Foreign Minister Marco Rubio says that Trump put the package of sanctions against Russia on hold to assess their impact on the global economy over a 60-day period. Rubio mentioned Ukraine, Iran and the Houthis’ war against Saudi Arabia. All of these are having an impact.
“These conflicts around the world are starting to collide with one another, and they are beginning to have an impact not only on global oil and diesel prices, but also on economies,” said Rubio.
Kyiv carried out a new attack on an oil depot and a data centre near St Petersburg on Saturday night. Trump has asked Kyiv to hold off.
– “The President wants a 60-day period to analyse what the imposition of both sanctions and tariffs means for both the global economy and the US economy,” said Rubio on Saturday.
Washington and Kyiv are thus on a collision course.
TASS reports that the data centre that was hit belongs to the internet company VK, which operates Russia’s largest social media platform, VKontakte. Services are said to be operating as normal, according to Reuters.
Pulkovo Airport in St Petersburg temporarily suspended operations following the Ukrainian attack. Passengers and staff were evacuated.
A logistics centre belonging to the e-commerce giant Ozon was also hit, reports Reuters.
Zelenskyy told the Financial Times this week that Kyiv had “had enough” and would resume air strikes against Russia in response to the Kremlin’s latest wave of attacks. (NTB)
There has been a new security incident at Leipzig Airport.
Police are investigating a potential security breach at Leipzig/Halle Airport in eastern Germany. A car is reported to have broken into the site by breaching a fence, according to DPA.
The hole in the fence is said to be near a Russian Antonov cargo aircraft that was parked on the premises, according to a police spokesperson.
The intrusion triggered a major police operation on Saturday night. The area was searched, but the police found no unauthorised persons or suspicious objects at the scene.
The investigation is still ongoing.
The northern runway is closed, as is all traffic to and from the northern part of the airport, which is one of Europe’s largest freight hubs.
On 4 August, drones and explosives were found near a Ukrainian cargo aircraft at the same airport in Leipzig. The German authorities believe Russia was behind the incident. (NTB)
