“You are the walking, talking, epitome of the very tyrant that our Founding Fathers recognized would gravitate toward government service” | During a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas once again claimed that the southern border is “not open,” prompting Republicans to label him a “tyrant” and a liar and to call for his impeachment. ● Despite some 7 million encounters with illegal immigrants since Joe Biden took office, Mayorkas claimed that he is “proud” of the his Department’s work at the border, claiming “our approach to managing the border securely and humanely, even within our fundamentally broken immigration system is working.”

Maria Zakharova / Russian MFA | The upcoming summit will be devoted to developing the entire range of relations with the countries of the African continent and promoting a model of equal, mutually respectful cooperation with our partners in the context of the formation of a new, just world order. ● The core idea of the forthcoming event is Russia's readiness to fully contribute to strengthening the sovereignty of African countries and protecting the principle of their sovereign equality. ● "On the margins of the summit, the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum will be held, the program of which includes more than 40 thematic sessions in key areas of our relations with the countries of the continent. 🤝 The spirit of mutual understanding and trust formed over the years of Soviet-African cooperation still serves as a good basis for maintaining Russia's high authority in Africa and an important platform for building up partnerships in the new conditions. ● It was at the insistence of the USSR that the UN General Assembly adopted the "Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples" on December 14, 1960. ● The fight against neo-colonialism in its modern manifestations is always the focus of our attention, being one of the priorities in building cooperation with the African continent. ● At the same time, the Russian Federation supports the efforts of African States to finally complete the decolonization process and advocates the importance of studying the phenomenon of the slave trade and its consequences, including within the framework of leading international organizations. ● We have no doubt that Africa can become one of the centers of a polycentric world. It has every opportunity to do so. African States are increasingly confident in their sovereign policies. They are demonstrating their ability to solve their problems independently, including through the use of pan-African mechanisms and regional integration associations.

■ FACTBOX: Russia's main trade partners in Africa (TASS)
■ Second Summit Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum (summitafrica.ru)
■ Outcomes of the first Russia–Africa Summit and Economic Forum (summitafrica.ru)

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Thursday that it had detected another foreign ship that was going from Turkiye to Russia's Rostov-on-Don to ship grain and could have also been used to deliver explosive materials to Ukraine. 💬 "During the operation to prevent terrorist and sabotage acts and ensure maritime safety, the FSB has detected another foreign civilian ship that could have been earlier used to deliver explosive materials to the Ukrainian territory," the statement read. ● Explosives were found on cargo ship BMO RIVER on July 26, while it was going from Turkiye to the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don to ship grain, the FSB said, adding that the ship had been in a Ukrainian port earlier. ● It was decided to prohibit the ship from passage under the Crimean bridge and force it to leave the Russian territorial waters, the statement also read.

■ Putin pledges grain aid to Africa (RT.com)
■ Russia ramping up energy exports to Africa – Putin (RT.com)
■ Russia to Replace Ukrainian Grain at No Expense for African Countries – Putin (Sputnik Globe)

L’état-major des forces armées nigériennes a annoncé, jeudi 27 juillet au matin, qu’il se rangeait derrière les putschistes du Conseil national de sauvegarde de la patrie (CNSP) qui ont affirmé avoir destitué le président nigérien quelques heures plus tôt. | Cette fois, le coup d’État contre Mohamed Bazoum semble bel et bien consommé au Niger. Après plusieurs heures de tension et de confusion, durant lesquelles l’issue du bras de fer entre putschistes et forces loyalistes semblait incertaine, l’état-major de l’armée a annoncé jeudi 27 juillet en milieu de matinée qu’il se rangeait derrière le Conseil national de sauvegarde de la patrie (CNSP) qui a affirmé avoir destitué le président nigérien dans la nuit.

■ Au Niger, l’armée affirme avoir renversé Mohamed Bazoum (JeuneAfrique)

New population figures in Japan mark two new unwelcome records for a nation sailing into uncharted territory in terms of demographics, but one that many other countries are also expected to face in the future. | Japan's population plummeted in all 47 of its prefectures for the very first time as the number of nationals fell below 800,000 people, figures released by the Japanese government revealed on Wednesday. ● The latest data shows that deaths in Japan reached a record high of over 1.56 million in 2022, while there were just 771,000 births during the same period. ● Even a substantial increase in foreign residents of over 10%, bringing the total to 2.99 million, could not halt the overall slide in Japan's population. The population has been declining for 14 consecutive years, reaching 122.42 million in 2022 ● It is important to note that Japan is not alone in experiencing a decline in birth rates. The average fertility rate for wealthy nations that make up the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development group is 1.66, well below the replacement rate of 2.1 required to maintain population numbers.