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During an online meeting of the leaders of the Group of Seven countries earlier, Kishida had announced that Japan will ban Russian crude oil imports "in principle" as part of a G-7 campaign. "[For Japan] oil imports contribute to a long-term, inexpensive and stable energy supply," Kishida told reporters. "We will take steps to phase out imports in a way that minimizes the adverse impact on people's lives and business activities." "We will consider how to reduce oil imports and the timing of the suspension based on actual conditions," he added. Regarding alternative energy, the prime minister said that "we...

In a speech to mark the 77th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, German Chancellor Scholz said that by likening the conflict in Ukraine to the fight against Nazi Germany, Russian President Putin was falsifying of history.

A massive backlog of grain shipments is piling up in Ukraine to the tune of nearly 25 million tonnes due to ‘infrastructure challenges’ and blocked ports in the Black Sea, including Mariupol, Reuters reports, citing a UN food agency official.’ Ukraine was the fourth-largest exporter of maize (corn) in the 2020/21 season, and the sixth-largest wheat exporter in the world, according to the International Grains Council. “It’s an almost grotesque situation we see at the moment in Ukraine with nearly 25 mln tonnes of grain that could be exported but that cannot leave the country simply because of lack of...

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the powerful Middle Eastern oil cartel, stuck to its planned incremental production increase, shrugging off calls from the West for greater supply. Both the cartel and Russia, collectively known as OPEC+, will stick to their plan to raise production by a modest 432,000 barrels per day in June, multiple delegates told Reuters, despite pleas from the Biden administration. The White House has repeatedly called upon OPEC+ to boost its oil output over the last year as supply chains have been snarled amid the COVID-19 pandemic recovery. White House national security adviser Jake...

Germany will support the European embargo of Russian oil, marking another significant turnaround in the nation’s position as the invasion of Ukraine continues. Ambassadors will reportedly table the proposal at an ambassadors summit in Brussels on Wednesday, with expectations to approve the embargo by the end of next week. Germany has resisted such an embargo, but government sources told German news agency dpa on Sunday that Chancellor Olaf Scholz will back the embargo. Scholz previously urged caution against any outright ban over concerns of the consequences, which he believed would prove devastating to Germany’s economy and the continent as a...

Putin’s machismo leads him to underestimate his adversaries and show off for domestic and international consumption. Unsurprisingly, his favorite tactic is unprovoked aggression—in other words, the bluff. He got away with it in Georgia in 2008, Syria from 2012 onward, in annexing Crimea in 2014 ...Yet last month, he was caught completely off guard when the West finally called his biggest raise ever. As boxer Mike Tyson said, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.” The West’s reactive jab of sanctions and aggressive arming of the Ukrainians appear to have completely stalled—and now reversed—Russia’s advance on...

The EU faces difficult questions that need to be debated now rather than later. Europe needs a strong deterrent against Moscow, and that will only be possible if France and Germany team up to advance the debate. In the end, the meeting at the United States airbase in Ramstein, Germany, resembled a ribbon ceremony with praise awarded to the most diligent. Germany is a great friend that is doing everything it can to support Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said. It was not only thanks for the Germans’ proposal to send tanks to Ukraine, but also the polite...

Paris (CNN) — Emmanuel Macron has won France's presidential election, fending off a historic challenge from far-right candidate Marine Le Pen during Sunday's runoff vote. Macron took 58.55% of Sunday's vote, making him the first French leader to be reelected in 20 years. He and Le Pen advanced to the runoff after finishing in first and second place, respectively, among 12 candidates who ran in the first round on April 10 While the contest was a rematch of the 2017 French presidential runoff, much of Europe watched the election with unease. A Le Pen presidency would have fundamentally changed France's...

A Canadian rapper has fallen to his death after walking along the wing of a Cessna plane as part of a music video shoot in Vernon, British Columbia. Jon James McMurray, 34, walked to the edge of the wing, causing the aircraft to spiral downwards out of control. McMurray failed to open his parachute because he held on to the plane for too long, his manager said. He died on impact in the accident on Saturday. "He had trained intensively for this stunt", his manager added. The pilot was reportedly able to regain control and land the plane safely.

Two customers of Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen were taken to a hospital Thursday night after being burned by a flaming drink. A spokeswoman for Caesars Palace, where the restaurant is located, confirmed the incident, but could not provide further information on their condition. She said the drink was a tiki-style cocktail called Rum Donkey. The online menu lists the ingredients as Cruzan Single Barrel Rum, falernum, brown sugar, ginger beer and torched passion fruit. Caesars Entertainment issued a statement that says, in part, “We stand ready to provide any assistance they may need to help them through this difficult time.”...

SAN BERNARDINO (CBS) — A would-be copper thief was gravely injured early Saturday morning when he attempted to steal copper wiring from a live Edison vault, according to authorities. Witnesses told CBS2 and KCAL9 reporter Melissa Maynarich that the man could be heard screaming in agony.Jeff Grammatico was across the street from the substation when he said, “I heard a boom.” He added, “It made me jump from one side of the room to the other.” He ran to the fence and saw a man burning alive. “It was scary. I was trying to cut the gate to get in....

A man was left seriously wounded after climbing into a bear enclosure in a Swiss zoo yesterday. The 25-year-man climbed onto a wall surrounding the BärenPark (Bear Park) in the city of Bern, Switzerland, before falling 13ft into the enclosure, police said. The unnamed man, who had learning difficulties, was then attacked by four-year-old bear Finn, who caused severe injuries to the man's head and one of his legs, before a nearby policeman shot the creature - injuring it and forcing it to retreat into a cave.

Click to see Ed Schultz's unhinged meltdown. On the Wednesday evening edition of "The Ed Show," MSNBC commentator Ed Schultz stated Republicans want Americans to die, enjoy when middle aged women contract cancer, and then suggested moderate Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine should allow tumors to spread through her body if she ever gets cancer.Schultz, whose program runs between episodes of Hardball, began his program by discussing the story of a woman who came to a health care town hall meeting sponsored by Rep. Eric Cantor, R-VA. The woman told of her uninsured friend, a middle aged woman with...

Since I am approaching my one year anniversary of being a "freeper" and since I have never contributed a dime to FR, jim or the republican party, I am going to beat the powers to be at FR and voluntarily leave, rather than have them come up with one of the cock and bull stories to ban me. Been fun,Bye