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Morning Headlines
Reuters: European diplomats are preparing to underpin sanctions on Russia anticipating that a return of former U.S. president Donald Trump could undermine Western efforts to isolate Moscow, sources with knowledge of the discussions told Reuters.
WSJ: Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and a linchpin of U.S. space efforts, has been in regular contact with Putin since late 2022. The discussions, confirmed by several current and former U.S., European and Russian officials, touch on personal topics, business and geopolitical tensions.
Reuters: Indonesia has expressed its desire to join the BRICS group of major emerging economies, which accounts for 35% of global economic output, as a means to strengthen emerging countries, its foreign ministry said in a statement.
Bloomberg: The Bank of Russia is poised to hike its key interest rate on Friday to the record level it imposed after Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine, as policymakers struggle to contain rapid price growth (archive).
Reuters: Western sanctions on Russia's zinc miner Ozernoye have left it struggling to replace equipment needed to ramp up output, three sources with knowledge of the matter said, meaning mined zinc supply forecasts for 2025 are likely to be too high.
More News
WSJ: Russia provided targeting data for Yemen’s Houthi rebels as they attacked Western ships in the Red Sea with missiles and drones earlier this year, helping the Iranian-backed group assault a major artery for global trade and further destabilizing the region (archive).
Reuters: Ukraine's military intelligence service said on Thursday that the first North Korean units trained in Russia had been deployed in the Kursk region, a Russian border area where Ukrainian forces staged a major incursion in August.
AP News: A panel of judges at the International Criminal Court reported Mongolia to the court’s oversight organization on Thursday for failing to arrest Putin when he visited the Asian nation last month.
The Kyiv Independent: Russian troops are attempting to establish crossings near the Oskil River to advance toward the city of Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast, according to Ruslan Muzychuk, a spokesperson for Ukraine's National Guard.
RFE/RL: Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin has met with Putin at the BRICS summit despite advice given to EU candidate countries to refrain from such contacts.
Reuters: Russia is in talks with other BRICS members about creating an international precious metals exchange 'to ensure fair pricing and trade growth', the country's Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said in a statement on Thursday.
The Kyiv Independent: Ukrainian military, lawmakers, and experts discussed the creation of a separate branch of Ukraine's Armed Forces dedicated to cyberspace operations, the General Staff said on Oct. 24.
Europol: The Polish border guard has busted an international migrant smuggling ring that transported people illegally into the European Union through Poland's border with Belarus, Europol said on Thursday.
Reuters: Moldovan police said pro-Russian fugitive businessman Ilan Shor had channeled $39 million in September and October in a scheme to bribe voters in last Sunday's presidential election and referendum on joining the EU.
Interfax: The Inari and Parikkala checkpoints on the Russian-Finish border, which suspended operation several years ago, are now permanently closed, Yle said on Thursday, citing the border services.
The Moscow Times: French retail giant Auchan is in “the final stage of negotiations” to sell its Russian subsidiary to local buyers after more than 20 years in the country, the business publication La Lettre reported Thursday, citing unnamed sources.
Bloomberg: Russia is facing a deficit of ice-class cargo vessels for its gigantic Northern Sea Route project as the nation cannot build the fleet on its own, according to Deputy Prime Minister Yury Trutnev (archive).
Meduza: In its guidelines for media coverage of the BRICS summit, the Kremlin tells propagandists to report that Putin is the leader of the “global majority,” that the West is “panicking,” and that the US will rig its presidential election to ensure a Harris win.
AP News: South Korea’s president on Thursday raised the possibility of supplying Ukraine with weapons while stressing that his government “won’t sit idle” as North Korea allegedly sends troops to support Russia’s aggression toward its neighbor.
Bloomberg: The European Union is debating whether to hike tariffs on more Russian agricultural and food products, as well as fertilizers (archive).
AFP: Russian lawmakers voted for a budget on Thursday that will see "defence" spending surge by almost 30 percent next year, as the Kremlin diverts huge resources to its Ukraine offensive.
Reuters: Russian attacks on eastern Ukraine killed at least six people and wounded 10 on Thursday, regional authorities said.
The Moscow Times: Kyiv claimed Thursday that Russian forces had executed four captured Ukrainian servicemen in the eastern Donetsk region, the latest war crime allegation against Moscow.
AP News: Russian lawmakers on Thursday ratified a pact with North Korea envisioning mutual military assistance, a move that comes as the U.S. confirmed the deployment of 3,000 North Korean troops to Russia.
Reuters: China's commerce ministry on Thursday expressed opposition to the U.S. sanctions on Chinese firms involved in making and shipping attack drones for Russia.
worth mentioning
Russia grants Yanukovych’s oldest son citizenship
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