ST. PETERSBURG, Russia: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday mocked US special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Kremlin interference in the 2016 presidential election, saying “a mountain gave birth to a mouse.”
In his first comments since Mueller finished his probe, Putin sought to cast the 22-month investigation as a failure and disregarded the special counsel’s exposure of a Russian operation to put Donald Trump in the White House.
“It was clear for us from the start that it would end like this,” the Russian leader said as the Trump administration and Congress sparred over making Mueller’s still-confidential investigation report public.
Attorney General William Barr wrote in a summary of Mueller’s report that the special counsel found no evidence the Trump campaign “conspired or coordinated” with the Russian government to influence the election.
However, Mueller uncovered evidence of a Kremlin operation to interfere with the 2016 vote. He charged 12 Russian military intelligence officers with breaking into Democratic Party computers and the email accounts of officials with Hillary Clinton’s campaign.
Another indictment detailed Russia’s use of phony social media accounts to spread divisive rhetoric and to undermine the US political system.
Putin on Tuesday nevertheless repeated Moscow’s across-the-board disavowals of election meddling, with or without participation from the Trump campaign. He also reiterated that the Russian government had no contact with Trump when he visited Moscow as a businessman.
“We have been saying from the start that this notorious commission led by Mr. Mueller won’t find anything, because no one knows better than us: Russia has not meddled in any US election,” Putin said while attending an Arctic forum in St. Petersburg.
The Russian leader described allegations of collusion between Trump’s camp and Russia as “sheer nonsense aimed at a domestic audience and used for domestic political infighting in the United States.”
Mueller found numerous people associated with Trump were receptive to Russia’s help, but Barr’s summary said the special counsel didn’t find evidence of a criminal conspiracy in meetings and other contact between Russian and Trump campaign officials.
Putin alleged Trump’s political foes now were “searching for new pretexts” to undermine him.
“Those groups which are attacking the legitimately elected president, what are they doing?” Putin said. “They disagree with the choice of the American people and seek to reduce the results to zero.”
Putin’s rhetoric resembled Trump’s statements disparaging Democrats. Asked if he agreed with Trump’s description of the probe as a “witch hunt,” Putin said “President Trump knows better.”
At the same time, he insisted he wasn’t vouching for the US president with his comments on Mueller’s investigation.
“I’m not defending President Trump. We have plenty of disagreements,” Putin said. “His administration has introduced numerous sanctions against Russia, something we disagree with and will never accept.”
The Russian leader added that despite differences, Moscow and Washington have found some common ground on the conflict in Syria. Putin said he hoped the United States and Russia could focus on more areas of mutual interest, such as nuclear arms control, fighting terrorism and climate change.
Russia knows Mueller probe ‘gave birth to a mouse’: Putin
Russia knows Mueller probe ‘gave birth to a mouse’: Putin
- Putin on Tuesday nevertheless repeated Moscow’s across-the-board disavowals of election meddling, with or without participation from the Trump campaign
Gaza truce bittersweet for Biden as Trump takes credit
Biden first proposed the outlines of the deal between Israel and Hamas on May 31 but diplomatic efforts repeatedly came up short, even when Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned in Tel Aviv in August that it may have been the last chance for a deal.
Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff marched into Netanyahu’s office on Saturday, forcing the Israeli leader to break the sabbath, and pushed to seal the ceasefire.
The timing has echoes of a 1981 deal on US hostages in Iran, freed from 444 days of captivity moments after Republican Ronald Reagan succeeded Democrat Jimmy Carter, although this time the outgoing and incoming administrations worked together.
In scenes unprecedented in recent US history, Witkoff and Biden’s Middle East adviser Brett McGurk met jointly with the emir of Qatar — a key intermediary between Israel and Hamas — when sealing the deal.
Trump quickly boasted that the “epic” deal “could only have happened” due to his election as US president in November.
Asked if Trump deserved credit, Biden quipped: “Is that a joke?“
Speaking hours before a previously scheduled farewell address to the nation, the outgoing president said he included the Trump team in negotiations so that the United States was “speaking with one voice.”
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said it was not unexpected for all sides to seek credit for positive news.
“What I can say is, the president got it done,” she said, referring to Biden.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the Trump team’s presence was about demonstrating “continuity” rather than the Republican exerting new pressure.
Biden faced heated criticism from the left of his Democratic Party during its unsuccessful election year over his staunch support of Israel since Palestinian group Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack.
Biden authorized billions of dollars in weapons for Israel’s relentless retaliatory campaign on Gaza, despite criticizing the strategic US ally for the civilian death toll — which authorities in Gaza say is in the tens of thousands.
“The Biden administration was terrified of the political cost of being seen to be pressing Israel in any way,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of the rights group Democracy for the Arab World Now.
Trump, while vowing to be even more pro-Israel, was able to make clear to Netanyahu that “I do not want to inherit this,” Whitson said.
“It made me think that all of this would have been possible months ago and we could have saved thousands of Palestinian lives,” she said.
Trump had warned Hamas of “hell to pay” if it did not agree to a deal, which includes in its first phase the release of 33 hostages seized on October 7.
David Khalfa, an expert on Israel at the Jean Jaures Foundation in Paris, said that Trump’s unpredictability likely impacted Hamas.
He also pointed to Netanyahu’s political position heading a hard-right but shaky coalition government.
“There is today an ideological alignment between the American populist right and the Israeli prime minister. So he has very weak room to maneuver against a Trump who doesn’t face the pressures of reelection,” said Khalfa.
Brian Katulis, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Middle East Institute, said a desire by Israel and others for the right optics as Trump takes over could have played a role in sealing the deal.
But a larger factor than Trump was the changing dynamics in the region — the major blows inflicted both on Hamas and its patron Iran, he said.
Israel has devastated Iranian ally Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran’s own air defenses, with Tehran’s main ally in the Arab world, Syria’s Bashar Assad, ousted last month by rebel forces.
“I don’t think any of the threats and bluster that we saw from Trump were a huge factor on either side. I think it’s mostly a baby that’s fathered by Biden and his team,” Katulis said.
“But I think the sense that there were big question marks on what was coming might have motivated those who were stonewalling,” he said.
Jon Alterman, director of the Middle East program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, agreed that the uncertainty following Trump’s victory contributed to the deal.
Israel and Hamas were negotiating “under the terms that each side had become familiar with” and knew there was a high risk “that the parameters were about to change.”
And if the deal falls apart?
“Then it doesn’t matter who implemented it; there will be plenty of blame to go around,” Alterman said.
Pro-Palestinian protesters target military and defense industry recruiters at UK universities
- Activists confront Royal Air Force recruiters at careers fairs in Newcastle, Glasgow, York and Cardiff
- About 20 defense companies reportedly forced to steer clear of events because of security risks
LONDON: The UK’s military and defense industries are being forced to avoid university careers fairs because of pro-Palestinian protesters.
Student activists have targeted representatives of the Royal Air Force in recent months during events at which they were attempting to recruit graduates, The Times newspaper reported.
Videos and images shared on social media show RAF recruiters shutting down display stands or leaving them while the protests take place.
About 20 defense companies have stopped attending university careers events because of security concerns about the protests, it was reported last week.
The demonstrations are part of the widespread activism in the UK in response to Israel’s military operations in Gaza that have killed more than 46,000 Palestinians since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on Israel in which about 1,200 people were killed and at least 250 taken hostage.
Protesters have also targeted the factories of UK defense companies that supply Israel, and called on the British government to halt arms deliveries.
One protest group, called “Newcastle Apartheid Off Campus,” claimed to have shut down a recruitment fair at Newcastle University at which the RAF and defense firm BAE Systems were represented.
And about 20 students surrounded the recruitment stands of GE Aerospace, the RAF and BAE Systems at Glasgow University in October.
“The students managed to kick out BAE Systems, RAF and (defense and intelligence company) CGI,” the Glasgow University Justice for Palestine Society said in a message posted on Instagram.
“Shame on Glasgow University, we continue to demand divestment and cutting all ties with these genocidal companies.”
Similar disruptions took place at a recruitment fair at York University in October and during an RAF talk at Cardiff University the same month.
In a letter to ministers, Lord Walney, the UK government’s independent adviser on political violence and disruption, warned that the protests go beyond peaceful assembly and could “seriously undermine our nation’s security and technical edge.”
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson told The Times: “We continue to engage widely with our industry partners to highlight the importance and significant benefits of a career in the defense sector.
“This government recognizes the vital role of the defense sector as an engine for growth, strengthening our security and economy.”
Los Angeles firefighters brace for threat of more powerful winds
- Local officials urged residents to stay vigilant throughout the day on Wednesday and be prepared to evacuate at a moment’s notice
- Some 6.5 million people remained under a critical fire threat
LOS ANGELES: The threat of powerful wind gusts combined with bone-dry humidity in Los Angeles on Wednesday could pose a severe test for firefighters who have been battling to keep monstrous fires in check since last week.
Local officials urged residents to stay vigilant throughout the day on Wednesday and be prepared to evacuate at a moment’s notice, even after tamer-than-expected winds over the last 24 hours.
“We want to reiterate the particularly dangerous situation today. Get ready now and be prepared to leave,” County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath said during a news conference on Wednesday.
Some 6.5 million people remained under a critical fire threat as winds were forecast to be 20 to 40 miles (32-64 km) an hour with gusts up to 70 mph and humidity dropping into the single digits during the day, the National Weather Service said.
The combination of low humidity and strong winds has further dried out the brush, increasing the risk of fire, Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said.
“The danger has not yet passed,” she said, noting that firefighters have seen up to 40 mph winds on Wednesday.
The death toll from the fires stood at 25. The estimate of structures damaged or destroyed held steady at over 12,000, portending a Herculean rebuilding effort ahead. Entire neighborhoods have been leveled, leaving smoldering ash and rubble. In many homes, only a chimney is left standing. Some 82,400 residents were still under evacuation orders with other 90,400 facing evacuation warnings, County Sheriff Robert Luna said.
Winds were tamer than expected on Tuesday, letting firefighters extinguish or gain control of some small brush fires that ignited. No major wildfires erupted in the area, as had been feared.
During the day, the milder-than-expected conditions also allowed some 8,500 firefighters from at least seven states and two foreign countries to hold the line on the Palisades and Eaton fires for the second day running.
The Palisades Fire on the west edge of town held steady at 23,713 acres (96 square km) burned, and containment nudged up to 19 percent — a measurement of how much of the perimeter was under control. The Eaton Fire in the foothills east of the city stood at 14,117 acres (57 sq km) with containment at 45 percent. The fires have consumed an area the size of Washington, D.C.
“In the past 24 hours, there has been little to no fire growth on both incidents,” Cal Fire Incident Commander Gerry Magaña said.
A fleet of aircraft dropped water and retardant into the rugged hills while ground crews with hand tools and hoses have worked around the clock since the fires broke out on Jan. 7, with the aircraft occasionally grounded by high winds.
Crowley and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass fielded questions on Wednesday about a Los Angeles Times report that 1,000 firefighters were on standby but not quickly deployed after fire broke out on Jan. 7.
“We did everything in our capability to surge where we could,” Crowley said.
Southern California has lacked any appreciable rain since April, turning brush into tinder as Santa Ana winds originating from the deserts whipped over hilltops and rushed through canyons, sending embers flying up to two miles ahead of the fires.
Private forecaster AccuWeather estimates total damage and economic loss between $250 billion and $275 billion, which would make it the costliest natural disaster in US history, surpassing Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Danish PM tells Trump it is up to Greenland to decide on independence
- Trump said last week that US control of Greenland was an “absolute necessity“
- Frederiksen also emphasized the importance of strengthening security in the Arctic
COPENHAGEN: Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Wednesday she had spoken on the phone with US President-elect Donald Trump and told him that it is up to Greenland itself to decide on any independence.
Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, said last week that US control of Greenland was an “absolute necessity” and did not rule out using military or economic action such as tariffs against Denmark to make it happen.
“In the conversation, the prime minister referred to the statements of the Chairman of the Greenlandic Parliament, Mute B. Egede, that Greenland is not for sale,” Frederiksen’s office said in a statement.
“The prime minister emphasized that it is up to Greenland itself to make a decision on independence,” the statement said.
Frederiksen also emphasized the importance of strengthening security in the Arctic and that Denmark was open to taking a greater responsibility, it added.
Russia planned ‘acts of terrorism’ in the air, Polish PM says
- The explosions occurred in depots in Britain, Germany and Poland in July
- Russia has denied involvement in the incidents and Tusk did not mention them specifically
WARSAW: Russia planned ‘acts of terrorism’ in the air against Poland and other countries, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Wednesday after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Warsaw.
Security officials have said that parcels that exploded at logistics depots in Europe were part of a test run for a Russian plot to trigger explosions on cargo flights to the United States. The explosions occurred in depots in Britain, Germany and Poland in July. Russia has denied involvement in the incidents and Tusk did not mention them specifically.
“The latest information can confirm the validity of fears that Russia was planning acts of terrorism in the air not only against Poland,” Tusk told a news conference. He did not say what acts he was referring to or elaborate on the contents of the information.
Moscow has regularly denied any involvement in the courier depot explosions, as well as break-ins, arson and attacks on individuals which Western officials say were carried out by operatives paid by Russia. The Russian embassy in Warsaw has not immediately replied to an emailed request for comment on Tusk’s statement.
