Free Republic

Iran has two known underground nuclear enrichment sites, the one Israel attacked on the first day of its assault at Natanz, and another at Fordo. Both sit south of Tehran in central Iran, but Fordo has long been the Iranian nuclear facility of most concern to international monitors and experts. Buried deep in a mountain, Fordo is where many analysts believe Iran has concealed clandestine efforts to work toward a nuclear weapons capability. There have been no reported Israeli strikes on the Fordo enrichment facility. -snip- "Fordo has always been a major concern because of its location and because of...

Sergei Shoigu, secretary of Russia’s Security Council, traveled to Pyongyang on Tuesday under the direct orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin, signaling a deepening of strategic military cooperation between North Korea and Russia. The visit, Shoigu's second in less than two weeks and third meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in just three months, comes as Moscow seeks to draw Pyongyang closer in its protracted war effort in Ukraine. Observers say the visit suggests a bid by Russia to leverage shifting global attention — particularly the West’s growing preoccupation with escalating tensions between Israel and Iran — to secure...

Dramatic footage has caught the extraordinary moment the wing of a £15million Russian warplane fell off in the middle of a Ukraine attack mission. The attack jet crashed after flying in a pair over Ukraine's Donetsk region, with the pilot miraculously cheating death by ejecting before his aircraft fell to the ground. The doomed Su-25 warplane is seen on the video turning and falling out of the sky, crashing into a field. At first it appeared it had been shot down, with Ukrainian media claiming it had possibly been the victim of 'friendly fire' by an unguided missile from its...

Iranian media on Saturday reported fire breaking out after Israel bombed infrastructure at the South Pars gas field in southern Bushehr province. Developing

THIS IS THE MAGA FOREIGN POLICY! So tired of the isolationists barking about the old and failed foreign policy of the past and insisting that they’ve uncovered the secret, new way forward — isolationism. There’s nothing new or good about isolationism which, in a word, is appeasement. It’s old and promotes war, such as WWII. Even worse, these knuckleheads can’t even coherently explain what they mean. Have you watched them on TV? They’re too self-righteous in their ignorance to realize how absurd they sound. They don’t agree among themselves what the hell they're talking about. In fact, they’re so blind...

Host and pundit Tucker Carlson has publicly criticized President Donald Trump and other conservatives for their support of Israel's recent military strikes on Iran. In his newsletter titled "This Could Be the Final Newsletter Before All-Out War," Carlson accused Trump of being "complicit" in Israel's attack, arguing that U.S. funding and weapons supplied to Israel, which Trump has boasted about, place the U.S. at the center of the conflict. He stated, "Washington knew these attacks would happen. They aided Israel in carrying them out," and suggested that direct U.S. involvement in a war with Iran would betray voters who supported...

Putin holds phone call with Trump Statements from Putin’s aide Yuri Ushakov: 🔸The call lasted 50 minutes 🔸The conversation was useful, with the two leaders discussing the escalating situation in the Middle East. 🔸Putin informed Trump about his recent phone contacts with the president of Iran and the prime minister of Israel. 🔸Putin reminded Trump of Russia’s proposal to seek mutually acceptable agreements on the Iranian nuclear issue. 🔸Trump assessed the situation in the Middle East as highly alarming. 🔸The presidents did not rule out a return to the negotiating track on the Iranian nuclear program. 🔸Putin also informed Trump...

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...

The Trump administration confirms that US special envoy to the Mideast Steve Witkoff will travel to Muscat on Sunday for the sixth round of nuclear talks with Iran. Talks will be both direct and indirect, as in previous rounds, says a statement to reporters attributed to a source familiar.

Iran on Thursday repudiated a declaration from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that it's not complying with its nuclear obligations, and said it would enhance aspects of its nuclear program in response. -snip- The IAEA board of governors approved a resolution proposed by the U.S., U.K., France and Germany to condemn Iran for not providing clarity about its undeclared nuclear sites and material. 19 countries on the 35-member voted in favor. Russia, China and Burkina Faso opposed the resolution, and the others abstained or didn't vote. -snip- The Iranians announced that in response, they would launch a new Uranium...

A Russian Orthodox priest has sparked controversy with his provocative claim that Russian Muslims could be mobilized to commit violence against Christians. The statement was made as Moscow's Muslim community celebrated the holy festival of Eid al-Adha on Sunday. Schema-abbot Gavriil, during his sermon, referred to the Muslims congregating on Peace Avenue in Moscow for the festivities: "The entire space is covered with people. And these are healthy men, who do not drink alcohol, who wrestle and go to gyms for training." He made an alarming assertion: "This is a whole army. And if, one fine day, a mullah orders...

President Donald Trump told Fox News that Iran has become "much more aggressive" in nuclear talks. "Iran is acting much differently in negotiations than it did just days ago," Trump told Fox News' Bret Baier. "Much more aggressive. It’s surprising to me. It’s disappointing, but we are set to meet again tomorrow – we’ll see." Senior administration officials also told Fox News that Iran appears to be dragging negotiations on without concrete progress while pushing forward with its nuclear efforts. This comes as Israel is growing more concerned it will have to act unilaterally to prevent Iran from getting a...

At a farm near Moscow, newly arrived guest workers from India are planting potatoes and cabbages - work closely monitored by central bank analysts as they prepare for board meetings to set interest rates. While in developed economies such as the United States food accounts for about 14% of the basket used to calculate inflation, in Russia it makes up a hefty 40% or so, and surging prices for potatoes and other staples have been a major reason for its tight monetary policy. The central bank trimmed its benchmark rate to 20% on June 6 but even that is around...

Production of vodka in Russia has plummetted by more than 13%, according to the latest data. The dip occurred between January and May as the country also deals with a shortage of potatoes. On May 14, President Vladimir Putin admitted that Russians "don’t have enough potatoes". Figures suggest that, in the first few months of 2025, the price of the crop surged by 52%, while the overall harvest dropped by 12%. In the first five months of 2025, Armenia exported nearly twice as many potatoes to Russia as it did during the first half of 2024, and almost 17 times...

PMC Wagner is withdrawing from Mali, the company's press service said, APA reports citing Pravda. According to the press service, "for 3.5 years, the orchestra has been fighting shoulder to shoulder with the people of Mali against terrorists."

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday greeted Muslims all over the world on Eid al-Adha, also known as the Feast of the Sacrifice and known in Russia as "Kurban Bayram." In a statement posted on the Kremlin website, Putin noted that this holiday marks the completion of a pilgrimage to ancient religious rituals, promotes unity among people, and gives believers joy by connecting with their ancestors' rich historical and spiritual legacy. "Following ancestral teachings and traditions, Muslims celebrate Kurban Bayram by performing kind and compassionate deeds, sincerely caring for those in need of help and sympathy," he said. The Russian...

Donald Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, has urged Washington’s chief negotiator with Moscow, Steve Witkoff, to consult European leaders before placing trust in Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. Witkoff has been part of U.S. delegations leading talks with Moscow and Kyiv since February, after Trump tasked members of his administration to help negotiate an end to Russia’s three-year war in Ukraine. However, he has faced criticism from Kyiv for peddling Russian narratives, including a suggestion to hand over four partially occupied eastern Ukrainian regions to Moscow. In March, Witkoff said that Putin has no intention to “take all of...

President Donald Trump has had a simple and bold plan to win the peace in the brutal war between Russia and Ukraine. In my opinion, Trump knew getting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Ukrainians to negotiate was never going to be the problem. But Russian President Vladimir Putin would be. So Trump seemingly castigated the Ukrainians at the very same time he extended a very welcoming hand to Putin, a nonthreatening and nonjudgmental one at that. Trump's maneuver was a brilliant one, including a peace deal that would start with both sides agreeing to an immediate ceasefire. As expected, Zelenskyy...

Donald Trump issued an ominous warning to Vladimir Putin after accusing him of deliberately drawing out the fragile peace process in Ukraine. The US president was asked whether he thought it was "disrespectful" of his Russian counterpart to accuse him of being overly emotional. A reporter questioned: "Do you believe the Russians are being disrespectful when they say that your criticisms of Putin are simply an emotional response? And do you still believe that Putin actually wants to end the war? Mr Trump responded: "I can't tell you that, but I'll let you know in about two weeks. Within two...