Which one would you most be like with? I like the first blonde from the left.

The Barbie doll in a yellow swimsuit and high heels has a huge butt lift which has become the center of a great controversy. Brazil’s Miss Bumbum beauty pageant has released a Barbie-style doll which has left many parents and psychologists outraged as they believe it may cause body image issues in children. The makers of the toy claim that the doll has “authentic Brazilian curves,” however, in real life the doll’s bottom would be a huge 40 inches round, just about three inches smaller than American socialite Kim Kardashian's, according to publication The Sun. The makers have also said that they already have large pre-orders for the doll which will go on sale on August 8, the same day that this year’s annual Miss Bumbum contest will take place. However, the doll has met with furious backlash from campaigners, who say that such a doll will encourage girlsto undergo butt implant surgeries and they will grow up to have body issues. One campaign group threatened to launch a legal action to prevent the toy from going on sale. Campaigner Sara Winter said, “I refuse to conceive in any shape or form that a toy doll of this kind will be allowed to be made, marketed or sold. This is really serious. The doll's bottom is completely disproportionate. A bottom that big is almost impossible to achieve without surgery,” publication The Sun reported her as saying. She went on to say that the group has ordered lawyers to draft a “cease-and-desist” order to the Miss Bumbum organization, or face legal action. Lenise Borges, a professor of social psychology and coordinator of the Transas do Corpo feminist group, also slammed the big-bottomed Barbie. She said, “I'm completely scandalized. It sends a really explicit message to girls that they are objects, and that this is the type of body they should strive to have, either by exercise or by plastic surgery,” the publication reported.

Hungary’s decision to fund the construction of a hospital in Syria and its calls for the European Union (EU) to rebuild the war-torn country instead of encouraging migration have been met with support from the Syrian government, according to a governmental source in Damascus. The Syrian government backs Budapest’s approach to handling and ending the migrant crisis, a source in the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) told Sputnik reporter and columnist Suliman Mulhem on Thursday. “We fully support Hungary’s efforts and approach to helping Syrian migrants return home, instead of destabilizing Syria with sanctions and encouraging Syrians to flee to Europe, as the EU has done,” the source told Sputnik on the condition of anonymity. A Syrian refugee cries after she lost her daughter during clashes between Macedonian police and refugees who try to cross the borders in the town of Idomeni, Northern Greece, on Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2015. He also called on the EU and the US to lift economic sanctions against Syria, which have exacerbated the economic turmoil the Arab state is facing and worsened living conditions in government-held territory. When asked for his thoughts on Hungary’s anti-immigrant stance, he said they should be allowed to choose who can enter and settle in their country. “Who they [the Hungarian government] let into Hungary is a domestic matter for them to independently decide on, as any other nation is entitled to do. Even in Syria, although we are continuing to house and allow some migrants to enter, from Sudan for example, we have rules and regulations, not a lawless border.” Hungary’s pledge of US$5 million to finance the construction of a hospital in Syria was made by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó on Wednesday, at a Syria donor conference in Brussels. He suggested such financial aid offers a long-term solution to the migrant crisis. “The situation in Syria and its resolution cannot be separated from the migration crisis that is affecting Europe in view of the fact that the conflicts in the region are one of the main causes of it,” he said during a press conference on April 25. READ MORE: 'Hungary Will Not Become an Immigrant Country' — PM Viktor Orban “European Union migration policy needs a fundamental change of direction. Instead of encouraging people to come to Europe, the EU should be concentrating on stopping the causes of migration and on taking assistance to where it is needed to enable people to remain at home or in the vicinity of their homes,” the minister insisted. As the Syrian Army continues to dislodge terrorists from cities and towns across the country, the Syrian government is examining the herculean task of nationwide post-war reconstruction and creating the necessary conditions to allow Syrians to return home from Europe and countries neighboring Syria, particularly Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon. The US and a number of EU member states have suggested that they would only lift economic sanctions and provide Syria with financial aid if President Bashar al-Assad leaves office. President Assad has refused to allow external forces to dictate or influence Syrian politics, and said his future can only be decided by the “ballot box.” READ MORE: Syrian Army's Progress Against Militants Boosts Investment Across Syria

As the Israeli ambassador specified, the recruitment base is located just a few miles from Damascus. "What you can see here is Iran's central induction and recruitment centre in Syria. There are over 80,000 Shia militants in Syria under Iranian control. It is at this base, just over five miles from Damascus, where they are trained to commit acts of terror in Syria and across the region," Danon stated. The statement echoes that of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who claimed during a session of Israeli Defense Forces General Staff earlier this week, that Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps was creating an army to destroy Israel. In his turn, Iranian Supreme Leader Sayyid Ali Hosseini Khamenei called on Muslim countries to unite against their common enemies today, including the US. READ MORE: Israel Will Retaliate if Iran Attacks Tel Aviv — Defense Minister Contentious relations between two Middle East nations swiftly deteriorated this month after two Israeli F-15 fighter jets attacked the T-4 airbase in Syria, killing seven Iranians operating in the country on behalf of the Syrian government.

The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee has approved the confirmation of Mike Pompeo to be the next Secretary of State. Pompeo, who is currently the director of the CIA, was nominated by Trump to replace Rex Tillerson. Sputnik discussed this with Dr. Kyle Kopko, Associate Professor of Political Science at Elizabethtown College. Sputnik: What are your thoughts on the vote and that Pompeo almost got rebuked by the committee? Dr. Kyle Kopko: The tension on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee wasn't entirely surprising given just how polarized the state of national politics is and the fractions that we observe within Congress. As previously noted senator Rand Paul was the biggest hold out but after he receive personal assurances from President Trump that Pompeo shared his views that intervention in Iraq was a foreign policy mistake then that was enough to persuade senator Paul, and of course Democrats within Congress, particularly on Senate Foreign Relations Committee were also concerned about Pompeo's past views on homosexuality as being immoral, and whether or not he would support human rights abroad. READ MORE: Prof: 'Pompeo Will Influence Trump Away From Pulling US Out of Foreign Affairs' Also, there's concern about his stance on the religion of Islam. He had made comments before as a congressman that if Islamic religious leaders didn't speak up to condemn extremism they would be considered complicit in acts of violence, and so he was able to walk back a lot of those statements during his testimony. Sputnik: What can we expect from the new diplomat? A U.S. soldier sits on an armored vehicle on a newly installed position, near the tense front line between the U.S-backed Syrian Manbij Military Council and the Turkish-backed fighters, in Manbij, north Syria, Wednesday, April 4, 2018 © AP PHOTO / HUSSEIN MALLA Ex-US Army Officer: US Agressive Information Campaign Heralds Strikes on Syria Dr. Kyle Kopko: He had these previously stated views that seemed very hawkish but at the same time during his Senate confirmation hearings he seemed to take a much more measured diplomatic approach. I think that he's going to try restore faith in the State Department, there's some concern that too many diplomats have exited since Rex Tillerson served as Secretary of State. I also think that Pompeo will be likely to convey to allies and enemies abroad the strength of US military forces but he will also use every means possible to arrive at a diplomatic solution. I think that his secret meeting with Kim Jong-un was indicative of that. Sputnik: Everybody is concerned about the Iranian nuclear deal, do you think that Pompeo will indeed have an impact on that deal? Dr. Kyle Kopko: Very much so. As Secretary of State if there was to be a renegotiation or withdrawal from the deal he would be expected to take a leading role in these negotiations or shaping what the next iteration might look like, or just withdrawing altogether, and he has been critical of the Iran nuclear deal in the past. If I had to take a guess I suspect that there will be attempts to renegotiate and try to influence Iran's influence in the Middle East, particularly, their influence in Syria or supporting Hezbollah in particular, and that's something that director Pompeo has been very critical of in past speeches. Sputnik: What do you think is the main problem that is seen for Trump and for Pompeo with the nuclear deal as it is? Dr. Kyle Kopko: I think it's a combination of things. It's the ability for Iran to still produce some uranium and plutonium, and I think there's always concern that there could be covert actions to still develop a nuclear weapon within Iran, but to the larger issue of influence in the Middle East I think that the Trump administration is frustrated that their influence in Syria in support of what US intelligence and State Department entities believe to be terrorist groups in the Middle East, that too is a very big concern for the Trump administration, and that was largely unaddressed in the previous iteration of the Iran nuclear deal. President Donald Trump, accompanied by CIA Director-designate Rep. Michael Pompeo, left, waits to speak at the Central Intelligence Agency in Langley, Va., Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017 © AP PHOTO / ANDREW HARNIK US ‘Diplomats are Begging for Help’ - and Could Do Worse Than Pompeo So I could see the renegotiations centering on those types of issues moving forward. Allies and enemies of the United States abroad have realized that President Trump likes to use very harsh rhetoric and that is sort of his normal operating procedure, so even though he has made some very critical comments about the Iran nuclear deal this could be saber-rattling, hoping to set the stage for favorable negotiations, and I'm sure that is something that diplomats within the State Department are aware of and other diplomats throughout the world are also aware of. Sputnik: What has Pompeo's stance been in the past on North Korea specifically? Dr. Kyle Kopko: For North Korea he does view this as a vital threat to the United States, ending their nuclear program is something of great importance to national security, and I think he has a vested interest in making sure that North Korea ends that program so they don't destabilize the region, and also do not develop any more weapons capable of hitting the United States. This is something that I think he's personally invested in given that he has met with President Kim Jong-un in North Korea. So this will be a defining moment of what would be his term as Secretary of State. Sputnik: What kind of effect do you think Pompeo will have, if any, on the relations between the US and China? Dr. Kyle Kopko: As Secretary of State I think he will have a great deal of influence and sway over any sort of negotiations between the United States and China. To be perfectly honest no one wants to have bad relations with China within the United States. READ MORE: Attacking the Syrian Army Will Make 'US Look Very Bad' — Donald Trump, 2013 Our markets are interdependent, we need each other to have a healthy economy, and I know that there are concerns about a trade war developing between the United States and China, particularly, in regard to tariffs on steel and aluminum, and also concerns over China confiscating intellectual property of American businesses abroad. So I think that Pompeo certainly wants to see favorable terms negotiated for American businesses in China, but at the same time we need China's markets, China's market need American markets as well, so it's in everyone's best interest to work something out. Sputnik: How popular is this choice? What are people saying about Trump's choice of Mike Pompeo? Dr. Kyle Kopko: It's a choice that I think his base strongly supports and detractors of President Trump will not support it. It's sort of politics as usual within the United States, and I think that there is a fair number of folks who just don't know enough about director Pompeo. Obviously, they know that he's the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, that he has taken more of a hawkish stance, and they're just waiting to see whether or not he can shift from taking those hawkish stances to taking more diplomatic stances in this new role. READ MORE: US Exceptional, Russia Is Not? Pompeo Is in for Some Major Shocks — Twitterians Pompeo and Trump both share a lot of the same policy views, particularly, when it comes to Iran and North Korea, and there was tension between President Trump and Secretary Tillerson on some of those very issues. Secretary Tillerson wanted to take a less hardline stand, exercise more diplomacy, move a little slower and that was something that frustrated President Trump even though he had known Secretary Tillerson for years. In this case, there seem to be some similarities on policy even though Pompeo and Trump do not have a very long personal history together. The views and opinions expressed by the speaker do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.

The matter of the UK's post-Brexit trade relationship with the European Union (EU), especially with regard to London-based financial institutions having access to European financial markets, has proven to be a key, contested issue in Brexit talks. European Chief Negotiator Michel Barnier said today that Brexit is a lose-lose situation and warned that the cost of Brexit will be "substantially" higher for the UK than the European Union. The senior EU official, who has headed the team of EU negotiators in Brexit talks with the UK, also said the bloc's financial stability cannot be maintained if financial institutions are able to operate in the EU without authorization from the regulators of a third country. He went on to insist that the equivalence system will be used to manage the UK's relationship with the EU and added that it would be "more effective" if the UK government continues to adhere to EU regulations. The UK government, particularly hardline Brexiteers, have expressed opposition to the system. "Why would the equivalence system, which works well for the U.S. industry, not work for the City?," Mr. Barnier said during a financial conference in Sofia on Thursday. The EU's equivalence system consists of Brussels assessing applications for financial institutions to operate in the union by taking into consideration the regulations of the prospect organization's home country, to see if they are similar enough to the EU's. Vice President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis described the system as a "pragmatic solution" for providing the UK with access to the EU's financial market. "To sum up: equivalence is not perfect, neither for firms nor for supervisors. But we should not let perfect be the enemy of good. Equivalence has proven to be a pragmatic solution that works in many different circumstances, and it can work for the UK after Brexit as well," the vice president of the European Commission told the City Week conference in London earlier this month. READ MORE: UK Liable to Pay 'Brexit Bill' Even Without Deal With EU – National Audit Office The UK voted to exit the EU in mid-2016 via a nationwide referendum, with just over half of voters voting in favor of leaving the bloc. Earlier this year, negotiations yielded a draft transition deal, but a number of issues, such as the Irish border, are yet to be solved.

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis has explained his country's decision not to withdraw troops from Syria during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, referring to increased Daesh offensives in the region. "Right now we are not withdrawing [US troops from Syria]," Mattis told the Senate Armed Services Committee. "We are continuing the fight, we are going to expand it and bring in more regional support." According to the top US defense official, the United States will expand its anti-Daesh operation with the help of regional states. Mattis also noted that the presence of US forces in Syria remains critical, especially in the areas liberated from the Daesh terrorist group. Amid Trump's statements concerning the mulled pullout of US troops, Defense Secretary James Mattis has previously outlined the possibility of terrorist groups regrouping in remote positions in Syria, saying to the US president that the withdrawal would reverse the progress achieved so far. READ MORE: While Trump Wants Pullout From Syria, Officials Reportedly Advise the Opposite On March 3, US President Donald Trump announced his plans to pull the country's troops out from Syria in the near-term, which was met with a conflicting reaction from the president's special envoy to the US-led coalition, Brett McGurk, as well as incoming US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Joseph Dunford, as well as a number of other officials. Following the strong reaction from the officials, Trump decided to keep troops in Syria. However, according to a representative of his administration, "he wasn't thrilled about it, to say the least". Trump told reporters on Tuesday he would like to bring US military forces home, but will not do so until the United States leaves "strong and lasting footprint" in the region. READ MORE: Trump Agrees to Keep Troops in Syria — Administration Official The United States has maintained a military presence in Syria since 2014, leading a coalition of allies in the fight against Daesh, without a UN mandate or authorization from the Syrian government. Damascus has consistently called the US military presence in the country "illegal." READ MORE: US Mulled Sending More Troops to Syria Before Trump's Call to Leave — Reports Communication With Russia in Syria Speaking about the communication line between Russian and US forces in Syria, Mattis noted that it has never been interrupted. "Right now in Syria, we have an open and never interrupted deconfliction communication line that has worked pretty well to make certain we do not run afoul of one another’s forces or one another’s operations," Mattis told the Senate Armed Services Committee. READ MORE: Pompeo Likely to 'Convey to Allies, Enemies' Strength of US Army — Professor The US and Russian military commanders set up deconfliction communication channels last year, aimed to avoid any accidents between their forces as both sides recaptured territory from Daesh along opposite sides of the Euphrates River. As part of these efforts, US and Russian forces maintain three telephone lines of communication — one for ground troops, another for air forces, and a third for senior commanders. *Daesh, also known as ISIL/ISIS/IS, is a terrorist group banned in Russia and many other countries According to Mattis, the US Department of Defense cannot accuse Russia of jamming US drones in Syria, Defense Secretary James Mattis said in a congressional hearing on Thursday. "I cannot target the responsibility to the Russians. Also, there are Iranians there and of course the regime forces," Mattis told the US Senate Armed Services Committee in response to a question whether Russian forces are jamming US drones and conducting warfare operations. On April 10, NBC News reported citing US officials that Russia has been jamming US military drones operating in Syria and thus hampering US military operations in the country and the region. READ MORE: Boosting Syrian Air Defenses Will Scale Down US, Israeli Ambitions — Lawmaker The head of the US Special Operations Command Gen. Raymond Thomas said on Wednesday that US adversaries in Syria are carrying out electronic warfare attacks against US Air Force gunships operating in that country. READ MORE: Iran Suggests Countering 'Hostile' US Measures Together With Russia, China Sanctions Against Allies The US Secretary of Defense went on by speaking about a national security waiver that would exempt certain US allies including Vietnam and India from secondary sanctions when they conduct arms trade with Russia. "There are nations in the world who are trying to turn away from formerly Russian-sourced weapons and systems. We only need to look at India, Vietnam and some others to recognize that eventually, we are going to parallelize ourselves. So what we ask for is the Senate and the House pass a national security waiver in the hand of the Secretary of State," Mattis said. Under the US Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, countries that conduct arms deals with Russia risk secondary sanctions. Some US allies including Vietnam and India have Russian-made weapons hardware that they want to modernize without risking sanction. READ MORE: Shuttle Diplomacy: What's Behind Macron's Three-Day Visit to Washington

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders has told reporters that the date for the US president's working visit to Britain has been set. The White House's statement has been confirmed by the UK. "Yes, that's correct, a working visit, not a state visit," the Downing Street press office said, when asked whether London confirms information about Trump's July 13 visit to the United Kingdom. READ MORE: Trump, May Agree on 'Vital' Need to Deter Future 'Chemical Attacks' After Call British Ambassador to the United States Kim Darroch welcomed the upcoming meeting between Donald Trump and Prime Minister Theresa May. In January, Trump canceled plans to travel to London in February to open the new US embassy, saying in a Twitter post that he did not agree with the location or the price tag. A trip this summer would be Trump's first official visit to the United Kingdom since his election in 2016

The local fire chief has reported that at least six people have been injured as a result of the fire. No immediate information as to the reasons of the explosion is available at the moment. Previously, Wisconsin Public Radio informed, quoting Superior Police Chief Nick Alexander, that the local law enforcement services had received a report of a fire at the refinery, owned by Husky Energy in Superior, at around 10:05 a.m. local time on Thursday. "Typically fires that have the potential to be a larger scale, which something involving a refinery where there's combustible materials and so on, we basically respond to assist the fire department and control access to the area, make sure that we're stopping people from going into potentially an unsafe area," the police chief stated. According to the media, firefighters and police forces have been deployed to the site.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The US Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved a bill to protect the Special Counsel Robert Mueller and preserve his Russia investigation. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 14-7 in favor of the Special CounselIndependence and Integrity Act (s. 2644), but it remains unclear whether the legislation will advance to the Senate floor for a vote. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he will not allow the bill to be put to a vote on the Senate floor. Senator Cory Booker said after Thursday's vote that he hopes McConnell will reconsider his decision now that the committee has approved the legislation. "I hope that Senator McConnell will listen to the growing crescendo of voices on both sides of the aisle calling for this legislation and bring it to the floor for a vote as quickly as possible," Booker said in a statement. READ MORE: Court Summons Trump Campaign, Assange in Lawsuit by US Democrats — Documents The bill would stipulate that a special counsel appointed by the Justice Department can only be removed under certain circumstances, such as misconduct, dereliction of duty or incapacity. The legislation would also allow for a review of any removal by a court of three judges. READ MORE: Lawsuit Against Russia, WikiLeaks, Trump 'Chance for Dems to Raise Money' — Prof

The April 26, 1986 accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant affected the lives of millions of people. Nearly 8.4 million residents of Belarus, Ukraine and Russia were exposed to radiation and more than 400,000 were relocated from heavily polluted territories. There are about five million people, including around 1.6 million in Russia currently living in areas with a low level of radiation but officially recognized as polluted. All these people have been monitored by health authorities for more than 30 years now. The medical and environmental consequences of the Chernobyl disaster have been compounded by many negative social and socio-psychological processes that remain relevant to this day. Many of them are very much similar to what people resettled from contaminated areas after the accident at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant in Japan have experienced and continue to experience today. Above all, this is increased anxiety which they felt in the immediate aftermath of the accident and which many of them still feel now. This is largely due to the fact that people did not know what happened or how to react. In the absence of reliable and sufficient information in the first days and months after the accident at the NPP, people could not assess the danger and decide whether to leave or stay, to let children go outside or not, what to eat and what not to, etc. What they feel now is irrational fear, unrelated to the fact that their lives are not currently in danger. But this is the psychological aftereffect of the catastrophe they have experienced. In another consequence of the Chernobyl disaster people lost their trust in authorities, health workers, scientists, international organizations, including the IAEA and WHO which is exactly what happened to people after the Three Mile Island and Fukushima accidents. To avoid panic, the authorities did not provide full information about had happened. However, sometimes they were not completely in the know themselves and could not quickly and adequately assess the situation. Twenty years after Chernobyl, former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev admitted: "The government did not hide the truth about the Chernobyl disaster. It just did not know the whole truth itself." In the absence of official information, people relied on hearsay feeding off rumors. This further exacerbated the situation and the general atmosphere of distrust. After the Chernobyl catastrophe many people were evacuated and experienced serious stress caused by what is called the destruction of the community. Rapid resettlement, the breakdown of social ties, changing lifestyle, a sense of uncertainty, fear of unemployment in a new place – all these symptoms were observed in people after the Chernobyl accident and in Fukushima. Years later, this stress has dissipated but the anxiety for the health of children and future generations is still there. This parental anxiety has been passed onto their children. Even though children's adaptive abilities are better than in adults, many of them also experienced stress and a sense of discomfort, for example, when they were teased by their classmates in a new school. Here is an excerpt from the interview Sputnik had with Belarusian journalist Ales Dostanko who witnessed the events of those days: "I was 12 when the children of people resettled from the contaminated areas came to our summer camp. We did not know what contaminated territories were really all about, but we still felt that radiation is a scary thing. Initially we avoided mixing with them. Some called them "Chernobyl hedgehogs" and the moniker stuck. I think it contained both sympathy and fear of catching radiation, as if it were some sort of virus." Only after the Fukushima accident did the world nuclear community finally adopt unprecedented safety requirements for nuclear power plants. Automated radiation control systems are now in place around all of Russia's nuclear power plants allowing anyone who would like to assess the situation not only at nuclear power plants, but also at other radiation-hazardous facilities. However, the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters have left such a deep imprint on the public consciousness that the irrational fear of nuclear power plants and other nuclear enterprises still runs high and this applies in equal measure to both Russia and Japan.

The bank’s first financial report following the replacement of its CEO and several other top executives, as well as the change in its expansion strategy, suggests that it may reduce its costlier and risker branches, focusing on wealthy European clients. Deutsche Bank has released its financial report for the first quarter of 2018, according to which the bank has lost upwards of 80% of its net profit over the last year (120 million euros, versus 575 million in 2017). Its revenues declined by 5% to 7 billion euros in the last quarter. This is the bank's first financial report after its former CEO John Crya was replaced by Christian Sewing on April 8. According to the new CEO, the report shows the "need for immediate action." He promised that for now, the bank will focus on increasing revenues and reducing costs. READ MORE: Deutsche Bank to Raise Extra $8.5Bln in Capital to Keep Market Share The report notes that Deutsche Bank is planning on withdrawing from risky and costly trading and lending activities, opting instead to focus on working with wealthy private European clients and companies. As a result of the change, certain branches are expected to be shrunk and certain top executive changes have already been made. Namely, investment banking co-head Marcus Schenck and operations and technology chief Kim Hammonds are expected to leave the company in the near future, the bank earlier announced.

French President Emmanuel Macron has emerged nothing short of an "EU speaker" during his three-day visit to Washington, Russian academic Gevorg Mirzayan noted, adding that the French president’s shuttle diplomacy has yet to bear fruit. It appears that French President Emmanuel Macron has found the way to Donald Trump's heart, Gevorg Mirzayan, an associate professor at the Department of Political Science at the Finance University of the Russian Government, noted in his op-ed, shedding light on how the French leader may capitalize on this personal chemistry. There are certain grounds for a US-French rapprochement, the academic believes: First, the two leaders were initially seen as outsiders during the presidential race; second, in contrast to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Macron has never lambasted Trump; third, as Foreign Policy magazine remarked, the US has a relatively small trade deficit with France, let alone Paris's spending over 2 percent of its GDP on NATO — to the satisfaction of Washington. "Naturally, the French president is making every effort to monetize his status," Mirzayan said, suggesting that his relationship with Trump has already provided a certain benefit to Macron. "There is nothing that flatters Gallic pride more than a French president on the global stage, alongside the leader of what remains the world's most powerful country," as The Guardian, a British daily newspaper, noted. French President Macron as 'Mediator' According to Mirzayan, Macron could negotiate at least four global issues with Trump, serving as a sort of European broker. First, it's an issue of the additional tariffs imposed by Trump on steel and aluminum imports in March 2018. It was reported that while holding talks with his American counterpart, Macron asked Trump not to extend the protectionist measure to the Old Continent, providing it instead with permanent exemption from the new tariffs. "You cannot make a trade war with your allies," Macron told Fox News Sunday on the eve of his trip to Washington. "It's too complicated. If you make war against everybody, you make trade war against China, trade war against Europe, war in Syria, war against Iran — come on — it doesn't work. You need allies." Second, the Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) reached on July 14, 2015, between Iran, the P5+1 and the European Union, remains one of the most burning issues for the EU as Trump is about to withdraw from it. Once the deal is ripped up by Washington, the EU would find itself on the horns of a dilemma: whether to adhere to the US anti-Iranian sanctions policy and lose billions of euros invested in the Iranian economy or oppose the White House and reap a bitter harvest of confrontation with the US. Macron believes that a mutually-beneficial compromise could be reached on the issue. Addressing the US Congress, he emphasized that France will not leave the nuclear deal. However, at the end of his visit to Washington, the French president suggested that Trump "will get rid of this deal on his own, for domestic reasons." Third, Paris tries to persuade Washington to stay in Syria. Earlier, Trump has repeatedly reiterated that he wants US troops to return home as soon as possible. "I would love to get out. I would love to bring our incredible warriors back home," Trump said during Macron's visit. However, the US president added: "But I want to come home also with having accomplished what we have to accomplish." For his part, the French president vowed to increase the country's military presence in Syria and back the US military servicemen in the country's north, during a press conference at George Washington University on April 25. "Your president [Donald Trump] said he would stop the involvement of US troops as soon as the war against Daesh [ISIS/ISIL]* is completed. We're in the same position… Our willingness is to be totally committed in this war against ISIS, no more than that," Macron stated. Previously, France took part in the joint missile strike on Syria together with the US and the UK on April 14. The coalition fired about 103 missiles, 71 of which were successfully intercepted by Syrian air defense systems. The attack was presented as a response to the alleged use of chemical weapons in Douma, Eastern Ghouta, groundlessly blamed on Syrian government forces. Fourth, it is possible that Macron could become a mediator between the US and Russia, Mirzayan suggested. German Chancellor Angela Merkel cannot play this role, as she has spoiled relations with both Trump and President Vladimir Putin, the academic presumed. "It is no coincidence that [Macron] has not canceled his visit to the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, despite the Skripal [poisoning] case and hysteria over a fake story about a chemical attack in Douma," the contributor pointed out, suggesting that it is possible that the French leader would hand the Russian president a message from Trump and receive a reply message during his visit to Russia. Only time will tell what fruits Macron's shuttle diplomacy will bear for the EU, Russia and the whole world, the academic concluded. French President Emmanuel Macron's official visit to Washington lasted for three days starting on April 23 and ending on April 25. The French president held talks with Trump, including a one-on-one negotiation, delivered a speech to the US Congress and at George Washington University. *Daesh (ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist group banned in Russia. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the contributor and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Sputnik.

White Helmets, an NGO with ties to Syrian terrorists, reported in early April an alleged chemical attack in Douma, which they claim was performed by the Syrian government, which has rejected the accusations. The Syrian SANA news agency has published an interview with Bara Badran, a Syrian doctor who worked at the ER Department in Douma Hospital (also known as Medical Point 1) on April 7, when the alleged chemical attack took place. According to him, as a result of an aerial operation against terrorist groups in Douma, several fires broke out in the nearby areas with clouds of dust and smoke rising up. Several people went to the medical facility for help, suffering from respiratory problems due to smoke and dust inhalation. This is when the White Helmets' "film crew" appeared, he said. "As the patients were being treated, a number of strangers stormed into the hospital and began shouting "chemical attack," causing panic throughout the hospital. The strangers then watered everyone, setting off a melee and commotion, all the while trying to whip up a frenzy," Badran said. He added that there were no cases of chemical poisoning during the seven years that he spent in the ER. READ MORE: OPCW Finds No Chemical Weapons at Syrian Facilities Bombed by US — Russian MoD Early in April the White Helmets, a Western-backed NGO caught with ties to Syrian jihadists, reported that chemical weapons were allegedly used against civilians by Syrian government forces in Douma. Damascus has rejected the allegations, reminding that it has destroyed its chemical arsenal under the OPCW charter. Russia sent its chemical weapons specialists to the site of the alleged attack but found no traces of their use. Damascus and Moscow have invited OPCW mission to investigate the alleged incident. READ MORE: Terrorists' Chemical Weapon Plant Discovered in Syria's Douma (PHOTO) However, prior to the arrival of the OPCW mission to Syria, the US, UK and France, without mandate from the UN, conducted a massive missile strike against Syria, claiming that it was in retaliation for the chemical attack, targeted alleged chemical weapon production facilities. Syria and Russia have slammed the strikes, claiming that their only purpose was to support retreating terrorist forces. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the OPCW mission has studied the objects that were targeted by the three states, but has not found any traces of chemical weapons there.

In the latest National Defense Strategy, the Pentagon designated “revisionist” Russia and China and “rogue” Iran as security threats to the United States. During a two-day security conference in Sochi, Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, met with Chinese Public Security Minister Guo Shengkun to discuss the prospects of adopting a common strategy for Tehran, Moscow and Beijing to counter Washington’s “hostile measures.” "The US has put Russia, China and Iran in the list of threats to its national security and implements sanctions against the three countries. So, adopting a joint strategy to counter Washington's comprehensive attempts at harming these countries is necessary,” Shamkhani said, as cited by Iran’s Tasnim news agency. Shamkhani addressed the issue of terrorism, which has threatened international peace and stability, stressing that the US and its allies are trying to protect terrorists in Syria under the pretext of the alleged use of chemical weapons by the country’s government forces in the city of Douma. READ MORE: Macron: France Will Not Leave Iran Nuclear Deal On April 14, the United States, joined by France and the United Kingdom, fired over a 100 missiles at multiple targets in Syria as retaliation for the alleged chemical incident in Douma. Muslim Nations Should Stand United Also on Thursday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Muslim nations to unite against the United States. “The Iranian nation has successfully resisted bullying attempts by America and other arrogant powers and we will continue to resist… All Muslim nations should stand united against America and other enemies,” he said. Khamenei’s remarks came shortly after President Donald Trump suggested that some nations in the Middle East “wouldn’t last a week” without US protection. READ MORE: Macron Tells US France Committed to Iran Nuclear Deal, Syria Political Solution Tensions between Tehran and Washington have heightened, as President Trump is challenging the historic 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran, signed by the P5+1 group – China, Germany, Russia, France, the UK and the US. POTUS has repeatedly slammed the so-called Iran deal – the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – as the worst deal of all time and has threatened to withdraw unilaterally if the agreement was not amended. Meanwhile, other signatories to the deal have consistently reiterated their commitment to the deal, calling on the US to comply with the agreement’s provisions and insisting that it was non-negotiable. French President Emmanuel Macron said that the accord should not be abandoned before they have something to replace it with, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Russia favored preserving the JCPOA “in its current form,” stressing that Moscow sees no alternative to it. The breakthrough deal stipulates a gradual lifting of anti-Tehran sanctions in exchange for Iran maintaining the peaceful nature of its nuclear program, pledging not to develop or acquire nuclear weapons.

French President Emmanuel Macron visited the Oval Office in Washington on Tuesday for the first time since Donald Trump became US president. Radio Sputnik discussed the relations between France and the US and the future of the Iran nuclear deal with Sina Azodi, a US-based expert on Tehran's foreign policy and US-Iranian relations. Sputnik: The US and France, of course, historically have good relations. The presidents of the two countries are also noted to have a close relationship, or even friendship, which some have characterized as a "bromance." How much influence do these two leaders have currently on the state of global affairs? Sina Azodi: Well, the "bromance," as you said, has shown itself more during Macron's presidency, tenure, and President Trump. To go back to your question, France is increasingly trying to separate itself, in my opinion, from Europe, and because they are trying to maintain their relationship with the US, and the UK has its own troubles with the EU, and Germany, as Chancellor Merkel mentioned, they are not happy with how President Trump is acting, and she believes that President Trump doesn't share the same values that Europe shares. So, France, I think, is increasingly becoming closer to the US. READ MORE: Trump Thanks Macron for 'Steadfast Partnership' in US-Led Strikes on Syria Sputnik: Trump does not have a very good relationship with the rest of Europe, and a lot of the leaders of European countries feel that Trump is the opposite of what European standards and what European morals and everything else are about. Macron obviously has a good relationship within Europe. He has a good relationship with other European leaders. Why do you think it is that he is able to overlook Trump's many discrepancies with European values? Sina Azodi: Well, as the president of France, I think Macron is interested in the interests of his own country and his own tenure. And as I said, he wants to use the opportunity to basically "make France great again." Maybe President Macron is a relatively young president, I mean, compared to President Trump. But, as I said, they have their own interests. And they also want to make sure that France plays an important role in global affairs. And I think with this special relationship that I mentioned with President Trump, he can use this opportunity to achieve that goal which, as I said, it's not really a term, "make France great again." Sputnik: What are the issues that they disagree upon, if you talk about Trump and Macron? Sina Azodi: I think there are three important issues, and President Macron has mentioned all three of them. One is in Syria. France has basically insisted that the US should stay in Syria despite President Trump's feelings that the US should withdraw. There is one. The second is the trade war with EU. Again, President Macron mentioned that you can't really have wars with everyone, including your own allies. You can't have a trade war with China, and then another trade war with Europe. So, that's the second issue. READ MORE: Trump Warns Iran Against Restarting Nuclear Program And I think the third issue, which, I think, would be on the top of agenda for President Macron's trip, would be the Iran nuclear deal or the JCPOA. France wants the United States to stay in the JCPOA, but President Trump has said it repeatedly that he is not happy with how the JCPOA works and that they want to withdraw by the May 12 deadline. Sputnik: I think that Macron has said he feels that he will be able to convince Donald Trump not to pull out of the JCPOA. What are your thoughts on the chances that Macron will be able to convince Trump to stay in that deal for now and for a longer period of time? Sina Azodi: I'd like to be cautiously optimistic that he can be successful. But it's really hard with President Trump because, you know, he decides something and then last minute he changes his decision. So, we really have to wait until May 12 and see what President Trump would do on that particular date. But it is important that the Europeans, the Germans and the French, they'll see more of the consequences of the US withdrawal from the deal, because they are closer to Iran geographically, they have diplomatic relations, they have trade relations, so they will suffer more from a US withdrawal from the JCPOA than the US. The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.

On Monday, US President Donald Trump welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, to the White House, making them the Trump administration’s first state visitors. Gilbert Mercier, editor-in-chief of News Junkie Post and author of "The Orwellian Empire," told Radio Sputnik's Loud & Clear that Macron believes he can "influence" Trump on global matters without behaving as his "poodle," in the fashion of former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair when he first visited former US President George W Bush in 2001. "I think Macron and Trump are trying to consolidate a strange friendship. They claim to be very good friends," Mercier told hosts John Kiriakou and Brian Becker. On Monday, Macron tweeted, "The United States and France share a long history, we have led revolutions together to defend freedom and democracy. It is our turn to live up to the example set by our history." "One of the main issues I think they are going to talk about is the Iran nuclear deal," Mercier added. Trump has repeatedly criticized the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), more commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, an international agreement on Iran's nuclear program established in July 2015 between Iran, the US and five other countries, including France. The agreement was negotiated by former US President Barack Obama's administration as a way to ensure the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program. Under the agreement, Iran pledged to not seek, develop or acquire nuclear weapons in exchange for the lifting of sanctions imposed against the country. In January, Trump asked Congress to address "flaws" in the agreement, which include the deal's failure to curb Iran's missile program, the terms that outline when international inspectors can visit suspected Iranian nuclear sites and "sunset" clauses under which limits on Iran's nuclear program begin to expire after 10 years. Last year, Trump also announced that he would waive sanctions on Tehran, as is periodically required under the JCPOA, for the last time. He warned that unless European allies fix the flaws in the agreement by May 12, he will restore US economic sanctions on Iran. "I think that Macron is going to be offering Trump sanctions that are out of scope of the Iran nuclear deal. These are new sanctions that target Iranian ballistic missile development outside the scope of the JCPOA that can give Trump the ability to say, ‘Look, we have something else to get tough on Iran with,'" Sputnik news analyst Walter Smolarek said on the show. In a Sunday interview with Fox News, Macron said, "Is this agreement perfect and this JCPOA a perfect thing for our relationship with Iran? No. But for nuclear — what do you have? As a better option? I don't see it," Macron said. "What is the plan B?" "Let's preserve this framework [rather] than some sort of North Korean-type of situation," he added. Mercier noted that Macron doesn't want to be viewed as Trump's "poodle," in part because he faces increasing pressures at home for it. "He claims he can influence Trump, that's the card he is playing. He thinks he is most qualified to influence Trump the good way. However, because of that, Macron's approval ratings in France are going down, because his [relationship] with Trump is not going to fare well with the liberal left [in France]." It's an opinion shared by some, including Ali Akbar Velayati, the top adviser to Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameini, who said in December 2017, "To sustain its international credibility, France should not blindly follow the Americans… The French president is now acting as Trump's lapdog," Fars News Agency reported at the time.

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Gareth Porter, a historian, investigative journalist, and the author of “Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare,” and Mohammad Marandi, an expert on American studies and postcolonial literature who teaches at the University of Tehran. French President Emmanuel Macron today held meetings with President Trump at the White House. Discussions focused on Iran and Syria. Trump is taking a hard line on the former, and Macron on the latter. The two also will discuss trade and counterterrorism today. The regular series "False Profits — A Weekly Look at Wall Street and Corporate Capitalism with Daniel Sankey" continues today focusing on Wells Fargo's criminal business practices, AT&T and Verizon's potentially criminal business practices, pay-for-quick-service emergency rooms, and new Facebook and Google privacy regulations that may hinder smaller companies. Financial policy analyst Daniel Sankey joins the show. The US media have taken a tough position against rapprochement with North Korea and the possibility for peace on the peninsula. Is this just a knee-jerk anti-Trump reaction or is there something else behind it? Brian and John speak with Steve Gowans, a journalist and author of "Washington's Long War on Syria." Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt today will propose a rule that would establish new standards for what science could be used in writing agency regulations. This is a rule change long sought by conservatives, who argue that only publicly-available information should be considered in EPA deliberations. Fred Magdoff, professor emeritus of plant and soil science at the University of Vermont and the co-author of "What Every Environmentalist Needs to Know About Capitalism" and "Creating an Ecological Society: Toward a Revolutionary Transformation," joins the show. A group of 109 retired generals and admirals have signed an open letter to the members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, asking them to reject the nomination of Gina Haspel as director of the CIA. The former military leaders say they are "deeply troubled by the prospect of someone who appears to have been intimately involved in torture being elevated to one of the most important positions of leadership in the intelligence community. Brian interviews John, who worked for the CIA for 15 years and has been featured across media networks against Gina Haspel's nomination due to her management of the CIA's torture program. A 25-year-old Toronto man drove a rented van through a crowd of people in that city yesterday, killing 10 and injuring at least 14. Canadian authorities have not said what Eric Manassian's motive was, and police are not using the word terrorism. But that hasn't stopped social media platforms from exploding over the issue, saying that Manassian is a Muslim and calling for more controls on refugees and immigrants into both Canada and the United States. Chris Black, an international criminal lawyer who is on the List of Counsel before the ICC, joins the show. In a dramatic act of civil disobedience seven peace activists were arrested while protesting at the Kings Bay Naval Base in Georgia, where submarines capable of firing a world-ending barrage of nuclear missiles are stationed. Brian and John speak with Paul Magno, the finance director at Nonviolence International, a decentralized network of resource centers that promote nonviolent action and a culture of peace.

Last week, the fact-finding mission of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) visited a site in the Damascus suburb of Douma to collect samples in connection with the alleged April 7 chemical attack. Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the Russian General Staff Col. Gen. Sergey Rudskoy has announced that the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) had confirmed that there were no chemical weapons found at the Barzeh research center in Damascus despite the US officials' claims. The official further noted that thousands of people could have died if there was any chemical weapon on the sites that were attacked by the US-led coalition. "Immediately after the attacks, many people who worked at these destroyed facilities and just bystanders without any protective equipment visited them. None of them got poisoned with toxic agents," Rudskoy said. He said the logic of strikes on alleged facilities with toxic agents in Syria was unclear, because if toxic agents had theoretically been stored there, tens of thousands of people would have died after the cruise missile strikes. On US Airstrikes in Syria Intelligence data shows that Osa, Kvadrat, Buk, Strela-10, Pantsir and S-125 air defense systems destroyed 46 cruise missiles during the recent US-led strikes on Syria, Rudskoy said, adding that only 13 of 76 reported Western airstrikes hit targets near the Barzah research center in Syria. "Obtained intelligence data, objective control from air defense systems, work on the ground and the questioning of witnesses show that Pantsir, Osa, Strela-10, Buk, Kvadrat and S-125… destroyed 46 cruise missiles [in Syria]," Rudskoy said. According to Rudskoy, most of the precision weapons were destroyed by the Soviet-era air defense systems developed 40 years ago, with S-125, Osa and Kvadrat among them. READ MORE: Qatar Obliged to Send Troops to Syria to Keep Being Protected by US — Riyadh According to the military official, Russian specialists are examining missiles of the US-led coalition, including Tomahawk, which were captured in Syria to improve Russian weapons. "Two [missiles] including Tomahawk cruise missile and a high-precision aviation missile were delivered to Moscow… They are now being examined by our experts. The results of this work will be used to improve Russian weapons," he told a briefing. At the same time, air defense expert of the Russian Defense Ministry Sergei Beznogih said that the Russian General Staff showed remains of cruise missiles downed by Syrian air defense systems to journalists. "Elements of the sea-based US-made Tomahawk [missiles] and air-based UK-made and French-made SCALP and Storm Shadow [missiles] were displayed," Beznogih said. Meanwhile, Col. Gen. Sergey Rudskoy noted that only seven western missiles struck the Syrian Han Shinshar facility, which allegedly housed chemical weapons, not 22 as the Pentagon claims. READ MORE: US House Passes Bill Banning Aid for Assad-Controlled Syrian Territories The senior official stressed that chemical weapons were never developed or stored in Han Shinshar, located in the province of Homs, adding that the storage was struck twice, not seven times, as the US side claims. "According to the statements of the Pentagon’s representatives, 22 missiles hit the above-ground facilities. We registered no more than seven hits, which is shown in the space image," he told a briefing. Speaking further, Rudskoy noted that expensive "smart" US missiles only hit outbuildings in Syria which had nothing to do with the army. "The expensive and so-called ‘smart’ missiles inflicted the greatest damage on outbuildings which had nothing to do with military activity," he told a briefing. At the same time, according to the senior military official, Russia will supply new air defense systems to Syria in the near future. "Russian specialists will continue training Syrian military personnel, and will assist in mastering new air defense systems, which will be supplied in the near future," Rudskoy said. Earlier, reports have emerged about an alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria, published by an online Syrian opposition news portals on April 7, claiming that a chemical attack took place in Syria in the city of Douma near Damascus. READ MORE: Moscow Ready to Accept Results of OPCW's 'Qualified' Probe into Douma Incident Reacting to the reports, the United States and the European Union said the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad was behind the attack. Moscow has called the news reports about the attack "hoaxes" and warned against military attacks against Syrian areas where Russian troops are deployed. The Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria representatives inspected the location of the alleged attack and questioned local doctors, who said that they had not received individuals with symptoms of any chemical poisoning. However, despite the lack of evidence, the US, alongside France and the UK, launched a massive missile attack against Syria on April 14 in response to the alleged chemical attack in the city of Douma.

All the handshakes, hugs and smooching between Trump and Macron this week made for cringing viewing. Not because two males were being cordial and affectionate. No, the embarrassment stems from the French leader being such a pathetic poodle to the White House bully. The "dandruff moment" was perhaps the most revealing. At one point in the Oval Office, the American president interrupted himself mid-sentence to lean over to his French counterpart and he began grooming his collar, saying he was removing "dandruff". Macron seemed unfazed and continued smiling. READ MORE: 'Making France Great Again': Reasons Behind Trump-Macron 'Bromance' It was what Trump said next that was revealing. "We want him to be perfect… He is perfect." The Freudian slip from the American signified that the French president is little more than a cypher, a flunkey, a perfect little poodle for Washington. Does as he's told. During the three-day state visit, Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron gave the appearance of best buddies, of being equals. That's certainly what the French leader was striving to achieve. To be seen as the top European ally of America, and the European politician who best understands Trump, best manages the maverick American. In that way, Macron aims to make "France great again"; for it to be seen as a re-energized world power on an equal footing with the US. Since Macron was elected president last May, his stated goal has been to restore France as a great power. That seemed to be working to plan this week. Macron is the first international leader to be hosted by Trump in an official state visit. The British "special relationship" with Washington has been eclipsed; and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel who follows Macron's visit on Friday is being only afforded a low-key, one-day working meeting in the White House. READ MORE: Macron to Leverage ‘Strange Friendship’ with Trump to Protect Iran Deal But the optics of bonhomie and "bromance" aside, Macron's pretensions of standing alongside Trump as the "leaders of world freedom" are overblown. The proof of that came when Macron caved-in to Trump's antagonism over the Iranian nuclear deal. Saving that deal by keeping Trump onboard was supposed to be Macron's main mission in Washington DC. The day before Macron arrived, he gave an interview to Fox News asserting that "there was no Plan B" to the Iran nuclear accord which was signed in 2015 by the US, France, Britain, Germany, Russia and China. Macron was billed as the European leader who would persuade Trump to stick with the nuclear agreement. But this week, despite all the glad-handing with "my friend Emmanuel", Trump maintains an aggressive disdain for the Iran deal, hinting that he is ready to scrap it next month. And what was Macron's response? He said that France was now working with the US to "renegotiate a new deal" with Iran. So much for Macron standing up to Trump. Iran says that there will be no renegotiation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as it is formally known. The JCPOA was ratified by the UN Security Council after Iran and the six world powers signed it as a done deal in July 2015. Russia and China have also said there can be no backtracking on the accord. The Europeans were also stating this — at least up to this week before Macron's embarrassing U-turn. It will be very interesting to see what Merkel has to say on the matter when she arrives in Washington later this week. READ MORE: Trump Meets Macron as Washington Plans to Rip Up Iran Nuclear Arms Deal What the encounter between Trump and Macron shows this week is that the French president is nothing more than a lapdog. He may have been regaled with pomp and ceremony, and with florid rhetoric about representing "America's oldest ally". But in practice, all the show of two strong leaders standing side-by-side is corny public imaging. However, that's what makes Macron a particularly dangerous accessory to Trump. The French politician is evidently willing to bend over backwards to pander to Washington's demands. Macron's presumption of leading Europe is a pernicious delusion. Some media have even referred to him as "Trump's whisperer" — intimating that the young French president has a Svengali-like influence over the older American. In the days before the US, Britain and France carried out their illegal missile barrage against Syria on April 14, it was Macron to whom Trump turned to for advice on what action to take. Macron reportedly briefed Trump on "French intelligence" about the alleged chemical-weapons atrocity on April 7 in Douma, near Damascus. Macron also reportedly cajoled Trump to order the military strikes a week later. It has become clear now that the chemical-weapons incident on April 7 was a false-flag provocation staged by Western-backed militants. READ MORE: OPCW Finds No Chemical Weapons at Syrian Facilities Bombed by US — Russian MoD In other words, French "intelligence" was either faulty, or more likely a fabrication. But the upshot was that the US, Britain and France committed a grave war crime by attacking Syria. This is why Emmanuel Macron should give us the creeps. He is willing to say anything to ingratiate himself with the American president in order to inflate his world standing and that of his has-been colonial nation. All the effusive body language is that of a wannabe trying to be a statesman on the world stage. Macron, like his American "daddy", is taking it upon himself to unilaterally rip up an international treaty with Iran that other world powers and the UN have already finalized. In order to justify this outrageous bad-faith and backsliding, Macron is giving credence to Trump's calumny about Iran being a sponsor of terrorism, destabilizing the region, and illegally developing ballistic missiles. Macron is saying that a "new deal" with Iran will have to be made which will curb Iranian presence in Syria, allegedly in Yemen and the Middle East. The "Trump whisperer" is not an independent, principled European leader. He is a self-aggrandizing careerist who is willing to play to Trump's worst instincts and ignorance. Even if that means inciting more war in Syria and the Middle East. The views of the contributor do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.