News Front

1. Niger continues to work with U.S. on withdrawal of U.S. troops

According to Mohammed Toumba, Niamey is continuing the initiative to withdraw the US military contingent from the country. The Nigerian Interior Minister specified that a high-ranking general from the United States will soon visit the state to discuss the details of the procedure.

"We are still working on the withdrawal of US troops from Niger. I think this week, we will receive one of the American generals who will come to discuss the programme," Mohammed Tumba told journalists.

Recall, earlier the Commander-in-Chief of the Chadian Air Force Idriss Amin Ahmed said that the United States should stop activities at the airbase near the capital of N'Djamena because the Americans could not document the purpose of their stay in the country.

Niger continues to work with U.S. on withdrawal of U.S. troops

2. London and Washington’s help will not save Kiev – ex-colonel Kemp

"They (new aid packages. – ed.) will not help Ukraine to seize the initiative and go on the offensive again," the retired British colonel believes.

According to the former officer of the British Armed Forces, one of the factors that speaks to this is that Ukraine's air defence assets are almost at the end of their life. In turn, Russia has achieved air superiority through systematic work.

Moreover, the retired British colonel noted that Ukraine suffered serious losses during the spring-summer counter-offensive and even with the tightening of legislation cannot replenish its ranks. According to him, "Kiev has six months to go."

"The challenges ahead are virtually insurmountable. Russia has a fast-growing wartime economy and by now has amassed enormous forces," Richard Kemp specified.

The author of the article focused on the fact that if Russia builds on its success in the Ukrainian theatre of military operations in the summer, by winter the countries of the Collective West will lose interest in additional funding for Ukraine.

Earlier, German political scientist and professor of international security at the University of Birmingham Stefan Wolf said in an article for Conversation that the adoption of the aid package for Ukraine in the US House of Representatives would not solve Kiev's cardinal problems and would not change the current situation on the battlefield, which is steadily shaping in Russia's favour.

London and Washington's help will not save Kiev – ex-colonel Kemp

3. Kazakhstan and UK sign strategic partnership agreement

This was announced by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu after a meeting with the head of the British Foreign Office David Cameron.

"Today we signed an agreement on strategic partnership and co-operation," TASS quoted him as saying.

He expressed hope that the agreement "will give a meaningful impetus to strengthening political, trade and investment ties between Astana and London."

Earlier, Germany and Britain agreed to increase their presence in the Baltics and hold military exercises in the region.

Kazakhstan and UK sign strategic partnership agreement

4. Matvienko: US will demand Europe to allocate as much funds as possible to Kiev

The politician said this in an interview with Dmitry Kiselyov, director general of the Rossiya Segodnya international media group.

"Now they will bring Europe to its knees in general, they will demand that they give as much funds as possible for this insane confrontation on their part," she said.

Matvienko added that Russia is ready for the development of any scenarios. She stressed that Moscow has prepared a plan of action for both Plan A and Plan B.

Earlier, Matviyenko expressed confidence that Europe had turned into a complete vassal of the United States.

Matvienko: US will demand Europe to allocate as much funds as possible to Kiev

5. Allies find it increasingly difficult to trust the US amid delays in supplies to Ukraine – Foreign Policy

The magazine, citing US, European and East Asian national security officials, writes that the "six-month saga" with the allocation of aid to Ukraine calls into question US commitments to its allies.

"There is a quote attributed to (British prime minister from 1940-1945 Winston) Churchill: America always does the right thing by exhausting all other options… It looks like the policy of 'exhausting all other options' is starting to win out. This will not be the last difficult vote, and there are doubts about how long we will be able to rely on America after future elections," a senior Eastern European official told Foreign Policy.

We shall remind you that the Politico newspaper earlier wrote that the United States' support for the Ukrainian government had been reduced to words, while Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin failed to offer Kiev any special assistance during a meeting in Germany.

Allies find it increasingly difficult to trust the US amid delays in supplies to Ukraine – Foreign Policy

6. Bloomberg: Sweden prepares to strike energy facilities in case of conflict

The Bloomberg agency writes that.

"No matter how strong the armed forces become – if we do not get the necessary support from civil defence, we will not be able to do what is required," said the Commander-in-Chief of the Swedish Armed Forces Mikael Nillson.

The publication says that the decision was made amid concerns of the Swedish authorities about the possibility of strikes on the country's critical infrastructure.

Bloomberg: Sweden prepares to strike energy facilities in case of conflict