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Joint Base Lewis-McChord

Travel Office

Official Travel Office - Lewis Main

2140 Liggett Ave.

Waller Hall (Room 600)

Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA 98433

253-966-1269

253-966-3034

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Fact Sheet: Secretary Austin's Tenth Trip to the Indo-Pacific Region

Starting on May 29, 2024, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III will travel to the Indo-Pacific region for the tenth time since taking office. His trip will occur as the Department of Defense continues to strengthen U.S. relationships with allies and partners to advance regional peace, stability, and deterrence. The Secretary will attend the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, meet with regional counterparts, and deliver plenary remarks highlighting a new convergence of likeminded Indo-Pacific partners who share a vision for a free and open region. He will also travel to Cambodia for meetings with senior officials following his first trip to the country as Secretary of Defense in November 2022. Under the leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration, the United States has delivered historic results in the Indo-Pacific by investing in regional capability, transforming U.S. force posture, and connecting allies and partners.

CONNECTING ALLIES AND PARTNERS   The United States is joining together with allies and partners across the Indo-Pacific to strengthen regional peace and security, including through bilateral, trilateral, and multilateral efforts with:

• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) , following the launch of an Emerging Leaders' Defense Fellowship Program for young civilian and defense leaders in Southeast Asia.
• Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK) , following the 2023 completion of a multi-year trilateral exercise plan and the full activation of a real-time DPRK missile warning data-sharing mechanism — two key deliverables announced at the August 2023 Camp David Summit. 
• Australia, Japan, and the Philippines , following the second-ever meeting of defense ministers from all four countries in May 2024, where they advanced their multilateral collaboration in support of a free, open, secure, and prosperous region.
• AUKUS partners, Australia and United Kingdom , following progress on advanced capabilities cooperation and implementation of the Optimal Pathway for Australia to obtain conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines. 
• The Freely Associated States , following the March 2024 passage of the Compact of Free Association Amendments Act by Congress, which funded the economic assistance at the heart of the Compacts of Free Association into the 2040s and supported U.S. defense ties with three vital Pacific Islands partners.
• Exercise BALIKATAN with the Philippines , which featured more than 16,000 members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the U.S. military, as well as Australian and French forces.
• Exercise SUPER GARUDA SHIELD with Indonesia and 17 other nations represented , which featured more than 4,000 service members who participated in amphibious and airborne operations training, as well as command and control simulation.
• Exercise COBRA GOLD with Thailand , which included 4,500 U.S. service members and participation from over 30 nations, including Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, and the ROK. 
• Exercise FREEDOM SHIELD with the ROK , a large-scale combined field exercise which featured more than 18,000 combined U.S. and ROK military forces and built combat readiness, as well as interoperability among participating units.

TRANSFORMING U.S. FORCE POSTURE

Under President Biden's leadership, the United States has delivered historic achievements with allies and partners to make U.S. force posture in the Indo-Pacific region more mobile, distributed, resilient, and lethal, including by:

• Forward deploying the Marine Corps' most advanced formation — a U.S. Marine Littoral Regiment — to Japan by 2025, significantly enhancing combat-credible deterrence.
• Bolstering deterrence and increasing strategic asset rotations to the Korean Peninsula , including visits by U.S. carrier strike groups, port calls by U.S. ballistic missile and U.S. guided missile submarines, and the first landing of a U.S. nuclear-capable B-52 on the Peninsula in decades.
• Requesting more than $120 million in funding for infrastructure improvements at Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites across the Philippines through the President's Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2025, following the February 2023 announcement by the United States and the Philippines that the two countries would designate four new EDCA sites in strategic areas of the Philippines.
• Launching a series of force posture initiatives with Australia , including more expeditionary visits of U.S. submarines, increased rotations of U.S. bombers and fighters, expanded Marine and ground forces cooperation, and continuing upgrades of key bases in Australia.
• Concluding a Defense Cooperation Agreement with Papua New Guinea (PNG) that builds on decades of bilateral defense and security cooperation, strengthens the U.S.-PNG relationship, and increases regional stability and security.

INVESTING IN REGIONAL CAPABILITY  

The United States is deploying cutting-edge military capabilities in the near term, developing long-term capabilities to maintain deterrence in the Indo-Pacific, and supporting allies and partners as they invest in their own strength by:

• Proposing major investments in U.S. military capabilities through the President's Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2025 , including $61.2 billion for air power; $48.1 billion for sea power; $33.7 billion for vital space capabilities; $14.5 billion for cyberspace activities; $4 billion to increase submarine production rates and availability; and $9.9 billion for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, which will invest in military construction, logistical support operations, and ballistic missile defense activities.
• Working closely with the Philippines to conclude a bilateral Security Sector Assistance Roadmap , which will guide shared defense modernization investments that bolster combined deterrence, improve the Philippines' capacity to resist coercion, and enhance interoperability.
• Supporting Japan as it seeks to substantially increase its defense budget and acquires new capabilities — including counterstrike — to strengthen regional deterrence.
• Modernizing the U.S.-ROK alliance through bilateral consultations, exercises, and asset deployments to strengthen peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and beyond.
• Collaborating with India on defense industry and innovation through the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X), co-production of armed combat vehicles and jet engines, and mid-voyage repairs of U.S. vessels.  
• Delivering greater maritime transparency through the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) , which enhances partners' abilities to monitor and police their waters.

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• Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-defense-secretary-lloyd-austin-gives-remarks-at-the-pentagon

WATCH: Defense Secretary Austin asks Moscow to explain troop buildup near Ukraine

WASHINGTON (AP) — American officials are unsure why Russian President Vladimir Putin is building up military forces near the border with eastern Ukraine but view it as another example of troubling military moves that demand Moscow’s explanation, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday.

Watch Austin’s remarks in the player above.

“We’ll continue to call on Russia to act responsibly and be more transparent on the buildup of the forces around on the border of Ukraine,” Austin told a Pentagon news conference, adding, “We’re not sure exactly what Mr. Putin is up to.”

He said the troop buildup has the Pentagon’s attention and that the Russians should be “more transparent about what they’re up to.”

Austin also criticized Russia for using a missile to shoot down one of its old satellites on Monday, an action that created hundreds of pieces of space debris that U.S. officials have said will be a long-term hazard to space operations.

“What’s most troubling about that is the danger that it creates for the international community,” Austin said. “It undermines strategic stability, and as you know, there’s a debris field there now that’ll be there forever. And it’s a safety concern. And so we would call upon Russia to act more responsibly going forward.”

Austin’s language on Russia’s use of an anti-satellite missile was milder than that of Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who has called the move “dangerous and irresponsible.” Blinken on Monday said it showed Russia is willing to “imperil the exploration and use of outer space by all nations.”

Russia’s Defense Ministry on Tuesday confirmed destroying a defunct satellite that has been in orbit since 1982, but it insisted “the U.S. knows for certain that the resulting fragments, in terms of test time and orbital parameters, did not and will not pose a threat to orbital stations, spacecraft and space activities.” It called remarks by U.S. officials “hypocritical.”

The Russian military buildup near Ukraine is of potentially bigger concern. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said last week that about 90,000 Russian troops are stationed not far from the border and in rebel-controlled areas in Ukraine’s east.

Russia has supported a separatist insurgency in Ukraine’s east that erupted shortly after Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and has left more than 14,000 people dead.

Earlier this year, a massive buildup of Russian troops in the Russia’s west raised concern in Ukraine and in the West, fueling fears of an escalation of hostilities. Russian officials said the troops were deployed for training, casting them as part of measures to counter security threats posed by the deployment of NATO forces near Russian borders.

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USDOT Announces “Support Our Troops” Dashboard to Improve Air Travel for Military Service Members and Their Families

Allegiant, Frontier, and Spirit took steps to enhance their travel benefits for service members 

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced a new “Support Our Troops” dashboard to help U.S. military service members and their immediate family members more easily access travel benefits offered by the 10 largest U.S. airlines. The dashboard clearly displays each airlines’ commitments to service members and their immediate family as reflected in their Customer Service Plan at flightrights.gov/military , including benefits such as free carry-on and checked bags and providing refunds without additional fees when their flight plans change due to a military order or directive. 

 “As someone who often flew on military orders as an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, I know the unique pressures our service members and their families can face when traveling,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg . “Service members and their families make extraordinary commitments and sacrifices for this country, and they deserve support and recognition whenever they fly.” 

Following Secretary Buttigieg’s call-to-action to airlines to improve military travel benefits, Spirit Airlines, Allegiant Air, and Frontier Airlines stepped up their existing commitments in their Customer Service Plan for service members and their families. Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue Airways, and United Airlines declined to make clear and enforceable commitments to U.S. service members and their families. Southwest Airlines has received two green checkmarks on the dashboard because of its existing baggage and change fee policies that apply to all passengers.  In making determinations on which commitments are reflected on the dashboard, DOT’s Office of Aviation Consumer Protection consulted with the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and highlighted those commitments that the Department believes are most meaningful to service members and their families.  

The “Support Our Troops” dashboard highlights benefits that make air travel easier for U.S. service members and their immediate family members when engaging in personal travel. DOT’s dashboard gives a green checkmark to an airline for each benefit that the airline commits to provide:

• Waives cancellation fees and ensures full refunds for service members and accompanying family members who cancel travel plans due to a military order or directive (documentation may be required).  
• Waives change fees for service members and accompanying family members who reschedule flights due to a military order or directive (documentation may be required).  
• At least one free standard carry-on and at least two free standard checked bags for service members and their accompanying spouse and children with appropriate identification such as a valid military ID.  
• The lowest fare for a flight for immediate family members to visit service members recently injured in the line of duty with supporting documentation.

DOT defines “service member” for the purpose of the “Support Our Troops” dashboard as current members of the military who are serving or may be called to serve. This definition was developed with input from DOD. At a minimum, these members include:

• U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marines, U.S. Space Force, U.S. Coast Guard, National Guard, and U.S. Military Reserves with a current valid military ID; 
• Cadets of the Air Force Academy, West Point, Naval Academy, Coast Guard Academy, and Merchant Marine Academy with a current valid military ID; and 
• Commissioned Corps and Ready Reserve Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service and Commissioned Officers Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Officer Corps with current valid military ID.  

Airlines may offer additional benefits to service members and their families. For their benefits to be reflected on the dashboard, however, airlines are required to expressly provide them to all service members as defined by DOT and make these commitments in their Customer Service Plan or make them easily accessible from their Customer Service Plan. To the extent an airline’s military benefits fall short of these requirements, the Department may not be able to hold the airline accountable for failing to honor its commitments. Members of the military are encouraged to check the airline’s website or contact the airline’s customer service agents for more information.

DOT’s Historic Record of Consumer Protection Under the Biden-Harris Administration Under the Biden-Harris Administration, DOT has advanced the largest expansion of airline passenger rights, issued the biggest fines against airlines for failing consumers, and returned more money to passengers in refunds and reimbursements than ever before in the Department’s history.

• Last month, DOT announced two final rules that require airlines to provide automatic cash refunds to passengers when owed and protect consumers from costly surprise airline fees . These rules will significantly expand consumer protections in air travel, provide passengers an easier pathway to refunds when owed, and save consumers more than half a billion dollars every year in hidden and surprise junk fees. Provisions of the final rule on airline refund were fortified through the FAA reauthorization bill that President Biden signed into law on May 16, 2024.  
• In 2022, under Secretary Buttigieg’s guidance, DOT created an Airline Customer Service Dashboard known as FlightRights.gov to help airline passengers understand what they are entitled to receive certain services and amenities when a significant delay or cancellation was within the airlines’ control and create enforceable standards. Now all 10 major U.S. airlines guarantee free rebooking and meals, and nine guarantee hotel accommodations when an airline issue causes a significant delay or cancellation. These are new commitments the airlines added to their Customer Service Plans that DOT can legally ensure they adhere to and are displayed on flightrights.gov .  
• Since President Biden took office, DOT has helped return almost $4 billion in refunds and reimbursements owed to airline passengers – including more than $600 million refunds and reimbursements to passengers affected by the Southwest Airlines holiday meltdown in 2022.  
• DOT has issued over $164 million in penalties against airlines for consumer protection violations. Between 1996 and 2020, DOT collectively issued less than $71 million in penalties against airlines for consumer protection violations.  
•  DOT recently launched a new partnership with a bipartisan group of state attorneys general to fast-track the review of consumer complaints, hold airlines accountable, and protect the rights of the traveling public.  
•  In 2023, the flight cancellation rate in the U.S. was a record low at under 1.2% – the lowest rate of flight cancellations in over 10 years despite a record amount of air travel.  
•  DOT is undertaking its first ever industry-wide review of airline privacy practices and its first review of airline loyalty programs. 

In addition to finalizing the rules to require automatic refunds and protect consumers from surprise fees, DOT is also pursuing rulemakings that would:  

• Propose to ban family seating junk fees and guarantee that parents can sit with their children for no extra charge when they fly. Before President Biden and Secretary Buttigieg pressed airlines last year, no airline committed to guaranteeing fee-free family seating. Now, four airlines guarantee fee-free family seating, as the Department is working on its family seating junk fee ban proposal.  
• Propose to make passenger compensation and amenities mandatory so that travelers are taken care of when airlines cause flight delays or cancellations.  
• Expand the rights for passengers who use wheelchairs and ensure that they can travel safely and with dignity.

DOT’s aviation consumer protection website makes it easy for travelers to understand their rights. Consumers may file an airline complaint with the Department here .

Pentagon IDs units put on alert; White House wonders if Russia is serious on diplomacy: What we know

• Russian President Vladimir Putin has read the U.S. response to his demands on Ukraine.
• Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with his Chinese counterpart about Russian aggression.

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon announced Thursday that military units across the country have been placed on high alert for potential deployment to Europe in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military buildup near Ukraine.

They include units at Fort Bragg, N.C.; Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Fort Hood, Texas; Fort Carson, Colorado; and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said.

The 8,500 American troops would be part of a 40,000-member NATO quick-reaction force. It includes a “very high readiness joint task force of combat troops, warplanes, ships and special operation forces. NATO has yet to activate the unit. If it does, the first troops from the United States could deploy in as few as five days.

The units have been notified but not activated, Kirby said.

They would be sent to NATO’s eastern flank, not to Ukraine, which is not a member of the alliance. NATO is obliged to come to the aid of a member that is attacked.

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Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the heightened alert, allowing the potential movement of combat, aviation, logistics, medical and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance units.

Putin has ordered more than 100,000 Russian troops to Ukraine’s border, raising concerns of an imminent incursion or full-scale invasion. He wants assurances that Ukraine will not be allowed to join NATO and other concessions from the West.

President Joe Biden has ordered his national security team to develop a range of options including economic sanctions, lethal aid for Ukraine’s military and the deployment of U.S. troops to Europe to reassure allies.

Biden speaks with Ukraine's Zelenskyy 

Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelenskyy on Thursday and reaffirmed that the U.S. and its allies are ready to "respond decisively" if Russia further invades Ukraine, according to a readout from the White House.

Biden noted the U.S., which has provided Ukraine with over half a billion in development and humanitarian aid, is exploring additional financial support to help the besieged country. He said the U.S. embassy in Kyiv remains open and fully operational, despite the departure of some American embassy personnel and family members over the weekend.

The two leaders reaffirmed the principle that "nothing about Ukraine (would be decided) without Ukraine," according to the statement.

In a tweet, Zelenskyy said he and Biden had a "long phone conversation" in which he thanked the U.S. president for America's ongoing military assistance. 

White House unsure if Russian diplomacy is just ‘games’

The White House says it's still unclear as to the Russian government’s intentions in diplomatic talks over the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.

“We don’t know if the Russians are playing games on diplomacy. We hope not,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said during a Thursday press briefing.

Psaki continued that the U.S. was approaching the talks “with a level of seriousness” that they hoped Russian diplomats would match. She said diplomacy would be open “perusing that path should they be open to it.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken previously said in a Sunday interview with NBC News that Russian diplomats may “simply going through the motions” and that negotiations “won't affect their ultimate decision.

The Kremlin expressed disappointment with a U.S. written letter responding to Russian demands over Ukraine’s sovereignty and the security structure of Europe. A Kremlin spokesperson said Russian President Vladimir Putin is still considering the response and Russia’s options to respond.

Russia doesn't find 'cause for optimism' in US reply

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a tepid response to a U.S.-written letter in response to the Kremlin's security demands over Ukraine.

While he saw some space for cooperation, Lavrov lamented in a Thursday statement that the document had “no positive reaction on the main issue” for the Kremlin's core demand that NATO promise to never admit Ukraine and other post-Soviet countries in the military alliance .

The foreign minister also noted that the letter "is a response which gives hope for the start of a serious conversation on secondary questions."

On Wednesday, the U.S. delivered the response to the Kremlin's demands that the Biden administration crafted after consulting with European and Ukrainian leaders.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the document, which won't be released publicly, presented "core principles that we are committed to uphold and defend," including Ukrainian sovereignty and autonomy from Russian influence.

"Whether they choose the path of diplomacy and dialogue, whether they decide to renew aggression against Ukraine, we’re prepared either way," Blinken said during a Wednesday press conference.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has read the U.S. response, according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

“All the papers are with the President. It will take some time to analyze them, we will not rush to any conclusions,” Peskov said.

“There is not much cause for optimism,” he added.

Military might: Better trained, better equipped: What you should know about Russia and Ukraine's militaries

More: Here's what Russia's conflict in Ukraine could mean for US fuel, energy prices

Diplomacy continues

The U.S. and Russia are still in talks to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict even as Russian troops exercise in the region and the U.S. sends heavy weaponry to Kyiv.

Both sides are preparing for the worst as diplomats await decisions in Moscow and Washington. Russia launched military exercises on Tuesday in Crimea and southeast Russia, while Ukraine continues to receive military aid from NATO countries .

The U.S. has also put 8,500 troops on "high alert" to be deployed at any moment to allied NATO countries, but not to Ukraine. Other NATO countries have either already deployed troops to eastern allies like Romania, Poland and the Baltic countries or are preparing to do so.

Related: What is NATO? Military alliance in spotlight as Russia tries to forbid Ukraine membership

Ukrainian officials say they do not see a Russian attack as imminent, given the current build up on the border.

Blinken, Chinese official talk Russia

On Wednesday, Blinken also met with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, where Blinken "underscored the global security and economic risks posed by further Russian aggression against Ukraine," according to a State Department press release.

Wang in turn called "on all parties to stay calm and refrain from doing things that agitate tensions and hype up the crisis," according to a statement from China's foreign ministry.

Contributing: Courtney Subramanian subramanian

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Ukraine-Russia war latest: Vladimir Putin repeats warning he could send weapons to adversaries of the West

Speaking at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, Vladimir Putin also says he does not see the conditions for the use of nuclear weapons as set out in Russia's nuclear doctrine - but adds he could not rule out a change to it.

Friday 7 June 2024 17:15, UK

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• Russia economically strong despite 'illegitimate sanctions'
• Ukraine has right to strike targets in Russia - NATO chief
• Russian vessels to make port in Cuba in 'hopes of invoking memory of missile crisis'
• Biden to discuss $225m package with Zelenskyy in France
• Ivor Bennett:  Why is Lavrov in Africa?
• Big picture:  Everything you need to know about the war right now
• Your questions answered: Are there any signs of an underground resistance in Russia?

Thank you for reading.

We will be back soon with more updates from the war in Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin has said he does not see the conditions for the use of nuclear weapons as set out in Russia's nuclear doctrine - but added he could not rule out a change to the doctrine.

"We have a nuclear doctrine which states that the use of nuclear arms is possible in an exceptional case, when the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country is threatened," he told the St Petersburg International Economic Forum.

"But the doctrine can be changed.

"The same applies to nuclear tests. We will carry out tests if needed, but so far there is no such need."

Russia could send weapons to adversaries of the West, Vladimir Putin has warned for a second time.

The Russian president repeated the warning from earlier this week during the St Petersburg Economic Forum.

He did not say what countries or entities he was referring to, and he stressed that Moscow is not doing it currently.

"If they supply (weapons) to the combat zone and call for using these weapons against our territory, why don't we have the right to do the same?" he told the crowds. 

"But I'm not ready to say that we will be doing it tomorrow, either."

On Wednesday, Putin told international journalists that Russia could provide long-range weapons to others to strike Western targets in response to NATO allies allowing Ukraine to use their arms to attack Russian territory.

He also reaffirmed Moscow's readiness to use nuclear weapons if it sees a threat to its sovereignty.

Joe Biden has apologised to Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the recent delay in approving new US aid for Ukraine.

Last month, following months of political disagreements, the Senate passed $95bn (£76.2bn) in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan .

"I apologise for those weeks of not knowing," the US president said.

"Some of our very conservative members [of Congress] were holding it up. 

"But we got it done, finally. We're still in - completely, totally." 

The Ukrainian president thanked his counterpart for American assistance.  

"It's very important that you stay with us," he said. 

"It's very important that in this unity, the United States of America, all American people stay with Ukraine, like it was during World War Two - how the United States helped to save human lives, to save Europe." 

The two men were speaking in Paris, the day after D-Day commemorations in Normandy.

Russia needs to boost its use of non-Western currencies, Vladimir Putin said as he addressed the St Petersburg International Economic Forum.

He also said his country needs to reduce imports while calling for a major expansion of its domestic financial markets.

Trade with Asia is soaring, he told delegates, adding that almost two fifths of Russian external trade is now in roubles.

The share conducted in US dollars, euros and other Western currencies has declined.

Russia will try to boost the share of settlements conducted in the currencies of BRICS countries - which include Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, Mr Putin said.

"Last year, the share of payments for Russian exports in the so–called 'toxic' currencies of unfriendly states halved, while the share of the rouble in export and import transactions is growing - it is approaching 40% today," the president said.

Russia has referred to nations that imposed sanctions on it as "unfriendly".

 The session begins with an address by the Russian president. 

Vladimir Putin says there is a race among world powers to establish sovereignty. 

He speaks of the need for countries to both establish partnerships and also to look internally to tackle challenges presented by the current global economic landscape. 

Despite all the "obstacles and illegitimate sanctions", Russia remains one of the world's economic leaders, he says. 

He adds that "friendly countries" - those that have not joined sanctions against Moscow - account for three quarters of Russia's mutual trade turnover, and praises them for that. 

Countries including India and China have strengthened economic ties since Mr Putin launched his war in Ukraine. 

Vladimir Putin has taken to the stage in St Petersburg to address the International Economic Forum there.

He's joined by Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwais and Bolivian President Luis Alberto Arce Catacora. 

Chairing the session is Sergey Karaganov - a Russian political scientist. 

We'll bring you any key lines here in this live blog. 

A T-shirt is on sale at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum printed with a phrase attributed to Vladimir Putin, Sky News has discovered. 

"If a fight is inevitable, throw the first punch," it says.

The Russian president reportedly said it in 2015.

He apparently explained that it was something he had learned while growing up on the streets of Leningrad - a former name of St Petersburg. 

The Russian defence ministry has accused Ukraine of injuring 20 people, including children, in a missile attack on the Russian-controlled eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk, using US-supplied ATACMS missiles.

Four of five missiles were shot down by air defence systems, the ministry said in a statement.

However, one of the missiles damaged two residential apartment blocks, it added, claiming it was deliberate.

Sky News is unable to verify the allegations.

There has been no immediate comment from Ukraine. 

The European Commission supports starting EU accession talks with Ukraine, the country's prime minister has said.

Denys Shmyhal said the commission had confirmed in a report that Kyiv had fulfilled the remaining steps required to start negotiations. 

"Now we expect our European partners to take the next step - to start negotiations on European Union membership this month," Mr Shmyhal said on Telegram. 

Earlier (7.43am post) we reported that the commission was reportedly ready to recommend that accession talks get underway.

It is part of an attempt to signal support for Kyiv before Hungary takes over the rotating presidency of the EU next month, the Financial Times reported.

The EU announced earlier this year that it was sending an additional £42bn in aid to Ukraine - but only after  weeks of resistance from Hungary , which reportedly has concerns about minority rights in Ukraine. 

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Q&A on Trump’s Criminal Conviction

By Robert Farley , D'Angelo Gore , Lori Robertson and Eugene Kiely

Posted on May 31, 2024

Este artículo estará disponible en español en El Tiempo Latino .

Donald Trump became the first U.S. president, current or former, to be convicted of a criminal offense when a 12-person jury in New York on May 30 found him guilty on 34 felony counts of business fraud as part of an illegal scheme to influence the 2016 election by making payments to suppress a sordid tale of sex with a porn star.

The unprecedented conviction raises questions about what’s next for the 77-year-old man who is in line to become the Republican Party’s nominee for president in 2024.

In remarks at Trump Tower a day after his conviction, Trump called the United States “ a corrupt country ” and declared that he would be “ appealing this scam .”

(Trump also repeated many of the false, misleading and unsupported claims he has made about the judge, the judge’s rulings, the district attorney and other issues related to the trial. For more about Trump’s talking points, see our May 30 article, “ Trump’s Repeated Claims on His New York Hush Money Trial .” He also repeated false and unsubstantiated claims on other issues, such as taxes and migrants .)

Here, we answer some of the questions raised by the former president’s conviction:

What are the next steps in the case? What punishment could Trump face? Will he go to prison? Can Trump vote in the 2024 election? Can a felon run for president, hold office? Can Trump pardon himself on this conviction, if he wins?

What are the next steps in the case?

Sentencing and an appeal are up next in this case.

Sentencing by Justice Juan Merchan is scheduled for July 11. Before that date, a probation officer or someone in that department will interview Trump, and potentially others involved in the case or connected to Trump, and prepare  a pre-sentence report  for the judge. The report includes the personal history and criminal record of the defendant, and it recommends what sentence the defendant should receive, according to the New York State Unified Court System.

“The pre-sentence interview is a chance for the defendant to try to make a good impression and explain why he or she deserves a lighter punishment,” the state court system explains.

Trump’s lawyers have to wait until after the sentencing to appeal the conviction. First, Trump’s lawyers will file motions before the judge “in a couple weeks” saying why they found the trial to be “unfair,” Trump’s defense attorney Todd Blanche  told CNN  hours after the guilty verdict.

Cheryl Bader , a clinical associate professor of law at Fordham University School of Law, said these motions are typical when a defendant is convicted. The defense attorneys will ask the judge to overturn the jury’s conviction. “It’s rarely, rarely granted, and I don’t think there’s a chance that will happen in this case,” she told us in a phone interview.

Blanche told CNN that if the motions aren’t successful, “then as soon as we can appeal, we will. And the process in New York is there’s a sentencing, and then — and then we appeal from there.”

Bader, a former assistant U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey, walked us through the appeals process. “The case is considered completed at sentencing,” she said. “At that point, his lawyers file a notice of appeal … letting the court know that he intends to appeal.”

At that point, they will also request a “stay” on the sentence, meaning a pause on imposing the sentence while the case is being appealed.

This appeal goes to the  Appellate Division, First Judicial Department  in Manhattan. The appeals court doesn’t retry the case. “They’re not going to substitute their judgment on the facts for the jury’s judgment,” Bader explained. Instead, “they’re looking for where there was error that would have led to an improper prosecution or an unfair trial.”

The appeals process would take several months to a year, she said. After the notice of appeal is given, the record of the case is gathered, including trial transcripts, the indictment, pretrial motions, evidentiary rulings, jury selection and instructions, and more. Trump could also appeal the sentencing. The lawyers need to write their arguments for all of the issues they’re objecting to, and that takes time, Bader said.

And then the appeals court needs to consider the case and write a decision on it.

If Trump ultimately isn’t successful at the appellate level, he can appeal to the highest court in New York state, which is called the  Court of Appeals . But the court decides whether or not it takes the case.

After such an appeal to the highest state court, the case would be over — unless Trump tries to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. But there has to be a U.S. constitutional issue for that. “I don’t see one,” Bader said, but perhaps Trump’s lawyers would try to make an argument.

What punishment could Trump face? Will he go to prison?

Whether Trump is sentenced to any time in prison is up to the judge.

Each of the 34 counts of  falsifying business records in the first degree , a class E felony, carries a maximum sentence of up to  four years in prison . The judge could decide to impose the sentences consecutively or simultaneously. However, under New York law,  20 years  is the maximum prison time that Trump could get — not 187 years, as Trump  falsely claimed  in his May 31 remarks.

Norman Eisen , a CNN legal analyst and a senior fellow in governance studies for the Brookings Institution, said that “in the most serious” cases of business records falsification in New York that he studied, “a sentence of imprisonment was routinely imposed.” Trump’s case “is the most serious one in NY history,”  he wrote  on X, predicting that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin “Bragg will likely ask for incarceration & Merchan will consider it.”

While possible, Bader, with Fordham’s School of Law, told us she doesn’t think incarceration will happen.

For a first-time convicted felon, with a low-level, nonviolent felony and a person of advanced age, “under any circumstance like that, there’d be a relatively low chance of incarceration,” she said.

“On the other hand, I could see the prosecutor arguing that here’s a man who has shown disrespect for the court system and the rule of law and has violated the court’s orders on numerous occasions. He is not remorseful. And that in order to promote general deterrence, he needs to be punished,” she said in describing a possible argument from the prosecutor.

Bader said any incarceration sentence “would be only a token amount of time to make the point that Trump is not above the law.” Other sentencing possibilities include probation or a “conditional discharge” with conditions other than incarceration or probation.

The “simplest” option might be for the judge to fine Trump, she said.

Can Trump vote in the 2024 election?

Yes, Trump can vote as long as he is not in jail on Election Day, which this year is on Nov. 5.

Trump owns homes in New York and Florida, but in 2019 he changed his primary residence to Florida. However, Florida law does not apply in Trump’s case because he was convicted in New York. Instead, New York law applies.

“If you were convicted outside Florida, your voting rights are governed by the state where you were convicted,” as the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida explains on its website.

In 2021, New York state enacted a law that “restores the right to vote for a person convicted of a felony upon release from incarceration, regardless of if they are on parole or have a term of post-release supervision,” the New York State Board of Elections says . “If a convicted felon is not incarcerated, they are eligible to register to vote.”

Can a felon run for president, hold office?

Yes. According to Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 of the U.S. Constitution, there are three qualifications to serve as president: He or she must be at least 35 years old upon taking office, a U.S. resident for at least 14 years and a “natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States.”

“These qualifications are understood to be exclusive,” Josh Chafetz , a Georgetown University law professor, told us last year when we were writing about Trump’s federal indictment related to allegations of mishandling sensitive classified documents after he left office. “Anyone can be president so long as they meet the constitutional qualifications and do not trigger any constitutional disqualifications.”

“Someone can run for president while under indictment or even having been convicted and serving prison time,” said Chafetz, who pointed to the example of Eugene V. Debs, the late labor leader, who, in 1920, ran for president from prison on the Socialist Party ticket and got almost 1 million votes.

There is an exception to that rule. The Constitution says in Section 3 of the 14th Amendment that no U.S. officeholder, including the president, can serve if they are convicted of “engag[ing] in insurrection or rebellion” against the U.S. — something Trump has not been charged with either in this case or the three others he faces.

Six Colorado voters successfully sued in state court to prevent Trump from appearing on that state’s ballot, citing the constitutional amendment barring insurrectionists from holding federal office. But the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the state ruling, “[b]ecause the Constitution makes Congress, rather than the States, responsible for enforcing Section 3 against federal officeholders and candidates.”

Can Trump pardon himself on this conviction, if he wins?

The short answer is no.

Trump was convicted in New York for offenses in violation of state law. Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution states that a president has the “[p]ower to grant reprieves and pardons for offences against the United States.” According to Constitution Annotated , a government-sanctioned record of the interpretations of the Constitution, that means the power extends to “federal crimes but not state or civil wrongs.”

In a case decided in 1925, Ex parte Grossman , the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed that interpretation, writing that the Constitution’s language specifying presidential pardon power for offenses “against the United States” was “presumably to make clear that the pardon of the President was to operate upon offenses against the United States as distinguished from offenses against the States.”

The New York governor has the power to pardon Trump for his conviction of crimes under state law. That’s currently Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat. After the verdict, Republican Rep. Nick LaLota called on Hochul “to immediately announce her intention to pardon President Trump and pre-emptively commute any sentence. To not do so is to allow America to become a banana republic.” Hochul released a statement on May 30 saying, “Today’s verdict reaffirms that no one is above the law.”

Editor’s note: FactCheck.org does not accept advertising. We rely on grants and individual donations from people like you. Please consider a donation. Credit card donations may be made through  our “Donate” page . If you prefer to give by check, send to: FactCheck.org, Annenberg Public Policy Center, 202 S. 36th St., Philadelphia, PA 19104. 

Relatives of Mobilized Russian Soldiers Protest Outside Defense Ministry

A group of women staged a rare protest outside the Russian Defense Ministry building in Moscow on Monday, demanding the return of their loved ones drafted to fight in Ukraine and a meeting with new Defense Minister Andrei Belousov.

Around 15 women, some with small children, gathered outside the building holding up hand-written placards saying "Bring my mobilized husband home" and posting images of themselves on social media.

The protest took place after Russia branded the organization Put Domoy (The Way Home) — a movement to bring back men mobilized in the wake of a September 2022 draft — a "foreign agent" last week.

The women, who wished to remain anonymous, told AFP they were not part of Put Domoy and were relatives of men fighting in Ukraine.

They held the protest without inviting the media after journalists were arrested at previous protests organized by Put Domoy.

"We are asking you to call the defense minister," the women said, getting down on their knees in front of a policeman who asked them to put down their placards.

One woman pointed to her toddler daughter and said: "Do you see her? I gave birth and three months later they took my husband."

Several women came with young children in buggies and one held a small baby in her arms.

They held up a banner that read "Andrei Removich Belousov, talk to us!"

One of the women, who identified herself as Paulina, later posted a video, saying: "We are taking down our placards because we were promised that a representative of the defense minister will come to us."

Russia had previously allowed the women to stage the protests in central Moscow, seemingly unwilling to antagonize relatives of men fighting in Ukraine.

But its branding of Put Domoy as a "foreign agent" — a label it uses to stigmatize critics of the Kremlin — indicated a likely change in tactic by authorities.

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Russian Military Boosts Call-Ups for Annual Reservist Training Exercises

Kremlin Planning New Mobilization for Kharkiv Offensive – Vyorstka

Arrests at Moscow Protest by Wives of Soldiers Fighting in Ukraine

Russia Refuses to Limit ‘Indefinite’ Service of Mobilized Soldiers – Opposition Member

Russian court begins trial of US soldier arrested on theft charges

A court in Russia’s far eastern city of Vladivostok has started the trial of a US soldier arrested in the city earlier this year on charges of stealing.

Staff Sergeant Gordon Black, 34, flew to the Pacific port city to see his girlfriend and was arrested after she accused him of stealing from her, according to US and Russian officials.

He faces up to five years in prison if convicted.

Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported from the courtroom in Pervomaisky District Court in Vladivostok on Thursday that Black has agreed to give evidence in the trial and will respond to the accusations against him later in the proceedings.

The report cited local police as saying that Black is co-operating with the authorities.

His arrest further complicates US relations with Moscow, which have grown increasingly tense as the fighting in Ukraine continues.

Russia is holding a number of Americans in its jails, including corporate security executive Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich. The US government has designated both men as wrongfully detained and has been trying to negotiate their release.

Other detainees include Travis Leake, a musician who had been living in Russia for years and was arrested last year on drug-related charges; Marc Fogel, a teacher in Moscow who was sentenced to 14 years in prison, also on drug charges; and dual nationals Alsu Kurmasheva and Ksenia Khavana.

The US State Department strongly advises American citizens not to go to Russia.

Under Pentagon policy, service members must get clearance for any international travel from a security manager or commander.

The US Army said last month that Black had not sought clearance for the international travel and it was not authorised by the Defence Department. Given the hostilities in Ukraine and ongoing threats to the US and its military, it is extremely unlikely he would have been granted approval.

Black was on leave at the time and in the process of returning to his home base at Fort Cavazos, Texas, from South Korea, where he had been stationed at Camp Humphreys with the Eighth Army.

Cynthia Smith, an Army spokeswoman, said Black signed out for his move back home and, “instead of returning to the continental United States, Black flew from Incheon, Republic of Korea, through China to Vladivostok, Russia, for personal reasons”.

Black’s girlfriend, Alexandra Vashchuk, told reporters after the court hearing on Thursday that “it was a simple domestic dispute” during which Black “became aggressive and attacked” her.

“He then stole money from my wallet and I didn’t give him permission to do it,” she said.

US officials have said that Black, who is married, met his girlfriend in South Korea.

According to US officials, the Russian woman had lived in South Korea, and last autumn she and Black got into a domestic dispute or altercation, after which she left South Korea.

It is not clear if she was forced to leave or what, if any, role Korean authorities had.

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