Unpacking Trump's obsession with ‘dead White farmers'
If you watched the White House meeting between President Donald Trump and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, you already know what these words refer to, and if you didn't, well, I'm frankly not sure that any amount of column inches can fully explain them.
On Wednesday, Ramaphosa and a South African delegation met with Trump in the Oval Office for what was supposed to be a relationship-building meeting between the two nations. It instead turned into what was, remarkably, only the second most offensive Oval Office ambush to take place between Trump and a foreign leader in calendar year 2025. (Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's appointment wins out merely because this time, Vice President JD Vance was not present to deliver sucker punches.)
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Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
India hints it will keep buying Russian oil
India has indicated it will defy threats made by US President Donald Trump and continue buying Russian oil. The world's third-largest crude importer - after China and the US - cashed in on cheap Russian oil when its price plummeted after Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Historically, it had bought most of its crude from countries in the Middle East. But this changed after the invasion in February 2022, when western countries slapped sanctions on Russia in a bid to choke off money fuelling Moscow's war chest. It prompted the recent energy crisis that saw household bills in the UK soar. On Friday, the Indian foreign ministry said its relationship with Russia was "steady and time-tested", and warned against viewing it through the lens of another country. Addressing a weekly meeting, spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said India's general position on procuring energy was guided by supply in the markets and prevailing global circumstances. The sentiment was echoed by two further government sources cited by the Reuters news agency. "These are long-term oil contracts," one of the sources said. "It is not so simple to just stop buying overnight." India is highly dependent on oil imports, which supply 87% of its needs, according to the International Energy Agency. The comments follow a threat made by President Trump to impose a 25% tariff on goods from India, as well as an additional import tax, because of New Delhi's purchases of Russian oil. The US president made ending the war in Ukraine a top priority - pledging to do so within his first 24 hours in office. But recently Mr Trump - who has repeatedly praised the Mr Putin over the years - has started to sour on the Russian leader for failing to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine. He called it "disappointing" and also threatened new economic sanctions on Russia if progress is not made. Mr Trump also this week said he had ordered two US nuclear submarines to be positioned in the "appropriate regions" in a row with former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev. The pressure on India comes after it upped it Russian crude purchases from 68,000 barrels per day in January 2022 to 1.12 million barrels per day by June that year. Supplies rose as high as nearly 40% of India's imports at one point, making Russia the largest supplier of crude to New Delhi, according to the Press Trust of India, citing data from analytics firm Kpler. Home to 1.3 billion people, India is expected to become an even bigger oil consumer over the remainder of the decade, fuelled by spectacular growth in its economy, as well as rising population and demographics. Demand has been rising fastest for petrol, with rising household incomes sparking a boom in motorcycle and car ownership.
UPI
20 minutes ago
- UPI
Mixed results for 'Rage Against the Regime' day of action
Aug. 2 (UPI) -- The same organization behind prior protests against the Trump administration reported mixed results for Saturday's "Rage Against the Regime" protests across the country. The protests are part of the ninth "national day of action" event coordinated so far this year by the 50501 Movement, which opposes President Donald Trump and his administration's policies. Organizers accuse the Trump administration of "heralding ... American neo-fascism," building "concentration camps" and funding "genocide." They also accuse Trump of "weaponization of ICE against our communities, construction of concentration camps, covering up the Epstein files, attacks on transgender rights and ... dismantling of Medicaid, SNAP, USAID, the Department of Education, NOAA and the National Weather Service." The protests are intended to be peaceful, but at least one local organizer changed the name to "Rise Against the Regime" to emphasize its peaceful intent for the protest in San Angelo, Texas. Several posts on the 50501 Movements' Facebook page expressed disappointment over low turnout at many of the protests, while others said hundreds showed up. The organization says "50501" refers to 50 protests in 50 states in one day and calls the Trump administration a "threat" to democracy and human rights, The Hill reported. About 350 Rage Against the Regime protests were scheduled in communities across the nation. The name of Saturday's collective protests references the Los Angeles rock band Rage Against the Machine. Other nationwide protests organized by the 50501 Movement include the "No Kings Day" protest held on June 14 and the "Good Trouble Lives On" protest held on the anniversary of former Rep. John Lewis' death on July 17.
CNN
22 minutes ago
- CNN
Analysis: For Trump, Russia's nuclear saber-rattling may be a useful distraction
There's something faintly undignified about a president of the United States being goaded by a minor Russian official into making nuclear threats on social media. But that's exactly what President Donald Trump has now done by ordering the repositioning of two US nuclear submarines, allowing himself to appear rattled by the hollow saber-rattling of Dmitry Medvedev, an outspoken but long-sidelined former Russian president. In a series of bombastic posts on social media, Medvedev, who has styled himself as a virulent anti-Western critic in recent years, slammed Trump's soon to expire deadline on Russia for a peace deal in Ukraine, saying that each new ultimatum was a 'step towards war' – not between Russia and Ukraine, but 'with his own country.' The US president should remember 'how dangerous the fabled 'Dead Hand' can be,' Medvedev wrote, in a provocative reference to Russia's Soviet-era automatic nuclear retaliation system, which can initiate the launch of intercontinental ballistic missiles if it detects a nuclear strike. Trump's own secretary of state, Marco Rubio, played down the Russian's recent posts, pointing out that Medvedev isn't a decision-maker in Moscow anymore. It is a view shared by many Russians, for whom Medvedev is widely seen as politically irrelevant, with little authority, let alone the power to launch a nuclear strike. It begs the question as to why Trump would even engage with what he himself described as 'foolish' statements, and issue such a strident public response which ratchets up the rhetoric between Washington and Moscow. One possible answer is that it's a convenient way for Trump to appear tough on Moscow, singling out a public figure often dubbed 'little Dima' in Russia because of his small stature, without directly confronting the real power in the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin, or indeed making any concrete changes to the US nuclear posture. Trump said his order for two nuclear submarines 'to be positioned in the appropriate regions' came in case Medvedev's 'foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.' But there are multiple US nuclear submarines, armed with hundreds of nuclear warheads, patrolling the world's oceans on any given day. Given the multi-thousand-mile range of the missiles they carry, as well as the vast size of Russia, it is unlikely any repositioning would make a significant difference to their ability to strike Russian targets. But, as ever, the timing is key. Trump's Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, in his dual role as a makeshift Russia mediator, is set to hold more talks with the Russian leadership in the coming days. He is likely to again press for a ceasefire as a deadline set by Trump, for the Kremlin to agree to peace in Ukraine or face stiff tariffs, is set to expire. Few realistically expect the Kremlin, which has stubbornly insisted on achieving its stated military objectives before ending the Ukraine conflict, to back down. The latest escalating nuclear rhetoric is unlikely to change that hardline position. But, again, as Trump weighs – and possibly backs away from – the potentially self-damaging impact of imposing secondary sanctions on countries such as India and China who buy Russian oil, as he has threatened to do, the phantom of increased nuclear readiness may prove to be a useful distraction. In fact, creating a distraction from mounting political problems at home may be a welcome byproduct of the escalating nuclear rhetoric. Talk of mounting nuclear readiness towards Russia, which has more atomic weapons than any other country in the world, could overshadow more trifling domestic matters, like the Epstein scandal, for instance. Of course, any mention of nuclear escalation between the world's biggest nuclear superpowers rightly attracts serious attention. But the broader relationship between Washington and Moscow, though under renewed pressure, is nowhere near nuclear confrontation. And while the seemingly flippant use of nuclear threats by both nations may be concerning, it does not signal that a nuclear confrontation is on the way.
