NEWSLETTER
Thursday / September 29Sep 29
Friday / April 15
Russia plays nuclear card with Scandinavia
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council warned NATO on Thursday that if Sweden and Finland joined the U.S.-led military alliance then Russia would deploy nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles in a European exclave.
Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, and Sweden are considering joining the NATO alliance. Finland will decide in the next few weeks, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday.
Medvedev said that should Sweden and Finland join NATO then Russia would have to strengthen its land, naval and air forces in the Baltic Sea.
Medvedev also explicitly raised the nuclear threat by saying that there could be no more talk of a "nuclear free" Baltic - where Russia has its Kaliningrad exclave sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania.
"There can be no more talk of any nuclear–free status for the Baltic - the balance must be restored," said Medvedev, who was Russian president from 2008 to 2012.
Medvedev said he hoped Finland and Sweden would see sense. If not, he said, they would have to live with nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles close to home.
Russia's submarine test
Two submarines of the Russian Pacific Fleet launched Kalibr cruise missiles in drills in the Sea of Japan Thursday, according to Russia's Tass news agency, in an apparent warning to Japan and the United States, engaged in a joint military exercise nearby.
Two diesel-electric submarines, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Volkhov, fired missiles while submerged against a naval target, the news agency reported citing the Fleet's press office.
The launch came as Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln conducted their joint exercise.
The cruise missiles accurately hit the target represented by a special ship structure meant to simulate an enemy surface combatant, according to the report.
A Russian warship stationed in the Black Sea has sunk, according to a Russian state-owned media report. Earlier in the day, the flagship missile cruiser from the Black Sea fleet was hit by a Ukrainian missile attack and evacuated, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Russian oligarchs targeted
The United Kingdom on Thursday announced that it had frozen assets belonging to two Russian oligarchs worth up to 10 billion pounds, or $13 billion.
The move against Eugene Tenenbaum and David Davidovich, two close associates of the better-known Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, represent the largest asset freeze action in British history, according to a government spokesperson.
Thursday’s asset freeze comes one day after authorities on the offshore tax haven of Jersey froze assets valued at more than $7 billion that are suspected of being connected to Abramovich.
US stocks
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite fell Thursday, capping a losing week as investors digested mixed earnings results from major banks and rising inflation.
The broad-market index fell 1.21% to 4,392.59, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 2.14% to 13,351.08. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 113.36 points, or 0.33%, to 34,451.23.
The S&P 500 is down 2.13% for the four-day holiday week. The Nasdaq Composite is off 2.63%, and the Dow is down 0.78% for the week. Trading is closed at the NYSE on Friday.
On Thursday, the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose back to multiyear highs, climbing 13 basis points to top 2.8%.
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council warned NATO on Thursday that if Sweden and Finland joined the U.S.-led military alliance then Russia would deploy nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles in a European exclave.
Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, and Sweden are considering joining the NATO alliance. Finland will decide in the next few weeks, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday.
Medvedev said that should Sweden and Finland join NATO then Russia would have to strengthen its land, naval and air forces in the Baltic Sea.
Medvedev also explicitly raised the nuclear threat by saying that there could be no more talk of a "nuclear free" Baltic - where Russia has its Kaliningrad exclave sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania.
"There can be no more talk of any nuclear–free status for the Baltic - the balance must be restored," said Medvedev, who was Russian president from 2008 to 2012.
Medvedev said he hoped Finland and Sweden would see sense. If not, he said, they would have to live with nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles close to home.
Russia's submarine test
Two submarines of the Russian Pacific Fleet launched Kalibr cruise missiles in drills in the Sea of Japan Thursday, according to Russia's Tass news agency, in an apparent warning to Japan and the United States, engaged in a joint military exercise nearby.
Two diesel-electric submarines, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Volkhov, fired missiles while submerged against a naval target, the news agency reported citing the Fleet's press office.
The launch came as Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln conducted their joint exercise.
The cruise missiles accurately hit the target represented by a special ship structure meant to simulate an enemy surface combatant, according to the report.
A Russian warship stationed in the Black Sea has sunk, according to a Russian state-owned media report. Earlier in the day, the flagship missile cruiser from the Black Sea fleet was hit by a Ukrainian missile attack and evacuated, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Russian oligarchs targeted
The United Kingdom on Thursday announced that it had frozen assets belonging to two Russian oligarchs worth up to 10 billion pounds, or $13 billion.
The move against Eugene Tenenbaum and David Davidovich, two close associates of the better-known Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, represent the largest asset freeze action in British history, according to a government spokesperson.
Thursday’s asset freeze comes one day after authorities on the offshore tax haven of Jersey froze assets valued at more than $7 billion that are suspected of being connected to Abramovich.
US stocks
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite fell Thursday, capping a losing week as investors digested mixed earnings results from major banks and rising inflation.
The broad-market index fell 1.21% to 4,392.59, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 2.14% to 13,351.08. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 113.36 points, or 0.33%, to 34,451.23.
The S&P 500 is down 2.13% for the four-day holiday week. The Nasdaq Composite is off 2.63%, and the Dow is down 0.78% for the week. Trading is closed at the NYSE on Friday.
On Thursday, the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose back to multiyear highs, climbing 13 basis points to top 2.8%.
