International
Putin considers a “snonise” a possible attack by Russia against NATO countries
Russian President Vladimir Putin called a possible Russian attack on NATO countries “nonseness” due to the great difference in their military potential.
“It’s nonsense (…) Have you seen the potential of Russia and NATO?” Putin said during an interview with the main international news agencies, including EFE, within the framework of the St. Petersburg Economic Forum.
Addressing the representatives of 16 international media, the head of the Kremlin asked not to create an image that Russia is the enemy.
“It has been invented that Russia wants to attack NATO. Who invented it? It’s nonsense, do you understand? A delirium,” he insisted, adding that Russia has no “imperial ambitions.”
According to Putin, such statements are made to “deceive the population” of Western countries and justify the sending of weapons to Ukraine.
The Russian leader’s interview with leaders of the world’s leading news agencies lasted for more than three hours, in which Putin answered more than 20 questions.
On the other hand, the Russian president warned that the tactical nuclear weapons in his country’s arsenal have 70-75 kilotons of power, more than three times those launched by the United States against Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
“The United States is the only country that used nuclear weapons. It was during World War II, in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 20 kilotons. Our tactical nuclear weapons are 70-75 kilotons,” Putin said during the interview with heads of the main international news agencies, including EFE.
Therefore, he added: “We do not take the situation not only to its use, but even the threat of use” of nuclear weapons.
While he highlighted that it is the West that always brings this issue to light and then accuse Russia of “shaking the nuclear mallet,” he recalled what the Russian military doctrine says.
“For some reason the West believes that Russia will never use them. We have a nuclear doctrine. Look at what is written on it. If someone’s actions threaten our sovereignty and territorial integrity, we consider it possible to use all the means at our disposal,” he said.
Putin also stressed that in this matter you have to behave like professionals and not “lightly, superficially.”
“I hope that everyone in the world also takes that position,” he said.
Putin also assured the agencies that the fighting in Ukraine will cease in two or three months if the United States suspends the supply of weapons to Kiev.
“And these military actions will conclude in two or three months at most,” Putin said during an interview with the main international news agencies, including EFE, within the framework of the St. Petersburg Economic Forum.
The head of the Kremlin indicated that in a response letter to the President of the United States, Joe Biden, he wrote to him: “If you want the combat actions in Ukraine to end, stop supplying him with weapons.”
He assured that the West prevented the signing of a peace treaty between Russia and Ukraine a few months after the outset of the fighting and convinced the Ukrainian authorities to fight until a strategic defeat was done to Moscow.
The Russian president recalled that the then British Prime Minister, Boris Jonhson, traveled especially to Kiev for that purpose.
“And I’m sure, I have no doubt, that it had the support of the United States Administration,” he added.
According to Putin, the so-called Istanbul treaty to end the conflict had been agreed by the Ukrainian side, so only its signature was missing.
“The Ukrainian side and its official positions publicly declared that if they had signed this treaty, the war would have ended by the end of 2022. We didn’t say it, official charges in Kiev said it, publicly,” Putin emphasized.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
International
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.
Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”
International
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.
The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”
The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”
Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.
The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
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