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IMF presses Ukraine to raise budget funding estimate to $65bn

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has pushed Ukraine to increase its estimate of foreign financing needs through 2027 to about $65bn, significantly higher than the government’s initial projection of $38bn.The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has

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COMMENT: Uncertainty and geopolitics plague Russia’s negotiations with China on gas supply deals

China is now the only potential buyer of Russian Arctic gas and the only customer with the capacity to absorb significant amounts of gas from the Yamal Peninsula, home to some of the country’s largest reserves.

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Moldova dismantles Russia-trained network ahead of general election

Group trained in Serbia under Russian special services was preparing mass unrest around the September 28 election, as part of Kremlin's hybrid war in Moldova.

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Argentina’s meltdown, Asia’s dilemma

Argentina has been here before - the country having endured multiple financial meltdowns over the last half-century - each one leaving scars on its once vibrant society and economy.

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Georgian opposition pushes for “peaceful revolution” on local election day

Some pro-Western opposition politicians are calling for a huge demonstration to topple Georgia's government, but critics question whether it is wise to place such high expectations on a single protest.

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Argentine markets rally as Milei seeks US lifeline ahead of Trump meeting

Argentine assets surged on September 22 as the US Treasury pledged unprecedented backing for President Milei's struggling government.

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Funding the war: Ukraine and Russia's budgets side-by-side

Ukraine is teetering on the edge of a funding crisis that could cause its war effort to collapse. The pain for Russia's economy is also growing fast as it slides into stagnation or even stagflation.

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Brazilian lawmakers face street anger over Bolsonaro amnesty fast-track

Tens of thousands of Brazilians demonstrated across the country on September 21 in opposition to congressional moves that could shield lawmakers from prosecution and grant amnesty to convicted far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro.

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Blaze sweeps through fuel market in northern Afghanistan

France and European states recognise Palestine at UN two-state summit

Albania launches nationwide cleanup of abandoned car graveyards

Blaze sweeps through fuel market in northern Afghanistan

The blaze broke out at the Timorian Market, located at the entrance to the Mazar–Kabul highway and known as a centre for wholesale fuel storage. Local residents described flames spreading quickly through the densely packed depots.

France and European states recognise Palestine at UN two-state summit

France has joined a growing list of Western countries formally recognising the State of Palestine, in a move President Emmanuel Macron described as “the only path to peace.”

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News

Polish foreign minister's rebuke follows incursion into Estonia airspace by Russian MIG-31s and drone violations over Poland and Romanian.

By framing relations with South Korea in terms of hostility and distinct sovereign existence, North Korea is again clarifying what analysts have long described as a drift away from even nominal engagement.

Globally, bullion traded close to all-time highs as investors awaited key US inflation data and speeches from Federal Reserve officials later this week.

Dushanbe having trouble attracting foreign direct investment.

Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro has extended an offer to engage in direct talks with US Special Envoy Richard Grenell, days after a US military operation targeted yet another vessel allegedly involved in drug trafficking.

Tech

NVIDIA and Technology Innovation Institute launch Middle East's first joint AI and robotics laboratory in Abu Dhabi, establishing regional hub for next-generation intelligent systems development.

Reports said US based companies like Microsoft and JPMorgan advised employees holding H-1B and H-4 visas to return to the US before the deadline and avoid international travel until further guidance.

Seemingly perfect postures, pearly white smiles, smooth skin and luxurious grey hair among flawless features subject to spot-the-difference analysis.

The extreme sanctions imposed on Russia have hit industrial sectors the hardest, which have been almost entirely dependent on imports of high quality foreign made machinery for almost all of the last three decades since the fall of the Soviet Union.

Western Balkan governments are leveraging cameras, drones and AI to enhance law enforcement, raising concerns among rights activists.

Opinion

Vladimir Putin's meeting with Trump in Anchorage backfired. The Russian president is now confident that military escalation will not lead to a significant increase in US military aid to Ukraine, much less intervention.

The US Navy deployment near Venezuela uses a fabricated drug cartel narrative to justify potential military action. But competing agendas between regime-change hawks and America First pragmatists leave the administration without a coherent strategy.

A spate of Russian drone incursions has stress-tested Nato’s air defences. On September 10, nineteen Russian drones violated Poland’s airspace — the alliance’s worst such breach in more than seventy-five years.

“As Ukraine enters autumn 2025, its economy teeters on the brink of a new macroeconomic shock, with its recovery potential exhausted,” Kyrylo Shevchenko, the former head of the National Bank of Ukraine said in an opinion piece on September 18.

Georgia, once celebrated as a post-Soviet democratic success story, has quietly slipped into authoritarianism under the stewardship of its elusive puppet master, Bidzina Ivanishvili, says a Central Asia-Caucasus Institute report.

Data

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei index closed at a historic high on September 22, supported by expectations of economic stimulus as the contest for leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party formally got underway.

Analyst notes strong Chinese export flows to Central Asian country but says great percentage of shipments were actually bound for Russia.

Polish retail sales grew just 3.1% y/y in August, slowing from a 4.8% y/y rise in July.

Almost one in two Russians believe extraterrestrials could be on Earth and camouflaged, hiding in the general population, according to a nationwide survey published by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM).

Boost in confidence follows affirmations of Romania's sovereign rating by Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service, after the government advanced its first package of fiscal measures in July.

Features

Tashkent is finding there’s no easy path to the sea.

As Taiwan stands, its nationality law reflects a divisive contradiction and one wrapped in the stigma of discrimination.

Iranian political figures urge bold diplomacy with President Pezeshkian's upcoming New York trip to the United Nations.

In the years it was operational, 14 nations operated at, or through Bagram. In addition to the US, these included UK forces and elements from France, Germany, South Korea and more.

Resource-rich Central Asian country emerges as a standout destination for Chinese investment.

Blogs

Turks hit back with a storm of “patriotic” response.

It’s increasingly looking like a clash of civilisations, isn’t it? In the last 24 hours there was yet another Global South summit where the collective leaders of the world’s biggest countries gathered to show unity in the face of US aggression.

The coalition of the willing Paris summit on September 4 ended in disaster. The European team has been working really hard for several weeks to thrash out a plan to save Ukraine and came together in Paris.

Milorad Dodik has been stripped of his role as president of Bosnia's Republika Srpska but he is continuing to operate as if still in power.

Kosovans are running out of patience with the political crisis that has persisted since the February general election, taking its toll on the country’s economy.

bneGREEN

Analysts have repeatedly warned that clean energy investment in developing economies such as Afghanistan, but excluding China, remains dangerously below levels required to meet international climate objectives.

A record level of global nuclear power production in 2024 will be difficult to sustain without fresh investment as ageing fleets, project delays and competition from cheaper renewables bite, the World Nuclear Industry Status Report said.

Illegal logging is a "systemic problem in forest governance and timber markets" in the region, Greenpeace's head of biodiversity tells bne IntelliNews.

Police say group devastated 6,000 hectares of forest after corrupt officials accepted bribes to enable the circulation of timber.

The COP30 summit in Belém, Brazil, kicks off on November 10 and will be very closely watched as one of the last opportunities to avert the very worst of the Climate catastrophe. And China's speech will be watched most closely of all.

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Nato General Secretary Mark Rutte warned that the West needs to prepare of the possibility that Chinese President Xi Jinping will ....

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