Again, there are multiple dynamics unfolding inside this story.  However, as to the central component of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy complaining about hampered access to Starlink and/or Starshield, Secretary of State Marco Rubio sets the record straight.

Ukraine has never had access to the U.S. military version of Starshield; providing that level of guidance access would be akin to the United States being in direct conflict with Russia using a proprietary U.S. military system. This is not our circus and not our war; there is no need for U.S. military conflict with Russia.

Because Ukraine does not have that access, it is now revealed that Zelenskyy has been using Starlink, a commercially available satellite system – but that system is not permitted by SpaceX to be used for military efforts.  This is almost certainly where the relationship between Elon Musk and former Ukraine Defense Minister Michael Fedorov comes into play. Fedorov is no longer in the Ukraine govt.   WATCH:

Rubio notes that Zelenskyy’s claims against the White House are nonsense.  The White House has not interfered or instructed the military about the use of Starshield because Ukraine has never had Starshield to use.  If Ukraine has been violating the terms of service by weaponizing Starlink (they have) then the commercial provider can act independently to block or stop that access. [Full Transcript Below]

In the background of this storyline, we should always remember that about a month ago Russia finalized their own upgraded satellite system that covers Russia and eastern Europe.  It is widely suspected the increased accuracy of Russian targeting inside Ukraine is specifically because of their own enhanced capabilities, which now highlights the vulnerability of Ukraine if they do not have weaponize their Starlink access and the new desperation therein.

Bottom line, Secretary of State Marco Rubio continues to highlight his mastery of cutting through the nonsense and staying focused on the priorities of the administration with messaging that cuts through the media chafe.  Rubio excels in this role far beyond prior expectations. Very impressive.

On the topic of his travel to the “stans”, watch carefully. This is connected to the overall Russia/Central Asia agenda.

Transcript Below:

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The New York Times {SEE HERE} is leading a charge of multiple U.S. media outlets to rage-bait Americans on the issue of President Trump exempting Russia from a new sanctions regime.

Let me start with a positive.  Despite the massive amount of years-long gaslighting, lying and narrative engineering by the overwhelming majority of American media and political punditry, the majority of Americans don’t want U.S. sanctions against Russia [37% vs 54%].  Why?  Because most Americans have a keen sense of manipulation.

This is one of the reasons why I believe the current effort to create an impeachment narrative against President Trump, again using the Ukraine conflict as the source material, will fail.  Yes, the majority of elected politicians support Ukraine and oppose Russia, but the majority of the American people don’t align with the politicians.

More than a week ago we noted the Trump decision to enter a diesel sales agreement with Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin was very predictable.  Even when President Trump signed HR5334 the Lindsey Graham Russian Sanctions bill, we noted how it was written to the benefit of President Trump by Lindsey Graham himself. {GO DEEP}

Indeed, with Europe purchasing Russian energy from Vladimir Putin, one of the great ironies within the latest Russian sanctions bill was the requirement and authorization to tariff Europe at a 500% rate for violating the sanctions bill.  Yes, that is correct, inside this bill congress authorized President Trump to massively raise tariffs on Europe or anyone else who was purchasing Russian energy products.

As a consequence, if President Trump doesn’t take an action to pause or exempt Russia from these latest sanctions regime, then he will end up hitting almost all the NATO allies with 500% tariffs.  However, the media don’t want to draw attention to that aspect as it doesn’t fit their narrative {NYT ARTICLE HERE}.

It did not come as a surprise to me to see President Trump sign an executive order to “waive the application of any sanctions provision” [Executive order here].  Lindsey Graham knew the bottom-line goal of President Trump was to stop the killing, stop the fighting between Ukraine and Russia, and Graham himself created the ability of waivers in the sanction regime specifically so that Trump would have maximum flexibility in providing economic carrots to Russia.

The waiver option is in HR5334 specifically so that President Trump can use it…. And so, he did, DUH!  And Lindsey Graham knew he would. And the media are going bananas.

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Glenn Beck interviewed U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer last week.  Within the interview USTR Greer walks through some of the current geopolitical issues surrounding trade and MAGAnomics beginning with Iran, oil and gas prices, the diesel fuel agreement with Russia, then ongoing trade friction with Canada and a perspective on European industrial manufacturing.  Well worth watching:

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The AP is reporting that Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has restarted drone attacks against Russian oil refineries despite the request by President Trump to halt targeting energy infrastructure.  There are a lot of aspects within this dynamic.

♦ First, keep in mind that any attacks against Russian infrastructure should always be evaluated against the capability of Russia to effectively mitigate such attacks.  Russia is an analog infrastructure in a digital world, and one of the benefits to their system is the rapid repair capability in the old-school systems.

This may seem like a small detail, however, as noted in the prior attacks against almost all Russian infrastructure, Russia continued energy operations and exports of diesel fuel despite Ukraine targeting. Russia is remarkably resilient and they build out their capabilities with redundancies no longer used in most of the western industrial systems.

Due to their analog systems Russia may be less efficient in maximizing productivity; but what they lose in industrial productivity becomes an actual asset when shifting between internal systems becomes a matter of physically opening and closing valves to shift from damaged to operational stations. Russia’s slow adaption of technological innovation factually becomes a strategic advantage in this type of kinetic war.

♦ Second, it is worth remembering that oil refining capacity has been curtailed by the “climate change advocates” who now assemble to support Zelenskyy.  The nations now aligned against the interests of Russia are yet dependent on the dirty industrial carbon energy resources provided by Russia and other oil exporting countries.

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It is almost impossible to explain what is happening to those who have not followed the last five years of events closely.

In the latest development, yesterday Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy -attempting his best Churchill performance- rushes to British media outlets to give lengthy interviews.  Zelenskyy is in London because that is the center of his support system.

If you are a denier of CTH’s long standing outline about Ukraine being World War Reddit, yet you hold some intellectual honesty permitting you to accept uncomfortable truth, you might perhaps pause and think about what is happening carefully.

Zelenskyy is in a crisis moment within the Russia conflict.  Ukraine is getting pummeled by Russia’s fast moving and highly accurate drones and missiles.  Yet, at this moment of consequence, Volodymyr Zelenskyy finds the time to travel to the U.K and give long interviews with pro-Ukraine media outlets.

What exactly is the priority here? ….

Zelenskyy is fighting a narrative war. That’s why the term World War Reddit applies.

It is transparently obvious what is going on. Zelenskyy has one primary demand, more money. That’s it. The rest is positioning and false presentations of patriotism. The “defense of Ukraine” narrative is not about defending Ukraine in the traditional sense; it’s about using the defense of Ukraine to get money.

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The Office of the Comptroller of Currency has released the final report after investigating the banking practices of nine major institutions based on over 100,000 examples of banks refusing business based on politics and worldviews.

[OCC PRESS RELEASE HERE]

“Today’s report provides irrefutable evidence that the nation’s largest banks have denied, debanked and discriminated against customers and lawful businesses”…

WASHINGTON—The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today released a report of its findings from its supervisory review of debanking activities at the nine largest national banks it supervises: JPMorgan Chase Bank, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo Bank, U.S. Bank, Capital One, PNC Bank, TD Bank, and BMO Bank.

The OCC conducted its supervisory review in accordance with the President’s Executive Order, “Guaranteeing Fair Access to Banking for All Americans,” to determine whether these banks’ policies or practices may have required, encouraged, or otherwise influenced banks to deny or limit access to financial services to Americans because of their political or religious beliefs or lawful business activities. The OCC’s findings show that, between 2020 and September 2025, all nine banks had such policies.

“Today’s report provides irrefutable evidence that the nation’s largest banks have denied, debanked and discriminated against customers and lawful businesses,” said Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould. “Americans should have access to financial services regardless of their beliefs, affiliations, or political views. Fair access to financial services is not a mantra—it is a mandate. The Trump Administration is committed to ending the weaponization of finance against hardworking Americans, once and for all.”

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As President Trump departed the White House for a trip to Alaska, he paused before entering Marine-1 to take questions from the assembled press pool.

President Trump answered questions regarding the status of Kimberly Guilfoyle as U.S. Ambassador to Greece, questions about the Ukraine-Russia conflict, the diesel fuel deal made with Russia, the reports of paused U.S. intelligence sharing with Ukraine and much more.  WATCH:

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U.S. Ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle, has resigned her post amid swirling controversy about her previously requesting a GOP donor to pay for her American Express bill ($100k+).

POLITICO – […] Guilfoyle, the one-time fiancee of Donald Trump Jr., the president’s oldest son, has come under heavy scrutiny in recent days after a Wall Street Journal report last week revealed communications with Eric Deters, a Republican donor who said she urged him to wire her the money through American Express.

Kimberly Guilfoyle (via X) – “Serving as the United States Ambassador to Greece has been the honor of a lifetime. I will forever be grateful to President Donald J. Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio for entrusting me with the extraordinary privilege of representing the greatest country in the history of the world.

From my first day as Ambassador, I have worked tirelessly to advance President Trump’s America First agenda, strengthen our strategic alliance with Greece, and deliver meaningful victories for the American people.

During my tenure, we have helped secure historic agreements to expand American liquefied natural gas exports to Europe, advanced the Vertical Corridor to reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian energy, strengthened our defense and security partnership with a critical NATO ally, and expanded opportunities for American businesses and investment throughout the region.

I am especially proud of the role our Embassy has played in strengthening American energy dominance, advancing economic cooperation, and ensuring that the United States remains the indispensable leader in Southeast Europe.

These accomplishments are a testament to President Trump’s bold leadership, Secretary Rubio’s commitment to American diplomacy, and the extraordinary men and women who serve our country every day.

I also want to address the recent allegations against me. These allegations are false, and I intend to vigorously defend my name, my reputation, and my integrity. I have dedicated my professional life to fighting for justice, standing up for what is right, and defending the values that make America exceptional. I will not allow false accusations to define my decades of public service.

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The people around Zelenskyy, his support network, are struggling trying to find solid footing for a counter narrative.

That’s why these remarks from Zelenskyy sound weird; in reality, they just don’t quite know how to respond because what President Trump is revealing in the “diesel deal” with Russia really doesn’t have much to do with diesel fuel supplies.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy (via X) – “I don’t believe the volume of diesel Russia will export will affect the price. Moreover, we see that they can export from 300,000 to 500,000 tons a month today. Meanwhile, global consumption stands at 120 million tons a month. What kind of impact can that have? I don’t think it would have any. If some people think otherwise, so be it.

So I believe there are entirely different reasons behind these actions. If this is the approach, then why isn’t America making a “diesel deal” with Ukraine? Let Ukraine propose a “diesel deal.” We do have influence over whether these ships can sail or not, whether these refineries can operate or not. If that’s the case, then let’s do it.

Electricity is what matters to us. That’s clear. If we can be guaranteed protection for our power system, then we will not strike Russia’s diesel infrastructure in response. Electricity is first and foremost about helping people – keeping their lights on. It also means helping Europe. Everyone knows that we are connected to the European power grid. And if our energy infrastructure is not being destroyed, we can help some countries that are facing shortages by supplying them with cheaper electricity.

So, yes, let’s sign a corresponding “diesel deal” with the President of the United States.” (link)

Following the lengthy phone call with Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin, President Trump noted during remarks on the way to Ohio that his administration was unsure of who exactly would be conducting strikes against Ukraine power infrastructure.  The lights going out in Kiev has a similar appearance to the performative air raid sirens whenever a high-profile EU govt official pays a visit [World War Reddit].

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President Trump eviscerated Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during remarks to the media earlier today.  Within hours, Zelenskyy ran to ABC news for support. Zelenskyy will be on American television Sunday at the request and instruction of his handlers.

Furious about Zelenskyy’s arrogance at undermining U.S. energy interests by targeting Russian energy export hubs, President Trump pointed out that it is duplicitous Zelenskyy who is the impediment to any negotiated peace agreement or ceasefire.

“We told Zelensky, ‘You can do whatever you want to Russia, but don’t hit the refineries because that’s a world problem.’ And what does he do? He goes and hits the diesel fuel. He better damn well stop.” …”I suggest they get a new leader who can make a deal, because he could have made many deals that for some reason, he NEVER does.” “That’s a war that should have never started. And I think it’s time for Ukraine to get a new president.”

[SOURCE]

1. In his own words Vladimir Putin explains why EU-NATO must have an expanded war with Russia. It has nothing to do with political ideology, and everything to do with control of money (energy price-fixing). [SEE HERE]

2. Understand how the western control of the “market price” of commodities is used to manipulate political outcomes. This ties directly into the first article about why London must control the money and combat Russia.  In this second article three weeks ago, CTH outlined a very predictable path that was most likely. The Trump-Putin strategic alliance on diesel exports is EXACTLY what we expected and predicted to happen. [SEE HERE]

3. When you combine what Putin has said with the strategic agreement with Trump now in place you can then move forward and clearly see how Lukoil is going to end up being a wedge to drive out London financial influence and free the USA from this corrupt market control system. [SEE HERE]

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