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Last-minute additions from Czechia and Greece have strengthened the new group to 84 MEPs from 12 nations, making it the EP’s third-largest.

The right-wing ‘Patriots for Europe’ parliamentary faction was inaugurated in Brussels on Monday, July 8th. Top positions were divided among various populist parties, an obvious indication that Europe’s nationalist parties are seeking cooperation.

The new group has been in the works since before June’s European elections and includes Le Pen’s Rassemblement National, Hungary’s Fidesz, and the Austrian FPÖ—a grand total of 13 participatory parties.

A five-item meeting to decide on top positions for the parliamentary faction concluded faster than expected in the Spinelli Building of the European Parliament in Brussels shortly after 3 p.m. Group chairmanship was assigned to leading Rassemblement National (RN) MEP Jordan Bardella, fresh from his thwarted bid to become France’s prime minister during last week’s legislative elections.

Bardella is joined at the helm by Fidesz MEP Kinga Gál, who takes up the vice presidency of the Patriots group, while Danish populist MEP Anders Vistisen was given the role of party whip.

Somewhat unexpectedly, the Patriots group now includes a Greek delegation, following a decision by the Voice of Reason party to join the faction after resigning from the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR). 

VOX’s Jorge Buxadé denied that there were lingering tensions between the Spanish populist party and Fratelli’s Giorga Meloni after his party also made the shock decision to split with the Italians and their ECR group last week.

Another unexpected addition is two MEPs from the Czech Oath and Motorists, who overcame hesitation about joining the faction despite the membership of the rival political party of Andrej Babiš’ ANO.

Speaking at a press conference after the day’s meeting, RN MEP Jean-Paul Garraud praised the ability of parties to overcome differences to coalesce as he expressed hope that the European Right could now “retake the institutions” within Brussels.

This was complemented by a statement from Fidesz MEP and Patriots Vice Chair Kinga Gál, who said voters were “in favour of European cooperation, but not of an EU that acts beyond its competences.”

The Patriots for Europe is now the leading faction within the European Right—despite Polish Law & Justice’s (PiS) decision against joining—ahead of the conservative ECR, and an as-of-yet unformed grouping that would be led by the German AfD under the working name ‘Europe of Sovereign Nations.’ 

A challenge for the Patriots in the coming months will be the handing out of influential committee positions within the EU Parliament, where right-wingers are traditionally cordoned away from taking key roles.

Patriots officials were keen to focus on what unites the group and set aside potential division over foreign policy, particularly the Ukrainian war. Prevision rifts between Scandinavian parties and more NATO-critical parties, led by the AfD, has haunted the Parliament’s nationalist ID group in recent years, with Franco-German office politics and the perceived radicalism of the German AfD resulting in a schism in May.

The first meeting of the EU Parliament is chalked in for July 16th as centrist and socialist MEPs attempt to reelect Commission President Ursula von der Leyen despite five years of scandal and flawed crisis management.

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Elon Musk reaffirms his allegiance to Team Humanity.

On the Monday show Alex Jones discussed the the dichotomy of the anti-humans and pro-humans after Elon Musk talked about the depopulation agenda.

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Chinese troops will be operating near the Polish border during military exercises with Belarus.

The Chinese Ministry of National Defense announced on Sunday that the military forces of China and Belarus will conduct joint exercises named Eagle Assault-2024 near Brest, Belarus, close to the Polish border. These exercises, set to run until mid-July, are part of an annual plan and an agreement between the two nations.

Participants from both sides will engage in mixed training exercises and practical tasks such as hostage rescue and anti-terrorism operations. The goal is to enhance the training level of the soldiers involved and deepen the pragmatic cooperation between the two countries’ armies, according to the Chinese Ministry of National Defense.

Meanwhile, the Belarusian Ministry of Defense reported that personnel from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China have arrived in Belarus to participate in the joint anti-terrorism exercises scheduled until July 19.

International affairs expert Radosław Pyffel commented on the situation, suggesting that while the exercises might be routine, they could potentially lead to various outcomes such as de-escalation or other unintended consequences beyond the immediate concerns of Poland, Belarus, and Russia.

“Chinese troops have never been so close to the Polish border in history,” noted a Chinese affairs expert, emphasizing the unprecedented nature of this development. Even if these maneuvers are seen as a minor military move, they introduce new variables that will likely need to be considered in future strategic calculations.

“Welcome to the new world,” Pyffel concluded, highlighting the evolving dynamics of international relations in the region.

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The Hungarian Prime Minister visited China and is in the United States for the third and fourth stops of his peace mission.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán continued his peace mission with a trip to China before moving on to the United States on Monday, July 8th. After visiting Kyiv and Moscow last week, he headed to the capitals of the two global powers, who—in the prime minister’s words—have the ability to influence the outcome of the Russo-Ukrainian war.

Hungary assumed the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union on July 1st, and Orbán is using this role to promote his “peace mission,” an attempt to bring the war in Ukraine to an end. Though the prime minister made it clear that he is not mandated to hold talks on behalf of the other EU member states, he said he would like to find out how far Ukraine and Russia were willing to go—and update fellow EU member states on his findings.

Since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Hungary has been the only EU member state to  call for a ceasefire and peace talks instead of prolonging the war by sending weapons to Ukraine. As we recently reported, Orbán visited both Kyiv and Moscow last week in an attempt to talk to both participants in the war that has now raged for almost two-and-a-half years. He was criticised by EU leaders for talking to Russian President Vladimir Putin, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stating that “appeasement will not stop Putin.”

However, Balázs Orbán, the prime minister’s political advisor (not related to Viktor Orbán) said in an interview on Sunday that Hungary’s EU presidency provides a good opportunity to open the communication channels between the parties of the war. Unveiling the agenda of the presidency in June, Hungarian EU Affairs Minister János Bóka said “the EU has to guarantee the security and peace of Europe, and every one of our priorities will be interpreted within this framework.”

In a short video uploaded to his X account after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, the prime minister said:

Of course, the warring parties have the last word in the war, but three world powers have a decisive influence: China, the United States and the European Union. They also influence when this war will end.

In Beijing, Orbán said he had discussed with Xi the Chinese peace plan, saying “China is the only world power that has been clearly committed to peace from the beginning.” China’s and Brazil’s road map states that “dialogue and negotiation are the only viable way out of the crisis.” China did not attend a Western-backed peace summit held in Switzerland last month, saying it is meaningless to hold such a conference without the participation of one of the warring factions, Russia. According to AP reporting, Xi followed his meeting with Orbán by calling on Russia and Ukraine to stop the fighting—and on other major powers to create an environment conducive to talks.

“China has a peace plan. America has a war policy. And Europe, instead of having its own strategic approach, is simply copying the American position,” Viktor Orbán told German daily Die Welt in an interview shortly before his trip to Beijing.

After visiting Beijing, Orbán flew straight to Washington, D.C., where he is set to attend the summit of NATO leaders, which begins on Tuesday. Member states plan to pledge to keep pouring arms and ammunition into Ukraine at current levels for at least another year. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance’s 32 member countries have been spending around €40 billion each year on military equipment for Ukraine since the war began and that this should be “a minimum baseline” going forward.

Before the summit, it was rumoured Orbán would meet former President Donald Trump who has claimed he could end the war within 24 hours of moving back into the White House. Orbán openly supports Trump’s presidential candidacy, and has stated that the former president would bring back peace to Ukraine. “Prime Minister Orbán, like my father, wants to see PEACE brought back to the world. Enough of the constant wars and the endless sums of money to fund them. …  Peace must be the ultimate goal,” Donald Trump Jr.—Trump’s son, who recently visited Budapest—posted on X.

Hungarian analyst Gábor Török called Orbán’s “peace mission” an international success story, adding that the prime minister is able to take advantage of the fact that Hungary is holding the EU Presidency. “The calculated and precisely delivered attacks really only strengthen him now … meanwhile, a strong faction is being created [in the European Parliament] that the international press clearly associates with the name of the Hungarian Prime Minister,” Gábor Török writes.

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Camden plant relied upon to provide military aid to Ukraine.

An explosion at the General Dynamics weapons factory in Camden, Arkansas, has left two people injured and one person confirmed dead.

The facility plays a crucial role in producing armaments, including different kinds of artillery shells, FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missiles and AGM-114 Hellfire anti-armor missiles. The explosion at the facility occurred shortly after 8 a.m. on July 3.

Company spokeswoman Berkley Whaley initially described the event as an “incident involving pyrotechnics” but later confirmed it was an explosion.

“At this time, we are working with first responders and can confirm the incident resulted in at least two injuries and one missing individual,” Whaley said in a statement. “We are cooperating fully with the authorities as they conduct their investigation.”

Whaley did not provide specifics about the severity of the injuries or whether the factory sustained significant damage.

However, Calhoun County Judge Floyd Nutt described the incident to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette newspaper as a “major” disaster and the first of its kind at the Camden plant. Nutt emphasized the importance of a thorough investigation to determine the cause and prevent future incidents.

Camden plant relied upon to provide military aid to Ukraine

The Camden plant is known for producing and testing “energetic products” – the explosive components of missiles, rockets and other projectiles.

According to the company’s website, the 880,000-square-foot facility manufactures Hydra rockets, Hellfire and Javelin warheads, 120mm mortars and propellant charges for 155mm artillery shells. The plant’s critical role in the defense supply chain underscores the potential impact of this incident on broader military operations.

The United States has been heavily relying on facilities like the Camden plant to support its military aid commitments to Ukraine. (Related: United States announces new $2.3 billion military aid package for Ukraine.)

According to the fact sheet released by the Pentagon, the U.S. has sent more than 10,000 single-use Javelin missile launchers to Ukraine, along with over 3 million 155mm artillery shells and an unspecified number of 120mm mortars. These supplies are crucial for Ukraine’s defense effortsamidst the ongoing conflict.

In a bid to increase munitions supply, the Pentagon announced earlier this year that it would boost production of 155 mm shells from 28,000 per month to 70,000 per month by the end of 2024.

Although it is unclear whether the Camden plant has ramped up its production of missile propellants to meet this goal, the company is currently recruiting 19 employees in Arkansas, indicating a potential increase in operational activity. This hiring surge suggests an effort to scale up production capabilities in response to growing demand.

The explosion has raised concerns about safety protocols at such critical facilities, especially given their role in the ongoing international military supply chain. The incident underscores the inherent risks associated with producing and handling high-explosive materials and the need for stringent safety measures to protect workers and the surrounding community. Enhanced safety protocols and regular inspections could mitigate the risks associated with handling volatile substances.

Local emergency services responded swiftly to the scene, with firefighters and medical teams working to secure the area and provide aid to the injured.

The investigation into the explosion’s cause is expected to involve multiple agencies, including the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

The community of Camden, a town with a population of around 12,000, is closely watching the developments. The General Dynamics plant is a significant local employer, and any prolonged shutdown could have economic repercussions.

Watch this short clip of an explosion engulfing the General Dynamics Camden factory.

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France’s election winners may strengthen Putin’s hand, warns a professor and advisor to Poland’s president.

Professor Przemysław Żurawski vel Grajewski, a political scientist and advisor to Polish President Andrzej Duda, expressed serious concerns about the results of the French parliamentary elections, citing the pro-Russian inclinations of the winning coalition as a significant threat.

The New Popular Front, a left-wing alliance including the Socialist Party, the Greens, the French Communist Party, and Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s France Unbowed (LFI ), emerged victorious. This coalition will now join forces with President Emmanuel Macron’s party.

Professor Żurawski vel Grajewski suggested to Polish news outlet wPolityce.pl that Macron’s strategy to allow Marine Le Pen a role in parliament was intended to politically exhaust her party before the next presidential election. 

“Macron’s main idea was to allow Le Pen into parliament, exhausting her party before the next presidential election. But this has backfired, weakening the left-liberal camp instead,” said Żurawski vel Grajewski.

The professor criticized Macron’s recent rhetoric advocating for military support to Ukraine as ultimately empty, indicating no real shift in France’s stance against Russia. 

“The results of the elections in France are concerning precisely because of the pro-Russian stance of their winner. Macron’s rhetoric, which in recent months has called for sending troops to Ukraine, turned out to be empty words. It is hard to assume that the president of France was so naive as to believe that he would get NATO’s support for this idea. He proposed it only because he knew such a plan would be scuttled,” Żurawski vel Grajewski explained.

With the new parliamentary backdrop, there may be a rejuvenation of pro-Russian sentiment, which poses a significant risk to not just France’s but also Europe’s stability.

He highlighted the potential increase in Russian influence in France, stating, “Mélenchon, a deeply pro-Russian and communist politician, represents a dangerous shift. The long-built narrative of stopping the ‘Putinists’ has crumbled.”

Mélenchon has even hinted at withdrawing from NATO, a statement with implications that remain uncertain as the new government takes shape.

Looking ahead, Professor Żurawski vel Grajewski remains pessimistic about the influence of France and Germany on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, suggesting that both countries, regardless of their public postures, subtly lean towards Russia. He concludes by reflecting on the internal challenges within France, including immigration and the threat of Islamist extremism, which the new government is unlikely to address effectively, potentially leading to increased social unrest ahead of the next presidential elections.

“We are facing an anti-Atlantic force, hostile to NATO and very open to cooperation with Russia,” he warned.

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