Russia has built and expanded at least 10 military bases along its borders with Ukraine and Belarus, designed to launch large numbers of new jet-powered drones in an effort to systematically exhaust and break through Ukrainian air defences. Journalists and military analysts identified 59 mechanical launch rails along the Ukrainian...
Burnham urged to take on firms exploiting gig workers
Andy Burnham is being urged to protect 4 million gig economy workers by prosecuting companies that use widespread “bogus” self-employment practices to deny people their rights. As the prime minister fleshes out his agenda, the Fabian Society and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation have warned that millions of workers are missing...
The new tactics of Russian special services against the European defense industry
Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has forced adjustments to the strategy of Russian intelligence and subversive activities in the European Union. While in the early stages of the full-scale invasion the Kremlin’s main instruments of influence were largely disinformation campaigns and cyberattacks on civilian infrastructure, today the priority target has become...
Nearly half of EU under drought amid extreme heat
Nearly half of the European Union and the UK faced drought conditions in late July 2026, according to a report from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC). Data from the European Drought Observatory (EDO) show critical and warning-level drought conditions persisted and intensified across western, central and parts of...
UK responds to Putin’s threats
Following threats by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to respond “in kind” to actions against Russian vessels, the UK has stressed that the detention of Russia’s “shadow fleet” tankers is fully in accordance with international law. “The UK is disrupting and deterring shadow fleet vessels and their harmful maritime activity which...
From Berlin to Paris: How crypto scammers from Southeast Asia are hunting Europeans
In May–July 2026, the FBI under Director Kash Patel announced the results of a large-scale intercontinental operation codenamed “Operation Blackout.” According to official Bureau data, over roughly 16 months of work, $15.2 billion was seized, including a U.S. record of 127,000 bitcoins. Hundreds of suspects were arrested across several continents,...
Slovak opposition demands Interior Minister’s resignation over Russian road cameras scandal
Slovakia’s opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party has called on Prime Minister Robert Fico to immediately dismiss Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok following a scandal involving road cameras containing Russian components. The party described the installation of the devices on Slovak roads as a “security scandal” and further evidence that...
US and 40 other countries call for 24-hour advance notice of missile launches
The governments of 41 states have called for mandatory 24-hour advance notification of launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and space launch vehicles. This is stated in a joint statement published on the website of the U.S. Permanent Mission to International Organizations in Geneva. The signatories include the...
US begins sending confiscated “shadow fleet” tankers for scrap
The US government has sold for scrap two sanctioned oil tankers previously seized in operations targeting sanctions evasion linked to Russia, Iran, and Venezuela. The buyer is the Dubai-based ship recycling company Global Marketing Systems (GMS). The deal, whose value has not been disclosed, was concluded in July on the...
Austria exposes network supplying equipment to Russia’s defense industry in circumvention of EU sanctions
Austria’s Directorate of State Security and Intelligence (DSN) has exposed an international network that organized the supply of highly specialized industrial equipment to Russia’s defense industry in circumvention of European Union sanctions. This was reported on Monday by the website of Austria’s Ministry of the Interior. At the center of...