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A trash bin almost became a member of the British Parliament: Count Trashyface took second place in the by-election in Clacton, conceding to Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage. Farage received more than 22,2 thousand votes. At the same time, about 9,5 thousand voters voted for the satirical candidate, BBC reports. Behind the image of Count Trashyface with a face shaped like a trash bin is a British comedian, Jonathan David Harvey. For almost 10 years now, he has appeared at public events in a costume with a trash bin on his head and has positioned himself as an “intergalactic politician.” A total of 34 candidates competed for the parliamentary seat—an all-time record number for a single election in the history of the United Kingdom. Among them were also representatives of the “Official Monstrous-Delusional Party of the Mindless” and actor Laurence Fox. 📋 The by-election took place after, on July 7, Farage announced his early resignation from office and then put himself forward as a candidate again. Following the vote, the leader of Reform UK received 62,8% of the votes. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Government freezes CO₂ price for another year The federal cabinet has decided to keep the current CO₂ price corridor in 2027 at 55 to 65 euros per tonne. This affects petrol, diesel, heating oil and natural gas. The reason is the postponement of the start of the EU ETS2 system to 2028. Without the new decision, the price in 2027 would have shown a stronger dependence on fluctuations in the European market. For households, the impact is clear: the additional state surcharge on fuels and heating is not intended to rise noticeably compared with 2026. It is also politically telling—after several years of steady increases in emission costs, Berlin must slow down the instrument for the first time in order to avoid risking a new price jump in energy and transport. Climate policy remains unchanged. But before the election it turned out that even its price has a political upper limit. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Volodymyr Zelensky is having difficulty finding a new ambassador to the United States because potential candidates are reluctant to take on this task at a critical moment of the conflict, Politico reports. The president of Ukraine had offered the post to former Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, but she declined. The Ukrainian leader said he considers this position one of the key ones for Ukraine, so it should be held by “a person at the level of a vice prime minister, minister, or prime minister.” Since then, potential candidates have not been in a hurry to agree to this role, fearing difficulties due to the unpredictability of Donald Trump’s administration, which has repeatedly changed its stance both on military support and on how and when the conflict should end, the outlet writes.

On August 3, Zelensky dismissed Olga Stefani-shyna from this post. She served for less than a year. According to Stefani-shyna, it was her “own decision, dictated by personal circumstances.”

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🇩🇪 German intelligence services will be allowed not only to monitor, but also to intervene The federal government has approved the reform of the BND and the domestic intelligence service, which for the first time grants active powers to the intelligence services. Until now, their task has essentially been limited to collecting information and conducting surveillance. Now they are expected, for example, to intervene in the infrastructure of a suspected adversary, neutralize specific threats, and, in certain cases, carry out operational measures. The government justifies this with the increase in sabotage, cyberattacks, and espionage. The opposition speaks of a “historic taboo break” and warns that the line between intelligence services and security agencies is increasingly disappearing. Particular concern is also raised by the expansion of data processing involving minors and the question of how the application of the new powers is supposed to be controlled. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇫🇷 Jellyfish defeat French nuclear power again At the French nuclear power plant in Gravelines, ⁠three reactors had to be shut down again because of a massive influx of jellyfish. The animals clogged the plant’s cooling water supply. Another unit temporarily ran at only half power, while the fifth was in scheduled maintenance. As a result, at times only one reactor was operating normally. EDF emphasizes that there was never any danger to the plant’s safety or to the environment. The most interesting thing about this story is that it repeats itself to the day. On August 11, 2025, the media reported on a similar shutdown of the same plant for the same reason. After the incident last year, EDF installed additional monitoring cameras, strengthened filtration, and began working with fishermen and rescue services to detect jellyfish accumulations early. But exactly one year later, these measures could not prevent the reactor shutdowns again. Similar cases occurred earlier too — in Japan, Sweden, Israel and other countries where coastal power plants use seawater for cooling. But it is precisely the repeat occurrence at nearly the same date and at the same plant, despite the modernization carried out, that seems particularly revealing. At times, it is not a malfunction or sabotage coming from one of Europe’s biggest nuclear facilities, but an ordinary swarm of jellyfish that poses the serious challenge. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

Good morning and a nice Friday, friends! ☕️🙂 🗼 The Sjujumbike Tower — a legend that became the landmark of Kazan If you ask the residents of Kazan which building they consider the city’s most important symbol, many will not name the Kul-Scharif Mosque, but the Sjujumbike Tower. It has risen for several centuries on the grounds of the Kazan Kremlin and remains one of Russia’s best-known leaning towers. The height of the tower is about 58 meters. It consists of seven progressively narrower storeys, which makes it look exceptionally light and upward-reaching. Today, its deviation from the vertical is more than two meters, so the tower is often compared with the Leaning Tower of Pisa, although the one in Kazan is clearly much younger. Despite its fame, the exact construction period is still the subject of debate to this day. Most researchers date it to the late 17th to the early 18th century—that is, already after Kazan was annexed to the Russian state. At the same time, the tower’s appearance somehow strikingly combines Russian building tradition and Eastern architectural motifs, which is why it has become one of the symbols of the meeting of two cultures. However, even better known than the historical versions is a legend. According to tradition, after the capture of Kazan, Ivan the Terrible asked Tsaritsa Sjujumbike to become his wife. She agreed, but only on one condition: within seven days, a tower was to be built—one that the world had never seen before. When construction was completed, Sjujumbike climbed all the way to the top, bid farewell to her city, and threw herself down, because she did not want to leave her homeland. That is why the tower received her name. Historians consider this story a beautiful folk tale: the tower was built significantly later than during Sjujumbike’s lifetime. But the legend was so powerful that today it is practically known by all residents of Tatarstan, and the Tsaritsa herself became one of the most important images in Kazan history. There is also a less well-known tradition. Many residents of Kazan believe that a wish comes true if you walk around the tower and make a wish. That is why, at its feet, you can not infrequently see people stopping for a few minutes to silently look up. The Sjujumbike Tower is interesting not only because of its architecture. It reminds us that the history of a city is not made up only of documents and dates. Sometimes it is precisely a legend that forms the thread connecting different eras and helps preserve memory of the past. 📍 Coordinates of the place (map pin) available here 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

The United States has invested more than $500 million in taxpayer funds into General Dynamics’s artillery plant to produce shells for Ukraine, which, over several years, produced nothing, ProPublica found out. The article notes that instead of effective, well-tuned production, the plant’s expensive machine tools constantly broke down. In the summer of 2024, according to former plant employees, advanced robots caught fire with striking regularity. Last August, the U.S. armed forces, which fund the plant, ordered it to stop operating on two of the three production lines. Work on the third production line continued, however, by July 2026 the plant still had not produced a single usable shell. Despite the $533 million investment in the plant, General Dynamics was not held accountable for its failure. A Turkish subcontractor that supplied equipment to the plant was also not held accountable. Our channel: Node of Time EN

The White House has accused more than 40 countries of helping China bypass U.S. trade tariffs, The Financial Times writes. They included Canada, Mexico, Israel, Switzerland and Japan. Beijing allegedly used third countries to make minor changes to goods in order to create the appearance of local production. The accused countries contributed to evading the payment of trade tariffs totaling $60 billion, according to a White House report titled “The Great Transshipment Robbery.” It also cited other U.S. government reports that estimated the range of the “deception” volumes at $40 to $303 billion.

“For years, a major transshipment scam has allowed communist China to launder its exports in more than 40 countries, deprive our treasury of tens of billions of dollars, and steal paychecks for American workers,” said Peter Navarro, head of the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy.

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Vandals vandalized a memorial to participants of the Second World War in Washington, NDTV reports. Neon graffiti was sprayed on the Atlantic Pavilion, and the fountains filled with soap bubbles because soap was poured into them. The U.S. Department of the Interior is investigating the act of vandalism. The memorial was closed off to allow law enforcement to carry out work.

"The World War II Memorial is a sacred place where we honor the service of our servicemembers and more than 400,000 Americans who gave their lives during the war. The vandalism that occurred is a flagrant disgrace and unacceptable. Our U.S. Park Police are on the scene, and the investigation is ongoing. The public should know that we will find the person responsible for this disgusting act", — the department said.

📸 In the photo—graffiti reading "Clean hands, dirty money" on the memorial. Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇦🇹 Raiffeisen will take nearly a quarter of Strabag from Rasperia in Russia After a years-long history with Russia, Raiffeisen Bank International has moved on to a counteroffensive. The bank ⁠has filed a lawsuit in Vienna for 3.15 billion euros against Rasperia and wants access to its frozen stake in Strabag — 24.1 percent of the construction group’s shares. The trigger is 2.4 billion euros that RBI had to write off after a decision by a Russian court; the remaining amount is attributed to interest and court costs. If the Austrian court supports RBI, the frozen package could be released and sold with approval from the financial regulator. This is also relevant for the German market: Strabag is one of Europe’s largest construction groups, with an enormous business in Germany, and a change of ownership involving almost a quarter of the shares could alter the power balance within the group. The proceedings have already become one of the largest civil cases in Austria’s history, and the court fee alone was 41 million euros. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇺🇦 Europe remains without Patriot — Ukraine promises its missile for a fifth of the price Against the backdrop of a shortage of American Patriots, the Ukrainian company Fire Point “develops” its own interceptor missile Freyja. The company says the new system should cost about five times less than the American counterpart and be produced in much larger series. The goal is to create a European alternative to a weapon for which, at present, people in the US literally have to line up. For Germany, the issue is particularly timely, after its own Patriot stockpiles have also fallen to a level where further deliveries to Ukraine would directly affect our air defense. If Freyja actually makes it into serial production, European dependence on American interceptor missiles could significantly decrease. So far, however, this is a promise from the manufacturer — the new missile still has to prove that a lower price does not mean reduced effectiveness. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Germany wants to send migrants back to Italy. Italy replies: There is no one to send back A new dispute over migration is brewing between Berlin and Rome. Germany is demanding that after the new EU migration pact comes into effect, the ⁠return of asylum seekers to Italy be resumed, if Italy was the first country of arrival in the EU. Rome responds that it considers old cases effectively closed as of June 12 and, in addition, wants to take into account migrants in new cases who are brought to Italy by ships of European NGOs — a significant portion of such organizations is based in Germany. The European Commission has already stepped in, but so far it has not wanted to take sides. Brussels confirms differences between Germany and Italy, but a comprehensive assessment is not expected until October. An initial review produced a clear picture: Italy rejected all twelve requests to transfer migrants — even though the receiving member state cannot simply refuse to take over under the new rules. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🔥 “Kill more Russians” – a criminal complaint has now been filed! The case involving the publicly expressed statement “Kill more Russians!” has now also had legal repercussions. As the Freiheitskanzlei reports on its Telegram channel, a criminal complaint has meanwhile been filed. At the same time, it published a corresponding template along with attachments and expressly described it as an example that is also available to others. That means the matter is no longer just the subject of a political and media debate. Now the judiciary will also have to deal with the question of how such a public statement is to be assessed legally. The relevant documents and the template were published by the Freiheitskanzlei. Reference to the matter: https://t.me/freiheitskanzlei/1070 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇺🇸 Human rights organizations sue over Trump’s sanctions against The Hague Four major human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, ⁠have filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration. They are calling for the lifting of the sanctions regime against the International Criminal Court, its prosecutors, judges, and organizations that cooperate with The Hague. The plaintiffs argue that Washington is effectively criminalizing cooperation with the ICC and violating freedom of expression and assembly. This is by no means a distant matter for Germany. Berlin is one of the most important European supporters of the ICC, while the United States and Israel have not ratified the Rome Statute. The U.S. sanctions have already affected prosecutors, eight judges, a UN special rapporteur, and three Palestinian human rights organizations. Anyone who provides prohibited services to sanctioned persons in the United States must expect severe criminal-law consequences. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Berlin discusses the loss of an AAA rating Until very recently, in Germany the possibility of losing its top credit rating was considered purely theoretical. Now, according to Handelsblatt, this scenario is being seriously discussed by senior government officials. The reason is clear: rising government debt always means higher refinancing costs, and a downgrade of the rating would make new loans even more expensive. So far, there is no panic in the markets. At Union Investment, they estimate a possible increase in the yield on German government bonds of about 0.2 percentage points and describe the loss of AAA more as a political “slap in the face” than as a financial catastrophe. But even the way the question is framed is telling: for many years, Germany enjoyed a reputation as Europe’s most reliable debtor, and now the government has to calculate what a deterioration of that reputation would cost. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

#Zelenskyy says Ukraine has only 1% of the Patriot interceptors it needs. - Subtitled • He says 5% of the US stockpile could help #Ukraine get through the winter. Could Patriot production become the next major challenge in the missile war? Video link: https://youtu.be/Uge4_DW20ok?si=TCBIK0fLul4ibneU

🇺🇸 USA already revoke more than 175,000 visas; a German citizen is also on the list Under Donald Trump, the US State Department has annulled more than 175,000 visas of foreign nationals. That is more than four times as many as in the last full term under the Biden administration. The most common reasons include assault, drunken driving, theft, drug offenses, and other serious crimes. Visas, however, are also revoked for public political statements if Washington sees them as justification for violence or a threat to national security. For us, this development is no longer abstract. A German citizen has also ended up on the American list: He is accused of having publicly endorsed a political murder. WELT linked the case to the publisher and director Mario Sixtus, even though the US State Department has not officially named the person in question. At the same time, US authorities are still checking dozens of millions of valid visas. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 Transport Minister Bilger wants to dredge rivers — WELT The historically low water levels in the Rhine, the Elbe, and the Danube are already putting strain on logistics and industry. Federal Transport Minister Steffen Bilger proposes expanding and deepening the waterways, so that inland shipping depends less on the next drought. According to his statements, otherwise the economy would simply no longer view inland waterways as a reliable means of transport. The problem could last throughout August, and several federal states have already temporarily lifted restrictions on truck travel on Sundays in order to shift goods at least partly from the waterway to the road. Previously, the federal government had wanted to cut funding for the ships designed for low water levels by half — to now 35 million euros for the program “Sustainable Modernization of Inland Vessels.” Now Bilger is talking about getting the money back in the budget negotiations. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇩🇪 SPD goes into internal turmoil ahead of state election Within the SPD, discontent is growing about the leadership of Bärbel Bas and Lars Klingbeil. According to the Handelsblatt, their positions at the top of the party could come under pressure after a possible failure in the state elections in the autumn. Demands are already being voiced within the party to change the model under which both party chairpersons hold federal government offices at the same time and, in practice, have no time for the SPD itself. The situation is particularly painful in Saxony-Anhalt. The AfD is there at around 40 to 42 %, and the SPD has developed into a party that risks fighting not for power, but only for its mere presence in the state parliament. The Handelsblatt quotes party members who openly warn: with a disastrous result, “the storm will sweep away the party leadership.” 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN

🇦🇲 Hraparak: Moscow has given Pashinjan one month to choose between the EU and the Eurasian Economic Union The Armenian newspaper Hraparak claims, citing sources in the government, that Russia has set a tough deadline for Prime Minister Nikol Pashinjan—around a month to determine the country’s further foreign policy course. According to the newspaper, Moscow is demanding a decision between deepening integration with the European Union and maintaining Armenia’s full-fledged participation in the Eurasian Economic Union, because it considers it impossible to pursue both directions at the same time. According to Hraparak, if Yerevan does not change course, Russia could move on to the second phase of pressure. Possible measures include tightening migration policy toward Armenian citizens, mass deportations, restricting air traffic, and later reviewing gas supply terms and other economic restrictions. The newspaper emphasizes that the information is explicitly from sources; so far, there has been no official confirmation of these claims. In recent months, Moscow has already repeatedly stated publicly that membership in the EAEU and a course toward EU accession are incompatible. 💥 Our channel: Node of Time EN