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    Ginni Thomas says she cannot wait to meet with Jan. 6 committee to ‘clear up misconceptions’

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    Ginni Thomas, a conservative activist and the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, said she is looking forward to having the opportunity to “clear up misconceptions” following news the January 6 House Select Committee is seeking her testimony. 

    “I can’t wait to clear up misconceptions. I look forward to talking to them,” Thomas told the Daily Caller of the request for her to testify.

    US CAPITOL POLICE ARREST STEPHEN COLBERT STAFFERS AT HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING, CHARGED WITH ILLEGAL ENTRY

    FILE – Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Oxon Hill, Md., Feb. 23, 2017.   ((AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File))

    Thomas did not say what misconceptions the committee holds.

    Committee Chair Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., told reporters on Thursday, “We have sent Ms. Thomas a letter asking [her] to come and talk to the committee.”

    The committee wants to talk to Thomas because they discovered “some information that refers to Ginni Thomas” in emails between her and Trump lawyer John Eastman, Thompson told Axios.

    JAN. 6 COMMITTEE: THURSDAY’S HEARING TO FOCUS ON TRUMP’S PRESSURE ON PENCE TO OVERTURN ELECTORAL COLLEGE VOTES

    Chairman of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., talks with the media after a hearing of the committee, Thursday, June 16, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

    GINNI THOMAS STORY BEING USED TO ‘ATTACK THE JUSTICE’ AFTER LEAKED DRAFT OPINION, CLOSE FAMILY FRIEND SAYS 

    Eastman, the committee has said, played a key role in the former president’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

    Thomas told The Washington Free Beacon in March that she attended Trump’s rally on January 6 that took place ahead of the Capitol attack but that she left early, before the then-president took the stage, because she had gotten cold.

    Associate Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas sits with his wife and conservative activist Ginni Thomas while he waits to speak at the Heritage Foundation on October 21, 2021 in Washington, DC.  (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

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    The committee’s initial goal in questioning Thomas is to determine her role, if any, in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, Politico reported. The emails between Thomas and Eastman are still in the “discovery phase,” Thompson said, but could be mentioned “at some point” during the January 6 hearings.

    Bill Cosby civil trial jury will have to restart deliberations after nearly reaching verdict

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    Jurors in the civil trial for sexual misconduct allegations against actor and comedian Bill Cosby must start deliberations over after reaching a verdict on Friday for nearly all the questions asked of them.

    After two days of deliberations, the jury had concluded whether Cosby sexually assaulted plaintiff Judy Huth at the Playboy Mansion in 1975 when she was just 16-years-old, and whether she deserved any damages. 

    Jurors answered eight of nine questions on their verdict form: the final one asking if Cosby’s actions warranted punitive damages.

    Judge Craig Karlan had promised one juror that she could leave after Friday for a prior commitment. 

    AMBER HEARD REVEALS POST-TRIAL PLANS AFTER JOHNNY DEPP DEFAMATION CASE, WHAT SHE’LL TELL HER DAUGHTER

    Actor and comedian Bill Cosby walks to the courtroom during the fifth day of deliberations in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, Pennsylvania, U.S., June 16, 2017.  REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

    The judge opted to read the verdict on the questions the jury had answered despite objections from Cosby’s attorneys. However, Karlan had to reverse his decision when deputies at the Santa Monica Courthouse showed up and required him to clear the courtroom. The courthouse has a required 4:30 p.m. closing time due to there being no budget for deputies’ overtime.

    Karlan wouldn’t require the juror who had to leave to return on Monday, so deliberations will have to restart with an alternate juror in her place. “I won’t go back on my word,” he said.

    Earlier in the day, a note was given to the judge about what he referred to as a “personality issue” between two of the jurors that was making their work difficult.

    The judge called the two jurors to the courtroom and had them agree to allow every juror to be heard in discussions. The jurors resumed deliberations but had several questions on issues with their verdict form that the judge and attorneys had to talk about and answer, including how to calculate damages.

    ‘9-1-1: LONE STAR’ ACTOR TYLER SANDERS DEAD AT 18

    PHILADELPHIA, PA – JANUARY 22:  Actor/ stand-up comedian Bill Cosby performs during a special performance to honor jazz musician Tony Williams at LaRosa Jazz Club on January 22, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  (Photo by Gilbert Carrasquillo/Getty Images) (Gilbert Carrasquillo/Getty Images)

    Cosby lawyer Jennifer Bonjean requested a mistrial after lunch because of a photo taken by a member of Cosby’s team showing a juror standing near one of the comedian’s accusers who had been sitting in the audience.

    Artist Lily Bernard, who has filed her own lawsuit against Cosby, said she had not talked to any jurors.

    “I never spoke to any juror, ever,” Bernard told the judge from her seat in the courtroom. “I would never do anything to jeopardize this case. I don’t even look at them.”

    Jurors started deliberations Thursday morning following a two-week trial. Cosby was not in the courtroom.

    TOM HANKS GETS ANGRY WITH FAN WHO NEARLY KNOCKS OVER HIS WIFE RITA WILSON

    Bill Cosby (C), enters a courtroom for a hearing where his lawyers are expected to renew their battle with prosecutors over whether more than a dozen female accusers can testify at his criminal sexual trial next year, in Norristown, Pennsylvania, December 13, 2016.  REUTERS/DavidMaialetti/Pool

    The 84-year-old was freed from prison last year after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned his 2018 criminal conviction. In a snippet from a 2015 video deposition shown to jurors, Cosby denied having any sexual contact with Huth. His spokesman and attorney have each reiterated his denial throughout the trial.

    Bonjean asked the jury in closing arguments to tune out public allegations against Cosby and only consider the evidence presented during the trial. She said the evidence does not prove Huth’s case.

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    Huth attorney Nathan Goldberg told jurors Cosby had to pay for the damage he had done to his client.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    Disappearance of Wisconsin woman being investigated as a homicide

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    The disappearance of a Wisconsin woman who went missing last year is now being investigated as a homicide, police said Friday.

    Sandra Eckert, 70, was last seen in her home in Franklin, Wisconsin on March 26, 2021, following an argument with her husband, according to police, FOX 6 reported. 

    Franklin police confirmed Friday that a search warrant was executed at a Waukesha home on June 7, 2022, regarding the case for first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse. 

    A man was arrested at the residence, but was later released, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Nobody is in custody for Eckert’s homicide.

    NEW YORK CITY SUSPECTS ACCUSED OF STEALING DOZENS OF ATMS, MORE THAN $60,000 IN CASH

    Police said there are two persons of interest in the case, both of whom were known to her.

    Eckert’s gray 2005 Dodge Stratus is also still missing. Muskego police saw the car at 3 a.m. on March 27, 2021, however, the woman’s disappearance was not known at that time.

    Franklin Police Sgt. Jeremy Fadness said in April that police confiscated electronic devices and “additional evidence” from Eckert’s home last year through search warrants, which remain under a court-ordered seal “to protect the integrity of the investigation.”

    Police said last year that Eckert’s known cellphone, social media accounts and bank accounts had all been inactive since her disappearance was reported, according to FOX 6.

    CALIFORNIA HOMEOWNER TURNS TABLES ON SUSPECTED BURGLAR, DISHES OUT NASTY BEATDOWN

    Eckert’s gray 2005 Dodge Stratus has also been reported missing. (Franklin Police Department)

    Eckert’s children told the Journal Sentinel in April that they believe their father could be responsible for their mother’s disappearance. 

    Wes Eckert Jr. said he and his sister, Kelsey Eckert, are suspicious of their father because he has “not assisted in the search in any way.”

    But Wes Eckert Sr. said he has nothing to do with his wife’s disappearance.

    “Some of my kids think I did something,” he said. “I didn’t, and I didn’t hire anybody to do anything, either.”

    MURDERED OFFICER’S LIEUTENANT SAYS ‘ENOUGH IS ENOUGH,’ SLAMS CALIFORNIA’S ‘WOKE NARRATIVE’ IN EULOGY

    Franklin police confirmed Friday that a search warrant was executed at a Waukesha home on June 7, 2022, regarding the case for first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse.  (Franklin Police Department)

    Eckert Sr. said he believes his children suspect he is to blame because of an argument he and his wife had the night before she went missing.

    He said that at one point during the argument, his wife got dressed and appeared to be preparing to leave and he told her the two of them would continue the conversation the following day. 

    “That’s basically the last I’d seen her,” Eckert Sr. said.

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    Sandra Eckert took several thousand dollars in cash from the house when she left the residence, according to Wes Eckert Sr., who suggested his wife’s death could be tied to the money and foul play.

    The Eckert family is offering a $50,000 reward for a tip that leads to a conviction.

    Bengals’ Joe Burrow backs stricter gun control measures: ‘You’ve gotta at least make it harder’

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    Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow urged U.S. lawmakers to enact new gun control legislation to “make it harder” for people to purchase “those crazy guns,” a likely reference to long rifles.

    The NFL star’s remarks came during a press conference Tuesday, when he said he does not believe people should be able to “just walk in” a gun store and purchase a firearm and that there should be a “rigorous process” to buy a gun.

    Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow warms up before the NFL Super Bowl 56 football game against the Los Angeles Rams, Sunday, Feb. 13, 2022, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)

    Americans wishing to purchase a firearm from a licensed gun store are currently required to undergo background checks.

    “With everything that’s going on, if you’re not going to outlaw everything, you’ve gotta at least make it harder to get those crazy guns that everybody is using,” Burrow said. “I don’t think you should be able to just walk in there and buy one. You gotta be able to go through a rigorous process to buy something like that, I think.”

    MCCONNELL STATES SUPPORT FOR SENATE GUN SAFETY LEGISLATION

    “Hopefully, the people who get paid to make those decisions figure that out. My job is to play football, but hopefully the politicians can figure that out,” he continued.

    Burrow’s comments come after a string of recent mass shootings in New York, Texas and elsewhere. 

    Other sports figures like Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr have spoken out in favor of new gun control measures in recent weeks.

    “When are we going to do something? I’m tired,” Kerr said at a press conference in May following the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. “I’m so tired of getting up here and offering condolences to the devastated families that are out there. I’m so tired. Excuse me. I’m sorry. I’m tired of the moments of silence. Enough.”

    STEVE KERR GETS EMOTIONAL WHEN DISCUSSING MASS SHOOTING AT TEXAS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

    Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors talks to the media during a press conference before Game Two of the 2022 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics on June 5, 2022 at Chase Center in San Francisco, California.  (Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)

    A group of senators announced a bipartisan gun control framework on Sunday. The proposal includes funding for school safety, investments in mental health services, expanded background checks for gun buyers under 21 years of age, grants for states that implement red flag laws, penalties for straw purchases of firearms and new protections for victims of domestic abuse.

    SENATE REPUBLICANS WHO STRUCK DEAL WITH DEMS FOUGHT OFF PUSH TO RAISE ASSAULT WEAPONS PURCHASE AGE TO 21

    A banner hangs at a memorial outside Robb Elementary School on Friday, June 3. (AP/Eric Gay)

    The measure would also clarify the definition of a federally licensed firearm dealer.

    President Joe Biden said he would sign the legislation into law should it pass the House and Senate.

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    “With bipartisan support, there are no excuses for delay, and no reason why it should not quickly move through the Senate and the House,” the president said in a statement. “Each day that passes, more children are killed in this country: the sooner it comes to my desk, the sooner I can sign it, and the sooner we can use these measures to save lives.”

    Amber Alert canceled in Virginia after abducted 3-year-old found safe

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    An Amber Alert was canceled early Wednesday morning in Virginia after an abducted 3-year-old girl who was believed to be in “extreme danger” was found safe, police said.

    Virginia State Police had issued an Amber Alert Tuesday for the disappearance of Amelia Marianna Kraus, who authorities said had been abducted by 35-year-old Catherine Agnes Kraus, the girl’s non-custodial mother.

    LOS ANGELES’ GASCON CALLS REPORTS ON HIT-AND-RUN ‘MISINFORMATION’ AS VICTIM BLASTS ‘MURDERER-FRIENDLY’ DA

    TEXAS POLICE SHOOT, KILL MAN ARMED WITH GUN AT YOUTH SUMMER CAMP, AUTHORITIES SAY 

    The 3-year-old was found safe in West Virginia, police said Wednesday morning.

    “Thank you to our detectives, our community and our law enforcement partners for your help in bringing Amelia home safe,” the police department said.

    NC BLACK STUDENT GROUP POINTS TO UVALDE MASSACRE IN ADVOCATING AGAINST SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS.

    Kraus is in custody and her charges are pending, including for a felony abduction warrant that had been issued Tuesday.

    The girl had been taken from her home in Northern Virginia June 14 shortly before 4:30 p.m.

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    Police arrest 2nd suspect in connection to men who went missing in Brazilian Amazon

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    Brazil’s federal police announced Tuesday that a second suspect has been arrested in connection to the disappearance of a British journalist and former Indigenous official in a remote area of the Brazilian Amazon.

    Oseney da Costa de Oliveira was placed under temporary arrest on suspicion he was involved in the case with his brother Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, the man police view as the primary suspect in the case. Oseney da Costa de Oliveira told The Associated Press Friday he had visited his brother in jail and that he was told police had tortured his brother on his own boat.

    Police had reported finding traces of blood in Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira’s boat. Organic matter of possible human origin was discovered in the river. The materials are being analyzed.

    Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira was arrested on a charge of illegal possession of restricted ammunition and a judge ordered that he be held for another 30 days as the investigation into the disappearances continues.

    MISSING BRITISH JOURNALIST DOM PHILIPS: TWO BODIES FOUND IN BRAZILIAN AMAZON; IDENTIFICATIONS PENDING

    People take part in a vigil outside the Brazilian Embassy for Dom Phillips and Bruno Araujo Pereira, a British journalist and an Indigenous affairs official who are missing in the Amazon, in London, Thursday, June 9, 2022 ((Victoria Jones/PA via AP))

    The arrests came amid a search for British journalist Dom Phillips and former Indigenous official Bruno Pereira, who were both last seen on June 5 near the Javari Valley Indigenous territory in a remote area of the Brazilian Amazon bordering Peru and Colombia.

    According to Indigenous people who were with Pereira and Phillips, Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira brandished a rifle the day before the men went missing.

    The suspect has denied any wrongdoing and has said police have tortured him to get a confession, his family told the AP.

    The search for the missing men continued Tuesday after two bodies were reportedly found in the rainforest. Federal police said in a statement Monday that the bodies of the two missing men have still not been found.

    MISSING BRITISH JOURNALIST DOM PHILLIPS: POSSIBLE HUMAN REMAINS FOUND IN BRAZIL AMAZON

    A Federal Police expert examines a boat seized by the Task Force for the rescue of Indigenist Bruno Pereira and Journalist Dom Phillips at the port of the city of Atalaia do Norte, Amazonas, Brazil, on June 11, 2022.  ((Photo by JOAO LAET / AFP) (Photo by JOAO LAET/AFP via Getty Images))

    And items belonging to the men were recovered Sunday. These articles include a backpack, laptop, health card and clothes.

    Search teams are looking around an area in the Itaquai River where volunteers from the Matis Indigenous group reported Saturday that they had found a tarp from the boat used by the two men.

    The area of the men’s disappearance has seen violent conflicts between fishermen, poachers and government agents. Violence has worsened as drug trafficking gangs fight for control of waterways to transport cocaine. The Itaquai, however, is not a known drug trafficking route.

    SUSPECT HELD AS BRAZIL STEPS UP SEARCH FOR MISSING BRITISH JOURNALIST AND RESEARCHER IN REMOTE AMAZON

    A Federal Police officer takes pictures of a seized boat during the search for British journalist Dom Phillips and Indigenous affairs expert Bruno Araujo Pereira in the Javari Valley Indigenous territory, in Atalaia do Norte, Amazonas state, Brazil, Saturday, June 11, 2022.  ((AP Photo/Edmar Barros))

    Pereira has previously led FUNAI, the local bureau of the Brazilian government’s Indigenous agency, and has participated in several operations against illegal fishing. These operations typically involve fishing gear being seized or destroyed while the fishermen are fined and briefly detained.

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    The Indigenous are the only ones who can legally fish in their territories.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    Man arrested in connection to death of Texas woman found in trunk of her own car

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    Police in Texas have arrested a man in connection to the death of a woman who was found in the trunk of her car last month.

    Christopher Maldonado was apprehended Friday at a traffic stop by Texas City Police and U.S. Marshals and was charged with tampering or fabricating physical evidence with intent to impair (human corpse) in connection to the death of Angela Leean Mitchell. He also received an unrelated assault charge.

    Christopher Maldonado was arrested in connection with the death of a Texas woman found dead in the trunk of her car. (Texas City Police/Facebook)

    Maldonado is being held on a $200,000 bond, Texas City Police said.

    He was the last person Mitchell was known to have been with prior to her disappearance, according to a missing persons flyer made by her family and friends.

    MISSING TEXAS WOMAN FOUND DEAD IN TRUNK OF HER OWN CAR

    Mitchell’s corpse was found in Texas City on May 11 in the trunk of her white Honda sedan after local residents reported to police a foul odor coming from the vehicle, which had been parked on a road for days.

    Angela Leean Mitchell was found dead in the trunk of her own car. (GoFundMe)

    CITY OF UVALDE AVOIDING HANDING OVER POLICE RECORDS AFTERM SCHOOL MASSACRE

    Mitchell’s cause of her death is still unknown, but police have cited the case as a “suspicious death investigation.” The Galveston County Medical Examiner is conducting an autopsy.

    Mitchell’s loved ones reported her missing on May 6 after she failed to return home to Dickinson the night before. They tracked Mitchell’s location to Texas City and found her vehicle, but not her.

    The woman’s mother criticized police for not jumping on the case sooner.

    LOS ANGELES HIT-AND-RUN DRIVER INJURED LEG AFTER MOWING DOWN MOM AND BABY, POLICE REVEAL

    (Texas City Police cruiser.)

    “I met police officers at her vehicle here in Texas City after filing a missing person report and I begged them,” Mitchell’s mother told local media last month. “I begged them to please search my daughter’s car. ‘Please search my daughter’s car. Please investigate this’. I begged. I begged the police officers, and they just dismissed me.”

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    Mitchell leaves behind four children: a 9-year-old girl, 7-year-old boy, 3-year-old girl and 7-month-old boy.

    Tony Awards 2022: ‘A Strange Loop’ takes best musical as Jennifer Hudson becomes an EGOT

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    The musical, “A Strange Loop,” a work centered on blackness and queerness, was awarded the best new musical Sunday at the Tony Awards.

    Michael R. Jackson’s musical is about a black gay Broadway usher trying to write a show about a black gay Broadway usher. Jackson also won the award for best book.

    Michael R. Jackson, second left, accepts the award for best new musical for “A Strange Loop” at the 75th annual Tony Awards on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

    And Jennifer Hudson joined an elite class of individuals who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony after “A Strange Loop,” which she is a producer for, won best musical.

    “A Strange Loop” beat out “MJ,” a biography musical of late pop star Michael Jackson’s most popular works, for the top award of the night. 

    TOBY KEITH, AUTHOR OF SONG THAT BECAME 9/11 RALLYING CRY: ‘NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR BEING PATRIOTIC’

    But the musical about the King of Pop won four Tony Awards, including for best choreography, best lighting design for a musical and best sound design for a musical. Myles Frost took home the award for best lead actor in a musical for his role as Michael Jackson.

    Joaquina Kalukango won the prize for best leading actress in a musical for starring in “Paradise Square,” a work about Irish immigrants and black Americans struggling to survive in New York City around the time of the Civil War.

    A revival of iconic composer Stephen Sondheim’s “Company” won five awards on the night, including for best musical revival.

    CHRISTINA AGUILERA DUSTS OFF ‘ADIRRTY,’ PERFORMS ‘LADY MARMALADE’ WITH MYA AT LA PRIDE

    The cast of “Company” performs at the 75th annual Tony Awards on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

    “Company” explores a person’s conflicted feelings about commitment, which traditionally centered on a bachelor. In the revival, however, it focused on a woman and the sexes of several couples in the work were switched.

    Marianne Elliott earned the award for best direction of a musical for “Company,” making her the only woman to have won three Tonys for directing. She thanked Sondheim for allowing her have a woman placed “front and center.”

    Patti LuPone won best featured actress in a musical and Matt Doyle won for best featured actor in a musical for their performances in “Company.”

    TAYLOR SWIFT TALKS ‘ALL TOO WELL’ AT TRIBECA FESTIVAL

    Myles Frost and The cast of “MJ” perform at the 75th annual Tony Awards on Sunday, June 12, 2022, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

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    Sondheim, who died late last year, was honored in a special segment where Bernadette Peters sang his song “Children Will Listen.”

    Several acceptance speeches thanked audiences for going out and seeing the shows despite concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, and Marsha Gay Harden praised 150 safety officers invited as guests to the awards show.

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    The season’s 34 new productions represents a full return to theaters after nearly two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The last Tonys from nine months ago saw winners selected from just 18 eligible plays and musicals.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    China says its new nuclear weapons are only for self-defense

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    Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe told delegates Sunday at the Shangri-La Dialogue that China has made progress in developing a nuclear arsenal but would only utilize the new weapons for self-defense measures.

    When asked about reports from last year regarding the construction of more than 100 new nuclear missile silos in eastern China, he said the country “has always pursued an appropriate path to developing nuclear capabilities for protection of our country.”

    RUSSIA STAGES NUCLEAR DRILLS AFTER US ANNOUNCES ROCKETS TO UKRAINE

    China’s Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe speaks at a plenary session during the 19th International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-la Dialogue, Asia’s annual defense and security forum, in Singapore, Sunday, June 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Danial Hakim)

    The minister said nuclear weapons displayed in a 2019 military parade in Beijing were operational and deployed. These weapons included upgraded launchers for China’s DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missiles.

    “China has developed its capabilities for over five decades. It’s fair to say there has been impressive progress,” he said. “China’s … policy is consistent. We use it for self defense. We will not be the first to use nuclear [weapons].”

    He said China’s ultimate goal for its nuclear capabilities was to prevent nuclear war.

    US: CHINA’S MILITARY ACTIVITY AROUND TAIWAN THREATENS REGION

    China’s Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe speaks at a plenary session during the 19th International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-la Dialogue, Asia’s annual defense and security forum, in Singapore, Sunday, June 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Danial Hakim)

    US CRACKS DOWN ON THREE AMERICAN FIRMS SENDING DEFENSE TECH TO CHINA

    “We developed nuclear capabilities to protect the hard work of the Chinese people and protect our people from the scourge of the nuclear warfare,” he said.

    Last year, the U.S. State Department said China’s nuclear development was concerning and that it appeared the Asian country was deviating from decades of nuclear strategy of minimal deterrence. 

    The State Department urged China to engage with it “on practical measures to reduce the risks of destabilizing arms races.”

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    Reuters contributed to this report.

    Putin likens himself to Peter the Great amid efforts to ‘return’ land to Russia

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    Russian President Vladimir Putin compared himself to Peter the Great, the nation’s first emperor, last week because they each sought to capture land they believed belonged to Russia.

    Putin’s remarks came during a speech to mark the 350th anniversary of the emperor’s birth. Putin spoke during a visit to a multimedia exhibit about Peter the Great, an 18th-century leader who led a conquest of the Baltic region amid a war with Sweden. Putin explained that Peter the Great saw the land as rightfully Russian, drawing a parallel to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

    UKRAINE WAR: MARIUPOL OFFICIALS FEAR CHOLERA OUTBREAK FROM INFECTED WATER SUPPLY COULD KILL THOUSANDS

    Russian President Vladimir Putin compared himself to 18th-century Russian Emperor Peter the Great on Friday.  (Alexander Demyanchuk, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

    “Peter the Great waged the Great Northern War for 21 years. It would seem that he was at war with Sweden, he took something from them,” Putin said. “He did not take anything from them, he returned [them].”

    “Apparently, it also fell to us to return [what is Russia’s] and strengthen [the country]. And if we proceed from the fact that these basic values form the basis of our existence, we will certainly succeed in solving the tasks that we face,” he continued, referring to the invasion of Ukraine.

    The current Russian president also highlighted that no European countries recognized the city of St. Petersburg as Russian when Peter the Great founded it.

    “It’s impossible — do you understand — impossible to build a fence around a country like Russia,” Putin said.

    Putin has repeatedly attempted to justify Russia’s war on Ukraine, which began in late February.

    The invasion has caused tens of thousands of deaths, millions to be displaced from their homes and a disruption in the global economy.

    UKRAINE CLAIMS IT HAS TAKEN BACK PART OF EASTERN CITY OF SIEVIERODONETSK FROM RUSSIA

    A Ukrainian service member shows a kindergarten damaged by a military strike, as Russia’s attack on Ukraine continues, in Sievierodonetsk, Luhansk region, Ukraine April 16, 2022.  REUTERS/Serhii Nuzhnenko (REUTERS/Serhii Nuzhnenko)

    UKRAINE RUNNING OUT OF AMMUNITION, INTELLIGENCE OFFICIAL SAYS

    Ukrainian forces have shown resiliency thus far, holding on to the capital city of Kyiv, an area U.S. intelligence initially expected to fall to Russia within 72 hours of the beginning of the invasion. 

    But Russia has taken control of a Mariupol, a key port city, and continues its stronghold on much of the eastern part of the European country, although Ukraine said earlier this month it had regained control of part of the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk.

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