Free Republic

Russia said on Friday that Israeli strikes on Iran were unprovoked and in breach of the United Nations charter, accusing Israel of wrecking diplomatic efforts to strike a deal to allay Western concerns about Tehran's nuclear programme. -snip- "Russia is concerned and condemns the sharp escalation in tensions between Israel and Iran," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state media. President Vladimir Putin was getting real-time reports on the situation from Russia's SVR foreign intelligence service and the foreign and defence ministries, Peskov said. In a detailed statement drawn up at Putin's behest, the Foreign Ministry fiercely condemned Israel and blamed...

An ally of Russian president Vladimir Putin has said that "a full-scale war" in the Middle East is possible following Israel's airstrikes on Iran. -snip- Konstantin Kosachev, vice-speaker of Russia's upper house of parliament, made clear that Russia would stand by its ally, Iran. "Israel's actions cannot be justified from a legal, political, military or moral point of view. The only hope, albeit illusory, of avoiding a full-scale war is a consolidated condemnation of this operation by the international community," he said, according to Russia's official TASS news agency. "We can and must hope for another demonstration of restraint from...

President Trump on Friday called on Iran to go back to the negotiating table and cut a nuclear deal "before there is nothing left" after Israel attacked its nuclear sites. -snip- The Trump administration wants to use the war Israel started to get the Iranians back to the nuclear talks when they are in a weaker position. A U.S. official said White House envoy Steve Witkoff still wants to meet Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday for the planned sixth round of the nuclear talks. But the Iranians said they are not going to participate. -snip- "I gave Iran...

The New York Times wrote a few days ago, “President Biden is bequeathing his successor a nation that by many measures is in good shape, even if voters remain unconvinced.” Just how good are things? Here’s how the Times described the state of the economy:For the first time since that transition 24 years ago, there will be no American troops at war overseas on Inauguration Day. New data reported in the past few days indicate that murders are way down, illegal immigration at the southern border has fallen even below where it was when Mr. Trump left office and roaring...

As justifiably alarmed as Democrats are by President-elect Donald Trump’s radical agenda and his nominations of unqualified candidates for Cabinet positions, these actions may be even more terrifying for Republican senators up for reelection in 2026. (What follows certainly applies to vulnerable GOP House members as well, although they, of course, play no role in confirming nominees.)The 2026 map is somewhat more favorable to Democrats than it was in 2024. For example, the reelection campaigns of Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Thom Tillis of North Carolina will be two of the most hotly contested races. While they hail from...

The Washington Post has decided not to endorse a candidate for president this year. Ed has a post coming up discussing the matter, so I won't go into the reasoning or provide an analysis of what is behind that decision. Ed has been in this business longer than I have and is, frankly, better at that sort of thing. He is one of the best analysts I have ever met and a lot more dispassionate in his analyses. The Post, as far as I know, is the second major newspaper to bow out of the endorsement scramble this year after...

Vice President Kamala Harris, realizing the limited reach of mainstream news outlets, spent the week reaching millions of Americans through appearances on the podcast “Call Her Daddy,” CBS’s “The Late ith Stephen Colbert,” the daytime chat show “The View,” Howard Stern on SiriusXM and even the Weather Channel. If you caught them, many of these interviews were revealing and meaty, covering a wide range of policy topics.