Pope Leo XIV:

The search for peace in Europe, as throughout the world, must not be confused with naive pacifism. On the contrary, Schuman’s words are more relevant than ever: world peace cannot be safeguarded without creative efforts proportionate to the dangers that threaten it.

We must, however, guard against the illusion of rearmament. It is no coincidence that repeated calls to increase military spending, and the choices that follow, are presented by many governments with the justification of the danger represented by others.

Promoting peace is an active endeavor. Today, we must ask ourselves whether we are truly making creative efforts to promote world peace, or whether we are simply trying to stop the hemorrhage of war and better prepare ourselves for the war we assume is still to come.

A Russian drone struck a building at Ukraine’s National Academy of Sciences in central Kyiv, sparking a fire.

A district official reported injuries and fatalities, though casualty figures were still being verified.

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband:

There’s this phrase that people use about Holocaust survivors: survivors’ guilt. I think my parents had something else: survivors’ responsibility.

Survivors’ responsibility to pass on the message to the generations that come next — that we are here to leave the world a better place than we found it. To never walk by on the other side. To never be bystanders to oppression and injustice.

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband:

When it comes to the attempt to destroy the two-state solution, this party, this movement, this government says: we will not let you succeed.

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband:

Our argument is not with the people of Israel, but with the actions of its government. My grandmother was given shelter and sanctuary after the Second World War by Israel.

And the bonds of solidarity between the British people and those who yearn for peace in Israel and Palestine are too strong to be broken.

Five UK nationals aged 23–25 have been arrested near RAF Fairford on suspicion of explosives offences and preparing a terrorist act.

All five are London residents. Counter-terrorism police said overnight searches produced “multiple new lines of enquiry,” while a cordon remains in place.

No charges have been announced, and police said it is too early to speculate about the motive.

'For Germans, Anything Not World War III is a Victory'

A follow-up to Die Welt’s Russia wargame produced a tougher European response but exposed a persistent gap: allies could manage escalation but could not agree on an endgame.

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EU's Kaja Kallas:

There are many countries outside Europe who say that, you know, talk to the Russians and then there will be a result.

But these talks show that Russia really is not interested in peace at all.

Otherwise you don’t treat your negotiation partner, or the partner of meetings, this way.

EU's Kaja Kallas:

Europe needs to rearm more quickly and more effectively to meet our target of 2030.

Europe needs a decisive change in the scale and pace of defense investment, capability development, innovation and industrial capacity.

EU's Kaja Kallas:

Russia’s sustained acts of sabotage, arson and airspace violations persist.

On the EU side, sanctions against perpetrators and the expulsion of Russian diplomats bite. But we need to look into what more we can do.

UK Investigates Iran Link in Suspected Bomb Plot at US Air Force Outpost

Five British men remain in custody as investigators examine whether Iran was connected to a suspected terrorist act against the U.S. Air Force outpost at RAF Fairford.

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Dutch drone-detection firm Robin Radar is rapidly expanding as demand for counter-drone systems surges.

The company is investing €7 million in a new Delft factory and plans to triple manufacturing capacity.

Around 300 of its 800 radars are deployed in Ukraine, with others sent to the Middle East, the U.S. and major events including the Paris Olympics.

Source: Bloomberg

North Rhine-Westphalia Premier Hendrik Wüst is on a three-day visit to Türkiye and will meet President Erdogan in Ankara. The meeting was added to his schedule at short notice and is unusual because heads of state do not normally meet German state premiers.

Wüst has called for modernization of the EU–Türkiye customs union, saying reform is overdue and could offer major economic opportunities.

Wüst, a senior CDU politician, is being discussed in Germany as a possible successor to Chancellor Friedrich Merz amid tensions within the party.

Source: WELT

New photos emerged of Türkiye's HAVA SOJ stand-off jammer — a Bombardier Global 6000 converted by TUSAŞ with ASELSAN electronic warfare systems.

Still in factory primer, showing ventral jamming fairing, dorsal SATCOM dome, and Growler-style wingtip receiver pods.

Designed to jam enemy radars and comms from beyond 500 km.

Four aircraft planned for the Turkish Air Force.

Intended to work alongside KORAL ground jammers, AEW&C aircraft, and strike packages including future KAAN fighters.

Comparable to the US EA-37B Compass Call and Australia's MC-55A Peregrine.

South Korea’s military said North Korean land mines likely caused a DMZ explosion that injured three South Korean soldiers, two severely.

The military said it would hold North Korea responsible and take “appropriate and corresponding measures” if the investigation confirms the finding.

Source: Yonhap

NEW: Houthi-linked source threatens to target bridges in Saudi Arabia, including Riyadh, telling Lebanon's Al-Akhbar it would be a "legitimate response" to Saudi airstrikes on Yemeni bridges.

Targeting Riyadh's urban overpasses would mark a shift from energy/military sites toward civilian mobility infrastructure in the capital.

NEW: Netanyahu denies reports of Egyptian pre-October 7 warning:

"In the months before October 7, PM Netanyahu did not meet or speak with Abbas Kamel, then head of Egyptian intelligence, and no Israeli intelligence body conveyed an Egyptian warning to the PM."

He ordered a libel suit filed on this matter too, adding he "never meets foreign intelligence chiefs without Israeli counterparts present."

He called the reports a "despicable lying campaign" by left-wing media aimed at shifting Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar's failures onto him, backed by "hostile foreign actors including Arab states" trying to topple his government.

South Korea's defense agency approached Türkiye's TEI about buying PD170 drone engines after repeated failures of domestic military drones.

At a September 16 defense drone expo, a KAI jet-powered UAV crashed immediately after takeoff.

In August, two kamikaze drones launched from the navy's Marado ship both plunged into the sea within seconds.

Meanwhile, the PD170 powers Türkiye's combat-proven Bayraktar TB2/TB3 and Anka/Aksungur drones, with Aksungur logging 45 hours endurance and 42,000 ft altitude.

South Korea's defense exports are booming (Chunmoo rockets, K2 tanks, Cheongung-II missiles) but the drone sector lags significantly behind.

Source: Yonhap

Hendrik Wüst, 51, CDU premier of Germany's most populous state (NRW, 18 million people) and widely watched as a potential successor to Chancellor Merz.

Ran NRW since 2021 in a CDU-Greens coalition.

He told ZDF he wants to stay as Minister-President — "trust is rebuilt by governing, not personnel debates."

But hasn't issued a hard "never Berlin" pledge.

Next NRW election April 2027. CDU polling down from 2022 but still first.

This week he visited Türkiye for the 65th anniversary of the German-Turkish labor agreement.

Has called the AfD "the main opponent of democracy" and is open to examining a party ban.

Background: Münsterland lawyer, CDU member since age 17, youngest CDU state MP when elected in 2005, former transport minister under Laschet.

📸 Turkish President Erdogan received North Rhine-Westphalia Minister-President Hendrik Wüst at the Presidential Complex in Ankara.

The Trump administration moved quickly to open Venezuela’s gold industry to U.S.-linked companies after Maduro was removed from power, arguing that the deals would redirect gold away from criminals and U.S. adversaries.

But a New York Times investigation found that hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Venezuelan gold is now sitting in U.S. warehouses because refiners are unwilling to certify that it is free from criminal financing, corruption and environmental abuses.

The Times found that some gold entering the supply chain was linked to miners who pay protection money to the Tren de Guayana gang. Another U.S.-backed investor, Heeney Capital, has taken over operations at the El Chocó mine, where contractors have also reportedly paid gang protection money.

Source: NYT