Bolton: Iran is using negotiations to prove it controls the Strait of Hormuz, that everyone must bargain with Tehran before Arab oil and cargoes leave the Gulf.
If Iran can turn Hormuz on and off like a light switch, the precedent is disastrous. 1/
Bolton: Tehran is desperately playing for time.
If Iran gets control of the Strait and resumes oil revenues, it will rebuild the Quds Force, militias, nuclear program, missile program and drone program — then threaten the Gulf even more. 2/
Bolton: Freedom of the seas is the core issue. Hormuz was an international waterway where commercial vessels and even warships had the right of innocent passage.
If Iran can control passage or charge tolls, that right is becoming history. 3/
Russians kidnapped and killed priest Stepan Podolchak from Kherson Oblast because he refused to hold sermons in Russian and transfer his church to the control of the Moscow Patriarchate.
His wife had to identify his body after he was taken from his home — United24. 1/
By 2024 Russians had killed around 50 priests. Russia uses religion as a tool of occupation as systematically as it uses schools, internet and property. 2/
The Russian Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate is the only one allowed to operate freely in occupied territories. All other denominations are either closed or driven underground. 3/
United24: No European capital can defend itself against Russia's Oreshnik.
Europe lacks reliable defense against ballistic missiles. The US produces only 700 Patriot interceptors per year, Gulf states fired over 800 in just a few days during the Iran war.
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On the night of May 24, Russia launched 90 missiles and 600 drones at Kyiv. Ukraine shot down 55 out of 90 missiles — but ballistic missiles remain the main problem.
There are simply too few Patriot interceptors available.
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Ukraine proposed a coalition of 13 countries to jointly develop anti-ballistic missiles and build production facilities in Europe.
The concept: participating countries prioritize deliveries for their own defense — making the project independent of political bargaining.
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Russia jams Ukrainian drones targeting its Baltic ports and redirects them into NATO airspace.
Baltic officials warn this could gradually erode public support for Ukraine in countries that have been among Kyiv's strongest backers, — Kyiv Independent. 1/
The first major incident: March 2026, several drones crashed in Finland. At least one confirmed Ukrainian.
Kyiv apologized, saying the drones were aimed at military targets inside Russia but sent off course by Russian electronic interference.
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Latvia's government collapsed over it. After stray Ukrainian drones entered Latvian airspace on May 7, the defense minister resigned.
Days later, the prime minister quit after losing her coalition majority.
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