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The magic furry theory
Moscow Building Starlink Alternative Quickly, Says Space Chief
September 17, 2025
Russia is planning to create a satellite internet service to compete with Elon Musk’s Starlink, according to the head of the country’s space agency, Dmitry Bakanov.
He acknowledged that Russia needs to move away from outdated thinking that has allowed SpaceX to dominate the satellite industry.
Starlink currently has over 8,000 satellites and is widely used in remote areas and conflict zones, including by Ukrainian forces.
Bakanov stated that Russia is working on developing its own low-Earth orbit satellite system for global internet services, with a Russian aerospace company called Bureau 1440 leading the project.
He highlighted that several test vehicles in orbit have already been evaluated, and adjustments have been made to production models.
Bakanov also noted that Russia has learned from past mistakes, including a 2002 incident where they dismissed Musk’s business proposals.
Historically, the Soviet Union was a leader in the space race, launching Sputnik 1 in 1957 and sending the first human, Yuri Gagarin, into space in 1961.
However, after the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, Russia faced funding challenges and poor management in its space program.
The recent Luna-25 mission failure in August 2023 further impacted their ambitions.
https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2025/09/17/moscow-building-starlink-alternative-quickly-says-space-chief/
National Archives to Display Entire U.S. Constitution Including All 27 Amendments for the First Time in U.S. History
Tuesday, September 9, 2025
For the first time in history, the entire United States Constitution will go on display, to celebrate 250 years of American Freedom.
The four-page Constitution and the original Bill of Rights will be surrounded by 17 Constitutional amendments, filling the Rotunda at the National Archives in Washington, DC in a dramatic and highly visual display.
This historic, special display will also include the rarely displayed “fifth page” of the U.S. Constitution.
This original document outlines a set of instructions to the States on how to implement the Constitution, signed by George Washington as President of the Constitutional Convention.
Jim Byron, Senior Advisor to the Acting Archivist of the United States, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, said:
“As we approach the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding, the National Archives is playing a major role in the coast-to-coast commemorations by providing the American people access to their history.
This extraordinary installation welcomes all Americans to celebrate the bedrock of our national life: our Constitution.”
The display will open to the public in the Rotunda on Tuesday, September 16 and remain open through Wednesday, October 1.
Visitors can view and experience the entire Constitution during regular museum hours: 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Those visiting within those dates should anticipate longer than usual wait times. Visitors are encouraged to reserve timed-entry tickets at Recreation.gov.
To give visitors even more opportunities to see the special display, the National Archives Museum will be open extended hours until 7:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, September 20 and Sunday, September 21, as well as Saturday, September 27 and Sunday, September 28.
The display of the entire U.S. Constitution is part of the National Archives’ celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States.
Other upcoming activities at the National Archives include the opening of a new permanent exhibition space, The American Story and Discovery Center, in October 2025.
The new galleries at the National Archives Museum will be the first and only museum experience in Washington, DC to use artificial intelligence to bring visitors individualized opportunities to explore American history.
https://www.archives.gov/press/press-releases/2025/nr25-12
https://visit.archives.gov/whats-on/explore-exhibits/constitution-day-full-us-constitution
https://visit.archives.gov/whats-on/explore-exhibits/constitution-day-full-us-constitution-virtual-exhibit#main
Earthquake in space research: James Webb and Hubble telescopes confirm that the universe is expanding in two different directions
17/09/2025 - 09:16 CDT
Through the James Webb Space Telescope and the Hubble Telescope, it has been possible to confirm the expansion of the universe.
This is something that has been talked about for years and can finally be said to be real. Moreover, it is not only expanding, but it is doing so in two directions.
To explain it better, this means that galaxies and everything in them, such as planets and stars, are slowly moving away from each other.
This is key to understanding the age and fate of the universe.
How is the universe expanding?
The first thing to look at is the so-called cosmic microwave background (CMB), the "first light" of the universe, captured from when it was only 380,000 years old.
This has been seen thanks to the European Space Agency's Planck satellite, which studied its radiation and calculated its expansion, which is 67 kilometers per second per megaparsec.
On the other hand, there is the cosmic distance scale with Cepheid stars, which are stars that function as a cosmic heartbeat projecting light.
The brighter they are, the slower this heartbeat goes, so by looking at this brightness we can study their distance. Their rate of expansion is about 74 kilometers per second per megaparsec.
"Once measurement errors are ruled out, what remains is the real and exciting possibility that we have misunderstood the Universe," explained Adam Riess, a researcher at Johns Hopkins University and leader of the scientific team that published this discovery in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
"We have now covered the full range of what Hubble observed and can rule out a measurement error as the cause of the Hubble Tension with very high confidence.
Combining Webb and Hubble gives us the best of both worlds. We find that Hubble's measurements remain reliable as we move up the cosmic distance scale," he said.
https://www.marca.com/en/lifestyle/world-news/2025/09/17/68cac1b246163fde208b4595.html
Rare Five-Image Einstein Cross Reveals Massive, Invisible Structure Lurking in Space
September 17, 2025
When French astronomer Pierre Cox first spotted something peculiar in radio telescope data from the Alps, his reaction was immediate.
The images showed what looked like a cross pattern in space, but with an unusual twist – a bright spot glowing right in the center.
“We were like, ‘What the heck?’ It looked like a cross, and there was this image in the center. I knew I had never seen that before.”
That unexpected discovery has led to evidence of a massive dark matter halo hiding in plain sight, according to research published in The Astrophysical Journal.
The finding represents the first time astronomers have detected an Einstein Cross – an already rare cosmic phenomenon – with five images instead of the typical four.
Einstein Crosses form when light from a distant galaxy bends around intervening massive objects, creating multiple images that appear as a cross-like pattern.
But HerS-3, the galaxy at the center of this discovery, defied expectations by producing five distinct images arranged around a central point.
The extra image suggested something unusual was warping spacetime in ways the visible galaxies alone couldn’t explain.
Charles Keeton, a theoretical astrophysicist at Rutgers University who helped analyze the data, immediately recognized the implications when his colleague Andrew Baker shared the unusual images.
“I said, well, that’s not supposed to happen. You can’t get a fifth image in the center unless something unusual is going on with the mass that’s bending the light.”
The team used radio telescopes including the Northern Extended Millimeter Array in France and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array in Chile to study the distant galaxy HerS-3, located about 25 billion light-years away.
Initially, researchers thought the fifth image might be a data glitch, but repeated observations confirmed its reality.
Computer modeling revealed that the four visible galaxies causing the gravitational lensing couldn’t account for the complete five-image pattern.
Only by adding a large, invisible mass – a dark matter halo – could the models match what telescopes were actually seeing.
Dark Matter’s Invisible Fingerprint
Dark matter makes up most of the matter in the universe, yet remains invisible to direct observation. Scientists can only detect it through its gravitational effects on visible matter and light.
This discovery offers a rare opportunity to study such an invisible structure in detail.
The modeling work, led by graduate student Lana Eid and Keeton, showed that the mysterious fifth image could only be explained by including a massive dark matter halo located roughly 25 to 60 kiloparsecs southeast of the brightest visible galaxy in the lensing group. This halo contains between 10 billion and 130 billion times the mass of our sun.
The system acts like a natural laboratory for studying both the distant galaxy and the dark matter bending its light.
The background galaxy, HerS-3, appears to be an active star-forming region viewed nearly edge-on, with powerful gas outflows moving at speeds of at least 350 kilometers per second.
The lensing effect magnifies this galaxy by a factor of about 17 to 19 times, allowing astronomers to study its structure in unprecedented detail.
The discovery also demonstrates the value of international scientific collaboration.
The research combined data from telescopes in France, Chile, and New Mexico, all supported by national science agencies.
As Baker noted, such discoveries depend on continued funding for major astronomical facilities.
Beyond its scientific value, the HerS-3 system could serve as a cosmic timekeeper for measuring the expansion rate of the universe.
The different light paths created by gravitational lensing introduce time delays between the images.
If the background galaxy shows variability – perhaps from a supernova explosion – astronomers could track how long it takes for brightness changes to appear in each image, providing an independent measurement of the Hubble constant.
The team has already made predictions about additional features that should be visible in future observations, including extended outflowing gas that might create additional lensed images.
These predictions provide testable hypotheses that could further validate or refine their model of this remarkable cosmic configuration.
For now, HerS-3 stands as a unique laboratory where invisible dark matter has revealed itself through its gravitational fingerprint, offering astronomers a new window into the hidden architecture of the universe.
https://scienceblog.com/rare-five-image-einstein-cross-reveals-massive-invisible-structure-lurking-in-space/
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/adf204
Surprise solar storm sparks stunning auroras across the US (photos)
September 17, 2025
Aurora chasers around the world were treated to dazzling shows after a "secret" island within a coronal hole triggered an unexpected strong (G3) level geomagnetic storm overnight on Sunday (Sept. 14-15).
The outburst sent auroras spilling far beyond their usual range, thrilling aurora chasers across the U.S.
Space weather physicist Tamitha Skov explained in her latest aurora forecast on YouTube that the true culprit wasn't the big eruptions everyone was watching, but something hidden in plain sight.
"The source of the big solar storm is due to this coronal hole right here, which is a really noteworthy coronal hole for a number of reasons," Skov said.
What made this coronal hole so unusual was a subtle, but influential magnetic twist.
The coronal hole had a negative polarity that wasn't supposed to give us big geomagnetic storms or subsequent auroras, Skov explained.
But as it moved across the sun's disk, something changed. An "island" of positive polarity appeared in the middle of the coronal hole.
"That positive polarity is what ended up giving us about 6 hours worth of really intense storming," Skov explained.
The result was a stunning aurora show. "Little things like this can really make a big difference and change a nothingburger into a G3-level solar storm," Skov said.
Forecasts underestimated the storm
Just days earlier, forecasters had warned of possible G1 (minor) to G2 (moderate) geomagnetic storms from the same butterfly-shaped coronal hole.
But when the solar wind arrived, the hidden polarity island turned what was expected to be a moderate event into a full G3 solar storm, surprising scientists and delighting skywatchers worldwide.
Geomagnetic storms are classified using a G-scale, which ranks their intensity from G1 (minor) to G5 (extreme). Auroras occur when solar wind interacts with Earth's magnetic field.
The charged particles from the sun collide with gases in the upper atmosphere, such as oxygen and nitrogen, transferring energy to them.
This energy is released as light, producing the colorful displays seen in the night sky. The stronger the solar wind, the more dynamic and widespread the auroras can become.
cont.
https://www.space.com/stargazing/auroras/secret-island-on-sun-sparks-surprise-solar-storm-and-stunning-auroras-across-the-us-photos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szSpfxVip1Y (Solar Uptick Expected, Pre-Quake Signal, Limitless | S0 News Sep.17.2025)
Watch an asteroid the size of the Washington Monument zoom past Earth live on Sept. 18
September 17, 2025
A potentially hazardous asteroid spanning the length of the Washington Monument will make a safe, close approach to Earth on Sept. 18 and you can watch the flyby live online courtesy of the Virtual Telescope Project.
2025 FA22's next flyby of Earth will occur at 3:42 a.m. EDT (0742 GMT) on Sept. 18, when the asteroid will pass 523,206 miles (842018 kilometers) from our planet — the equivalent to around 2.2 lunar distances — posing zero risk to us, or the moon.
Stargazers can tune in to the Virtual Telescope Project's YouTube stream beginning at 11 p.m. EDT on Sept. 17 (3:00 GMT Sept. 18) to see live views from the organization's robotic telescopes located in Italy as the asteroid approaches its minimum distance to Earth.
The 427-951-foot-wide (130-290 meters-meter-wide (427-951 ft) asteroid 2025 FA22 was discovered in March earlier this year by the Pan-STARRS wide-field imaging facility.
The wandering solar system body was later classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA) owing to its size/brightness and orbit, which give it the potential to one day make a threateningly close approach to Earth.
"While, we repeat, this is a safe approach, it is still remarkable: a similar close encounter, involving an object of that size coming that close, happens one time every ten years on average, accordingly to JPL Center for NEO Studies," wrote Virtual Telescope Institute founder Gianluca Masi in a blog post announcing the livestream.
Following the close pass, 2025 FA22 will continue its 668-day looping path through the inner solar system that takes it well beyond the orbit of Mars.
NASA estimates that an asteroid the size of 2025 FA22 strikes our planet just once every 20,000 years and creates an impact crater measuring up to 1.3 miles (2.1 km) in diameter.
https://www.space.com/stargazing/watch-asteroid-size-of-washington-monument-zoom-past-earth-live-sept-18-2025-video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P59gDIPxY6g
https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html#/?sstr=2025%20FA22&view=VOP
On this day in space! Sept. 17, 1789: Saturn's 'Death Star' moon discovered
September 17, 2025
On Sept. 17, 1789, the British astronomer William Herschel discovered Saturn's "Death Star" moon, Mimas.
Of course, "Star Wars" wasn't a thing at the time, and no one had ever heard of something called a "Death Star." But there's no denying that this moon looks just like it.
Anyway, Herschel was a guy who liked to build telescopes and discover things, like the planet Uranus, tiny moons around Jupiter and Saturn, and other stuff out there in space.
Shortly after he invented a huge new kind of reflecting telescope called the Herschelian telescope, he spotted Mimas orbiting Saturn.
Mimas is super tiny with a diameter of less than 250 miles. It is the smallest known spherical body in space that is held together by self-gravitation.
https://www.space.com/39251-on-this-day-in-space.html
Upcoming Demolitions to Clear Space for Oak Ridge National Lab Missions
September 16, 2025
EM cleanup to transform national lab, support research and innovation missions
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) and contractor UCOR are advancing projects that will transform Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and make space available to support important research and innovation missions.
U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (EM) cleanup crews are preparing multiple facilities for demolition in ORNL’s central campus area.
They include the former Isotope Development Lab, known as Building 3038, and a collection of 11 highly contaminated former radioisotope processing facilities referred to as Isotope Row.
“The efforts underway now by our employees are laying the foundation for EM to achieve some of its most significant cleanup successes in Oak Ridge over the next year,” said Steve Clemons, ORNL portfolio federal project director.
Workers have safely separated all five hot cells inside Building 3038. They’ve removed three of them, and will take out the final two in coming weeks.
Clearing away the hot cells is one of the most crucial deactivation tasks to reduce risks inside the structure and prepare the building for demolition.
Hot cells are heavily shielded, concrete rooms used to safely contain and manipulate highly radioactive materials.
“This facility posed several challenges that required deliberate and precise approaches to workforce safety,” said UCOR Project Manager William Lloyd.
“Building 3038 is deemed one of the most high-risk facilities on the ORNL central campus due to its past and current condition and contents.”
Constructed in 1949, Building 3038 contained equipment used to process, convert and ship radioactive isotopes. For decades, researchers in the facility studied transuranic elements, fabricated targets and sources and produced medical isotopes.
Work is also ongoing in Isotope Row to enable near term demolition. These facilities were constructed in the 1950s and 1960s to process radioisotopes. Cleanup crews are completing tasks to remove these highly contaminated structures from the heart of ORNL.
“The adjoining buildings presented a unique set of challenges with extremely hazardous risks requiring highly skilled crews to perform their deactivation duties,” Chad York, UCOR ORNL cleanup area project manager, said.
Most buildings in Isotope Row are in various stages of decontamination activities, pipe and duct removal and radiological surveys. Those activities include removing highly irradiated sources, ventilation system ducts and hot cells.
Demolition is scheduled to begin on the Isotope Row facilities in 2026. Removing these structures eliminates hazards, provides space to support larger demolition projects and opens land for future research missions.
https://www.energy.gov/em/articles/upcoming-demolitions-clear-space-oak-ridge-national-lab-missions
SpaceX Starlink Mission
September 17, 2025
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 is targeting the launch of 28 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
A live webcast of this mission will begin about five minutes prior to liftoff, which you can watch here and on X @SpaceX. You can also watch the webcast on the new X TV app.
This is the seventh flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched NROL-69, CRS-32, GPS III-7, USSF-36, and two Starlink missions.
Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the Just Read the Instructions droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
https://www.spacex.com/launches/sl-10-61
Zelensky tells West to put Ukraine first
17 Sep, 2025 10:43
Western states should put Ukraine’s needs above their own, Vladimir Zelensky has suggested, accusing the EU and US of dragging their feet on new sanctions against Russia.
Moscow has faced sweeping restrictions from Kiev’s Western backers since the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022. The EU has adopted 18 sanctions packages and is debating its next measures.
Since Donald Trump returned to the White House, Washington has been cautious about new measures amid a thaw with Moscow. Trump has warned, however, that he could turn to sanctions if the conflict persists.
In an interview with Sky News aired on Tuesday, Zelensky claimed deliberations about possible blowback from further sanctions were a “dangerous” waste of time.
“I believe that all countries need to stop thinking about themselves and their future relations with Russia, but instead think more about Ukraine, because it’s today and now,” he said.
“This is very dangerous, and to be frank, dishonest.”
Zelensky said Trump’s call for European countries to cut Russian energy imports and impose tariffs on buyers such as China and India was understandable, but claimed the US must not wait for Brussels, which he accused of hiding behind bureaucracy.
“President Trump, I think, believes that if he were to apply all strong sanctions, he would close diplomacy with Russians… But we can’t wait for all European countries to stop relations with Russia,” he said.
“All that’s lacking now is a strong sanctions package from the US.”
Zelensky also insisted that Kiev needs a “clear position” from Trump on sanctions and firm security guarantees before any settlement.
Trump has urged European countries to stop importing Russian oil and gas and pledged to then consider sanctions. He has also demanded the bloc impose steep tariffs on India and China, the top buyers of Russian crude. According to reports on Tuesday, the European Commission will delay its next sanctions package while members weigh how to meet Trump’s demands.
READ MORE: EU delays new Russia sanctions indefinitely – Politico
Moscow insists sanctions have been unable to harm its economy and that they will inevitably backfire.
It says any settlement must include Ukrainian neutrality, demilitarization, and recognition of territorial changes, while security guarantees for Kiev are possible only after a final deal.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he is ready in principle to meet Zelensky and previously invited him to Moscow for talks, but Kiev rejected the idea as “deliberately unacceptable.”
https://www.rt.com/russia/624799-zelensky-west-ukraine-first/
FSB detains North African ‘recruited by Kiev for spying’ (VIDEO)
17 Sep, 2025 11:59
Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) says it has detained a North African national in southern Russia on suspicion of spying for Ukrainian military intelligence.
The FSB stated on Tuesday that the man used the Telegram messaging app to stay in touch with an officer from Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR).
On their instructions, he allegedly collected and sent details of military facilities and critical infrastructure in Russia's southern city of Astrakhan.
The agency said the information was exploited by foreign intelligence “to the detriment of Russia’s security.”
Prosecutors have opened a criminal case on espionage charges, and a court has ordered that the suspect be held in pre-trial detention.
The FSB said Ukrainian intelligence is actively seeking recruits online, using social media and messaging apps including Telegram and WhatsApp to organize attacks inside Russia.
Earlier this week, the agency reported the detention of a 51-year-old woman accused of carrying out a sabotage attack on the Trans-Siberian Railway in Zabaykalsky Region under Ukrainian orders.
Investigators said she built an improvised explosive device in August, placed it on the tracks, detonated it, and later sent video proof of the blast to her handler in exchange for payment.
On Saturday, a bomb exploded during a railway track inspection in Russia’s Orel Region, killing two people and seriously injuring another.
In May, a series of explosions destroyed railway bridges in the regions of Bryansk and Kursk.
The authorities attributed the incidents to Ukrainian intelligence, saying the attacks left seven dead and more than 100 seriously wounded.
https://www.rt.com/russia/624808-fsb-african-spy-detained/
Zelensky has no intention of ending conflict with Moscow – MP
17 Sep, 2025 14:37
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has no intention of ending the hostilities with Russia, while ordinary people pay the price, Verkhovna Rada MP Georgy Mazurashu has said.
Mazurashu said Zelensky outlined his position at a meeting with members of his Servant of the People party on Tuesday, a stance the MP claimed is widely shared by the Ukrainian leader’s inner circle.
”At yesterday’s closed meeting… Zelensky, like other individuals exempt from military service, made it clear that he intends to fight to the last, but, of course, with others doing the fighting,” the deputy said in a video on his Telegram channel on Wednesday.
Ukraine’s mobilization drive, launched to refill depleted ranks amid heavy losses and Russia’s steady frontline advances, has become increasingly chaotic and violent, marred by abuse, injuries, and even deaths of conscripts.
Mazurashu has previously called it a “shameful hunt for citizens.”
The MP said Zelensky estimated Ukraine would need another $120 billion to fund the armed forces if the conflict drags into 2026, adding that the leader was “still unclear where to get” half of that sum.
“And he now wants to focus on finding these funds – abroad, of course,” Mazurashu remarked.
Amid battlefield losses, Zelensky has pressed Western backers for more aid, tying it to the security guarantees he says Kiev needs before agreeing to any settlement.
In a Sky News interview on Tuesday, he urged the West to put Ukraine’s needs above its own, boost financial and military support, and impose sanctions that would “really hurt” Russia’s economy.
Moscow has warned that foreign aid only prolongs the conflict.
It says it does not oppose security guarantees for Kiev in principle, but insists they must follow a peace deal – one requiring Ukraine’s neutrality, demilitarization, and recognition of new territorial realities – not precede it.
On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Kiev of sabotaging peace efforts, including mediation by US President Donald Trump.
He said Washington understands the conflict cannot be resolved without addressing its root causes, while Kiev and its European backers refuse to do so.
https://www.rt.com/russia/624819-zelensky-ukraine-conflict/
Polish missile caused ‘Russian drone attack’ damage – media
17 Sep, 2025 11:31
The only confirmed damage from what Poland claims was a Russian drone incursion into its airspace was actually caused by a Polish missile fired from a NATO F-16 which struck a residential building, the Rzeczpospolita outlet has reported, citing sources.
Polish officials last week reported at least 19 violations of the country’s airspace by drones, saying up to four UAVs had been downed.
Warsaw accused Moscow of being behind the incident. Russia has rejected the accusation and insisted its drones only strike Ukrainian military-related facilities.
Western leaders, according to Moscow, “accuse Russia of provocations on a daily basis, most often declining to offer any arguments.”
Rzeczpospolita reported on Tuesday that most of the drones involved in the incident were not carrying explosives and caused no damage.
However, one exception was in the village of Wyryki Wola near the border with Belarus, where what was described by Poland as an “unidentified flying object” crashed into a private home, damaging the roof but without causing casualties.
Western media reports claimed that the home had been hit by a Russian drone. Investigators have declined to say what exactly struck the building, only stating that the object was not identified as a drone.
Rzeczpospolita, however, cited sources in Poland’s security agencies as saying the object was in fact an AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missile fired from a Polish F-16 jet.
The missile reportedly suffered a guidance system malfunction and did not explode only because its safety devices prevented detonation.
The missile, around three meters long and weighing over 150kg, is said to have struck the house after being fired in an attempt to shoot down a drone.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk did not comment on the report but scrambled to take aim at Moscow. “The entire responsibility for the damage to the house in Wyryki rests with… Russia… Hands off Polish soldiers,” he said.
On Sunday, Tusk also complained that the drone incident had caused a wave of “antipathy towards a struggling Ukraine,” claiming, without proof, that this was being fueled by Moscow.
He stressed that Warsaw’s goal is “to stem this tide,” portraying it as a “test of patriotism.”
https://www.rt.com/news/624813-russia-drone-damage-polish-missile/
Zelensky ready to meet Putin without preconditions except one
17 Sep, 2025 14:28
Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has said he is ready to meet either with Russian President Vladimir Putin alone or together with US President Donald Trump, “without conditions” but rejected a proposal to travel to Moscow for talks.
Putin has said he is ready in principle to meet Zelensky and suggested talks in Moscow, which Kiev rejected as “deliberately unacceptable.” At the same time, Putin has questioned Zelensky’s legitimacy and whether talks with him would be “meaningful.”
Zelensky’s term expired in May 2024, but he has refused to hold elections, citing martial law. Trump has been pushing for direct talks between Zelensky and Putin and previously claimed that he would need to “intervene” personally to bring them together.
In an interview with Sky News released on Tuesday, Zelensky said he is “ready to meet with President Trump and Putin trilaterally or bilaterally … without any kind of conditions.”
Asked whether he was prepared to travel to Moscow for talks at Putin’s invitation, Zelensky said no, calling it the capital of the country that “attacked” Ukraine.
Trump suggested holding a one-on-one meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian leaders first to allow them to exchange views directly before moving on to a broader summit.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said direct talks between Russia and Ukraine remain possible but are now “paused.” He noted negotiators can use existing channels, though no meetings are planned.
The Foreign Ministry said a Putin-Zelensky summit could happen only once a proper agenda is set, while Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov added that it would require a “reasonable response” from Kiev to Moscow’s proposals.
https://www.rt.com/russia/624815-zelensky-putin-meeting/
WATCH Russian submarine hunters carry out bombing drills
17 Sep, 2025 17:04
Anti-submarine aircraft from Russia’s Pacific Fleet have successfully carried out bombing exercises against ground targets during a command-staff drill in the country’s Far East, the Navy press service has said.
The drills involved the detection of a simulated enemy landing force in the coastal zone of the Pacific Ocean, according to the statement.
Naval aviation aircraft were dispatched to search for and counter the landing. After reconnaissance of the area, Il-38s performed bombing runs on the simulated enemy forces.
Following the bombing exercise, aircraft crews practiced flying over featureless terrain without ground-based radio navigation aids.
The press service noted that this phase was intended to test pilot skills in areas lacking orientation landmarks.
The aerial drills were part of a larger command-staff exercise by the Pacific Fleet with the joint command of forces in the northeast of Russia.
The maneuvers were conducted under the leadership of Admiral Viktor Liina, commander of the Pacific Fleet, and held in accordance with the Navy’s training schedule.
The Pacific Fleet announced the start of the exercise last Friday, noting that it is focused on protecting and defending sea communications in the North Pacific, as well as the coasts of Kamchatka and Chukotka and the island zone.
According to the press service, more than ten ships and boats, several nuclear submarines, aircraft and helicopters of naval aviation, as well as the Bastion coastal missile systems, were deployed in the drills.
https://www.rt.com/russia/624817-russian-pacific-bombers-drills/
Car rams into FBI office entrance in ‘targeted attack’
17 Sep, 2025 12:26
A man has driven a car into the gates of the FBI’s Pittsburgh office, in what the agency described as a targeted attack.
The incident occurred at 2:40am local time on Wednesday, the FBI said. No one was injured.
The suspect, identified as Donald Henson of Penn Hills, Pennsylvania, retrieved an American flag from his white sedan and threw it onto the damaged gate before fleeing on foot, according to a statement from the agency.
Speaking during a press briefing, FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Giordano stated that the agency was treating the incident “as an act of terror against the FBI,” as quoted by ABC News.
The official vowed that the authorities “are going to exhaust every ability we have under the federal law to find, apprehend and prosecute this subject to the fullest extent.”
According to Giordano, there was “some vulgarity” inscribed on the side of the vehicle, though no details as to its contents have been made available. He added, however, that the message was apparently a reference to suicide.
Giordano told reporters that while it was not immediately clear whether or not the suspect was armed, the man had been identified as a former military member and may be dangerous.
He clarified that Henson is the registered owner of the sedan in question.
The official suggested that the suspect may recently have been experiencing mental health issues.
According to Giordano, Henson had visited the FBI Pittsburgh office within the last few weeks to lodge a complaint which “didn’t make a whole lot of sense.”
https://www.rt.com/news/624814-fbi-pittsburgh-office-car-ramming/
Blaze erupts at Poltava factory after overnight Russian drone strike
Wed, September 17, 2025 - 09:35
Poltava region came under attack from enemy drones overnight on September 17, sparking a fire on the open grounds of an industrial facility, informs the head of the Poltava Regional Military Administration (RMA), Volodymyr Kohut.
"Air defense was active in the Poltava region last night. As a result of falling debris from an enemy UAV, a fire broke out on the open territory of one of the enterprises in Poltava district," the RMA head wrote.
According to him, firefighting units of the State Emergency Service quickly contained the blaze. No casualties were reported.
Russia's overnight drone attacks on September 17
Russian forces again targeted Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian Railways) with drones overnight, which caused train delays on the Dnipro route.
That same night, drones also struck the Kirovohrad region, damaging infrastructure and triggering widespread power outages in the area and its administrative center.
In the Cherkasy region, explosions were heard after an air raid alert, damaging local infrastructure facilities. In the Zaporizhzhia region, a Russian FPV drone hit a minibus, injuring one person.
As reported earlier, on the previous night, a drone strike ignited an Epicentr logistics hub in the Kyiv region, setting the company's distribution center ablaze.
https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/blaze-erupts-at-poltava-factory-after-overnight-1758089580.html
Trump sends letter to Polish President Nawrocki, media reports
Wed, September 17, 2025 - 09:25
US President Donald Trump has sent a letter to his Polish counterpart Karol Nawrocki. The document has already been dispatched to Warsaw via diplomatic mail, RMF24 reports.
According to the media outlet, the White House delivered Trump’s letter to President Karol Nawrocki through the Polish Embassy in Washington. It has already been forwarded to Warsaw by diplomatic mail.
The content of the letter remains unknown.
Karol Nawrocki has already returned to Poland after working visits to Berlin and Paris.
There, he held meetings with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Talks between Trump and Nawrocki
Last week, Trump and Nawrocki held a phone conversation. The Presidents discussed the Russian drone attack on Poland.
On September 2-3, Karol Nawrocki, together with Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, paid an official visit to the United States.
During the trip, the Polish leader held talks with President Donald Trump.
The Head of the White House assured that he does not plan to withdraw American troops from Polish territory. Moreover, he even stated the possibility of strengthening the US military presence in the country.
https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/trump-sends-letter-to-polish-president-nawrocki-1758089949.html
Poland Deports Ukrainian After Drone Flown Over Govt Offices
Sept. 17, 2025, 5:12 pm
Poland is to deport a young Ukrainian back to his homeland after he triggered a security scare by flying a drone over government buildings in Warsaw, police said Wednesday.
Air defences are on high alert after an incursion into Polish air space last week by around 20 military drones, in what Warsaw alleged was a deliberate Russian provocation.
On Monday, an unidentified drone was spotted flying over a government complex that hosts one of Warsaw’s presidential residences as well as offices used by the prime minister and defence minister.
Police “neutralised” the drone and arrested two people, a 21-year-old Ukrainian man and a 17-year-old Belarusian girl.
Warsaw police spokesman Jacek Wisniewski told AFP the young man had violated Polish aviation law and would be fined, expelled from Poland to Ukraine and banned from Europe’s Schengen travel area for five years.
“Today, he will be handed over to the Ukrainian border guards,” Dagmara Bielec, a spokeswoman for the Polish border police, told AFP.
The Belarusian citizen was questioned by police and released without charge, Wisniewski said.
Russia denies that it targeted Poland during last week’s large-scale drone incursion, but Poland’s European allies have denounced the “provocation” and stepped up air defence support to their NATO ally.
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/60327
Neo-Nazi pleads guilty to Nashville electricity bomb plot to make 'k**es lose money'
Updated: SEPTEMBER 17, 2025 18:19
A Tennessee neo-Nazi pleaded guilty last Tuesday to a plot to use an explosive kamikaze drone to attack a Nashville electrical substation, the US Justice Department Public Affairs Office announced.
Columbia resident Skyler Philippi in July 2024 told a “confidential human source” about how attacking interstate electrical substations would “shock the system,” later expanding in an August 2024 manifesto that he sought to attack “high tax cities or industrial areas to make the k**es lose money.”
“If you want to do the most damage as an accelerationist, attack high-economic, high-tax, political zones in every major metropolis,” Philippi texted the source last September, referring to the strategy to create radical social change through an intense and rapid deterioration of conditions.
The 24-year-old former Atomwaffen Division and ex-National Alliance affiliate told the source that his research determined that firearms would not be sufficient and planned to deliver C-4 explosive material or triacetone triperoxide to the site by drone in order to avoid detection by law enforcement.
Last September Philippi conducted reconnaissance of the electrical substation, ordered C-4 and other explosives from the source, and purchased black powder for pipe bombs.
Neo-Nazi pleads guilty to carry out power grid attack
FBI Counterterrorism Division Assistant Director Donald Holstead said in a statement that the plan “had the potential to knock out power to thousands of American homes and to critical facilities like hospitals.”
Just before Philippi sought to implement his plan in November, the sources participated in a Nordic ritual with Philippi, in which they recited a prayer and discussed the Norse god Odin.
The neo-Nazi promised that “this is where the New Age begins” and that it was “time to do something big.”
After the prayers, the sources moved into position as lookouts. Philippi was arrested as he had turned on the drone, armed the explosives, and was preparing to attach the two devices.
National Security Assistant Attorney-General John Eisenberg said in a statement that “Philippi planned what he had hoped would be a devastating attack on Nashville’s energy infrastructure.
He acquired what he believed to be explosives, surveilled his target, and equipped a drone to attack an electrical substation.”
Philippi is set to be sentenced in January and faces a maximum conviction of life in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-867702
IDF opens 2nd evacuation route out of Gaza City – without security checks
September 17, 2025
he IDF announced Wednesday that it was opening a second evacuation route out of Gaza City for 48 hours to enable residents to flee the war zone more quickly.
Arabic-language spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee announced the opening at noon of “a temporary transportation route via Salah al-Din Street,” the main north-south route in the Gaza Strip, which would be closed again at noon Friday.
This road passes Gaza City to the east, while the first evacuation route the IDF allowed, the al-Rashid Road, runs along the coast in the west.
Salah al-Din has been used before as a safe route, especially early in the war for those fleeing south and during the ceasefire early this year, when Gazans were permitted to return to their homes in the north.
The army said that no security checks will be carried out on the road.
While this will speed up the evacuation, it raises the risk that Hamas fighters could escape among the refugees and attempt to take some of the 48 remaining hostages with them. Twenty are still believed to be alive.
The coastal road has been heavily congested ever since the IDF began bombing Hamas sites in Gaza City about two weeks ago – especially in the past day, when the ground incursion began.
News outlets have shown images of masses of pedestrians, trucks and cars crowded bumper-to-bumper on Al-Rashid Road heading south.
Eyewitness said it took many hours to reach the Al-Mawasi humanitarian zone.
Residents should use only the yellow-marked paths on official maps identifying designated safe passages and “obey the instructions of the security forces and the traffic signs,” Adraee said, warning that Hamas is trying to mislead residents with fake maps and directions.
“We call on civilians not to fall for rumors and disinformation,” the IDF said.
On Tuesday, the army accused the terror organization of creating “the biggest human shield in history in Gaza City.
It is preventing the population from evacuating” through propaganda, threats, and even violence against people trying to reach Al-Mawasi.
Israel has repeatedly said it has stocked the zone with shelters, food, water and medical aid.
Over the past two days, the air force and Artillery Corps have bombed more than 150 terror targets in Gaza City, including a weapons-production facility preparing explosive charges for streets where IDF troops were expected, the IDF said.
Tanks and ground troops are advancing further into the city in an operation the army admits will take several months to fully clear Hamas guerrillas from the dense urban area.
https://worldisraelnews.com/idf-opens-2nd-evacuation-route-out-of-gaza-city-without-security-checks/
UN panel that determined genocide in Gaza made up of ‘Hamas proxies,’ Israel says
Sept. 17, 2025
The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, whose three members have all come under fire for documented antisemitic statements, issued its “legal analysis” of genocide claims in Gaza.
The U.N. commission’s new report, which it issued on Tuesday, “finds that the Israeli security forces were aware that their military operations since Oct. 7, 2023, would cause the deaths of Palestinians in Gaza.”
“Furthermore, considering the duration of the military operations and reports of high numbers of deaths, it is reasonable to find that the Israeli authorities knew of the high numbers of casualties in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023,” the report says.
“Nevertheless, Israeli authorities did not intervene to change the means and methods of warfare employed.”
The report accuses the Israeli military of continuing its operations and causing “even more Palestinian deaths.”
“The commission therefore finds that the Israeli authorities intended to kill as many Palestinians as possible through its military operations in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, and knew that the means and methods of warfare employed would cause mass deaths of Palestinians, including children,” it states.
UN Watch said that the commission “never acknowledges that the IDF is engaged in combat with an estimated 30,000-strong Hamas force in Gaza, as well as thousands of fighters from other militant groups.”
“A reader would come away believing the war has the IDF deployed against only women and children, with Hamas erased from the narrative,” the nonprofit stated.
The first mention of Hamas in the report comes on page eight.
The commission accuses Israel of killing a large number of civilians, using Israeli statistics that it had killed 8,900 terrorists.
That figure is the number of terrorists that Israel can identify by name, but not a full tally of the number of combatants it has killed.
The report also states that “Israel launched its military offensive in Gaza” on Oct. 7, 2023.
It does not mention that Israel launched a defensive war based on the Hamas-led terror attacks in the southern part of the Jewish state earlier that day.
“There is no mention of Hamas’s 17-year military buildup in Gaza,” UN Watch stated.
It adds that the commission “ignores Hamas’s openly acknowledged human shield strategy” and “omits the fact that Hamas took Israeli hostages and continues to hold them, starve them and rape them.”
In its report, the commission stated that Israel intended to kill Palestinian civilians, since Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Oct. 7 that the Jewish state would take “mighty vengeance” on “all of the places which Hamas is deployed, hiding and operating in, that wicked city. We will turn them into rubble.”
“Although Netanyahu’s statement carefully directed the call for vengeance at ‘Hamas locations,’ his use of the phrase ‘wicked city’ in the same statement implied that he saw the whole city of Gaza as responsible and a target for vengeance,” the panel said.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said the report is “distorted and false” and that members of the commission are “Hamas proxies.”
“The report relies entirely on Hamas falsehoods, laundered and repeated by others,” the ministry stated. “These fabrications have already been thoroughly debunked.”
B’nai B’rith International stated that the “expressly prejudiced” commission “was established and populated by the openly prejudiced Human Rights Council, which systematically targets Israel more than all of the world’s most atrocious human rights abusers combined.”
“Predictably, the commission parrots the propaganda libel that the democratic Jewish state commits ‘genocide,’” B’nai B’rith stated.
“This big lie will undermine the global human rights system more than it tarnishes Israel, but we will combat it unceasingly.”
“Israel, which has shown more care for civilians exploited as human shields by its relentless enemies than any party to any war, will justly fight to protect its own civilians’ lives, and it will survive adversaries’ shameless defamation,” it added.
https://www.jns.org/un-panel-that-determined-genocide-in-gaza-made-up-of-hamas-proxies-israel-says/
Palestinians say 40 killed in Gaza strikes; children’s hospital targeted by drone, no injuries
September 17, 2025 4:34 pm
At least 40 people were killed across the Gaza Strip today in Israel’s latest strikes, including 30 in Gaza City, Hamas-run local health authorities says.
They also report a drone attack on a specialist children’s hospital, which did not cause casualties but forced young patients and their families outside.
A day after Israel announced the launch of its ground offensive to seize control of Gaza’s main urban center, tanks had moved short distances towards the city’s central and western areas from three directions, but no major advance was reported.
An Israeli official said military operations were focused on getting civilians to head south and that fighting would intensify over the next month or two.
The Hamas-run government’s Ministry of Health says an Israeli drone dropped grenades on one floor of the Rantissi children’s hospital. No casualties were reported but the ministry said some 40 families took their children away.
“This hospital is the only specialist facility for children with cancer, kidney failure, and other life-threatening conditions – but even these gravely ill children are not spared from relentless bombardment,” says Fikr Shalltoot, Gaza director at the UK-based charity Medical Aid for Palestinians.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Hamas figures could not be verified and do not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/palestinians-say-40-killed-in-gaza-strikes-childrens-hospital-targeted-by-drone-no-injuries/
They're still almost as high as Hunter though
Internet down as Gaza 'cut off from outside' after IDF bombs down communication towers
10:43 ET, 17 Sep 2025
Northern Gaza has been cut off from the rest of the world as Israeli strikes on main network lines resulted in a collapse of internet and telephone services, reports the Palestinian Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, located in the West Bank.
The Associated Press reports they tried to establish contact with individuals in Gaza City and have been unsuccessful.
A day into the IDF's new offensive in Gaza, the Israeli military's Arabic-language spokesperson, Col. Avichay Adraee, announced on social media that a new route along Gaza's coastline will open at noon on Wednesday for residents heading south.
He stated that it will remain open for two days.
A day after Israel announced its ground offensive to take over Gaza's main urban center, tanks have moved short distances towards the city's central and western areas from three directions, but no significant advancement has been reported.
An Israeli official stated that military operations are focused on encouraging civilians to move south and warned that fighting is expected to escalate over the next couple of months.
Earlier today, at least 40 people were killed across the Gaza Strip due to Israel's latest strikes, including 30 in Gaza City, according to local health authorities run by Hamas.
They also reported a drone attack on a children's hospital, which, while not causing any casualties, forced young patients and their families to evacuate.
The death toll does not distinguish between civilians and fighters, but it includes several women and children, say health officials.
This comes as PLOS Global Public Health — described on its website as "an open access forum for research that reaches across disciplines and regional boundaries" —
published a report that found that Gaza's improvised medical points (MPs), makeshift clinics set up in tents and temporary shelters, some operated by the Hamas-run Health Ministry and others by nonprofits or voluntary teams, are struggling to provide even basic care amid severe shortages of medicines, equipment, and trained staff.
The latest Israeli operation, which started Tuesday, further escalates a conflict that has roiled the Middle East and likely pushes any ceasefire farther out of reach.
The Israeli military, which says it wants to "destroy Hamas' military infrastructure," hasn't given a timeline for the offensive, but there were indications it could take months.
Many have been attempting to relocate from the city, where 1 million people once lived, to the southern Gaza Strip following Israeli military calls for a full evacuation.
In response, the European Union has unveiled a plan to pressure Israel into ending the Gaza war.
This includes increasing tariffs on certain Israeli goods and imposing sanctions on 10 Hamas leaders, Israeli settlers, and two members of Netanyahu's Cabinet.
Given that the EU is Israel's largest trading partner, these tariffs could significantly impact Israel's economy.
However, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has pledged to resist this European campaign.
The EU remains divided over the war, and it's uncertain whether a majority will back the sanctions and trade measures.
https://www.themirror.com/news/world-news/internet-down-gaza-cut-outside-1395151