

Official consent to purchase weapons from the USA has so far been given by Berlin and Copenhagen. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Rasmussen has declared his full readiness to join in the financing. The Dutch Foreign Ministry, in turn, said that it was considering the possibility of participating in the program. However, despite the government's positive assessment of the initiative, Amsterdam has not yet confirmed its commitment to direct participation in it. According to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, it is expected that Sweden and Norway, as well as the United Kingdom, may join in the funding.

On July 11, Trump announced that USA’s NATO allies would buy weapons from Washington that could later be transferred to Ukraine. Rutte, during a press conference with Trump on Monday, called it "logical" that European countries would pay for the supply of American weapons to Ukraine. The head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, said on Tuesday that EU countries would prefer Washington to provide some military aid to Ukraine free of charge. "If we pay for these weapons, it means that it is we, and not the United States, who provide this military aid," Kallas said at a press conference in Brussels. She stressed that Brussels "would like to see a distribution of these costs."

my take that tucker is the most dangerous person on the right continues to be vindicated for me

https://nitter.net/davidsirota/status/1944047240265576660

The xAI team have announced that they have made changes to the 'Grok' chatbot to ensure it won’t call itself 'MechaHitler' in the future, along with other tweaks and updates.

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IMHO, the Zionist entity will move to kill Jolani very soon. What better way to irreparably divide people than to kill Jolani and spare Assad?

Chinese Experiments in Socialist Modernisation

Volume 3 of Wenhua Zongheng, Issue no. 1 / June, 2025

This issue of Wenhua Zongheng (文化纵横) explores socialist experiments, China’s unique industrial development, and debates over agrarian transformation amidst ideological struggles.

not really news per say, but maybe of interest for the newsmega head? i wish we had weekly theory megas so we could bully each other into doing some more reading. it would probably be good for the site culture

Shot: https://www.thepinknews.com/2025/07/16/labour-conference-passport-gender-checks/

Kerr Stürmer has decreed that the national labourite conference will mandate that participants report the gender on their passports, which is both useless and performatively evil in equal measure.

Chaser: https://skwawkbox.org/2025/07/16/starmer-on-track-to-lose-his-seat-to-the-corbyn-party-that-doesnt-even-exist-yet/

Corbyn's still-hypothetical party that has already been mired in a power struggle behind the scenes... is polling highest for Starmer's own seat.

Of course we're 4 years off the next GE and the party hasnt even registered itself yet (and these polls don't even know who would run for the seat!!) so don't take this at any deeper than "lol lmao get fucked kerr stürmer"

Fighting has progressed into the city center of suwayda. HTS fighters, not content with killing and capturing Druze rebels, have begun humiliating them by shaving their beards and mustaches, as well as other acts of sectarian/cultural violence. CW for blood and corpses of people who are definitely not wearing military fatigues

https://t.me/enemywatch/38766

https://t.me/syriajusticearchive/7164

More forces are being massed in Aleppo

https://t.me/nayaforiraq/35020

Context

https://t.me/thecradlemedia/39607

Analysis from relatively resistance alligned Lebanese political commentator Khalil Nasrallah

Now Israeli Druze have crossed the border into Syria to protest, the IOF have moved further into Daraa, and there are rumors of Lebanese Druze forming a group to go fight in Syria (time is a flat circle)

The Lebanese army is taking measures to control the border and stop people going to fight

“The road closure and military deployment come amid heightened tensions in the region, which has a significant Druze population and borders Syria. The Lebanese Army is reportedly taking precautionary measures due to fears of potential spillover from the ongoing conflict in Suwayda, Syria.”

https://t.me/PoliticsGR/9475

https://t.me/PoliticsGR/9476

I'm not sure what the plan is to bring back domestic copper production beyond hoping that it just sorta works out

The plans have been in motion for a while now

Auctioning off Tribal Lands and BLM (Beaureau of Land Management) lands to the highest bidder, destroying cultural and religious heritage sites in the process.

Soon enough Yellowstone is gonna be auctioned off, pumped dry of whatever resources are there before being paved over and turned into a luxury apartment complex.

So, my Gut reaction to Israeli air strikes on Damascus is it’s just a flex of “Look how many capitals we can hit” adding to Beirut, Sanaa, Tehran. As a way to exert pressure on Egypt and Jordan to participate in ethnic cleansing by accepting Palestinian refugees.

The Rot Behind The Rainbow: One In Five Danes Holds Homophobic Beliefs, New Study Reveals

Denmark presents itself as a gleaming bastion of LGBTQ tolerance, its rainbow flags fluttering proudly against crisp Nordic skies, a model of enlightenment for supposedly less civilized nations to emulate. Yet, a landmark study from the Danish State Serum Institute (SSI) and Aalborg University reveals that beneath this polished veneer, homophobia remains stubbornly entrenched, festering in the shadows of its progressive self-image.

This world-first representative national mapping of homophobic attitudes, involving 31,808 Danes aged 15 to 89, delivers a sobering verdict: 22% of this ostensibly liberal populace deems sex between same-sex partners morally wrong. The prejudice wears a distinctly masculine face, 29% of men hold this view, compared to just 14% of women. Age deepens the stain dramatically: a remarkable 58% of men over 75 cling to such beliefs. While fading somewhat among the young, it persists stubbornly; 16% of men aged 15 to 24 still profess homophobic views.

https://www.techpowerup.com/338937/nvidia-officially-resumes-h20-gpu-shipments-to-china

Nvidia chips likely have a vulnerability that can cause bit flips and severely degrade the efficiency of neutral nets - arstechnica https://arstechnica.com/security/2025/07/nvidia-chips-become-the-first-gpus-to-fall-to-rowhammer-bit-flip-attacks/

For mitigation, Nvidia recommend enabling error correction (ECC) which decreases performance by 10%

Canada's NDP intends to nominate UN Special Rapporteur for the Nobel Peace Prize

Syrian State TV coverage suddenly ends. Syrian local sources deny that the clashes have spread inside As-Suweyda and clarify that they are confined to the outskirts of the city. Reports of Israeli airstrikes in Homs. Reports that Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa and his family have left Damascus – Al-Mayadeen

Al Mayadeen has claimed that an assassination operation targeted 3 major figures in the Syrian Transitional Administration, including Defense Minister Marhaf Abu Qasra.

The TV station was stormed by a rogue Syrian military unit – Al Mayadeen

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US attacks on Iran damaged only one of three nuclear sites targeted: Report

In a direct reference to President Donald Trump, Lula was emphatic: "We don't accept anyone, from any country outside Brazil, meddling in our internal problems. This is the first time in the history of this country that we have three four-star generals in jail. And they're not in jail for nothing. They're in prison because they tried to stage a coup. And they're going to be tried, not because Lula wants them to be. They're going to be tried on the basis of the case file."

The president compared the Brazilian situation to the attempted coup in the United States in 2021: “If Trump had tried here in Brazil what he did on Capitol Hill, he could also be arrested.” Lula continued in a confrontational tone. "It's not a gringo who's going to order this president of the Republic. I know who I have to respect in this country. That person's name has only four letters: his name is the Brazilian people."

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Trump has been diagnosed with Chronic venous insufficiency

Idk what that means though but I hope he suffers

tfw you miss bond posting/collapse of dollar imminent time-window and now yields are lower than 5% again. mr trump, fire jpow pls

Ignoring the failed US attacks, China grew by 5.2% in the second quarter, above the estimates of Reuters and the Wind consultancy. Industrial production rose 6.8% and retail sales rose 4.8%. The National Bureau of Statistics pointed out that the stimuli adopted since 2024 are having an effect.

The country should reach the 5% growth target by 2025, even with the tariffs imposed by US leader Trump. Exports grew by 5.8% in June, with a 17% rise to Southeast Asia and a 16.1% drop to the US. Domestic consumption now accounts for more than half of Chinese growth.

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Israeli Air Force F-16 seen popping flares while carrying out airstikes against HTS forces in Syria

Does HTS not have someone with some sort of man portable air defence system, like a stinger or igla missile, to aim at the very visible Israeli aircraft? Are they just going to let themselves be bombed by Israel? The Israelis are just straight up flying over them, well within visual range.

https://t.me/kalibrated/22964

Russia has crossed the Vovcha river in western Vovchansk. Leaving their comfortable defensive position along the river likely means that they intend to capture the remainder of the city very soon.

Coupled with the Oskil beachhead and the Milove incursion, I still think the larger plan is to capture the entire swath of territory east of the Seversky Donets river, and north of the dam.

https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/federal-court-hands-down-decision-in-australian-climate-case/av8f97gqv

No duty of care: Torres Strait Islander Uncles lose their climate case against the Australian Government

Federal Court judge Michael Wigney has found that while Torres Strait Islanders are at the forefront of climate change, the plaintiffs did not prove their case of Commonwealth negligence.

New York State will now offer universal free school meals to its pupils from September this year. The measure is part of the new state budget, signed into law by Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul, and guarantees two meals. New York State will now offer universal free school meals to its students from September this year.

The measure is part of the new state budget, signed into law by Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul, and guarantees two meals. As well as fighting hunger, the governor is betting on better school performance. “No student should go to school hungry,” said Hochul. New York now joins eight other states with universal free school meals, such as California and Massachusetts.

Before that the children and teenagers were given a magnetic card, like a prepaid debit card, which was filled by their families. If a student didn't have any money on the card, the card would go negative. At the end of the school year, the family was charged by the state.

These individual debts became known as meal debts. If the family doesn't pay the bill, the debt migrates to the school district, which has to “plug the hole” with resources from the general fund, money that could pay for teachers or teaching materials.

The State School Board estimates that, when all 700 districts in NY are added together, meal debts amount to 25 million dollars a year. All to avoid giving children free food.

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There have been clashes between HTS government forces and allied Bedouin militias, and Druze militias, in Suwayda and the surroundings, over the past day. Over 90 have been killed and the IOF claims to have struck HTS regime tanks.

https://apnews.com/article/syria-clashes-druze-bedouins-sweida-be7e45ae4adc631b758d2bebfb06e0a1

Lula's disapproval and approval ratings have tied for the first time since November 2024. According to Bloomberg, the rise in approval is directly linked to Lula's actions against Trump and the right-wing parties, two entities that have been blackmailing the federal government in recent weeks.

• Disapprove: 50.3% (-1.5)

• Approve: 49.7% (+2.4)

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• Tweet with the Polls in Portuguese

@FuckyWucky@hexbear.net

Séamus Malekafzali: Israel has hit the Syrian General Staff's headquarters in Damascus with several airstrikes.

This looks serious

So, as I understood, Turkey and the gulf states were OK with the Julani comprador state if it meant stability in the region and kicking Iran out.

I can't imagine they are too happy at the destabilization taking place in Syria. Will they spring into action?