Latest news for 3 October 2025

UNITED KINGDOM

Terrorist attack.

Prime Minister Starmer has vowed to do everything in his power to protect Jewish people in the UK after a British national identified as Jihad Al-Shamie attacked worshippers in a Manchester synagogue on Yom Kippur, leaving two dead. (BBC)

RUSSIA

Threats on threats.

Putin has used his speech at an annual think tank forum in Sochi to vow a response to what he described as Europe’s militarisation. (Moscow Times)

Comment: He didn’t mention that any European ramp-up in defence spending is a reluctant response to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Meanwhile, Munich just joined the list of Europe’s airports getting shut down by mysterious drone sightings...

GEORGIA

Report to the MFA.

Georgia’s foreign ministry has hauled the German and British ambassadors in for a slap on the wrist over claims they’re meddling in Georgia’s affairs (a presumed reference to recent remarks about its stalled EU bid). (Georgia Today)

Comment: It’s pretty normal for ambassadors to weigh in on any issue — and meet any individual — relevant to their own national interest. So this drama is more a reflection of the ruling party’s sensitivity, including over its Moscow-friendly pivot.

GREECE

Jets for sale?

NATO allies (particularly the US and France) are pushing Greece to sell its ageing Mirage fighter jets for transfer to Ukraine, but Athens isn’t keen. (Ekathimerini)

Comment: Greek reluctance to offer more than token support for Ukraine’s self-defence likely stems from a) a preference to prioritise rival Turkey, and b) an aversion to antagonising Russia, whose tourists help the Greek economy hum.

HONG KONG

Consul-General called out.

DC is dismissing a top Beijing official’s warning against America’s new Consul-General in Hong Kong from meeting “anti-China forces”. (Al Jazeera)

Comment: China’s warning seems to be a reference to Julie Eadeh’s earlier stint in Hong Kong, when authorities leaked a pic of her meeting student protestors in a hotel lobby at the height of the city’s 2019 pro-democracy protests.

MEXICO

Good grades.

President Sheinbaum has finished her first year in office with a 78% approval rating, higher even than her polarising but popular predecessor ‘AMLO’. (El País)Comment: Sheinbaum even enjoys broad support from opposition voters, suggesting she might (in addition to any specific wins) be enjoying a rally-around-the-flag effect amid pressure from the Trump administration.

LEBANON

Money for change?

The US has released $230M in additional funding for Lebanon's security forces, as Beirut pushes to disarm the once-dominant group, Hezbollah. (Times of Israel)

Comment: The US has been helping fund Lebanon’s military since 2006, and it’s now one of the nation’s most widely-respected institutions. The idea has been to build the armed forces as a stabilising force and a counter to Hezbollah. But this year’s US funding approval stands out a little more amid such heavy cuts to US aid elsewhere.