Despite growing suspicion that Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down by rebels using a Russian-made missile, Vladimir Putin's approval rating among Russians is at its highest in years.
A Gallup poll published Friday shows that 83 percent of Russians approve of their president, even amid the conflict in Ukraine. Putin's approval rating was also 83 percent in 2008, and has not been that high ever since. Notably, it's also a 29 percent increase from Putin's 2013 approval rating:
(Gallup)
In addition to presidential approval, 78 percent of Russians expressed confidence in their military, 64 percent in their national government, and 39 percent in the honesty of Russian elections.
Aside from their approval of the Russian government, a whopping 65 percent of Russians were satisfied with their freedom in 2014, and 35 percent thought economic conditions were improving.
However, Russians gave both U.S. and EU leadership single-digit approval ratings:
(Gallup)
Despite plummeting perceptions of the EU, however, Russians' approval rating of China is an astounding 42 percent. Meghan DeMaria
Leaving or attempting to change the nuclear deal will undermine U.S. diplomacy, Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, warned in a press conference in New York Saturday.
"That's a very dangerous message to send to people of Iran but also to the people of the world," he said, "that you should never come to an agreement with the United States, because at the end of the day the operating principle of the United States is, 'What's mine is mine; what's yours is negotiable.'"
Zarif made similar comments in a CBS interview Sunday, arguing that exiting the deal "will lead to U.S. isolation in the international community" because it will show "the United States is not a reliable partner," and that "the length or the duration of any agreement would depend on the duration of the presidency."
President Trump faces a May 12 deadline to decide whether to maintain the agreement. Watch the full CBS interview below. Bonnie Kristian
Four people were killed and four others injured when a gunman dressed only in a coat opened fire around 3:30 a.m. local time at a Waffle House near Nashville. The shooting suspect has been identified as Travis Reinking, 29, of Illinois. A Waffle House patron, James Shaw Jr., wrestled the gun away from the attacker, who left his coat and fled the crime scene nude.
BREAKING: Travis Reinking, 29, of Morton, IL, is person of interest in Waffle House shooting. Vehicle the gunman arrived in is registered to him. Gunman last seen walking south on Murfreesboro Pike. He shed is coat and is nude. See Reinking? Pls call 615-862-8600 immediately. pic.twitter.com/duoWCo5fC0
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) April 22, 2018
"If you see a nude guy walking around, call the police immediately," said Metropolitan Nashville Police Department representative Don Aaron. "We believe he may be the suspect in this." A man dressed only in pants and fitting Reinking's description was seen later Sunday morning in a wooded area within a mile of the Waffle House but was not apprehended at that time. A manhunt is ongoing as of midday Sunday.
This is a breaking news story that will be updated as more details become available. Bonnie Kristian
The oldest person in the world, a Japanese woman named Nabi Tajima, died Saturday at the age of 117.
Tajima had been the world's oldest person since September, and she was hospitalized beginning in January. Born on August 4, 1900, Tajima had nine children and about 160 descendants over the course of her life. She was the last person verified to have lived in the 19th century.
The world's oldest person, Japanese native Nabi Tajima, died at the age of 117 on Saturday; the world record for oldest person is now passed to fellow Japanese native, Chiyo Yoshida pic.twitter.com/BFHIT6dbAL
— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) April 22, 2018
The oldest person in the world now is another Japanese woman, one Chiyo Miyako. She will turn 117 next month. Bonnie Kristian
President Trump made a pair of posts on U.S.-North Korea nuclear negotiations on Twitter Sunday, apparently in response to his morning's viewing of cable news:
Sleepy Eyes Chuck Todd of Fake News NBC just stated that we have given up so much in our negotiations with North Korea, and they have given up nothing. Wow, we haven’t given up anything & they have agreed to denuclearization (so great for World), site closure, & no more testing!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 22, 2018
....We are a long way from conclusion on North Korea, maybe things will work out, and maybe they won’t - only time will tell....But the work I am doing now should have been done a long time ago!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 22, 2018
While North Korean leader Kim Jong Un did announce Saturday he would cease nuclear and missile testing and shutter a testing site, he has not agreed to denuclearize as Trump claimed.
Many experts consider denuclearization an unrealistic aim, as Pyongyang considers a nuclear arsenal its best insurance against forcible regime change. North Korean state media reports have pointed to the U.S.-orchestrated ousters of Iraq's Saddam Hussein and Libya's Moammar Gadhafi as evidence that "powerful nuclear deterrence serves as the strongest treasure sword for frustrating outsider's aggression." Bonnie Kristian
While President Trump has in public enthusiastically praised North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's Saturday announcement that he would cease nuclear and missile testing and shutter a testing site, behind closed doors, the Trump administration is reportedly unsure of how to interpret Kim's offer.
White House aides are skeptical of the freeze proposal, The Washington Post and The New York Times both reported Saturday evening. They worry Kim's concession will create an "illusion" of cooperation without making all the changes — including total denuclearization, which many experts consider to be an unrealistic aim — the administration hopes to secure in upcoming Trump-Kim talks.
"The reality is that North Korea has nuclear weapons, and we have to deal with that reality," Toby Dalton, co-director of nuclear policy at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told the Post. "The gap between reality and what we're planning for is problematic," he argues, "as it creates expectations that can't be met in the summit process, and we're back to where we were." Bonnie Kristian
At least 31 people were killed and more than 50 wounded by a suicide bombing at a voter registration center in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sunday. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, which targeted would-be voters lining up to receive ID cards for a parliamentary election scheduled for October.
"There were women, children," said Bashir Ahmad, who was nearby when the bomb exploded. "Everyone had come to get their identity cards." This is the deadliest attack Afghanistan has suffered since January.
Afghanistan's chief executive, Abdullah Abdullah, condemned the incident on Twitter. "I stand with those affected by this coward attack," he wrote. "Our resolve for fair and transparent election will continue and terrorists won't win against the will of the Afghan people." Bonnie Kristian
A neo-Nazi march is scheduled for Saturday in the small Georgia city of Newnan, about 40 miles southwest of Atlanta. Anti-fascist counter-protesters are expected as well, and a local church will hold an interfaith service to promote "peace and unity" during the rally.
To prepare for the event, local shopkeepers have removed anything that could be moved or thrown in public spaces, and many will not open for business to decrease opportunities for conflict. Many Newnan residents went shopping the night before to help make up the missing revenue.
Residents of Newnan have come out to write messages of love in chalk on walls and sidewalks all throughout town. pic.twitter.com/EeqCqj0MgK
— Andrew Kimmel (@andrewkimmel) April 20, 2018
And a community nonprofit invited children to make chalk drawings in the local park to undermine the neo-Nazis' message: "It will be hard for the hate group to take serious video footage when a rainbow-colored unicorn is in the shot." Bonnie Kristian