Trump Calls Putin - Iran, Ukraine and the Oil Market in the Same Conversation!
Trump on Russia: “We will lift these sanctions until the situation settles down. Who knows, maybe we won’t have to impose them again.” - (Trump is referring only to the context of sanctions affecting the oil market, which impact the global energy market - and which, in his view, “could be temporarily eased until the situation calms down.” - Editor’s note)
Donald Trump spoke with Vladimir Putin about the war in Iran. The Kremlin confirmed this. The phone call lasted about one hour. Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov described the conversation as open and businesslike. The Russian president reportedly presented several proposals for a swift political and diplomatic solution after previously speaking with Gulf states and the Iranian president. According to the Russian account, Trump laid out his view of the situation, explicitly in connection with the ongoing American Israeli military operation. Both sides engaged in a concrete and useful exchange. Venezuela was also discussed - with regard to the global oil market.
From Washington, it was said that Trump made clear to Putin that ending the war against Ukraine would be helpful if Moscow wanted to play a constructive role in the Middle East. Putin wants to “be helpful,” Trump said. They spoke about the “never ending fight” between Russia and Ukraine. The conversation was “very good.” Iran, Ukraine, oil prices - all in one phone call. While rockets are striking in several regions, Washington and Moscow are talking about political solutions. What the results have looked like so far is known.
Reporting Shows: ICE and Preparations for the Next Operation
After the chaotic immigration raids in Minneapolis, ICE is preparing for other cities. Reporting shows that Columbus, Ohio, is planned for the next major operation. The city has a large Somali community, and nervousness grew with every report from Minnesota. In Philadelphia, an announcement by the district attorney that federal agents might be arrested if necessary created additional tension. Some feared that exactly this could trigger a massive response from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In Maryland, rumors are also circulating about an imminent ICE offensive. Local politicians are reviewing hotel bookings, monitoring federal expenditures, and noting the purchase of a large warehouse in the western part of the state as well as new lease agreements in the Baltimore and Washington area. No one knows whether this will result in a large scale operation or merely a gradual increase in personnel.
After the deaths of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis, the responsible Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino was demoted. Tom Homan announced that tactics would be changed nationwide. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem was dismissed after controversial appearances in Congress. Yet the personnel changes are not calming many communities. Citizens and activists are building supply networks for people who do not want to leave their homes. City governments are reviewing draft legislation to restrict masking and unmarked vehicles used by ICE. In Baltimore, the mayor is providing legal support, and in Montgomery County, families are to be able to more easily recover vehicles left behind after arrests.
Between preparation and alarm lies a narrow line. “Uncertainty is the only certainty,” said Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott. For many communities, the reality is this: They know something can happen. They just do not know when and how.
Tehran Announces Decision on End of War - Trump Threatens “Twentyfold Severity”
Iran warns that the oil price could rise to 200 dollars per barrel if neighboring states do not restrain Trump. “If you can handle oil prices of more than 200 dollars per barrel, then continue this game,” said a spokesman for the Revolutionary Guards.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards declare that the end of this war will be determined in Tehran. Spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini had it announced through state media: Iran will decide when the war ends. The statement follows recent remarks by Donald Trump. The U.S. president, for his part, threatens to hit Iran “twenty times harder” should it block oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. If Tehran stops the flow of oil, America will respond with massive force, Trump wrote on social media. He spoke of eliminating easily destroyable targets that would make Iran’s reconstruction as a nation nearly impossible. “Death, fire and fury” would follow, in his words. At the same time, he expressed hope that it would not come to that.
“I will not allow a terrorist regime to hold the world hostage and attempt to stop the global oil supply, and if Iran does anything to do that, then they will be hit at a much, much harder level.”
In the U.S. Senate, pressure on the White House is growing. Several Democratic senators are demanding public hearings on the Iran war. They are threatening to block the chamber’s regular work if there is no debate about further military steps. A resolution that would have required congressional approval for further strikes recently failed along party lines. Australia is also responding. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that an E-7A Wedgetail surveillance aircraft and around 85 soldiers would be deployed to the region for four weeks. In addition, advanced medium range air defense missiles are to be delivered to the United Arab Emirates. Canberra emphasizes that this is about protecting airspace in the Gulf and the safety of tens of thousands of Australians in the region. While Tehran claims authority over the end of the war and Washington threatens escalation, allies and lawmakers are struggling for influence over the further course.
Tomahawk, School, Evasion - Trump’s Answer to a Clear Question
A journalist confronts Donald Trump with a video that allegedly shows a Tomahawk missile destroying an Iranian girls’ school. The question is clear: Will the United States assume responsibility if the allegation is confirmed? Trump does not respond with a commitment or a denial. He says the Tomahawk is sold and also used by other countries. And he adds that perhaps Iran also has some of these missiles, which is entirely far fetched. The United Kingdom has used Tomahawk cruise missiles for years. Japan decided in 2023 and 2024 to purchase them. Australia is also acquiring Tomahawks for its navy. These three states, however, are neither militarily involved in the Iran war nor were their units present in the affected operational area at the time of the alleged incident. A statement on whether American forces were involved remains absent. Likewise missing is a clear willingness to examine or acknowledge possible responsibility.
Our article on this: Minab, 175 Dead and a Tomahawk - One Video and 116 Meters
While international observers investigate the incident, what was not said remains in the room: Who fired - and who assumes responsibility?
Humanitarian Visas for Iranian Women’s National Team Players in Australia
Five members of Iran’s women’s national soccer team have received humanitarian visas in Australia after their elimination from the Asia Cup. The government in Canberra confirmed this. The decision allows the players a legal stay in the country for the time being. At a meeting with Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, they appeared without the headscarf they are required to wear during public appearances in the jersey of Iran’s national team. The image of that moment carries political significance. It shows a contrast between state imposed requirements in their country of origin and freedom in the host country. The visas are formally an administrative measure, politically a signal. Australia is responding to a situation that extends far beyond sport. Whether additional players will follow or permanent protection arrangements will apply remains open. What is clear: A tournament has become a migration policy decision.
Trump’s Story Hour About Chuck Schumer
Donald Trump declares that Chuck Schumer is “officially Palestinian” and registered. No such status exists. There is no registry, no classification, no formal category of that kind. Schumer is a U.S. senator from New York. Nothing more, nothing less. With that sentence, Trump draws a line that does not legally exist. He turns political criticism into a question of belonging. Whoever disagrees is shifted linguistically. Not an opponent, but allegedly someone else. The statement sounds descriptive. It is not.
Then comes the next accusation: Schumer wants to “protect the Iranian people, who are pretty evil.” No specific resolution, no vote, no quote from legislation. Only an assertion that considers itself sufficient. It is not a political argument. It is an attribution. Attributions do not need a foundation - they only need repetition. What is said often enough begins to sound like something that has always been true. Perhaps the real damage does not lie in the lie itself. But in the exhaustion it leaves behind. The silence that spreads afterward - that too is a response. The statement remains in the room. And it waits for no one to ask anymore.
Vance’s Spotlight Joke and the Audience in the Dark
JD Vance stands on stage and looks into the light. “I can’t see any of you, these spotlights are bright. The person operating them must be a Democrat because I cannot recognize a single person in the crowd,” he says. The line is meant to provoke laughter. It relies on the old pattern: A technical issue becomes a partisan jab. The joke works only if the audience goes along. It lives from turning the other side into the punchline. Vance creates closeness by declaring the other side the opponent. The lighting technician becomes a projection surface - and likely does not even know it.
Such remarks are quickly made. They cost nothing and bring brief applause. Substantively, they contribute nothing. They mark belonging and demarcation at the same time - in a single breath, almost casually. The effect is calculated: a laugh, a signal, a moment of approval. What disappears in the process hardly draws attention. The audience laughs, and while it laughs, it has already accepted that someone without a name and without a face is to blame. Perhaps that is the real craft of such jokes. Not that they persuade. But that they do not even allow the question of whether persuasion would be necessary to arise.
EU Warns of Stagflation if Middle East War Continues
EU Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis warns of possible stagflation if the war in the Middle East continues to expand. The term refers to the combination of high inflation and stagnating or weak growth. A scenario that in the 1970s already burdened entire economies. Dombrovskis sees risks above all for energy prices and shipping routes. Ongoing attacks on transport routes and energy infrastructure could put long term pressure on the global economy. Rising oil and gas prices would directly affect production costs and consumer prices. At the same time, growth in Europe could lose further momentum. However, the commissioner emphasizes that it is still too early to quantify the extent of the consequences. Should the conflict be quickly de escalated and energy flows remain stable, the economic damage would likely be limited. It is crucial to observe the situation soberly and not draw premature conclusions. Europe is already in a phase of weak growth. A prolonged war would further aggravate this fragile situation. The danger does not lie in a single price spike. It lies in a lasting burden on both inflation and economic activity at the same time.
