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2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN US

Trump demands appointment of special counsel to investigate November elections

Earlier Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had pushed for appointing special counsels to investigate his allegations of elections fraud related to November vote, as well as to launch a probe into President elect Joe Biden’s son Hunter

US President Donald Trump AP Photo/Patrick Semansky

US President Donald Trump

© AP Photo/Patrick Semansky

MOSCOW, December 24. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump urged the need to appoint a special counsel to investigate the alleged rigged elections held in the country on November 3, which was won by Trump’s opponent, Democrat Joseph Biden.

"After seeing the massive Voter Fraud in the 2020 Presidential Election, I disagree with anyone that thinks a strong, fast, and fair Special Counsel is not needed, immediately. This was the most corrupt election in the history of our Country, and it must be closely examined!" Trump wrote on Twitter.

Earlier Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had pushed for appointing special counsels to investigate his allegations of elections fraud related to November vote, as well as to launch a probe into President elect Joe Biden’s son Hunter.

"Attorney General William Barr said he saw no reason to appoint a special counsel to investigate allegations against Hunter Biden or election fraud on Monday, saying he believed the investigation into President-elect Joe Biden’s son was "being handled responsibly and professionally," Wall Street Journal wrote.

On December 14, the US Electoral College convened and confirmed Biden’s election victory. The Democrat received 306 votes, while incumbent President Donald Trump secured 232 votes. With 538 electors, a candidate needs to get 270 votes to be elected to the office of President of the United States. Nevertheless, Trump has not conceded and has put up a relentless fight to challenge the results, filing a multitude of lawsuits claiming irregularities and voter fraud in a number of key states. Trump’s legal battles have failed to gain any ground, being rejected in state courts, as well as by the US Supreme Court. The inauguration of the next head of the US administration will take place on January 20.

Middle East conflict

Death toll from Israeli attack on southern Lebanon rises to 20

According to Lebanese Health Ministry’s Emergency Operations Center, the number of those killed in the attack has risen from 15 to 20, while 14 people suffered injuries

Vote count in Iowa may take longer due to voting machine malfunction

"It is not stopping anyone from casting a single ballot," Ashley Hunt Esquivel, a spokesperson for Iowa Secretary of State’s Office, said

Germany ‘shamefully resigned’ itself to destruction of Nord Stream — Lavrov

Lavrov also drew attention to the fact that "reckless proposals" are being made about strikes with Western long-range systems deep into Russian territory

NATO prepares for open armed confrontation with Belarus and Russia — top brass

According to Major General Vladimir Kupriyanyuk, "the collective West continues to demonstrate an increase in the intensity of activities aimed at early preparations for military action"

Lukashenko says he will not be Belarusian president under new constitution

Commenting on an initiative to hold parliamentary polls on party tickets and, hence, establish parties, he said such steps are fraught with a split in society

Presidential election voting kicks off in most American states

Some swing states, including Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania have already begun voting

Press review: Russia strengthens nuclear triad while Ukraine awaits US strike approval

Top stories from the Russian press on Wednesday, October 30th

US military base in Syria attacked by Iraqi Shiite units

Witnesses say that the Shiite units that are fighting on the part of the Syrian government army used kamikaze drones to attack the US base

Politician slams top Polish diplomat for pushing Warsaw towards war with Moscow

"We are not ready for a war with Russia," Krzysztof Bosak pointed out

US authorities brace for ‘little fires everywhere’ if Trump loses — WP

"Collectively they could become a massive firestorm that is more difficult to contain because the embers have been burning throughout the nation," said Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson

AI predicts Harris’ victory over Trump

The forecast predicts Trump has a 73.3% chance of winning Arizona, a 62.1% chance in North Carolina, and a 61.8% chance in Georgia

Russia does not seek confrontation, hopes Europe begins to cooperate — Putin

"I trust that a rational, balanced approach to cooperation with Russia will prevail once again," the Russian leader stressed

Press review: Lavrov embarks on EU visit and Russia permits individual crypto mining

Top stories from the Russian press on Friday, November 1st

Russian Railways repaired 4,600 km of tracks year-to-date

The main season of the track repair campaign is close to the end, the company said

Granddaughter of Cold War-era Soviet leader dies after being hit by train near Moscow

The woman attempted to cross the rail tracks away from the established safe crossing

Voting station in Michigan shut down over gas leak — report

The voting station was closed at noon, and the voters were redirected to another place in suburbs of Detroit, Associated Press said

Russia says its troops mined, blocked one route used by Ukrainian forces in Kursk Region

According to the ministry, soldiers of the regiment's reconnaissance company with the call signs Porsh and Pochta destroyed the enemy that was covering the passage in the engineering barriers and moved forward to fulfill the combat mission

Sandu is winning in 2nd round of Moldovan presidential elections with 55.04% — CEC

Votes at a number of polling stations abroad are yet to be counted

Guterres’ concern over rumors about DPRK soldiers in Russia duplicitous — MFA

"While professing support for peace efforts and referring to the UN Charter, he forgets about the inadmissibility of a discriminatory approach to its goals and principles, which must be observed in their entirety, totality and interrelation," Maria Zakharova stressed

Over 4,300 people cross into Syria from Lebanon in past day — Russian military

"Over the past day, as many as 4,315 people crossed Syria’s border from Lebanon via the checkpoints of Al-Arida, Al-Jawasiyeh, Al-Dabousiyah, Jisr Qamar, and Jdaidet Yabous," Oleg Ignasyuk said

About 30 fake bomb threats received by US polling stations nationwide — CBS

Around 17 fake bomb threats have targeted the swing state of Georgia alone

Americans were on the Moon but footage may have been filmed in advance — Russian cosmonaut

Sergey Prokopyev pointed out that the fact that US astronauts did land on the Moon "is confirmed by automatic probes and cannot be subjected to doubt"

FBI detains man threatening mass shooting in case of Trump’s victory — report

The FBI detained him in Canton, Michigan, but has not been charged yet

Attempts to capture ZNPP lead to pointless deaths of mobilized Ukrainians — governor

Yevgeny Balitsky noted that the safety of the ZNPP and its perimeter is reliably safeguarded by the Russian military, and that "the power plant's personnel are performing their duties"

No military alliance provided for in Russia-DPRK partnership treaty — senior diplomat

According to Andrey Rudenko, Russia openly tells this to "all North Korea’s neighbors who sometimes and, lately, very often, express certain concerns"

Trump predictably leads in Kentucky, Indiana — US media

First results give Trump approximately 70%, while his opponent Kamala Harris gets over 27%

Trump reports mass election fraud in battleground state of Pennsylvania

Republican presidential candidate hasn`t provided any details

Former CIA, Pentagon chief describes incursion into Kursk as Kiev’s ‘strategic mistake’

In Robert Gates opinion, Russia is capable of continuing its special military operation in Ukraine until it decides that its goals are met, and underestimating its ability to carry on "is a huge mistake"

No difference for Russia who wins presidential election in US — diplomat

According to Maria Zakharova, if Washington's policy shifts after the election, Russia will be ready to consider any US proposals that do not contradict its interests

Man with torch and flare gun arrested on Capitol Hill

Public tours of the Capitol were cancelled for the remainder of the day, while the investigation is ongoing

Trump Media stocks gain over 20% amid US election — trading data

As of 3:25 a.m. on Wednesday Moscow time they gained 15.97%, trading at $39.36

West seeking to entangle Georgia in war with Russia — expert

Vaso Kapanadze predicted that the situation could change if the ruling party secures victory in the parliamentary elections in Georgia on October 26

US election results will bring peace or third world war — Serbian leader

The United States presidential election is set to be held on November 5

Man threatens to burn down voting station in New York

When the man was turned away, he got angry and started threatening to burning the station down and to return with a firearm

Treaty between Russia, North Korea corresponds to geopolitical situation — senior diplomat

The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during the Russian head of state’s visit to Pyongyang in June

Harris takes unsurprising lead in Vermont — The Washington Post

Harris gets 59.1% of the vote, while her election rival Donald Trump has 21.4%

Trump ahead of Harris in most of swing states — RealClearPolitics

According to the portal, Trump is ahead of Harris in Arizona (by 2.8 percentage points), Georgia (by 1.3 percentage points), North Carolina (by 1.2 percentage points), Nevada (by 0.6 percentage points) and Pennsylvania (by 0.4 percentage points)

Almost 75% of Americans negative about domestic situation — NBC News exit poll

Only seven percent were enthusiastic about the domestic situation and another 19% were satisfied with it

Unable to counter Russian tactics, Kiev’s forces may retreat to Dnieper — Ukrainian expert

"The opponents are now using tactical techniques that we still have nothing to counter with," Oleg Starikov said

Mass fraud reports not confirmed by Philadelphia police — TV

According to the CNN report, Donald Trump "has for years made baseless claims about election cheating in Philadelphia"

Trump leads US presidential election in Florida — CNN

Trump gets 58.1% of the vote, while his opponent Kamala Harris has 41.2%

Musk to keep Trump company while following US election results — NYT

According to the report, Musk plans to spend some of the evening in a small group of people in Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, following election results as they come in

Kursk region will be cleared of Ukrainian forces — Putin

He added that victory is impossible without volunteers who support the fighters at the front

Lukashenko says Belarusian KGB has proof of Poland’s interference in Belarus’ affairs

The president stated that Warsaw had carefully monitored the events in Belarus, aiming to create "an artificial crisis" in the country

Trump says confident in his victory at presidential election

The US is holding election on November 5, with voters choosing the president, governors in 11 states and two US territories, a third of the Senate, and all members of the House of Representatives

Ukrainian National Guard troops with vehicles deployed on Belarusian Border — General

According to the report, "reconnaissance operations of all kinds continue against Belarus, including mobile signals intelligence teams and drones"

Israel’s new defense chief sees return of hostages from Gaza as top priority

The goals are also the destruction of Hamas in Gaza and the defeat of Hezbollah in Lebanon, Israel Katz added

Work of two polling stations in Georgia extended amid technical issues — CBS

The extensions are unrelated to bomb threats received by several polling stations in the same state earlier, the report says

West’s erroneous course and preventing major war — what Putin told foreign ambassadors

Russia remains ready for talks with Ukraine, the Russian president noted

Hollywood actors face pressure to endorse Harris or risk career setbacks — Elon Musk

The US presidential election is set to take place on November 5, with voters also selecting a third of the Senate, the entire House of Representatives, and governors for 11 states and two territories

SpaceX Cargo Dragon spacecraft docks with ISS

The Cargo Dragon is expected to stay docked until December, when it is supposed to make a splashdown near Florida

NATO number one threat to global peace, says French politician

It is stted that NATO considers the EU as "a registration office of its members"

Special airspace class to be allocated for drones — Russian regulator

head of the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency Dmitry Yadrov said that the authority is also developing new airworthiness standards making it possible to simply the certification procedure for certain areas of drone use

Situation dire for Ukrainian troops along entire frontline, says DPR head

Meanwhile, the potential of Ukrainian armed forces should not be underestimated, Denis Pushilin cautioned

29 settlements in southern Lebanon totally ruined by Israeli army — newspaper

The media cited military analyst General Hassan Juni as saying that such actions reveal Israel’s plans to create a "3-5-kilometer deep lifeless buffer zone in Lebanese territory"

NATO’s aircraft conducts numerous flights over border — Belarusian Defense Ministry

According to Major General Vladimir Kupriyanyuk, significant numbers of effective troops are already stationed in Eastern Europe, including in Poland and the Baltic states

Russia says Т-80 tanks of battlegroup East disrupt Ukrainian attack in South Donetsk area

According to the statement, following the combat mission, the tank crews quickly left their firing positions and returned to the waiting area to evade retaliatory fire by enemy artillery

Trump's campaign office does not expect election results this night — CNN

The campaign office also views the possibility of Trump’s remarks to the press

This year's US election 'will be the last real election' if Trump loses, Musk says

The entrepreneur further added that the US has ceased to be a "real state" because of its lack of border security

For US losing dollar as a standard of settlements would be like losing a war, Trump says

The Republican presidential candidate criticized the current US administration for allowing the unification of Russia, China, Iran, the DPRK and a number of other countries into one group

Russian Defense Ministry presents slideshow of Ukrainian plot to capture Kursk nuke plant

Ukraine planned to engage 20,000 troops, 27 tanks, 50 units of armored hardware, 30 units of tube artillery and five multiple launch rocket systems

Russia responds to Western sanctions with benefit for itself — MFA

Maria Zakharova noted that Moscow did everything to fulfil the potential of bilateral economic ties with European countries

Press review: Trump, Harris clash in swing states as EU likely to keep sanctions on Russia

Top stories from the Russian press on Tuesday, November 5th

Upper house committee supports ratification of Russia-DPRK partnership treaty

According to the document, if either signatory is subjected to an armed attack, the other will immediately provide military and other assistance

Ukraine admits number of deserted soldiers from Armed Forces of Ukraine surpasses 100,000

Earlier, military lawyer from the Center for Support of Veterans and Their Families Roman Likhachev said that more than 100,000 servicemen had voluntarily left their units

Trump Media stocks grow during Nasdaq evening session after brief decline - trading data

Previously, Trump Media & Technology Group Corp stocks declined by 7.16%, trading at $31.51 as of 12:46 a.m. Moscow time on Wednesday

Malaysia rejects US call to 'stop being friendly' with Russia — PM

Anwar Ibrahim said the call came during a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the sidelines of the 19th East Asia Summit in Laos

Georgian opposition has no resources to achieve success via protests — PM

On the contrary, in the past 4 years, their support has decreased compared to the previous elections, Irakli Kobakhidze said

Trump expects major victory in 2024 presidential election

"Make sure you get through and vote, and we are going to have a big victory tonight," Trump said

Harris has 4-point lead over Trump in final PBS election poll

An earlier poll conducted by Research Co. revealed that Harris was ahead of Trump in swing state Pennsylvania by one percentage point

Democrats expect ‘fatigue of Donald Trump’ to affect US election outcome

"Folks are excited about voting, and I just can’t describe the difference in the vibe that’s out there with folks and how hungry they are for something different," Tim Walz, the running mate of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, said

US entrepreneur Musk casts ballot near SpaceX launch pad in Texas

Musk did not disclose who got his vote, however, he has been actively supporting Republican candidate Donald Trump since summer

Russian structure of X5 says ready to pay compensation to the Dutch holding

In accordance with the requirements established by the law, PJSC X5 Corporate Center is obliged to pay compensation within three months from the date of receipt of the claim, the company added

Prosecutor's Office deems activities of US-based business society undesirable in Russia

The international company incorporated in the United States has been engaged in promoting the policies of unfriendly states regarding the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and actively supports the LGBT community, the Russian Prosecutor General's Office explained

Trump has 61% chance of winning US election — bookmakers

The US general election is being held on November 5, 2024

Elon Musk claims war mongers back Kamala Harris’ 'puppet regime'

According to Elon Musk, those within the US administration who support Vice President Harris "profit off of wars," a situation he described as "insane"

Chisinau denies hundreds of thousands of Moldovans in Russia right to vote — Kremlin

Dmitry Peskov stressed that the Moldovan election was "neither democratic nor fair" and was "fraught with electoral manipulations"

China expects US to develop bilateral relations under next president — embassy

"Developing China-US relations is in the fundamental interest of our two peoples and two countries and meets the expectation of the international community," Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in the US, said

Trump says will acknowledge defeat if election is fair

US Republican presidential candidate also called those who believe that he won't concede if he loses this election as "crazy"

NATO intends to fight 'defensive battles' thousands of miles from its territory — Lavrov

According to Lavrov, all reasonable observers understand "that this is a road to nowhere"

Soyuz-2.1b blasts off from Vostochny spaceport carrying 55 Russian, foreign satellites

The Ionosphere-M satellites, which are the main payload, are set to be put into a sun-synchronous orbit within an hour

Yerevan receives Baku’s response on peace treaty proposals — Foreign Ministry

Previously, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that Yerevan and Baku have negotiated the peace treaty by 80% and offered Azerbaijan to sign these points

Enemy plans to seize Kursk NPP, Ukrainian losses: situation in Kursk Region

Units of the battlegroup continued offensive operations, defeating Ukrainian formations in the areas of the settlements of Daryino, Leonidovo, Nikolayevo-Daryino, Novoivanovka and Plekhovo

Trump admits he may lose election

The US general election is being held on November 5, 2024

Medvedev says any new uprising in Ukraine would seek to execute current leaders

The Russian politician said the goal of Zelensky and his team is to stay in power in the country as long as possible

West’s trying to polarize society in Moldova — Russian MFA

Maria Zakharova wished the residents of Moldova to find a way out of the deadlock they have found themselves in due to the policies of Maia Sandu and the West

Russian forces display ingenuity and unconventional tactics in liberating DPR — official

Donetsk People’s Republic head Denis Pushilin also emphasized that the enemy should not be underestimated, so as not to diminish the significance of Russian forces' achievements

Daily death toll from Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon stands at 11 — health ministry

According to the ministry, 61 more were injured

Kiev reports tense situation for Ukrainian troops in Kurakhovsky direction

In late October, Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov informed that the Russian Armed Forces continued to make solid progress in the Kurakhovsky direction

Dollar-based system cannot be reformed — expert

According to Paulo Nogueira Batista Jr., "BRICS needs to join forces with other countries to build alternatives to the system"

Nearly 90 people missing following Spanish floods

So far, 211 deaths have been reported

List of BRICS partner countries agreed, Putin says

According to the Russian leader, the list of potential candidate countries was also agreed upon

US National Guard mobilized in 15 states for Election Day — CNN

Personnel has been mobilized in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia, CNN said

Russia hammers Ukraine’s missile armament workshops, military airfields over past day

Russia’s Battlegroup West inflicted roughly 510 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed four enemy ammunition depots in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported

Russian property seizures not affecting church — spokesperson

On October 29, the Helsinki Court informed TASS that movable and immovable Russian properties in Finland had been seized by a judgment dated August 13, following claims from six Ukrainian companies

Musk slams Harris for false claim about US troops in combat zones

Earlier, Harris had said, "There is not one member of the US military in active duty in a combat zone — in any war zone around the world"

US State Department says 10,000 North Korean soldiers deployed to Russia’s Kursk Region

They "could enter combat in the coming days," Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesman said

Russian Finance Ministry to use $894.8 mln to purchase currency on November 7 - December 5

The daily volume of transactions will amount to the equivalent of $42.95 mln, the Russian Finance Ministry said in a statement

Two children were inside when their apartment caught fire after drone attack on Belgorod

Ukrainian troops staged a drone attack on a residential area in the borderline city of Belgorod

Russia supports fair relations in economy — Putin

According to the head of state, Russia follows a constructive course in its foreign policy that addresses both its interests and global trends

Putin reiterates Russia’s willingness to engage in talks with Ukraine

Nearly three hours of talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul on March 29, 2022, yielded principles for a potential agreement, including Ukraine's commitment to maintain a neutral, non-aligned status and its pledge to refrain from deploying foreign weapons, including nuclear weapons, on its territory