U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker on Europe:

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, they hollowed out their defense.

They were not strong and they were not capable, and the plumbers from my home state of Iowa were paying for European security, and that wasn’t fair.

And so we have now entered into a new era, what many are calling NATO 3.0, where Europe and Canada are finally stepping up. But is it fast enough? No.

U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker:

Is President Trump right that they weren’t there when we needed them? Yes.

But they did show up when we were in the Global War on Terror. They were in Afghanistan and Iraq, and I think ultimately we need allies.

The United States is stronger with allies than without allies.

U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker:

If you study countries that have — whether it’s the French under Napoleon, whether it’s other empires like the Romans — getting overextended, having too many security commitments, having assets all over is usually what happens.

U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker:

Taking capacity out of the global energy markets, like what happened as Ukrainians strike Russia, has put pressure on diesel and oil generally.

That war needs to end.

Bernie Sanders on AI:

Leading scientists have been clear: AI is an existential threat to humanity.

Congress and governments around the world must act now before it is too late. And that is why next week I will be introducing legislation to permanently ban the development of artificial superintelligence.

Like nuclear weapons, artificial superintelligence is a threat to humanity, and it must be treated as such.

Bernie Sanders on AI:

Dario Amodei, Elon Musk, and Sam Altman, the leaders of major American AI companies, all agreed that we must slow the development of AI.

That is a start, but it’s not enough. When you are racing towards a cliff, you don’t just ease up on the gas pedal. You hit the brakes.

When the future of humanity is at stake, we need binding international safety rules, not voluntary standards from the industry.

Bernie Sanders on AI:

A superintelligent AI that escapes human control will not simply be an American problem. It will not be a Chinese problem. It will be humanity’s problem.

And that is why I hope very much that at their AI summit next week, Trump will negotiate a comprehensive treaty with Xi to establish a pause on advanced AI development and a ban on superintelligence.

Attorney General Todd Blanche on Iran War:

You called it a "war." I disagree with that characterization.

UK First Secretary of State Louise Haigh says the UK will “no longer stand by while innocent children are killed in Gaza.”

Saudi-backed forces in Yemen are struggling to stop the Houthi advance and are unlikely to retake the key Red Sea port of Mokha, which the Houthis seized last week, according to several Western European military assessments.

Source: Bloomberg

Zelensky told CBS News that Russia tried to target his presidential plane with drones twice during recent trips through Moldova.

“In Moldova, my presidential jet was there, and that’s why they attacked Moldova,” Zelensky said. “When we went back home, again through Chisinau, they did the same.”

Q: Is there an energy ceasefire right now?

Zelensky: No. We never attack first.

Zelensky:

We are ready for an energy ceasefire, but you have to understand what it means for us.

For Putin, energy is to sell oil and gas.

For us, energy is to have electricity for our people.

Steve Bannon:

We have to shut down the Chinese Communist Party. We have to put a quarantine around it.

It’s insanity to me why we just keep going on over "the Chinese, the Chinese" — to hell with the Chinese Communist Party. It’s up to no good.

We know that they steal everything they get their hands on. We can shut it down in 72 hours, and then if we want to make a treaty, make a treaty, but make sure they’re not a player.

Steve Bannon:

We should not take any students to train up as engineers or technologists.

We should take all Chinese nationals and get them out of the labs and get them back to mainland China.

The Kennedy Center board voted to close the performing arts venue over financial problems and a dispute over efforts to put Trump’s name on the building.

Earlier Tuesday, a federal judge blocked the center from adding Trump’s name anywhere on the structure or grounds, ruling that only Congress can authorize such changes.

The board has argued that without recognition for Trump’s support, he may be unwilling to help fund major renovations.

Source: AP

US prosecutors allege that two Chinese companies used Binance accounts to move $61mn linked to black-market Iranian oil sales.

The Justice Department says the funds passed through digital wallets connected to a broader network that handled more than $1.5bn in Iranian oil proceeds.

Prosecutors allege some of the money was intended for the Iranian government, and its agents and proxies.

Source: FT

Trump:

The Board of The Kennedy Center today agreed, almost unanimously, to close the Building for Safety reasons, and so that it can begin the process of Reconstruction.

The closing will take place immediately, however, the Renovation and Reconstruction, which is a very large and complex job, cannot begin until such time as the D.C. Circuit rules on the Board’s approved name.

If the ruling is a negative one, which it should not be, and is not overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Reconstruction and the Renovation of The Kennedy Center will not take place.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken:

Taking the off-ramp — which means a diplomatic agreement with Iran that, by definition, gives Iran something — means it looks like a loss.

And I think that’s the hesitation on Trump’s part.

The Iran war could and should be over tomorrow.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken:

The Gulf states are all looking to talk to Tehran, maybe cut a deal with Tehran.

They’re looking to cut deals because they know that, unfortunately, what they’ve seen is we can’t necessarily defend them.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken:

The Iranians have an interesting way of begging, if that means launching more projectiles at us, at our partners, getting the Houthis in the act to pull down the Red Sea corridor along with the Strait of Hormuz.

Look, we’re in a very difficult position, unfortunately, of Trump’s making.