Trump Pledges Extra Troops for Poland

President Donald Trump speaks during an event in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
President Donald Trump speaks during an event in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
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Trump Pledges Extra Troops for Poland

President Donald Trump speaks during an event in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
President Donald Trump speaks during an event in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

US President Donald Trump surprised NATO allies by pledging to send an additional 5,000 troops to Poland, only hours before Secretary of State Marco Rubio was to meet alliance ministers in Sweden on Friday amid deep divisions over the Iran war.

Trump, in a Truth Social post, cited his relationship with Poland's conservative nationalist president, Karol Nawrocki, as the reason behind his decision to send additional troops.

"Based on the successful Election of the now President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, who I was proud to Endorse, and our relationship with him, I am pleased to announce that the United States will be sending an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland," Trump said in the post.

It was a surprising turnabout after weeks in which Trump fiercely criticized NATO members ⁠for not doing ⁠more to help the US-Israeli military campaign.

He has said he is considering withdrawing from the alliance and questioned whether Washington was bound to honor its mutual defense pact.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Trump's decision regarding the presence of ⁠American troops in Poland ⁠is "good news for Poland and the ⁠USA."

"I thank everyone involved in this matter, President (of Poland) Nawrocki, ministers, congressmen, and friends of Poland in the USA ⁠for ⁠their effectiveness and unity of action," he wrote on the X platform.

Poland will certainly not lose any US troops, and could gain either in terms ⁠of having more troops ⁠or a permanent US presence ⁠in the country, Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said on Friday.

"One thing is certain, Poland is certainly ⁠not ⁠losing what it had - around 10,000 soldiers," he told reporters.



Kremlin Says Putin and Trump Agreed During Weekend Call to Talk Again in ‘Near Future’

 Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
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Kremlin Says Putin and Trump Agreed During Weekend Call to Talk Again in ‘Near Future’

 Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Dmity Milyaev, Governor of Tula region of Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow, Monday, July 6, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

The Kremlin said on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump had agreed in a weekend call that they would talk again "in the near future," suggesting they are likely to talk this week during or after the NATO summit.

Trump is planning to meet Ukrainian President ‌Volodymyr Zelenskiy on ‌Wednesday in Türkiye where ‌he ⁠will be attending ⁠the NATO summit, a senior US official said on Sunday. The idea, the official said, was to make a renewed push to end the war in Ukraine.

The same official said Trump would likely ⁠follow up with Putin after talking ‌to Zelenskiy. ‌

Asked on Monday if Trump would phone Putin after ‌meeting Zelenskiy, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov ‌told reporters: "Yes, indeed, both President Putin and President Trump have agreed that their contacts will continue in the near future."

Peskov said Trump ‌had held a pretty consistent position on the conflict in Ukraine.

"You ⁠know, ⁠President Trump, the US president, has a fairly consistent stance, and all these fabrications about him supposedly changing his views like a weather vane are, of course, untrue," said Peskov.

"He is consistent and confident in his understanding of what is happening, but, most importantly, he (Trump) is open to listening to the information that is conveyed to him by Putin."


Netanyahu Urges US Not to Sell F-35 Fighter Jets to Türkiye

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)
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Netanyahu Urges US Not to Sell F-35 Fighter Jets to Türkiye

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem on June 15, 2026. (AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday urged the United States not to sell its F-35 fighter jets or components to Türkiye, arguing it would "upset the power balance" in the region.

US President Donald Trump travels later Monday to Ankara for a NATO summit, and his visit could be seen by the Turks as an opportunity to secure acquisition of dozens of jet engines and potential readmission to the F-35 fighter jet program.

The Israeli prime minister however warned that it would be a mistake for Washington to reward Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whom Netanyahu said "calls openly for the annihilation of Israel," with advanced military technology.

"I don't think they should be given F-35s or the engines for their fighter jets, because that'll upset the power balance in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority and also by, I think, by America's posture in the Middle East," Netanyahu told Fox News morning show "Fox & Friends."

Last month, Trump promised to make Erdogan "very happy" when asked about Türkiye looking to secure F110 jet engines and regaining access to the F-35 program.

Analysts say Türkiye wants to secure the new engines for use in its flagship KAAN stealth fighter project, as Ankara seeks to join the exclusive club of nations producing fifth-generation combat aircraft, notably the United States, China and Russia.

In 2017 however, Türkiye acquired a Russian S-400 missile defense system, a move that infuriated Washington, which expelled Türkiye from the F-35 program in 2019.

Netanyahu also reiterated that he remains a close ally to Trump, despite hiccups in their relationship in recent weeks over the Iran war.

"We are the best of allies," the Israeli leader said. "My relationship with the president is fine."


French Government Survives No-Confidence Vote Over Heatwave Handling

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)
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French Government Survives No-Confidence Vote Over Heatwave Handling

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)
French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks during a parliamentary session on a motion of censure against the government presented by Les Ecologistes (The Ecologists party) at the National Assembly in Paris, France, 06 July 2026. (EPA)

The French government survived a vote of no-confidence in parliament on Monday over its handling of a severe heatwave in late June.

Backers of the motion said the government failed to do enough to blunt the effects of last month's ‌heatwave in a country ‌where 2,025 excess deaths ‌have ⁠been recorded so ⁠far. French health authorities warned the number would likely rise.

The motion, filed by France's Green Party, which needed 289 votes to pass, was backed by only 132 members of ⁠parliament.

"No one is fooled. This ‌motion will ‌not protect an isolated elderly person. It will ‌not cool down a hospital room. It ‌will not modernize a water supply network. On the contrary, it will add a political crisis to climate, healthcare and international ‌crises that the government already must deal with," French Prime Minister ⁠Sebastien ⁠Lecornu told lawmakers ahead of the vote.

The vote took place as firefighters battled a wildfire in southwestern France that has forced the evacuation of 10,000 people.

Early summer heatwaves in France and across western Europe have made the scorched land particularly vulnerable to wildfires this year, and temperatures are set to rise again.