News

Norwegian gas transportation operator Gassco has revised its estimate of the planned gas outage from September 25 to 28 to 5.5 million cubic meters from 4.7 million cubic meters.

Iran's disruption of the Strait of Hormuz has created political problems for President Trump and his Republican Party ahead of the November midterm congressional elections. Paul Musgrave, an associate professor of government at Georgetown University in Qatar, said the election results will show how much room the White House has for maneuver in negotiations with Iran. A significant setback, including losing several Senate seats, could push the White House to take more unilateral action, perhaps including resuming the war. This could lead to "escalation first, then negotiations, so the U.S. doesn't look like it's surrendering, or that the U.S. is dragging Democrats into a peace process and getting everyone's hands stained." Musgrave said that Trump made it clear in his UN General Assembly speech that he doesn't expect a deal before the midterm elections, and Iranian civilian diplomats are choosing this time to "propose something the U.S. can't accept," referring to Iran's seven-day plan to end the war.

According to Interfax news agency, the Kremlin stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed Ukraine and energy cooperation with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić during a phone call.

Swiss National Bank President: The current decline in the Swiss franc is a minor counter-trend to the long-term strengthening of the currency.

Swiss National Bank President: Food prices are rising, but the increase in inflation is almost entirely due to gasoline prices.

Swiss National Bank President: Interest rates can remain unchanged because inflation is in line with the target.

Swiss National Bank President: We are closely monitoring the impact of summer heat on food prices.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center reports that Nolo remains almost stationary south of the Big Island of Hawaii and is expected to intensify over the next few days while remaining far from the Hawaiian Islands.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center reports that Fay has weakened again into a tropical depression. Tropical Depression Fay is located about 1,115 miles (1,790 kilometers) west-southwest of the Azores; maximum sustained winds are 35 miles per hour (55 kilometers per hour).

U.S. officials told Al Jazeera they are in no hurry to respond to Iran's seven-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Paul Musgrave, associate professor of government at Georgetown University Qatar, believes President Trump would like lower oil and gasoline prices, but he also wants to show he's not in a rush. Trump doesn't want to end the war on conditions that could negate those benefits. The Israeli elections are also at play. The uncertain future of Israel's ruling coalition actually puts "more pressure on the war to continue" than on delaying the nuclear issue, or certainly not on withdrawing from Lebanon. If people believe Iran is actually trying to reach an agreement due to economic pressure, it's a signal to the U.S. that it's time to step on the accelerator and increase that pressure further.

Regional authorities say the attack by Ukraine on Russia’s Krasnodar region has killed three people.

The Ukrainian military says it has launched an attack on the Ilsky oil refinery in southern Russia.

Ford Motor Company (F.N) is recalling 11,405 vehicles in the United States because the rearview camera images fail to display, narrowing the driver's view behind the vehicle and increasing the risk of a collision.

According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, Russian air defense systems destroyed 645 Ukrainian drones in multiple locations overnight.

According to Al Jazeera, the Iraqi government stated that it is in consultation with Washington to protect (some) Iraqi airports from the U.S. Treasury Department's measures targeting Iranian flights.

Kuwait News Agency: Kuwaiti crude oil prices fell $4.78 to $108.69 per barrel.

According to RIA Novosti, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian forces struck a port facility in the Uodessa region that was receiving European weapons.

According to Nikkei: Leapmotor (09863.HK) surpassed Japanese automakers Subaru and Mitsubishi Motors for the first time in global car sales during the April-June quarter, thanks to its expansion in regions such as Europe and strong demand for affordable electric vehicles.

Kuwaiti Foreign Minister: On Friday, he met with the EU’s Special Representative for the Gulf Region in New York. During the meeting, the two sides reviewed the latest developments in the regional and international situation and exchanged views on several issues of common concern.

Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar: I was pleased to co-chair the event with the Greek External Affairs Minister entitled "Artificial Intelligence in the Context of International Peace and Security, with a Focus on Maritime Security." The event emphasized the need to fully leverage the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence, anticipate its impact, and mitigate its risks. We also highlighted how, in the maritime sector, artificial intelligence can enhance maritime situational awareness, search and rescue capabilities, disaster response capabilities, suspicious activity identification, and the resilience of ports and critical infrastructure.