World News

‘What if Ukraine loses?’: Parliament member works to convert US holdouts on November 14, 2023 at 11:00 am

Published

3 years ago

November 14, 2023

Support for further Ukraine aid has weakened in Congress, and Oleksandra “Sasha” Ustinova is working hard to boost it back up.

Ustinova, a member of the Ukrainian parliament, is making regular five-day visits to Washington, looking to convince as many lawmakers as she can to approve additional funding and weapons for her war-torn country.

“We’re trying to meet the leadership, we’re trying to meet the key committees and we’re trying to speak to as many people as we can. We literally have meetings every 30 minutes,” Ustinova, 38, told The Hill via phone recently while driving in western Ukraine.

Kyiv is currently contending with a grinding ground-based counteroffensive and artillery campaign to take back eastern territory from Russian troops. After several key advances, the fight has slowed, bogged down by mines and other defenses that Moscow’s forces have set up. With winter fast approaching, the aid is seen as even more vital.

But further U.S. support, which has wide bipartisan support, in recent weeks has faced an increasingly complicated road ahead thanks to House conservatives, who insist on the need to hold separate votes on the aid to Ukraine and Israel. Bipartisan talks on a border security package have also complicated the work.

New Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has signaled a willingness to allow more Ukraine aid, even as his voting record shows a consistent “no” on more dollars for Kyiv.

“We can’t allow [Russian President Vladimir Putin] to prevail in Ukraine, because I don’t believe it would stop there, and it would probably encourage and empower China to perhaps make a move on Taiwan. We have these concerns,” Johnson said in late October, one day after he was voted Speaker. But he also argued the White House has not been clear on “what is the endgame in Ukraine.”

Ustinova has singled out those in Congress she believes can be swayed on funding. In her strong English — she studied at Stanford University and spent a year in the United States during high school — she speaks with as many as eight lawmakers a day, also meeting with whole panels or caucuses, including her biggest supporters in the Armed Services, Intelligence and Foreign Relations committees.

“People who are ready to meet are those who are open for a dialogue,” she said. “It’s difficult to persuade someone who has already made their decision.”

She specifically targets those who voted in favor of the first Ukraine support package but opposed another round of funding earlier this year.

“They’re not people who don’t like or don’t want to support Ukraine. Those are people who need more information; those are people that can be persuaded and those are people that you need to talk to,” Ustinova said.

“I’m trying to explain to them how it works, what our vision is, and I’m honestly telling them that everybody is very comfortable thinking Ukraine is winning. What if Ukraine loses? Do you understand that you’re gonna have Putin right next to Poland, Baltic countries, and he’s gonna invade?”

That was the attack plan when she was last stateside on Oct. 26 along with a cohort of other Ukrainians, meeting with House and Senate lawmakers, and officials at the Pentagon and U.S. Agency for International Development.

While there, she met with Johnson and others in the GOP, fielding questions about Kyiv’s goals.

“These people need something they can communicate with their own voters in their districts, and they need something to use even to persuade their own colleagues sometimes,” she said.

Ustinova usually visits Washington every three to four months, with Mondays reserved for government contacts, Tuesdays through Thursdays to meet with lawmakers on the Hill and Fridays a chance to speak with think tanks.

Her 14-hour days “used to be much worse” at the start of the war, when she would start at 6:30 a.m. to do television hits with Fox News, CNN or MSNBC and stay up until 11 p.m., all while nearly nine months pregnant.

She also happened to be the only member of the Ukrainian parliament in the United States when Russia attacked.

Days before the war began, she booked a flight to the United States to visit her husband who works in Texas, a trip where she also intended to reach out to her connections on Capitol Hill and warn them of the brewing situation along the Ukrainian border.

But after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the incursion on Feb. 24, 2022, when Ustinova was 8 1/2 months pregnant, she and her husband decided it was too dangerous to fly back to Ukraine and deliver their child in a war zone.

Instead, she booked a flight to Washington the same day.

She remained there for the next six weeks, staying in a borrowed bedroom and meeting with members of Congress, Biden administration officials and think tank experts daily.

She met with more than 50 lawmakers before she returned to Texas to have her child, a daughter born April 12, 2022.

Ustinova said she seriously considered naming the child Javelin after the U.S. missile provided to the Ukrainian military and used to great effect against Russian forces — but her husband begged her off.

Instead, they landed on Victoria, “because we needed a small victory.”

Since then, she spends most of her time back in Ukraine, where she’s been a member of the country’s parliament since 2019.

In October 2022, she took on the added role of chair of the Parliamentary Temporary Special Commission on monitoring arms supplies to Ukraine, a temporary oversight committee set to track the use and receipt of arms transfers to the country.

While home she meets defense attachés of other countries, takes meetings in multiple cities, works on national bills and visits the front lines. At the time of this interview, Ustinova was stopped at a gas station en route to a meeting with chairs of factions of the European Parliament.

In total, the United States has given Ukraine $44.2 billion in military assistance since February 2022, the most recent being a $125 million aid package to meet “immediate battlefield needs,” as well as $300 million for Ukraine’s air defenses, according to a Nov. 3 announcement.

Congress has also approved $113 billion in military, economic and humanitarian assistance for the country since the start of the invasion.

But the Pentagon last week warned it now must “meter out” its support for Kyiv, with 95 percent of its funds for the country exhausted.

“We’re going to continue to roll out packages, they just are getting smaller,” Defense Department deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Thursday. “So we really implore Congress to pass the supplemental request that the President sent up so that we can continue to meet Ukraine’s battlefield needs.”

To that end, Ustinova has changed her messaging from that of the early days of the war, when she pressed U.S. officials and lawmakers for more advanced weapons to fight the Russian forces, asking the West to set up a no-fly zone, more economic sanctions against Moscow and humanitarian aid for her people. Now, with public support for Ukraine waning, she’s switched tactics, giving updates on the situation on the battlefield, laying out what they need and why and sharing expectations and plans.

“It used to be, ‘We’re gonna support Ukraine, as long as it takes.’ It’s something that people don’t take as it is anymore,” she explained. Now, “we’re trying to explain to them what the plans are, how the accountability is being done, how transparent we are with your government, stuff like that.”

She estimates that she’s spoken to more than 100 members of Congress so far.

As far as plans for the future, Ustinova is unsure whether she will run for parliament again, saying “it depends on how the war ends.”

For now, she just hopes to make it to Texas next month to spend time with her daughter and husband.

“All my plans broke on February ’24,” she said. “I was supposed to live with my baby, I already had a room for her and everything settled in Kyiv. I thought she would be going to work with me. I already had a nanny to help, and my mom was supposed to live with me, and it all collapsed.”

She added: “Ukrainians are used to living now, today. You don’t know what’s gonna happen to you tomorrow and you don’t know what tomorrow is going to look like. I’m just being honest. So I’m not planning anything.”

Support for further Ukraine aid has weakened in Congress, and Oleksandra “Sasha” Ustinova is working hard to boost it back up. Ustinova, a member of the Ukrainian parliament, is making regular five-day visits to Washington, looking to convince as many lawmakers as she can to approve additional funding and weapons for her war-torn country. “We’re…

Business

GLOBAL SUSTAINABILITY SUMMIT RETURNS FOR ITS 5TH EDITION AT THE BRITISH PARLIAMENT – HOUSE OF LORDS, PALACE OF WESTMINSTER

Published

1 week ago

May 16, 2026

Bolanle Media Staff

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Theme: “People, Planet, and Profit in the Age of AI and Innovation”

London, United Kingdom — The Global Sustainability Summit (GSS) is officially back for its landmark 5th Edition, continuing its legacy as one of the leading international platforms driving sustainable development, climate action, ethical investment, innovation, and global collaboration.

Convened annually at the prestigious British Parliament, House of Lords, Palace of Westminster, by Ambassador Canon Chinenem Otto, the Summit has, over the last four years, successfully fostered international dialogue and partnerships that have contributed to the advancement of global sustainability goals, the establishment of sustainability-focused ministries, departments and policy structures across national and subnational governments, and the attraction of major investors into sustainable development projects, corporations and emerging economies.

This year’s summit, themed “People, Planet, and Profit in the Age of AI and Innovation,” will explore how emerging technologies, responsible leadership, sustainable finance, innovation, and global partnerships can shape a more inclusive, resilient and environmentally conscious future.

The 5th Edition promises to be the most impactful yet, bringing together world leaders, policymakers, diplomats, investors, academics, innovators, climate experts and youth leaders from across the globe to discuss actionable solutions toward achieving a sustainable and equitable future.

Among the distinguished speakers, delegates and honorees already lined up for the Summit are:

• His Excellency Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq — Executive Governor of Kwara State, Nigeria and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum

• His Excellency Senator Prince Bassey Otu — Executive Governor of Cross River State, Nigeria

• Ambassador Patricia Espinosa Cantellano — Former Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Former Foreign Minister of Mexico

• Lord Marvin Rees, Baron Rees of Easton OBE — Member of the House of Lords, United Kingdom

• Hon. Neema K. Lugangira — Secretary-General of Women Political Leaders (WPL), Brussels and Former Member of Parliament

• Her Excellency Dr. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah — President of the Republic of Namibia

• His Excellency Nangolo Mbumba — Former President of Namibia

• Former President of Tanzania

• Her Excellency Ambassador Professor Olufolake AbdulRazaq — First Lady of Kwara State, Nigeria and Chairperson of Nigeria Governors’ Spouses Forum

• Your Excellency Dr. Dikko Umar Radda, PhD, CON — Executive Governor of Katsina State and Chairman of the Northwest Governors Forum, Nigeria

• Hon. Sam Shafiishuna Nujoma — Governor of Khomas Region, Namibia

• H.E. Mr. Veiccoh Nghiwete — High Commissioner of the Republic of Namibia to the United Kingdom

• Her Excellency Ms. Macenje “Che Che” Mazoka — High Commissioner of Zambia to the United Kingdom

• Ms. Danielle Newman — Partner Lead, ICT, World Economic Forum

• Leanne Elliott Young — Co-founder, Institute of Digital Fashion & CommuneEast

• Ms. Chloe Russell — Producer & Presenter, Art, Science and Nature

• Professor Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger — University of Cambridge & University of Waterloo

• Dr. Alexandra R. Harrington — IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law (WCEL)

• Professor Payam Akhavan — Massey College, University of Toronto

• Mr. Mallai C. E. Sathya — President, Dravida Vetri Kazhagam and International Movement for Tamil Culture Asia

The Summit will feature high-level panel discussions, strategic investment conversations, sustainability awards, policy dialogues, innovation showcases, youth engagement sessions and international networking opportunities focused on climate resilience, ethical financing, food-water-energy sustainability, circular economy, artificial intelligence, diplomacy and sustainable development.

Speaking ahead of the Summit, Convener Ambassador Canon Chinenem Otto noted:

“As the world rapidly evolves through artificial intelligence and technological innovation, we must ensure that sustainability remains people-centered, environmentally responsible and economically inclusive. The Global Sustainability Summit continues to serve as a bridge connecting governments, institutions, innovators and investors to accelerate practical sustainability solutions globally. Our fifth edition is not only a celebration of progress made over the years, but also a renewed call for global collaboration and actionable impact toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and Net Zero ambitions.”

The Global Sustainability Summit continues to position itself as a catalyst for transformative partnerships and sustainable global progress, reinforcing the urgent need for collective action toward a more resilient and sustainable future.

More announcements regarding additional speakers, partners and summit activities will be unveiled in the coming weeks.

News

US May Completely Cut Income Tax Due to Tariff Revenue

Published

6 months ago

November 30, 2025

Bolanle Media Staff

President Donald Trump says the United States might one day get rid of federal income tax because of money the government collects from tariffs on imported goods. Tariffs are extra taxes the U.S. puts on products that come from other countries.

What Trump Is Saying

Trump has said that tariff money could become so large that it might allow the government to cut income taxes “almost completely.” He has also talked about possibly phasing out income tax over the next few years if tariff money keeps going up.

How Taxes Work Now

Right now, the federal government gets much more money from income taxes than from tariffs. Income taxes bring in trillions of dollars each year, while tariffs bring in only a small part of that total. Because of this gap, experts say tariffs would need to grow by many times to replace income tax money.

Questions From Experts

Many economists and tax experts doubt that tariffs alone could pay for the whole federal budget. They warn that very high tariffs could make many imported goods more expensive for shoppers in the United States. This could hit lower- and middle‑income families hardest, because they spend a big share of their money on everyday items.

What Congress Must Do

The president can change some tariffs, but only Congress can change or end the federal income tax. That means any real plan to remove income tax would need new laws passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. So far, there is no detailed law or full budget plan on this idea.

What It Means Right Now

For now, Trump’s comments are a proposal, not a change in the law. People and businesses still have to pay federal income tax under the current rules. The debate over using tariffs instead of income taxes is likely to continue among lawmakers, experts, and voters.

News

Epstein Files to Be Declassified After Trump Order

Published

6 months ago

November 20, 2025

Bolanle Media Staff

Former President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing federal agencies to declassify all government files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier whose death in 2019 continues to fuel controversy and speculation.

The order, signed Wednesday at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, instructs the FBI, Department of Justice, and intelligence agencies to release documents detailing Epstein’s network, finances, and alleged connections to high-profile figures. Trump described the move as “a step toward transparency and public trust,” promising that no names would be shielded from scrutiny.

“This information belongs to the American people,” Trump said in a televised statement. “For too long, powerful interests have tried to bury the truth. That ends now.”

U.S. intelligence officials confirmed that preparations for the release are already underway. According to sources familiar with the process, the first batch of documents is expected to be made public within the next 30 days, with additional releases scheduled over several months.

Reactions poured in across the political spectrum. Supporters praised the decision as a bold act of accountability, while critics alleged it was politically motivated, timed to draw attention during a volatile election season. Civil rights advocates, meanwhile, emphasized caution, warning that some records could expose private victims or ongoing legal matters.

The Epstein case, which implicated figures in politics, business, and entertainment, remains one of the most talked-about scandals of the past decade. Epstein’s connections to influential individuals—including politicians, royals, and executives—have long sparked speculation about the extent of his operations and who may have been involved.

Former federal prosecutor Lauren Fields said the release could mark a turning point in public discourse surrounding government transparency. “Regardless of political stance, this declassification has the potential to reshape how Americans view power and accountability,” Fields noted.

Officials say redactions may still occur to protect sensitive intelligence or personal information, but the intent is a near-complete disclosure. For years, critics of the government’s handling of Epstein’s case have accused agencies of concealing evidence or shielding elites from exposure. Trump’s order promises to change that narrative.

As anticipation builds, journalists, legal analysts, and online commentators are preparing for what could be one of the most consequential information releases in recent history.