What Europe is writing about: Fed raises rates for the first time since 2023, Trump threatens EU over Canada, Hague convicts Thaçi

🔁 What's moving Europe today

• The US Fed raised interest rates for the first time since 2023, Trump immediately attacked central bank chief Warsh and is demanding a cut to 1%. Nearly all of Europe is covering it. 🇩🇪 ↗ · 🇫🇷 ↗ · 🇮🇹 ↗ · 🇪🇸 ↗ · 🇵🇱 ↗ · 🇬🇧 ↗
  • 🇳🇱 US stocks reacted nervously regardless — according to De Telegraaf, the Fed chief isn't bothered by Trump's pressure. De Telegraaf ↗
• The US Congress has finally passed a sanctions bill against Russia named after Senator Lindsey Graham, who died in July — under it, Trump can impose tariffs of up to 100% on the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas, and the sanctions also target Putin directly. The House of Representatives passed it 262:159, the Senate already did so in August, and the bill now awaits Trump's signature. Slovak and Czech media have not yet reported on the bill itself. 🇩🇪 ↗ · 🇫🇷 ↗ · 🇮🇹 ↗ · 🇹🇷 ↗ · 🇺🇦 ↗ · 🇺🇸 ↗
• Trump is threatening the EU with high tariffs or a complete halt to trade over von der Leyen's plan to offer Canada associate membership in the Union, calling it "ridiculous." Our article → · 🇩🇪 ↗ · 🇫🇮 ↗
  • 🇮🇹 According to La Repubblica, the EU is building an "axis" with Canada as an associate member — a signal aimed at both Washington and Moscow. La Repubblica ↗
• The Hague tribunal sentenced former Kosovo president Hashim Thaçi to 25 years in prison for war crimes, turning a hero of independence into a convict. 🇫🇷 ↗ · 🇮🇹 ↗ · 🇨🇭 ↗ · 🇷🇸 ↗ · 🇭🇷 ↗ · 🇦🇱 ↗
  • 🇲🇪 Montenegrin President Milatović: "Celebrating war criminals has no place in European values." Vijesti ↗
  • 🇭🇷 Serbian President Vučić also mentioned General Ante Gotovina after the verdict, calling the reactions hypocritical. 24sata ↗
• In Sweden, the center-left opposition won by a narrow margin, with the Sweden Democrats losing ground for the first time after years of growth. 🇦🇹 ↗ · 🇩🇰 ↗ · 🇭🇺 ↗ · 🇫🇮 ↗ · 🇳🇱 ↗ · 🇷🇴 ↗
  • 🇸🇪 According to an SVT projection, Sweden's Tidö governing coalition lost the election. Svenska Dagbladet ↗
• A war-damaged building collapsed in Gaza City, killing at least 21 people, including children. 🇩🇪 ↗ · 🇵🇱 ↗ · 🇮🇪 ↗ · 🇸🇮 ↗ · 🇦🇱 ↗
  • 🇮🇹 The building was bombed two years ago; 12 children are among the victims, and dozens of people are missing. ANSA ↗

Tier A — geopolitical relevance for Slovakia

• Pre-election debate in Berlin heats up over AfD, with Schwesig and Holm trading sharp remarks about racism and migration Welt ↗
• CDU state chairs back Chancellor Merz amid pressure on his position Tagesschau ↗
• Germany and Canada to cooperate on artificial intelligence "in the service of humanity" Die Zeit ↗
• Banks put €22 billion into Google and Blackstone's AI project Handelsblatt ↗
• Turkey detains journalist after raid on LGBT organization, while activists from Istanbul have since been released Spiegel ↗
  • What else German media are reporting →

• Poland increases the number of recruits into professional military service Wirtualna Polska ↗
• European Parliament compiles list of countries posing hybrid threats to Europe Wirtualna Polska ↗
• Dispute over judge Berek escalates, as PiS MP Kurowska left the building after a week of occupying it in protest against his nomination Do Rzeczy ↗
• Sejm committee backs civil partnership law despite president's veto Wirtualna Polska ↗
  • What else Polish media are reporting →

• Parliamentary security committee to summon Foreign Minister Szijjártó over his work for automaker BYD Népszava ↗
• Hír TV presenter fired after failing to respond to a viewer's call for an assassination attempt on opposition leader Péter Magyar Népszava ↗
• Interior Minister Pintér gives confused explanation for driving without mandatory insurance HVG ↗
• Opposition leader Péter Magyar (Tisza movement) promises to abolish mandatory chamber fees, prompting an immediate response from the chamber Portfolio ↗
• Fintech Revolut hit by cyberattack, hackers demand ransom Portfolio ↗
• Berlin wants to redraw EU diplomacy, Estonia's Kallas resists major reform Népszava ↗
  • What else Hungarian media are reporting →

• Temelín nuclear plant near the Austrian border shut down on emergency basis ORF ↗
• Austrian ombudswoman "truly shaken" by state of prisons, with staff desperately understaffed Kurier ↗
• Vienna's City Temple (synagogue) reopens after renovation Der Standard ↗
• Two pumps damaged on Saudi Arabian oil pipeline, sabotage suspected ORF ↗
• FPÖ representatives Kickl and Vilimsky meet with Likud representatives in the European Parliament Kleine Zeitung ↗
• Austrian Chancellor Stocker visits Poland, the first such visit in 19 years Kleine Zeitung ↗
  • What else Austrian media are reporting →

• Russia strikes Ukraine overnight, with hits reported from several regions Kyiv Post ↗
• Zelensky signs law against fraudulent call centers Kyiv Post ↗
• Ukraine eliminates Russian general Grunis in occupied Donbas Kyiv Independent ↗
• NATO shoots down Russian "Gerbera" drone over Lithuania Kyiv Post ↗
• Sanctioned former Zelensky press secretary denied entry to the European Parliament Kyiv Independent ↗
• EU ambassadors advance major plan for defense projects, with Ukraine playing a significant role Kyiv Independent ↗
• US eases sanctions on two Belarusian firms as part of prisoner exchange Kyiv Post ↗
  • What else Ukrainian media are reporting →

Tier B — EU heavyweights

• Summer heatwaves caused nearly 8,000 excess deaths, the most since 2003 L'Obs ↗
• CGT union calls strike for October 8 at Total over fuel prices Ouest-France ↗
• Israel and Morocco to open mutual embassies France 24 ↗
• Peak of the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo is behind us France 24 ↗
• Salah Abdeslam again challenges his solitary confinement regime in prison Ouest-France ↗
  • What else French media are reporting →

• Meloni's government surprisingly scraps highway toll for small and medium cars, opposition calls it a pre-election move ANSA ↗
• Ex-Ilva case: layoffs of subcontractor employees suspended, decision awaits Court of Cassation ruling on October 20 Corriere della Sera ↗
• In Milan, three unknown assailants attack and beat a rabbi at a bus stop ANSA ↗
• Defense Minister Crosetto: growing drone threat is making Russia "nervous" La Repubblica ↗
  • What else Italian media are reporting →

Tier C — alternative perspectives

• Pentagon admitted the US has placed weapons in space Neue Zürcher Zeitung ↗
• SVP demands more massive citizenship stripping of dual citizens after the Winterthur attack Tages-Anzeiger ↗
• Head of the state secretariat Seco Budliger announced her resignation, was a key figure in the customs dispute with the US SRF ↗
  • What else Swiss media are writing →

• French minister Rachida Dati was supposed to be a "Trojan horse" in the European Parliament Luxemburger Wort ↗
• Senior Luxembourg police chief escaped disciplinary proceedings, despite falsifying working hours Luxembourg Times ↗

• Unrest in Ceuta: more than 100 attackers set fire to prison cells, injured a guard ABC ↗
• Moncloa changes strategy in Ceuta and shifts the blame onto government delegate Vivas ABC ↗
• Court blocked the use of the port in Ceuta for a migrant camp, government in "shock" eldiario.es ↗
• Torrential downpours paralyzed Valencia, alert declared for ravines El País ↗
• Russia is reportedly hiring a network of hitmen directly on US territory, according to El Mundo, for 40,000 dollars per target El Mundo ↗
  • What else Spanish media are writing →

Tier D — weaker news cycle

• Drone over Charleroi airport halted flight operations, police detained the pilot just before a planned strike La Libre ↗
• De Wever reopens the topic of state reform while searching for 10 billion for the budget De Standaard ↗
• Belgian prime minister confirmed plan to send undocumented migrants to centers outside the EU La Libre ↗
• Unplanned reactor shutdown at controversial Czech nuclear power plant due to a technical problem De Morgen ↗
• Canada and Germany launched cooperation on ethical artificial intelligence De Morgen ↗
  • What else Belgian media are writing →

• Interpol-wanted Russian shooter detained in Lisbon right after arriving from Israel CM Jornal ↗
• US secretly met with Houthis in Oman, effort to ease tensions in the Red Sea Observador ↗
• Portugal is the third country in Europe with the highest number of mpox cases CM Jornal ↗
• Democratic congressman blocked Trump's plan to sell heavy bombs to Israel CM Jornal ↗
  • What else Portuguese media are writing →

• MP Michael Healy-Rae attacked and struck through a car window in central Dublin, ended up in hospital Irish Independent ↗
• Man charged with attempted attack on the prime minister during the Ploughing Championships Irish Examiner ↗
• Central bank warns Ireland's budget deficit will reach 20 billion euros by 2030 The Irish Times ↗
  • What else Irish media are writing →

• General political debates in The Hague revealed chaos in the minority government while searching for a budget agreement de Volkskrant ↗
• Long-sought Oussama B. detained in Paris, helped prepare the murder of lawyer Derk Wiersum NRC ↗
• New Iranian platform tracks down dissidents abroad, a state-sponsored "doxing" effort Trouw ↗
• Netherlands continues to fall in the global gender equality ranking NOS ↗
  • What else Dutch media are writing →

🌍 Other countries

• Burnham pledged "unwavering" support for NATO amid a Russian warning The Mirror ↗
• British soldier died in an accident in Ukraine, Ministry of Defence names Major Paul Wilks The Mirror ↗
• China is building the world's first underwater drone "mother ship", satellite images reveal The Sun ↗
• Piddington asylum camp saga continues, a protected newt could block the plan The Sun ↗
  • What else British media are writing →

• Vučić revealed what he calls the Hague tribunal's "secret mechanism" in the case of KLA commanders Kurir ↗
• World leaders reacted to the verdict against Thaçi and other KLA commanders Danas ↗

• Tera Portföy investment funds collapsed, chairman blamed "Erdoğan and speculators" Cumhuriyet ↗
• Oil price crossed the historic 100-lira threshold Cumhuriyet ↗
• İmamoğlu's trial on "criminal organization" charges continued with its 82nd hearing Milliyet ↗
• Prosecutor recommended expropriating Akbelen forest "in the public interest" Cumhuriyet ↗
• Sharp stock market plunge forced an emergency meeting of the Financial Stability Committee, convened by Finance Minister Şimşek Cumhuriyet ↗

• Victor Ponta's name resurfaces at Cotroceni consultations as a candidate for prime minister Pro TV Stirile ↗
• Mureșan warns that Grindeanu as prime minister would jeopardize EU funds Adevărul ↗
• PSD shields participants of the private jet flight to Mykonos, a Constitutional Court judge among them Libertatea ↗
• Houthis claim they shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet Pro TV Stirile ↗
• After violence at the farmers' protest on Piața Victoriei, the organizer ended up in custody Digi24 ↗

• Croatia summoned the Russian ambassador for talks, after Moscow accused Zagreb of "sucking up to the Kyiv regime" N1 Croatia ↗
• Lithuania confirmed that the explosive-laden drone from Belarus was Russian Index.hr ↗
• A pregnant woman died in Texas after being denied an abortion, family suing the state Index.hr ↗

• Israeli strike killed two people in southern Lebanon Naftemporiki ↗
• Two polls show the ruling ND rising above 30% after the Thessaloniki fair, Tsipras stable, PASOK third Protothema ↗
• Frontex drone spotted a boat with 71 migrants near Crete Protothema ↗

• Green MEP Ohisalo says she was harassed in the European Parliament by participants of an anti-abortion exhibition Helsingin Sanomat ↗
• According to Axios, the US is ready to negotiate with China on artificial intelligence Yle ↗

• Replenishing stocks of anti-drone missiles will take years, warns Deputy Minister Jeglinskas LRT ↗
• President Nausėda: Russia must feel the consequences of the war in Ukraine "in every way" Lietuvos Rytas ↗
• Heating prices will rise by at least a fifth this year, residents already demanding compensation LRT ↗

• Sweden Democrats accuse AI startup Lovable of influencing the election Svenska Dagbladet ↗
• The Left Party V discusses its strategy in the suburbs ahead of new government talks Expressen ↗
• Overseas voting heading for a record, turnout surges sharply in several countries Dagens Nyheter ↗

• In the "Petrohan" case, the defense demands a change of experts Dnevnik ↗
• President Radev, under opposition pressure, proposed help with fuel prices at record levels from 2022 24 Chasa ↗
• Critics responded to Radev's demand to return a textbook to schools, saying he "copies Putin's Russia" Dnevnik ↗
• 43 countries called for an end to "suffocating" restrictions on Afghan women 24 Chasa ↗

• In the affair around Minister Bobnar, the court is soon to hear PM Golob Siol ↗
• Protests in Ljubljana against the amendment to the foreigners act RTV Slovenija ↗
• The defense ministry will get nearly 300 million euros extra in the budget rebalance RTV Slovenija ↗
• Russians admitted a major Ukrainian success, speaking of a "debacle" and an alarming situation Siol ↗

• Twist in the murder case of Satko Kekić in Slovenia, key evidence against suspects collapses Klix.ba ↗
• Putin addressed the nation and linked the upcoming election to the war: "no one can divide us or intimidate us" N1 Bosna ↗
• Dodik visited Tel Aviv with representatives of Banja Luka, aiming to link Israeli know-how with Republika Srpska's potential Klix.ba ↗

• Turkey warned Greece to refrain from further provocations in the Aegean Sea MKD.mk ↗
• Russian satellites flew over the US base two days before the Iranian attack on it MKD.mk ↗
• NATO chief: Europe long assumed the US would always pay the bills MKD.mk ↗

• Russian attacks hit a residential building in Odesa, explosions also shook Kyiv VG ↗
• French fishermen blocked an oil terminal in protest: "we're starving" VG ↗
• More malaria cases recorded near Frankfurt airport VG ↗
• Two Swedish citizens suspected of espionage in Finland NRK ↗

• Aircraft mechanics' strike could cost Icelandair hundreds of millions of krónur a day RÚV ↗
• Union confederation ASÍ backed Wolt couriers in dispute over working conditions RÚV ↗

• Restructuring of Latvian airline airBaltic continues under US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection LSM ↗
• Belarus released some political prisoners, as the US simultaneously eases sanctions LSM ↗

• Estonian scientists call for slowing the development of the most powerful AI systems Äripäev ↗
• Experts say an energy truce between Ukraine and Russia will not lower the oil price ERR ↗

• Coast Guard and FBI boarded oil tankers suspected in an Iranian hacking attack CBS News ↗
• Congressional investigative committee on the Epstein case sanctioned billionaire Leon Black for contempt of Congress NPR ↗

• Sweden expelled an Iranian diplomat over "security-threatening activity" DR ↗
• Number of people missing after floods in Nepal exceeded 6,000 DR ↗

• Ruling party URA pushed through a package of higher pensions and wages alongside lower food and fuel prices ahead of elections Vijesti ↗
• US House of Representatives voted against war with Iran for the third time, three more Republicans joined Vijesti ↗

• Head of the European Commission promised Moldova a concrete roadmap for EU accession Newsmaker ↗
• Ion Crianga, accused of treason, remains under judicial supervision for another 60 days Newsmaker ↗

• "Justice has still not been done" — solidarity with the family of Daphne Caruana Galizia, memorial demonstration years after the journalist's murder keeps the case politically alive Newsbook ↗
• Debate over Malta's image: calls against the country's label of drugs, sex, and alcohol Newsbook ↗

• 109th anti-government protest against PM Rama demands the release of detained demonstrators, march to the bust of Adem Jashari Balkanweb ↗
• Former land registry officials in Vlora and Fier arrested for forging property documents Gazeta Shqiptare ↗

🔁 Cross-country themes

• EU prepares ban on social media for children under 13 — 🇫🇷 FR · 🇲🇩 MD · 🇲🇰 MK · 🇱🇺 LU · 🇸🇪 SE · 🇫🇮 FI
• Devastating floods and landslides in Nepal, number of missing exceeds 6,000 — 🇩🇪 DE · 🇦🇹 AT · 🇳🇱 NL · 🇩🇰 DK · 🇭🇺 HU
• Gold mine collapse in Sudan, dozens dead — 🇱🇹 LT · 🇦🇹 AT · 🇨🇭 CH · 🇧🇦 BA
• Saudi Arabia escalates attacks on Houthis in Yemen, drone reportedly headed for Mecca — 🇬🇷 GR · 🇩🇪 DE · 🇫🇷 FR · 🇹🇷 TR · 🇬🇧 UK · 🇧🇬 BG
• Russian strike destroyed warehouse of the Zelensky family's foundation/media company — 🇺🇦 UA · 🇦🇹 AT · 🇧🇦 BA · 🇲🇩 MD · 🇱🇺 LU
• Russia reportedly provided Iran with intelligence data before the attack on a US base in Saudi Arabia, according to media — 🇧🇪 BE · 🇲🇰 MK · 🇭🇷 HR · 🇱🇻 LV

Foreign-lens candidates

• Carlos Ghosn unsuccessfully tried from Lebanon to halt his corruption trial linked to French minister Rachida Dati. The former Nissan and Renault chief continues to influence French politics remotely, even though he did not attend the court in person — SK/CZ mainstream media are not covering the case. La Libre ↗
• Former Nice mayor Christian Estrosi faces investigation for embezzlement of public funds following a complaint by Eric Ciotti — this reveals the disintegration of the French right ahead of the presidential elections, a topic not covered by SK/CZ media. Le Monde ↗