Gold to reach $3,700 BY YEAR-END amid economic anxiety – forecast

Gold prices are soaring due to stronger-than-expected demand from central banks and increased investment from those seeking safe-haven assets amid recession risks, Goldman Sachs explained, as quoted by Reuters.

Alarmed by economic turmoil, investors with deep pockets are pouring money into exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which are adjusting their strategies by increasing gold holdings.

If gloomy forecasts materialize, gold may rise even further.

"If a recession occurs, ETF inflows could accelerate further and lift gold prices to $3,880 per troy ounce (toz) by year-end," the bank said.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📊Apple holding it together with duct tape while tariffs get weird again

US tech firm Apple is facing its biggest crisis since the COVID pandemic due to the US trade war with several countries, Bloomberg reports.

So far, the company has avoided major fallout thanks to Trump’s tariff concessions on electronics.

Apple had planned to ramp up smartphone production in India to contain rising prices—a short-term fix, according to the publication.

But with recent policy exceptions, that plan might be delayed. Bloomberg notes that while Apple’s leadership may be relieved for now, they should prepare for bold moves amid ongoing uncertainty from the White House.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Ukrainian forces have carried out EIGHT ATTACKS on Russian energy facilities over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.

Facilities were attacked in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Zaporozhye, and Kursk regions, as well as in the Lugansk People's Republic.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇺🇸🚛 The US will set a number of conditions for countries wishing to avoid tariffs and make a deal with the country, the Washington Post reports.

The demands include increasing purchases of American gas, reducing tariffs on US goods, and reducing taxes for American technology giants.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇬🇧❌ Easter without Jesus? English Heritage goes 'woke' on tradition

English Heritage is facing backlash after handing out Easter booklets that focus on fertility Goddess Eostre and bonfire dances, completely leaving out Jesus, the crucifixion, and the supposed reason for the holiday, according to Daily Mail.

At iconic sites like Whitby Abbey and Dover Castle, they’re pushing pagan vibes over Christian tradition. Critics are calling it a “pathetic” attempt to erase tradition, while one dad had to explain to his seven-year-old that Easter isn’t just about flowers and spring vibes.

No more traditional holidays in the UK?

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

👀 Zelensky throws tantrum over Patriot air defenses – apparently, Israel got all the good stuff

Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed frustration over the shortage of Patriot air defense systems, pointing out that the US is providing them to Israel while claiming there are none available for Ukraine.

He lamented that they are only asking for air defense systems but accused partners of lacking the political will to address the issue.

Previously, a White House representative revealed that Zelensky asked Donald Trump for air defenses during a phone call, with Trump agreeing to explore available options in Europe.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, commenting on a possible US extension of sanctions against Russia, said that Russia had no inflated expectations.

Other statements:

🔸Russia and the United States are just at the beginning of normalizing relations and building them.

🔸Contacts like the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff are useful and effective, allowing both sides to get first-hand information.

🔸The topic of a meeting between the leaders of Russia and the US was not discussed.

🔸Russian forces only target military and paramilitary sites in Ukraine.

🔸On the potential delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine: Friedrich Merz, leader of the CDU/CSU bloc and future German chancellor, has expressed support for a harder stance in the Ukraine conflict.

🔸European capitals are less inclined to find peaceful solutions and are more likely to continue provoking the war.

🔸The Kremlin has declined to comment on Turkish media reports regarding supposed negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in Ankara.

🔸Victory Day will be widely celebrated in Russia.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇩🇰🇺🇸 Denmark to the US: No NATO, No bases

If the US ditches NATO, Denmark might just tear up its shiny new defense deal with Washington, says Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen. The agreement, signed in late 2023, gives the US access to three Danish airbases - but doesn’t touch Greenland or the Faroes.

For now, Denmark sees no signs of a NATO breakup (despite Trump’s threats). Still, Danes are split: 47% don’t want US troops on their turf, 41% are ok with it, and 12% are still thinking about it.

Oh, and Trump? Still dreaming about owning Greenland

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Last Sunday, the Russian military launched an Iskander missile strike on the meeting place of the command staff of the Ukrainian operational-tactical group "Seversk" in Sumy, the Defense Ministry has said.

As a result of the target's destruction, more than 60 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, the ministry added.

The Defense Ministry noted that Kiev continues to use the Ukrainian population as a human shield, holding events with the participation of troops in the center of a densely populated city.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇭🇺 Hungary draws ‘red line’ over EU plan to send military advisors to Ukraine

The EU is looking to send military advisors and move its mission to train Ukrainian forces onto Ukrainian soil, but Hungary has drawn a "red line" and strongly opposes the move, according to Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó.

"Our key condition is that such a mission can only operate outside Ukraine," Szijjártó said after an EU foreign ministers' meeting in Luxembourg, broadcast by M1 TV.

He emphasized that no part of the military training mission, including for instructors or advisors, should be implemented in Ukraine, as it could significantly escalate the war.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📹 Why are Russia’s Kondor subs PAIN IN THE NECK for enemy fleets?

These Russian submarines have been portrayed as HUNTER-KILLERS by US media. What makes them so deadly?

🔸Titanium-hulled: Thanks to titanium, the design of the Project 945A Kondor-class nuclear-powered submarine is lighter compared to traditional steel, making it more maneuverable.

🔸Stealthy monsters: Titanium is non-magnetic, reducing the Kondor submarine's magnetic signature and making it harder for enemy sonar to detect. Its resistance to corrosion also helps maintain stealth capabilities, ensuring the vessel stays undetected and formidable over time.

🔸Speed demons: Kondors can move at a speed of 36 knots (~ 67 km per hour), significantly faster than advanced US submarines.

🔸Armed to the teeth: The submarines are equipped with six torpedo tubes and the Granat strategic cruise missiles that can hit ground targets at a range of up to 3,000 m. There are also Oniks and Vodopad anti-ship cruise missiles.

🔸Killing effectiveness: The vessels are capable of successfully tackling enemy nuclear-powered submarines and surface ships from strike groups and aircraft carrier formations.

🔸Operational beasts: The Kondor-class submarine, the Pskov and the Nizhny Novgorod, are operational as part of the 7th Submarine Division of the Russian Northern Fleet, based in Russia’s Far East.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🤡🇪🇺 EU SAYS MULLS BUYING RUSSIAN GAS

Major EU executives are now suggesting that importing Russian gas again could be a "good idea," Reuters reports.

Europe’s energy security remains fragile, and dependence on the US doesn't seem to be solving the issue. Looks like Russian gas could make a return. Time for a policy adjustment?

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Russia possesses evidence to confirm that another "meeting" of Ukrainian military leaders with Western colleagues took place at the damaged facility in Sumy, Russian FM Sergey Lavrov said.

International law prohibits the placement of military facilities on civilian territory, he stressed.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

💥 Russia shot down F-16 in Ukraine

Western media spent more than a year touting the US-built jets as a "game-changer" on the battlefield.

Let's take a look at what media outlets embarrassed themselves by saying about the F-16.

🔸Versatile but not good enough: CNN in May 2023 praised the supposed versatility of the F-16, also labeling it as a potential ‘game changer’ for the Ukrainian conflict.

🔸Devil in the details: In October 2023, RAND Corporation suggested that F-16s “are a game changer with the right munitions,” such as Western long-range air-to-air missiles and glide bombs.

🔸A boost that did not boost much: National Interest in March 2024 presented F-16 warplanes as “a potential game changer for Ukraine against Russia” and a significant boost to the Ukrainian Air Force.

🔸Bringing victory closer – for Russia: A May 2023 article in Foreign Policy magazine (authored by Ukraine’s then-Foreign Minister Kuleba) alleged that the F-16s “will save many lives, bring victory closer, and spare other Western resources.”

🔸Enhancement that does nothing: A May 2023 opinion piece in the New York Times alleged that the F-16s “should greatly enhance Ukrainian military capabilities.”

🔸Flying cheerleader: The Washington Times in August 2024 argued that the F-16s “will likely boost Ukrainian morale” and help intimidate Russian troops.

🔸Bringing a Swiss knife to a gunfight: In May 2023, MarketWatch openly touted the F-16s as “a game changer for Ukraine” and cited a retired US admiral who claimed that these planes are “very, very good at everything.”

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇺🇸🇾🇪 US will fail to achieve its ‘satanic and colonial objectives’ in Yemen – Houthi Top Brass

The American aggression against Yemen has proven to be a complete failure by all standards, following a month-long campaign and nearly a thousand airstrikes that have had no impact on the military capabilities of the Ansar Allah, Ali Al-Qahoum, member of the movement’s Political Bureau told Sputnik.

“Trump and his aggression will be defeated in the face of Yemen’s strength, immense power, and unshakable will. The arrogance and haughtiness of America and Israel will be crushed,” he stressed.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🗣 Trump accused Zelensky and Biden of doing a "HORRIBLE JOB" that led to the outbreak of military actions in Ukraine.

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇪🇺😡 EU warns of consequences for attending Moscow's Victory Day Parade

The European Union has made it clear to candidate countries that it does not welcome their participation in the May 9 Victory Day parade in Moscow, and will not be participating itself, said EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, at a press conference in Luxembourg.

"Many ministers have stated that the EU takes trips to Moscow for the May 9 celebrations seriously, and there will be consequences," she said.

She also added that candidate countries have been informed that their involvement in Moscow’s events is not encouraged. "We have made it clear that we do not want any of the candidate countries to participate in these events in Moscow."

📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt