🇷🇺⚡- "Russian crude is now fetching about $40/bbl across major ports, with Urals trading at its widest discount to Brent since May 2023.

US sanctions and falling global prices are set to slash Russia’s oil and gas revenues by nearly 50% in December," - Oil Price.

🇸🇾⚡- Initial reports of a major breakthrough in the Damascus-SDF integration talks.

🇺🇸🇮🇱⚡- Jared Kushner's investment firm has exited the Paramount Skydance bid to take over Warner Bros. - Bloomberg.

🇺🇸🇻🇪⚡- A US MQ-9 Reaper drone has returned to base in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, after its deployment to the Carribbean waters.

🇺🇸⚡️- Nuno Loureiro was a Portuguese Sephardic Jewish nuclear scientist who received multiple awards for his research and served as the Director of MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center.

He was assassinated in the foyer of his apartment building in Brookline, Massachusetts, as he entered around 8:30 p.m, where he was found lying on his back by a neighbor and his wife. Local police swarmed the scene but found no trace of a suspect.

The investigation is ongoing, and the suspect remains at large more than 24 hours after the murder.

🇺🇸⚡️- "Why did Brown University have so few Security Cameras? There can be no excuse for that. In the modern age, it just doesn’t get worse!!!" - President Donald Trump via Truth Social

🇺🇸🇿🇦⚡️ - South African authorities raided a US refugee facility in Johannesburg.

During the raid, South African authorities temporarily detained U.S. staff who have been processing White Afrikaner refugees.

🇨🇴🇨🇱🇻🇪⚡- "[Venezuelan President] Maduro is a dictator because he concentrates power, however there is no evidence in Colombia that he is a drug trafficker. That's a US narrative.

[Chilean President-elect] Kast is the son of and a believer in Nazis. He belongs to the German generation that escaped Germany not to save themselves from Hitler, but to save themselves from Hitler's defeat, which is very, very different," - Gustavo Petro, President of Colombia.

🇦🇺⚡️ - Naveed Akram, the alleged surviving perpetrator of the Bondi Beach mass shooting, has been charged with 59 criminal offenses, including 15 counts of murder and one count of terrorism.

🇺🇸🇻🇪🇷🇺⚡- "We are concerned about what the Pentagon is doing in the Caribbean and sinking civilian ships," - Sergei Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister.

🇺🇸🇻🇪🇨🇳⚡- Chinese shadow tanker GALAXY 3 was set to depart from Jose Terminal, Venezuela. towards China today – but hasn't, and remains anchored off the coast of Venezuela, within Venezuelan waters.

The tanker is under US sanctions, and has previously transported illegal Iranian petrochemicals. The tanker is suspected to be loaded with at least 4 million barrels of Venezuela's highest-grade Merey 16 crude oil.

🇹🇭🇰🇭🇨🇳 - Thai military releases footage of Cambodian troops receiving military training at Chinese military bases in mainland China.

Chinese instructors lead the training sessions.

The Nigerian military is reportedly reconsidering its plans to procure additional NORINCO VT-4 main battle tanks from China following the type’s poor combat performance.

According to reports, the VT-4’s composite armor failed to meet expectations, with at least one tank destroyed after sustaining only a few hits from conventional RPGs fired by Boko Haram fighters. Nigerian-operated VT-4s have also reportedly spent more time undergoing repairs than in the field due to frequent component failures.

Nigerian defense officials have further expressed frustration over delays by NORINCO in delivering spare parts and replacement components. Nigeria initially received six VT-4 units in 2020, with plans to procure an additional 35-40 tanks that are now reportedly under review.

🇹🇭🇰🇭⚡- Thai forces have captured the Ban Nong Ri crossing, as well as the town of Ban Sam Lang in the Trat region of southern Thailand.

Thailand recaptured the town and have reached the international border, pushing Cambodian forces out of their territory. Thai troops were seen raising their flag over the town.

🇨🇾🇬🇷🇮🇱⚡- Greece, Cyprus and Israel have announced the creation of a joint rapid reaction brigade to deter Turkey.

🇦🇪🇮🇱⚡- Israeli defense giant Elbit Systems makes its largest sale ever, after securing a $2.3 billion sale to the UAE.

The mega deal includes the sale of advanced security systems, aircraft protection systems, laser technology as well as the establishment of an official branch of Elbit Systems in the Emirati nation.

🇪🇺⚡️- The European Union abandoned its key plan to require vehicle manufacturers to switch entirely to electric-vehicle production by 2035,

“The objective remains the same, the flexibilities are pragmatic realities in view of consumer buy-in, of the difficulty for manufacturers to offer 100% electric vehicles on the market by 2035.” - European Commissioner Stéphane Séjourné.

The decision is being heavily contested within countries which strongly endorsed this key plan. Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez denounced a "historical error" earlier today in a statement while the French Minister for Ecological Transition "regrets the flexibility opened up to combustion vehicles".

🇹🇩⚡- Chadian media reports of an attempted coup against President Deby. State media reports the coup attempt failed, with Deby still firmly in control of the country.

DW recently reported of heightened tensions in the African nation.

🇩🇪⚡️- The German Parliament just approved 50B€ in military purchases spread amongst 30 major orders.

The purchases include but are not limited to:
- 21B€ for basic equipment, mainly infantry-related.
- 4B€ for Puma IFVs.
- 3.4B€ for self-propelled howitzers.
- Several billions for air defense systems (4B€ Arrow 3, 2B€ Patriot PAC-3, and IRIS-T).
- Thousands of Eagle V APCs.
- Reconnaissance satellites for military purposes.