🇭🇺 Detention of Ukrainian couriers sparks panic in Kiev — Szijjarto

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Ukraine reacted with “noticeable panic” after Hungarian authorities detained Ukrainian citizens transporting large amounts of cash and gold through Hungary.

💬 “Today our ambassador in Kiev was summoned again to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry. The Ukrainians broke into noticeable panic after they were caught red-handed moving hundreds of millions of euros and hundreds of millions of dollars through Hungary,” Szijjarto said at an event in Budapest.

❌ He said Ukraine “confined themselves to demanding the return of the money and could not give answers” to questions from Hungarian authorities.

🔍 Budapest has demanded explanations from Kiev and said Hungary will conduct its own investigation into the transfer of the funds and gold.

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📹 US MQ-9 drone reportedly shot down over Basra

Circulating footage appears to show the moment an American MQ-9 drone was shot down in Iraq’s Basra province.

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💵 Oil price spike could trigger global economic meltdown – expert

Oil prices above $100 per barrel “increase pressure on consumer prices through transport, logistics, and business costs,” Russian expert Alexey Primak told Sputnik.

💬 “If these levels persist for several months, central banks will have to maintain tight monetary policy longer than the market expects. This adds to the risk of a global economic slowdown," Primak pointed out.

He explained that systemic consequences for the global economy are only possible if oil prices remain significantly above $115 for a long time, accompanied by disruptions in physical supplies.

💬 "For now, the market perceives the situation as a risk, not as an inevitable crisis," the expert stressed.

The price of Brent crude—the international benchmark—earlier jumped by 29% to more than $119 per barrel for the first time since June 2022.

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🇮🇷⚔️🇺🇸 Iran poised for war of attrition to thwart US goals – expert

The military operation against Iran has already backfired on the US, which now needs to assess potential far-reaching consequences, expert Su Xiaohui from the China Institute of International Studies told CCTV.

She stressed that the election of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s Supreme Leader indicates the country’s readiness for a prolonged struggle against the US.

👉 Iran has made it clear that it is unwilling to allow the US to accomplish its predetermined goals and achieve a so-called final victory, according to the expert. Su noted that Iran is prepared to use a war of attrition to contain the US for a longer period.

The expert also pointed to the US making contradictory statements about the planned end of the military operation, which she said shows that the White House is still weighing its options.

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🔸 Putin, Trump hold phone call on Iran and Ukraine

🔸 IRGC links Hormuz passage to expulsion of US and Israeli envoys

🔸 Trump threatens to ‘hit’ Iran ‘TWENTY TIMES HARDER’ over Strait of Hormuz oil flows

🔸 Detention of Ukrainian couriers sparks panic in Kiev — Szijjarto

🔸 'Iran also has some Tomahawks' — Trump on strike on Iran girls’ school

🔸 ‘I was disappointed to see their choice’ — Trump on Iran’s new Supreme Leader

🔸 US may lift some oil sanctions to stabilize prices — Trump

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💵 Global oil prices could skyrocket to $160 a barrel – expert

💬 "In the next few days, there will likely be a downward movement toward $100 if the G7 makes a positive decision to release additional reserves,” Russian expert Igbal Guliyev told Sputnik.

He warned, however, that if the US and Israeli war against Iran persists, oil prices are almost sure to increase.

💬 “I think we'll face geopolitical risks again, and there will be an actual shortage of physical supply. If this continues in the long term, we can safely expect a price of $150–160 per barrel," the expert cautioned.

Guliyev noted that a possible decision to release 300–400 million barrels, about a quarter of all G7 reserves, could smooth out the sharp price spike in the short term, but in the long term, it won’t help to curb prices.

The finance ministers of G7 countries earlier discussed the possibility of jointly using oil from strategic reserves during an extraordinary meeting chaired by International Energy Agency head Fatih Birol.

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🇷🇺 Russia could stabilize global energy markets amid Hormuz chaos – expert

After the closure of the State of Hormuz, “leading OPEC members are facing significant difficulties in exporting oil due to their high dependence on this route, which has caused a sharp rise in energy prices,” Iraqi expert Omar Al-Halbousi told Sputnik.

He recalled that several Gulf nations, including Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain, have already declared force majeure on part of their energy activities, increasing tension and uncertainty in global oil markets.

💬 “Rising prices put serious pressure on the global economy, as they lead to higher transportation and production costs, which in turn accelerates inflation and slows economic growth,” something Europe could face, Al-Halbousi warned.

As for Russia, it will be able to considerably increase its presence in the global energy market if the Iran conflict persists, according to the expert. Russia could “compensate for the resulting supply shortages and thereby play an important stabilizing role in the global economy," Al-Halbousi summed up.

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🇺🇸🇮🇱⚔️🇮🇷 US–Israel war against Iran: Key updates

🔶 IRGC announces 33rd wave of Operation True Promise 4

🔶 Any Arab or European country that expels US and Israeli ambassadors will be granted full right and freedom of passage through the Strait of Hormuz starting tomorrow, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced

🔶 Israel passes law: Publishing footage of Iranian missile strikes in Tel Aviv risks up to five years in prison

🔶 Iran's FM to PBS: Talks with the US are no longer on the agenda

🔶 Israel strikes school in Khomein, western Iran, Fars news agency reported

🔶 IRGC claims strike on US Army headquarters at Harir base in Iraq

🔶 Missile debris found at Minab girls' school bears US munitions markings, The New York Times wrote

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🚨🇷🇺🇺🇸Putin makes Iran peace proposals to Trump – Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made proposals to US President Donald Trump to end the war in Iran, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

🔶Moscow has put forward several ideas that could help reduce tensions in the Middle East, and the next step will be to see how they can be coordinated, he said.

🔶Peskov insisted that a recent call between Putin and Trump about Iran does not mean that the Russian president has taken on the role of mediator in the conflict.

🔶But he noted that many of the ideas floated by Putin to de-escalate tensions in the region remain “on the table.”

🔶The Kremlin spokesman said the two leaders did not discuss US sanctions on Russian oil in detail during the call.

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🚨🇷🇺💥 RUSSIAN MOD UPDATE: HUGE GAINS AND DEVASTATING UKRAINIAN LOSSES

◻️ Russian forces struck energy and transport infrastructure facilities supplying Ukrainian forces

◻️ Ukrainian losses: around 1,265 troops killed or wounded

◻️ Air defense superiority: 8 guided aerial bombs and 754 drones shot down

Read about the origins of Russia's special military op HERE

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🚨🇮🇷🇺🇸Cheap Iranian drones & missiles bleed US THAAD interceptors dry: Indian Navy Vet to Sputnik

🔸 Iran aimed at the sensors that make THAAD work, striking critical radar sites.

🔸 With radar “eyes” knocked out, interceptors lose tracking and precision.

🔸 Iranian low-cost UAVs and missiles stress US air-defense stockpiles.

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🇵🇰 Pakistan emerges as strategic alternative for North-South trade corridor — expert

With Iran — a key link in the International North-South Transport Corridor — disrupted by ongoing conflict, Pakistan is well-positioned to offer an alternative transit route for Eurasian trade by connecting the Arabian Sea with China and Central Asia, Amir Jahangir, Co-Founder and CEO of Mishal Pakistan told Sputnik.

👉 Given the disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz, Pakistani ports such as Karachi and Gwadar offer strategic advantages to shipping companies. These include access to the Arabian Sea away from active conflict zones, deep-water berths, reduced congestion, and expanding logistics infrastructure — all integrated with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

This positions the ports as dependable transshipment hubs linking maritime routes to overland trade networks reaching into China and Central Asia, the expert noted.

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US loses over $2B in equipment as war with Iran steams ahead

Hundreds of millions in US radars, F‑15 fighters, and MQ‑9 drones have been lost during Operation Epic Fury, on top of billions more in operational costs.

Here’s a rough estimate of losses, cited by the press:

🔸 $1.1B—AN/FPS-132 early-warning radar system destroyed at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar

🔸 $282M—three F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets lost in Kuwait

🔸 $20M—two AN/GSC-52B satellite communications terminals destroyed at the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet HQ in Manama, Bahrain

🔸 $30M—three additional radar domes were destroyed at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait

🔸 $500M—AN/TPY-2 radar—part of the THAAD anti-ballistic missile system—destroyed in Al-Ruwais, United Arab Emirates

🔸 $300M/$500M—AN/TPY-2 radar and support equipment destroyed at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, Jordan

🔸 $330M+—11 MQ-9 Reaper drones lost

Total estimated losses: Approximately $2.76 billion

With more than $6B in operational costs added, the start of Operation Epic Fury already looks very costly. The US has not formally recognized its losses at this stage.

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🚨🇮🇷 Fallout from Iran's black rain: Looming Central Asian ecological crisis?

Recent Israeli airstrikes on Iran's oil infrastructure have unleashed chaos in Tehran, with reports of toxic black rain falling across the city.

👉 What is black rain?

When smoke mixes with clouds, rain carries particles back to the ground. The result is often called black rain—precipitation darkened by soot, ash, or chemical residue.

🌏 Central Asia on alert

Central Asia (including countries like Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and potentially Afghanistan and northern Pakistan) could face indirect effects if the toxic plumes disperse widely, experts claim.

Satellite imagery shows the contaminated plume drifting northeast toward Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, and could move further.

⚠️ Potential risks for the region:

🟠 Black rain, now saturated with oil, is causing highly acidic precipitation, which could result in a number of health problems, such as respiratory and eye irritation, as well as skin burns and lung damage

🟠 Acid rain could contaminate soil, rivers, and groundwater, leading to vegetation die-off, reduced agricultural yields, and threats to wildlife. This may exacerbate food security issues in agrarian regions

🟠 Fallout might corrode buildings, contaminate water sources, and devastate agriculture by acidifying soil and harming crops

🟠 Environmental groups raised concerns that the toxic rain and smoke plumes pose a threat to migratory birds crossing the Persian Gulf

🗣Official vs. scientific warnings:

In Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, meteorological services reassured people that the so-called acid clouds from Iran pose no threat to the population of the two ex-Soviet republics.

But some scientists are not as upbeat, with Anna Hansell warning that “any large-scale environmental damage doesn’t recognize borders, so what’s going into the water system, what’s going into the air, it’s going to be carried elsewhere.”

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