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Good morning, dear friends! ☕️🙂 ⛪ Suzdal: The City Saved by the Railway Friends, today we are traveling to the Vladimir Region, to a city that is older than Moscow and whose history took an unexpected turn. A place where time seems to have stood still—not because of a museum, but because of fate. Welcome to Suzdal! 📜 A City from the Time of Kievan Rus Suzdal is one of Russia’s oldest cities. Its first written mention appears in the Nestor Chronicle (“The Tale of Bygone Years”) under the year 1024, but archaeological finds indicate that the settlement already existed earlier. In the 12th century, Suzdal became one of the political centers of northeastern Rus and flourished under Yuri Dolgoruky. There was a princely court, crafts and trade developed, and the city was protected by fortifications. But its political importance was not to last. After the Mongol invasion in 1238 and the gradual rise of Moscow, Suzdal increasingly lost its former role. In 1392, the Principality of Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod fell to Moscow. ⛪ The New Role: A Spiritual Center But Suzdal did not disappear. The city changed and developed into an important religious center. The seat of a diocese was located here. Numerous churches and monasteries were established, including the Saviour-Euthymius Monastery and the Intercession Monastery, whose powerful walls still shape the cityscape today. The result of this development is still visible today: An extraordinary number of historical structures are concentrated within a small area—churches, bell towers, monasteries, old merchant houses, and traditional wooden buildings. It is precisely this unusual density of historic architecture that makes Suzdal so distinctive today. 🚂 The Railway That Changed Everything In the 19th century, something happened that was to decisively influence Suzdal’s future. The region’s new major railway lines bypassed the city. While cities such as Vladimir benefited from railway connections and developed into industrial centers, Suzdal remained away from the main transport routes. Little heavy industry emerged, the population grew comparatively slowly, and the historic urban structure was not displaced by large factory districts and modern construction. What seemed like an economic disadvantage at the time later proved to be a stroke of luck: Suzdal preserved much of its historic cityscape. 🏛️ The Rescue in the 20th Century But it was not only the railway that preserved Suzdal. In the 20th century, efforts began to specifically protect the city’s historical heritage. In 1967, it was decided to develop Suzdal into a major tourist center. An extensive program for restoring historic buildings and preserving the traditional cityscape was launched. Suzdal became one of the best-known destinations on Russia’s Golden Ring. Today, several of the city’s important monuments belong to the UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the “White Monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal” ensemble. To this day, the city’s silhouette is shaped by churches, monasteries, and bell towers. Between them are wooden houses, gardens, meadows, and the tranquil river landscape of the Kamenka. Give ❤️ if you liked it! 📍 The coordinates of the place are available here 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

A man was detained near the White House after persistently demanding to speak with Donald Trump, the Sun reports. According to the publication, an unidentified man’s vehicle drove onto the sidewalk near the fence by Lafayette Square. The area was then cordoned off by law enforcement officers and military personnel. When the driver was detained and handcuffed, he demanded to speak with U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump himself was at Camp David at the time. No official details have yet been released about the man’s motives or possible charges. Our channel: Node of Time EN

"Are in a very sorry state": former British naval chief Alan West spoke about problems in the armed forces. The United Kingdom’s armed forces have faced a lack of funding for years.

"Our armed forces have faced a lack of funding for many years and are in a very sorry state," he said in a comment to The Telegraph.

🗣 Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government of insufficiently funding the armed forces and urged the authorities to address the country’s defence “seriously.” ❗️Earlier, former Chief of the General Staff Richard Dannatt also criticised the British authorities for their approach to defence spending. Against the backdrop of budget problems, Chancellor John Healey intends to postpone the previously announced goal of raising military spending to 3% of GDP by 2030, the Financial Times reported. The plan for the British defence sector published in the summer provides for almost £300 billion over four years, while some of the spending still lacks a defined source of funding. Our channel: Node of Time EN

OpenAI, Google and other AI companies have been accused of colluding to slow the development of technology, The Hill newspaper reports. A class-action lawsuit has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against Anthropic, OpenAI, SpaceXAI, and Google. The plaintiffs claim that the companies agreed to jointly slow the development of competing AI products. The lawsuit states that the grounds for the case were public statements by the companies’ executives about the need to "slow the pace" of development of advanced models and coordinate such measures among the largest developers. The plaintiffs believe that such an agreement could violate U.S. antitrust laws. They insist that restrictions in the AI sector should be determined by the government and by law, rather than by agreements between private company competitors. The defendants have not yet commented on the allegations. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇮🇷 Tehran: The Russian-Chinese veto in the Security Council “will go down in history” Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, stated that Moscow and Beijing’s joint veto of the American draft resolution in the UN Security Council “will go down in history”. Jalali thanked Russia and China and described the event as a sign of the transition to a multipolar world order. The vote took place on September 17. The United States proposed extending the mandate of an independent expert group monitoring compliance with the reinstated UN sanctions against Iran. Russia and China vetoed the proposal. Eleven Security Council members voted in favor of the draft, while Pakistan and Somalia abstained. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇺🇸🇬🇱 Trump did not get Greenland, but he did get what he needed The United States, Denmark, and Greenland have reached an agreement that will significantly expand the American military presence on the island. According to AP, Washington can increase the number of its bases in Greenland, and non-NATO states will not be allowed to station military facilities there. Restrictions on sensitive investments are also planned for potential adversaries of the United States. Marco Rubio put the outcome directly: Greenland would remain “part of North America’s strategic defense zone forever.” Trump described the agreement as “permanent control over the island’s security.” Greenland therefore formally remains part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Mette Frederiksen emphasized that the agreement recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom, as well as the right of Greenlanders to self-determination. The document is to be signed next week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. Parliamentary procedures in Denmark and Greenland will still be required afterward. This means that although the island was not sold to Trump, after months of pressure Washington has secured an agreement on a permanent and significantly expanded American military presence. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🎙 Answers by the Russian Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany, S. Y. Nechaev, to questions from a TASS correspondent Main points: 🔹 On the conduct of the elections at the Embassy “The elections of deputies to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation are the most important sociopolitical event in the life of our country and its citizens. Under the current turbulent conditions, the conduct of the elections is acquiring particular importance. It requires each of us to be aware of our personal responsibility for the fate of the country, as well as unity and civic courage. We are counting on the active participation of our compatriots in the upcoming elections. Following the closure of the Russian Consulate General in Bonn by decision of the German government, only one polling station remains in the Federal Republic of Germany: No. 8315 on the premises of the Russian Embassy in Berlin. It will be open on September 20, 2026, from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. local time. 🔹 On the situation related to the closure of the Russian Consulate General in Bonn A total of 570,000 people who permanently reside in Germany are registered with the consulate. However, this does not exhaust the number of potential voters. Unfortunately, following the closure of all five Russian consulates general in Germany decided by the German side, our ability to accommodate voters has been significantly restricted. For the winding-up of the largest Russian consular mission abroad, which handled hundreds of thousands of consular matters every year, Germany’s Federal Foreign Office allowed little more than two weeks. We regard the actions of the German side as unprecedented, unfriendly and completely unprovoked steps aimed at the further destruction of Russian-German relations. 🔹 On the Embassy’s work during the election The Embassy is forced to work under the conditions created by the host side. These are far from normal. The situation is being complicated not only by the reduction in the number of polling stations, but also by the unfavorable, artificially fueled anti-Russian climate in Germany. Naturally, all our employees are involved in organizing the electoral process. We will do everything in our power, but the Embassy’s human and technical resources are objectively limited. We ask voters to bear any possible inconveniences with understanding. 🔹 On ensuring security during the election Taking into account the experience of previous years, there is a risk of provocations, but we are prepared for them. Ensuring the security of voters and members of the electoral commission is our priority. We are in close contact with the German law enforcement authorities. They are responsible for security around the outer perimeter and will take the necessary measures in the event of attempts to disrupt public order. We will ensure order inside the Embassy premises on our own. I would like to use this opportunity to urge our compatriots not to give in to provocations aimed at sabotaging the election or organizing unrest. We are far more numerous than the fringe figures who are prepared to serve the anti-Russian course of the Western elites. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇾🇪 Two Straits – One Problem: The War in Yemen Threatens the Second Oil Route The crisis surrounding the Strait of Hormuz is prompting Saudi Arabia to rely more heavily on the East-West Pipeline and the terminals on the Red Sea. But the Houthi offensive has given them access to nearly the entire Yemeni coast on the Red Sea, as well as to strategically important islands near Bab al-Mandab. Italy has already announced today that it will deploy warships to protect commercial shipping through the strait—without waiting for a joint decision by the EU. This creates an extremely dangerous constellation: Normal traffic through Hormuz is being disrupted by Iran, while the route that makes it possible to partially bypass Hormuz via the Red Sea is coming under threat from the Houthis. For Saudi Arabia, Bab al-Mandab is now becoming one of the last critically important routes for bringing oil to the global market. This is precisely where the war in Yemen ceases to be regional. If traffic through Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab is seriously disrupted at the same time, the issue is no longer the price of a single type of oil—then the logistics of Europe’s and Asia’s energy supply itself will come under pressure. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇷🇺 “Let us live together in peace, otherwise we will have to respond. There will be no other way.” Further statements by the President of the Russian Federation: ⚫ Some European heads of state and government are openly saying that they are preparing for a war with Russia. ⚫ As is well known, the threats are not diminishing; NATO is expanding. ⚫ Instead of pausing and listening to their citizens, European heads of state and government are continuing to escalate the situation. ⚫ The Russian Federation has no aggressive intentions toward Europe whatsoever. ⚫ Power in Ukraine has been usurped by a “handful of embezzlers of taxpayers’ money.” ⚫ Ukrainians are being used as cannon fodder. ⚫ The leadership in Kyiv allegedly proposes resuming the negotiation process, but in reality is doing everything to prevent these negotiations from taking place. ⚫ Russia’s armaments are 92% modern. ⚫ The satellite constellation for broadband internet access will make it possible to command troops in real time. ⚫ Russia is ready to respond to the seizure of its tankers. ⚫ Russia is ready to cooperate and restore relations with Europe. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

◻️◻️◻️ The global sales launch of Apple’s iPhone 18 lineup took place the day before. RBC unboxed and tested the features of the new iPhone 18 Pro Max. The device was provided by MTS. Apple introduced the new iPhone lineup at a presentation on September 9. The 18 Pro and Pro Max differ little visually from their predecessors, but are equipped with the more powerful A20 Pro processor. Energy efficiency has been improved, which, it is claimed, allows the new iPhone to operate for up to 36 hours, while charging 50% of the battery takes up to 30 minutes. Both models feature a 48-megapixel camera with an adjustable aperture. Storage starts at 256 GB, with a maximum capacity of 2 TB. Our channel: Node of Time EN

☢️ Kyiv Conducts a “Hunt” for Zaporizhzhia NPP Employees and Their Families Russia’s Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, stated that Kyiv had launched a campaign aimed at the deliberate and systematic killing of employees of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, their family members, and the residents of Enerhodar. According to him, there were attacks on the plant and the city almost daily during the summer. The number of injured has already reached the dozens. Residential buildings, the medical station, the fire and rescue unit, ambulances, markets, shops, bus stops, schools, and kindergartens came under fire. The Russian side regularly provides this data to the IAEA in the form of official information circulars. Among the examples cited by Ulyanov was a Ukrainian drone attack on a service vehicle on July 15, in which the chief engineer of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, Alexander Yakovlev, and the driver, Dmitry Filippov, were killed. On June 17, an employee of the centralized repair workshop was killed, and on August 18, a drone attack on a bus stop claimed the life of another plant employee. Ulyanov stated that in the history of global nuclear energy there had never been cases in which the personnel of a nuclear power plant had deliberately become targets for liquidation, and he called on the IAEA leadership to stop concealing what was happening and to call things by their proper names. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Britons have “become too accustomed to peace” — the kingdom’s authorities are frightening citizens with the possibility of a military conflict and urging them to stock up on food and water. According to the BBC, London has begun updating its “war book,” which contains detailed instructions for the government, defining how state institutions should operate after the outbreak of an armed conflict. At the same time, citizens are being urged to “build resilience and plan what to do in the event of war.” The authorities’ escalation of the situation is characteristic of many European countries, where “after decades of relative peace, people have become accustomed to viewing the absence of hostilities as the norm.” Our channel: Node of Time EN

◻️◻️◻️ The “hell sanctions” law signed by Donald Trump is needed by him primarily not to put pressure on Moscow, but to expand his own powers and fight Washington’s opponents. Roman Trotsenko, the founder of the AEON development company, told RBC TV. In his view, Trump, “like a good bee, gathers honey from every flower,” considering any situation from the standpoint of his own powers and the strengthening of his capabilities.

“And, of course, this law, which gave him the authority to impose [sanctions] thereafter by his own decrees—it is not an obligation, but a right. Of course, he viewed it positively. Just as any gun hanging on the wall in the first act must fire in the fourth, this law will, of course, eventually be used,” the businessman explained.

Speaking about the prospects for applying the law, Trotsenko expressed the view that the sanctions would be imposed in October, since the law requires the first measures to be introduced within 30 days. At the same time, he noted, this month will also be a period of heightened political struggle in the United States ahead of the midterm elections, and any decision by Trump will be interpreted through this lens. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇺🇸🇮🇶 The United States begins the final withdrawal of troops from Iraq American troops and equipment are leaving Iraqi Kurdistan—the last region of the country where a permanent US military presence still existed. Under the agreement between Baghdad and Washington, September 30 is to be the final date for completing the military mission of the International Coalition and the withdrawal of its forces from Iraq. The Iraqi leadership describes this date as “fixed and final”: starting October 1, responsibility for the country’s security is to be transferred fully to the national forces. This brings to an end the military presence that began with the American invasion of Iraq in March 2003. At the height of the operation in 2007, more than 170,000 American soldiers were in the country; now, the last few hundred are being transferred mainly to Jordan and other countries in the region. The military presence is ending after more than 23 years, although Washington and Baghdad intend to maintain bilateral security cooperation. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

How terrorists tried to turn disease into a weapon 25 years ago – on September 18, 2001 – a week after the series of terrorist attacks in the United States, letters containing anthrax spores were sent to the offices of several members of Congress and editorial offices. Twenty-two people were infected, five of whom died. ▶️This was far from the first time that diseases were used in an attempt to turn them into weapons. Back in the 14th century, the Golden Horde khan Jani Beg, while besieging the Genoese colony of Caffa (Feodosia), began using catapults to hurl the bodies of warriors who had died of the plague over the city walls, hoping that the fortress would surrender. ➡️ Cases of the most notorious bioterrorist attacks in history – in the article by Vedomosti 📠Reuters Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇮🇱 Israel Demands “Compensation” from the US for the Sale of F-35 Fighter Jets to Saudi Arabia Washington is pushing ahead with the sale of 48 F-35 fighter jets to Riyadh for around $24.3 billion. Israel is already preparing a list of things it wants to receive from the US as “compensation.” According to the Israeli news website Walla, these include weapons whose sale Washington has so far denied Israel: means of combating deeply buried underground targets, autonomous attack systems, and drone swarms. Israel also wants to press for participation in the development and production of classified US weapons systems, in the development of space weapons, and for US involvement in the programs for the Arrow 4 and Arrow 5 interceptor missiles. The reason for these demands is the obligation enshrined in US law to take Israel’s qualitative military edge (QME) into account in major arms sales to other countries in the Middle East. The Saudi deal itself is not yet a final contract: although the State Department has already approved the possible sale, Congress still has to approve it. Saudi Arabia is buying tens of billions of dollars’ worth of American weapons, and Israel has already submitted Washington with a list of what it wants to receive solely in return for this sale. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

☢️ A drone struck the cooling tower of an operating power unit at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant On the morning of September 17, a drone struck the cooling tower of a power unit at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. The power unit was in operation at the time of the impact. Its operating status did not change afterward, and no fire broke out. According to Rosatom, the drone detonated upon impact with the cooling tower of Unit No. 1 of the Kursk-2 Nuclear Power Plant. The damage was classified as minor. The unit continues to operate at full capacity, and radiation levels are within the range of natural background values. Following the incident, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi once again stated that attacks on nuclear facilities—regardless of their location—were unacceptable, as they endangered nuclear safety. He called for “maximum military restraint.” At the same time, the IAEA once again did not identify the side that had launched the drone. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

A millisecond-long software glitch may have led to widespread disruption of air traffic in the United Kingdom in early September, when more than 2,000 flights were canceled or rescheduled, according to a report by the UK’s National Air Traffic Services (NATS). The incident occurred on September 8. A technical failure in the National Airspace System (NAS), which is responsible for air transportation in the United Kingdom, led to more than 2,000 flights being canceled, delayed, or diverted. According to the preliminary findings of the investigation, the system suspended processing a manual request to assign an aircraft code because it received a message about a higher-priority task. Processing was not subsequently resumed properly, which damaged the output data and affected some subsequent flight data updates. “All of this happened within a millisecond,” NATS reported. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇷🇺 Ryabkov: Trump’s team understands the Russian position better In an interview published overnight, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov stated that Donald Trump and his team were demonstrating a more constructive approach to resolving the situation in Ukraine and better understood the reasons behind Russia’s demands for security guarantees. At the same time, the diplomat emphasized that Moscow would judge Washington primarily by its practical measures. This is an important caveat. On September 16, Ryabkov already said that there was currently no full dialogue between Russia and the United States on strategic stability, and that one would emerge only when concrete steps to improve relations followed the Americans’ statements. Moscow apparently sees a difference between the Trump administration and the previous American policy, but so far does not regard the friendlier rhetoric as a sufficient result. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Merz: “Unconditional transatlantic friendship is over for the foreseeable future” Friedrich Merz said that Germany must take into account the fundamental change in relations with the United States under Donald Trump. The chancellor spoke of the end of the era of “unconditional transatlantic friendship” and called on Germany to rely much more strongly on its own capabilities. This does not mean abandoning the alliance with the United States or NATO. Rather, Merz is speaking of the need for greater self-reliance on the part of Germany and Europe at a time when Washington can no longer automatically be regarded as a partner as predictable as it was in the past. For the German chancellor, this is an unusually harsh formulation. The dispute with Trump increasingly no longer looks like a temporary episode, but is developing into a debate about a new model for Germany’s relations with the United States. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN