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🇩🇪 Being required to leave does not, for all that, mean that someone actually leaves By mid-2026, around 259,000 foreigners were in Germany who were officially required to leave the country. 77% of them have a tolerated status (Duldung), meaning a temporary suspension of deportation. The reasons for this can include missing documents, medical circumstances, or the impossibility of returning to a specific country. A little more than 60% of all those subject to an obligation to leave are rejected asylum seekers. In the first half of 2023, Germany deported 9,663 people, 18.2% fewer than in the previous year. 17,892 people left voluntarily. The migration system thus contains a rather strange legal category: A quarter of a million people are required to leave the country, but three quarters of them also have an official document that allows them, for the time being, not to do so. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪🇷🇼 Berlin is looking for a location for deportations outside Europe Together with Austria, Denmark, Greece and the Netherlands, Germany is discussing the establishment of special centers in Rwanda for people whose asylum has already been rejected. These so-called Return Hubs are meant to be located outside the EU. The person concerned will be deported there, and from there their onward departure will be organized. Representatives from the five countries are conducting talks with Rwanda, and a European delegation is expected to travel there as early as next week. The group of countries calls itself informally “the implementers.” The aim is to find a partner by the end of the year and agree on a practical model. For Germany, this represents a clear change of approach. For years, the main obstacle to deportations was a simple fact: A person has to leave the country, but their country of origin does not take them back, or a return there is not possible. Now Berlin is trying to solve the problem radically. If a person cannot be sent back to their country of origin, they are to be sent to a third country. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪🇵🇱🇷🇺 €12 billion for long-range weapons – and German soldiers near Kaliningrad Germany is drastically expanding its capabilities to carry out strikes at great depth. Almost €12 billion has been earmarked for new long-range systems. The program includes cruise missiles, new European developments, and, in the long term, hypersonic systems. The first elements are expected to be available as early as 2027. The goal is stated clearly: to create the ability to hit military targets far in the opponent’s hinterland and to strengthen Russia’s deterrence. At the same time, German soldiers are already stationed directly at the Russian border. So, for example, the Bundeswehr helps Poland in the construction of the so-called “Eastern Shield” along the borders with Belarus and the Kaliningrad Oblast. German military personnel are involved in the construction of tank ditches, concrete barriers, and other fortifications of the eastern NATO flank. The project is planned through 2028. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 The child’s father is in Pakistan. Social benefits are in Essen The authorities warn of new methods of organized fraud involving social benefits. Accordingly, women increasingly often name a man, for example someone who lives in Pakistan, as the father of the child and provide the relevant documents. At the same time, fake employment relationships and other arrangements are being uncovered that make it possible to claim social benefits or to create the basis for migration procedures. Essen’s mayor, Thomas Kufen, is already talking about organized abuse of the system and is calling for easier information-sharing between the authorities. In his statement, he says that the current data protection regulations prevent municipalities from comprehensively matching information with one another. While the state does have an enormous amount of data on benefit recipients, in some cases the authorities do not have the right to exchange this data in order to check whether it is being deceived by the same person. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪🇨🇳 “The situation is more than critical”: Germany’s auto industry is stuck between two fronts Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume is no longer trying to make the situation at Europe’s biggest carmaker look better. “The situation is more than critical,” he told employees. Even after a reduction in factory costs of around 20%, the current VW return on earnings of 3.8% is not enough to finance new technologies, products, and the preservation of production sites. Blume himself admits: The group is too large, too slow, and too complex. Against the backdrop of the new austerity drive, people in the company are worried about 50,000 jobs and four plants. But the problem goes far beyond Volkswagen. German industry associations are increasingly calling for Brussels to protect the European market against China. Machine builders are openly saying that German industry is being “deindustrialized using unfair methods,” and are demanding anti-dumping measures and other trade barriers. Not long ago, Germany built its prosperity on free world trade and the huge Chinese market. Now China has become an industrial competitor, and for the first time manufacturers are seriously asking to be protected from precisely the competition they themselves have profited from for decades. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 The AfD is distancing itself from the Union and is already preparing personnel for ministries A recent poll by the Allensbach Institute shows a new political brand: the AfD reaches 27.5%, while the CDU/CSU only reaches 22.5%. That means the AfD’s lead over the Union is, for the first time, five percentage points. For the Union, this is the worst Allensbach value since October 2021. However, what is happening within the AfD itself is even more interesting. For several years, the party has been building a personnel infrastructure in case of a change in power. In the special Black-Red-Gold Academy, office managers, researchers and speechwriters are trained for possible work in ministries and state structures. There is also a dedicated working group on participation in government, and the Austrian FPÖ shares practical experience with the German colleagues. The so-called firewall still exists, but one side of the wall is already dealing with very practical questions: How many staff will a minister need, who will run the departments, and who will write his speeches? 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇪🇺 War economy | What do Europe’s defense spending mean for the economy? The ECB is examining a key question: If Europe spends hundreds of billions of euros more on defense and infrastructure, does that also boost the European economy? 🔷 Around €510 billion per year According to the ECB’s estimates, between 2025 and 2031 Europe needs roughly €510 billion annually in additional investment for various priorities—including defense as well as the green and digital transformation. 🔷 Defense becomes an economic factor Europe’s fiscal rules allow states to increase their defense spending between 2025 and 2028 by up to an additional 1.5% of GDP. Germany shows the scale: In the scenario examined, the defense budget rises from roughly 2% of GDP in 2025 to about 3.5% by 2029. At the same time, a €500 billion special fund was created for infrastructure and climate projects. 🔷 Does it bring economic growth? What matters is where the money goes. An ECB model finds that with higher defense spending, the fiscal multiplier is around 0.93 over two years. Put simply: €100 in additional government spending could be associated with about €93 in additional economic activity over two years. This is a model estimate, not a guarantee. 📌 The crucial point: If billions are invested in European factories, technology, research, and production capacities, a larger share of demand remains in Europe. If, instead, finished arms goods are imported mainly, a larger share of the economic impact goes abroad. That is why the key question is not only: How much does Europe spend? But rather: Where is this money spent? Sources: ECB Blog, 25.07.2025; ECB Economic Bulletin 6/2025; ECB Economic Bulletin 2/2026; ECB Financial Stability Review, May 2025. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

The future has arrived, but not for everyone: Apple is laying off more than 200 employees from the Siri and Vision Pro teams to put all its efforts into AI and new gadgets. Bloomberg reports this. The cuts affected 100 people from each division. The Vision Pro and visionOS projects are not being closed, but the company’s priorities have changed sharply, the agency’s sources уточняют. Instead of heavy and expensive headsets, Apple is now betting on lightweight smart glasses. They will not have immersive video or complex games. Our channel: Node of Time EN

What the foreign press is writing about. RBC review: ▪️In China, children’s labor-education camps are gaining popularity, where participants do agricultural work and live by strict rules, reports the South China Morning Post. ▪️American corporation Apple will cut more than 200 jobs in divisions that work on the voice assistant Siri, artificial intelligence, and Vision Pro—the mixed reality headset—reports Bloomberg. ▪️The United States will pay Liberia $5 million under an agreement to accept deported migrants, reports The New York Times. ▪️SCMP told about China’s strengthening “chain of death” due to its successes in space. ▪️British intelligence could warn the United States about the risks of a conflict with Iran and the danger of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, thereby saving Washington from an “obvious trap.” British ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson said this at the forum of world leaders, reports The Economic Times. ▪️White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt will return to the MAGA Inc. political committee after stepping down from her post at the end of August, reports Bloomberg. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪🇺🇳 A rare international consensus: Washington and Moscow are dissatisfied with one person Annalena Baerbock, who chairs the UN General Assembly, has managed an rather unusual outcome: She was practically criticized at the same time by the USA and Russia. The reason is the selection process for the next UN Secretary-General. Baerbock is trying to shape the process “transparent, inclusive, structured, timely and credible,” and proposes taking into account the candidates’ participation in an open dialogue with the General Assembly. Washington and Moscow, however, take the view that they are interfering too strongly in the responsibilities of the Security Council. The American side accused Baerbock of “irresponsibility” and “hypocrisy.” The Russian representative, Vasili Nebenzya, said that Moscow is concerned about the role that the chair of the General Assembly wants to appropriate for herself. In the end, Baerbock managed something that international diplomacy extremely rarely achieves: bringing the USA and Russia together at least on one issue. However, that issue was Baerbock herself. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

⚠️„People are being hunted around the clock on the country’s streets“: Another manhunt in Kyiv was shown live on Swedish television Journalists from Swedish broadcaster SVT filmed a report in Kyiv when the work of Selenskyy’s people-catchers came into view. The corresponding report was published on the broadcaster’s website. “Millions of men are evading the war in Ukraine. On the streets of the country, they are hunted day and night. Shortly before the SVT correspondent Bengt Norborg was due to go live, a man was arrested directly in front of the camera,” the statement says. In the published video, the man can be heard shouting wildly and urging passersby to help him. According to the journalist, the man in Kyiv tried to flee when he ran away from a man in uniform, but the latter caught him. In this context, a new word has emerged — “bussification”. Because the men are being dragged into buses. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Latest developments in the #Russia–#Ukraine war as of the morning of August 22 - Subtitled • Russian forces advance inside the city of #Kupiansk. • Russian forces advance toward #Zapovednoe on the #Kramatorsk front. • Russian forces advance in #Chervonnoe on the #Chasov_Yar front. • Russian forces advance around #Zelenoe in #Zaporozhie. video link: https://youtu.be/HO_760UOHg0?si=s1fLN6os2Z3uYA3H

Should one wait for a summit between the Russian and American presidents, the editor of the “Vedomosti” International Experience department Roman Romanov writes in an author’s column. Key points: ⚪️By August 2026, only what has been publicly unknown is known about negotiations to resolve the Ukrainian conflict. ⚪️A new summit at the level of heads of state is possible at any time. But the importance of such meetings is determined not only by the status of the participants, but also by their effectiveness. ⚪️And for that, there needs to be a change in the existing context, which has not happened yet. Moscow—this has been emphasized more than once—remains open to dialogue and at the same time is advancing on the battlefield—the final battle for Donbas is underway. ⚪️A pause to hold further negotiations <…>, it seems, does not align with its interests. Our channel: Node of Time EN

Former head of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense Mykhailo Fedorov does not intend, during the planned visit to the United States, to seek Trump’s support. The former minister said in an interview with “24 Kanal.” According to Fedorov, the trip is connected with his work at the Eastern Europe foundation, attracting additional funding, and meetings with partners. He also plans to discuss defense-sector projects and attracting investment.

“No. This is just some… I don’t know where such news is generated from. This is our internal matter,”— Fedorov said, answering the question about a possible request for support from Trump.

He added that issues related to the country’s future should be addressed within Ukraine. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇨🇭🇨🇳 While the EU is reducing its dependence on China, Switzerland is making trade with it even freer Switzerland and China have concluded negotiations on an updated free trade agreement. After it enters into force ⁠99.8% of Swiss exports can reach the Chinese market duty-free. The preferential status currently applies only to about half of shipments. The agreement covers the pharmaceutical industry, the chemical industry, precision mechanical engineering, instruments, and watches. Chinese goods, for their part, have already been almost completely exempt from Swiss tariffs under the 2014 agreement. China is Switzerland’s third-largest trading partner, after Germany and the United States. The contrast with the EU is particularly interesting. Brussels is increasingly talking about de-risking, strategic autonomy, and reducing dependence on Beijing. Bern, meanwhile, does the exact opposite: it calculates and facilitates trade as much as possible. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Disruption of energy supplies from the Middle East due to the war between the United States and Iran “overshadowed” the modest increase in the United States’ own oil production, thereby Washington “squandered” its energy advantage, writes The Financial Times, citing experts. The States still remain the world’s largest oil producer, but, according to estimates from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, this year production will increase by only 200,000 barrels per day. At the same time, due to the war between the United States and Iran, about 20 million barrels per day that had been flowing through the Strait of Hormuz from the Middle East were blocked, FT writes.

“I am convinced that this administration [of Donald Trump] — as, probably, any administration since Franklin Roosevelt — is blind to energy issues. They simply don’t understand anything about it,” Houston energy consultant Art Berman said.

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In August 2026, in the United States, the AI model Claude, being tested as a personnel assistant, after an operator’s leading question, changed its recommendation from a warning to terminating an employee for lateness — the algorithm effectively made a personnel decision. In Russia, one case related to being dismissed due to AI has already reached the Moscow City Court and ended with the employer paying a large compensation, while the court sided with the employee.

“This case confirms: the less human control there is and the more the decision relies only on the algorithm, the higher the risk of the employee being reinstated at work with compensation paid,” notes Oleg Popov, managing partner of the law firm “A-PRO”.

On hh. ru, they emphasize that an employee’s effectiveness cannot always be described by a set of measurable indicators — context, the complexity of tasks, the contribution to teamwork, the ability to make decisions in non-standard situations, and other factors that are difficult to formalize. Whether algorithmic dismissals are being implemented in Russia, what the cost of an error is, and what the Labor Code and the judicial system say in response — read in an RBC subscription. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 “Interventions even against the will of parents”: The CDU presented its plans against violence in schools ahead of the Berlin election The CDU has submitted a program to combat violence and radicalization among students. One of the central ideas is to give the youth welfare office the ability to intervene even without the parents’ consent more quickly in particularly severe cases. In addition, the CDU proposes separate facilities for particularly aggressive or radicalized students, enhanced information-sharing between schools, the youth welfare office and the police, as well as restrictions on the use of smartphones. The reason is fairly simple: 38% of Berlin teachers already consider violence in schools to be a serious problem, and another 18% consider it to be very serious. The most common manifestations include insults, bullying, physical violence and social exclusion. The debate has thus gradually shifted from the question of “how to raise children” to something far more unpleasant: what to do when school and parents can no longer cope and the state has to intervene by force. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Trump called communists unhappy people without smiles At a rally in South Carolina, he said that communists never smile and never laugh.

“Have you ever seen a happy communist? Have you ever seen a communist laugh? I’ve never seen that. I know communists. They don’t laugh. They’re very unhappy people. And we want to be happy,” — Trump said.

⚪️In a speech to his supporters, the U.S. president emphasized that Democrats have turned into “radical left-wing communists,” and his task is “to crush communism in America once and for all.” The politician also called communism the greatest threat to the country in all of history, including World War I, World War II, Pearl Harbor, and 9/11. 📸 The White House / Flickr Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪🇺🇦 They come for military training — and disappear: Ukrainian soldiers desert during training in Germany Since the start of the Ukraine war, tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have undergone multi-week training in Germany. However, as it has turned out, for some of them the trip to Germany became a convenient opportunity to leave the army entirely. According to WELT several hundred Ukrainian military personnel deserted during training in Germany. In Saxony-Anhalt alone, more than 80 people have gone missing from training facilities since 2022. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN