The Strait of Hormuz is open (sort of)

After 66 days of the most amazing counter-blockade performed by the biggest navy on this planet - the meme waterway is open again. Kind of. The details remain murky, but some cargo ships and oil tankers are currently passing the Strait of Hormuz. Not in the same amount that it used to be before the Donald Trump's "Special Military Operation", but still - it's something at least.

The insurance on the shipping will remain high for a while I suppose, for many reasons.

The US navy mostly left the area to the Gulf of Oman - aside from some warships tasked to remove the sea mines.

Iran is selling the oil again - which made the "Brent" fall to $83 per barrel. It won't save the world's economy right away - the inflicted damage is too big, and the world will suffer.

If nothing goes wrong - the economic suffering will be slightly less horrible in the near future.

#USA #Iran #Israel #peace #shipping

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📰 Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's article «Ukraine, Europe and Global Security» (June 19, 2026)

This article by Sergey Lavrov was originally planned for publication by the European outlet Politico Europe, but at the last moment, the editorial board decided to cancel its publication.

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«Ukraine, Europe and Global Security»

Some Reflections on Resolving the Ukrainian Crisis, Europe and Global Security

✍️ More than two decades of negotiation with Europe, as part of the collective West, leads to only one conclusion: engaging Russia in dialogue has served as a diplomatic smokescreen for the geopolitical expansion of Western institutions, above all NATO and the EU, eastwards, right up to Russia's borders.

☝️ Europe's complicity in fuelling the Ukrainian crisis is undeniable.

In 2013, the EU rejected outright our proposal for a compromise on the association agreement – a deal Brussels had long been pressing Viktor Yanukovich to sign.

It is worth recalling: Ukraine was offered unilateral market opening, without reciprocal commitments – terms that would have proved incompatible with Kiev's continued membership in the CIS free-trade zone. When Viktor Yanukovich requested a deferral, the Europeans incited street riots which swiftly escalated into a coup d'état in Kiev in February 2014.

Russia, for its part, explored every diplomatic avenue to defuse Europe's security crisis. However, in January 2022, the US and NATO rejected Russia's proposal for legally binding mutual security guarantees.

Following the launch of the special military operation, the united Europe threw its support behind the British Prime Minister's efforts to sabotage the Istanbul negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. Boris Johnson's appeal to Kiev – "don't sign anything, just fight" – slammed the door on genuine diplomacy for the foreseeable future.

***

Additional key points:

• The real current objective of Europe's leaders is not to negotiate with Russia. It is to shore up the Zelensky regime and preserve it as a launchpad for continued confrontation against Russia.

• European leaders are scrambling to secure a ceasefire as quickly as possible and for one reason only: to prevent the collapse of Ukrainian military on the battlefield. The plan is to "freeze" the conflict without addressing its root causes, and then rapidly deploy military contingents from the Anglo-French "coalition of the willing" onto Ukrainian soil.

• The united Europe continues to dream of expansion. It intends to absorb Ukraine and Moldova, while pulling Armenia into its sphere of influence. As for Ukraine, it is increasingly eyed as the "striking fist" of a future European military force, independent of the US and independent of NATO.

❗️ This state of affairs poses serious threats to global security. A direct confrontation between NATO and Russia could rapidly escalate into an exchange of nuclear strikes, with catastrophic consequences.

• European leaders should recognize that the model of regional security built in Europe over decades, ever since the adoption of the Helsinki Final Act in 1975, has been destroyed by their own hands. 👉 And it will never be restored.

• We must now move toward creating a continent-wide security architecture open to all Eurasian countries and that reflects today's #MultipolarWorld.

• The principle of equal and indivisible security trampled upon by the Euro-Atlantists, can be embodied within a new Eurasian architecture. When the time is ripe, Europe too will be able to join this great effort.

• Meaningful dialogue requires the restoration of trust, shattered by the anti-Russian actions of the West, and Europe as part of it, in the post-Cold War era.

❌ Trust cannot be restored, nor can dialogue be resumed, through ultimatums such as the one issued to Russia in London on 7 June 2026.

Read in full