Notes and Essays -- John Brown

by LORNE COOK and ILLIA NOVIKOV, The Hill,  Associated Press - 12/03/24 9:15 AM ET; see also NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, right, shakes hands with United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels,Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo) BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Tuesday sidestepped questions about Ukraine’s possible membership in the military alliance, saying that the priority now must be to strengthen the country’s hand in any future peace talks with Russia by sending it more weapons. Rutte’s remarks, ahead of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, came days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that extending alliance membership to territory now under Kyiv’s control could end “the hot stage” of the almost 3-year war in Ukraine, where Russian forces are pressing deeper into their western neighbor.   “The front is not moving eastwards. It is slowly mo...

Mark Rutte said it was up to Ukraine to decide when it was ready to begin negotiations with Russia — and that the West should help strengthen Kyiv’s position beforehand.  Mark Rutte, NATO Secretary General, right, with Ukrainian foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, in Brussels on Tuesday. Credit... Olivier Hoslet/EPA, via Shutterstock By  Lara Jakes  and  Kim Barker Lara Jakes reported from Brussels and Kim Barker from Kyiv. The New York Times , Dec. 3, 2024 Updated  4:51 p.m. ET  NATO’s new top diplomat suggested on Tuesday that Ukraine should put off any peace talks with Russia until Western allies can send enough military aid to help Kyiv push ahead on the battlefield and garner a stronger negotiating position. Mark Rutte, the NATO secretary general, said it was up to Ukraine to decide when it was ready to begin negotiations with Russia in a war that has dragged on for nearly three years. But with U.S. President-elect Donald J. Trump vowing to secure a quick...

Matt Gaetz, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Elon Musk   (image From CNN , under the headline):   "The admitted and investigated drug use  in some of Trump’s top picks"   Analysis by   Zachary B. Wolf , CNN

The Wikimedia Foundation  — the nonprofit organization behind Wikipedia — is out with its list of the most-read topics of 2024,  Axios' Eleanor Hawkins writes . [Sent via  email]  The top five : Deaths in 2024 Kamala Harris 2024 United States presidential election Lyle and Erik Menendezaine Donald Trump  Politics dominated  the top 10 list, with JD Vance coming in at No. 7 and Project 2025 ranking 9th. The year's deaths  have been in the top three every year since 2015.

December 3, 2024, 2:01 p.m. Eastern time; via email We’ve gathered the latest coverage on the places you’re following to keep you up to date.  Manage your places News on the places you follow Senate Confirms General’s Promotion After Republican Senator Lifts Hold Lt. Gen. Christopher T. Donahue commanded U.S. troops in the final days of the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Because you follow:  Ukraine Investigation Into Forced Adoptions From Ukraine Points Finger at Putin Yale researchers traced hundreds of children taken to Russia in the war, finding what they described as “a higher level of crime than first understood.” Because you follow:  Russia, Ukraine Opinion |  Five Opinion Writers on What Biden Should Do in His Final Days as President Protecting land and appointing judges could go a long way toward bolstering Biden’s legacy. 21 MIN LISTEN Because you follow:  Russia, Ukraine U.S. Sending $725 Million in Arms to Ukraine, Including More Land Mines The package...