UK - Every July since I can remember, the conversation has been about it being the most unstable political scene ever. Don’t believe it. Nothing but nothing compares with July 2018. This is the most perilous political crisis we’ve had in Britain since at least the General Strike of 1926. We’re going to be leaving the EU in nine months, the biggest economic and political change the country has faced since the Second World War. But until last week we didn’t have a plan. The plan we now have has been trashed from all sides including by the President of the United States. It may well fail. But there’s no workable plan B to fall back on. Except leaving the EU with no deal. It may be a risky option but...

UK - The European Union's financial system will come off worse in a no-deal Brexit, Mark Carney told MPs, as another chaotic day in Parliament threatened to tip Britain closer to a scenario he said would also have “big economic consequences” at home. The Governor of the Bank of England warned that the negative consequences on the continent of failure to agree terms would be “cold comfort” for Britain as the City would effectively be cut off from EU. Mr Carney gave evidence to the Treasury Select Committee, chaired by leading Remain rebel Nicky Morgan, that the consequence on the continent of no deal would be “extreme fragmentation of the European capital market”.

UK - Prince William and Prince Charles RSVP'd "no" to tea with President Trump last week at Windsor Castle, leaving Queen Elizabeth to go it alone, The Sunday Times reports. Both men said they had no desire to meet with Trump during his visit to the UK, a person with knowledge of the matter told the Times, and even the Queen's interaction with him was "kept to the bare minimum." Trump's trip was not an official state visit, but Prince Charles and Prince William not meeting with him "was a snub," the person said. "They simply refused to attend. It's a very, very unusual thing for the Queen to be there on her own." At 97, Prince Philip has retired from royal duties, with Charles often filling in for his father, but "he goes to what he wants to go to, and if he had wanted to be there he could have been."

USA - Trump's warm words for Russia were a marked contrast from the past week, when he repeatedly rebuked long-standing US allies at a NATO summit and during a visit to Britain. In some of the strongest words yet reflecting the unease of Washington's traditional allies, Germany's foreign minister said on Monday that Europe could no longer rely on the United States. "To maintain our partnership with the USA we must readjust it," Heiko Maas told the Funke newspaper group. "The first clear consequence can only be that we need to align ourselves even more closely in Europe."

USA - Blistered by bipartisan condemnation of his embrace of a longtime US enemy, President Donald Trump on Tuesday backed away from his public undermining of American intelligence agencies, saying he simply misspoke when he said he saw no reason to believe Russia had interfered in the 2016 US election.

USA - The meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin is a "step in the right direction," former US Senator Ron Paul told RT, while also addressing the "propaganda" notion that the US must have an enemy in Russia. "I was very pleased with what went on today," Paul said. He added that if the two leaders ever had a serious discussion, "I guess it would come out on how much we've been involved when we shouldn't be involved, for instance in Ukraine, and how that occurred.” But if they don't want to concentrate on those problems and they want to look forward I think that is great… I think the next best step ever would be for us to reassess this and say that Trump's going in the right direction and talk him into getting rid of the sanctions on Russia."

USA - The trade war has barely just begun, and yet significant ripple effects are already being felt all across the US economy.  Once thriving businesses are on the verge of failure, workers are being laid off, and some sectors of the economy are witnessing enormous price hikes.

USA - The Trump administration’s “Deal of the Century” for Palestine-Israel has, predictably, gone over like a lead balloon. So it’s shifting gears. The Washington Post reports, “With President Trump’s promised Middle East peace plan stalled, administration officials are focusing on improving conditions in the impoverished Gaza Strip – a move that could put political pressure on Palestinian leaders to come to the negotiating table.” Don’t hold your breath. The “Deal of the Century” was dead on arrival because it was based on the idea that Saudi Arabia and Egypt would “deliver the Palestinians” on the cheap in return for a more formal Saudi-Egyptian-Israeli-US alliance against Iran. The Palestinians were expected to be satisfied with economic-development aid while their aspirations for their own state were essentially tabled, that is, confined to the rubbish bin.

EUROPE - While US equity markets have remained resilient in the context of rising protectionist fears, the world's largest shipping company is seeing its stock eviscerated as investor anxiety over trade wars finds an outlet that makes rational sense. AP Moeller-Maersk A/S may struggle to make a profit this year after the US and China descended into a trade war that is already showing stress in sentiment surveys. As Bloomberg reports, Maersk, which is based in Copenhagen, has already lost almost a third of its market value this year as investors gird for more bad news, and it is losing value in line with the collapse in the US Treasury yield curve. Trade protectionism means less demand, and history suggests the shipping industry will struggle to make the necessary supply cuts.

UK - Pagans have demanded a voice on Thought for the Day. A petition launched by Stuart Jeffery, a druid, calls for the group to be represented in the daily segment broadcast on the BBC's Today Programme. "The need for Pagan voice has never been greater. The perspective that we bring to public life is unique. While climate change wreaks havoc, the oceans are filling with plastic debris and the government is allowing fracking companies to push chemicals into the Earth, it is us Pagans, Druids, Wiccans, Heathens and others who revere the Earth, who see her as part of who we are and who worship her. Our voices need to be heard," he said. 

USA - The US president stunned his nation by turning on his own ­intelligence chiefs and insisted Moscow did not interfere in the 2016 election race, which he won. Donald Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin today gave him the ideal opportunity to confront Russia over its meddling in American affairs.

FINLAND - Putin accused Bill Browder of donating $400,000,000 to Hillary Clinton! Vladimir Putin: “Last year there was one extradition case by the United States… Mueller can use this treaty as an official request to us… in this case this kind of effort should be a reciprical one… For instance we can bring up Mr Browder… They sent a huge amount of money $400,000,000 to Hillary Clinton!”

USA - President Donald Trump has defended Russia over claims of interference in the 2016 presidential election. After face-to-face talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mr Trump contradicted US intelligence agencies and said there had been no reason for Russia to meddle in the vote. Mr Putin reiterated that Russia had never interfered in US affairs. The two men held nearly two hours of closed-door talks in the Finnish capital Helsinki on Monday.

RUSSIA - One of Russia’s largest banks, VTB is seeking to decrease the share of US dollar transactions at home as locals are choosing the Russian ruble over the greenback. “There is one interesting thing I wanted to highlight. Since the beginning of this year, people seem to be less interested in making dollar deposits or taking out dollar loans, compared to ruble-denominated deposits and loans. We believe this to be an important step towards the de-dollarization of the Russian finance sector,” said VTB head Andrey Kostin at a Kremlin meeting with President Vladimir Putin.

USA - After a “very intense” summit with leaders of NATO member states earlier this week, US President Trump has claimed that he has managed to secure commitments from the European leaders of NATO member countries that will see them increase their military spending.