First things first, Tucker Carlson deserves enormous credit for gaining reentry into Russia during a time when Russia has essentially locked down their entry visa process. This was not a simple task, and Tucker’s motives for doing so are accepted without immediate reservation. As the only other American I know who has navigated this dynamic, congratulations Tucker.

There have been no diplomatic channels used by the U.S. government toward Russia for over two years. Literally, all talks between government officials and emissaries have been severed for the past two years. As I have said before, this is a very dangerous dynamic.

That said, this conversation does not take place without the intent of Russia, specifically President Vladimir Putin and his Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov from wanting this conversation to take place. Without any doubt this is a public message, a direct and intentional communication, intended to reach a U.S. audience much deeper than the average American viewer. Perhaps an audience of one. Again, great job.  WATCH:

Chapters:
0:00 Is the US at War With Russia?
12:56 Russia’s Message to the West Through Hypersonic Weapons
17:47 Is There Conversation Happening Between Russia and the US?

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In the world of geopolitics created by the U.S. Dept of State and CIA, the pretending is thick.

A recent report has Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy now offering to give up territory to Russian President Vladimir Putin in exchange for NATO membership for the remaining portion. The story is sold by western media as if Zelenskyy has options, he doesn’t. However, Putin has a very strong weapon that President Trump has to navigate with a team of people around U.S. policy that are tenuous at best. Let’s discuss without the pretending.

Start with a Politico Article HERE, that frames the entry of President Donald Trump as the wildcard that has everyone, according to the DC narrative, rushing to get the best position in the final weeks before Trump’s arrival.

The DC narrative is that Russia is trying to maximize their land gains, while Zelenskyy and the NATO allies attempt to position for the least losses possible before they are forced to start peace talks.

It’s a little stunning that Washington DC is saying in advance of inauguration day that bloodshed stops, a ceasefire is imminent, and peace negotiations are a foregone conclusion, without President-elect Donald Trump even lifting his chin.

Apparently, and keep in mind this is the narrative of Washington DC, all President Trump needs to do is take his hand off the bible on January 20th and mysteriously global conflict comes to a screeching halt.

All things accepted and considered; the word “remarkable” is not adequate for that DC perspective.  If that administrative state perspective doesn’t just encapsulate the scale of Donald Trump, I don’t know what could.

If global conflict stops or diminishes simply by changing a U.S. president, then who exactly is responsible for global conflict and escalation? I digress…

Next, we enter the perspective of Volodymyr Zelenskyy as newly espoused.

The New York Post [Article Here], where Zelenskyy tells Sky News, “If we want to stop the hot stage of the war, we should take under [the] NATO umbrella the territory of Ukraine that we have under our control. That’s what we need to do fast, and then Ukraine can get back the other part of its territory diplomatically.”  Again, in this context, “fast” is the timetable in Zelenskyy’s mind, before President Trump shows up.

The proverbial “west,” which includes the White House, the CIA, NATO, the EU and the U.S. State Department are all trying to figure out their best exit from bloodshed and war, via a crisis they created a decade ago when they carried out the Maidan color Revolution in Ukraine, ultimately installing Volodymyr Zelenskyy.  The intellectually honest observers of events, that’s the non-pretending group, readily admit this is exactly what happened.

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In the background of other interesting matters, it’s worthwhile taking a glance into the TikTok battle every once in a while.  While I retain a slight ambivalence to the issue of TikTok and social media control mechanisms, it is also true that TikTok is currently the only larger used platform that is not directly under the wing of the U.S. Intelligence Community.

As we noted in the recent Romanian election outcome, the winner of round #1, a nationalist-minded Romania First candidate named Călin Georgescu, strongly directed his campaign message to the Romanian people, via TikTok. Georgescu campaigned on an anti-EU, anti-NATO and anti-war with Russia platform; simultaneously supporting domestic farmers, domestic energy production and advocating for a Romania that is free from foreign influence.

Suddenly, the Romanian officials who lost the election are asking the EU to investigate TikTok for allowing the organic message of Georgescu to flourish and generate support.

(Via Politico) […] TikTok is under mounting pressure to explain how it handled political content in Romania after a first round presidential vote on Sunday propelled the ultranationalist, pro-Russian firebrand Călin Georgescu to a shock victory, in part thanks to his sudden surge on TikTok. A top EU lawmaker demanded on Tuesday that TikTok’s chief executive appear before the European Parliament to answer questions, and Romanian NGOs have urged the Commission to look into whether TikTok and other platforms complied with Europe’s social media laws.

The European Commission oversees TikTok’s compliance with the bloc’s new DSA rulebook, which sets the rules for how large online platforms moderate content, including in political campaigns.

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At this part in the transitions process, Little Marco has to be asking himself what exactly he is going to be responsible for. lol

Despite prior rumors, President Trump has announced that Retired Lt General Keith Kellogg will serve as his special envoy to Ukraine and Russia.  This puts General Kellogg at the center of the upcoming negotiated peace deal that will ultimately end the conflict in Ukraine.

[SOURCE]

Kellogg is a retired Army lieutenant general who has long been Trump’s top adviser on defense issues.  Kellogg served as National Security Advisor to former Vice President Mike Pence. General Kellogg’s plan for ending the conflict involves freezing the battle lines at their current locations and inviting both Kyiv (Zelensky) and Moscow (Putin) to the negotiating table, Reuters reported in June.

… And, with that envoy announcement, I suspect we have now identified who will be President Trump’s emissary.  Or, more accurately said, who Melania Trump identified as the best selection.

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Interesting that none of the Europeans saw this outcome looming, which is likely why Samantha Power and her USAID/CIA election operation was not present for round #1.   Unfortunately, it should be expected that team USA will quickly react and dispatch assistants to help recover in round #2.

Make Romania Great Again candidate Călin Georgescu came out of nowhere and has won the first round in the presidential election.

Georgescu campaigned on an anti-EU, anti-NATO and anti-war with Russia platform; simultaneously supporting domestic farmers, domestic energy production and advocating for a Romania that is free from foreign influence.

Oh, and instead of traditional media, his campaign message was strongly directed to the Romanian people, via TikTok. Imagine that.

As noted by Politico, “Ultranationalist Călin Georgescu comes from nowhere to lead center-left PM Marcel Ciolacu and liberal Elena Lasconi in first round.

[…] According to the partial results, Georgescu leads with 22.2 percent followed by center-left Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu on 20.2 percent. Reformist candidate Elena Lasconi is on 18 percent, while another hard-right candidate, George Simion, trails with 14.1 percent support, with 96 percent of precincts reporting.

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There are a lot of interesting discussions and interviews amid the political chatter today.  It’s often difficult to filter which ones actually matter in the big picture.  This is one of those interviews’ worth watching.

Incoming National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, brother-in-law to nominated U.S. Surgeon General Janette Nesheiwat and husband to former DNI policy chief Julia Nesheiwat, appears on Fox News to discuss his priorities for the national security system under President Donald Trump.

Within the interview Waltz makes sure the collective NATO “west” get the unity message about U.S-Ukraine policy: “Jake Sullivan and I have had discussions, we’ve met,” Waltz says in the interview. “For our adversaries out there that think this is a time of opportunity, that they can play one administration off the other — they are wrong. We are hand in glove. We are one team with the United States in this transition.”  WATCH:

Mike Waltz is married to Julia Nesheiwat, the sister of Surgeon General nominee Janette Nesheiwat.

Julia, who -like all other people who work in DC silos- has never taken a married name.  Julia Nesheiwat was born in Carmel, New York, in 1975 to Jordanian Christian immigrants and raised in Umatilla, Florida. She has a BA from Stetson University, an MA from Georgetown, and a PhD from Tokyo Tech.

Julia Nesheiwat became a military intelligence officer. She received the Bronze Star Medal during Operation Enduring Freedom in Iraq. She departed the military as captain.  Julia Nesheiwat served in several U.S. administrations. Under George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump, she held senior national security and economic policy positions. Her most notable role was as Trump’s 10th Homeland Security Advisor from 2020 to 2021. Her Bush administration posts included State Department seniority and Office of the Director of National Intelligence Policy Chief.

Suffice to say their bedroom conversations are likely Intel Community shop talk.

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For some reason I imagine Whitaker’s physical stature as a small part of this decision-making, perhaps just a bonus. “Peace through Strength.”

President Trump has selected former Acting AG Matt Whitaker to be his Ambassador to NATO.  In this role, Whitaker will quickly be taking on the task of positioning President Trump’s remarkably different foreign and national security policies at the forefront for NATO to accept.  Not a small challenge, given the nature of the Ukraine-Russia conflict sucking up all the NATO oxygen.

[SOURCE]

VIA NPR – […] Trump has long criticized defense spending by other NATO member countries, arguing that the U.S. was shouldering an oversized burden while many European allies failed to pay their fair share. His pick for ambassador is likely to take on that stance, sparking some consternation across the Atlantic Ocean from the United States’ NATO allies.

After Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, NATO countries pledged to move toward spending 2% of their gross domestic product on defense by 2024. According to data released in July 2024, 23 of the 31 member countries are estimated to have hit that target, with the U.S. contributing 3.38% of its GDP.

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Glenn Greenwald appears for an interview with Tucker Carlson on the topic of the Biden administration directly making a decision as they exit the White House to attack Russia and provoke a direct war between U.S-led NATO and Russia.

Greenwald notes the accurate context of the recent decision to provide, launch, target and direct ATACMS missiles to hit targets inside Russia.  This is not the U.S. providing Ukraine with weapons for use.  This is the USA using the auspices of Ukraine geography to launch missiles into Russia that can only be launched, directed and targeted by U.S-NATO members.

Ukraine does not have the targeting systems or satellites to use these longer-range ATACM missiles for strikes into Russia. Ukraine is merely the launch geography for the U.S/NATO to launch missiles directly into Russia.  President Vladimir Putin specifically said he has clear eyes on what this deployment means.  WATCH:

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On an ancillary note, having spent three months inside Russia this summer and having the associated contacts therein, the Russian government is currently in the process of shutting down their nation in preparation for what comes next.  All of the previous rules and regulations for entry visas are essentially gone.  You will not read this anywhere else, but I can assure you Russia is isolating in preparation for war. This is not a good sign at all.

Having spent some time in the weeds this morning, I’m not sure the current trajectory is reversible before President Trump’s inauguration.  President Trump is going to face a considerable challenge.  Without doubt the Intelligence Community control agents in the Biden administration are monitoring every call and intercepting every contact that President-elect Trump might have in the next 6 weeks, in order to ensure their objectives are accomplished.

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For very obvious reasons I don’t believe them.  However, that said, take an elevated position on the issue for a moment and ask yourself, ‘what are the implications if the United States Pentagon are fabricating claims about North Korean troops on the ground in Kursk, Russia?’

The United States Defense Department asserted today that DPRK troops are on the ground in the Kursk region.  Actual North Korean troops on the battlefield fighting against Ukraine.   Has anyone seen any single physical attributable example, a picture, a photograph, a video, a satellite image, a drone video, a declassified field report; heck, anything – anything at all – to support such a claim?

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This claim, and the total lack of evidence for it, is really nuts if you think about it.

Where are the journalists who look at these officials and say, “prove it.”  I mean, the path we are traveling ends in a very dark place for the U.S-NATO and Russia.  Shouldn’t someone, anyone, ask some very pointed questions?  Where the heck is Biden?

New York Times – Early this morning, Ukraine’s military launched a volley of American-made ballistic missiles into Russia for the first time. The attack came on the 1,000th day of the war and less than a week after President Biden gave the Ukrainians permission to do so in a major shift of American policy.

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Responding to reporters’ questions, today President of the European Union commission Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Donald Trump then immediately began the framework to explain EU background discussions in economic terms. “We still get a lot of [liquified natural gas] from Russia, and why not replace it by American LNG, which is cheaper for us and brings down our energy prices,” said Ursula von der Leyen.

The EU realizes the seismic shift that is upon them as a result of the U.S. election.  Everything from the Ukraine-Russia war; the economics of energy which President Trump will use in negotiations for peace; to the factual lowered prices within the EU created by Joe Biden energy policy to punish Americans; to funding for NATO in combination with the potential for the end of the Marshal Plan one-way tariffs are looming.  President von der Leyen is in a very precarious position.

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Ursula was speaking from ¹Budapest, Hungary.

While many are interpreting her remarks about purchasing LNG to be snuggling up to President Trump, factually it is a much bigger problem than western media will openly discuss.

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