American Teacher Freed from Russian Prison, "Confederate Base" has Same Name, New Namesake, US Wants Ukrainian Rare Earth Minerals? (The Five for 02/11/25)
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Let’s dive in.
[one]
Ugh. We’re giving away perfectly good imprisoned terrorists again. ‘
American schoolteacher and former diplomat Marc Fogel has been released from prison in Russia and is on the way home to the US, according to US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz.
Waltz said Mr Fogel's release had been negotiated as part of an exchange with Russia, without providing further details.
He said Mr Fogel, 63, was on a plane with Steve Witkoff, President Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, and would be reunited with his family by Tuesday evening.
"We are beyond grateful, relieved, and overwhelmed that after more than three years of detention, our father, husband, and son, Marc Fogel, is finally coming home," Mr Fogel's family said in a statement.
Mr Fogel was arrested at an airport for the illegal possession of cannabis in 2021.
He was charged with carrying a small amount of medical marijuana, which had been prescribed in the US, and given a 14-year prison sentence.
Sorry, but I have to take the Contrarian view here…it’s not the job of the United States of America to trade away terrorists for your freedom if your dumb little self takes drugs to a foreign country.
In 2022, President Biden traded Victor “The Merchant of Death” Bout for WNBA star Brittany Greiner, who had also carried drugs into Russia. While I have sympathy for Greiner and Fogel, the price we paid is too high…an untold number of innocents will likely die because we released terrorists…who are unlikely to stop terrorist-ing.
Queue the Ironman meme:
[two]
The name of a military base bearing the name of a Confederate General has been restored…but not for that General.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is bringing the name Bragg back to one of the Army’s largest bases, Fort Liberty, which replaced the namesake of a Confederate general in 2023.
But in a memorandum signed Monday, Hegseth instructed the Army to rename the North Carolina military installation in honor of a different Bragg: Pfc. Roland L. Bragg, a World War II veteran who was awarded the Silver Star and Purple Heart for extraordinary bravery during the Battle of the Bulge, according to a statement from Pentagon press secretary John Ullyot.
“This change underscores the installation’s legacy of recognizing those who have demonstrated extraordinary service and sacrifice for the nation,” Ullyot said.
Originally, Fort Bragg was named after Braxton Bragg, a Confederate…fool, according to a synopsis from Google.
Braxton Bragg (1817-1876) was a Confederate general during the Civil War who was widely considered incompetent. He was known for losing battles, shooting his own soldiers, and being a scapegoat for the South's military failures.
This is good politicking on Hegseth’s part, as it sidesteps the obvious blunder of naming an American military base for a fool who was part of a military force that started the Civil War with a pre-emptive strike on sleeping American troops.
Whatever you think of the more complex issues of the Civil War, the fact is that Confederate soldiers CHOSE not to be Americans, and should not have their names tied to the bases of the military they made war against.
And if you think Hegseth’s political gamesmanship is impressive, wait until you see his deadlift.
[three]
Hegseth is in Europe, where he’s encouraging European leaders to aid Ukraine, and reinforcing that President Trump will not put boots on the ground. While there, Hegseth has been joining military P.T.
The defence secretary is on a week-long trip to Germany, Belgium and Poland with the aim of "strengthening deterrence, supporting warfighters, and advancing America's national security interests", according to his department.
As well as training with the marines, he is set to visit the US European Command and US Africa Command in Germany to meet senior military leaders.
Mr Hegseth will then attend NATO meetings in Brussels.
"At his first NATO Ministerial with Allied counterparts, he will engage with NATO Allies and partners to discuss the need to boost Allied defence spending, increase European leadership, and expand defence industrial base capacity on both sides of the Atlantic," the defence department said in an advisory.
At a meeting of NATO's Ukraine Defence Contact Group, Mr Hegseth "will reiterate President Trump's commitment for a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine as quickly as possible".
"He will also highlight the need for increased European leadership on security assistance to Ukraine," the statement added.
One of the service members Hegseth worked out with has been dubbed the “real life Hulk.” During his swing through Germany, a protest of “about two dozen” people showed up to protest Hegseth’s anti-DEI stance, which includes an immediate pause on allowing transgender people to join the military.
[four]
But it doesn’t appear that the U.S. is quite ready to cut Ukraine off, because they have something we want…seventeen somethings, in particular.
Rare earth elements are a set of 17 elements that are essential to many kinds of consumer technology, including cellphones, hard drives and electric and hybrid vehicles.
It’s unclear if Trump is seeking specific elements in Ukraine, which also has other minerals to offer.
“It can be lithium. It can be titanium, uranium, many others,” Yermak said. “It’s a lot.”
China, Trump’s chief geopolitical adversary, is the world’s largest producer of rare earth elements. Both the U.S and Europe have sought to reduce their dependence on Beijing.
For Ukraine, such a deal would ensure that its biggest and most consequential ally doesn’t freeze military support. That would be devastating for the country, which has been at war for nearly three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.
The idea also comes at a time when reliable and uninterrupted access to critical minerals is increasingly hard to come by globally.
Ukraine’s rare earth elements are largely untapped because of the war and because of state policies regulating the mineral industry. The country also lacks good information to guide the development of rare earth mining.
Geological data is thin because mineral reserves are scattered across Ukraine, and existing studies are considered largely inadequate. The industry’s true potential is clouded by insufficient research, according to businessmen and analysts.
In general, the outlook for Ukrainian natural resources is promising. The country’s reserves of titanium, a key component for the aerospace, medical and automotive industries, are believed to be among Europe’s largest. Ukraine also holds some of Europe’s largest known reserves of lithium, which is required to produce batteries, ceramics and glass.
[five]
Israel is amassing troops in and around the Gaza Strip ahead of the upcoming Hamas hostage release, which the Palestinian militant group threatened to delay after accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that the Gaza ceasefire will end if Hamas does not release the remaining hostages this upcoming weekend.
“In light of Hamas’ announcement of its decision to violate the agreement and not release our hostages, I instructed the IDF last night to amass forces inside and around the Gaza Strip,” Netanyahu said in a Tuesday statement, referring to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). “This operation is currently underway and will be completed as soon as possible.”
Hamas announced on Monday that they would delay the release of hostages slated for the upcoming weekend, accusing Israel of violating the terms of the ceasefire.
President Trump said over the weekend and on Monday that if Hamas does not release all of the remaining hostages by Saturday, he might end the fragile ceasefire agreement that went into effect on Jan. 19, warning “all hell is going to break out.”
I’m no geopolitical expert, but this one feels like it could go either way.
Until the next one,
-sth