Russian oil and gas giant Rosneft on Wednesday announced they had signed a deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to develop five oil blocks despite escalating tensions in the region. In an official statement, the Russian crude producer said it had signed “documents required to put in force” production sharing agreements with the KRG which would allocate 80 percent of the projects to Rosneft. Source Kurdistan24
Geostrategic Countries
After a southern Swedish police station was damaged in a blast on Wednesday, police officers have said threats against them are becoming increasingly common. Early on Wednesday morning, the entrance to the police station in Helsingborg was destroyed in an explosion which Minister of Justice Morgan Johansson said was “a serious attack on the judiciary”. Source TheLocal
Pyongyang could stage an unprecedented strike on the US at an unexpected time, the North Korean state run news agency KCNA warned on Thursday. The threat came as the South Korean and US navies conduct massive joint drills amid increasing tensions over the north’s nuclear and missile ambitions. Source: Sputnik
Indian warships have entered Vladivostok on Thursday to take part in the first Russian-Indian joint-force drills dubbed “Indra-2017,” Pacific Fleet spokesman Captain 2nd rank Nikolay Voskresensky said. Source: TASS
US-led coalition says 87% of IS territory seized, over 6.5 million people liberated since 2014 on day of SDF’s third anniversary. Source: Middle East Online
Islamic State and other terrorist groups are planning to target aircraft as they aim to carry out another major attack on the scale of 9/11, a top US security official said. Source: The Telegraph
A police station in the southern Swedish city of Helsingborg was hit by a powerful explosion in the early hours of Wednesday morning. A large part of the building and even the windows on the building opposite were damaged by the force of the blast, though nobody was injured. Source TheLocal
As dozens of migrants continue to land daily on the shores of eastern Aegean islands, and tensions rise in reception centers, local communities are becoming increasingly divided over growing migrant populations.
A total of 438 people arrived on the islands aboard smuggling boats from Turkey in the first three days of the week, with another 175 people arriving on the islet of Oinousses yesterday morning. Source Ekathimerini
After a southern Swedish police station was damaged in a blast on Wednesday, police officers have said threats against them are becoming increasingly common. Early on Wednesday morning, the entrance to the police station in Helsingborg was destroyed in an explosion which Minister of Justice Morgan Johansson said was “a serious attack on the judiciary”. Source TheLocal
Pyongyang could stage an unprecedented strike on the US at an unexpected time, the North Korean state run news agency KCNA warned on Thursday. The threat came as the South Korean and US navies conduct massive joint drills amid increasing tensions over the north’s nuclear and missile ambitions. Source: Sputnik
EU Council head Donald Tusk has said obligatory migrant quotas “have no future” amid efforts to mend fences with eastern European states. “I don’t see any special future for this project, but it’s important to find an understanding that does not separate Poland and other Visegrad group countries from the rest of Europe,” Tusk, said. Source: Euobserver
Indian warships have entered Vladivostok on Thursday to take part in the first Russian-Indian joint-force drills dubbed “Indra-2017,” Pacific Fleet spokesman Captain 2nd rank Nikolay Voskresensky said. Source: TASS
US-led coalition says 87% of IS territory seized, over 6.5 million people liberated since 2014 on day of SDF’s third anniversary. Source: Middle East Online
The European Commission pledged 118.5 million euros ($139.2 million) on Oct. 18 to help Europe’s cities guard against attacks and outlined how EU countries could do more to curb the sale of bomb-making materials. Source: Hurriyet Daily News
Islamic State and other terrorist groups are planning to target aircraft as they aim to carry out another major attack on the scale of 9/11, a top US security official said. Source: The Telegraph
A police station in the southern Swedish city of Helsingborg was hit by a powerful explosion in the early hours of Wednesday morning. A large part of the building and even the windows on the building opposite were damaged by the force of the blast, though nobody was injured. Source TheLocal
Xi Jinping has heralded the dawn of a “new era” of Chinese politics and power at the start of a historic Communist party congress celebrating the end of his first term in office. Source: The Guadiaan
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Tuesday it was important for Turkey to remain part of the NATO security alliance and continue its orientation toward Europe despite current tensions between the two countries. Source: Daily Sabah
Russian oil and gas giant Rosneft on Wednesday announced they had signed a deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to develop five oil blocks despite escalating tensions in the region. In an official statement, the Russian crude producer said it had signed “documents required to put in force” production sharing agreements with the KRG which would allocate 80 percent of the projects to Rosneft. Source Kurdistan24
Italian auction house Sant’Agostino said on Wednesday that bidders at its next sale will be able to settle up in Bitcoin, a world first according to the auctioneers. Early next week, around 600 Italian and foreign design objects, mostly pieces of furniture, will go under the hammer at Sant’Agostino and “Bitcoins will be accepted as payment”, the Turin auction house said in a statement. Source TheLocal
Billionaire investor George Soros has given away nearly $18 billion to his Open Society Foundations, transforming it into the “second largest” charity in the US after the Bill and Melinda Gates’ Foundation. Source: RT
China’s GDP rose from 54 trillion to 80 trillion yuan (about 12.1 trillion U.S. dollars) over the past five years, Xi Jinping said Wednesday. Source: People’s Daily
Turkey’s overseas assets rose by 5.1 percent in the first eight months of 2017, the Central Bank said on Oct. 17. The country owned external assets worth $226.5 billion at the end of August, compared to $215.5 billion at the end of last year. Source: Hurriyet Daily News
Turkey and Poland have signed five deals, aiming to increase the bilateral trade volume to $10 billion annually, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said during a visit to Warsaw on Oct. 17. Source: Hurriyet Daily News
Russian President Vladimir Putin approved plans to launch the country’s own cryptocurrency, Russian Minister of Communications Nikolay Nikiforov said Sunday. Source: Daily Sabah
The consortium controlled by commodities giant Glencore and Qatar’s sovereign fund announced a 7.8 billion-euro deal Monday to sell a 14-percent stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft to Chinese conglomerate CEFC. Source: Daily Sabah
Turkish Cypriot Economy and Energy Minister Sunat Atun announced the route of the new interconnected power line between Turkey and Turkish Cyprus on Oct. 16. Source: Hurriyet Daily News
The world’s second-largest economy is likely to reach a growth rate of 7 percent in the second half of this year, China’s central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan said on Sunday in Washington. Source: People’s Daily
The initial public offering is expected to be the world’s largest stock sale, and is a key component of the Saudi government’s economic reform program which aims to diversify the desert kingdom away from its reliance on oil exports. A private placement of shares in the state oil company to a Chinese investor is being evaluated as a precursor to the international IPO, according to two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity as the information was not public. Source Reuters
