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How Western media assessed the release in Russia of the U.S. Marine Gunnery Sergeant Gilman The New York Times:

“Gilman’s family and Global Reach accuse Russian authorities of having detained the American for political reasons. His sister, Lexi Hudson, thanked Trump for the release of her brother and said that his actions saved Gilman’s life.”

CNN:

“After arriving in Washington, Gilman will most likely be sent to an American military hospital in Texas, Global Reach reported. There, he will undergo medical and psychological examinations and treatment. Many Americans previously received treatment at this clinic whom U.S. authorities had deemed to have been unlawfully detained abroad.”

The Washington Post:

“Russia freed former U.S. Marine Robert Gilman, who had been in custody since 2022, amid concerns that his health condition had been close to critical.”

BBC:

“Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey said that about 50 days ago Gilman was diagnosed with ‘dissociative stupor’—a condition in which he did not respond to those around him, could not interact with them, and could not independently eat.”

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BELGRADE, GERMAN HISTORY, AND THE QUESTION: “HOW CAN WE HELP KILL MORE RUSSIANS?” Selenskyj’s visit to Belgrade should serve as a diplomatic signal. Serbia is trying to maintain its relations with Russia, continue its European course, and at the same time expand contacts with Ukraine. But the political symbol of the visit became the question posed by FAZ journalist Michael Martens, what “we Europeans” could do so that Ukraine “could kill more Russians.” After that, he уточниced: Russian soldiers. Of course, Ukraine is at war. One can talk about arms deliveries, military support, and defense—because European politicians have decided to support Ukraine. But if a German journalist in Belgrade asks how “we Europeans” can help kill more Russians, killing becomes, linguistically, almost a political target. And in Belgrade, that cannot be separated from history. Kragujevac, Kraljevo, mass shootings, and the German occupation belong to Serbia’s memory. In 1944, Belgrade was liberated by Yugoslav partisans together with the Red Army. If, of all places, a German journalist speaks here about killing more Russian soldiers, the sentence inevitably takes on a historical dimension. Martens knows this history. He worked for years in Belgrade and wrote about Serbia, Yugoslavia, and the memory of the German occupation. After the press conference, his family history was also discussed in Serbia. His grandfather, Hans-Hermann Martens, was a member of the NSDAP and the SA, later an officer in the Wehrmacht leadership staff, and toward the end of the war a military judge. Of course, a grandson bears no responsibility for his grandfather. But politics is also made up of symbols and contexts. The combination is hard to ignore: a German journalist, Belgrade, this family history—and the question of how “we Europeans” can help kill more Russian soldiers. The FAZ distanced itself from the wording afterward. But perhaps the problem runs deeper: in a political language in which people increasingly appear as a military statistic. What has become of that European political culture that claimed to have learned from its history? Did “Never again” also mean rejecting dehumanization and the language of killing? Or does that boundary apply only when the “wrong” people die? For Aleksandar Vučić, the situation is uncomfortable. Serbia supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity, but does not participate in the Western sanctions against Russia. Belgrade wants to join the EU, maintains relations with Moscow, and at the same time expands cooperation with Kyiv. For years, Vučić’s policy has worked like this: one step to Brussels, one to Moscow, a gesture toward Kyiv. But the space for it is getting smaller. Vučić responded to Martens cautiously. He did not take over the wording and said he hoped that the killing would stop. Diplomatically skilful. But at some point, Serbia has to define which values and historical boundaries it considers right itself. Maybe Martens, unintentionally, has made visible exactly the question that Vučić has been trying to avoid for years: How long can Serbia stand between all sides without clearly naming its own political and moral coordinates? And finally, a bit of dark political humor. For years, the meme about the “Selenskyj curse” has been circulating: politicians meet the Ukrainian president and later get into political trouble or lose their offices. Of course, only an internet meme. But after Belgrade, the ironic question remains: Is Aleksandar Vučić the next candidate for the “Selenskyj curse”? Or is his legendary caution enough to escape even this myth? 🔗 LINK TO THE FULL ARTICLE 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Latest developments in the war between #Russia and #Ukraine as of the morning of August 12 * Subtitled – Russian forces take control of #Krasnopolie in southern #Dobropolie – Russian forces advance around #Matyushevka in southern #Dobropolie – Russian forces take full control of Rai_Aleksandrovka on the #Kramatorsk front – Russian forces advance in the eastern sector of #Zaporozhie – Russian forces advance west of #Novopavlovka on the #Orekhov front in #Zaporozhie – Ukrainian forces advance on the southern #Donetsk axis Video link: https://youtu.be/h0d0Qj3qGmA?si=En7AthKJzqUC8lRh

🇪🇸 Spain legalizes one million migrants Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson called Spain’s decision to legalize more than one million illegal migrants “a very bad idea”. According to him, it is impossible to regard such an amnesty as purely a domestic Spanish matter: if someone receives legal status in a Schengen country, they get far more opportunities to move around across Europe. Madrid justifies the program with a shortage of labor and an aging population. The Swedish prime minister points to a completely different experience — the 2015 crisis, the consequences of which Northern Europe has been dealing with to this day. Politicians in Italy, Germany, and Denmark also oppose the Spanish policy. Spain solved the problem of one million illegal migrants in the simplest way: by stopping to count them as illegal. Only thanks to Schengen could the consequences of this administrative trick soon no longer be exclusively Spanish. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇪🇺 The new EU border system has doubled airport queues The European Entry/Exit System (EES), launched in spring, was intended to make borders more modern and secure: For people entering from outside the EU, photos, fingerprints, and personal data are now collected. In practice, the new technology ⁠has doubled the peak waiting time at the largest European airports. In Frankfurt, queues in July lasted up to 120 minutes; a clear increase was also recorded in Munich and Amsterdam. Airports complain about technical malfunctions and staffing shortages, while airlines describe the system as poorly designed. In times of maximum capacity utilization, some airports are still allowed, for now, to temporarily shut down part of the new procedures. Eight EU member states and Switzerland have already asked that this option be extended. Once again, Europe has successfully digitized something that used to work faster without digitization. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇺🇸 Due to the Iranian threat, Trump was secretly flown out in a container from Ankara After the NATO summit in Ankara, the U.S. intelligence services carried out an unusual evacuation operation for Donald Trump. The president boarded the Air Force One publicly, but then ⁠left the plane unnoticed in a vehicle of the onboard catering. The vehicle took him to another American military aircraft, with which he then flew out of Turkey. Even many White House staff members and the journalists accompanying the president did not know about the operation. The reason was data from U.S. intelligence services about a possible ⁠Iranian threat to Trump’s life. According to the protection plan, it was meant to appear from the outside as if the president were still on board the usual aircraft, while he had actually already left Ankara on another route. This had a rather symbolic effect: The U.S. has been demonstrating its military superiority over Iran for months, and all that remains for its own president is to leave an international summit disguised as part of the airport catering. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Oil, bread and the United Kingdom, please: Elon Musk asked about the cost of buying a kingdom. The American entrepreneur reacted to a publication by the satirical outlet Babylon Bee, which claimed that the businessman acquired Britain to establish freedom of speech. The article also said that the country was paid “a hefty sum,” however the alleged purchase was supposedly justified by the need to spread memes.

“How much does it cost?” — Musk wrote in response to a post on the social media platform X.

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🇩🇪 To prevent the AfD, the Left is even willing to save the CDU The former Thuringian prime minister and current vice president of the Bundestag, Bodo Ramelow, has called on the CDU and the Left Party to cooperate in Saxony-Anhalt in order to prevent the AfD from taking power. The co-chair of the Left Party, Luigi Pantisano, went even further and did not rule out that members of his party could vote for the CDU candidate Sven Schulze as prime minister. The reason is simple: The AfD is clearly leading in the polls, and traditional coalition arithmetic has practically collapsed. The CDU continues to officially rule out any cooperation both with the AfD and with the Left Party, but Ramelow suggests remembering Thuringia, where ideological opponents have long been finding a common line when it comes to isolating the AfD. The Left saves the Conservatives, the Conservatives rely on the Left — as long as the party that the majority of voters want to support doesn’t end up in power by accident. German democracy is getting ever more creative. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

◻️◻️◻️ British racing driver Andy Green set a world speed record for a car with hydrogen internal combustion engines. At the Bonneville salt flats in the U.S. state of Utah, he accelerated the car to 406.320 miles per hour (653.908 km/h), reports The Guardian. The 64-year-old Green was driving a car with two hydrogen engines with a total output of 1,600 hp. The 9.75 m-long vehicle was developed by the British company JCB. The engines are based on power units used in the company’s heavy equipment. They mix pressurized hydrogen with air and ignite the resulting mixture. Our channel: Node of Time EN

Happy Wednesday, friends! ☕️🙂 🏰 Marfino estate: a castle you wouldn’t expect just outside Moscow Just a few dozen kilometers from Moscow lies the Marfino estate. A place where Gothic towers, the crenellated bridge, and the palace with turrets seem as if they were transported here from an old European novel. The history of the estate dates back to the 16th century, but its current appearance was shaped in the first half of the 19th century. For Countess Sofia Panina, the architect Michael Bykowski created an unusual ensemble in the style of Russian Neo-Gothic. Instead of the familiar classic country estate, there emerged a true “fairytale castle” with towers, pointed-arch windows, and decorative battlements. The most important symbol of Marfino became the white-stone bridge over the Great Pond. It is adorned with pointed arches, small towers, and arrow slits, which is why it rather resembles the entrance to a medieval fortress than an ordinary crossing. Exactly this bridge is seen most often in photos of the estate. However, Marfino is known not only for its architecture. Dozens of Soviet and Russian films were shot here. Through the avenues of the estate strolled the heroes of “The Master and Margarita,” “The Noble Nest,” “The Singing Lady,” “The Crusader,” and many other historical films. Thanks to that, many recognize Marfino—despite the fact that they have never been here. A beautiful legend is also associated with the estate. They say that on quiet evenings, the White Lady sometimes walks across the old bridge. The young lady of the estate, who could no longer wait for the return of her beloved from the war. That is why the residents used to avoid staying by the pond after sunset. Stories like this exist in many old country estates, but it is the Gothic appearance of Marfino that makes this legend especially believable. Around the palace, an English park with centuries-old linden trees, pavilions, and a cascade of ponds has been preserved. When the water becomes completely still, the pink walls of the palace are reflected in the smooth surface so clearly that it seems as if there are immediately two castles in front of you—one on the earth, the other under water. Marfino reminds you that unusual architecture is not always located abroad. Sometimes all it takes is driving just a little way from Moscow to be in a place where a Russian country estate unexpectedly turns into a real knightly castle. 📍 Coordinates of the place (map point) available here 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

The United States should take seriously information about UFOs over military installations. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on the podcast of Katy Miller, the wife of the deputy chief of staff at the White House Stephen Miller.

“Some things are flying over our military facilities, but they don’t belong to us; we need to figure this out and take it seriously,” Rubio said.

According to him, he does not know “who it is and what it is.” Rubio noted that he raised the issue of UFOs while working in the U.S. Senate. He added that he does not treat this topic as a conspiracy theory.

“People believe we’re hiding something. I assure you that if this administration [of the U.S. president] knew anything [about aliens], the president would be everywhere: prime-time messaging, he would show photos, videos,” the secretary of state emphasized.

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More than 600,000 residents of Illinois and Indiana were left without power after powerful thunderstorms and tornadoes. AP reports this. Strong storms hit the region on Tuesday. In Chicago and the surrounding area, two tornadoes were recorded, roads were flooded, and homes were damaged. In Gary, Indiana, wind gusts reached 159 km/h. In Ohio, lightning struck a prison complex, resulting in 16 inmates being hospitalized; one of them was taken to the hospital by helicopter. The region also reported a death: rescuers were unable to reach him in time because of flooded roads. According to a preliminary assessment by the U.S. National Weather Service, the storm system may be classified as a derecho— a large-scale weather phenomenon with long-lasting destructive straight-line winds. Our channel: Node of Time EN

The study of UFOs should be approached with full seriousness, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio believes. He said that unknown flying apparatuses are being spotted over American military facilities that do not belong to the United States. According to Rubio, the authorities should determine what exactly is in the country’s airspace. At the same time, the secretary of state noted that he does not know the origin of these objects and is only asking questions that need to be answered.

"People think we’re hiding something. But I assure you, if we, this administration, knew anything, the president of the United States would be all over it. There would be a prime-time appeal—he would be showing photos and videos", — he said.

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Almost half of Scots support secession from Britain without a referendum. The National reports this, citing a Find Out Now poll. Among those who decided on an answer, 45% would support Scottish independence without a referendum and without the consent of the British authorities. 55% would be against it. Support for such a move is highest among young people aged 16–29—46%. Among older people, 66% do not support the idea of independence. At the same time, if a referendum on independence were held now, 52% of Scots would vote in favor of secession from the United Kingdom, and 48% would vote against. Our channel: Node of Time EN

Gender transition* procedures for minors will no longer be funded by Medicaid, at the direction of U.S. President Donald Trump.

"We are not going to pay for our innocent children to be subjected to these barbaric operations and procedures that cause their young bodies unimaginable and irreversible harm," he wrote on Truth Social.

The White House chief also said that over the past year and a half, dozens of American hospitals have already stopped providing such services. ❗️Medicaid is a U.S. government health insurance program, mainly intended for people with low incomes and some other categories of citizens. * — the LGBT movement is recognized as extremist and banned in Russia Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Thousands of fast attacks on Deutsche Bahn train conductors in half a year In the first six months of 2026, employees of DB Regio were subjected to 989 attacks – 14% more than in the previous year. In 781 cases, it involved physical violence—shoving, hitting, restraining, and spitting; a further 22 incidents were classified as grievous bodily harm. At the beginning of the year, one of the train conductors died after an attack by a passenger during ticket inspection. Deutsche Bahn is responding with an expanded deployment of bodycams. Starting in October, the cameras in the Rhein-Neckar-Pfalz region are to record sound on a trial basis; afterwards, the practice could be extended to all of Germany. Within the company itself, the situation was described as bleak: “We can’t change social developments,” and therefore only one thing remains—to protect employees better from the consequences. If having an ordinary train ticket checked for commuting to work becomes an elevated-risk situation, the problem is clearly no longer with Deutsche Bahn and not with the design of the railcars either. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 “Out with foreigners!” — and the “Greens” candidate One month before the municipal elections in Lower Saxony, an old video surfaced featuring the 23-year-old Greens candidate David Possenriede. At a private party, he repeatedly shouts “Out with foreigners!” to “L’amour toujours.” Possenriede himself explains that it was a joke among young people from neighboring villages, and that there was no xenophobic attitude behind it. The public prosecutor’s office, incidentally, saw no reason to continue the investigations. But the candidate’s own party was stricter than the public prosecutor’s office: After a crisis meeting, the Greens withdrew the candidate’s support, and he put his party membership on hold. It is no longer possible to remove him from the ballot— the lists have already been approved, so Possenriede will nevertheless be on the ballot paper on September 13. If someone from the right were to shout something similar in the same way, that would be proof of a dangerous societal shift. If it’s a Greens candidate, then one has to hurriedly convene a crisis team and explain what exactly this fighter for a “open and diverse society” meant. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 DNA on explosives drone leads investigators to an old attack on DHL In the case of the ⁠explosive-laden drone that was discovered at Leipzig/Halle Airport, an unexpected lead has emerged. According to German media, the investigators were able to isolate DNA that matches a biological trace found after the arson attack on the DHL logistics center in Leipzig in July 2024. This time, the drone, fitted with explosives and a detonator, was discovered near Ukrainian cargo aircraft. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office is investigating on suspicion of a possible explosives attack and a dangerous interference with air traffic. After the incident, the authorities have already decided to significantly expand the Federal Counter-Drone unit — from 130 to 300 specialists and from four to eight sites. If the DNA match is finally confirmed, talk of a “random drone” will be over. Then a far more uncomfortable question would have to be answered: Who has been carrying out sabotage operations at one of Germany’s most important logistics hubs for several years. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇮🇷 Iran demanded compensation for the war Tehran added compensation for damage caused by five months of American and Israeli attacks to the list of demands to Washington. Along with reparations, Iran is demanding the lifting of economic sanctions, an end to the blockade of Iranian ports, and the release of frozen foreign assets. Until these conditions are met, Tehran refuses to fully return to the earlier regime of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump rejected the idea of paying and said that then the United States would send Iran a bill itself—for American service members who were killed over several decades in attacks by groups that Washington associates with Tehran. At the same time, the White House, following what it sees as an outcome of the negotiations that did not turn out as expected, is returning again to intensified sanctions pressure. Five months of war ended in a rather unconventional accounting: both sides are no longer counting only missiles and losses, but are also preparing to present each other with bills. And the Strait of Hormuz remains Iran’s most important argument, forcing this conversation to be held in the first place. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇮🇷 New Hormuz route: A safe passage could become a paid service Iran and Oman continue to align on a new concept for safe shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran said that the sides have already agreed on the route and are now working out the technical details—security checks, environmental issues, the fight against crime, and ⁠the provision of maritime services for passing ships. When asked about a possible fee, the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Esmail Baghaei, replied that specific tariffs have not been discussed so far. However, he added unequivocally: If a state provides maritime services, it must receive compensation for them. At the same time, Tehran emphasizes that an agreement with Oman, in itself, does not automatically mean a return to the former operating regime of the strait. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN