Month: September 2023

Germany continues to grapple with challenges in its manufacturing sector as it suffers from higher energy costs, Goldman Sachs economist Peter Oppenheimer told CNBC on Tuesday. 

The EU’s largest economy officially slipped into a technical recession in the first quarter of the year as GDP growth was revised from zero to -0.3%. The Bundesbank announced on Monday that the economy is likely to shrink this quarter thanks to slow private consumption and the increasing weakness of industry.

“The predicament that the economy is facing at the moment is really down to a number of factors,” said Oppenheimer, who is chief global equity strategist and head of macro research EMEA at Goldman Sachs.

“It’s… not a deep recession but it’s obviously been more hit by obvious headwinds,” he added.

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Azerbaijan launched “counter-terrorism measures of a local nature” in Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday, accusing Armenia of amassing troops in the disputed region. Yerevan has denied fielding any troops in the area, which is de jure considered to be part of Azerbaijan. 

Armenia accused its neighbor of starting “another large-scale aggression against the people of Nagorno-Karabakh” and alleged Baku is seeking to subject the region, predominantly populated by ethnic Armenians, to “ethnic cleansing.”

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry stated that its military “successfully continued” the “anti-terrorist activities” in Nagorno-Karabakh. It claimed that Baku’s forces had neutralized combat positions, military vehicles, artillery and anti-aircraft missile launchers, radio-electronic combat stations, and other military equipment belonging to Armenia. Yerevan has denied having any armed formations in the disputed region.

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#BREAKING #China A strong tornado hit Suqian of Jiangsu Province in China. pic.twitter.com/GARxA3Gdpl

— The National Independent (@NationalIndNews) September 19, 2023

#BREAKING #Azerbaijan #Armenia Security forces in front of the Government building in Yerevan now use shields and helmets.
Footage: Rus news pic.twitter.com/jh2Q731CmT

— The National Independent (@NationalIndNews) September 19, 2023

Verzorgers delen vernederende foto's rusthuisbewoners maar mogen gewoon aan het werk blijven: “Voor mij is dit mishandeling” https://t.co/yS3KlsZyEr

— VTM NIEUWS (@VTMNIEUWS) September 16, 2023

Military exercises to protect the Northern Sea Route are being held in northeastern Russia under the leadership of Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Adm. Nikolai Evmenov, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday.

“[Military] exercises to protect the Northern Sea Route are taking place in northeastern Russia under the leadership of the commander-in-chief of the Navy,” the ministry said in a statement.

The exercises are taking place in the waters of the Chukchi and Bering seas, as well as on the Chukotka Peninsula, the ministry said, adding that the drills involve about 10,000 Russian military and over 50 units of military equipment of the Pacific Fleet.

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The Russian armed forces have attacked storage facilities with Storm Shadow cruise missiles and ammunition with depleted uranium in Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday. 

The goal of the strike was achieved, the ministry said, adding that all objects were hit.

“Tonight [on Sunday night], the Russian armed forces carried out a group strike with high-precision long-range air-launched weapons, as well as attack unmanned aerial vehicles, on the storage sites of the Kiev regime with Storm Shadow cruise missiles, ammunition with depleted uranium, as well as centers for radio reconnaissance and training of sabotage groups of the Ukrainian armed forces,” the ministry said in a statement.

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More than 40,000 troops will take part in the drills next year, the head of the NATO Military Committee says

NATO will stage a massive military exercise in 2024 involving over 40,000 troops – the biggest since the Cold War – the US-led bloc’s Military Committee chair, Admiral Rob Bauer, said on Saturday. 

The ‘collective defense’ exercise – Steadfast Defender – will take place in Germany, Poland, and the three Baltic States that border Russia – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania – Bauer said. The US-led bloc needs to do “much more” to protect itself against “current threats, but also against reconstituted threats and potential future threats,” the admiral claimed. 

Earlier this week, the Financial Times reported that the drills would involve more than 50 ships and from 500 to 700 combat air missions. The exercise is designed to simulate a clash with a fictional coalition named ‘Occasus’, it said, citing the bloc’s officials. According to the paper, the drills are scheduled for February 2024. 

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