Russia

#BREAKING: Belarus releases another 52 prisoners after talks with US

Ben Aris in Belrin September 11, 2025

Belarus has released another 52 prisoners following negotiations with the US , with President Alexander Lukashenko granting pardons on what state media described as humanitarian grounds, the BelTA news agency reported on September 11.

COMMENT: What were Russian drones doing in Poland?

Ben Aris in Berlin September 11, 2025

With no clear explanation from Moscow, theories have proliferated over how and why more than a dozen Russian drones crossed into Poland on September 10—and what this means for European security.

One in three Poles blame Ukraine for the drone incursion into Polish airspace

Ben Aris in Berlin September 11, 2025

For the first time during the full-scale war in Ukraine, Poland has shot down multiple Russian drones in its airspace on September 10, but a third of Poles have blamed the strike on Ukraine, not Russia, according to a poll.

Hungarian foreign minister fails to condemn Russian drone attack during Belarus visit

bne IntelliNews September 11, 2025

Peter Szijjarto avoided blaming Russia for drones crossing Polish airspace and causing damage, a stance in line with Budapest’s longstanding reluctance to confront Moscow directly.

COMMENT: Need and loathing in Russia – unpacking the labour migration paradox

Katherine Spencer September 10, 2025

Central Asian guest workers face growing hardship.

Von der Leyen pledges unwavering support for Ukraine, unveils competitiveness reforms in EC state of the Union speech

Ben Aris in Berlin September 10, 2025

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen used her annual EU State of the Union address on September 10 to reaffirm the bloc’s commitment to Ukraine, signal a tougher stance on Israeli settler violence, and outline reform

Poland to invoke Nato’s article 4 after Russian drones’ incursion into Polish airspace

Wojciech Kosc in Warsaw September 10, 2025

PM Donald Tusk says overnight incursions were "incomparably more dangerous" than previous incidents since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

COMMENT: France’s instability risks weakening Europe at a critical moment

Ben Aris in Berlin September 10, 2025

The French government fell on September 8, facing a 5.8% of GDP budget deficit it can neither fund nor reduce, plunging the Fifth Republic into yet another crisis at a critical time for Europe.

Trump urges EU to hit China, India with 100% tariffs

Ben Aris in Berlin September 10, 2025

US President Donald Trump called for the EU to hit China and India with tariffs of up to 100% on imports in an effort to force Moscow to end its war in Ukraine, the Financial Times reported on September 8.

Poland shoots down Russian drones after airspace breach, authorities say

bne IntelliNews September 10, 2025

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he was in “constant contact" with the defence ministry and President Karol Nawrocki.

UPDATED: Poland scrambles jets, shuts airports as Russia accused of drone incursions

bno - Taipei Office September 10, 2025

Poland has scrambled fighter aircraft and temporarily shut its main airports after reports that Russian drones entered its airspace during overnight strikes on Ukraine.

Kyrgyzstan to discuss ministry proposal to build nuclear plant

bne IntelliNews September 9, 2025

Small Central Asian country could follow in footsteps of bigger neighbours Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, which have atomic power projects under way.

Nebius shares surge 50% after $17.4bn AI cloud deal with Microsoft

bne IntelliNews September 9, 2025

The shares of Nebius Group, the AI cloud company founded by Yandex co-founder Arkady Volozh, jumped 50% in after-hours trading on September 8 after the announcement of a major agreement with Microsoft.

The rise of the Southern Consensus

Ben Aris in Berlin September 9, 2025

It’s increasingly looking like a clash of civilisations, isn’t it? In the last 24 hours there was yet another Global South summit where the collective leaders of the world’s biggest countries gathered to show unity in the face of US aggression.

COMMENT: Putin’s pivot to China cements Russia’s vassalage to Beijing

Ben Aris in Berlin September 9, 2025

When Donald Trump declared that Joe Biden had made the “unthinkable” mistake of pushing Moscow into Beijing’s arms, the US president suggested their partnership was inherently fragile.

Europe mulls secondary sanctions as part of the nineteenth sanctions package for the first time

Ben Aris in Berlin September 9, 2025

The European Union is considering the unprecedented step of adopting US-style secondary sanctions as part of the nineteenth sanctions package currently under review. The EU has never imposed secondary sanctions before.

Kazakhstan calls for urgent international action on rapid shallowing of Caspian Sea

bne IntelliNews September 9, 2025

Could plan to connect the Caspian and Black Seas with a tunnel or canal come to the fore?

Xi and Putin to join BRICS emergency talks on US trade measures

bne IntelliNews September 8, 2025

Brazil's President Lula rallies leaders from emerging economies for a virtual meeting to find a coordinated response to aggressive US trade measures.

Russia plans to double missile production to 2,500 a year, increases drone output to 2,700 a month

Ben Aris in Berlin September 8, 2025

Russia plans to double its missile production to 2,500 a year and can already produce 2,700 drones a month, according to Ukraine's Main Directorate of Intelligence.

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