Iran’s President: The Era of Unipolarity is Over

The Iranian President meeting with the Russian Energy Minister and his delegation in Tehran on Thursday (Mehr)
The Iranian President meeting with the Russian Energy Minister and his delegation in Tehran on Thursday (Mehr)
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Iran’s President: The Era of Unipolarity is Over

The Iranian President meeting with the Russian Energy Minister and his delegation in Tehran on Thursday (Mehr)
The Iranian President meeting with the Russian Energy Minister and his delegation in Tehran on Thursday (Mehr)

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that the world has moved beyond unipolar dominance, citing deepening cooperation between Iran and Russia as evidence of a shifting global order.

Speaking in Tehran while hosting Russian Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilev and his delegation, Pezeshkian said Thursday: “The successful model of cooperation between independent countries such as Iran and Russia proves that the era of unipolarity is over. These nations are capable of achieving growth and progress without reliance on hegemonic powers.”

According to the Mehr News Agency, Pezeshkian expressed satisfaction with the trajectory of bilateral cooperation, particularly in transport, energy, and power station projects. He stressed that implementing agreements with Moscow remains a top priority for Tehran. “All the infrastructure necessary for cooperation exists, and there are no obstacles to our partnership,” he said.

The Iranian president urged both governments to accelerate the translation of technical discussions into action, highlighting the determination of both sides and the “serious commitment” of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

For his part, Tsivilev conveyed Putin’s greetings to Pezeshkian and presented a report on his meetings in Iran. He affirmed that constructive cooperation under the Joint Economic Committee continues on a regular basis, with officials from both sides working closely to fast-track agreements.

“Russia is ready to implement bilateral agreements swiftly,” Tsivilev said, stressing that no sanctions or external pressures could derail the economic and trade partnership between Moscow and Tehran.

The Russian minister also met with Iranian Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi who said: “Iran has shown the world it has never initiated war with Israel or the United States. Diplomacy and dialogue remain our preferred means of resolving disputes.”

Tsivilev echoed the importance of expanding defense and economic collaboration, calling for committees to intensify efforts aimed at raising cooperation to “the highest levels.”

Russian energy giant Gazprom confirmed that discussions in Tehran included extensive talks on energy cooperation, especially in natural gas.

In June 2024, Gazprom signed a strategic memorandum of understanding with Iran’s National Gas Company to establish a framework for Russian gas supplies to Iran.

Following a recent meeting of the Iran-Russia Joint Economic Committee in Moscow, Iranian Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad revealed that the two countries agreed on the transfer of 55 billion cubic meters of gas annually, equivalent to about 150-151 million cubic meters per day.

He explained that various routes were considered, but both sides settled on a land pipeline through Azerbaijan, with deliveries to begin at the border town of Astara. A second phase of the project is under review.

Tsivilev confirmed that Moscow and Tehran had reached an understanding on the pipeline route through Azerbaijan and that negotiations were in their final stage to determine pricing.



Trump Refuses to Apologize for Video Depicting Obama and Wife as Apes

FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump see off former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama as they depart following Trump's inauguration at the Capitol in Washington, US January 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump see off former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama as they depart following Trump's inauguration at the Capitol in Washington, US January 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
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Trump Refuses to Apologize for Video Depicting Obama and Wife as Apes

FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump see off former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama as they depart following Trump's inauguration at the Capitol in Washington, US January 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump see off former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama as they depart following Trump's inauguration at the Capitol in Washington, US January 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

President Donald Trump’s racist social media post featuring former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, as primates in a jungle was deleted Friday after a backlash from both Republicans and Democrats who criticized the video as offensive.

Trump said later Friday that he won't apologize for the post: “I didn't make a mistake,” he said.

The Republican president’s Thursday night post was blamed on a staffer after widespread backlash, from civil rights leaders to veteran Republican senators, for its treatment of the nation’s first Black president and first lady. A rare admission of a misstep by the White House, the deletion came hours after press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed “fake outrage” over the post. After calls for its removal — including by Republicans — the White House said a staffer had posted the video erroneously.

The post was part of a flurry of overnight activity on Trump's Truth Social account that amplified his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him, despite courts around the country and Trump's first-term attorney general finding no evidence of systemic fraud.

Trump has a record of intensely personal criticism of the Obamas and of using incendiary, sometimes racist, rhetoric — from feeding the lie that Obama was not a native-born US citizen to crude generalizations about majority-Black countries.

The post came in the first week of Black History Month and days after a Trump proclamation cited “the contributions of black Americans to our national greatness” and “the American principles of liberty, justice, and equality.”

An Obama spokeswoman said the former president, a Democrat, had no response.

‘An internet meme’

Nearly all of the 62-second clip appears to be from a conservative video alleging deliberate tampering with voting machines in battleground states as 2020 votes were tallied. At the 60-second mark is a quick scene of two jungle primates, with the Obamas’ smiling faces imposed on them.

Those frames originated from a separate video, previously circulated by an influential conservative meme maker. It shows Trump as “King of the Jungle” and depicts Democratic leaders as animals, including Joe Biden, who is white, as a jungle primate eating a banana.

“This is from an internet meme video depicting President Trump as the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from the Lion King,” Leavitt said by text.

Disney's 1994 feature film that Leavitt referenced is set on the savannah, not in the jungle, and it does not include great apes.

“Please stop the fake outrage and report on something today that actually matters to the American public,” Leavitt added.

By noon, the post had been taken down, with responsibility placed on a Trump subordinate.

Trump, answering questions from reporters accompanying him Friday night aboard Air Force One, said the video was about fraudulent elections and that he liked what he saw.

“I liked the beginning. I saw it and just passed it on, and I guess probably nobody reviewed the end of it,” he said.

Asked if he condemned the video's racism, Trump said, “Of course I do.”

The White House explanation raises questions about control of Trump’s social media account, which he's used to levy import taxes, threaten military action, make other announcements and intimidate political rivals. The president often signs his name or initials after policy posts.

The White House did not immediately respond to an inquiry about how posts are vetted and when the public can know when Trump himself is posting.

Mark Burns, a pastor and a prominent Trump supporter who is Black, said Friday on X that he'd spoken “directly” with Trump and that he recommended to the president that he fire the staffer who posted the video and publicly condemn what happened.

“He knows this is wrong, offensive, and unacceptable,” Burns posted.

Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., told The Associated Press she does “not buy the White House's commentary.”

Condemnation across the political spectrum Trump and White House social media accounts frequently repost memes and artificial intelligence-generated videos. As Leavitt did Friday, Trump allies typically cast them as humorous.

This time, condemnations flowed from across the spectrum — along with demands for an apology that doesn't appear to be coming.


Clintons Call for Their Epstein Testimony to Be Public

Images of former US President Bill Clinton are on display as Chairman of the House Oversight Committee James Comer (R-KY) speaks during a meeting to vote on whether to hold Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas to testify in the panel's investigation of the late convicted offender Jeffrey Epstein, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Images of former US President Bill Clinton are on display as Chairman of the House Oversight Committee James Comer (R-KY) speaks during a meeting to vote on whether to hold Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas to testify in the panel's investigation of the late convicted offender Jeffrey Epstein, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
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Clintons Call for Their Epstein Testimony to Be Public

Images of former US President Bill Clinton are on display as Chairman of the House Oversight Committee James Comer (R-KY) speaks during a meeting to vote on whether to hold Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas to testify in the panel's investigation of the late convicted offender Jeffrey Epstein, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Images of former US President Bill Clinton are on display as Chairman of the House Oversight Committee James Comer (R-KY) speaks during a meeting to vote on whether to hold Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas to testify in the panel's investigation of the late convicted offender Jeffrey Epstein, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, January 21, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Former US president Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary are calling for their congressional testimony on ties to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein to be held publicly, to prevent Republicans from politicizing the issue.

Both Clintons had been ordered to give closed-door depositions before the House Oversight Committee, which is probing the deceased financier's connections to powerful figures and how information about his crimes was handled, said AFP.

Democrats say the probe is being weaponized to attack political opponents of President Donald Trump -- himself a longtime Epstein associate who has not been called to testify -- rather than to conduct legitimate oversight.

House Republicans had previously threatened a contempt vote if the Democratic power couple did not show up to testify, which they have since agreed to do.

But holding the deposition behind closed doors, Bill Clinton said Friday, would be akin to being tried at a "kangaroo court."

"Let's stop the games & do this the right way: in a public hearing," the former Democratic president said on X.

Hillary Clinton, former secretary of state, said the couple had already told the Republican-led Oversight Committee "what we know."

"If you want this fight...let's have it in public," she said Thursday.

The Justice Department last week released the latest cache of so-called Epstein files -- more than three million documents, photos and videos related to its investigation into Epstein, who died from what was determined to be suicide while in custody in 2019.

Bill Clinton features regularly in the files, but no evidence has come to light implicating either Clinton in criminal activity.

The former president has acknowledged flying on Epstein's plane in the early 2000s for Clinton Foundation-related humanitarian work, but said he never visited Epstein's private island.

Hillary Clinton, who ran against Trump for president in 2016, said she had no meaningful interactions with Epstein, never flew on his plane and never visited his island.


Two Airports in Poland Closed Due to Russian Strikes on Ukraine

Lublin Airport is unavailable due to military activity involving NATO aircraft (Reuters)
Lublin Airport is unavailable due to military activity involving NATO aircraft (Reuters)
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Two Airports in Poland Closed Due to Russian Strikes on Ukraine

Lublin Airport is unavailable due to military activity involving NATO aircraft (Reuters)
Lublin Airport is unavailable due to military activity involving NATO aircraft (Reuters)

Two airports in southeastern Poland were suspended from operations as a precaution due to Russian strikes on nearby Ukraine territory, Polish authorities said on Saturday.

"In connection with the need to ensure the possibility of the free operation of military aviation, the airports in Rzeszow and Lublin ‌have temporarily ‌suspended flight operations," ‌Polish Air ⁠Navigation Services Agency ‌posted on X.

Both cities are close to the country's border with Ukraine, with Rzeszow being NATO's main hub for arms supplies to Ukraine, Reuters said.

Military aviation had begun operating in Polish airspace due to Russian ⁠strikes on Ukraine, the Operational Command of ‌the Polish Armed Forces said on ‍X.

"These actions are ‍of a preventive nature and ‍are aimed at securing and protecting the airspace, particularly in areas adjacent to the threatened regions," the army said.

Flight tracking service FlightRadar24 posted on X that the closure involved NATO aircraft operating in the area.

The ⁠US Federal Aviation Administration said in a notice to airmen that both airports were inaccessible due to the military activity related to ensuring state security.

Last month, Rzeszow and Lublin suspended operations for a time, but the authorities said then that the military aviation operations were routine and there had been no threat to ‌Polish airspace.