The European Commission has officially refused to support the US administration’s initiative for Europe to return to large-scale purchases of Russian natural gas as part of a possible peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine. At the same time, Brussels confirmed that it has no intention of lifting sanctions against...
The United States has left the Council of Europe’s anti-corruption body
The United States has formally withdrawn from the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO). The Council of Europe announced this on September 29, saying Washington had submitted the notification the day before. Before the United States, only Russia and Belarus had left GRECO. The United States joined the group in...
London distances itself from US decision to invite Putin to G20
Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said London does not intend to change its policy of refusing direct contacts with Russian officials at the foreign minister level — despite Vladimir Putin’s invitation to the G20 summit in the United States. Speaking at the Labour Party conference, Miliband stressed that the United Kingdom...
US TV networks boycott coverage of the president following CNN’s suspension
Major U.S. television networks — FOX News Media, ABC News, CBS News, CNN and NBC News — on Monday suspended their joint television coverage of events involving President Donald Trump. The decision followed the administration’s refusal to allow CNN to serve as the White House television pool representative. For years,...
The Graham Act and U.S. sanctions that could hit Europe
On September 16, 2026, the U.S. House of Representatives passed, by a vote of 262 to 159, a bipartisan measure officially titled the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 (H.R. 5334 / S. 5025). A month earlier, on August 7, 2026, the Senate approved the bill...
Russia launches new disinformation campaign ahead of U.S. midterm elections
The Russian Federation has launched a new covert online disinformation campaign aimed at undermining Americans’ confidence in the November 2026 congressional midterm elections. The New York Times reported this, citing classified U.S. intelligence assessments and officials familiar with the materials. According to the newspaper’s sources, classified intelligence assessments from recent...
US House passes Graham sanctions against Russia
The U.S. House of Representatives on September 16 gave final approval to a bill tightening sanctions on Russia, named after the late Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. The measure passed 262–159. The Senate approved it in August, so the bill will now be sent to President Donald Trump for his signature....
US officially confirms deployment of weapons in space for the first time
The United States has publicly acknowledged for the first time that it has placed weapons systems in near-Earth orbit. U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink made the statement on September 14 at the Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Maryland. According to Meink, the systems are...
The Netherlands moved its gold reserves from the US and Canada to the Bank of England
The Dutch central bank (DNB) has completed a months-long operation to transfer part of its gold reserves from vaults in the United States and Canada to the Bank of England. The regulator announced this on 2 September 2026. A total of 86 tonnes of gold were withdrawn from North American...