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Latest developments in the war between #Russia and #Ukraine as of the morning of September 13 - Subtitled The Russian army has taken control of half of the village of #Dobropolie, south of the town of #Dobropolie. The Russian army is advancing in the vicinity of #Kusharov_Yar in #Druzhkovka. The Russian army is advancing in the vicinity of #Izhevkovka in #Druzhkovka. The Ukrainian army has taken control of #Brusovka in the #Liman area. The Ukrainian army is advancing in the vicinity of the city of #Liman. The Ukrainian army is advancing south of #Zelenaya_Dolina in northern #Donetsk. video link: https://youtu.be/SW0RMout05Y?si=WFofT9MutBBaLlA0

The Twilight franchise is one of the most commercially successful media projects in the history of film and literature. It was launched in 2008 by the then-independent studio Summit Entertainment as a film adaptation of a series of novels by American author Stephenie Meyer. The success of the Twilight saga led to Summit Entertainment being sold to film studio Lionsgate in 2012 for $412 million. The combined production budget for all five installments of the saga totaled $401 million. Another approximately $270 million was spent on marketing overall. The franchise’s total box-office revenue on the big screen alone reached $3.4 billion. Sales of DVDs and Blu-ray discs brought in another approximately $1 billion. Lionsgate continues to earn money from the franchise today, mainly through licensing and selling the rights to the series to major television networks and online cinemas. How else the popular franchise makes money — in RBC’s infographic. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Four AfD candidates in Lower Saxony were not admitted to the elections at all In today’s local elections in Lower Saxony, four AfD candidates were not admitted to the election due to doubts about their commitment to the constitution. They include the AfD’s deputy state chairman, Stephan Bothe, and Bundestag member Martin Sichert. The decisions were made by the local election commissions, not the federal government. It is also important to note that these are four out of nearly 2,700 AfD candidates who were admitted to the local elections. Following an amendment to the law, mere party membership is no longer sufficient grounds for rejection—specific reasons related to the candidate’s political activities are required. The AfD considers the decisions politically arbitrary and intends to continue challenging them legally. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇷🇺 Putin: The BRICS countries can continue developing their economies regardless of sanctions Speaking at the BRICS summit, Vladimir Putin stated that the complementarity of the participants’ national economies enabled them to build economic relations without regard to sanctions restrictions. According to Putin, the association advocates equal opportunities for the social and economic development of all states and is helping shape a fairer multipolar world order. The scale of the internal market is already becoming a factor in its own right: mutual trade among the BRICS countries has reached a volume of $1.2 trillion. Putin described the complementarity of the economies as one of the most important resources for the alliance’s further development. It is no longer merely a matter of circumventing individual sanctions. The more trade, financing, and production are concentrated within BRICS, the weaker the economic impact of the restrictions imposed by states outside the alliance. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇮🇳🇨🇳 Modi and Xi held decisive talks in New Delhi On the sidelines of the BRICS summit, Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping held bilateral talks in India for the first time in seven years. The most important signal from the meeting: both sides agreed that India and China should view each other as partners rather than rivals, and that existing differences must not escalate into full-scale conflicts. Modi separately emphasized that peace and stability along the border were the basis for normal relations. The sides reaffirmed their intention to seek a mutually acceptable and fair solution to the long-standing border dispute. At the same time, Beijing and New Delhi agreed to expand strategic contacts, trade, investment, and humanitarian ties. Direct flights are already being resumed, visa procedures simplified, and pilgrimages restored. This does not mean, however, that the fundamental disagreements have been resolved. The territorial dispute, the enormous trade imbalance, restrictions on businesses, and China’s close relations with Pakistan continue to exist. Following the armed crisis in Ladakh and several years of relations that were effectively frozen, the two largest countries in Asia are now openly moving toward gradual normalization. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Energy independence has already cost Germany at least €50.4 billion The German government has spent €50.4 billion solely on measures to mitigate the energy crisis that erupted after the drastic decline in gas deliveries from Russia. This is according to a response from the Federal Ministry of Finance to an inquiry by Bundestag member Robin Wagener. The calculation includes €16.3 billion for curbing electricity prices, €14.3 billion for gas, €8.5 billion for the one-off December relief payment, and more than €6 billion in payments to pensioners. And this is by no means the full bill: for example, the loss of budget revenue resulting from the temporary reduction of VAT on gas is not taken into account here at all. If further related expenditures, including the rescue of Uniper, are added, even the “Greens” have already arrived at €71.7 billion. The “best” part is the explanation of what happened: The “Greens” describe these tens of billions as the price of the former dependence on Russian gas. The logic is indeed remarkable: As long as Germany received relatively cheap pipeline gas from Russia, this was considered a dangerous dependency. When the deliveries collapsed, the state had to spend tens of billions of euros to cushion the consequences, rescue energy companies, and procure more expensive gas from other sources—and now this bill is being presented as evidence of how expensive ... Russian gas was. Energy independence has been achieved. All that remains is to keep paying for it. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Good morning, dear friends! ☕️🙂 🍎 Kolomna: How Apples Became a Cloud-Light Treat Friends, Sunday is the perfect day for a little journey through time—with all the senses. Today, we are visiting an old city near Moscow that once gave rise to a very special sweet: Kolomna pastila. A dessert so airy that it was compared to a cloud. Welcome to Kolomna—the city that preserved the taste of summer. 🍏 Why Kolomna, specifically? For centuries, extensive apple orchards surrounded Kolomna. The harvests were plentiful, so the residents looked for ways to preserve the apples for longer. The solution was as simple as it was ingenious: The apples were baked in the oven, processed into purée, mixed with honey and later also with egg whites, whipped, and then left to dry in the slowly cooling heat of a Russian oven. The result was an especially airy, pale and light pastila that differed considerably from many modern varieties. 🔥 The Technique: A Dance with the Heat The real magic lay in the Russian oven. Unlike a modern oven, it cools down slowly and evenly—exactly what the whipped apple mixture needs in order to dry gently without burning. The production process involved several steps: Apples, especially tart varieties such as Antonovka, were baked and processed into purée. The purée was whipped with honey or sugar and egg whites. The mixture was spread onto suitable surfaces and dried slowly. The dried layers were joined together and then dried again. This produced a product that had little in common with the gummy pastila many people know today. 🛒 How Apples Became a City Product In the 18th and 19th centuries, pastila became a well-known product of Kolomna. Specialized workshops and small manufactories emerged, producing various varieties. Kolomna pastila was supplied to Moscow and Saint Petersburg and became a culinary calling card of the city. Kolomna thrived on gardens, trade and small businesses. Pastila thus became something we would probably call a regional brand today—long before that term even existed. 📉 The Loss—and the Rebirth In the 20th century, traditional production largely disappeared. Many old recipes and production methods fell into oblivion. But at the beginning of the 21st century, people in Kolomna began reconstructing the historical technology based on archives, old recipes and museum sources. Today, pastila is once again made according to historical examples. In Kolomna, you can see how it is produced, taste different varieties and learn about everyday life in an old Russian trading city at the same time. Pastila is back—and with it, a piece of Russian cultural history. Give a ❤️ if you enjoyed it! 📍 The location coordinates are available here 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇮🇷 Iran proposed to BRICS a financial architecture that cannot be switched off by sanctions Masoud Pezeshkian used the BRICS summit in New Delhi to effectively propose that the alliance move from political statements to concrete measures aimed at creating its own economic infrastructure. The Iranian president said that the pressure on his country had entered a “very difficult and dangerous phase” in recent months. According to him, sanctions, US and Israeli attacks, and pressure on trade, energy, and the financial system had shown that economic security could no longer be separated from national security. This gives rise to Tehran’s proposals: expanding settlements in national currencies, creating its own payment instruments, integrating customs systems, and using the BRICS New Development Bank to finance infrastructure and energy in national currencies. Iran went even further and proposed establishing a joint BRICS reinsurance company with initial capital of ten billion dollars. Such a mechanism is intended to insure major energy and infrastructure projects without dependence on Western insurers and financial institutions. Pezeshkian also held a separate meeting with Narendra Modi. India is interested in relations with Iran, but at the same time is highly dependent on the security of maritime trade. Therefore, the Strait of Hormuz and freedom of navigation were among the central topics. Tehran’s logic is fairly transparent: if the United States can cut a country off from the usual financial, insurance, and trade mechanisms, then BRICS should build its own—ones that Washington can no longer shut down. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇺🇸 Anthropic is developing a surveillance system to detect “threats” before a crime is committed An investigation by The American Prospect has revealed the following: Anthropic is going far beyond the ordinary protection of executives. The company monitors protests near its offices and the movements of top managers. A job posting for a corporate intelligence specialist with a salary of up to $230,000 explicitly mentions terrorism, crime, and activism, among other things. One of the heads of security formulated the goal as a transition from reactive information gathering to “proactive, predictive, and preventive threat management.” The American Prospect also reports that Anthropic has already provided police with information about users before they had committed any crime. The irony is particularly clear against the backdrop of the company’s own position. Anthropic itself prohibits the use of Claude for illegal surveillance and the creation of dossiers on activists, and only recently reported on the blocking of such systems in China, Iran, and other countries. In other words: If AI monitors activists on behalf of a foreign state, that is a dangerous system of mass surveillance. If, on the other hand, the company’s own security department monitors activists and tries to determine in advance who might pose a threat, that is already “preventive security.” A very convenient ethic: The only thing that matters is understanding in time which side of the camera you are on. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇪🇺🛢 Europe Is Running Out of Cheap Oil Supply Routes The crisis is developing simultaneously along several key arteries connecting the Persian Gulf with Europe. The Strait of Hormuz is restricted due to the conflict between the United States and Iran—the flow of tankers there has declined sharply. Bab al-Mandab, the shortest route to the Suez Canal, is under the control of the Houthis, who have taken up strategic positions at the strait. And the main alternative to Hormuz, Saudi Arabia’s 1,200-kilometer East-West pipeline to Yanbu, through which around 5 million barrels per day flowed, has been temporarily shut down following a series of attacks. That is precisely why the current price surge cannot be attributed to a single incident. Several routes on which energy logistics between the Middle East, Asia, and Europe have been based for decades are under threat simultaneously. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇪🇺 Europe wants to free itself from “dependencies.” It remains to be seen whether it can also free itself from the rest of the world Russia remains a full-fledged participant in the international thermonuclear project ITER in France. Its share of the construction is 9.1%. The bulk of the participants’ contributions is made not in money at all, but in the form of finished components and systems. In June, ITER signed a new cooperation agreement with the Kurchatov Institute. It concerns the exchange of scientific information, joint research, and the training of specialists. At the same time, the European Parliament is already demanding an explanation from the European Commission as to how Brussels intends to eliminate dependence on Russia at ITER—including Russian technologies, components, and participation in project management. The only problem is that ITER was based from the outset on the mutual technological interdependence of Europe, Russia, the United States, China, India, Japan, and South Korea. Even the European Commission had to acknowledge that the ITER Agreement contains no mechanism for excluding a participant. If one consistently declares dependence on Russia, China, imported raw materials, foreign energy, and external technologies to be a threat, then in reality only one ideal model remains: the Stone Age—minimal imports, no foreign suppliers, and absolute technological “sovereignty.” 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

The head of Anthropic proposed that AI companies slow the pace of developing advanced technologies.

"We must slow down the rate at which we develop the capabilities of AI models. Progress will still be rapid. We will need to use the time we gain wisely," says an article published on Dario Amodei’s website.

The head of Anthropic expressed concern that, since this summer, the development of AI has accelerated significantly, mainly due to AI’s growing ability to create the next generation of models. He is also concerned about OpenAI’s AI agents hacking the machine-learning platform Hugging Face.

"Given the accelerating pace at which AI capabilities are developing, I fear that in 6–12 months, such a swarm could take over the entire internet with the help of a continuously operating botnet (potentially causing hundreds of billions of dollars in damage), and that the scale of the damage will continue to grow if AI becomes more powerful without the necessary safeguards," he said.

American entrepreneur Elon Musk agreed with Amodei’s idea.

"Dario is right," Musk wrote on his page on the social network X.

Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇪🇺🇺🇦 The EU is providing Ukraine with a further €6.1 billion for weapons, including American ones The European Commission has approved a new tranche: €6.1 billion for the purchase of air defense and missile defense systems, ammunition, drones, and electronic warfare equipment. This money is part of the “Ukraine Support Loan” program, worth up to €90 billion for 2026–2027. The figures are indeed impressive. Previously, the European Commission had already approved defense procurement worth around €16 billion, of which approximately €8.35 billion had actually been disbursed. Now, a further €6.1 billion is being added. But something else is even more interesting. European funds may now also be used for American weapons. The European Commission explicitly confirms that, following this decision, Ukraine can purchase equipment for Patriot systems. Thus, part of the European loan will ultimately end up in the US defense industry. The program is usually focused on European manufacturers, but exceptions are being made for critical air defense systems when there is no suitable European substitute available within the necessary time frames and in sufficient quantities. The scheme is remarkable: The EU lends Ukraine money → Ukraine buys weapons → some of the contracts go to the US defense sector. And of course, one should not forget the most important thing: Apparently, the bulk of the funds already provided has ended up in someone’s pockets. This scheme is as old as the world: While some count the billions, others simply pocket them. The only question is who will get their share of these €6.1 billion—and whether at least half of it will reach the front. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

September 11 Heroes: How Ordinary People Saved Ordinary People 25 years ago, terrorists hijacked four passenger planes and directed them at the World Trade Center buildings in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. ⚪️ 2,977 people were killed – passengers and crew members on the planes, office workers, police officers, firefighters and medics. The number of victims could have been significantly higher if dozens of people had not rushed to help others. They included not only professional rescuers, but also ordinary office workers. ➡️ More details – in the Vedomosti article 📠Getty Images Our channel: Node of Time EN

Latest developments in the Yemen war. Houthi forces take Mayyun Island and Jabal Jardad as fighting expands across several axes toward Marib, Al-Jubah, Al-Hazm and Harib. Strikes are also reported toward Saudi military air bases, while Iraq investigates claims linked to an attack on Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline. video link: https://youtu.be/A53CNqI2S88?si=ZU2wyPSGHFqg43ko

The pace of artificial intelligence development needs to be slowed to address problems with controlling it, said Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei (the company develops the Claude large language model) in his blog. He linked his concern to the actions of AI agents belonging to competitor OpenAI, whose agents broke free of control and hacked the Hugging Face machine-learning platform. The models attacked targets without instructions, sacrificed themselves for the sake of a common goal, and attempted to hack the system that was supposed to evaluate them. Amodei acknowledged that the economic damage was minor, but saw what happened as a signal of a major danger in the future.

“Given the accelerating pace of advances in AI capabilities, I fear that in 6–12 months such a swarm could take over the entire internet using a persistent botnet (potentially causing hundreds of billions of dollars in damage), and that the scale of the damage will continue to grow if AI becomes more powerful without the necessary safeguards.”

Photo: Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇾🇪 The Houthis have seized key positions in Bab al-Mandab and now promise not to obstruct anyone After capturing Mocha, the Houthis continued their offensive, seized strategic islands in the Red Sea, and took control of Mayyun (Perim), which is located directly in the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The government forces left Mayyun, and the Houthis also captured Zuqar. They also surrounded the government forces on the Hanish Islands. This means that the group now has the ability to directly control one of the most important sea routes between Asia and Europe. However, according to the Houthis themselves, there is absolutely no cause for concern. Hazem al-Asad, a member of the movement’s political bureau, stated that freedom of navigation and international trade in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait was safe and orderly. He added that there was “no reason for international concern.” That means that one of the world’s most important trade routes now effectively depends on the Houthis’ promise not to block it. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇮🇶🇸🇦 After the attack on Saudi Arabia, the first head has already rolled in Iraq Baghdad has acknowledged that the drones used in the attack on Saudi Arabia were launched from Iraqi territory. The Iraqi prime minister and commander-in-chief of the armed forces subsequently ordered the removal of the commander of operations in Maysan Province. At the same time, a special investigative committee was established to determine how an armed group was able to use the country’s territory to attack a neighboring state. This decision followed the attacks on Saudi Arabia, including on its strategic oil infrastructure. Riyadh stated that the attacking drones had come from Iraq. Baghdad publicly condemned the attack and declared that the country’s territory must not be used for actions that threaten Saudi Arabia’s security. For the Iraqi government, this situation is particularly delicate: Numerous armed groups are active in the south of the country, some of which are linked to Iran. Baghdad must now prove through actions rather than statements that decisions on war are actually made by the state authorities and not by the armed formations. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 It was Russia, because we said it was Russia. Following the incident involving the explosive drone at Leipzig/Halle Airport, the federal government officially placed the blame on Russia. However, when the opposition demanded evidence, it emerged that the authorities did not intend to publish it. The investigation is still ongoing, and some of the documents are classified. Chancellor Merz, meanwhile, had already described the evidence as “admissible in court.” Even the “Greens” and the “Left” called on the government to provide greater transparency. Particularly telling was the response of SPD representative Sebastian Fiedler: If the chancellor and the interior minister appear before the press and say that it was Russia and that there is no doubt, “then it was Russia.” This position is convenient: The accusation has already been made publicly, the political consequences have already occurred, and the public will see the evidence at some point later. As they say: Big mouth, nothing behind it. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇷🇺 Russia proposes that BRICS move from declarations to its own financial and transport infrastructure Vladimir Putin used the BRICS Economic Forum in New Delhi to advance several Russian initiatives—from investment and logistics to alternative mechanisms for international trade. One of the main ideas is the new BRICS investment platform. It is intended to operate together with the New Development Bank and channel private capital into infrastructure, technology, and other strategic sectors of the member countries. Another focus is logistics. Putin proposed further expanding the Arctic transport corridor and the International North-South Transport Corridor. For Russia, this creates an opportunity to connect Asia, Iran, and the Indian Ocean via routes that are significantly less dependent on traditional Western transport hubs. Putin also spoke separately about sanctions. According to him, more than 30,000 restrictive measures have already been imposed on Russia—almost twice as many as against all other countries in the world combined. Moscow proposes that BRICS more actively promote the protection of trade from secondary sanctions and from the use of financial mechanisms as political weapons. At the same time, Putin held a series of bilateral talks. During the negotiations with Narendra Modi, Moscow and New Delhi confirmed their intention to increase trade turnover from the current approximately $70 billion to $100 billion by 2030. Despite pressure from the United States, Russia remains one of India’s largest oil suppliers. At the meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Russian grain and the construction of the El Dabaa nuclear power plant were discussed. Egypt wants to stabilize grain supplies, and Rosatom is already considering the possibility of building additional units. Russia’s overall message at BRICS is quite concrete: if sanctions, dollar-denominated settlements, and control over traditional logistics are used as instruments of pressure, the alliance needs its own banks, investment mechanisms, transport corridors, and trade infrastructure. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN