First, links to reports from RT, the Associated Press, Reuters, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. Then, a link to a New York Times report on U.S. commandos and others operating in Ukraine, and a link to commentary by Caitlin Johnstone about it. — MCM

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Ukraine won’t pursue NATO membership – Zelensky adviser   From RT. Ukraine has accepted that NATO membership is off the table, and will not take any further steps toward joining the US-led military bloc, Igor Zhovkva, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, told the Financial Times on Saturday. Nevertheless, Kiev wants a say in NATO’s policy making. The bloc’s leaders are set to meet in the Spanish capital of Madrid next week. During two days of meetings and consultations, the organization will . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia strikes Kyiv as troops consolidate gains in the east, by Oleksandr Stashevskyi | The Associated Press KYIV — Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital in the early hours of this morning, striking at least two residential buildings, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said, as elsewhere Russian troops consolidated their gains in the east. Associated Press journalists in Kyiv saw rescue services battling flames and rescuing civilians. Klitschko said four people were hospitalized with injuries and a 7-year-old girl was pulled alive from the rubble. . . . Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ignat said the missiles were Kh-101 air-launched cruise missiles fired from planes over the Caspian Sea. Before today’s . . . READ MORE . . .

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G7 nations announce Russia gold ban as summit starts under shadow of war, by Sarah Marsh and Andrea Shalal | Reuters * Gold ban targets ‘Putin’s war machine’, says British PM * Oil import price cap also being discussed, says German source * G7 also aims to tackle soaring energy prices | SCHLOSS ELMAU, Germany — Members of the Group of Seven wealthy nations today announced a ban on imports of Russian gold as the G7 summit in the Bavarian Alps begins under the shadow of the war in Ukraine and consequences ranging from energy shortages to a food crisis. The move by Britain, the United States, Japan and Canada is part of efforts to tighten the sanctions squeeze on Moscow and cut off its means of financing . . . READ MORE . . .

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First, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio, and teleSUR; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. Then, via Popular Resistance, a link to a report on a meeting of the Helsinki Commission this week, and via Consortium News, a link to an analysis of how the war in Ukraine may be leading some countries to realign themselves. — MCM

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Biden’s mission in Europe: Shore up alliance against Russia, by Zeke Miller and Darlene Superville | The Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is out to sustain the global alliance punishing Russia for its invasion of Ukraine as he embarks on a five-day trip to Europe as the four-month-old war shows no sign of abating and its aftershocks to global food and energy supplies are deepening. Biden first joins a meeting of the Group of Seven leading economic powers in the Bavarian Alps of Germany and later travels to Madrid for a summit with leaders of the 30 NATO countries. The visit comes . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine troops ‘almost left’ Sievierodonetsk as Russian missiles pound north, west, by Max Hunder and Tom Balmforth | Reuters * Capture of Sievierodonetsk would be big gain for Russia * Ukraine says Russia launches widespread shelling * Dozens of missiles hit Ukrainian military bases | KYIV — Ukrainian troops have “almost left” Sievierodonetsk after weeks of intense fighting against Russian forces, the mayor of the eastern city said today, signalling the biggest reversal for Ukraine since losing the port of Mariupol in May. As Europe’s biggest land conflict since World War Two . . . READ MORE . . .

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Biden meets with G7 to talk about Ukraine, inflation, food insecurity, climate change. Reported by Rob Schmitz | National Public Radio. President Biden is headed to Germany for a meeting of the G7 with leaders of the wealthiest countries. At the top of their agenda is the war in Ukraine, now in its fifth month. Click HERE to listen and, another day, read.

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Biden will visit Saudi Arabia to ask for an increase in oil production. Reported by Jackie Northam | NPR  President Biden’s trip to Saudi Arabia next month represents a stark change in his attitude towards Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has been implicated in the killing of a journalist. Click HERE to listen and, another day, read.

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Putin Insists Russia Is Not Blocking Ukraine’s Ports. From teleSUR. Speaking at a BRICS+ video conference on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin replied to German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s allegations that Russia is blocking Ukrainian grain shipments, taking the “the whole world hostage.” Criticizing the West’s “cynical attitude,” he said the food supply of developing nations has been the hardest hit by rising prices and added that the West’s rising inflation is “the result of its own irresponsible macroeconomic policies.” Putin said Moscow is ready to allow free passage to international waters for ships carrying grain. He said Russia has come to an “understanding” about it with the UN Secretariat. In this regard . . . READ MORE . . .

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Lavrov: U.S. and UK Do Not Allow Ukraine to Resume Peace Talks. From teleSUR. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday that while European countries urge Kiev to resume peace dialogues with Moscow, “the Anglo-Saxons” — referring to the United States and the United Kingdom — prevent it from doing so. So, he expressed skepticism about a possible return of Ukraine to peace negotiations. “Currently,” he said during an interview, “I do not see any possibility for Ukraine to propose [negotiations], we are not going to propose anything. We proposed everything a long time ago. The ball is on their court. I don’t see . . . READ MORE . . .

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U.S. Government Plots to Break Up Russia in Name of ‘Decolonization,’ by Ben Norton | Multipolarista / Educate! A U.S. government body called the Helsinki Commission held a Congressional briefing Thursday on ways to break up Russia as a country in the name of supposed “decolonization.” Participants urged the United States to give more support to separatist movements inside Russia and in the diaspora. They proposed the independence of numerous republics in the Russian Federation, including Chechnya, Tatarstan, and Dagestan, as well as historic areas . . . READ MORE . . .

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Staying Out of Troubled Waters, by Humberto Márquez | Inter Press Service / Consortium News CARACAS — Numerous countries of the developing South are distancing themselves from the contenders in the war in Ukraine, using the debate on the conflict to underscore their independence and pave the way for a kind of new de facto non-alignment with regard to the main axes of world power. Meetings and votes on the conflict at the United Nations and in other forums, the search for support or neutrality and negotiations to cushion the impact of the economic crisis accentuated by the war are . . . READ MORE . . .

First, links to reports from the Associated Press, National Public Radio and Reuters; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. — MCM

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Russians advance on war’s front line in eastern Ukraine, by John Leicester and David Keyton | The Associated Press KYIV — The Russian military extended its grip on territory in eastern Ukraine as it seeks to cut supply lines and encircle frontline Ukrainian forces, while the Ukrainian military announced Thursday the arrival of powerful U.S. multiple-launch rocket systems it hopes will offer a battlefield advantage. Ukrainian forces withdrew from some areas near the city of Lysychansk to avoid being surrounded as Russians sent in reinforcements and concentrated their firepower in the area, Britain’s Defense Ministry said. The city is . . . READ MORE . . .

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Four months since Russia invaded, Ukraine faces a stark contrast. Reported by Steve Inskeep and Greg Myre | National Public Radio European leaders officially made Ukraine a candidate to join the EU. Yet, Ukraine is desperately trying to hold two cities under Russian assault.  Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Ukrainians withdrawing from embattled Sievierodonetsk, by Max Hunder | Reuters * Ukraine EU candidacy will strengthen Europe-Zelenskiy * Ukraine forces take up new positions in Sievierodonetsk * Russia shells targets across the Donbas * War marks four months since invasion | KYIV — Ukraine signalled toiday its troops were withdrawing from the city of Sievierodonetsk, the scene of weeks of intense bombardments and street fighting, in a move that would be a significant setback in its struggle to defeat Russian forces. Provincial governor Serhiy Gaidai said troops in the city had already received the order to move to new positions, but . . . READ MORE . . .

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Microsoft: Russian cyber spying targets 42 Ukraine allies, by Frank Bajak | AP CLEVELAND — Coinciding with unrelenting cyberattacks against Ukraine, state-backed Russian hackers have engaged in “strategic espionage” against governments, think tanks, businesses and aid groups in 42 countries supporting Kyiv, Microsoft said in a report Wednesday. “Since the start of the war, the Russian targeting (of Ukraine’s allies) has been successful 29 percent of the time,” Microsoft President Brad Smith wrote, with data stolen in at least one-quarter of . . . READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED

First, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio and teleSUR; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. — MCM

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Estonian PM says don’t play down Russia, by Dasha Litvinova and Harriet Morris | The Associated Press TALLINN, Estonia — Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has told The Associated Press that the West shouldn’t underestimate Russia’s military capabilities in Ukraine, saying Moscow is in it for the long haul as the war enters its fifth month. Kallas said in an interview Wednesday that Europe should ensure that those committing war crimes and attempted genocide are prosecuted, noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin escaped punishment for annexing the Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and supporting an insurgency in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region that killed over 14,000 people even before this year’s war began.“I’ve heard talks that, you know, there is no threat anymore because they have exhausted . . . Click HERE to read more and watch part of interview.

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Ukraine takes tentative step toward EU membership as Donbas battles reach ‘fearsome climax,’ by Pavel Polityuk and Vitalii Hnidyi | Reuters * Zelenskiy urges West to speed up heavy weapons deliveries * EU leaders to launch Ukraine membership process * Battle for Donbas twin cities reaches critical stage | KYIV — Ukraine will be accepted as a candidate to join the European Union on Thursday, a move that will boost the country’s morale as the battle with Russian troops for two cities in the east reached what one official called a “fearsome climax”. Although the approval of the Kyiv government’s application by EU leaders meeting in Brussels is just the start of what will be a years-long process, it signifies . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian ports is driving a global food insecurity crisis. Reported by Franco Ordoñez | National Public Radio President Biden will attend the G7 meeting in Germany, where leaders likely will address Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian ports along the Black Sea, which is endangering food security in some countries. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Trio of albums gives saxophonist Charles Lloyd the opportunity to search inward. Reported by Milton Guevara | NPR Musician Charles Lloyd is releasing three different albums featuring three trio ensembles. The first, Chapel, comes out Friday, and Ocean in August and Sacred Thread in October. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Russia-Ukraine war is likely to overshadow G7 and NATO meetings. Reported by Steve Inskeep and Tamara Keith | NPR President Biden this weekend heads to Europe for the upcoming G7 and NATO summits. He is expected to discuss the war in Ukraine and the influence of China, among other issues. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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First, links to reports from Reuters, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. Then, via Popular Resistance, a link to Mike Whitney’s analysis that sees sanctions against Russia accelerating a decades-long downward trend for the U.S. dollar. — MCM

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Russia rains rockets on Kharkiv, at least 15 killed. Reported by Pavel Polityuk and Vitalii Hnidyi | Reuters * Ukraine says Russians hitting Kharkiv as they did Mariupol * Fire breaks out at oil refinery inside Russia * Putin to mark day in 1941 when Hitler invaded Soviet Union | KYIV/KHARKIV — Russian forces pounded Ukraine’s second largest city Kharkiv and surrounding countryside with rockets, killing at least 15 people, in what Kyiv called a bid to force it to pull resources from the main battlefield to protect civilians from attack. Inside Russia, a fire tore through an oil refinery just 8 km from the Ukrainian border. Russia’s TASS news agency quoted a local official as saying it had been struck by a drone. The Russian strikes on Kharkiv, throughout Tuesday and continuing this morning, were the worst for weeks in the area where normal life . . . READ MORE . . .

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Press group: Ukraine journalist, soldier ‘coldly executed.’ Reported by John Leicester | The Associated Press KYIV — A Ukrainian photojournalist and a soldier accompanying him appear to have been “coldly executed” during the first weeks of the war in Ukraine as they searched in Russian-occupied woods for the photographer’s missing camera drone, Reporters Without Borders said today. The press freedom group said it sent investigators back to the woods north of the capital, Kyiv, where the bodies of Maks Levin and serviceman Oleksiy Chernyshov were . . . READ MORE . . .

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Why volunteer grave diggers in Ukraine are exhuming Russia’s dead, by Ryan Lucas | National Public Radio Ukraine has been collecting the bodies of dead Russians left behind pushed Russian forces back from Kharkiv weeks ago. Two brothers from an outside village are helping unbury the dead. Click HERE to listen and read.

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The War in Ukraine Marks the End of the American Century, by Mike Whitney | Information Clearing House / Educate! Due to the economic sanctions on Russia, an entirely new order is emerging in which the dollar will be substituted for national currencies (processed through an independent financial settlement system) in bilateral trade deals until — later this year — Russia launches an exchange-traded commodities-backed currency that will be used by trading partners in Asia and Africa. . . . U.S. economic sanctions and boycotts have expanded the non-dollar zone by many orders of magnitude and forced the creation of a new monetary order. READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED

First, links to reports from National Public Radio, Reuters, the Associated Press, and teleSUR; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. Then, a link to a Harper’s Magazine piece on foreigners who came to fight in Ukraine as they appeared in early March. — MCM

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Russian forces have captured nearly all off Severodonetsk. Reported by Steve Inskeep and Greg Myre | National Public Radio Russia appears on the cusp of capturing Severodonetsk — a key Ukrainian city in the eastern part of the country. It’s a city that’s been at the center of the fighting for weeks. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Germany risks recession as Russian gas crisis deepens, by Rachel More and Stine Jacobsen | Reuters * More Europeans activate first stage of gas crisis plans * Surging gas price adds to policymakers’ inflation headache * Slowing flows hinder efforts to refill storage for winter | BERLIN/COPENHAGEN — Germany faces certain recession if already faltering Russian gas supplies completely stop, an industry body warned today, as Sweden joined a growing list of European nations rolling out emergency plans to cope with a deepening energy supply crisis. European Union countries from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Adriatic coast in the south . . . READ MORE . . .

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Africa ‘taken hostage’ by Russia’s invasion, Zelenskyy says, by Cara Anna | The Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya — “Africa is actually taken hostage” in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine amid catastrophically rising food prices, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the African Union continental body during a closed-door address on Monday. . . . [Many African nations] retain close ties to Russia. . . . Ukraine and the West hope to weaken those ties by emphasizing that Russia’s actions . . . READ MORE . . .

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SPIEF Signals Failure of Western Economic War against Russia. From teleSUR. The 25th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) concluding last week has signaled the failure of the unilateral sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and other Western countries, analysts and government officials say. The forum . . . brought together political and business figures from over 130 countries, who shared their ideas on major challenges facing the world economy and offered . . . READ MORE . . .

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U.S. Mercenaries in Custody Reveal Corruption in Ukrainian Army. From teleSUR. American mercenaries Alexander Drueke, 39, and Andy Huynh, 27, who surrendered to Russian forces in Ukraine, referred to the corruption and disorganization within Ukrainian ranks in statements published by the RT news outlet. According to the Russian media, the detainees . . . were seized while on a reconnaissance mission to cover the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops near Kharkov. “We entered into combat with the Russian troops, the Ukrainians were retreating and they asked . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian MoD: 50 Ukrainian Officers Killed in Long-Range Strike. From teleSUR. The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Sunday that more than 50 Ukrainian generals and officers were killed in a strike on a command center in the Ukrainian Dnipropetrovsk region. The Russian Ministry of Defense Spokesperson [said] that long-range, high-precision Kalibr missiles launched from the sea Saturday hit the headquarters of the Ukrainian forces near the village of Shiroka Dacha in the Dnipropetrovsk province, while the leaders of the Alexandria strategic operational group were holding a work . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov’s Nobel Peace Prize medal auctioned for a record. From NPR. The $103.5 million will go to Ukrainian children displaced by the war. The editor in chief of a Russian independent newspaper was honored before the paper was forced to close by Vladimir Putin. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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A South Korean musician wins the prestigious Van Cliburn piano competition. From NPR. Six finalists competed in Fort Worth, Texas, in the competition, including two from Russia and one from Ukraine. An 18-year-old South Korean was the youngest to win in the contest’s 60-year history. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Army of Shadows: Searching for the Ukrainian foreign legion, by Seth Harp | Harper’s Magazine My flight from Munich to Warsaw on March 13 was half-filled with English-speaking men in a motley assortment of store-bought paramilitary gear, cargo pants, and hiking boots. A faint odor of dirty laundry and stale cigarette smoke emanated from their general direction. One wore a cap that read IN MY DEFENSE I WAS LEFT UNSUPERVISED. They appeared to be anywhere from twenty to fifty years old, and looked like they might have been . . . READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED

Happy Juneteenth!  Happy Fathers Day!

Please visit or revisit yesterday’s entry and tomorrow’s.

To begin, links to three analyses, via Consortium News: Michael Brenner sees the war as part of the U.S. foreign policy establishment’s attempt to cripple Russia and oust Vladimir Putin as its president. Lawrence Davidson traces the Democratic Party’s cultivation of “connected” progressives into supporting Biden administration policy. And Jonathan Cook sees “tribalism” at work in some of the same ways as in Israel and Palestine. Finally, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, and National Public Radio; click on their names below for more. — MCM

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Last Tango in Washington? By Michael Brenner, a professor of international affairs at the University of Pittsburgh. Reality has a way of catching up to us. . . . The West has been inhabiting a fanciful world that could exist only in our imaginations. Many remain stranded in that self-deluded mirage. The more that we have invested in that fantasy world, the harder we find it to exit and to make the adjustment — intellectual, emotional, behavioral . . . READ MORE . . .

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The US Left & War in Ukraine, by Lawrence Davidson | TothePointAnalysis.com Matthew Duss is a leading figure on the American political left. However, the left is fragmented, and so we have to qualify this and say he is an important voice in one part of the left — the “connected” left. Duss is a foreign policy adviser to the independent Sen. Bernie Sanders. READ MORE . . .

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The Hierarchy of Tribalisms, by Jonathan Cook | Jonathan-Cook.net Nothing should better qualify me to write about world affairs at the moment – and Western meddling in Ukraine – than the fact that I have intimately followed the twists and turns of Israeli politics for two decades. READ MORE . . . 

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Russia frees captive medic who filmed Mariupol’s horror, by Vasilisa Stepanenko and Lori Hinnant | The Associated Press TALLINN, Estonia — A celebrated Ukrainian medic whose footage was smuggled out of the besieged city of Mariupol by an Associated Press team was freed by Russian forces on Friday, three months after she was taken captive on the streets of the city. Yuliia Paievska is known in Ukraine as Taira, a nickname she chose in the World of Warcraft video game. Using a body camera, she recorded 256 gigabytes of her team’s efforts over two weeks to save the wounded, including both Russian and Ukrainian soldiers. She transferred the clips . . . READ MORE . . .

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Zelenskiy vows Ukraine will prevail, Boris Johnson promises lasting support, by Pavel Polityuk and Max Hunder | Reuters * UK’s Johnson pledges support, warns of ‘Ukraine fatigue’ * EU summit expected to back Ukraine candidate status * Battle for Sievierodonetsk grinds on * Zelenskiy visits troops in south * More rocket strikes, shelling across east, central Ukraine | KYIV — With a blessing for its European Union ambitions and a pledge of unwavering support from Britain, Ukraine vowed today to prevail against Moscow as its troops battled the Russian assault near a pivotal eastern city and communities were pounded . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia is focusing on 3 key agricultural cities in Ukraine’s southeast. Reported by Peter Granitz | National Public Radio Russian forces are now concentrating their attacks on three cities in Ukraine’s southeast which are key to the country’s agriculture and logistics. Click HERE to listen and, another day, read.

I just came across the essay that begins below and relay it for a number of reasons. This blog began as an accompaniment to a walk across Massachusetts with a friend to promote awareness that the government/media narrative about the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks is hokum and needs to be challenged. Edward Curtin is a “9/11 truther,” and David Ray Griffin, the author of the book he’s reviewing, is perhaps the best-known of all of us. That “mainstream” media from the New York Times on down refuse to even mention Griffin just how polluted that stream is. I’m not going to read James & Whitehead on Life after Death but I’m delighted Curtin has read it for me. — MCM

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Is There Life After Death?

By Edward Curtin

A review essay of James and Whitehead on Life after Death by David Ray Griffin

Life is entwined with death from the start, for death is the price we must pay for being born, even though we don’t choose it, which may be why some people who are very angry at the deal, decide to choose how and when they will die, as if they are getting revenge on someone who dealt them a rotten hand, even if they don’t believe in the someone.

The meaning of death, and whether humans do or do not survive it in some form, has always obsessed people, from the average person to the great artists and thinkers. Death is the mother of philosophy and all the arts and sciences. It is arguably also what motivates so much human behavior, from keeping busy to waging war to trying to hit a little white ball with a long stick down a lot of grass into a hole in the ground and doing it again and again.

Death is the mother of distractions.

It is also what we cannot ultimately control, although a lot of violent and crazy rich people try. The thought of it drives many people mad.

No one is immune from wondering about it. We are born dying, and from an early age we ask why. Children often explicitly ask, but as they grow older the explicit usually retreats into implicity and avoidance because of adults’ need to deny death or their lack of answers about it that make sense.

David Ray Griffin is not a child or an adult in denial.  He has spent his life in an intrepid search for truth in many realms — philosophy, theology, politics, etc.  He is . . . READ MORE . . .