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Spain bans Israel bound weapons ships and aircraft over Gaza
Spain banned Monday ships and aircraft that carry weapons to Israel to enter its ports or airspace in response to Israel's offensive against Gaza. The Israeli Foreign Minister called the measures antisemitic. Spain, which recognized a Palestinian State in May 2024, and has been vocal in its criticism of Israel's action in the Gaza Strip responded to Gideon Saar’s comments by calling back its ambassador in Tel Aviv for consultations. The government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has announced that it will not allow anyone to enter Spain who is directly involved in the "genocide", in Gaza. Israel denies that its actions in Gaza constitute genocide. It is currently fighting a case before the International Court of Justice at The Hague in which it has been accused of genocide. Israel began its attack on the Gaza Strip after Hamas militants, who controlled the territory, had attacked Israeli communities and killed 1,200 people, while capturing over 250 hostages. Saar claimed that Sanchez was using these measures to distract attention from corruption scandals at home. He also announced an entry ban for Sanchez's deputy Yolanda Diz and Youth Minister Sira Regio. Both are members of the hard-left Sumar party, which is the junior partner to Sanchez's coalition. The Spanish Foreign Ministry has said that the entry ban imposed by Israel is unacceptable. It also stated that Sanchez's actions were in line and reflect Madrid's support of peace, human right and international law. Spain is committed to combating antisemitism. It cited the fact that 72,000 Sephardic Jews, descendants of those who were expelled from Iberian Peninsula during the 15th century, have been granted Spanish citizenship. The ministry issued a statement in which it condemned the "terrorist attack in East Jerusalem" that took place on Monday, in which Palestinian gunmen opened up at a bus station, killing six people including a Spaniard living in Israel. (Reporting and editing by Inti Latona and David Latona, Andrei Khalip, Helen Popper and Charlie Devereux)
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China's demand for Russian ESPO crude oil keeps it firm despite increasing western sanctions pressure
The price of Russian ESPO blend crude oil for October loading cargoes remained stable as traders reported on Monday that the strong demand from China and abundant supply offset the growing pressure from Western sanctions. They said that cargoes loaded from the Far Eastern Port of Kozmino were sold for a premium of about $2 per barrel over ICE Brent, on a delivery-basis to Chinese ports. This was a little different from September's levels. Intense Ukrainian drone attacks have struck several major Russian oil refining facilities in the last few weeks. This has led to a decrease in feedstock processing and an increase in crude exports. The price stability is despite the new wave of Western sanctions targeting Russian oil exports. Last week, Britain, the European Union and other countries lowered the price of Russian crude oil from $60 per barrel to $47.60. Buyers were required to submit certifications within 30 days after loading in order to continue to have access to Western shipping and insurance services. The EU has announced its 18th package of sanctions, which includes a blacklist of dozens of entities. These include Indian refiner Nayara Energy as well as several Chinese companies accused of helping Russia to bypass restrictions. The measures tighten control on energy and technology exports, and ban fuels derived from Russian crude beginning in January 2026. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, announced on Sunday that he is ready to implement a second round of restrictions. The EU Council's Antonio Costa also said that new sanctions are being closely coordinated with United States. Traders have noted that Chinese oil demand remains strong, despite the threat of Western sanctions. Chinese buyers will also receive Urals and Arctic crudes via the Northern Sea Route in addition to ESPO. The latest step in the strengthening of financial ties between Beijing, Russia and the United States was taken on Friday when the Chinese rating agency CSCI Pengyuan gave its highest AAA-rating to the Russian oil and natural gas giant Gazprom, which is blacklisted by the U.S. A trader stated that ESPO premiums may soften if U.S. Tariffs drive Indian purchases lower and more oil flows into China. A trader said that because Urals and ESPO are different in quality, increased Urals flow may not have an impact on ESPO prices. Urals is a sour oil, while ESPO can be described as a light and low-sulphur type of oil. (Reporting and Editing by Joe Bavier).
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Rosatom and Gazprom investigate sales of Chinese "panda" bonds
Sources from top Russian companies, including the vast Russian nuclear corporation Rosatom, and giant gas concern Gazprom, are looking at selling "panda bonds" denominated in yuan, according to company sources on Monday. Western capital markets, however, remain closed to Russia. Since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russian companies are no longer able to access the capital markets of the West. The Financial Times reported Monday that China is preparing to reopen the domestic bond market for major Russian energy companies, as Xi Jinping & Vladimir Putin continue to deepen their partnership "without limits". Putin, who visited China this week, called for a joint financial infrastructure between countries in the 'Global South.' He also suggested that the members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation should sell their shares. Joint bonds The Chinese rating agency CSCI Pengyuan has assigned the highest AAA rating to Gazprom. This company holds the largest reserves of natural gases in the world. This opens the door for possible debt issuance on China's bond market. Rosatom, the largest nuclear company in the world, is preparing to also issue bonds denominated in yuan, according to a spokesperson. Ilya Rebrov, the Chief Financial Officer of Rosatom, told a publication in August that in order to raise funds from abroad, the Supervisory Board had approved plans. He also said that preparations were underway for Atomenergoprom's generation unit to issue bonds in Yuan. Atomenergoprom announced in April that it received a "AAA" credit rating from China's Dagong Global Credit Rating Agency with a stable outlook. The Chinese government will need to approve any Russian bonds, and the buyers of Russian corporate Yuan bonds must weigh the risks of secondary sanctions from the U.S. CHINESE BANK BONDS FOR RUSSIAN COMPANIES? According to Deutsche Bank, the market for Panda Bonds, a Chinese Yuan-denominated bonds from a non Chinese issuer, has seen record growth in both 2023 and 2024. This was driven by geopolitical conflicts. Even though the conflict in Ukraine began, only one Russian company - aluminium producer Rusal - sold panda bond. Companies have issued yuan bonds on the Russian market, which is a small and shallow one. The yuan currency has also become the most popular foreign currency in Russia. China's bond market offers a much larger reservoir of capital. Famil Sadygov, Gazprom's deputy CEO, said that the company was "strongly creditworthy" and the rating confirms the financial stability of the company. One source with direct knowledge about the situation said that a long-term issuer ratings on Gazprom would not necessarily result in an issuance of bonds denominated in yuan. "There's no certainty about the bond issue yet. A rating allows you to enter the market if necessary. "This is work for future," said the source. According to Kirill Lysenko, an analyst at Expert RA - Russia's oldest rating agency - the approval process will still take place, but it could take many years. Lysenko stated that "Chinese financial institutions and regulators can be under increased pressure at any time in the form secondary sanctions by major Western economies." Gazprom was given an "AAA" credit rating with stable outlook just after Russia, China and other countries gave their approval to Power of Siberia 2 - a huge gas pipeline linking both countries in a bid to reduce economic dependence on the West. Gazprom is unable to raise finance in the United States and Europe, but it has not been subjected to U.S. blockade sanctions. Rosatom's top management has been sanctioned by the U.S., but Rosatom itself is not subject to sanctions. CSCI Pengyuan cited high geopolitical risk in its analysis of Gazprom’s outlook and rating decision. (Writing and Addirional Reporting by Shanghai Newsroom, Editing by Kevin Liffey; Written by Gleb Bryasnki & Guy Faulconbridge)
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Haaland is cleared by Norway after a freak bus accident that leaves him with a cut lip
Stale Solbakken, the coach of Norway's national team, said that Erling Haaland would be fit to play against Moldova on Tuesday even though he suffered a cut lip after the luggage door of the bus struck him. On Sunday, the Manchester City player was exiting the back of the bus, outside the hotel where the team stayed, when the luggage door opened, striking him in the nose. Haaland revealed his injury on social networks, stating that he needed three stitches. Solbakken, a Norwegian broadcaster, told NRK: "We should have been glad that it went well because this could have actually gone badly." He added, "I think he went to the dental office, had some stitches and stopped the bleeding, but he's fine for the match." Norway is chasing its first World Cup in over 25 years. They have won four of their four qualifying matches, while Moldova are bottom in Group I, with zero points. (Reporting and editing by Christian Radnedge in Gdansk)
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London's Tube system shuts down as workers start a week-long strike
London's Underground rail network halted on Monday, as workers began a strike over pay and conditions of employment. This caused travel disruptions for both commuters and tourists. The underground rail network is expected to be shut down until Thursday. This means that the 3.7 million people who use it daily will have to work from home or find other ways to travel. Forest, which operates 15 000 e-bikes throughout London, reported that it was experiencing four times the demand for its ebikes at 9 am. Some commuters opted for buses or the few remaining train lines, but most reported longer journeys. Laura Sutton, 46 years old, a legal adviser, was standing near London Bridge Station. Transport for London (which operates London's public transport system) said that it offered staff a pay increase of 3.4%, but the union only accepted a deal if the result was a shorter working week. The RMT union stated that the dispute was centered on pay, fatigue management and shift patterns, as well as a reduction of hours. The spokesperson for Prime Minister Keir starmer told reporters that the PM wanted a solution. They said that "Londoners trying to get to their jobs, dropping off their children at school, and businesses who depend on the Tube to bring in work and footfall, will be tired of these strikes." Outside the Tower of London Peter Rolf (58), a German citizen, told his family that they had decided to reduce their two-day London trip to just one day, and spend more time in England. Patricia Ware (75), who visited from near Chicago, U.S.A., said that it took much longer to get to the historic castle. She said, "We found it difficult to get a taxi here." She was still having a great time in London. "Travelling is at best a hassle. So we just go along with it." Reporting by Will Russell. Marissa Davison. Sam Tabahriti. Sarah Young. Andrew MacAskill. Sachin Ravikumar. William James edited the story.
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Freeport LNG Export Plant in Texas to receive more natgas after Monday's outage
According to a filing made by the company with the state's environmental regulators and data from LSEG, a financial firm, Freeport LNG is on track to receive more natural gas at its Texas export plant on Monday. This indicates that a liquefaction station that was shut down on Saturday will likely be back in operation. Freeport LNG is closely watched by the global market because its start-ups and stop-offs often cause price fluctuations. Gas prices in the United States typically fall when flows to Freeport decrease due to a lower demand for fuels from the export facility. Prices in Europe usually rise due to the drop in LNG supply available on global markets. The U.S. futures market was on course to reach a six-week peak on Monday, due to many factors including the anticipated increase in gas flow to Freeport. Prices in Europe, however, rose by about 3%, for reasons that were not necessarily connected to the plant. Freeport informed Texas environmental regulators that Train 1 of the three liquefaction train at its plant shut down on Saturday because there was a problem with its compressor system. Freeport officials had no comment about the latest outage. Freeport has experienced numerous compressor system problems at its plant in the last month. According to the company's filings to regulators, liquefaction train shut down five times due to these issues. LSEG reported that the amount of natural gas flowing into Freeport is on track to hit 1.9 billion cubic foot per day (bcfd), up from 1.8 bcfd Sunday, and a low of 1.4 bcfd Saturday. This compares to an average of 1.8 billion cubic feet per day over the previous seven days. Three liquefaction plants at Freeport can convert about 2.1 billion cubic feet per day of gas to LNG. A billion cubic feet of natural gas can supply five million U.S. households for one day. (Reporting and editing by Scott DiSavino)
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Israeli military claims it intercepted drones launched from Yemen
Israel's military announced on Monday that it intercepted a Yemeni drone after sirens were heard near Eilat. A day earlier, Yemen's Houthis had launched a drone at an airport in the vicinity of southern Israeli city. The military announced that sirens sounded later on Monday in the Negev region after another drone had been detected. The military did not reveal what happened to the drone. Israel's Ramon Airport, near Eilat, has resumed its operations after a drone fired from Yemen hit the arrivals area on Sunday. Since the beginning of the Gaza war, the Houthis, backed by Iran have launched missiles and drones towards Israel thousands of kilometers north. The militant group claims that this is an act in solidarity with Palestinians. Israel responded by bombing Houthi controlled areas in Yemen, including Hodeidah's vital port. (Reporting and editing by Gareth Jones, Helen Popper, and Ahmed Elimam)
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Milei's heavy defeat in Buenos Aires sets the stage for Argentina's market to sell off
The Argentinian markets are on the verge of a further selloff after a heavy defeat in Buenos Aires for President Javier Milei’s ruling party. This is raising concerns ahead of a crucial October election. According to the official results, the Peronist opposition party won the Sunday legislative elections in the province's key region, while the radical reformist Milei party came in second. The scale of Milei's defeat was far beyond expectations, said JPMorgan analyst Diego Pereira. He added that the resounding win for the opposition during the regional contest meant Milei had a much steeper climb ahead as he tries to deliver a successful outcome at the national midterm election on October 26. The administration could recalibrate its political strategy in order to correct missteps made over the past few months. According to the official count, the Peronists have won 46.8% in the province. The candidate from Milei's Party has taken 33.8%. Argentina, one of the biggest reform stories in emerging markets since Milei was elected president in December 20,23, has seen its market come under pressure over recent weeks. Markets were impacted by political woes and economic pressures. The latter included allegations of corruption involving Milei’s sister Karina Milei and a sharp drop in government and consumer confidence. MARKET SELLOFF Since the scandal broke out, Argentina's main stock index has fallen by around 20%. Its international government bonds are also down and the pressure on the newly unpegged peso has forced the authorities to intervene in the foreign exchange market. Investors said that early market indicators priced a 5 to 6-point drop in the international bonds of the country. Viktor Szabo is the portfolio manager of Aberdeen Investments. Morgan Stanley warned that international bonds would fall by up to 10 percentage points if Milei's radical reform agenda was thwarted. JPMorgan stated that the currency was also vulnerable to further weakening, which could force central banks to reduce their FX spot reserve to absorb excess pesos. Wall Street banks, however, said that the election dynamics in the rest of the nation would be different from Buenos Aires – a Peronist hotspot. The Milei government was also expected to adhere to its fiscal discipline programme despite economic difficulties. The PBA election was held amid tightening domestic financial conditions. This included a depreciation in the peso and expectations for a slight increase in inflation in August. It also coincided with a slowdown in economic growth, according to Goldman Sachs' analyst Sergio Armella. The provincial election will have very little impact on the policy mix adopted by the Milei government, but it is a setback in terms of politics for the government.
How Biden's Gaza pier project unwinded
The first time President Joe Biden's administration considered buying the U.S. armed force to build a drifting pier off Gaza to deliver help in late 2023, it was put on the backburner.
The United States was under pressure to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in the war-torn Palestinian enclave, which had been worsened by Israel's closure of many land border crossings, and sea deliveries were viewed as a possible service.
U.S. Admiral Christopher Grady, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Personnel and a career Navy surface area warfare officer, told a conference that he was very worried that the sea could end up being too rough for a pier to provide humanitarian help and laid out weather-related risks, a former U.S. authorities and an existing U.S. official said.
It wasn't until early 2024 that the idea showed up again as the scenario in Gaza grew more desperate and aid organizations alerted that mass starvation among Palestinian civilians was looming.
We sort of reached a point where it appeared proper to take more risk due to the fact that the need was so excellent, a former senior Biden administration official said.
The resulting pier objective did not work out.
It included 1,000 U.S. soldiers, provided only a portion of the promised aid at an expense of nearly $230 million, and was from the start beleaguered by bad luck and mistakes, including fire, bad weather condition and dangers on coast from the fighting in between Israel and Hamas.
Biden, after assuring a massive increase in help, acknowledged that the pier had disappointed his goals. I was enthusiastic that would be more successful, he told reporters on July 11.
The internal discussions about the Gaza pier, consisting of discarded alternatives to briefly deploy soldiers to the enclave, have not been previously reported.
The pier objective, which was officially ended recently, was the most controversial of the U.S. military's attempts to help include the fallout from the Israel-Hamas war that appeared on Oct. 7, 2023, and has actually drawn criticism from Biden's Republican critics and numerous present and former help employees.
The effort also underscores the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's battles to bring the conflict to a close, both of which are in focus during his see to Washington today.
The Pentagon referred questions about the pier to remarks made at a July 17 rundown with Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, the deputy leader of U.S. Central Command. In it, Cooper said the mission was a success, delivering the largest quantity of help ever into the Middle East.
Mike Rogers, the Republican who leads the Pentagon's. oversight committee in your house of Representatives, called the. pier a humiliation.
The pier was an ill-conceived political computation by the. Biden administration, Rogers told .
NO BOOTS ON THE GROUND
With alarm rising over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza in. 2023, Curtis Reid, chief of staff at the White Home National. Security Council, was tasked with creating a working group with. various government firms to take a look at ways to increase help. into Gaza.
( It) was an ask for firms to put whatever you got. on the table, the previous senior official said. The Pentagon. then started taking a look at alternatives.
Requested comment, the NSC acknowledged inter-agency. conversations on possible policy choices.
Due to the fact that of this work, we had the ability to advance the delivery. of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, making use of every tool. possible, stated Adrienne Watson, an NSC representative.
When the head of the armed force's Central Command, General. Michael Erik Kurilla, at first briefed Defense Secretary. Lloyd Austin about the pier objective, his very first proposition included. a minimal variety of U.S. soldiers on the ground, briefly, to. attach the pier to the shore, the previous authorities stated.
Austin knew that the White Home was opposed to. releasing U.S. forces to Gaza and asked Kurilla to go back and. rework it, a current U.S. official and the previous authorities said.
Kurilla produced a plan to train Israeli forces to do the. setup of the pier on the shore, the former authorities. added. Israeli forces later carried out the plan. The Israeli. prime minister's workplace and defense ministry referred '. concerns about the pier to the U.S. military.
Kurilla's Central Command declined to discuss the record. A U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of privacy,. rejected the account and said boots on the ground was never a. factor to consider.
Present and former officials explained Central Command as. incredibly positive the pier task would succeed.
CENTCOM and General Kurilla, from Day 1, they were. consistent in stating: 'We can do this,' the previous U.S. official stated.
The first turn of misfortune began April 11, when a fire. broke out in the engine room of the USNS 2nd Lt. John P. Bobo, a. Navy ship transferring part of the pier system to the. Mediterranean.
The team put out the fire but the ship had to reverse to. the United States.
THREE FOOT WAVES
Weather condition was an even larger issue.
An early warning of the difficulties from rough seas came last. summertime, when U.S. troops attempted to set up the pier on an. Australian shore during a military workout.
The sea was too rough, a military officer who straight. dealt with the pier workout told .
In the end, the soldiers could not connect the pier to the. beach itself, and rather brought products ashore utilizing boats to. bridge the gap in between completion of the drifting pier and the. beach.
U.S. officials acknowledge that the Mediterranean weather. was a worry. However they were unprepared for how bad the sea. conditions turned out to be.
The forecast that they had (was) essentially that the sea. state was going to be three or less up till around September,. said one senior U.S. defense official, referring to sea state. three, when waves do not go beyond three feet.
Instead, waves broke the pier simply 9 days after it became. operational on May 16. The damage was so bad that it had to be. relocated to the Israeli port of Ashdod for repair work.
The occurrence would be show the norm, with bad weather condition. keeping the pier inoperative for all but 20 days-- half as long. as it required to bring the system across the sea to Gaza.
While there were no deaths or understood direct attacks on the. pier, three U.S. soldiers suffered non-combat injuries in assistance. of the pier in May, with one medically left in crucial. condition.
OVER-ESTIMATING DISTRIBUTION
Providing the food, shelter and medical care that was. brought onshore through the pier likewise proved more difficult than. expected.
The U.S. military aimed to increase to as many as 150 trucks. a day of help coming off the pier.
However since the pier was just operational for a total of 20. days, the military says it moved an overall of only 19.4 million. pounds of help into Gaza. That would have to do with 480 trucks of help. provided in total from the pier, based upon estimates by the. World Food Programme from earlier this year of weight brought by. a truck.
The United Nations states about 500 truckloads of aid are. needed everyday to deal with the needs of Palestinians in Gaza.
Simply days after the very first deliveries of aid rolled off the. pier in Gaza, crowds overwhelmed trucks and took a few of it.
Israel's killings of 7 World Central Cooking area employees in. April and its usage of an area near the pier as it staged a. hostage rescue healing objective in June also dented the. self-confidence of help companies, on whom the U.S. was relying to. bring the supplies from the coast and distribute to citizens.
A senior U.S. defense authorities acknowledged that aid. delivery showed to be possibly more difficult than the. organizers anticipated.
One previous authorities said Kurilla had actually raised distribution as. an issue early on.
General Kurilla was also really clear about that: 'I can do. my piece of this, and I can do circulation if you task me to do. it,' the former authorities stated.
However that was clearly scoped out of what the job was. Therefore we were reliant on these global companies.
Present and former U.S. officials informed that the. United Nations and help companies themselves were always cool. to the pier.
At a closed-door conference of U.S. officials and aid. companies in Cyprus in March, Sigrid Kaag, the U.N. humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza, offered. tacit support for Biden's pier project.
But Kaag worried the UN preference was for land, land,. land, according to two people familiar with the discussions.
The United Nations decreased to talk about the meeting. It. referred to a rundown on Monday where a spokesperson for the. company said that the U.N. appreciated every way of getting. help into Gaza, consisting of the pier, but more gain access to through land. routes is needed.
The hidden concern for aid companies was that Biden,. under pressure from fellow Democrats over Israel's killing of. civilians in Gaza, was pushing a service that would at finest be. a short-term fix and at worst would take pressure off Netanyahu's. federal government to open land routes into Gaza.
Dave Harden, a previous USAID objective director to the West. Bank and Gaza, explained the pier project as humanitarian. theater.
It did ease the pressure, sadly, on having the.
(source: Reuters)