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Russia dismisses German drone incident as 'fabricated provocation'
The Russian Embassy in Berlin on Friday dismissed a suspected 'drone attack' at a major German?air?freight hub as a "fabricated provocation", saying that it was yet another example of accusations made against Russia without any evidence. The?embassy expressed its concern over a new wave in anti-Russian hysteria that has swept Germany, according to a statement posted on the website of its German and Russian versions. The German Federal Prosecutors launched an investigation this week on what they described as a serious incident that could have affected foreign and domestic security. The drone was discovered late Tuesday night at the Leipzig/Halle Airport, an important civilian freight and NATO logistic hub in eastern Germany. It is also home to several giant An-124 aircraft operated by Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines. According to prosecutors, the?drone had?explosives as well as a detonator. A cargo plane, which was performing a go-around because of a runway closure at the airport, collided with what prosecutors believe to be another drone. The jet operated by logistics company DHL?suffered minor damage and was ultimately diverted to Hanover, in northern Germany. German officials and government members have not publicly blamed foreign countries for the incident. However, some legislators have pointed the finger towards Russia, who launched a full scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The?Russian Embassy said that it was "clear" that the hastily-fabricated provocation served only the interests of Kyiv, and the militarist side of the European political classes. In the past, German officials have often blamed Moscow on what they called hybrid attacks -- incidents of aggression which do not amount to war. Reporting by Thomas Seythal, Editing by Alistair Bell
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Senate confirms Trump's pick to oversee TSA, as administration pushes for private airport security
?The U.S. Senate voted Friday to confirm a Serco senior vice-president, David Cummins, as head of the 'Transportation Security Administration, in response to the 'Trump administration's push to privatize screeners at smaller airports. Cummins, along with dozens of nominees, were confirmed by a vote of 51-47. These included members of the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the National Transportation Safety Board, as well as Christopher Phelan, who will chair the Whitehouse Council of Economic Advisors, and Cameron Hamilton, who will head the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In April, President Donald Trump proposed cutting 9,400 employees and $1.5 billion or 20% of the annual budget for the TSA, which has 60,000 employees. Serco provides engineering, IT and training services for federal, state and local governments as well as commercial clients. Trump proposed that smaller airports be required to use private security. This would reduce the TSA's payroll by over 4,500 jobs, and is a step towards privatizing the agency, which was created in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Recently, airports in Tampa and Des Moines, Iowa as well as Charleston, South Carolina announced that they plan to privatize airport security. Around?20 airports have been using private security screens for years, including those located in San Francisco and Kansas City. Trump sacked TSA chief?David Pekoske in 2025 on his first day as president and did not nominate a successor for 16 months. Pekoske was nominated by Trump during his first term, and Joe Biden had?nominated for a second 5-year term. The long government shutdown in the spring of this year forced 50,000 TSA employees to work without pay for six full weeks. This led to major disruptions including airport security lines that lasted four hours or more. Airlines for America, the organization that represents the?major U.S. carriers, has stated its opposition to the White House proposal that smaller airports be required to use private security screening instead of TSA. (Reporting and editing by Nia William, Alistair Bell and David Shepardson)
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After the Texas data center shutdown, hundreds of millions of dollars in grid deposits are still in doubt
Interviews with over a dozen data center companies and attorneys reveal that after spending tens or even hundreds of millions to connect to Texas' grid, companies in the Lone Star State are now at risk of losing their deposits if they don't have a way to power their server warehouses. The Texas Governor Greg Abbott's decision to halt data centers this week has put the future of artificial intelligence infrastructure in one of the fastest-growing markets on the planet into doubt. Those with data center plans are now forced to decide whether they want or need their projects, which can be multi-billion dollar projects. Abbott's directive calls for audits of proposed data centers in the state, which would require more electricity than is required to power the entire U.S. South. The governor did not give a timeline for completing this audit, despite claiming that it was to protect "Texans’ safety and quality-of-life". The state grid operator paused its newly-established program, Batch Zero, to study and decide whether or not to connect data centres to the electrical network, following the announcement by the governor. According to Butler Snow, in order to be considered for Batch Zero, a number of data center projects had to provide $50,000 as security for every megawatt their grid-connected project. Data center projects are paused ahead of the September meeting of state regulators, which may result in an increase in nonrefundable data center interconnection deposit amounts. According to data center companies, and their lawyers, an early draft of the Public Utility Commission of Texas' rule would change the nonrefundable portion of data center deposits from 20% to 80%. However, these figures are not yet finalized. Texas is expected to surpass Virginia by 2030 as the largest hub for data centers in the world. This is due to its land, abundant power and business-friendly climate. Some companies have already invested more than $100,000,000 in projects announced by the state. This money could be non-refundable under the new PUC rules that may take effect next month. John Crossley, managing partner of corporate law firm K&L Gates?that advises on data center projects, said: "The rub is that no one knows how long it will take." The Governor's Office did not reply to a further request for comment. His directive comes in response to a?increasing amount of scrutiny on data centers that?are used as cloud storage and artificial-intelligence compute and their impact on the electrical grid. Grid operator ERCOT reported in June that they were tracking over 400,000 megawatts in proposed data center capacity seeking to connect. However, it is unclear how much total deposit was collected for Batch Zero. Multiple other transactions - including land leases - which lay the foundations for major data centre projects to be realized are dependent on project approvals via the Batch Zero Process, putting these projects at risk. Data center companies and their supporters?say that they want more guidance on how to proceed from the?state, but there is not a rush to cancel projects. Cameron Poursoltan is the director of energy policy for the Data Center Coalition in Texas, a trade association with around 50 members.
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Shippers claim that the early surge in US container exports is ending.
According to a study released on Friday, the early season surge in U.S.?container?import volumes, driven by shippers racing against higher?fuel surcharges linked to the U.S. - Israel war with Iran, and 'new U.S. Tariffs, has ended. According to the?Global Port Tracker Report from the National Retail Federation, maritime consultancy Hackett Associates and the National Retail Federation, import volumes at the country's major container port are expected to be high in this month. They will then decline for the remainder of 2026. Freight forwarders who arrange transportation for their clients backed the report's findings. Ted Chen, Dimerco Express Group's director of ocean freight, said "the front-loading trend has reached its peak." Temporary global tariffs of 10% that were in effect since February expire on July 23. The next day, a new round of tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5%, covering 60 economies, and affecting 99% of U.S. imports took effect. According to a report, the busiest month of this year is?May. In recent years, the peak container shipping season has moved earlier than usual. This is due to the shippers' experiences managing supply-chain interruptions, ranging from wars and pandemics to rapidly changing U.S. Tariffs. Jonathan Gold, Vice President of the NRF for Supply Chain and Customs Policy, said that retailers, who account for about?half (50%) of U.S. imports by container, are now able to navigate supply-chain shocks. Gold said that retailers will have a good supply of goods for the upcoming holiday season. In the next few days, we will have data on container imports for July. Global Port Tracker expects that August volumes will?fall by 4.2% compared to the previous year to 2.2 millions?20-foot equivalent units in seaports such as Los Angeles/Long Beach and New York/New Jersey. The report predicted a steady drop in imports every month until the end of the year. Chen, however, predicted that ocean transport costs will remain high. The cost floor won't move: Fuel and canal surcharges will not fall with demand.
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Sources say that drone attacks have reduced the oil loadings at CPC by about a fifth in July.
Four sources with knowledge of the data claim that drone attacks in the Black Sea wiped out a fifth (?5) of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium's (CPC) oil loads in July, while the Russia-Ukraine conflict spilled over to affect Kazakhstan and western oil majors. Sources said that CPC loadings were'more than 20% behind schedule in July, falling to between 1.2 and 1.3 million barrels a day (bpd), after drone attacks near Black Sea export terminal disrupted supply. Reduced loadings resulted in the loss of 400,000 bpd of CPC blend oil for international markets during July. This added to the disruption of?atleast 10 million bpd via the Strait of Hormuz, which together accounts for 10% of the global supply. About?2% (or a little more) of the world's oil is supplied by the CPC pipeline. It transports crude from Kazakhstan into Russia's Black Sea Port of Novorossiysk. The CPC terminal has been experiencing frequent interruptions since mid-July. Two sources say that oil loadings were again suspended on Friday morning, after briefly resumed on Thursday. One source said that the tanker Oneiroi was due to depart 'on Friday' if the terminal reopened. One source said that another vessel, Mareta was scheduled to be loaded on Friday. DISRUPTION PERSISTS CPC Blend crude oil loadings in August have been between 1.1 and 1.2 million barrels per day, according to two sources. This indicates that exports are still below the July levels due to disruptions. According to sources, Kazakhstan's oil production dropped by 14% in July compared to June. Chevron, Exxon Mobil and other major Western oil companies are active in Kazakhstan. Russia's Foreign Ministry said that Ukrainian forces attacked oil tanks during loading operations at CPC terminal, and accused Kyiv for trying to "destabilise" global oil markets. Kyiv has intensified its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, but Ukraine has neither claimed responsibility nor commented on the drone strikes on facilities that primarily handle Kazakh crude. CPC declined to comment on July and August's loadings. The government has not made any public comments about the latest disruption. Kazakhstan has limited alternative routes to replace CPC volumes, which are typically between 1.5 and 1.7 million barrels per day. This makes the pipeline crucial for the country's revenue from oil and its oil sector.
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Spain dismantles a major human trafficking network in the Mediterranean
Authorities said that the Spanish police dismantled a smuggling network they called one of the biggest in the Mediterranean. They believe it brought more than 2,000 migrants to the country. Spain's Civil Guard reported that "the?Civil Guard...?" had successfully dismantled a?most??complex?, active?and dangerous? transnational criminal network detected so far in the Mediterranean. Operation comes at a time when migration and human trafficking are once again in the spotlight across Europe and Spain after a massive border rush last week on the Spanish enclave Ceuta saw 72,000 people entering the city. According to the statement the network used high speed boats to transport synthetic drugs from Spain to Algeria to distribute across North Africa where the demand for drugs like MDMA is high. The boat returned to Spain and smuggled migrants into the Ibiza island, the south-east coast of Spain. Police believes the group, which used extreme violence to defend its vessels, carried out at least 64 smuggling transactions and generated profits of?of EUR24million ($27million). According to data from the Interior Ministry, the decline in the number of irregular migrants arriving in Spain by sea between January and July was due in large part to a drop of 60% in the arrivals in the Canary Islands. As smugglers changed routes through Algeria, the number of irregular migrants to Spain mainland and the Balearic Islands increased by 22% and 10% respectively. During an investigation conducted in conjunction with Europol, police in France and Portugal, and the authorities in Poland, 18 high-speed boats were seized, and 77 people arrested in Spain, and one person in Algeria. According to a statement, the network charged up to EUR12,000 per migrant. It also transported as many 50 people at a time. Civil Guard officials said that sea crossings are extremely dangerous, as migrants travel in overcrowded 'boats' at high speeds and in rough seas without lights and in many cases life jackets. The police reported that "sometimes the occupants are?even tethered to prevent them from falling overboard while crossing," adding that the group perpetrates extraordinary violence against both its members and migrants as well as police forces. Reporting by Javi Larranaga and editing by Aislinn laing and Ros Russell.
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Sources say that drone attacks have reduced the oil loadings at CPC by about a fifth in July.
Four sources with knowledge of the data claim that drone attacks in the Black Sea wiped out a fifth or more of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium's (CPC) oil loads in July, as the Russia/Ukraine conflict spilled over and affected?Kazakhstan, as well as western oil majors. Sources said that CPC loadings were more than 20% behind schedule in July, at 1.2 to 1.3 millions barrels per day after drone attacks near Black Sea export terminal disrupted supply. CPC, the pipeline that transports crude oil from Kazakhstan to Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk accounts for around 1.8% of world oil supply. This disruption has increased supply concerns, at a time that markets are already focused primarily on the risks associated with the Middle East conflict. The CPC terminal has been experiencing frequent interruptions since mid-July. Two sources reported that oil loadings were again suspended on Friday morning, after briefly resumed on Thursday. CPC Blend crude exports are still below July's reduced level, according to data from Kpler, an analytics firm, and two other sources. Sources claim that Kazakhstan's oil production dropped by 14% in July compared to June. Chevron, Exxon Mobil and other major Western oil companies are active in Kazakhstan. The Russian Foreign Ministry claimed that Ukrainian forces attacked oil tanks during loading operations at the CPC terminal and accused Kyiv for trying to destabilise oil markets worldwide. Kyiv has intensified its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, but Ukraine has neither claimed responsibility nor commented on the drone attacks on facilities that handle primarily Kazakh crude. CPC refused to comment on July and August loadings. The government has not made any public comments about the latest disruption. Kazakhstan has few alternative routes to replace CPC volumes, which are typically between 1.5 and 1.7 million barrels per day. This makes the pipeline crucial for the country's revenue from oil and its oil sector.
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Rosatom announces that seven Chinese vessels will sail from China to Europe via the Russian Arctic route
Rosatom, the operator of the Northern Sea Route via Arctic, said on Friday that it had issued permits for seven Chinese transit ships to sail to Europe through the NSR. Alexei Likhachev said that the head of Rosatom, Alexei Likhachev plans to launch a 'first regular container service from Europe to the NSR. "Unlike the previous 'container shipments along the Northern Sea Route which were mostly 'experimental and one-off, the 2026 programme will provide a regular, full-fledged service, with ships sailing every week during the navigation season." Likhachev made a statement. Moscow has long wanted to transform the NSR into a Suez Canal. However, higher shipping costs and seasonal ice make this difficult to achieve. Likhachev stated that the route is becoming a major transport artery as the situation in the Persian Gulf worsens - a reference to the Strait o f 'Hormuz - as well as the?logistical & political uncertainty grows. (Reporting and writing by Anastasiya lyrchikova, Editing by Andrew Osborn).
US Postal Service reports $2.5 billion quarterly loss
U.S.?Postal Service announced a $2.5 billion loss for?the third fiscal quarter. This is nearly $600 millions less than the same quarter last. They also urged Congress to take a number of?actions?to address their mounting financial crisis.
U.S. postmaster general David Steiner has said that legislation passed by the Senate to add dozens new ZIP codes will cost the cash-strapped USPS $800 million. He also said the agency wants approval for a new stamp price increase in January, rather than wait until July 2027.
Steiner stated that without the action of?Congress in this year's budget, "our plans will certainly include changes to service, such as taking a look at service levels, closing thousands unprofitable postal offices and raising prices."
He warned in June: "We are running out of money." Steiner stated that we are borrowing money from the?retirement fund of our employees to continue operating. He urged Congress to compensate for its losses and implement other reforms.
USPS hired restructuring advisors in March to address its financial problems.
Steiner stated that the key question was whether USPS should deliver to 170 millions addresses six days per week. This costs $3.4 billion annually and 70% of these routes are losing money. Around 58% of the 18,000 Post Offices in the USPS also lose money.
The Postal Service has suffered net losses in excess of $120 billion over the past decade. This is because the most profitable product - first class mail - has declined sharply due to the move towards digital communication, while the agency still has to maintain expensive nationwide delivery operations.
USPS announced in May that it would suspend non-essential spending on travel, office products and consultants.
Postal Service announced in May that it would suspend payments to employers for a federal pension plan and raise the price of stamps for first-class mail from 78 cents to 82, starting July 12.
By suspending employer pension contributions, you can save up to $15 billion by 2030. (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese, Aurora Ellis and David Shepardson)
(source: Reuters)