Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa to Putin:

Coming from the airport, I saw a large amount of snow on the road on our way to the Kremlin, so I remembered history in the past.

I remembered how many military campaigns some parties tried to reach Moscow, and then how they failed because of the courage of the Russian soldiers, and how nature also helped you in defending this blessed land.

So we ask God for its safety always.

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Kremlin:

Talks on Ukraine in Abu Dhabi will continue on February 1.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen:

It works — it simply works when Europe stands firm and united.

Therefore, to use the words of one of your most famous music groups, we must “work it harder, make it better, do it faster, and make us stronger.”

NEW: Dr. Mehmet Oz says that Russian and Armenian gangs carried out about $3.5 billion in healthcare fraud in Los Angeles.

“The President is not going to tolerate this anymore.”

UK's Starmer in China:

It is in our national interest to engage with China.

It is the second biggest economy in the world. If you take Hong Kong alongside China, it is our third biggest trading partner.

There are huge opportunities to be found.

Italy’s Foreign Minister Tajani defended allowing US ICE agents to attend the Winter Olympics despite public outrage:

“It’s not like the SS are coming.”

Iran responds to Trump:

Last time the U.S. blundered into wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, it squandered over $7 trillion and lost more than 7,000 American lives.

Iran stands ready for dialogue based on mutual respect and interests—BUT IF PUSHED, IT WILL DEFEND ITSELF AND RESPOND LIKE NEVER BEFORE!

U.S. officials say there are currently no real negotiations with Iran, though Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, and Qatar are acting as intermediaries between the two sides.

Source: Axios

Germany's Merz on Iran:

A regime that can only stay in power through sheer violence and terror against its own population has its days numbered.

It may take weeks, but this regime has no legitimacy to govern the country.

Germany's Merz on reports that Trump's health is in worrying state:

From my encounters with President Trump, I have no reason to doubt his health.

He will be 80 years old in June, but I have the impression that he is fully up to his office.

Fake news and AI-generated videos targeted Türkiye–Azerbaijan relations, falsely claiming President Erdogan offered aid to Armenian families and that Baku suspended military ties with Ankara.

Both governments denied the reports, saying they were disinformation.

Officials stressed the “two states, one nation” partnership is too strong to be shaken by perception operations.

Rubio on Venezuela:

You can have elections all day, but if the opposition has no access to the media, if the opposition candidates are unable to be on the ballot, those are not free and fair elections.

We want free, fair, prosperous, and friendly Venezuela. We are not going to get there in three weeks. This is going to take some time.

Israel Prepares Large Camp for Palestinians in Gaza, Israeli Retired General Reveals

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Rubio:

The new authorities in Venezuela deserve some credit; they have passed a new law that basically eradicates many of the Chávez-era restrictions on private investment in the oil industry.

Rubio on Venezuela:

They have released up to 200 political prisoners, according to some estimates.

They are releasing them; they are releasing them probably slower than I would like them to. But they are releasing them.

You are starting to see some of the people being released beginning to participate in the political life in the country.

Reporter: Are we intervening in the currency market right now? Strengthening the yen?

Bessent: Absolutely not. We don't comment. We have a strong dollar policy.

Rubio on Venezuela:

We made multiple attempts to get Maduro to leave voluntarily; you couldn’t make a deal with this guy.

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Rubio on Venezuela:

Venezuela pre-Chávez was a very strong U.S. ally; we hope to get back to that point.

We are not there; this thing is still in its infancy.

But a lot of progress has been made.

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Rubio on Venezuela:

This was leaked; we know that it was leaked by a contractor at the Department of War.

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Rubio:

We can’t have the same soldiers or the same ships in both Europe and in the Indo-Pacific.

We have to pick; no matter how many ships we build or how many capabilities we grow, we are going to have to make these adjustments.

Senator Kaine: Trump repeatedly mistook Iceland for Greenland, right? We're not mad at Iceland, correct?

Rubio: Yeah, he meant to say Greenland, but I think we're all familiar with presidents who have verbal stumbles. Some made a lot more than this one.