US sells F-35 to Taiwan; Ukraine has “no chance” of taking back Crimea?

1. Ukraine has “no chance” of taking back Crimea?

Former EU ambassador: Ukraine has no chance of taking back Crimea.

Former Ambassador Michael Emerson believes that the US and EU are too preoccupied with the situation in Donbass to pay attention to the Crimean peninsula. And therefore, Ukraine cannot expect outside help to regain Crimea.

Recently in an interview with the Ukrainian newspaper Apostrophe, British expert and former EU Ambassador to Russia Michael Emerson revealed the reason why Ukraine has no chance of "reclaiming" Crimea.

He also stressed that Kiev has no way to “reclaim” the peninsula, except by waging “a major war”, which, according to the expert, is unlikely. At the same time, he also stressed that sanctions against Russia will continue and “maybe will be continuous”, but they are unlikely to help Ukraine realize its claims to Crimea.

2. South Korea and North Korea set a date for the summit, Japan also wants to participate

North Korea and South Korea set a date for the Inter-Korean Summit.

To continue preparations for the summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the sides agreed to hold a round of talks on April 4 at the Panmunjom demilitarized zone between the two Koreas.

If the meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un takes place, it will be the third summit between South Korea and North Korea. The last summit was held 11 years ago (October 2007). The first summit was held in June 2000.

Earlier, South Korea welcomed the summit between the leaders of China and North Korea, describing it as a significant development that will help denuclearize and establish peace on the Korean Peninsula.

3. US sells F-35 to Taiwan, China's "nightmare"

US F-35 stealth fighter.

According to National Interest magazine, two US senators recently asked the Trump administration to approve the sale of F-35 stealth fighter jets to Taiwan, saying it would help the island “maintain its democracy” against China.

In a letter to US President Donald Trump, two senators, John Cornyn and James Inhofe, wrote: “These fighter jets will have a positive impact on Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities and will be a weapon that can deter military aggression in the Asia-Pacific region.”

The White House has yet to comment on the report, but the letter has been receiving a lot of attention since Trump appointed John Bolton, a hardliner on Beijing and critic of the One China policy, as his new National Security Advisor last week.

4. Türkiye refuses to expel Russian diplomats

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has insisted that Ankara has no intention of taking action against Russia over the Skripal case. Photo: Sputnik

According to Habertürk, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has affirmed that Ankara has no intention of taking action against Russia over the Skripal case. In a written statement, Türkiye also criticized what happened in the UK and said that the use of chemical weapons is a crime against humanity.

Türkiye's Foreign Ministry official Hami Aksoy issued a statement saying that Ankara supports an investigation into the Skripal case to establish who was behind the poisoning and bring the perpetrators to justice.

To date, more than 25 countries, including the US and EU member states, have expelled more than 140 Russian diplomats over the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in Salisbury, England. Moscow has also announced that it will respond appropriately, while emphasizing that expelling Russian diplomats will not help the investigation of the poisoning.

5.Riot and fire at Venezuela police station, 68 dead

Relatives of prisoners cry during the conflict that killed 68 people. Photo: Reuters.

Venezuelan government officials said a riot on March 29 at a police station in Valencia, Carabobo state, left at least 68 people dead.

The announcement came hours after a large crowd of protesters gathered in front of the prison at the police station, including families of detainees, who clashed with police officers and cried over the deaths of several inmates in a fire earlier in the day.

According toBBC, the detainees burned mattresses in the prison, trying to escape. Families of the prisoners said many died from toxic smoke in the fire.

6.Will Russia close the US Consulates General in St. Petersburg and Ekaterinburg?

Will Russia close the US Consulates General in St. Petersburg and Ekaterinburg?

In a poll organized by the Russian Embassy in the United States, Twitter users voted in favor of closing the US Consulate General in St. Petersburg, Russia.

According to the results of the poll, almost half of the respondents - 47% support the decision to close the US Consulate General in St. Petersburg, Russia, Ria Novosti reported.

In addition, according to the same poll, 35% of respondents supported the closure of the US Consulate General in Yekaterinburg, 18% supported the closure of the diplomatic building in Vladivostok. A total of 57.5 thousand people participated in the survey.

7. Syria launches major military campaign in Eastern Ghouta

The Syrian army launched a major military operation in Eastern Ghouta.

The Syrian army said it was preparing to launch a large-scale operation against Douma, the last rebel-held town in Eastern Ghouta, if the Islamist militant group Jaish al-Islam does not agree to hand over control of the area.

The pro-Syrian government newspaper al-Watan said on March 28: "Syrian government forces deployed in Ghouta are preparing a large-scale military operation in Douma if Jaish al-Islam terrorists do not agree to hand over control of the city and withdraw from here."

Although no specific announcement was made, according to a Syrian official who requested anonymity, the situation in the town of Douma is extremely serious and the next two days will be a decisive period.