The incident occurred in central Gaza on Sunday, according to media reports, which said that four other people also lost their lives due to the Israeli airstrike.
The Israeli military said it had been targeting a terrorist but a “technical error” saw the munition stray off course.
Uphold protection of children
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell noted that the incident came just days after several women and children were killed while lining up for nutritional supplies.
“The Israeli authorities must urgently review the rules of engagement and ensure full compliance with international humanitarian law, notably the protection of civilians, including children,” she wrote in a statement posted on X.
The UN has repeatedly deplored the killing of Palestinians seeking food aid amid the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, where food security experts have warned that the entire population is not getting enough to eat.
Stockpiles of food available
Meanwhile, “truckloads of food and medical supplies are waiting in warehouses” just outside the enclave, UN Palestine refugee agency UNRWA said in a tweet.
It included a quote from one of its health workers who said that “in the past, I only saw such cases of malnutrition in textbooks and documentaries. Today, I am treating them face to face in the health centre.”
UNRWA appealed for starvation of civilians to stop and for the siege to be lifted.
“Let the UN, including UNRWA, do its lifesaving work,” the tweet said.
West Bank annexation ‘well underway’
Separately, UNRWA also highlighted the situation of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank against the backdrop of the war in Gaza.
Agency chief Philippe Lazzarini told an international conference in Switzerland on Monday that “annexation is well underway.”
UNRWA said “this is not just destruction: it is part of systematic forced displacement, a violation of international law, and a form of collective punishment.”
In January, Israeli forces launched operations in Tulkarm and Jenin in the West Bank, which UNRWA has previously said are the most extensive in two decades.
Humanitarians reported last week that the operations are causing massive destruction and displacement while attacks by Israeli settlers have intensified.
When pop star Katy Perry and five other women made a much-publicised trip to the edge of space earlier this year, they faced sharp criticism across both social and traditionalmedia, with sceptics questioning multiple aspects of the mission.
Much of the backlash centred on the emphasis the crew – which included broadcaster Gayle King and Jeff Bezos’s now-wife, journalist Lauren Sánchez – placed on glamour. Detractors saw their uniforms as at odds with the traditional image of astronauts as explorers, scientific pioneers and envoys of humankind venturing into space.
The flight suits were designed by New York fashion house Monse Maison’s co-founders, Fernando Garcia and Laura Kim. They also created Sánchez’s 2024 Met Gala look.
The celebrity crew were first revealed in a photo shared by Blue Origin on April 12, two days before the launch. The unveiling was followed by a series of pre-flight interviews that touched on topics such as makeup, lash extensions and hair styling.
In one such segment, Perry quipped that the crew “put ass in astronaut”. It’s the type of comment that, while playful, reinforced the criticism that the flight prioritised spectacle over substance.
Having previously conducted research on governance of space suit design and astronaut safety, I think much of the backlash targeting the crew’s emphasis on glamour is misplaced. Fashion and style has long played a role in space exploration, a defining feature of both science fiction and real-world missions.
The all-women crew of Blue Origin, in their own way, carried forward this tradition, reinforcing the enduring connection between style symbolism, and space travel.
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Space-faring nations spend millions getting both public and private companies to design suits for intravehicular activity (IVA suits) and extravehicular activities (EVA suits). The priority is not just functionality and safety, but also creating impressive designs.
High fashion house Prada is currently collaborating with Axiom Inc. to design suits for the forthcoming Artemis Mission, a lunar exploration mission led by Nasa. Another Nasa next-generation spacesuit features an exterior cover designed by Esther M. Marquis, who was enlisted for the project after showcasing her visionary spacesuit designs in For All Mankind, an Apple TV Sci-Fi series.
The European Space Agency (ESA), meanwhile, has contracted Maison Pierre Cardin to design the uniforms for training in its new lunar mission simulation facility, Luna, in Germany.
These and many other similar collaborations represent a continuation of the longstanding interplay between art, fashion and space technology. Science fiction books and movies have both influenced and been influenced by advancements developed for space travel.
Modern space fashion
Photos and videos from inside the International Space Station (ISS) reveal that their intravehicular activity (IVA) suits are designed for functionality and comfort rather than style.
It’s a sensible approach, as most crew stay there for extended periods to conduct scientific experiments. In contrast, two of the billionaires most associated with space tourism – Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson – take a different approach. In competing to promote their emerging space tourism ventures, their own trips to space have been carefully curated – with fashion playing a key role.
From launch to landing, Bezos’ own suborbital space travel with Blue Origin in 2021 lasted 11 minutes, while Branson’s travel in Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity lasted approximately 90 minutes, with four minutes of experience of weightlessness. However, they ensured that their “look” as they walked to their spacecraft would remain entrenched in our memories.
Jimmy Fallon jokes about Bezos’s cowboy hat.
Branson entrusted sports brand Under Armour to make a statement with a dark blue jumpsuit. Nine days later, Bezos appeared on the flight platform sporting a cowboy hat with his light blue flight suit.
Branson’s crew won more fashion points with their sleek and streamlined suits – and he flew before Bezos – beating Blue Origin’s flight by nine days. Yet Bezos and his crew travelled to a higher altitude.
As of the date of this article, Blue Origin has flown 58 people into space, whereas Virgin Galactic have flown 61 passengers, including crew. Space suits are an integral part of the experience. No less than a picture-perfect design will be expected for the high price tag.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX, is the foremost private space enterprise of our time and arguably the one with the most political influence – although the effects of the recent fallout between SpaceX founder Elon Musk and the US president, Donald Trump, on the company remain uncertain.
SpaceX has also stepped up its design efforts before the first-ever commercial astronaut spacewalk during the Polaris Dawn spaceflight, it unveiled its new EVA suit, dubbed the “space tuxedo”.
SpaceX’s ‘space tuxedo’ suit reveal.
During spacewalks, EVA suits are essential for keeping humans alive, making them a vital piece of wearable technology. The space tux was designed by Hollywood costume designer, Jose Fernandez, who also designed the suits for Iron Man and Captain America (an interesting twist given the film version of Iron Man’s alter ego, Tony Stark was reportedly partly inspired by Musk).
Musk reportedly demanded both IVA and EVA suits to look “badass” while remaining practical. The mission was a success, as the four-member civilian team, led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, travelled further into space than any humans since the Apollo Missions to the moon.
As we continue to explore the cosmos, fashion will continue to play a role in how we present ourselves to the universe. Whether for scientific missions or private ventures, how we dress for space will reflect our identity and aspirations as a species. This phenomenon did not begin with these glamorous star-studded women embarking on space ventures in their signature bold styles, nor will it end with the scrutiny and negative publicity they have faced.
Berna Akcali Gur does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Clearly angered by the intensification of Russia’s air campaign against Ukraine, Donald Trump has pivoted from the suspension of US military assistance to Ukraine to promising its resumption. Russia’s strikes on major cities killed more civilians in June than have died in any single previous month, according to UN figures.
Over the past two weeks, the US president has made several disparaging comments about his relationship with Vladimir Putin, including on July 13 that the Russian president “talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening”.
Not only will the US resume delivery of long-promised Patriot air defence missiles, Trump is now also reported to be considering a whole new plan to arm Ukraine, including with offensive capabilities. And he has talked about imposing new sanctions on Putin’s regime.
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This is the background against which the eighth Ukraine Recovery Conference took place in Rome on July 10 and 11. The event, attended by many western leaders and senior business executives, was an important reminder that while the war against Ukraine will be decided on the battlefield, peace will only be won as the result of rebuilding Ukraine’s economy and society.
Ending the war anytime soon and on terms favourable to Kyiv will require an enormous effort by Ukrainians and their European allies. But the country’s recovery afterwards will be no less challenging.
According to the World Bank’s latest assessment, at the end of 2024 Ukraine’s recovery needs over the next decade stood at US$524 billion (£388 billion). And with every month the war continues, these needs are increasing. Ukraine’s three hardest-hit sectors are housing, transport and energy infrastructure, which between them account for around 60% of all damage.
At the same time, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) provided a relatively positive assessment of Ukraine’s overall economic situation at the end of June, forecasting growth of between 2% and 3% for 2025 – likely to grow to over 4% in 2026 and 2027. But the IMF also cautioned that this trajectory – and the country’s macroeconomic stability more generally – will remain heavily dependent on external support.
Taking into account a new €2.3 billion package from the EU, consisting of €1.8 billion of loan guarantees and €580 million of grants, the cumulative pledge of over €10 billion (£8.7 billion) made by countries attending the Ukraine recovery conference is both encouraging and sobering.
It is encouraging in the sense that Ukraine’s international partners remain committed to the country’s social and economic needs, not merely its ability to resist Russia on the battlefield.
But it is also sobering that even these eye-watering sums of public money are still only a fraction of Ukraine’s needs. Even if the EU manages to mobilise its overall target of €40 billion for Ukraine’s recovery, by attracting additional contributions from other donors and the private sector, this would be less than 8% of Ukraine’s projected recovery needs as of the end of 2024.
As the war continues and more of the (diminishing) public funding is directed towards defence expenditure by Kyiv’s western partners, this gap is likely to grow.
Overcoming the trauma of war
Money is not the only challenge for Ukraine recovery efforts. Rebuilding the country is not simply about undoing the physical damage.
The social impact of Russia’s aggression is hard to overstate. Ukraine has been deeply traumatised as a society since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Generally reliable Ukrainian casualty counts – some 12,000 civilians and 43,000 troops killed since February 2022 – are still likely to underestimate the true number of people who have died as a direct consequence of the Russian aggression. And each of these will have left behind family members struggling to cope with their loss. In addition, there are hundreds of thousands of war veterans.
Even before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there were nearly half a million veterans from the “frozen” conflict that followed Russia’s annexation of Crimea and incursion into eastern Ukraine. By the end of 2024, this number had more than doubled to around 1 million. Most of them have complex social, economic, medical and psychological needs that will have to be considered as part of a society-wide recovery effort.
Returning refugees
According to data from the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), there are also some 7 million refugees from Ukraine and 3.7 million internally displaced people (IDPs). This is equivalent to one quarter of the country’s population. The financial needs of UNHCR’s operations in Ukraine are estimated at $800 million in 2025, of which only 27% was funded as of the end of April.
Once the fighting in Ukraine ends, refugees are likely to return in greater numbers. Their return will provide a boost to the country’s economic growth by strengthening its labour force and bringing with them skills and, potentially, investment. But like many IDPs and veterans, they may not be able to return to their places of origin, either because these are not inhabitable or remain under Russian occupation.
Some returnees are likely to be viewed with suspicion or resentment by those Ukrainians who stayed behind and fought. Tensions with Ukrainians who survived the Russian occupation in areas that Kyiv may recover in a peace deal are also likely, given Ukraine’s harsh anti-collaboration laws.
As a consequence, reintegration – in the sense of rebuilding and sustaining the country’s social cohesion – will be a massive challenge, requiring as much, if not more, of Ukraine’s partners’ attention and financial support as physical reconstruction and the transition from a war to a peace-time economy.
Given the mismatch between what is needed and what has been provided for Ukraine’s recovery, one may well be sceptical about the value of the annual Ukraine recovery conferences. But, to the credit of their organisers and attendees, they recognise that the foundations for post-war recovery need to be built before the war ends. The non-military challenges of war and peace must not fall by the wayside amid an exclusive focus on battlefield dynamics.
Stefan Wolff is a past recipient of grant funding from the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK, the United States Institute of Peace, the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, the British Academy, the NATO Science for Peace Programme, the EU Framework Programmes 6 and 7 and Horizon 2020, as well as the EU’s Jean Monnet Programme. He is a Trustee and Honorary Treasurer of the Political Studies Association of the UK and a Senior Research Fellow at the Foreign Policy Centre in London.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Dale Pankhurst, PhD candidate and Tutor in the School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics, Queen’s University Belfast
The British government announced in early July that a far-right group called the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) will be banned under terrorism legislation. This will make it a criminal offence in the UK to be a member of the group or to express support for it.
The RIM was at the centre of a string of letter bomb attacks targeting high-profile people and institutions in Spain in 2022. These included a bomb addressed to the official residence of Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez, which was intercepted by his security detail.
Six more letter bombs were mailed to targets including the American and Ukrainian embassies in Madrid, military installations, and weapons manufacturing companies that supply arms to Ukraine. No one was killed in the attacks, which US officials considered to be acts of terrorism.
Investigators soon announced that they suspected the RIM of being involved. US and European officials alleged that the group was directed to carry out the attacks by Russian intelligence officers.
What is the RIM?
The RIM is an ultra-nationalist, neo-nazi and white supremacist organisation based in Russia. It was created in 2002 by Stanislav Anatolyevich Vorobyev, a Russian national who is designated a terrorist by the US government.
The group seeks to create a new Russian empire, and uses the Russian imperial flag as its sign. The previous Russian empire (1721-1917) encompassed all of modern-day Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Finland, Georgia, Armenia and the Baltic states, as well as parts of China.
The movement does not recognise Ukrainian sovereignty. It sees Ukraine as part of what it calls a global Zionist conspiracy designed to undermine Russia and promote Jewish interests. The RIM has engaged in Holocaust denial and is formally outlawed in the US, Canada and now the UK.
It also has a paramilitary wing called the Imperial Legions, which operates at least two training facilities in the Russian city of St. Petersburg. The US State Department believes these facilities are being used to train RIM members in woodland and urban assault, tactical weapons and hand-to-hand combat.
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Denis Valliullovich Gariyev, the Imperial Legions’ leader, has in the past called on “young orthodox men” to join the Legions and defend Novorossiya – a term used to describe Russia’s claim over Ukraine. As of 2020, the Imperial Legions was estimated to have several thousand members.
The RIM and its paramilitary wing have engaged in a wide range of activities and operations. These range from passive alliances with other far-right groups in Europe to providing paramilitary training for terrorist organisations. They have also participated directly in bomb attacks.
Since 2014, when the conflict in eastern Ukraine began, the movement has trained and sent members as mercenaries to bolster the pro-Russian separatist groups fighting there. Its members have also actively supported the Russian armed forces in Ukraine after the full-scale invasion in 2022.
After the invasion, posts related to the RIM on various social media platforms such as Vkontakte and Telegram revealed a ramping up of recruitment to join operations in Ukraine. Its fighters have posted videos of themselves in Ukraine armed with weaponry from sniper rifles to anti-tank missiles.
According to analysts, the movement also maintains strong ties with the Russian private military company, the Wagner Group. Imperial Legions fighters are believed to have operated alongside Wagner mercenaries in Syria, Libya and possibly the Central African Republic.
Outside of these activities, the movement has been active in supporting far-right organisations in Europe. These include the Nordic Resistance Movement in Sweden and similar groups in Germany, Spain and elsewhere.
It provides training to these groups through its so-called “Partizan” (Russian for guerrilla) programme. The training includes bombmaking, marksmanship, medical and survival skills, military topography and other tactics. According to the UK government, the Partizan programme aims to increase the capacity of attendees to conduct terrorist attacks.
Two Swedish nationals who took part in the programme later committed a series of bombings against refugee centres in Gothenburg, a city on Sweden’s west coast, in late 2016 and early 2017. The men were convicted in Sweden, with the prosecutor crediting RIM for their terrorist radicalisation and training.
The RIM has also provided specific paramilitary training to far-right groups in Finland. Some members of these groups have fought on Russia’s side in Ukraine, while others have attempted to establish a Finnish cell of the international neo-nazi Atomwaffen Division. Police raids in 2023 also unveiled plans to assassinate the then Finnish prime minister, Sanna Marin.
Links with the Russian state
The movement has previously been critical of the Russian government. It initially believed the approach of Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, to Ukraine was too soft, while the group’s promotion of white supremacy and neo-nazism is at odds with Putin’s pragmatic nationalism within Russia.
In 2012, the RIM even took part in discussions with other far-right groups in Russia to form an opposition movement called New Force to challenge Putin’s rule. However, the crisis in Ukraine that erupted in 2014 after pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted from power has caused the Kremlin and RIM’s political objectives to converge.
Indeed, the group can now be viewed as one of the core Russian proxy paramilitaries operating in Ukraine at a time when Putin needs more recruits to continue the war. Western intelligence agencies now believe it has a relationship with officials from Russian state intelligence.
It is difficult to pinpoint the total number of RIM fighters operating in Ukraine as the involvement of mercenary groups there is a closely guarded secret. However, based on previous intelligence reports on the group’s activities, it is reasonable to assume the number is in the hundreds to low thousands.
The decision by the British government to proscribe the RIM indicates concern that the far-right group is increasing its operational capacity both in Ukraine and throughout Europe. With its extensive network, the movement will become an increasing threat to security if it is allowed to continue acting as a proxy for Putin’s foreign policy objectives.
Dale Pankhurst does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Pinar Dinc, Associate Professor of Political Science, Department of Political Science and Researcher, Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies, Lund University
The historic disarmament ceremony on July 11 where members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) laid down their arms marked a pivotal moment in a decades-long conflict in Turkey. The ceremony was described by many who attended as a profoundly symbolic and emotional day that may signal the beginning of a new era.
During the disarmament ceremony in Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, 26 PKK guerrillas alongside four senior commanders and leaders of the movement, symbolically laid aid down their arms and burned them. The audience included officials from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), plus politicians, journalists and international observers.
For more than four decades the PKK has been embroiled in an armed conflict with Turkey that has claimed more than 40,000 lives and shaped Kurdish identity and politics across the region.
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The PKK disarmament ceremony also could mark a new era for the Kurds, one of the largest stateless groups in the world with over 30 million people living across Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. The PKK has said it will now shift from armed resistance to political dialogue and regional cooperation.
Strikingly, the day after the ceremony, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan acknowledged the state’s historical failures in addressing the Kurdish issue. He listed past abuses of Kurds – state-sponsored abductions and extrajudicial violence, the burning of villages and the forced displacement of families – as examples of policies that had fuelled, rather than quelled, the conflict.
This hints that the road ahead might include a period of transitional justice. This could compose of different tools used by societies to address past violence and human rights abuses during a shift from conflict to peace and democracy. These may include legal actions such as trials, as well as other efforts to heal and rebuild trust in society.
Erdoğan also underlined the regional dimension of the agreement: “The issue is not only that of our Kurdish citizens, but also of our Kurdish brothers and sisters in Iraq and Syria. We are discussing this process with them, and they are very pleased as well.”
PKK fighters take part in a symbolic peace ceremony.
International dimensions
While the PKK may be laying down arms, the Kurdish political movement should not be expected to disappear. On the contrary, it is likely to become more active in the democratic sphere — both in Turkey and in other parts of the Middle East where Kurdish people live. It is no secret that the current peace process is the result of shifting geopolitical realities.
Growing tensions between the US and Iran, Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza, the ousting of the Assad regime in Syria, and shifting power dynamics across the region have all contributed to a geopolitical landscape in which prolonged armed conflict has become increasingly unsustainable — for both Turkey and the PKK. In this context, the current peace process is not merely a domestic initiative.
It represents a strategic recalibration in a rapidly changing Middle East. For Turkey, stabilising its southeastern border and reducing internal security pressures is essential amid regional volatility.
Turkey has long maintained strong ties with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) (the official ruling body of the Kurdistan region) in Iraq. However, the situation for Kurds in Syria remains more complex, as Turkey continues to view the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (a region that has in effect been self governing since 2012 and where many Kurds live) as a security threat along its border.
Meanwhile, negotiations continue between the new Syrian government under current president, Ahmed Hussein al-Shara, and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Kurdish-led coalition in Syria, which has been historically backed by the US. The SDF seeks to maintain its military autonomy and have its own independent political system — both of which are opposed by Damascus.
Western nations, particularly the US, remain influential in these talks. The US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, Thomas Barrack, is reportedly uneasy with the lack of progress in the talks between al-Shara, and the SDF. He said: “The SDF, who has been a valued partner for America in the fight against ISIS, well-respected, bright, articulate, has to come to the conclusion that there’s one country, there’s one nation, there’s one people, and there’s one army.”
Another factor here is that a strong Arab-Turkish-Kurdish alliance is unlikely to align with Israeli strategic interests, which may favour a more fragmented Kurdish presence in the region.
For now, Turkey faces the complex task of overseeing a comprehensive disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration process. This requires not only the decommissioning of weapons and the disbanding of armed units, but also the social and political reintegration of former combatants. The success of this will depend on legal reforms, institutional trust and a genuine commitment to democratic inclusion.
Erdoğan has been critised for his government’s ongoing non-democratic practices such the appointment of state trustees who replace elected officials and the imprisonment of elected officials.
And, despite the symbolic disarmament, the Turkish government persists in using the words “struggle against terrorism” — an approach that risks undermining the peace process by criminalising political dialogue and delegitimising Kurdish demands.
Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan reiterated that the PKK’s broader network, including the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), a group representing Kurds across Iraq, Syria and Turkey, must cease to pose a threat. “We will remain vigilant until every component of the KCK is no longer a danger to our nation and region,” he stated.
For the PKK, the changing alliances and uncertainties in Syria and Iraq may have made armed struggle a less viable path forward. Yet the sustainability of peace will depend on more than disarmament. It will require ending the criminalisation of Kurds in political institutions and within civil society.
What comes next will determine whether this moment becomes a historic turning point or another missed opportunity.
Pinar Dinc is the principal investigator of the ECO-Syria project, which receives funding from the Strategic Research Area: The Middle East in the Contemporary World (MECW) at the Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies, Lund University, Sweden.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Pinar Dinc, Associate Professor of Political Science, Department of Political Science and Researcher, Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies, Lund University
The historic disarmament ceremony on July 11 where members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) laid down their arms marked a pivotal moment in a decades-long conflict in Turkey. The ceremony was described by many who attended as a profoundly symbolic and emotional day that may signal the beginning of a new era.
During the disarmament ceremony in Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, 26 PKK guerrillas alongside four senior commanders and leaders of the movement, symbolically laid aid down their arms and burned them. The audience included officials from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), plus politicians, journalists and international observers.
For more than four decades the PKK has been embroiled in an armed conflict with Turkey that has claimed more than 40,000 lives and shaped Kurdish identity and politics across the region.
Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox.Sign up to our daily newsletter to receive all The Conversation UK’s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.
The PKK disarmament ceremony also could mark a new era for the Kurds, one of the largest stateless groups in the world with over 30 million people living across Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. The PKK has said it will now shift from armed resistance to political dialogue and regional cooperation.
Strikingly, the day after the ceremony, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan acknowledged the state’s historical failures in addressing the Kurdish issue. He listed past abuses of Kurds – state-sponsored abductions and extrajudicial violence, the burning of villages and the forced displacement of families – as examples of policies that had fuelled, rather than quelled, the conflict.
This hints that the road ahead might include a period of transitional justice. This could compose of different tools used by societies to address past violence and human rights abuses during a shift from conflict to peace and democracy. These may include legal actions such as trials, as well as other efforts to heal and rebuild trust in society.
Erdoğan also underlined the regional dimension of the agreement: “The issue is not only that of our Kurdish citizens, but also of our Kurdish brothers and sisters in Iraq and Syria. We are discussing this process with them, and they are very pleased as well.”
PKK fighters take part in a symbolic peace ceremony.
International dimensions
While the PKK may be laying down arms, the Kurdish political movement should not be expected to disappear. On the contrary, it is likely to become more active in the democratic sphere — both in Turkey and in other parts of the Middle East where Kurdish people live. It is no secret that the current peace process is the result of shifting geopolitical realities.
Growing tensions between the US and Iran, Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza, the ousting of the Assad regime in Syria, and shifting power dynamics across the region have all contributed to a geopolitical landscape in which prolonged armed conflict has become increasingly unsustainable — for both Turkey and the PKK. In this context, the current peace process is not merely a domestic initiative.
It represents a strategic recalibration in a rapidly changing Middle East. For Turkey, stabilising its southeastern border and reducing internal security pressures is essential amid regional volatility.
Turkey has long maintained strong ties with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) (the official ruling body of the Kurdistan region) in Iraq. However, the situation for Kurds in Syria remains more complex, as Turkey continues to view the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (a region that has in effect been self governing since 2012 and where many Kurds live) as a security threat along its border.
Meanwhile, negotiations continue between the new Syrian government under current president, Ahmed Hussein al-Shara, and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Kurdish-led coalition in Syria, which has been historically backed by the US. The SDF seeks to maintain its military autonomy and have its own independent political system — both of which are opposed by Damascus.
Western nations, particularly the US, remain influential in these talks. The US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, Thomas Barrack, is reportedly uneasy with the lack of progress in the talks between al-Shara, and the SDF. He said: “The SDF, who has been a valued partner for America in the fight against ISIS, well-respected, bright, articulate, has to come to the conclusion that there’s one country, there’s one nation, there’s one people, and there’s one army.”
Another factor here is that a strong Arab-Turkish-Kurdish alliance is unlikely to align with Israeli strategic interests, which may favour a more fragmented Kurdish presence in the region.
For now, Turkey faces the complex task of overseeing a comprehensive disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration process. This requires not only the decommissioning of weapons and the disbanding of armed units, but also the social and political reintegration of former combatants. The success of this will depend on legal reforms, institutional trust and a genuine commitment to democratic inclusion.
Erdoğan has been critised for his government’s ongoing non-democratic practices such the appointment of state trustees who replace elected officials and the imprisonment of elected officials.
And, despite the symbolic disarmament, the Turkish government persists in using the words “struggle against terrorism” — an approach that risks undermining the peace process by criminalising political dialogue and delegitimising Kurdish demands.
Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan reiterated that the PKK’s broader network, including the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), a group representing Kurds across Iraq, Syria and Turkey, must cease to pose a threat. “We will remain vigilant until every component of the KCK is no longer a danger to our nation and region,” he stated.
For the PKK, the changing alliances and uncertainties in Syria and Iraq may have made armed struggle a less viable path forward. Yet the sustainability of peace will depend on more than disarmament. It will require ending the criminalisation of Kurds in political institutions and within civil society.
What comes next will determine whether this moment becomes a historic turning point or another missed opportunity.
Pinar Dinc is the principal investigator of the ECO-Syria project, which receives funding from the Strategic Research Area: The Middle East in the Contemporary World (MECW) at the Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies, Lund University, Sweden.
Clearly angered by the intensification of Russia’s air campaign against Ukraine, Donald Trump has pivoted from the suspension of US military assistance to Ukraine to promising its resumption. Russia’s strikes on major cities killed more civilians in June than have died in any single previous month, according to UN figures.
Over the past two weeks, the US president has made several disparaging comments about his relationship with Vladimir Putin, including on July 13 that the Russian president “talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening”.
Not only will the US resume delivery of long-promised Patriot air defence missiles, Trump is now also reported to be considering a whole new plan to arm Ukraine, including with offensive capabilities. And he has talked about imposing new sanctions on Putin’s regime.
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This is the background against which the eighth Ukraine Recovery Conference took place in Rome on July 10 and 11. The event, attended by many western leaders and senior business executives, was an important reminder that while the war against Ukraine will be decided on the battlefield, peace will only be won as the result of rebuilding Ukraine’s economy and society.
Ending the war anytime soon and on terms favourable to Kyiv will require an enormous effort by Ukrainians and their European allies. But the country’s recovery afterwards will be no less challenging.
According to the World Bank’s latest assessment, at the end of 2024 Ukraine’s recovery needs over the next decade stood at US$524 billion (£388 billion). And with every month the war continues, these needs are increasing. Ukraine’s three hardest-hit sectors are housing, transport and energy infrastructure, which between them account for around 60% of all damage.
At the same time, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) provided a relatively positive assessment of Ukraine’s overall economic situation at the end of June, forecasting growth of between 2% and 3% for 2025 – likely to grow to over 4% in 2026 and 2027. But the IMF also cautioned that this trajectory – and the country’s macroeconomic stability more generally – will remain heavily dependent on external support.
Taking into account a new €2.3 billion package from the EU, consisting of €1.8 billion of loan guarantees and €580 million of grants, the cumulative pledge of over €10 billion (£8.7 billion) made by countries attending the Ukraine recovery conference is both encouraging and sobering.
It is encouraging in the sense that Ukraine’s international partners remain committed to the country’s social and economic needs, not merely its ability to resist Russia on the battlefield.
But it is also sobering that even these eye-watering sums of public money are still only a fraction of Ukraine’s needs. Even if the EU manages to mobilise its overall target of €40 billion for Ukraine’s recovery, by attracting additional contributions from other donors and the private sector, this would be less than 8% of Ukraine’s projected recovery needs as of the end of 2024.
As the war continues and more of the (diminishing) public funding is directed towards defence expenditure by Kyiv’s western partners, this gap is likely to grow.
Overcoming the trauma of war
Money is not the only challenge for Ukraine recovery efforts. Rebuilding the country is not simply about undoing the physical damage.
The social impact of Russia’s aggression is hard to overstate. Ukraine has been deeply traumatised as a society since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Generally reliable Ukrainian casualty counts – some 12,000 civilians and 43,000 troops killed since February 2022 – are still likely to underestimate the true number of people who have died as a direct consequence of the Russian aggression. And each of these will have left behind family members struggling to cope with their loss. In addition, there are hundreds of thousands of war veterans.
Even before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there were nearly half a million veterans from the “frozen” conflict that followed Russia’s annexation of Crimea and incursion into eastern Ukraine. By the end of 2024, this number had more than doubled to around 1 million. Most of them have complex social, economic, medical and psychological needs that will have to be considered as part of a society-wide recovery effort.
Returning refugees
According to data from the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), there are also some 7 million refugees from Ukraine and 3.7 million internally displaced people (IDPs). This is equivalent to one quarter of the country’s population. The financial needs of UNHCR’s operations in Ukraine are estimated at $800 million in 2025, of which only 27% was funded as of the end of April.
Once the fighting in Ukraine ends, refugees are likely to return in greater numbers. Their return will provide a boost to the country’s economic growth by strengthening its labour force and bringing with them skills and, potentially, investment. But like many IDPs and veterans, they may not be able to return to their places of origin, either because these are not inhabitable or remain under Russian occupation.
Some returnees are likely to be viewed with suspicion or resentment by those Ukrainians who stayed behind and fought. Tensions with Ukrainians who survived the Russian occupation in areas that Kyiv may recover in a peace deal are also likely, given Ukraine’s harsh anti-collaboration laws.
As a consequence, reintegration – in the sense of rebuilding and sustaining the country’s social cohesion – will be a massive challenge, requiring as much, if not more, of Ukraine’s partners’ attention and financial support as physical reconstruction and the transition from a war to a peace-time economy.
Given the mismatch between what is needed and what has been provided for Ukraine’s recovery, one may well be sceptical about the value of the annual Ukraine recovery conferences. But, to the credit of their organisers and attendees, they recognise that the foundations for post-war recovery need to be built before the war ends. The non-military challenges of war and peace must not fall by the wayside amid an exclusive focus on battlefield dynamics.
Stefan Wolff is a past recipient of grant funding from the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK, the United States Institute of Peace, the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, the British Academy, the NATO Science for Peace Programme, the EU Framework Programmes 6 and 7 and Horizon 2020, as well as the EU’s Jean Monnet Programme. He is a Trustee and Honorary Treasurer of the Political Studies Association of the UK and a Senior Research Fellow at the Foreign Policy Centre in London.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Dale Pankhurst, PhD candidate and Tutor in the School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics, Queen’s University Belfast
The British government announced in early July that a far-right group called the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) will be banned under terrorism legislation. This will make it a criminal offence in the UK to be a member of the group or to express support for it.
The RIM was at the centre of a string of letter bomb attacks targeting high-profile people and institutions in Spain in 2022. These included a bomb addressed to the official residence of Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez, which was intercepted by his security detail.
Six more letter bombs were mailed to targets including the American and Ukrainian embassies in Madrid, military installations, and weapons manufacturing companies that supply arms to Ukraine. No one was killed in the attacks, which US officials considered to be acts of terrorism.
Investigators soon announced that they suspected the RIM of being involved. US and European officials alleged that the group was directed to carry out the attacks by Russian intelligence officers.
What is the RIM?
The RIM is an ultra-nationalist, neo-nazi and white supremacist organisation based in Russia. It was created in 2002 by Stanislav Anatolyevich Vorobyev, a Russian national who is designated a terrorist by the US government.
The group seeks to create a new Russian empire, and uses the Russian imperial flag as its sign. The previous Russian empire (1721-1917) encompassed all of modern-day Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Finland, Georgia, Armenia and the Baltic states, as well as parts of China.
The movement does not recognise Ukrainian sovereignty. It sees Ukraine as part of what it calls a global Zionist conspiracy designed to undermine Russia and promote Jewish interests. The RIM has engaged in Holocaust denial and is formally outlawed in the US, Canada and now the UK.
It also has a paramilitary wing called the Imperial Legions, which operates at least two training facilities in the Russian city of St. Petersburg. The US State Department believes these facilities are being used to train RIM members in woodland and urban assault, tactical weapons and hand-to-hand combat.
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Denis Valliullovich Gariyev, the Imperial Legions’ leader, has in the past called on “young orthodox men” to join the Legions and defend Novorossiya – a term used to describe Russia’s claim over Ukraine. As of 2020, the Imperial Legions was estimated to have several thousand members.
The RIM and its paramilitary wing have engaged in a wide range of activities and operations. These range from passive alliances with other far-right groups in Europe to providing paramilitary training for terrorist organisations. They have also participated directly in bomb attacks.
Since 2014, when the conflict in eastern Ukraine began, the movement has trained and sent members as mercenaries to bolster the pro-Russian separatist groups fighting there. Its members have also actively supported the Russian armed forces in Ukraine after the full-scale invasion in 2022.
After the invasion, posts related to the RIM on various social media platforms such as Vkontakte and Telegram revealed a ramping up of recruitment to join operations in Ukraine. Its fighters have posted videos of themselves in Ukraine armed with weaponry from sniper rifles to anti-tank missiles.
According to analysts, the movement also maintains strong ties with the Russian private military company, the Wagner Group. Imperial Legions fighters are believed to have operated alongside Wagner mercenaries in Syria, Libya and possibly the Central African Republic.
Outside of these activities, the movement has been active in supporting far-right organisations in Europe. These include the Nordic Resistance Movement in Sweden and similar groups in Germany, Spain and elsewhere.
It provides training to these groups through its so-called “Partizan” (Russian for guerrilla) programme. The training includes bombmaking, marksmanship, medical and survival skills, military topography and other tactics. According to the UK government, the Partizan programme aims to increase the capacity of attendees to conduct terrorist attacks.
Two Swedish nationals who took part in the programme later committed a series of bombings against refugee centres in Gothenburg, a city on Sweden’s west coast, in late 2016 and early 2017. The men were convicted in Sweden, with the prosecutor crediting RIM for their terrorist radicalisation and training.
The RIM has also provided specific paramilitary training to far-right groups in Finland. Some members of these groups have fought on Russia’s side in Ukraine, while others have attempted to establish a Finnish cell of the international neo-nazi Atomwaffen Division. Police raids in 2023 also unveiled plans to assassinate the then Finnish prime minister, Sanna Marin.
Links with the Russian state
The movement has previously been critical of the Russian government. It initially believed the approach of Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, to Ukraine was too soft, while the group’s promotion of white supremacy and neo-nazism is at odds with Putin’s pragmatic nationalism within Russia.
In 2012, the RIM even took part in discussions with other far-right groups in Russia to form an opposition movement called New Force to challenge Putin’s rule. However, the crisis in Ukraine that erupted in 2014 after pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted from power has caused the Kremlin and RIM’s political objectives to converge.
Indeed, the group can now be viewed as one of the core Russian proxy paramilitaries operating in Ukraine at a time when Putin needs more recruits to continue the war. Western intelligence agencies now believe it has a relationship with officials from Russian state intelligence.
It is difficult to pinpoint the total number of RIM fighters operating in Ukraine as the involvement of mercenary groups there is a closely guarded secret. However, based on previous intelligence reports on the group’s activities, it is reasonable to assume the number is in the hundreds to low thousands.
The decision by the British government to proscribe the RIM indicates concern that the far-right group is increasing its operational capacity both in Ukraine and throughout Europe. With its extensive network, the movement will become an increasing threat to security if it is allowed to continue acting as a proxy for Putin’s foreign policy objectives.
Dale Pankhurst does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth
July 11, 2025
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] — U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that the Senate Appropriations Committee advanced a funding bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA for Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26). Durbin and Duckworth worked to secure various priorities for Illinois in this appropriations bill, both through Congressionally Directed Spending requests and through the programmatic appropriations process.
“Our state and our nation are stronger when we invest in our communities and families—and that’s what these bipartisan funding bills do,” Duckworth said. “Appropriating federal funding is the primary role of Congress, and it’s critical this responsibility remains in the legislative branch. I’m proud I was able to help secure critical support for projects throughout Illinois that support our rural communities.”
“Congress is tasked with the critical responsibility to fund our government programs and agencies. While Congress has fulfilled this responsibility by routinely passing continuing resolutions, I hope that we can have a true bipartisan effort to pass appropriations bills in a timely, thoughtful process,” said Durbin. “And as the Trump Administration aims to gut our government, I will continue to push for the funding and resources for Illinoisans to thrive.”
The Agriculture, Rural Development and FDA funding bill includes the following Illinois priorities secured by Congressionally Directed Spending requests:
Health Clinic, LaHarpe: $1.38 million to Memorial Hospital Association to help construct an additional health clinic to expand access to health care in the Western Illinois community.
Hospital Infrastructure Improvements, Watseka, Illinois: $645,000 to the Iroquois Memorial Hospital and Resident Home to update aged and outdated facilities, including HVAC systems and flooring.
Intergenerational Center, Fairbury, Illinois: $1 million to the Boys and Girls Club of Livingston County to construct an intergenerational community center to provide programming and services to youth and seniors at the same site.
Laboratory Renovation, Pittsfield, Illinois: $1 million to the Blessing Care Corporation to update the laboratory department at Illini Community Hospital in order to modernize facilities that are more than 80 years old.
Medical Technology Upgrades, Lawrenceville, Illinois: $450,000 to provide essential technological upgrades at Lawrence County Memorial Hospital, including improvements in diagnostic imaging, patient monitoring systems, and life-saving equipment.
Pre-K Expansion, Herrin: $263,000 to Herrin Community Unit School District No. 4 to help expand capacity at the district’s pre-K center.
Rural Health Clinic Expansion, West Frankfort, Illinois: $1 million to Southern Illinois Hospital Services to expand the Miners Memorial Rural Health Clinic to provide improvements in both patient rooms and provider workspace.
Teledentistry Initiative, Mattoon, Illinois: $110,000 to Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center to expand rural telehealth efforts to include teledentistry with an emphasis on underserved children.
The Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA funding bill includes additional Illinois priorities secured through the programmatic appropriations process:
USDA
Bee Genome: $3 million, an increase of $750,000 from FY25, to continue sequencing the genome of more than 4,000 domestic bee species, including activities underway at the Peoria USDA National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research and the University of Illinois.
Midwest Soybean Germplasm Lab: The President’s Budget Request proposes closing research labs in three states, including two operations at the University of Illinois—the National Soybean Germplasm Collection and the Maize Genetics Cooperation Stock Center. The bill includes language to prohibit USDA laboratory and facility closures without USDA providing Congressional notification and approval.
Agricultural Research: $3.2 billion for basic food and agricultural research nationwide, including activities underway at the Peoria USDA National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research and the University of Illinois.
Tracking Farm Exports by State: Includes report language requiring USDA to track and publish the top five farm commodities exported, or imported, by State, and the country of destination, or origin.
Plant Health, Tree and Wood Pests: $59 million to help identify and contain wood-boring pests threatening tree health across the country, 19 of which have been detected in the past decade, including the Emerald Ash Borer. This funding will allow for the identification and containment of Emerald Ash Borer infestations and increase public awareness of the threat posed by EAB in the 15 states that are battling this invasive species.
Animal Welfare: $27 million to implement and enforce provisions of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), including those governing facilities that previously have fallen out of compliance with the AWA.
Rural e-Connectivity Pilot Program (ReConnect Program): $35 million to support loans and grants that facilitate broadband deployment in rural areas without sufficient broadband access.
Agricultural Extension – Food Safety Outreach Program: $10 million to provide food safety training and tech assistance to owners and operators of small farms, small food processors, and small fruit and vegetable vendors affected by the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011.
Food for Peace: $1.5 billion to meet emergency food needs around the world, including due to the wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan, and conflict, displacement, poverty, and climate change exacerbating needs around the world, despite Trump’s efforts to eliminate the program.
McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program: $240 million to support school feeding and maternal and child nutrition projects around the world, particularly for girls, despite Trump’s efforts to eliminate the program.
Local and Regional Procurement: Continues support for the promotion of locally sourced agricultural products, which remain less costly and more accessible when compared to commodities sourced from the United States and shipped overseas.
FDA
Tobacco: Includes substantial bill language pertaining to FDA’s Tobacco Center to eliminate harmful provisions and ensure alignment with public health needs. The statutory language specifies $200 million for e-cigarette enforcement activities, out of the $712 million total for the FDA’s Tobacco Center—which will increase resources to investigate and stop illegally sold products. The language also enhances reporting to Congress, dedicates $2 million to the interagency task force between FDA, DOJ, and DHS, and provides statutory authority requested by FDA Commissioner Makary to enable FDA to detain and destroy seized illegal e-cigarettes at ports of entry. There also is report language ensuring that the FDA’s regulatory focus is on kid-friendly and flavored products, and balanced between unauthorized Chinese vapes and also-illegal, unauthorized domestic vapes (made by Altria, RJ Reynolds, JUUL).
ALS: Provides no less than $2.5 million for FDA to continue implementation of the ACT for ALS law to enable FDA to fund early stage clinical trials for new ALS therapies.
Food Safety: $1.17 billion for FDA’s Human Foods Program to oversee food and nutrition in the United States. Includes report language encouraging coordination between FDA, USDA, and CDC in better ensuring the safety of our nation’s foods.
Dietary Supplements: Includes report language calling on FDA to strengthen its enforcement actions against adulterated and misbranded dietary supplements.
Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth
July 11, 2025
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] — U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that the Senate Appropriations Committee advanced a funding bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA for Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26). Durbin and Duckworth worked to secure various priorities for Illinois in this appropriations bill, both through Congressionally Directed Spending requests and through the programmatic appropriations process.
“Our state and our nation are stronger when we invest in our communities and families—and that’s what these bipartisan funding bills do,” Duckworth said. “Appropriating federal funding is the primary role of Congress, and it’s critical this responsibility remains in the legislative branch. I’m proud I was able to help secure critical support for projects throughout Illinois that support our rural communities.”
“Congress is tasked with the critical responsibility to fund our government programs and agencies. While Congress has fulfilled this responsibility by routinely passing continuing resolutions, I hope that we can have a true bipartisan effort to pass appropriations bills in a timely, thoughtful process,” said Durbin. “And as the Trump Administration aims to gut our government, I will continue to push for the funding and resources for Illinoisans to thrive.”
The Agriculture, Rural Development and FDA funding bill includes the following Illinois priorities secured by Congressionally Directed Spending requests:
Health Clinic, LaHarpe: $1.38 million to Memorial Hospital Association to help construct an additional health clinic to expand access to health care in the Western Illinois community.
Hospital Infrastructure Improvements, Watseka, Illinois: $645,000 to the Iroquois Memorial Hospital and Resident Home to update aged and outdated facilities, including HVAC systems and flooring.
Intergenerational Center, Fairbury, Illinois: $1 million to the Boys and Girls Club of Livingston County to construct an intergenerational community center to provide programming and services to youth and seniors at the same site.
Laboratory Renovation, Pittsfield, Illinois: $1 million to the Blessing Care Corporation to update the laboratory department at Illini Community Hospital in order to modernize facilities that are more than 80 years old.
Medical Technology Upgrades, Lawrenceville, Illinois: $450,000 to provide essential technological upgrades at Lawrence County Memorial Hospital, including improvements in diagnostic imaging, patient monitoring systems, and life-saving equipment.
Pre-K Expansion, Herrin: $263,000 to Herrin Community Unit School District No. 4 to help expand capacity at the district’s pre-K center.
Rural Health Clinic Expansion, West Frankfort, Illinois: $1 million to Southern Illinois Hospital Services to expand the Miners Memorial Rural Health Clinic to provide improvements in both patient rooms and provider workspace.
Teledentistry Initiative, Mattoon, Illinois: $110,000 to Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center to expand rural telehealth efforts to include teledentistry with an emphasis on underserved children.
The Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA funding bill includes additional Illinois priorities secured through the programmatic appropriations process:
USDA
Bee Genome: $3 million, an increase of $750,000 from FY25, to continue sequencing the genome of more than 4,000 domestic bee species, including activities underway at the Peoria USDA National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research and the University of Illinois.
Midwest Soybean Germplasm Lab: The President’s Budget Request proposes closing research labs in three states, including two operations at the University of Illinois—the National Soybean Germplasm Collection and the Maize Genetics Cooperation Stock Center. The bill includes language to prohibit USDA laboratory and facility closures without USDA providing Congressional notification and approval.
Agricultural Research: $3.2 billion for basic food and agricultural research nationwide, including activities underway at the Peoria USDA National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research and the University of Illinois.
Tracking Farm Exports by State: Includes report language requiring USDA to track and publish the top five farm commodities exported, or imported, by State, and the country of destination, or origin.
Plant Health, Tree and Wood Pests: $59 million to help identify and contain wood-boring pests threatening tree health across the country, 19 of which have been detected in the past decade, including the Emerald Ash Borer. This funding will allow for the identification and containment of Emerald Ash Borer infestations and increase public awareness of the threat posed by EAB in the 15 states that are battling this invasive species.
Animal Welfare: $27 million to implement and enforce provisions of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), including those governing facilities that previously have fallen out of compliance with the AWA.
Rural e-Connectivity Pilot Program (ReConnect Program): $35 million to support loans and grants that facilitate broadband deployment in rural areas without sufficient broadband access.
Agricultural Extension – Food Safety Outreach Program: $10 million to provide food safety training and tech assistance to owners and operators of small farms, small food processors, and small fruit and vegetable vendors affected by the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011.
Food for Peace: $1.5 billion to meet emergency food needs around the world, including due to the wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan, and conflict, displacement, poverty, and climate change exacerbating needs around the world, despite Trump’s efforts to eliminate the program.
McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program: $240 million to support school feeding and maternal and child nutrition projects around the world, particularly for girls, despite Trump’s efforts to eliminate the program.
Local and Regional Procurement: Continues support for the promotion of locally sourced agricultural products, which remain less costly and more accessible when compared to commodities sourced from the United States and shipped overseas.
FDA
Tobacco: Includes substantial bill language pertaining to FDA’s Tobacco Center to eliminate harmful provisions and ensure alignment with public health needs. The statutory language specifies $200 million for e-cigarette enforcement activities, out of the $712 million total for the FDA’s Tobacco Center—which will increase resources to investigate and stop illegally sold products. The language also enhances reporting to Congress, dedicates $2 million to the interagency task force between FDA, DOJ, and DHS, and provides statutory authority requested by FDA Commissioner Makary to enable FDA to detain and destroy seized illegal e-cigarettes at ports of entry. There also is report language ensuring that the FDA’s regulatory focus is on kid-friendly and flavored products, and balanced between unauthorized Chinese vapes and also-illegal, unauthorized domestic vapes (made by Altria, RJ Reynolds, JUUL).
ALS: Provides no less than $2.5 million for FDA to continue implementation of the ACT for ALS law to enable FDA to fund early stage clinical trials for new ALS therapies.
Food Safety: $1.17 billion for FDA’s Human Foods Program to oversee food and nutrition in the United States. Includes report language encouraging coordination between FDA, USDA, and CDC in better ensuring the safety of our nation’s foods.
Dietary Supplements: Includes report language calling on FDA to strengthen its enforcement actions against adulterated and misbranded dietary supplements.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
WASHINGTON, July 14 (Xinhua) — Nine people were killed and dozens were hospitalized in a fire at a nursing home in Fall River, Massachusetts, on Sunday evening, the Fall River Fire Department said.
At a Monday morning press conference, Fire Chief Jeffrey Bacon confirmed that nine people were killed and more than 30 were taken to hospital, including one in critical condition.
Firefighters called to the Gabriel House care home in Oliver Street at around 9.30pm Sunday local time /1.30am Monday GMT/ found a large blaze at the building’s main entrance.
Five firefighters sustained minor injuries during the operation. There were about 70 residents in the building.
Investigators from the city fire department and the state fire marshal’s office are working to determine the cause of the fire. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
ALMATY, July 14 (Xinhua) — Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Industry and Construction has issued an order banning the import of drywall into the country for three months, the Kazinform news agency reported on Monday.
According to the document, from July 22, 2025, a ban will be introduced on the import of gypsum boards (plates, sheets, panels, tiles and similar products without gypsum ornaments, covered or reinforced only with paper or cardboard) from third countries into the territory of Kazakhstan by all types of transport for a period of three months.
It was previously reported that Kazakhstan plans to impose a ban on the export of non-ferrous metal blanks and ingots by all modes of transport until December 31, 2025. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, July 14 /Xinhua/ — A terrorist attack planned by Ukrainian special services against one of the servicemen has been prevented in Russia’s Tyumen Region, the press service of the Russian Federal Security Service reported on Monday.
As was established, the terrorist act was being prepared by a recruited Russian citizen born in 1987. Since the beginning of 2025, he had been transmitting information about strategic facilities in the Ural Federal District and about military trains passing along the Trans-Siberian Railway. Planning to blow up a Russian serviceman’s car, the attacker removed an explosive device from a pre-arranged cache. When detained, he put up active armed resistance and was neutralized by return fire.
An explosive device, a traumatic pistol modified to fire live ammunition, and ammunition for it were seized at the scene. Two homemade grenades were found at the criminal’s residence. A criminal case has been opened on the fact of illegal trafficking of explosives. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
LONDON, July 14 (Xinhua) — Four people were killed in a plane crash at London’s Southend Airport on Sunday, local media reported on Monday.
Four people have died, the BBC and PA news agency reported. Police have not yet confirmed the number of casualties.
The 12-metre-long aircraft, believed to be a Beech B200 Super King Air, was owned by Dutch company Zeusch Aviation and was scheduled to fly to Lelystad Airport in the Netherlands.
Zeusch Aviation confirmed that its flight SUZ1 “experienced an incident” at London Airport and expressed sympathy to “all those affected”.
Video footage shows a huge fireball after the plane crashed.
Pictures posted online showed large flames and a cloud of black smoke after the crash, which happened on Sunday afternoon. Essex Police said they received “reports of a collision involving a single 12m aircraft” shortly before 4pm local time /1500 GMT.
Southend Airport said the airport would be “closed until further notice” due to a “serious incident”. -0-
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, July 14 /Xinhua/ — Cooperation between China and Russia refutes the Western-imposed claims that “China’s industrial policy distorts the global market” and “China’s excess production capacity creates unfair competition.” Such claims are absurd and unfounded. This was stated by Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui in an article titled “The Era of True Friendship between China and Russia: Cooperation Refutes Misconceptions, Mutual Benefit Determines the Future,” published recently in the Russian newspaper Trud.
“Politicians and media in the United States and Western countries have long been actively spreading groundless claims such as ‘China’s industrial policy is distorting the world market’ and ‘China’s excess production capacity is creating unfair competition’. They are trying their best to denigrate the industrial policy of developing countries and suppress their right to development based on the desire to maintain their economic hegemony,” the publication says.
The essence of these false claims, according to the Chinese diplomat, is “politicizing the economy and using economic and trade levers to achieve political goals.” “This line of behavior only creates obstacles to international trade, disrupts the stability of global supply chains, and ultimately leads to losses for all involved,” he warned.
Zhang Hanhui stressed that all countries have the right to stimulate economic development through the implementation of reasonable industrial policies. “In the context of the acceleration of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, industrial subsidies have become an important tool for enhancing innovation potential and stimulating economic growth. Industrial subsidies are practiced in both developed countries and countries with developing economies,” the ambassador stated.
The article points out that China’s industrial subsidy policy is based on the principles of openness, fairness and compliance with established standards. “It is not selective and applies equally to all market participants. China’s state-owned enterprises, as independent market participants, do not enjoy any advantages under the subsidy policy due to their status and do not provide subsidies to other enterprises,” the author noted, adding that the flexible subsidy model not only meets China’s needs for industrial modernization, but is also fully consistent with the commitments China made when joining the World Trade Organization.
Zhang Hanhui called the US and Western countries’ accusations against China regarding “overcapacity” “a cover for their protectionist policies.” “Under the pretext of “overcapacity,” some countries impose restrictions on Chinese exports and investment cooperation. All this is pure protectionism, artificial interference and division of the world market,” he said.
The Chinese diplomat is convinced that only free trade and fair competition can form an optimal structure of global production capacities. He cited China and Russia as an example of such interaction. “Both countries have complementary economic advantages, great potential for cooperation and huge opportunities for development,” Zhang Hanhui believes. He drew attention to the fact that Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly publicly refuted statements by the United States and Western countries about “China’s excess production capacity.”
“China and Russia, as stabilizing, positive and progressive forces in the international community, must continue to maintain unity, expand cooperation, strengthen trade, economic and energy ties, improve mechanisms that ensure a high level of trade and economic interaction, and effectively counter unilateral actions and protectionism,” concluded the Chinese Ambassador to the Russian Federation. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhua) — China does not seek to gain an international competitive advantage through currency devaluation, Zou Lan, deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC, central bank), said at a press conference on Monday.
As he noted, the US dollar index and US Treasury yields have recently experienced increased volatility, which has led to side effects on global financial markets.
On the contrary, China’s financial market has shown strong resilience and is functioning stably overall, Zou Lan noted. Since the publication of a joint statement on the results of the Sino-American trade and economic talks held in Geneva in May, the yuan to dollar exchange rate has shown two-way fluctuations, steadily remaining below 7.2 yuan per dollar.
“The dynamics of the US dollar currently remain uncertain, while China’s domestic fundamentals continue to improve. The yuan exchange rate continues to fluctuate in both directions, with a solid foundation for maintaining basic stability,” Zou Lan said.
Major developed economies have entered a cycle of interest rate cuts and market expectations for renewed monetary easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve are growing, with the interest rate differential between China and the United States expected to show a narrowing trend, the vice governor added.
According to him, China’s balance of payments is generally balanced, the financial market is functioning stably, and significant progress has been made in building the foreign exchange market.
Zou Lan assured that the PBOC will remain committed to the decisive role of the market in determining the exchange rate, maintain exchange rate flexibility, strengthen expectations management, prevent the risk of excessive fluctuations, and maintain the overall stability of the yuan at a reasonable and balanced level. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Detectives have arrested three men in their 20s in connection with the murder of Blue Stevens, who was stabbed to death in Knightsbridge.
Two were arrested at an address in Hounslow on Saturday, 12 July.
One man was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder. He remains in police custody.
Another man was arrested on suspicion of murder. He has been bailed pending further enquiries.
Following their arrests, Met officers obtained a warrant to search two properties in Chiswick where significant evidence was recovered.
The third man was arrested on Monday, 14 July on suspicion of assisting an offender. He remains in police custody.
Detective Chief Superintendent Christina Jessah, who leads policing in Central West London, said: “These arrests mark a significant milestone in this complex and unfolding murder investigation.
“We continue to progress at pace. While we retain an open mind around motive, one line of enquiry is now that this may have been a targeted attack.
“Increased police patrols remain active in and around the Knightsbridge area. Please do speak with an officer if you have any questions or concerns.”
A murder investigation was launched after officers were called to reports of a stabbing in Seville Street at 21:24hrs on Wednesday, 9 July.
Met officers responded with paramedics from London Ambulance Service and London’s Air Ambulance. Blue Stevens, 24, was found with stab wounds. Despite the efforts of emergency services, he sadly died at the scene.
His next-of-kin continue to be supported by specialist officers.
Please call police on 0208 721 4961 referencing CAD 8521/09JUL if you were a witness or have any information which might help.
You can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visit crimestoppers-uk.org.
overnor Kathy Hochul issued a letter to President Trump and Congressional leaders regarding the threat posed by unmanned aerial systems (UAS), commonly known as drones, and highlighting the critical need for a federal comprehensive strategy on drone detection capabilities. Late last year in the New York City area and the Hudson Valley, a number of drone sightings underscored the inadequacy of the federal government’s posture and the constrained ability of state authorities to detect and mitigate these threats.
In the letter, Governor Hochul also urges federal leaders to grant states the ability to maintain and expand the authority to improve detection and mitigation of drone threats in coordination with federal agencies.
The full text of the letter is below:
Dear President Trump:
I am writing to you with respect to the critical need for federal action regarding the threat posed by unmanned aerial systems (UAS), commonly known as drones. As you are aware, late last year, the New York City area and the Hudson Valley experienced concerning UAS sightings that underscored the inadequacy of the federal government’s posture and the constrained ability of state authorities to detect and mitigate these threats.
In early June, the Ukrainian military launched a successful surprise attack against Russian strategic air forces using drones. This serves as a stark reminder of the evolving and significant danger these systems present. An attack against strategic military and critical infrastructure in New York poses an urgent danger to the United States. I urge the Administration to proactively improve the UAS detection and mitigation posture in New York and for Congress to extend existing authorities and expand states’ abilities to detect and mitigate these threats themselves.
The reality is that the federal government is unprepared and poorly postured to detect and mitigate UAS threats and states are hamstrung by a lack of legislative authority and action by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The time for decisive action is now.
I am asking your immediate attention on two fronts:
1. Coordinated Federal Action on Drone Threats. We need a comprehensive federal strategy that not only dramatically improves drone detection capabilities nationally but also provides robust, multi-layered mitigation measures. These detection and mitigation measures must first protect critical infrastructure like population centers, utilities, and military assets, but also be able to be swiftly deployed to areas of concern when necessary. In the summer of 2026-12 short months away – the New York area will be the epicenter for multiple high-profile events, including the World Cup, the flotilla of Tall Ships, International Naval Review, the largest ever Macy’s fireworks show, and America’s 250th birthday celebration, which will present prime targets.
2. Increased Authority for States to Detect and Mitigate Drones. New York State must maintain the authority to take proactive steps to detect and mitigate drones. The previous Congress extended important counter-drone authorities granted to the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Bureau of Investigation, but only to September 2025. The sunset of this authority puts the U.S. at risk and this authority must be extended. Additionally, expanded authorities and capabilities must be granted to states, such as through the measures proposed by the Safeguarding the Homeland from the Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act. Granting states the authority they need to improve detection and mitigation of UAS threats, in coordination with federal agencies, is no longer a matter of preference. It is a matter of urgent concern.
The security of our state and the nation demands a coordinated and robust response to the challenge posed by drones. I urge you to prioritize this issue and take swift action before it is too late.
We stand ready to collaborate with the federal government and Congress to address this critical threat.
Sincerely,
Kathy Hochul
Governor
CC:
The Honorable Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security
The Honorable Sean Duffy, Secretary of Transportation
The Honorable Chris Rocheleau, Acting Administrator of the FAA
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
News story
UK and Czechia to lead global race on small modular reactors
British workers will further benefit from a new generation of nuclear power.
Golden age of nuclear receives a major new boost, as the Prime Minister and Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala sign first of a kind partnership at Downing Street today
both countries will now work closer together on small modular reactors to seize export opportunities, support highly-skilled jobs, boost economic growth and deliver clean, homegrown energy as part of the Plan for Change
follows government backing for new nuclear at the Spending Review, including selection of Rolls-Royce SMR as the preferred bidder to build the UK’s first small modular reactors and £14.2 billion investment to build Sizewell C
British workers will further benefit from a new generation of nuclear power, as the government signs a landmark agreement with Czechia to kickstart the next chapter in the UK’s golden age of nuclear and secure high-skilled jobs.
Today’s agreement, set to be signed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala at Downing Street, will unlock new opportunities for industrial collaboration and the potential for the UK and Czechia to export small modular reactors to other countries in Europe.
It will also support the delivery of up to six new reactors in Czechia by Rolls-Royce SMR, potentially worth billions of pounds.
It comes after Rolls Royce SMR and the Czechia’s largest public company, ČEZ, agreed last year to partner on SMR, with ČEZ acquiring a 20% stake.
The leaders will also host a business roundtable as part of the visit to drive closer trade and investment links between the UK and Czechia to support working people.
Building more nuclear will help drive the UK’s energy security, as part of the government’s mission to protect family finances by replacing the UK’s dependency on fossil fuel markets controlled by dictators with clean power that we control.
Small modular reactors are also smaller and quicker to build than traditional nuclear plants, with costs likely to come down as units are rolled out, helping to delivering clean, homegrown energy for British billpayers.
The government’s clean energy mission is the only route to energy security, lower bills and good jobs for the country. Investment is already booming, with over £40 billion of private investment in clean energy announced since last July.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:
This agreement is about delivering for Britain – cleaner energy, better jobs, and greater security.
By working with our Czech partners on small modular reactors, we’re backing British engineering, strengthening our industrial base, and putting the UK in a leading position to export the technologies of the future.
This is our Plan for Change in action, taking practical steps to rebuild our economy, bring down bills, and give working people a stake in our clean energy transition.
Peter Fiala, Prime Minister of Czechia, said:
Nuclear energy holds significant potential for the coming years, as the sector is undergoing a true renaissance. That is why I am especially pleased that ČEZ and Rolls-Royce will cooperate on the development and production of small modular reactors. This collaboration will bring tangible benefits to both Czech and British economies, including job creation.
The Czech Republic and the United Kingdom share a common approach to energy policy, and we have a very similar vision of what the future of energy should look like. We see the ideal energy mix as a combination of large nuclear power plants, small modular reactors and renewable energy sources.
I am confident that this partnership with the United Kingdom will help us ensure energy security and affordable energy for future generations — a key priority of our government.
UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said:
This government is driving to make the UK a clean energy superpower, replacing our dependence on fossil fuel markets controlled by petrostates with clean homegrown power we control.
Nuclear power is an essential part of that, which is why this government is ending years of a no-nuclear status quo to seize the benefits of a nuclear golden age for Britain.
This agreement will put the UK back where it belongs – at the very forefront of the global race on nuclear, working in lockstep with our Czech partners to deliver economic growth, clean energy and highly-skilled jobs for both nations.
According to the International Energy Agency, the global SMR market is projected to reach up to nearly £500 billion by 2050, with today’s announcement giving the UK and Czechia the competitive advantage as frontrunners in the global race to build and export new nuclear technology.
This follows Rolls-Royce SMR being selected as the preferred bidder to partner with Great British Energy – Nuclear to develop small modular reactors, subject to final government approvals and contract signature – unlocking a new golden age of nuclear in the UK.
As part of the government’s modern Industrial Strategy to revive Britain’s industrial heartlands, the government has pledged over £2.5 billion for the overall small modular reactor programme – with this project potentially supporting up to 3,000 new skilled jobs and powering the equivalent of around 3 million homes with clean, secure homegrown energy.
Great British Energy – Nuclear is aiming to allocate a site later this year and connect projects to the grid in the mid-2030s. Once small modular reactors and Sizewell C come online in the 2030s, combined with the new station at Hinkley Point C, this will deliver more nuclear to the grid than over the previous half century.
Last week, during the President Macron’s State Visit to the UK, French energy giant EDF confirmed it will take a 12.5% stake in Sizewell C, taking the project one step closer to being given the green light. At peak construction, Sizewell C will support 10,000 jobs, and thousands more in the nationwide supply chain, and create 1,500 apprenticeships.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, July 14 (Xinhua) — Three people, including a child, were killed by a lightning strike on a beach near a reservoir in Russia’s Tula region, the regional emergency ministry’s press service reported on Monday.
As TASS reports, citing the head of the Aleksinsky District administration, Pavel Fedorov, “one victim was hospitalized, his condition is described as serious. A total of four people were injured.”
The press service of the regional investigative department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation told TASS that an investigation has been launched into the deaths. The circumstances of the incident are being established.
Earlier on Monday, the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations for the Tula Region reported that, according to the Tula Center for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring, thunderstorms are expected in some places in the Tula Region in the next 1-3 hours and will continue until the end of the day on July 14, in some areas there will be heavy rain, hail, and squally winds with gusts of 12-17 m/s. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhua) — China on Monday urged Japan to learn from history and be prudent in its military and security words and actions as this year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.
Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Jiang Bin made the statement in response to a reporter’s request to comment on Japanese government sources’ reports that Japan plans to export six Abukuma-class frigates to the Philippines.
The official reiterated China’s position that cooperation between relevant countries in the areas of defense and security should not be directed against third parties or harm their interests.
Jiang Bin recalled the grave historical responsibility of Japanese militarism for its actions during World War II, including the invasion and colonial rule of neighboring countries such as China and the Philippines, as well as the occupation of islands in the South China Sea.
In recent years, Japan, going beyond the framework of its peace constitution and the principle of “exclusively defensive policy,” has been continuously increasing the export of weapons and military equipment abroad, the official representative stated.
He said such actions looked like reckless attempts to create “inner circles,” sow chaos in the South China Sea and bring instability to the Asia-Pacific region as a whole.
“We call on the Japanese side to deeply rethink its activities, learn from history, exercise caution in its statements and actions in the military and security spheres, and take more steps to help protect peace and stability in the region,” the official representative concluded. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhua) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Malta’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism Ian Borg in Beijing on Monday.
Wang Yi, also a member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, said Malta plays a unique and positive role in matters of world peace and stability.
China hopes to work with Malta to maintain high-level political trust, mutual respect, mutual understanding and mutual support, and firmly fulfill mutual commitments on issues affecting each other’s core interests and major concerns, the Chinese Foreign Minister noted.
He indicated that China is willing to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with Malta in areas such as trade, investment, culture and tourism, science and education, and continue to maintain positive communication and cooperation in international affairs.
Speaking about China-EU relations, Wang Yi noted that the most important experience and lesson learned from the 50 years of development of China-EU relations is that bilateral relations are positioned as partnerships, not competition, and their leitmotif is dialogue and cooperation.
The Chinese Foreign Minister stressed that China and the EU, as two leading global powers, civilizations and markets, should understand, respect and value each other.
Wang Yi called on both sides to view the mutually beneficial and win-win nature of bilateral relations from the perspective of development, jointly promote the process of human civilization, and maintain world peace and stability.
J. Borg, for his part, stated that Malta highly values relations with China, always regards them as a priority area of its diplomacy, firmly adheres to the one-China principle, actively participates in the Belt and Road Initiative and invites more Chinese friends to visit Malta.
The Maltese side also believes that the EU and China should be partners, not rivals, and that differences between them should be properly resolved through dialogue and consultation, said J. Borg, expressing his readiness to continue to play an active role in stimulating the development of European-Chinese relations. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
KYIV, July 14 (Xinhua) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday on Telegram that he met in Kyiv with U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg to discuss ways to end the Russian-Ukrainian armed conflict.
V. Zelensky expressed gratitude to K. Kellogg for his current visit to Ukraine, and to US President Donald Trump for important signals of support from official Kyiv.
The Ukrainian leader also noted that at the meeting with the American special envoy, the main focus was on such issues as strengthening Ukraine’s air defense system, establishing joint weapons production with the United States, providing Kyiv with defensive military assistance together with Europe, etc.
Kellogg arrived in Ukraine earlier on Monday. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Almaty, July 14 /Xinhua/ — As of today, the level of gasification in Kazakhstan has reached 62.4 percent, the press service of the President of Kazakhstan reported on Monday, citing the Chairman of the Board of the national gas company QazaqGaz Sanzhar Zharkeshov.
In a report to the President, S. Zharkeshov stated that over the past three years, more than 1.7 million people in Kazakhstan have gained access to gas.
It was also reported that the construction of the linear section of the Taldykorgan-Usharal gas pipeline has been completed, which will provide gas supply to 66 settlements in the Zhetysu region in the southeast of the country.
According to S. Zharkeshov, one of the important achievements was the increase in the volume of Russian gas transit through Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Almere, The Netherlands July 14, 2025, 5:45 p.m. CET
ASM International N.V. (Euronext Amsterdam: ASM) reports the following transactions, conducted under ASM’s current share buyback program.
Date
Repurchased shares
Average price
Repurchased value
July 7, 2025
25
€ 507.60
€ 12,690
July 8, 2025
837
€ 506.37
€ 423,834
July 9, 2025
410
€ 512.89
€ 210,283
Total
1,272
€ 508.50
€ 646,807
These repurchases were made as part of the €150 million share buyback program which started on April 30, 2025. Of the total program, 40.4% has been repurchased. For further details including individual transaction information please visit: www.asm.com/investors/dividends-share-buybacks.
About ASM International
ASM International N.V., headquartered in Almere, the Netherlands, and its subsidiaries design and manufacture equipment and process solutions to produce semiconductor devices for wafer processing, and have facilities in the United States, Europe, and Asia. ASM International’s common stock trades on the Euronext Amsterdam Stock Exchange (symbol: ASM). For more information, visit ASM’s website at www.asm.com.
This press release contains inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Speech
The UK is committed to ensuring the UN can operate across its Missions in Yemen: UK at the UN Security Council
Explanation of vote by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, UK Permanent Representative to the UN, after the adoption of UN Security Council resolution 2786.
We welcome the Council’s extension of UNMHA’s mandate until January 2026.
We thank Council colleagues for their engagement in the negotiation.
We will closely engage with the UN on their review to identify opportunities for further efficiencies, coherence and coordination across United Nations Missions in Yemen.
As the expiry of this mandate approaches early next year, we look forward to leading further discussions with this Council on the full range of options for UN operations in Hodeidah, including assessing the future viability and sunsetting of UNMHA.
We remain committed to ensuring the UN is able to operate across its Missions in Yemen, with a view to supporting humanitarian needs, promoting long-term stability and preserving space for a future UN-led peace process.
We will continue to work closely with the UN Special Envoy, regional and Yemeni stakeholders to achieve this.
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
The ruble rose against the US dollar for the seventh month in a row in June, while weakening slightly against the yuan. Demand for the currency from companies reached a year-low.
The softening of the Bank of Russia’s rhetoric regarding the further trajectory of the key rate amid signs of slowing inflation supported the Russian financial market.
Yields on the OFZ and corporate bond markets continued to decline. Most major stock indices began to grow, with the Moscow Exchange Index up 0.7% over the month.
Preview photo: Jakub Zerdzicki / Shutterstock / Fotodom
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: Ministry of Economic Development (Russia) – Ministry of Economic Development (Russia) –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Two thirds (62%) of Russians plan to go on holiday this summer, half (49%) will go on holiday with their spouse, and another 40% will take their children with them.
Most often, citizens plan tourist trips by car (38%), in second place among modes of transport is the train (29%), in third place is the plane (21%). The demand for various formats of recreation is growing: the most popular were trips along eco-trails (37%) and signature tours (33%). The main motive for summer travel is a reboot. These are the results of a study on the preferences of summer recreation of Russians, conducted by ANO “National Priorities” and the Ministry of Economic Development in June 2025.
Family vacations are still at the top of our citizens’ preferences: 49% of respondents will vacation with their spouse, and another 40% will take their children with them. This format is most popular among respondents in two age groups: 35–44 years old (57%) and 45–54 years old (54%). Among the types of transport that people will travel by this summer, the most popular is the car: 38% of respondents choose it. 29% of respondents will travel to their vacation spots by train, and 21% by plane.
“Studies of Russian tourists’ preferences regularly record the growth in popularity of car trips. We expect that this summer the share of car tourists will grow from 38% to 43% compared to last year. For this category, we have created more than 93 ready-made tourist routes together with the regions. Detailed information about them can be found on the National Tourism Portal “Puteshestvoem.rf”. We support the development of car routes, as well as their infrastructure, with measures that are in effect within the framework of the national project “Tourism and Hospitality”. In particular, this is a program for the creation of modular hotels, non-capital infrastructure facilities within the framework of a single subsidy. In these measures, projects related to the development of car tourism are highlighted as a priority. We are working separately with the Russian Ministry of Transport on repairing roads along routes, with the Ministry of Digital Development on developing communications on roads, and with the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Natural Resources on equipping tourist attractions with the necessary infrastructure,” notes Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov.
The main tourist motive this summer is a reboot: 58% of Russians go on vacation to clear their heads and relax. In second place is the search for new experiences (52%), in third place is the restoration and strengthening of health, as well as providing an interesting vacation for their children (29% each).
48% of respondents plan to spend less than 50 thousand rubles on a summer vacation, 32% – from 50 to 100 thousand rubles. The majority of respondents planning a summer vacation this year are young people aged 18-24 (71%) and 25-34 (73%). Half of the respondents (52%) plan to vacation for one to two weeks, while younger people (18-34) are more likely than others to plan shorter trips.
“The study shows that Russians have begun to split the classic two-week vacation more often. Modern tourists prefer to vacation several times in the summer, choosing short trips – the so-called weekend trips. This is confirmed by the statistics of the National Tourism Portal “Puteshestvoem.rf”: the corresponding section on it is one of the most popular along with car routes. Today, the portal offers more than 200 options for short trips to almost all regions of the country, and most of them will be of interest to families with children. Family vacations are an ongoing trend, and their popularity will only grow, which is reflected in the demand for a variety of formats. We also see a growing interest in event and cultural and educational tourism,” notes Sofia Malyavina, General Director of ANO “National Priorities”.
Perhaps the most interesting and unexpected conclusion from the study is the diversity of popular recreation formats. Thus, the leaders are eco-trail travel and signature tours: they are chosen by 37% and 33% of respondents, respectively. These formats are most in demand among young people (25-34 years old). Also popular with this age group are retreats – a quiet holiday that involves removing yourself from society, various spiritual and health practices. Creative tourism is also gaining popularity – active recreation, where you can gain new knowledge and learn new skills: it was noted by 26% of respondents.
This year, 17% of Russians will go to the Black Sea coast of Krasnodar Krai, 12% plan to vacation in Crimea or take short trips close to home. Almost half (46%) of respondents assess seaside vacations in Krasnodar Krai as safe, 38% of respondents are ready to consider trips to the Black Sea coast if prices drop.
8% are planning to travel abroad, while 57% of respondents expressed a desire to visit other countries if restrictions are lifted.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: Government of the Russian Federation – Government of the Russian Federation –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Since March 1, 2025, a law has been in force in Russia regulating the use of escrow accounts in the sphere of individual housing construction (IHC). This mechanism ensures the protection of citizens’ funds from unscrupulous contractors and increases the reliability of transactions in the construction of private houses. Thus, to date, the number of private houses in the construction of which this mechanism was used has exceeded 16 thousand. This was reported by Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin.
“We see a significant increase in citizens’ interest in individual housing construction. Our task is to create conditions for people to realize their desire to live in their own home. An important component in this matter is to guarantee the security of transactions. On March 1, 2025, a law came into force providing for the use of an escrow account mechanism for individual housing construction, which has already proven itself in the construction of apartment buildings. If in the spring, about 5 thousand individual residential buildings were built using escrow, today more than 16 thousand private houses in the country are being built using this secure financial mechanism,” said Marat Khusnullin.
The Deputy Prime Minister recalled that escrow accounts guarantee the protection of equity holders’ funds at all stages of construction. Buyers are assured that their money will be transferred to the contractor only after construction is completed. This means that in the event of a missed deadline or other violations, citizens will be able to return their investments.
The number of construction companies ready to work with escrow in the construction of private homes is also growing. According to the state company DOM.RF, the number of such contractors has grown more than 2.5 times – from 1.8 thousand on March 1 to 4.7 thousand companies at the current moment.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Nominal interest rates declined in May, but a renewed decline in inflation expectations helped maintain the achieved tightness of monetary conditions. However, the decline in nominal rates became more pronounced in June.
Operational estimates indicate a further decrease in interest rates on loans and deposits in June. Credit activity in the corporate and retail segments remained moderate. This restrained the growth of the money supply. The dynamics of monetary aggregates in June were comparable to May.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
