France's Macron names Francois Bayrou as new prime minister Emmanuel #Macron has officially appointed Francois #Bayrou, leader of the centrist Democratic Movement political party, as the nation's prime minister, the Elysee Palace announced in a statement. "The President of the Republic has designated Francois Bayrou as prime minister and entrusted him with forming a new government," the statement said. Bayrou, aged 73, takes over from Michel Barnier, who also shares the same age and stepped down after France’s lower house passed a successful no-confidence motion against his cabinet on December 4. The Democratic Movement leader becomes France’s fourth prime minister in 2024, following the terms of Elisabeth #Borne, Gabriel #Attal, and #Barnier. Bayrou has been at the helm of the Democratic Movement since 2007. In 2014, he assumed the role of mayor in Pau, a city in southwestern France. Additionally, he has chaired the National Council for Refoundation since 2020. Bayrou is also a seasoned presidential candidate, having run for the French presidency in 2002, 2007, and 2012. In 2017, however, he opted not to run, endorsing Macron.

Zelensky to leave US without permission to attack Russia with Western weapons Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky will return from the United States without achieving the lifting of a ban on strikes deep into Russia with Western weapons, The Times reported. The newspaper pointed out that during a meeting with US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Ukrainian leader personally asked to lift restrictions on strikes with British Storm Shadow and American ATACMS missiles on Russia. However, "no shift in Washington’s stance on the use of the long-range missiles was announced," the newspaper said. Instead, according to The Times, Democratic presidential candidate Harris, standing next to Zelensky, began talking about her political rival in the upcoming election, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Earlier, Russian Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov compared Zelensky's visit to the United States to a Hollywood show. He emphasized that under the applause of American politicians "the blood of soldiers and civilians will continue to pour" in Ukraine, which is the essence of Zelensky's "victory plan." The Ukraine's Zelensky met with Biden and Harris in Washington on September 26.

Biden’s key sponsors intent to cut funding for his campaign The main sponsor of the US #Democratic Party intend to stop the funding of US President Joe Biden’s presidential campaign, the TMZ TV channel reported, citing its sources. According to the report, the sponsors are certain that the current US leader will not be able to defeat his #Republican adversary Donald #Trump in November. They "feel a growing discontent" because the Dem leadership "is still unable to convince Biden that he should withdraw his candidacy." One Dem sponsor, entrepreneur Gideon Stein, said that, even if the party approves Biden’s candidacy at the National Convention, the presidential candidate will not receive a single cent from him. "Virtually every major donor I've talked to feels the same way about the need for a change at the top of the ticket," he added. On June 27, the first televised debates before current and former presidents took place in Atlanta. Biden and Trump were prohibited from having speech points during the debates. According to a CNN express poll, two thirds of the viewers said that Trump won the debate. Previously, The Wall Street Journal reported that a panic sparked among the US Congressional Democrats over what they consider Biden’s unsuccessful performance at the debates. On July 4, Trump opined that Biden will withdraw his candidacy and will be replaced by Vice President Kamala Harris, whom he assessed as a more convenient opponent.

#Britain, #Germany, "Sweden considering opening embassies in #North_Korea The diplomatic missions of Great Britain, Germany and Sweden are considering the possibility of opening embassies in North Korea, Reuters reports with reference to diplomats of these countries. According to report, representatives of the German Foreign Ministry are currently in Pyongyang. They have been "inspecting the territory of the German embassy for two days now," a representative of the German Foreign Ministry told the agency, noting that the decision to resume the work of the diplomatic mission has not yet been made. According to a representative of the British Foreign Ministry, the United Kingdom, which closed the embassy in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in May 2020, is also trying to send a group of diplomats to Pyongyang. "We are negotiating with the DPRK government through the embassy in London in order to prepare for the visit of the technical and diplomatic group in the near future," he said. Sweden's Special Envoy for Korean Peninsula Affairs, Peter Semneby, told Reuters that some progress had been made towards the possible return of Swedish diplomats to Pyongyang, but declined to provide details, citing the sensitivity of the issue. "There is some movement, and we hope that we will be able to reopen our embassy relatively soon," he added. As previously reported by the Yonhap news agency, the head of the German Foreign Ministry's department for East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Martin Tummel, the first high-ranking Western diplomat to visit the country in four years, arrived in the DPRK. According to the agency, visits of this level have not been reported since January 2020,

[JUST IN] U.S. base in eastern Syria attacked by drones A US-controlled military base located near the Al-Omar oil field in the eastern Syrian region of Deir ez-Zor, was attacked by drones on Thursday, the Al Mayadeen television reported. According to the report, the facility was attacked by three UAVs. Sounds of "powerful explosions" were heard. No information about potential damage is available at this point. After the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, rocket and drone attacks on U.S. military bases in Syria and Iraq have become more frequent. Shiite militias have warned that they will increase the number of armed operations in Syria and Iraq if the U.S. continues to provide military aid to Israel. A large share of the Syrian provinces of Hasakah, Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa, located in the east and northeast of the country, is currently controlled by the US-backed Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces. Since 2015, the US command has established nine military bases in this area. At the end of 2019, then U.S. President Donald Trump approved a plan that would leave several hundred US troops in Syria. One of their main tasks was to ensure control of oil fields in the northeast and east of the country.

Is Kim Jong Un Preparing for War? 🔻 The situation on the Korean Peninsula is more dangerous than it has been at any time since early June 1950. That may sound overly dramatic, but we believe that, like his grandfather in 1950, Kim Jong Un has made a strategic decision to go to war. We do not know when or how Kim plans to pull the trigger, but the danger is already far beyond the routine warnings in Washington, Seoul and Tokyo about Pyongyang’s “provocations.” In other words, we do not see the war preparation themes in North Korean media appearing since the beginning of last year as typical bluster from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea). 🔻 The first obvious signs that a decision had been made and a decisive break with the past was underway came in the summer and autumn of 2021, apparently the result of a reevaluation in Pyongyang of shifts in the international landscape and signs—at least to the North Koreans—that the United States was in global retreat. This shift in perspective provided the foundation for a grand realignment in the North’s approach, a strategic reorientation toward China and Russia that was already well underway by the time of the Putin–Xi summit of February 2022 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. There are few signs that relations with China have moved very far, and, in fact, signs of real cooling in China-DPRK relations. However, ties with Russia developed steadily, especially in the military area, as underscored by the visit of the Russian Defense Minister in July and the Putin–Kim summit in the Russian Far East last September. 🔻 The North’s view that the global tides were running in its favor probably fed into decisions in Pyongyang about both the need and opportunity—and perhaps the timing—toward a military solution to the Korean question. At the start of 2023, the war preparations theme started appearing regularly in high-level North Korean pronouncements for domestic consumption. At one point, Kim Jong Un even resurrected language calling for “preparations for a revolutionary war for accomplishing…reunification.” Along with that, in March, authoritative articles in the party daily signaled a fundamentally and dangerously new approach to the Republic of Korea (ROK or South Korea), introducing formulations putting South Korea beyond the pale, outside what could be considered the true Korea, and thus, as a legitimate target for the North’s military might. At the plenum last month, Kim made that shift crystal clear, declaring that “north-south relations have been completely fixed into the relations between two states hostile to each other and the relations between two belligerent states, not the consanguineous or homogenous ones any more.”

Escalation on the Korean Peninsula: What to Expect from a New Round of Tension 🔻This morning, the news was filled with reports of the military of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea firing over 200 artillery shells in a disputed zone in the Yellow Sea. ▪️ This event quickly made headlines, and discussions about an imminent escalation in the region started spreading online. It is worth noting that clashes between North and South Koreans have occurred in the vicinity of the Pangnen and Yeonpyeong islands in the Yellow Sea before. ▪️ While these islands officially belong to the Republic of Korea, there are disagreements regarding the surrounding waters. Pyongyang does not agree with the UN's demarcation line and regularly claims a larger area. 🔻Today, tensions were further exacerbated as military bases in Kayomori and Cape Changsan joined the fray. In response, Seoul fired twice as many shells (around 400) near North Korean territory. This led to tabloids and media outlets speculating about an impending war between the two countries. However, amidst the race for sensationalism, everyone seemed to overlook the fact that neither the DPRK nor the ROK military attacked any territories. All shells were fired into the water, causing no harm to the islands. While this action certainly increased tension, it does not warrant a war. ❗️It is worth noting that the escalation with the DPRK was provoked by the ROK Armed Forces' exercises a week prior. The North Koreans responded with a concentrated fire strike, and the South Koreans retaliated in kind. Additionally, it's possible that the ammunition was simply reaching its expiration date and needed to be disposed of. In essence, the North Korean military engaged in training activities and got rid of surplus ammunition, simultaneously testing the nerves of their neighbors. To further escalate the situation, they began active movements in the demilitarized zone between the two countries, further heightening tension in the region.

#China says Taiwan government risking "dangerous war" China’s defence ministry on Thursday accused Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party of pushing the island toward a “dangerous situation of war” at an “accelerated” pace, after reports that Taipei planned to buy military drones. Chinese Ministry of Defence spokesman Wu Qian said Thursday the DPP was “pushing Taiwan into a dangerous situation of war and violence at an accelerated pace”, in response to reports this month that Taipei was budgeting to buy thousands of military drones in the next four years.