Musk announced the creation of the 'American Party' amid further rifts with Trump
A day after Musk asked his followers on his platform X whether a new political party should be created in the US, he stated on Saturday: 'Today the American Party is created to return your freedom.' Musk's statement came after Trump signed his 'big, beautiful' tax cut and spending bill on Friday, which Musk strongly opposed. The first signs of investor dissatisfaction with Musk's statement appeared later that same day. Investment firm Azoria Partners announced it would delay the listing of the Tesla ETF, CEO James Fischbeck wrote in a post on X. Fischbeck is asking Tesla's board to clarify Musk's political ambitions and stated that the new party undermines shareholders' trust that he will focus more on the company after his departure from public service in May. Earlier, Trump threatened to halt the billions of dollars in subsidies that Musk's companies receive from the federal government. Despite Musk's deep pockets, dismantling the duopoly of Republicans and Democrats will be a tough task, given that it has dominated American political life for over 160 years, while Trump's approval ratings during his second term generally stayed above 40%, despite often controversial policies. (Reuters)
There is a collapse at Russian airports: hundreds of flights canceled amid attacks
As reported by the Federal Air Transport Agency of Russia (Rosaviation) on Sunday, July 6, flights to five airports were temporarily not serviced: Ivanovo (South), Kaluga (Graptsevo), Pskov, St. Petersburg (Pulkovo), and Tambov (Donskoye). The situation in Rosaviation is described as 'managed.' 'The air transport system of Russia is coping with periodic interference from outside,' the statement said. Nearly 400 flights were canceled or delayed. At Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, 171 flights were canceled for arrivals and departures. Another 56 flights were delayed for over two hours, Rosaviation reported. At Pulkovo airport (St. Petersburg), 90 flights were canceled, and 37 departures were delayed. Passengers are advised to reach Moscow by rail. At Nizhny Novgorod airport, 26 flights were canceled for arrivals and departures. The Russian Ministry of Defense claims that '48 Ukrainian drones were destroyed and intercepted' over five hours on Sunday. The most drones, the Russian agency reports, were shot down in the Kaluga region - 13. In the Bryansk region, ten drones were shot down, in the Moscow region - nine, in the Belgorod and Smolensk regions - six each, in the Leningrad region - two, and in the Kursk and Novgorod regions - one each. There were also problems with air traffic in Russia on Saturday, July 5. Hundreds of flights were canceled or delayed in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaluga, Pskov, and other cities.
Trump sends Kellogg to Rome for a conference on Ukraine's recovery
US President Donald Trump's envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, plans to visit Rome this week to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky and participate in a conference on Ukraine's recovery.
The conference on July 10 and 11 will be hosted by the Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni.
The conference is expected to be attended by Volodymyr Zelensky, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, Chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz, Prime Minister of Poland Donald Tusk, and other world leaders.
It is currently unknown whether other members of Trump's cabinet will join Kellogg.
The Economist: Political struggle in Ukraine intensifies
The head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak may be behind the activation of a corruption case against Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Chernyshov, promoting the appointment of Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko as Prime Minister, and attempts to secure the dismissal of the head of the GUR Kyrylo Budanov. This is stated in an article by the British magazine The Economist, which cites sources. The Economist writes that the idea of replacing the current Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal with Yermak's protégé, Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko, is not new, but last year Zelensky vetoed such a reshuffle. Currently, it is allegedly planned to hold a vote in parliament on this change, as well as on reshuffles in education, healthcare, culture, social policy, and possibly in the financial sector.
The Russian authorities have closed statistics on the number of deaths across the country
It is evident that the Kremlin is trying to hide the losses from the war in Ukraine in this way. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) stated that concealing data on casualties was 'an attempt to confuse the current demographic problems of Russia' and 'was likely aimed at hiding the high losses of the Russian army personnel.' Furthermore, election statistics researcher Dmytro Kobak stated at the end of last month that 'Rosstat refused to fulfill his request for data on excess male mortality in 2024 and monthly mortality by date of death,' the Institute for the Study of War reported.
Tensions are rising in the Italian government over the citizenship reform
This week, the Italian right-wing coalition showed public signs of a split as the Forza Italia party is in conflict with its allies over a proposal to expand citizenship access for the children of immigrants. The debate has centered around a proposed Forza Italia law that would grant Italian citizenship to minors born abroad who have completed at least 10 years of education in Italy with stable academic achievements. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attempted to stop the discussion, stating that 'it would be good if everyone focused on the government's priorities... This [citizenship law] is not part of the agenda.' However, Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani publicly contradicted Meloni, insisting that the proposal 'fully aligns with' the coalition's platform, which promised support for integration. The Lega party (Patriots for Europe), led by another Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, is firmly opposed to the reform. (euractiv)
News in Brief
On the night of July 7, Russian drones attacked Kyiv, leaving about 500 buildings without hot water supply in the capital, including residential buildings, medical institutions, and schools.
One person has died and there have been recorded damages to civilian infrastructure due to a Russian drone attack in the city of Odessa.
Trump stated that the accession of any country to the 'anti-American policy' BRICS would mean an additional 10% tariff for it.
In the US state of Texas, the death toll from the sudden flooding that occurred on July 54 has risen to 82, including 28 children. 41 people are considered missing.
Starting July 25, cars with women's compartments will appear on three more routes, according to 'Ukrzaliznytsia'.