BRICS member states have approved Bolivia’s admission to the organization as a partner nation, Bolivian President Luis Arce said on Friday. | The Bolivian president added that this step represented the most significant achievement of Bolivian foreign policy, with the results being multidimensional. [...] Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier that BRICS member states had agreed on a list of partner states during the summit in Russia’s Kazan.

■ BRICS Summit Proves There's Alternative to Western-Led Global Order – Bolivian President (Sputnik)

The far-right president has been tackling inflation through severe spending cuts, which have led to widespread poverty. | Argentina’s poverty rate has surged to nearly 53% in the first six months of President Javier Milei’s term, marking the highest level in two decades. The government reported 3.4 million people have fallen into poverty this year, reflecting the impact of Milei's far-right austerity measures. Since assuming office in December, Milei has drastically reduced public spending to control chronic inflation and eliminate the budget deficit.

The Venezuelan government sent a note of protest to the EU delegation in Caracas against the interference of EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in the affairs of the Latin American country, the Vice Minister for European Affairs of the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry, Coromoto Godoy, said.
● On Sunday, Borrell called the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro a dictatorship and authoritarian regime. + On Thursday, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles described at a public event Maduro's government as a "dictatorship," claiming that it had caused mass migration from the Latin American country.
● In response to that, Venezuela recalled its ambassador to Spain and summoned the head of the Spanish diplomatic mission in Venezuela. Meanwhile, Venezuelan parliamentary speaker Jorge Rodriguez called on lawmakers to pass a resolution to immediately sever diplomatic and trade relations with Spain after the Spanish congress urged the government to recognize former presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez as the Venezuelan president.

On Saturday, Cabello said two Spanish citizens and one US citizen had been detained on related charges. | Two Americans and one Czech citizen were detained in Venezuela on suspicion of planning to transport a group of mercenaries from Europe to overthrow Venezuela's top political leadership, Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said Sunday. ● On Saturday Cabello said two Spanish citizens and one US citizen had been detained on suspicion of planning to assassinate the mayor of the city of Upata. The detainees have also been accused of planning in coordination with US and Spanish intelligence services to transport a group of mercenaries from France and Eastern Europe to Venezuela to assassinate top political figures.

■ African leader survives assassination attempt (RT.com)

A US official bragged to CNN about the move, saying that stealing a 'foreign head of state’s plane is unheard-of' | The US has stolen the official airplane of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro under claims that it was purchased by violating US sanctions, US officials told CNN on Monday. ■ The US officials described the plane as the equivalent of Air Force One and said it was taken by the US from the Dominican Republic and flown to Florida. The Justice Department claimed the plane was purchased in Flordia and exported to Venezuela in April 2023.

The American government has been conducting surveillance and collecting information about Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is currently the president of Brazil, since 1966. This was reported by the Folha de S.Paulo newspaper. | “Various agencies of the US government monitored President Lula da Silva, collecting at least 819 documents from 3,300 pages,” the report said. According to the newspaper, the information was provided by the US government to journalist and writer Fernando Morais, the Brazilian president’s biographer. The data refers to the period from 1966 to 2019. The material does not tell why a number of U.S. intelligence agencies began collecting information about the current president of Brazil from 1966. However, it is known that the politician at that time was an employee at the metallurgical factory Industrias Villares and participated in the work of the local trade union movement of the state of São Paulo in the south of the country.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro tells Al Mayadeen that Venezuela will always stand with Palestine, condemning what he described as "the worst genocide since Hitler." | The far-right in Venezuela is supported and funded by global Zionism, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro told Al Mayadeen, adding that the Zionist influence in the media and social media is behind the attempted coup in Venezuela. ● Maduro said on Saturday that his victory in the country's presidential election on July 28 is the greatest proof of what a people can do for their independence, dignity, and future. ● He stressed that Venezuela will always stand with Palestine and condemned what he described as "the worst genocide since Hitler," which is being committed against the people of Gaza and Palestine.

Venezuelans have taken to the streets after the national electoral authority declared victory for President Maduro | Unrest and street clashes broke out across Venezuela on Monday, after the electoral authority announced that Nicolas Maduro had been re-elected for another six-year term as president. ● The opposition says the vote was marred by fraud, insisting its candidate Edmundo Gonzalez won the ballot. Some opinion polls ahead of the election showed a clear majority for the challenger. ● Large numbers of riot police and soldiers were deployed in Caracas to disperse protesters and prevent them from approaching the presidential palace. Over 20 Venezuelan security personnel were injured, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said.

■ Exit poll used by Venezuela opposition sourced from US gov-linked firm (Al Mayadeen)
■ Press review: World reacts to Maduro's re-election + Lebanon (TASS)
■ Protests in Venezuela Definitely Financed by Washington - Russian Observer (RT.com)
■ At least 15 people detained for vandalism, destabilization attempts in Venezuela (TASS)
■ Βενεζουέλα: Ανακοίνωσε ότι αποσύρει το διπλωματικό προσωπικό της από επτά χώρες της Λατινικής Αμερικής
■ О президентских выборах в Венесуэле 🇻🇪 (Мария Захарова)(Telegram)

It is reported that after counting 80% of ballots, Maduro was supported by 5,150,092 voters or 51.2% | Venezuela’s incumbent President Nicolas Maduro has won the presidential election, getting re-elected for a third six-year term, President of the National Electoral Council of Venezuela Elvis Amoroso said. According to the council’s first statement, after counting 80% of ballots, Maduro was supported by 5,150,092 voters or 51.2%. His main opponent, Edmundo Gonzalez who is representing far-right parties, has garnered 4,445,978 votes or 44.2%, with eight other candidates garnering a total of 4.6%. Amoroso explained the delay in releasing the results of Sunday’s election was due to an attack on the electoral body’s data release system. ● Corina Machado, a leader of Venezuelan opposition, said the campaign team of presidential hopeful Edmundo Gonzalez will not recognize his defeat in the vote.

■ World leaders congratulate Maduro after election win (Al Mayadeen)
■ Venezuela's Maduro wins re-election with 51.2% of vote: electoral council (TRT World)

The television channel showed the general leaving the building of the General Staff escorted by police | Bolivian General Juan Jose Zuniga, who led an attempted coup, has been detained, Bolivia TV reported. The television channel showed the general leaving the building of the General Staff escorted by police. Before getting inside the police car, the general tries to share his vision of the situation with journalists. According to the general, he spoke with President Luis Arce on June 23 and the head of state asked to help him boost his popularity.

■ Bolivia's Interior Minister Presents Detained General Zuñiga to Media (Sputnik)
■ ‘Attempted coup’ reported in Bolivia (VIDEOS) (RT.com)
■ What is known about coup attempt in Bolivia (TASS)

As the world focuses on the arrival of a Russian Naval group on a "visit" to Havana, Cuba, the United States has sent the USS Helena, a Los Angeles Class, Fast-Attack submarine, to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba...for a...visit. | US Southern Command announced: 💬 "The fast-attack submarine USS Helena is in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as part of a routine port visit as it transits the U.S. Southern Command geographic area of responsibility while conducting its global maritime security and national defense mission. The vessel's location and transit were previously planned."

Hal Turner: So now, all those Russian surface vessels, can be torpedoed by the USS Helena. The Helena can be torpedoed by the Russian Submarine "Kazan" which accompanied the Russian surface group. And all of them are in Cuba, right now. No big deal, what could go wrong?

■ Russian Ships Arrive in Cuba in Latest Blow to US Hegemony (Sputnik News)

On Wednesday, a squadron of Russian ships, including a frigate capable of firing hypersonic missiles will arrive in Cuba as part of an international partnership program. A nuclear-powered and capable submarine will also be making the trip, along with support vessels. | The decision to send Russian ships to Cuba is giving America a taste of what they do to the rest of the world, international relations and security expert Mark Sleboda.

💬 “I think we can definitely see this as a direct Russian reply to the general US declaration of conducting what it calls ‘Freedom of navigation’ exercises. Although, as far as we know, no one has challenged the freedom of navigation,” Sleboda explained. “They patrol their navy up and down off Russia’s and China’s and Iran’s coast, saber-rattling and threatening as part of their policy of containment.” [...] The Russian trip to Cuba is “a reminder to the US… that two can play this game,” explained Slaboda. “It needs to be said that in [BALTOPS 2024] the US sent B-52 Stratofortress bombers from the United Kingdom. They conducted– according to Russian reports– a simulated nuclear attack on the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.”

The United States has frequently run “military exercises” off the coast of its nominal adversaries, including China, North Korea, Iran and Russia. Earlier this week, NATO kicked off BALTOPS 2024 in the Baltic Sea, the largest exercise in the program’s history.

■ Russian Military Ships to Visit Cuba on June 12 (Sputnik News)
■ US Is Shadowing Russian Warships Heading to Cuba (Antiwar.com)

'Dropping bombs on thousands of innocent children, women and the elderly does not make you a hero,' Petro says | Colombian President Gustavo Petro blasted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, saying he will "go down in history as a genocide perpetrator."

💬 "Mr. Netanyahu, you will go down in history as a genocide perpetrator. Dropping bombs on thousands of innocent children, women and the elderly does not make you a hero," he said in a post on X in response to Netanyahu's antisemitism accusation. "You remain alongside those who murdered millions of Jews in Europe. Genocide, whether it is related to religion or not, is genocide. At least stop the onslaught that is continuing," he said.

■ Netanyahu trades insults with Colombia president over Gaza war (The Telegraph) | "Israel will not be lectured by an antisemitic supporter of Hamas," Netanyahu wrote in a post on X on Saturday.

Colombia’s president has slammed the Gaza war as a “genocide” | Colombian President Gustavo Petro has urged the International Criminal Court and the UN Security Council to take action to prevent a “genocide” of the Palestinian people in the Gazan city of Rafah. ● Israel’s war cabinet approved a “measured expansion” of the military operation in Rafah on Friday, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledging to push ahead with the offensive despite the US threats to curtail military aid.

💬 “Netanyahu will not stop the genocide,” Petro wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, reacting to the Israeli leader’s declaration. “That implies an international arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court.”

The Colombian leader went on to suggest that the UN Security Council should “consider the establishment of a peacekeeping force in the territory of Gaza.” In a Labor Day speech in Bogota earlier this month, Petro vowed to cut diplomatic relations with Israel’s “genocidal” leadership, expressing solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza whose “children have died, dismembered by bombs.” ● Rafah in southern Gaza is the territory's last major population center still not under Israeli control. Hundreds of thousands of internally displaced Palestinians have taken shelter there in recent months. Earlier this week, Israel bombarded the city and sent troops and dozens of tanks into the eastern districts in what it described as a “limited” operation.

Thomas Fazi | For decades, Israel has supported many of the world's most brutal dictatorships, contributing to the repression and suppression of democracy and popular movements across the globe | Aside from the United States, no other single country has contributed to the repression and suppression of democracy and left-wing popular movements around the world as much as Israel has. As Loewenstein notes:

💬 "The Global South has been controlled and pacified with (principally) Israeli and US weapons. … Israel has worked closely with Washington for decades, often operating in places where the US preferred covert support rather than public backing."

This is particularly evident in region that the US has long considered its backyard, Latin America, home to some of the most savage dictatorships of the Cold War era — virtually all of which were politically and militarily supported by Israel, including at least one government that openly targeted and persecuted Jews.

Suicide surge due to devastaing harms from mRNA technology basis COVID gene vaccines e.g. Pfizer & Moderna? Yes,100%, we are seeing a disturbing escalation in catastrophic stories killing themselves. | What we lost was lives, freedoms, liberties across over 3 years. Governments maximally abusing us with power they took fraudulently. For a fake fraud ‘IFR’ (infection fatality rate) of 0.05% so called ‘pandemic’. 0-19 years, IFR 0.0003%, near zero. We cannot find one healthy child in the US, Sweden, Germany etc. that was exposed to COVID and died from COVID. Not one. Across 3 years of COVID.

Dmitry Medvedev (Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council) | Somoza may be a son of a bitch, but he's our son of a bitch. (a phrase attributed to Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
   ● U.S. lawmakers are derailing funding for Israel's and Ukraine's military spending for this year. The reasons are technical and... not quite technical. It is clear that everything will resume in the new year. However, it is an important symptom of the development of the disease.
   ● If the story with Israel is obviously technical, because this country is more important to the U.S. Congress than its own, the Ukrainian regime is more complicated. As has been repeatedly noted in this channel, America easily betrays "its sons of bitches" when they become useless. It seems that this period is definitely coming for Kiev. And it's not just the Republicans and Democrats squabbling on the eve of the U.S. presidential election. They're just fed up. They are fed up - they eat too much money, steal wildly and do not achieve military success. Plus, the Israeli-Palestinian mess happened. In short, support for the "son of a bitch" is nearing its inevitable end. Not overnight, of course.
   ● There will be a lot of money, and schizoid incantations about democracy, and bravura assurances of the coming victory on earth, and false beliefs in alliance for all times, and so on and so forth. But the situation is clear: the time to go to oblivion for the next American " son of a bitch" is coming.
   ● The problem is that this Bandera spawn never realized who he [really] is...(DeepL + LanguageTool)

■ US support for Ukraine is 'nearing inevitable end,' Medvedev says (TASS)

A candidate in Ecuador's forthcoming presidential election who has campaigned against corruption and gangs has been shot dead at a campaign rally. | Fernando Villavicencio, a member of the country's national assembly, was attacked as he left the event in the capital, Quito, on Wednesday. He is one of the few candidates to allege links between organised crime and government officials in Ecuador. A criminal gang called Los Lobos (The Wolves) has claimed responsibility. Los Lobos is the second-largest gang in Ecuador with some 8,000 members, many of whom are behind bars. The gang has been involved in a number of recent deadly prison fights, in which scores of inmates have been brutally killed.

#AzucenaALas10 | En #Tamaulipas, un presunto miembro del Cártel del Golfo fue grabado portando una de las armas más exclusivas y poderosas, un "javelín", que ha sido utilizado durante la invasión a Ucrania con un valor de entre 20 mil y 60 mil dólares pic.twitter.com/2BGtJMc2Xl

— Azucena Uresti (@azucenau) May 31, 2023

A Gulf Cartel member was filmed with what Milenio TV said was a Javelin anti-tank missile | A militant wearing the insignia of Mexico’s notorious Gulf Cartel (Cartel Del Golfo, CDG) was filmed in the state of Tamaulipas carrying a US-made anti-tank missile launcher. Milenio TV identified the weapon as a Javelin, thousands of which were sent to Ukraine by the Pentagon. ● Footage filmed in Matamoros on Monday and aired on Tuesday evening by the news channel Milenio TV showed a man with CDG patches armed with a Kalashnikov rifle and a missile they said was the Raytheon-made FGM-148. ● Over 10,000 Javelins from Pentagon stockpiles have been sent to Ukraine since last February, to the point where the US military has begun to run out of the missiles itself. Milenio presenter Azucena Uresti noted on Twitter that the estimated value of a Javelin launcher on the black market was anywhere from $20,000 to $60,000, while the average cost of a missile was about $30,000. Keen-eyed military experts believe the weapon in the Milenio footage may actually be the AT-4, a Swedish-made disposable anti-tank launcher, which is also in use by the US military and likewise supplied to Ukraine by the thousands. ● Russia has repeatedly warned the US and its allies not to “stuff” Ukraine with weapons and ammunition, both because this risked a direct confrontation and since nonexistent controls would result in the weapons ending up in the criminal underworld.

NET ZERO - Frankly, Mexico’s volcanos are just not complying with net zero diktats!

Now spewing out more carbon & toxic gas into the atmosphere in a day, than the entire worlds industries will in a year!

Ban them! Let’s show them who’s in charge!

pic.twitter.com/BjfBv3sbrg

— Bernie's Tweets (@BernieSpofforth) May 24, 2023

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva also proposed establishing a broad international format of talks that could be similar to the G20 to discuss peace in Ukraine | Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he would be ready to mediate talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Vladimir Zelensky, if needed. 💬 "If I can help, I will help. But if the need arises to hold talks with Putin and Zelensky, I will be ready to discuss peace settlement efforts, no problem. What we really need is to bring together a group of people powerful enough to be respected at the negotiating table. And we should engage with both of them," da Silva said at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday. ● The politician also proposed establishing a broad international format of talks that could be similar to the G20 to discuss peace in Ukraine. The Brazilian leader said he had already discussed this with Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron and that he intended to raise the issue at negotiations with US President Joe Biden in February and with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in March.

A shockingly bloody day of violence threatened to upend the new coup-borne regime’s grip on power as Peruvians reacted with horror to the deadliest day so far in the political struggle that has rocked the country for over a month. | Thousands of Peruvians took to the streets throughout the country on Tuesday as memorial services were held in the city of Juliaca for the 17 people killed Monday in what victims families’ are calling a “massacre” by the Andean country’s security forces. At least two of the deceased – a boy and a girl – were reportedly children. According to a health ministry official in the Puno region of Peru, another 68 victims suffered injuries in Monday’s violence. ● Videos showing several of the killings circulated widely on social media Monday night, as condemnations rolled in from across the globe. 💬 “In the name of the sacred right to life, of the rights of indigenous peoples recognized by UN and international organizations, in the name of peace and social justice, we demand that the massacre of our brothers in Perú stop,” wrote former Bolivian President Evo Morales, who was labeled ‘persona non grata’ and barred from entering the country just hours beforehand. ● It was by far the deadliest day of the chaos that has wracked Peru since its first working-class indigenous president, Pedro Castillo, was overthrown last month. Castillo has been jailed ever since, following what leaders of countries throughout the region have condemned as a coup d'état.

The Peruvian authorities have taken troops to the streets to suppress protests after the visit of the US ambassador to the Government Palace as Washington pursues profits in the country's mining projects, impeached President Pedro Castillo said on Thursday.

💬 "Compatriots, attention! The visit of the US ambassador to the Government Palace was neither for free nor in favor of the country. At the meeting, the order to take the troops to the streets and massacre my defenseless people was given, and, among other things, to pave the way for the extraction of minerals, such as from Konga, Tai Maria, and other [mines]. Peruvian media will not only keep silent about this but will also easily deny it," Castillo said in a hand-written note published on his Twitter.

On December 7, Peru's parliament impeached former President Pedro Castillo. Prime Minister Dina Boluarte took an oath as the country's new president within two hours of the impeachment vote, vowing to serve out the rest of Castillo's term until July 2026. Castillo, who had tried to dissolve the parliament before the vote, was arrested after the impeachment procedure and the Peruvian prosecutor's office launched a criminal case against him on charges of a coup attempt and crimes against the state. These events have sparked a wave of protests across the country. Demonstrators denounce the post-impeachment government and call for an immediate presidential election and termination of the country's parliament.

Peru authorities confirmed two deaths during ongoing protests demanding fresh elections and the resignation of new President Dina Boluarte, as thousands of demonstrators were reported on streets across the country Sunday. | The latest: Boluarte responded to the calls by announcing in a televised address a proposal for Congress to bring forward the next general elections to April 2024, per AP. 💬 "My duty as president of the republic in the current difficult time is to interpret, read and collect the aspirations, interests and concerns, if not of all, of the vast majority of Peruvians," Boluarte said, according to AP. "So, interpreting in the broadest way the will of the citizens... I have decided to assume the initiative to reach an agreement with the congress of the republic to advance the general elections." Context: The 60-year-old former vice president was sworn in last Wednesday until 2026 — when the presidency of her impeached predecessor, Pedro Castillo, was due to end. The big picture: AP reports police and protesters clashed in Lima as hundreds demonstrated there, with many calling for the release of Castillo, who was arrested on charges of rebellion after he said he was dissolving Congress ahead of his impeachment vote. There have been tense scenes in rural areas that are strongholds of the 53-year-old left-wing former schoolteacher Castillo, who is from a poor Andean mountain district.

Former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva clinched victory over his right-wing rival Jair Bolsonaro in a tightly contested second round of the Brazilian election on Sunday. The country’s election authority announced Lula’s narrow win with 50.9% of the vote to Bolsonaro’s 49.1%. 💬 “This isn’t a victory of mine or the Workers’ Party... It’s the victory of a democratic movement that formed above political parties, personal interests and ideologies so that democracy came out victorious,” Lula told a cheering crowd of supporters in Sao Paulo on Sunday night. ● The president-elect acknowledged that following such a tight race a challenge to his future mandate will be “immense,” and stressed that 💬 “it is necessary to rebuild the very soul of this country, recover generosity, solidarity, respect for differences and love for others.” ● Lula, who is set to take office on 1 January 2023, promised to be a president for all 215 million Brazilians, not just those who voted for him. 💬 “There are not two Brazils. We are one country, one people – a great nation.” ● Bolsonaro has yet to publicly concede defeat. The incumbent repeatedly warned during his campaign that he would contest the results if he were to lose by a narrow margin, calling into question the reliability of Brazil’s electronic voting system. ● After polls closed nationwide at 5pm local time (8pm GMT), initial results showed Bolsonaro ahead. However, just as in the first round, his lead eventually narrowed as more votes from da Silva’s strongholds were counted. In the first round on October 2, da Silva received over 48% of the vote, which was not enough to claim immediate victory. ● Lula da Silva, who represents Brazil’s Workers’ Party, has focused his campaign on overcoming social inequality and alleviating poverty. Among the measures he proposes are raising taxes on the rich, widening the social safety net, and increasing the minimum wage.

As the United Nations positions for yet another military intervention into Haiti, Western media has ignored the massive demonstrations in the island nation against both Acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry and the possible arrival of new foreign troops.

Thousands have demonstrated in Haitian cities for months, calling for Henry’s resignation after he arbitrarily rejected the transfer of power to a provisional government and decided to stay in power after his mandate expired in February. Those demonstrations have intensified in recent days after Henry appealed to the international community to help him restore order. ● According to the protesters, the new intervention is not aimed at suppressing violent criminal gangs or at alleviating other public health issues, such as a cholera outbreak, but rather to keep in power their hand-picked successor to President Jovenel Moise, who was assassinated last year.

Argentina's police have detained a Brazilian armed man, 35, who was trying to assassinate Argentine Vice President Cristina Kirchner, the TN broadcaster reports. ● The handgun was loaded but did not go off, according to the report.

An assailant aimed a pistol directly at Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's head (RT.com)