Foreign News
US Halts Some Weapons Shipment to Ukraine
The US has halted some weapons shipments to Kyiv, the White House has said, as Russia’s war against Ukraine has intensified.
The decision was taken “to put America’s interests first” following a Department of Defense review of US “military support and assistance to other countries”, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said on Tuesday.
The US has sent tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, leading some in the Trump administration to voice concerns that US stockpiles are too low.
US officials did not immediately say which shipments were being halted.
The Ukrainian government has not commented on the announcement, although Fedir Venislavskyi, an MP for the ruling party, said the decision was “certainly very unpleasant for us”.
“It’s painful, and against the background of the terrorist attacks which Russia commits against Ukraine… it’s a very unpleasant situation,” Veinslavskyi was quoted as saying.
Air defense missiles and precision munitions are understood to be among the weapons affected, according to Reuters. Officials told US media that the pause involved deliveries of Patriot air defence missiles, precision artillery rounds and other missile systems used by Ukraine.
The decision comes at a difficult time for Ukraine, which said it had endured its biggest aerial attack since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion at the weekend, from more than 500 drones and ballistic and cruise missiles.
The Pentagon’s move is based on concerns that US military stockpiles are falling too low, a US official told CBS News, although Anna Kelly stressed that “the strength of the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned – just ask Iran”.
Separately, US Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby said in a statement that the defense department “continues to provide the President with robust options to continue military aid to Ukraine”.
However, he added “the Department is rigorously examining and adapting its approach to achieving this objective while also preserving US forces’ readiness for Administration defense priorities.”
The pause comes less than a week after President Donald Trump discussed air defenses with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky at the NATO summit in the Netherlands.
Trump said US officials “are going to see if we can make some of them available” when asked about providing extra Patriot anti-missile systems to Ukraine.
Referring to his conversation with Zelensky, Trump said: “We had a little rough time sometimes, but he couldn’t have been nicer.”
The two had a heated confrontation in the Oval Office in March this year. Afterwards, Trump said he was pausing military aid to Ukraine that had been earmarked by the previous Biden administration. Intelligence sharing with Ukraine was also suspended.
But both pauses were subsequently lifted.
In late April, the US and Ukraine signed a deal that would give the US access to Ukraine’s mineral reserves in exchange for military assistance.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday – the first time in over two-and-a-half years.
They spoke on the phone for more than two hours, Macron’s office said, adding that the French president had urged a ceasefire in Ukraine and for talks to start on a “solid and lasting settlement of the conflict”.
The Kremlin said Putin had “reminded Macron” that the West’s policy was to blame for the war, because it had “for many years ignored Russia’s security interests”.
Last month Russia’s long-time leader told a forum in St Petersburg that he saw Russians and Ukrainians as one people and “in that sense the whole of Ukraine is ours”.
Moscow currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory, including the Crimea peninsula annexed in 2014.
Russia has made slow, grinding advances in Ukraine in recent months and claimed full control of the eastern Luhansk region this week. It has also claimed to have seized territory in the southeastern region of Dnipropetrovs’k.
Meanwhile, a Ukrainian attack killed three people at a Russian arms production factory for making drones and radars in Izhevsk, more than 1,000km (620 miles) from the border with Ukraine
Türkiye Raises Natural Gas Prices amid Inflation, Wage Hike Expectations
Türkiye raised natural gas prices by 24.6 per cent for households and 7.86 per cent for industrial users on Wednesday.
The price was raised amid inflation concerns and expectations of upcoming adjustments to pensions and minimum wages.
The state-owned Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAS) announced the new tariffs on its website, stating that wholesale natural gas prices were adjusted in line with budgetary targets.
This price hike will not impact June’s inflation figures, as it took effect in July.
The Turkish Statistical Institute is set to release June inflation data on Thursday.
According to a survey conducted by the state-run Anadolu Agency, economists expect a slight drop in the annual inflation rate, from 35.41 per cent in May to 35.26 per cent in June.
Meanwhile, pensioners and minimum wage earners are expecting raises following the upcoming inflation data for June, although the government has yet to confirm any increase.
The government announced a 30 per cent increase in the minimum wage effective January 2025, raising it to 22,104 Turkish liras (about 555 dollars).
Dubai Inaugurates First Test Flight of Electric Air Taxi
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority in a desert testing zone inaugurated the first test flight of an electric air taxi.
The air taxi represents the first air taxi flight of its kind in the region and it is expected to offer rapid and seamless transport across key destinations in Dubai.
According to the source, the electric air taxi features vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capabilities, operates entirely on clean electric power, and produces zero operational emissions.
The aircraft accommodates four passengers plus a pilot and generates significantly less noise compared to conventional helicopters, making it ideal for urban settings.
It uses six rotors and four battery packs, can travel up to 160 kilometres on a single charge, and reaches a top speed of 320 kilometres per hour.
The service is designed to integrate with the city’s wider public transport system, including metro, buses, bicycles, and e-scooters, enhancing multimodal connectivity and urban mobility efficiency.
The inauguration is part of Dubai’s broader vision to set international standards for urban innovation and sustainability.
At least 72 civilians who had been prospecting for gold in a border region of Sudan have been killed in air strikes, a regional rights group said.
Emergency Lawyers, based in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, said jets targeted the so-called artisanal miners at a popular gold mining site on Saturday.
Neither the Egyptian government nor the de facto Sudanese authorities have so far commented.
Cairo has previously faced accusations of deadly strikes on gold prospectors as part of a crackdown on illicit activity along its southern border.
Emergency Lawyers noted the previous alleged attacks and said they represented not only a violation of Sudan’s sovereign territory but demonstrated the government’s lack of control over the region.
“The deliberate targeting of unarmed civilians violates international humanitarian law and the right to life,” it said in a statement on Sunday. “These acts may constitute war crimes.”
It noted that its death toll was provisional and could rise.
The Paris-based Sudan Tribune reported that the death toll could far exceed the number reported by Emergency Lawyers, citing a survivor of Saturday’s attack who said many more people had been injured.
Eyewitnesses said the attack began around 06:00 local time (04:00 GMT), with the aircraft firing more than five missiles directly at the miners’ camps, destroying them and excavation pits with people still inside, the newspaper wrote.
The Sudan Tribune reported claims in June that Egyptian forces had used drones and artillery to target artisanal mining sites in the same region, killing several, after sporadic incidents of Egyptian border guards of burning equipment, torching temporary shelters, and firing live ammunition to disperse mine workers.
Days later, Egypt’s border agency announced that it and the military had begun a sweeping security campaign along the border to foil illegal migration, drug smuggling and illegal mining.
At the same time, Sudan’s de facto leader announced an investigation into the alleged strikes, which were said to have killed dozens.
Gold lies at the core of the border tensions.
Sudan’s ongoing civil war has led to a surge in artisanal mining – and often risky practice conducted by civilians with rudimentary tools and without official permission – particularly in remote areas near its borders.
Gold-rich areas lie along porous borders in terrain historically associated with cross-border smuggling routes, with artisanally mined gold potentially feeding into those channels.
Egypt’s border force said in June that it had seized 86 tonnes of gold ore along with amateur prospecting equipment.
Artisanal mining has also reportedly continued in Sudan’s conflict zones and smuggled gold may be a source of income for armed insurgent groups.
This has raised concerns of illicit Sudanese gold undermining the legitimate Egyptian gold market.
Several German fighter jets will take part in the Northern Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) annual nuclear defence exercise this week as troops from 17 countries take part in the Steadfast Noon drill.
The German Air Force said three Tornado jets will take part in the exercise hosted by Italy, which starts Tuesday and runs for about a week and a half.
The jets are normally stationed in Büchel in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
NATO has not revealed the exercise scenario but said its scale would be comparable to last year’s drill, which involved around 2,000 personnel and more than 70 aircraft.
Last week, NATO’s head of nuclear policy, Nassima Barrows, said the exercise was designed to demonstrate the alliance’s readiness and ability to defend its territory.
No real nuclear weapons will be used, she added.
NATO said the exercise was not linked to current events or directed at any specific country.
Military experts say the drills, held regularly in October, include practising the safe transport of weapons from underground storage facilities to aircraft and mounting them on fighter jets.
Only practice bombs without real nuclear warheads are used during the drills.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called on governments, the private sector, civil society, and community leaders to scale up investment in proven solutions, and ensure they reach every girl, everywhere.
Guterres made the call in his message to mark the 2026 International Day of the Girl Child under the theme “End child marriage and invest in girls’ rights!”
International Day of the Girl, celebrated annually on October 11, is a global moment to celebrate girls everywhere, amplifying their voices, actions and leadership.
The UN chief, however, used the 2026 celebration to call for end to child marriage.
“Together, let us defend the right of all girls to a childhood, and ensure every daughter, every sister, grows up free to shape her own future,’’ he said.
According to him, every three seconds, child marriage cuts a girl’s childhood short and one in five girls worldwide is married before the age of 18.
“Child marriage compromises the education, health, and safety of millions of girls across the globe. Fundamentally, it is rooted in poverty.
“The risk goes up in times of conflict, climate shocks, and displacement, leaving families with fewer options for their daughters.”
Guterres said educating girls and providing economic opportunities for their families would halt the harmful practice.
“But we know how to halt this harmful practice. Keeping girls in school, improving economic opportunities for families, enhancing social and legal protections, and challenging discriminatory gender norms all help girls reclaim their agency.
“Over the past 25 years, such solutions have prevented an estimated 68 million child marriages.
“Yet recent funding cuts threaten progress. At the rate we’re going, it will take centuries to eliminate child marriage,’’ he said.
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