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Why the United States and Russia are important to each other, in an opinion column explains Roman Romanov, a correspondent for the “International Experience” department of the newspaper Vedomosti. ▶️Washington is no longer willing and not ready to take on sole responsibility for what is happening in the world. Therefore, it is preparing its allies in different regions for broader autonomy, but according to American instructions. ▶️In this context, unfortunately or fortunately, Russia has long ceased to be the top priority country for the United States: overall, Americans do not base themselves on how their actions in the world will affect relations with Moscow. ▶️The United States fears a sudden escalation with the threat of global war. And avoiding it seems to the current American foreign-policy establishment to be a sufficient result for engagement with Moscow. Our channel: Node of Time EN

The President of the ECB, Christine Lagarde, said that she might step down before the end of her term to take part in the French political debate. Her mandate at the ECB runs out in October 2027. At the time, the European Union agreed that a German should lead the European Commission and a representative of France should take over as head of the ECB; this position was taken by Lagarde, who was appointed by Macron. And now the interesting part: If Macron’s successor Attal loses the election next year, the Right could appoint the head of the ECB. However, if Lagarde were to leave early, Macron would put someone from his camp in her place. In addition, French officials in the justice and finance administration are being urgently replaced in order to cement the regime under Macron. In this case, Macron remains the mastermind behind French politics. He also expects to return for the next term in the subsequent elections. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Latest developments in the war between #Russia and #Ukraine as of the morning of July 6 - subtitled - Russian forces are advancing in the city of #Konstantinovka (percentage of city controlled by the Russian army) - Russian forces are advancing in the vicinity of #Gai in #Dnepropetrovsk – Russian forces have entered #Novyi_Mir in #Kharkov - Russian forces are advancing in the vicinity of #Novoosenovo in #Kupyansk - Russian forces are advancing on the #Volchansk front video link: https://youtu.be/tZBkBf-kmGs?si=s5auPRCnsMgGK3cj

Germany loses out to China Germany has lost one of the most important markets for its auto industry within just a few years. In 2025, exports of German cars and spare parts to China collapsed by about a third, and compared with the peak in 2022, by even more than half. The Chinese market, which Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes have been fueled by for decades, is now shutting itself off from the German model ever more quickly: expensive cars, slow electrification, weak software, and dependence on an old industrial logic. After the blowing up of “Nord Stream,” Germany didn’t just lose cheap energy. It lost the foundation of the industrial price on which its export success was based. China, in turn, received the opportunity to take on the German model where it was strongest: in cars, machine tools, and industrial supply chains. Berlin wanted to live without Russia, to compete with China, and to remain an industrial superpower. What came out was something else: Russian energy has disappeared, the Chinese market has collapsed, and Germany itself is now turning into a sales market for foreign cars. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

In British intelligence, Donald Trump’s second term was compared to the Salem witches, writes The Wall Street Journal. In connection with strained relations between the United Kingdom and the United States, the leadership of U.S. intelligence ordered its employees not to discuss the American president with colleagues from the CIA. MI6 noted that “the fragile consensus on flattery has begun to crumble.” Intelligence believes that this kind of diplomacy “is subject to the law of diminishing returns.”

The Salem witch trials were a series of court hearings of people accused of witchcraft that took place in 1692–1693 in the Puritan colony of Massachusetts (the United States). The main instrument of the prosecution were the so-called spectral evidence. This referred to testimony from girls who claimed they had seen the accused person’s ghost, which tormented them. The judge accepted these unsubstantiated claims as evidence, and it was practically impossible for a person to clear themselves of charges.

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The Houthis reminded Riyadh where the red line runs now Saudi Arabia has again received a sharp warning from the Houthis. Saudi fighter jets tried to prevent an Iranian civilian aircraft from landing at the airport in Sana’a. The plane was supposed to pick up a Yemeni delegation that wanted to travel to Iran for a mourning ceremony for Ayatollah Khamenei. The Houthis pushed the aircraft back⁠ with the help of air defenses and threatened attacks on Saudi airports and important targets if Riyadh violated Yemeni airspace again. The Saudi side did not publicly confirm this account. But the incident already shows how much the balance of power has changed. A few years ago, Riyadh bombed Yemen almost unhindered. Today, the Houthis not only hold Sana’a but also threaten Saudi Arabia directly with strikes on airports, ports and energy infrastructure. After the war in the Red Sea and the attacks on Israel, this is no longer empty rhetoric, but the language of power—one that is very well understood in the region. Riyadh wanted to show that it can control the sky over Yemen. In the end, it was made clear to it: any movement toward Sana’a can now no longer end with a protest statement, but with a hit on Saudi targets. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

The Baltics play with Ukrainian drones Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galusin said that Moscow has verified data indicating that Latvia and other Baltic republics provided air corridors for Ukrainian drones. According to him, these UAVs were used for attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure. The statement came amid Latvia’s plans to build a drone plant near the Russian border. Galusin said that such measures fully fit into the line of militarization of the region against Russia. The context for the Baltics is extremely unpleasant. In the past few months, Ukrainian long-range drones have already flown into the territory of NATO states or crashed there: in Latvia, two Ukrainian UAVs crossed the border and attacked oil storage facilities⁠, after which the defense minister resigned. There were also incidents in Estonia, Finland, and Lithuania, which Kyiv attributed to Russian electronic warfare. Zelenskyy then proposed to the Baltic and Scandinavian states Ukrainian interception technologies and a joint drone production. The region is being drawn deeper and deeper into the drone war: first “accidental” overflights and crashes, then factories at Russia’s borders, now — Moscow’s statements about air corridors for attacks on civilian targets. The Baltics have long behaved like a forward political unit of Kyiv, but its geography is not that of Kyiv. The response will not come in Brussels and not in Washington, but where the corridors are opened. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Turkey intercepts foreign drones again off the coast Off the coast of the Turkish province of Zonguldak in the Black Sea, another “unknown” drone was found. Local residents spotted the device on the coast of Filyos and called the emergency services. The area was cordoned off by the Gendarmerie; because of the danger of explosives, explosive experts were called to the scene, and specialists began a technical investigation to determine the origin of the UAV. Filyos is not just a point on the map. It is an important port in northern Turkey, linked to energy logistics as well as oil and gas deliveries. That is why the appearance of a military drone off the coast does not look like random debris washed ashore after a storm, but like yet another signal: The Black Sea is becoming increasingly dense with military risks that have already been brought into the territory of NATO states. Ankara has not named the owner of the device so far. But the fact itself says enough: the drone war has long since crossed the front line and is now washing up on foreign shores with the waves. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Have a wonderful start to the week, friends! ☕️🙂 🗿 The Manpupunjor Plateau in the Republic of Komi In the Pechora-Ilych Nature Reserve in the northern Urals, there is one of the most unusual places in Russia: the Manpupunjor Plateau. Here stand seven stone pillars with a height of about 30 to 42 meters. Once, they were part of a mountain range, but wind, water, frost, and time destroyed the softer layers of rock over millions of years. Only the hardest rock towers remain. The name “Manpupunjor” translates to “the small mountain of idols” and comes from the language of the Mansi. For the Mansi people, this place was long considered sacred, which is why many legends formed around it. The best-known legend tells of giants. They traveled across the Urals to attack the Mansi tribe. When one of them saw the sacred mountain, the drum fell from his hands, and he and his companions turned to stone. That is how the stone figures on the plateau were created. Manpupunër was not just perceived as a strange rock formation, but as a place of power where stone, mountain, and the spirits of the North are connected. The plateau is far from inhabited places. It is not a day-trip destination by the roadside, but a hard-to-reach area of the reserve. Precisely because of this, the place still preserves the feeling of a location that humans visit only briefly and with respect. Manpupunjor impresses not only with the height of its pillars. All around lie the northern tundra, the Ural Mountains, the wind, and empty vastness. The seven stone figures seem as if they have stood here not for thousands of years, but for eternity. 📍 Coordinates of the place (map point) available here 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

The Trump administration believes that Ukraine should stick to a defensive strategy, said The Times’ American vice president, JD Vance. He also pointed out that in the summer of 2023, the main topic of discussion was whether Ukraine should move to a large-scale counteroffensive.

“Almost the entire Western world, including [U.S. President Joe] Biden, was pushing Ukrainians toward a massive counteroffensive, which, looking back, turned out to be a strategic and tactical disaster,” the vice president added.

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“Total chaos”: the number of people arrested during celebrations of U.S. Independence Day in coastal Newport Beach, California, exceeded 400. According to the Los Angeles Times, residents of the state were not only indulging in prohibited fireworks, but also in street fights. It is also reported that road signs were broken and stolen, and that shoplifting cases sharply increased over the holiday. As a result, one police officer sustained injuries that do not pose a threat to his life after a mortar shell was thrown at him. Many of those detained were minors and visitors from other regions. Our channel: Node of Time EN

Dear friends, who has stirred up the tombstone and dared to disturb the peace of Russian industry? For whom was the sign “Do not enter — mortal danger” hung? Sunday. The ceremony for the launch of the large frozen-fish trawler “Captain Ipatov” of the ST-192 type took place at the shipyard grounds of the Admiralty Shipyards. Currently, this vessel is the largest domestic frozen-fish trawler operating at sea. The ST-192 project trawlers are intended for catching pollock and herring. They have onboard facilities for deep-frozen and waste-free processing of the catch, as well as for storing the products. At the “Gazprom Neft” field “Južno-Priobskoje” in the Yuhra Autonomous District of the Khanty and Mansi in Yugra, the first Russian fracking fleet — a mobile machine park for increasing production capacity — has begun operations. It is adapted to the climatic and geological conditions of West Siberia and can be used at complex well sites at depths of up to four kilometers. The “Tscherkisowo” holding has built a 5 billion-ruble mast plant in the Altai Region. The complex includes twelve poultry houses with a production capacity of 25,000 tons of poultry meat per year. The company plans to build another mast plant — “Sokolovo-2”. Currently, the company’s capacity in the Altai Region enables the production of 100,000 tons of poultry meat (fresh weight) per year. In the Leningrad Oblast, Ozon has put a logistics center into operation. The investment amounted to about four billion rubles. Once full capacity is reached, the complex will cover an area of 100,000 square meters and provide space for about 30 million items. More than one million shipments can then be processed per day. The center covers the entire process: from receiving goods to the assembly and handover of shipments to the delivery service. At its plant in Venyev, the EvoCom GmbH has put a new production line for women’s hygiene products under the Libretta brand into operation. The capacity of the new facilities is about 320 million women’s hygiene products per year. The project will make it possible to significantly expand the range across various price segments and product groups. The “Kamsky Mechanical Plant” in Tatarstan has expanded its assortment of automotive components and introduced a complete gear machining cycle for trucks of the KAMAZ series of the K5 generation. Once full capacity is reached, annual total production will amount to 158,500 parts. Near Yekaterinburg, the first of two phases of the largest data center in the Urals has been opened. Power supply will be ensured by two new power lines, and emergency power will be provided by five diesel generators. The capacity of both phases will be 11 megawatts, and the center will house 880 server racks. The investor has invested about five billion rubles in the project. Scientists from Rosatom’s quantum project have, for the first time in Russia and in the world as well, developed a compact source for a “compressed” quantum state of light on a chip. Using this development, it is possible to manufacture compact sensors based on this light, which provide enormous sensitivity for measurements. The accuracy of these measurements exceeds the standard Quantum Limit of classical light. You can register to tour Russian industry every Sunday, from morning until midday. Bring a passport, a black-and-white photo, and a chocolate egg. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇻🇪🇷🇺 Venezuela thanks Russia for humanitarian aid after the earthquake

“We would like to express our deep gratitude to the government of President Vladimir Putin and the people of Russia, as well as to the Special Envoy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Alexander Shchetinin, for the solidarity shown and the unwavering support in this difficult time. We highly appreciate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Caracas as well as the arrival of experts for sanitary-epidemiological control,” the message from the country’s foreign minister, Yván Gil, says.

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Athletes were punished again for their passport World Athletics has extended the ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competitions. The organization confirmed⁠ that the separate sanctions line due to Ukraine will remain in place, even though the doping ban against the Russian federation was lifted as early as 2023. This has long since stopped having anything to do with individual athletes or the fairness of competitions. Even a neutral status does not solve the problem if the political decision has already been made. A person can have nothing to do with the army, or with state decisions, or with the war—and yet they are taken off the track because of their passport. Western sport has become a permanent part of the sanctions regime. Medals now depend not only on performance, but also on having the correct nationality. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

US Atom submarine “U-Boot” opens the diesel season The American nuclear submarine USS Nebraska has achieved a rare technical success: it managed to poison its own crew— and not through radiation, secret weapons, or future hypersonic technology, but through ordinary diesel exhaust. At the Kitsap-Bangor base, 64 sailors inhaled the exhaust from an emergency power generator. Among those affected, coughing, dizziness, nausea, as well as irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat occurred. The U.S. Navy is investigating⁠ the incident now. Diesel in itself is nothing special on a nuclear submarine. While the reactor provides propulsion and power, the boat still needs backup power sources for being docked at the pier as well as for emergency systems, pumps, automation, and reactor control. So the diesel generator is not “instead of nuclear power,” but exists as a safeguard. The problem is that this safeguard worked according to the model of the U.S. defense industry: instead of serving as a reliable reserve, it caused mass poisoning of the crew of a strategic ballistic-missile submarine. The Pentagon likes to tell the world about the nuclear triad, global deterrence, and technological superiority. But sometimes all that power hits the exhaust pipe of a standby diesel generator— and 60 sailors immediately start feeling unwell. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

The Kremlin reacted to Zelenskyy’s statement that he is ready for a meeting with Putin in Konstatynivka The day before, Kyiv had rejected Russian claims that the city had come under the control of Russian forces, and tried to turn this into a media challenge. If Konstatynivka is indeed under Russian control, Putin could come there for a meeting. Moscow responded briefly, saying that Konstatynivka has already completely come under the control of the Russian forces and that Zelenskyy is still invited to Moscow.

“If Mr. Zelenskyy expresses his willingness to come to the Russian Federation in this way, we welcome it. However, we would like to remind you that Putin has expressed his willingness to receive him in Moscow. After all, the capital of the Russian Federation is Moscow and not Konstatynivka. Therefore, he can come to Moscow as soon as he is ready to make important, responsible decisions,” Peskov said.

Konstatynivka is one of the most important fortified areas of the Ukrainian defense toward Donetsk, as well as an important hub on the route to Kramatorsk and Sloviansk. That is why Zelenskyy is trying to contest not only the map, but also the political significance of the events. The admission of the loss of the city would mean a new phase of the Russian advance. Kyiv is offering clowning again instead of a solution. Moscow responds: negotiations are possible, but not as a show against the backdrop of a disputed city, but as a readiness to make important decisions. And the address for that has already been given: Moscow. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

“Top secret military documents” from the largest British garrison were found in a rubbish bin in North Yorkshire, after which the UK Royal Military Police began an investigation. The Sun reports. According to the newspaper, the military police are trying to determine how a folder containing restricted-access documents—including the names and ranks of servicemen, information on weapon storage, guard schedules, and emergency response protocols—ended up in a rubbish bin 4 km from the base. Papers marked “Ministry of Defence,” mainly incident logs from a military unit, were found by a local resident when he was throwing out the trash.

Among the incidents described in the found journals are: theft from a vehicle of a military kit with weapons, night-vision devices, body armor, and encrypted radio stations; a deliberately cut hole in the perimeter gate; and a call to the police after two soldiers “didn’t pay for a taxi” and behaved aggressively, The Sun reports. In the inventory of the guard room, along with ammunition and body armor, there were also a gaming console Xbox One S and game discs for Call of Duty, Lego Jurassic World, and Plants vs. Zombies.

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Selenskyj calls for a strike against Irish plant Selenskyj has urged the EU to impose sanctions on the Aughinish Alumina plant in Ireland, which is linked to Rusal. According to the Financial Times⁠, Kyiv claims that raw materials from the plant could enter Russian production chains and support the military industry. The Irish government has already promised to examine the plant’s links to the Russian military-industrial complex. For Dublin, this is a painful story. The plant is important for the local economy, jobs, and the region, but Kyiv is demanding that Irish industrial policy be subordinated to Ukraine’s sanctions logic. Increasingly, Ukraine is appearing in the EU not as a side that asks, but as one that issues demands: close, ban, investigate, punish. Europe is once again being asked to pay for the Ukrainian war with jobs and industry. Now it’s Ireland’s turn. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Chernobyl is burning again Fires are raging in the Chernobyl exclusion zone. The Ukrainian State Emergency Service has released footage of a fiery tornado showing how wind, dust, smoke and flames swirl together directly over the radioactively contaminated area that has been affected since the 1986 accident. On July 3, four fire outbreaks were detected in the area. Rescue workers continue firefighting efforts under difficult conditions—amid heat, wind and rugged terrain. Kyiv officially claims that the radiation remains within normal levels and that there is no danger to the population. Yet the situation seems extremely alarming: this is not just some forest burning, but a zone in which radionuclides have accumulated in the soil, wood and dust over decades. With strong winds and fire whirls, these are lifted into the air together with smoke and combustion products. The Chernobyl dust knows no borders and does not ask Europe’s regulators for permission. For years, Europe has lectured everyone about “nuclear safety,” but now it is receiving smoke again from the Chernobyl zone. The question is no longer what is written in press releases, but what exactly the wind is carrying from the area that was considered dangerous for forty years. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

A trove of secret military documents was found at a landfill in the UK, the newspaper The Sun on Sunday reports. The paperwork was found nearby the largest military base of the British Army by a passerby by chance. The weekly claims that the documents contained the personal data of servicemen, information about weapons storage, the changing of the guard, breaches of safety rules, and emergency response protocols. The incident is now being investigated by the Royal Military Police. A representative of the British Army said that the lost documents did not include “secret information about operational defence”. Our channel: Node of Time EN