🇷🇺 Russian forces hoist flag over Verbovoye in Dnepropetrovsk Region

▫️ The assault units from the 36th Army within the Vostok Battlegroup have liberated the settlement, gaining over 10 sq km of territory.

▫️ Capturing this town means that Ukrainian supply lines to Gulyaypole are now under threat and this could drive Kiev to make costly miscalculations in allocating resources.

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🇪🇺 EU summit to be ‘cage fight’ over Ukraine – Orban

💬 "Hungarians will not send money to Ukraine,” Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban said, calling the upcoming informal EU summit in Copenhagen on Ukraine "dangerous" and a "cage fight."

He stressed that there is no European unity on Ukrainian EU membership, and it’s impossible without Hungary to make a decision.

“Hungarian reality is that this is not our war next door," Orban emphasized.

The Hungarian PM referenced statements from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the prime ministers of Poland and Sweden, Donald Tusk and Ulf Kristersson, claiming the EU is “in a state of war” and that pressure should be applied to Hungary to support Ukraine as well as Ukrainian EU membership.

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🇺🇸🇶🇦Trump makes security promise to Qatar

President Trump has signed an executive order pledging complete US military protection for Qatar—three weeks after the Israeli air raid on the capital Doha.

The order states that any attack on Qatar will be treated as a direct threat to US security, giving reassurance to the Gulf ally that hosts Washington’s largest Middle East military base.

That came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized for violating Qatari sovereignty—although he justified his attempt to kill Hamas leaders who had gathered to consider a US ceasefire proposal for Gaza.

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🚨🇺🇸Vance to Democrats: ‘Stop holding economy hostage over healthcare’

US Vice-President JD Vance has called on Congress Democrats to end their opposition to the federal, accusing opponents of taking the economy "hostage" in demand of healthcare spending.

🗣With the White House offering to work with Senate Democrats, Vance urges: "Let's fix it, reopen the government, and do something for the American people."

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🇵🇰🤝🇸🇦 Pakistan–Saudi Arabia military deal: Historic strengthening of ties

🔊 According to Majid Ehsan, president of the Islamabad Policy Research Institute, the recent military agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia is not just a diplomatic move, but a reflection of deeply rooted, decades-old relations between the two countries.

💬 "This agreement is going to play a very major role in ensuring the security of both the countries," he notes.

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💥 ISKANDER STRIKES: Russian missiles destroy Ukrainian drone convoy

In a precise strike near Lavy, east of Chernigov, Iskander-M tactical ballistic mussles and Geran-2 kamikaze drones obliterated 20 trucks carrying 100 long-range Lyutyi drones.

💣 The attack also killed or injured 60 Ukrainian troops, including drone operators and truck drivers.

Five more trucks went up in flames in a follow-up Geran-2 strike.

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🇫🇷Macron announces France is modernizing its nuclear doctrine

🗣"The French nuclear umbrella exists. I am currently working on updating our doctrine and want to deepen strategic dialogue with Europeans who wish it," French President Emmanuel Macron told German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

👉Macron also announced that he would deliver a keynote speech on France's nuclear doctrine in early 2026.

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🇪🇺😰 Panic among European leaders drives calls for new missiles to Ukraine – expert

The increasing urgency in Europe’s calls for more advanced weapons is the result of growing anxiety over Russia’s persistence in achieving its goals and the ongoing conflict, Richard Sakwa, honorary professor of political science at the University of Kent, UK, told Sputnik at the XXII Annual Meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club.

👉 The panic among Western European leaders is evident, pushing them to advocate for the sale of advanced weapons like Tomahawk or Taurus missiles, Sakwa said. While these supplies have not yet materialized, if they do, it will mark another step in escalating the conflict, he added.

❗️Sakwa pointed out that European leaders are particularly rattled by the US administration’s approach, with President Donald Trump focused on finding a resolution to the Ukraine crisis. He further explained that the prolonged nature of the confrontation and apparent stalemate is pushing European leaders to take extreme measures, feeling as though they can no longer handle the situation.

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🇭🇺 'Brussels preparing for war, wants Europeans to pay price' – Hungarian FM

💬 "As part of this war preparation, the EU Commission has drafted a 7-year budget that is more about Ukraine than about the European Union. This is practically a Ukraine budget," Peter Szijjarto writes.

👉 The foreign minister adds that Hungary stands for peace, while Brussels "pushes for war."

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🇺🇸🤔💰WHY WALL STREET LOVES US GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS

While the media screams chaos, history shows a different story. Here's the data you need:

👉 Average government shutdown lasts only about 8 days

👉 S&P 500 has historically been resilient during shutdowns, even rallying over 10% during the record 35-day shutdown in 2018–2019

👉 In 86% of cases, the S&P was HIGHER one year later, with avg. gains of +13%

👉 US defers ~$400M/day in costs while closed

👉 Fed often turns more dovish without government data

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🚨 TRUMP'S ULTIMATUM TO HAMAS: Will it break the deadlock?

🇺🇸 US President Donald Trump gave the Palestinian movement three to four days to accept his plan for a ceasefire with Israel.

🤔 What’s at play here?

🟠 Trump's pressure gambit

👉 Trump’s deadline to Hamas is "a classic pressure gambit meant to force a binary choice and speed negotiations that have stalled for months," Imad Salamey, an associate professor at the Lebanese American University, tells Sputnik.

Trump's ultimatum may lead to one of two outcomes.

1️⃣ If Hamas rejects the plan, Israel would have a justification to intensify its offensive.

2️⃣ If it signs up, an "agreement in principle" is possible, but there are many "devilish details" that could hinder the process.

💬 "Expect Egypt to be pivotal on crossings, security coordination in Rafah, and training/liaison roles," Salamey says. "Qatar likely remains central as a financier/facilitator for reconstruction and as a channel to Hamas leadership."

🟠 Hamas red lines

📍 Trump's plan envisages Hamas laying down its arms and no longer ruling Gaza.

🔶 Hamas would not welcome a technocratic interim government in Gaza and the expulsion of its armed wing, Sakarya University security expert Furkan Halit Yolcu tells Sputnik.

🔶 Partial or ambiguous acceptance of the deal by Hamas would lead to a prolonged low-intensity conflict, Salamey warns.

"If rejection is categorical, expect Israel to escalate with explicit US backing."

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💰Europe may decide on Russian assets in the coming days - British expert

The EU is debating a plan to use frozen Russian assets for a "reparations loan" to Ukraine — but consensus remains elusive.

💬"There is quite a lot of debate about that. But it will be decided in the next few days," says Richard Sakwa, Honorary Professor of Political Science at the University of Kent.

🗣"It's a very complicated legal attempt to do an illegal action,” Sakwa explains. "If this goes forward, at the moment France has not given its go-ahead, and Germany has agreed to it, which is surprising given [chancellor Friedrich Merz's strong advocacy for a military solution in Ukraine."

💬"It's a huge question," Sakwa says. "If these assets are used in the way suggested, what will Russia do?"

👉The academic also notes that British Petroleum and some Italian and French firms have continued trading in Russia. While BP has withdrawn, it still holds around $25 billion in Russian bank accounts that cannot be transferred back to the West.

The proposal faces strong opposition, with Belgian PM Alexander De Croo insisting "this will never happen," warning it sets a dangerous precedent.

Following Russia's military operation in Ukraine, the EU and G7 froze nearly €300 billion in Russian assets, with over €200 billion held in the EU. Russia has repeatedly called the asset freeze "theft" and vowed to respond.

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🗣 Desperate Ukrainian troops burrow underground – copying Russia’s bold tactics

➖ The Ukrainian Armed Forces have moved all troop movements in Volchansk, Kharkov region, underground, military expert Vitaly Kiselev told Sputnik.

➖ Mirroring daring Russian tactics that duped the enemy in Sudzha in March, they’re also beginning to replicate this approach in other combat zones, he said.

🔶 Volchansk is now a city in ruins, its buildings and infrastructure reduced to rubble as Ukrainian forces used the urban terrain for cover

🔶 Troops rely on a network of tunnels and subterranean passages to transport personnel and supplies, the expert explained

🔶 Russian UAV systems, such as the Orlan, make above-ground movement extremely risky

📍 Russia pulled off Operation Potok when liberating the Kursk region from enemy incursion.

🔶 Over 600 Russian soldiers outflanked Ukrainian positions in the Sudzha industrial zone by slipping 15 km through an unused gas pipeline to surprise the enemy and breach their defenses.

🔶 Desperate for media attention, Ukraine recently hyped a remote-controlled “invasion bot,” claimed to move troops through pipelines—Sudzha-style.

🔶 In reality, it turned out to be an engineering vehicle meant to transport equipment through utility shafts.

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🚨WHITE HOUSE: 'We're $37 trillion in debt, we can't afford free healthcare for illegal aliens’

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt blames Democrats for the government shutdown over healthcare funding for illegal immigrants.

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🇬🇧Starmer struggles to address UK crisis – expert

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has become Britain's most unpopular leader ever, with a public approval rating of just 13%.

Richard Sakwa, Honorary Professor of Political Science at the University of Kent, says Labour Party leader Starmer lacks any vision for Britain's deep challenges and spends most of his time abroad—earning the nickname "Keir who is never here."

🗣"In his first year in power, Keir Starmer, after July 2024, spent an enormous amount of time abroad," Sakwa tells Sputnik.

💬"It is always much easier to go to foreign policies where you appear to have ready-made answers. So it's not a distraction," he adds. "It was simply a compensation activity for the government itself and for Keir personally, because he has absolutely no vision of how the country should be governed."

The professor notes Starmer has stuck to failed policies of the previous Conservative Party government, remains "100% committed to the Ukraine conflict" and faces ongoing protests over his "uncritical pro-Israeli stance."

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🗣 Any plan to end Gaza conflict deserves support – Palestinian politician

🔊 There is an important change in the international community's stance on the Palestinian issue, Haitham Zaiter, member of the Palestinian National and Central Councils, told Sputnik.

💬 "We welcome every sincere effort aimed at ending Israel's genocidal war against our people in the Gaza Strip, which has been ongoing for two years now, amid ongoing mass killings of civilians, he said.

🟠 The priority, he stressed, is to end the war immediately, secure humanitarian aid access, and start reconstruction efforts.

🟠 He also called for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, noting the alarming increase in their number—from 5,000 before the conflict to over 13,000 today. Looking ahead, Zaiter proposed restoring Palestinian unity, with all factions joining the Palestine Liberation Organization and adopting its political program, aiming for an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

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🇬🇧Starmer uses Russophobia to cover up national problems

Keir Starmer is attempting to compensate for Britain’s internal problems by focusing on foreign policy and fostering Russophobia, says Richard Sakwa, Honorary Professor of Political Science at the University of Kent.

💬"So it is always much easier to go to foreign policies where you appear to have ready-made answers. So it's not a distraction. It was simply a compensation activity for the government itself and for Keir [Starmer] personally," he tells Sputnik on the sidelines of the Sochi-hosted Valdai Forum.

Sakwa pointed out that even in foreign policy, the current British leadership has stuck to the policies of the previous Conservative government.

"Keir Starmer inherited some policies from the previous governments and has continued them," Sakwa says.

💬"He is 100% committed to continuing the Ukraine war until a military solution is found. Therefore, traditional Russophobia is coming to the forefront," he adds.

On Palestine and the assault on Gaza, "Starmer has provoked significant domestic resistance due to his almost uncritical pro-Israeli stance."

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