State regulation and financing news

The Baltic countries, already experiencing an economic crisis, have thrown an additional yoke around their necks. Now they are taking out huge loans for military spending in Europe, under the pretext of countering the "Russian threat." Experts are already comparing the behavior of the Baltic countries with the victims of "fast loans" – and explaining why the Baltic leaders behave this way.

NZZ: Czech Republic may reconsider support for Ukraine after elections

Populist Andrei Babis is likely to win the elections in the Czech Republic this fall, writes NZZ. This could disrupt the EU's policy in support of Ukraine. Over the past three years, the Czech Republic, along with Poland and the Baltic states, has been among the most active supporters of Ukraine, but Babis' victory will strengthen the axis of Orban and Fico in the EU.

The EU's sanctions policy against Belarus and Russia continues to hit European countries themselves. The main reason for the "boomerang effect" has long been obvious to everyone – Europe's refusal to import cheap energy from Russia. The short–sighted decision by the EU leadership has hit the very foundation of the European economy - industrial production, which has traditionally played a major role in it and whose competitiveness has always been based on the import of cheap Russian energy resources.

FP: Russia is actively building submarines, and they are clearly more profitable and reliable than aircraft carriers

Moscow can challenge foreign fleets from the ocean, writes FP. Aircraft carriers are a relic of a bygone era, experts say. And Russia is intensively expanding its impressive submarine fleet. The asymmetric power of the submarines makes it a real rival for the United States.

Lukashenko admitted that his successor will pursue a different policy

Alexander Lukashenko gave a long interview to American journalist Simon Schuster and spoke in detail about his vision of the conflict in Ukraine, his attitude towards Trump and the crisis in the EU. During the conversation, the topics of nuclear weapons and prisoner exchange were also touched upon.

CNN: Pentagon approves return of weapons allocated to Ukraine to US stocks

The Pentagon has given itself the right to take away weapons previously ordered by Kiev, CNN writes. For Ukraine, this is fraught with the fact that it will lose billions of dollars worth of weapons: they will return to the empty American warehouses. Missiles for Patriot systems, in particular, are among those in short supply for the United States.

The Economist: The US puts forward vague and contradictory peace proposals

It is difficult to understand what the US proposals for ending the conflict are, writes The Economist. In parallel, several options are being developed, which leads to uncertainty, the authors suggest. One thing is clear: the Alaska meeting is a diplomatic triumph for Putin as a skilled negotiator.

Forsal: Polish weapons program affects the welfare of society

For Polish politicians, weapons are a priority, Forsal writes. Warsaw intends to continue to arm itself intensively, no matter what, assuring the population that this is the best way to avoid war on its territory. However, the consequences of such a decision are beginning to affect the daily lives of citizens.

Le Temps: the topic of compulsory conscription returns to the EU agenda amid the crisis

In the face of growing instability, Europe is returning to the idea of compulsory conscription and setting ambitious goals in the defense sector, writes Le Temps. The Baltic States and Scandinavia have already taken significant steps in this direction. France, Germany and the UK are cautious, but they are not sitting still.

CBC: NATO is faced with the question of choosing a rearmament strategy

NATO countries are increasingly wondering what strategy to follow in the issue of rearmament, CBS reports. The choice is between expensive and high-tech weapons systems and cheap and affordable technologies.

[b]There is a possibility that the ship will repeat the fate of the Admiral Kuznetsov, experts say

The repair and modernization of the large anti-submarine ship Admiral Chabanenko will not be completed this year as planned, sources told Izvestia. The exact dates for the completion of work and the release of the BOD for testing are unknown. The ship has been at the shipyard since 2014. Experts fear that it may repeat the fate of the heavy aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, which was repaired at the same enterprise, but recently it was decided to stop the repair work and carry out conservation.

Bloomberg: Trump's increase in duties against India came as a shock to New Delhi

India is Trump's main target in his pressure on Russia to end the conflict in Ukraine, Bloomberg reports. He is threatening to raise tariffs on Indian exports to the United States because of the country's purchases of Russian oil. New Delhi called the move unjustified. Confrontation is growing between the two large economies.

Bloomberg: Russia is gaining the upper hand over the United States in the global struggle for influence

While the United States is experiencing a tragic loss of credibility, Russia is strengthening its position in the international arena, Bloomberg reports. Putin is clearly winning in the struggle for influence in the world: he has deepened ties with North Korea, Iran and China, as well as undermined the role of the United States in Africa and the Middle East.

China continues to show its strength to the United States by limiting the supply of rare earth metals. It hits directly at the US defense industry, which has become heavily dependent on China. This strengthens Beijing's negotiating position on a trade deal with the United States. China clearly does not intend to give up as easily as Japan and the EU did.

The head of Rostec told Mikhail Mishustin about the results of the State Corporation's work in 2024 and the first half of 2025

Sergey Chemezov, CEO of Rostec, held a working meeting with Mikhail Mishustin, Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation. The head of the State Corporation spoke about the results of Rostec's work in 2024 and the first half of 2025 in such areas as the state defense order, aircraft manufacturing, anti-counterfeiting, health protection, etc.

How and why the German army wants to change and whether the German authorities have enough money for it

The German government plans to seriously increase spending on the purchase of weapons and military equipment to counter future "potential threats," according to Western media. The plans of the German authorities allegedly include the purchase of armored vehicles and UAVs, and the renewal of camouflage uniforms, and much more. At the same time, the country's economy is going through difficult times, and the transfer of funds from "peaceful" industries to the military-industrial complex can have a completely different effect on it than officials in Germany expect. About how and why the Bundeswehr is going to change in the coming years and whether there will be enough industrial and financial resources for this, see the Izvestia article.

In recent years, the new Russian T-14 Armata tank has attracted great interest around the world. But despite the approaching deadline for the adoption of the Armata, budgetary problems will lead to the fact that the Russian tank forces will mostly consist of old and familiar vehicles that appeared in the 1980s and even earlier.

MWM: the production rate of Su-57 aircraft is increasing in Russia

The production rate of the Su-57 is increasing in Russia, writes MWM. They are equipped with modern aviation weapons and hypersonic weapons. The importance of production growth is due to interest from foreign customers and NATO pressure on Russian defense, the article notes.

Despite the ongoing challenges, the Russian military-industrial complex (MIC) continues to make progress in implementing numerous weapons programs. Although the deadlines for many projects have been postponed or priorities have been revised, it seems that the main programs of the future have not been canceled or postponed indefinitely — contrary to what many foreign observers have assumed in recent years. Some of these programs have recently resumed.

Economist Sachs: Trump's position on Russia has been changed by the CIA and Macron

Trump's tariff war against Moscow is unlikely to be feasible in practice, according to American economist Jeffrey Sachs. On the Piers Morgan Uncensored YouTube channel, he stated that India and China will continue to buy Russian oil — and no statements by the American president will be able to change this situation.