12 States Reach Settlement with Paramount, Warner Bros. Over Merger



September 22, 2026
Oregon Capital Chronicle
By Mia Maldonado

Key Takeaways:

Twelve Democratic-led states, led by California AG Rob Bonta, reached a Monday court settlement that would let a $110 billion Paramount–Warner Bros. Discovery merger proceed if a judge approves five-year conditions on production, workers, and cable competition.

The merged company would spend at least $1.5 billion on U.S. film production, put $47.5 million into a displaced-worker fund, release 30 then 32 theatrical films a year plus at least four independents annually, negotiate Paramount and Warner basic-cable channels separately, and create a News Editorial Independence Board for CNN and CBS.

Missing film-output targets would require divesting Miramax and paying $30 million per missed film toward union health and retirement benefits. Bonta said the deal is not an endorsement of the merger but the best way to address the states’ antitrust case.

(Oregon Capital Chronicle) — Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery may move forward with a merger under the conditions that they boost film production, support displaced workers and preserve competition among cable channels over the next five years, 12 Democratic-led states and the attorneys representing the companies agreed in a court settlement Monday.

After the two leading film companies sought a $110 billion merger this summer, California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 11 other attorneys generals filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District for the Northern District of California arguing the merger eliminates competition within the film industry and violates federal antitrust laws.


If approved by a judge, the settlement would allow the merger to move forward under the conditions that over the next five years the merged company spends at least $1.5 billion to boost U.S. film production and commits $47.5 million to a training and development fund for workers affected by the merger.

The deal also requires Paramount to negotiate its basic cable channels separately from Warner Bros.’ basic cable channels to preserve competition between them and keep prices down for consumers. The company must also establish a News Editorial Independence Board to help protect editorial independence at CNN and CBS.

The settlement requires the merged company to commit to releasing 30 films per year in theaters for the first two years of the combined company and 32 films per year for the three years after that. Additionally, the company must release at least four independent films each year throughout the five years of the settlement.

“We stepped up to challenge this merger to limit rising costs for working families, to preserve competition, and to protect Oregon’s film production industry,” said Oregon Attorney General Rayfield. “Today’s agreement keeps real competition in place, ensures that productions will continue and ensures journalistic independence. That’s a win for Oregon workers and consumers.”

If the company fails to meet the film output requirements, it must divest from Miramax Studios and pay $30 million per missed film toward healthcare and retirement benefits for the Writers Guild of America, the International Alliance of Theatrical State Employees, the Directors Guild of America, International Brotherhood of Teamsters and other unions.

“This settlement is not a vote of support for this merger,” Bonta said in a statement. “But we believe this settlement, which resolves our antitrust concerns in every market alleged in our case, protects competition and consumer choice, and puts workers’ needs, concerns and futures first, is the best course of action.”

Bonta filed the lawsuit alongside the Democratic attorneys general of Oregon, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York and Washington.


About Oregon Capital Chronicle
The Oregon Capital Chronicle, founded in 2021, is a professional, nonprofit news organization. We focus on deep and useful reporting on Oregon state government, politics and policy. Staffed by experienced journalists, the Capital Chronicle helps readers understand how those in government are using — or abusing — their power, what’s happening to taxpayer dollars, and how citizens can stake a bigger role in big decisions.
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Vatican Group To Discuss AI, Human Dignity With World Leaders At UN General Assembly


Flags in front of United Nations building in New York City

September 22, 2026
EWTN News
By Tyler Arnold

Key Takeaways:

The Vatican-run Laudato Si’ Center for Higher Education is holding invitation-only “Borgo Dialogues” in New York from Sept. 20–23, on the sidelines of the 81st U.N. General Assembly, asking “What are we building, for whom, and who will inherit it?”

Topics include AI and work, healthcare and human dignity, sustainable development, and leaders’ duties; organizers cite Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ and Fratelli Tutti and Pope Leo XIV’s Magnifica Humanitas.

Cardinal Fabio Baggio and Father Daniel Groody say the talks are meant to build trust across business, finance, faith, health, sports, and institutions; the first session was at Castel Gandolfo in June, with proposals expected for the World Economic Forum.

A Vatican-led organization is meeting with world leaders on artificial intelligence, human dignity, the common good, and other aspects of Catholic social teaching on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly this week.

The “Borgo Dialogues,” organized by the Vatican-run Laudato Si’ Center for Higher Education, began on Sept. 20 and will continue until Sept. 23 in New York, in conjunction with the U.N. meeting.

According to a news release, the gathering will focus on the question “What are we building, for whom, and who will inherit it?” The invitation-only meetings include leaders in business, finance, academia, faith, healthcare, sports, civil society, and international institutions.

“The Borgo Dialogues represent an invitation to courageous leadership rooted in listening, encounter and shared responsibility,” Cardinal Fabio Baggio, director general of the Laudato Si’ Center and founder of the Borgo Dialogues, said in a statement.

“At a moment when many institutions face growing fragmentation and distrust, we need spaces where leaders can engage difficult questions honestly, build trust across differences and commit themselves to actions that uphold human dignity and advance the common good,” he said.

The Borgo Dialogues initiative began in June with a meeting at the Vatican. It is inspired by papal teachings contained in Pope Francis’ encyclicals Laudato Si’ and Fratelli Tutti and Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas.

According to the news release, the main focus of the talks is AI and work transformation, healthcare and human dignity, sustainable development, systems-level change across industries, and the evolving responsibilities of leaders navigating an increasingly interconnected world.

The news release states there is a shared commitment to designing technologies, institutions, and systems that recognize the inherent dignity of each person, with a focus on those who are most vulnerable.

“The world’s most urgent challenges require relationships that rise above institutions and ideologies,” said Father Daniel G. Groody, CSC, a member of the Laudato Si’ Center’s General Council.

“The Borgo Dialogues create a distinctive environment where intellectual rigor, moral purpose and practical leadership come together, helping diverse leaders transform reflection into responsibility and ideas into action,” said Groody, who is also the vice president and associate provost for undergraduate education at the University of Notre Dame.

The inaugural Borgo Dialogues were held in the Pontifical Gardens of Castel Gandolfo, Vatican State, from June 17–19. It included more than 80 participants. The Laudato Si’ Center is expected to present proposals to the World Economic Forum based on the discussions.

The 81st U.N. General Assembly began on Sept. 8 in New York. General debate meetings begin on Sept. 22 and end on Sept. 28.


About EWTN News
EWTN News is the rebranding of the Catholic News Agency (CNA), following the decision by EWTN — which was launched as a Catholic television network in 1981 by Mother Angelica, PCPA — that brings CNA and its affiliated ACI international outlets under a single, unified identity. Previous CNA articles may be foundby clicking here.
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Stanislav Petrov Single-Handedly Averted A Nuclear War With Human Wisdom And Conscience – OpEd

Stanislav Petrov. Image: Grok

September 22, 2026

By Dr Jose Mario Bautista Maximiano


Key Takeaways:

In an Al Jazeera interview, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said AI must not make life-or-death decisions and called lethal autonomous “killer robots” politically unacceptable, morally repugnant, and illegal under international law without human control.

He cited Soviet officer Stanislav Petrov in 1983, who refused to treat a false missile warning as real—an example that machines can calculate but cannot doubt, pause, or take moral responsibility.

The author ties Guterres to Pope Leo XIV’s Magnifica Humanitas: keep conscience and the human person at the center, “disarm” AI from warfare, and treat peace as disciplined work rather than more efficient automated war.

In a recent interview with Al Jazeera, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that AI must not be allowed to make life-or-death decisions, saying autonomous “killer robots” should be forbidden.

Describing such technology as “politically unacceptable and morally repugnant,” the UN chief called once again for a global ban on lethal autonomous weapon systems—machines capable of taking human lives without human oversight.

“Machines that have the power and discretion to take human lives without human control should be prohibited by international law,” Guterres declared.


In this regard, UN Secretary-General António Guterres directly echoes the concerns of Pope Leo XIV in Magnifica Humanitas.

To illustrate his point, Guterres recalled the remarkable story of Stanislav Petrov, the Soviet officer who may have saved the world in 1983.

During one tense moment of the Cold War, Soviet early-warning systems reported that the United States had launched nuclear missiles. Protocol required Petrov to relay the warning immediately—a move that could have triggered a devastating nuclear retaliation.
Yet Petrov hesitated

He noticed that the warning did not make sense. Why would an actual nuclear attack involve only a handful of missiles rather than hundreds? Trusting human judgment over machine-generated data, he concluded that the alert was a false alarm. He was right. The satellite system had mistaken sunlight reflecting off clouds for incoming missiles. Had Petrov simply followed the machine’s conclusion, the world might have stumbled into nuclear catastrophe.


The story offers a profound lesson. Machines can calculate, but they cannot doubt. They can process signals, but they cannot exercise prudence. They can execute instructions, but they cannot bear responsibility. A human being can pause. A machine cannot.
Two world leaders’ proposal

This is precisely the concern shared by both Pope Leo XIV and António Guterres. When the consequences involve human lives, judgment requires more than data. It requires wisdom, conscience, empathy, and moral accountability.

Rather than offering mere criticism, Guterres always proposes an alternative moral vision rooted in diplomacy, dialogue, and multilateral cooperation.

In the same manner, Pope Leo XIV repeatedly insists that peace is not passive idealism but disciplined moral work requiring courage and shared responsibility.

His encyclical also calls for the “disarmament” of artificial intelligence from systems of domination and warfare. Its proposals could shape future debates on arms control, international law, and AI governance, especially regarding lethal autonomous weapons.

Today, however, humanity confronts the possibility of delegating those decisions to algorithms that neither understand nor value the people they affect.

From Paul VI’s cry before the United Nations, “No more war, war never again!”, to Leo XIV’s warning that the Just War framework itself is becoming inadequate, the Church’s trajectory has been increasingly clear. The burden of proof has shifted decisively away from war and toward peace.

The core warning is this: humanity cannot surrender conscience to machines or allow technological power to eclipse moral responsibility. In an age where war is becoming increasingly automated and psychologically distant, both Guterres and Pope Leo XIV insist that the human person—not the algorithm—must remain at the center of history.

What is needed now is not a more efficient way to wage war, but a more courageous commitment to peace.


About Dr Jose Mario Bautista Maximiano
Dr. José Mario Bautista Maximiano is the lead convenor of the Love Our Pope Movement (LOPM) International. Jose Mario Bautista Maximiano, based in the Philippines capital Manila, is a Catholic scholar, public educator and columnist. He is author of the three-volume work on the Chronological and Thematic Essays: 500 Years of Christianity in the Philippines.
View all posts by Dr Jose Mario Bautista Maximiano →

Lemur Uses Opera Singer’s Trick To Belt Out Forest Songs


An Indri in the Maromizaha forst. Credit: Filippo Carugati


September 22, 2026

By Eurasia Review

Key Takeaways:

Warwick and Turin researchers report in PLOS Computational Biology that wild indris (Indri indri), Madagascar’s only known singing lemur, open their mouths wider as pitch rises—like a trained soprano. Corresponding author Chiara De Gregorio (Warwick): frame by frame, higher notes, wider gape.

Method: 83 field videos of 19 animals, audio plus markerless lip tracking (Filippo Carugati, Turin). Songs carry through forest for group bonds and territory. Authors analogize human formant tuning—lining up vocal-tract resonances with harmonics—not a claim the lemurs take lessons.

Last common ancestor with humans ~74 million years ago; the piece treats the match as convergent evolution, the same trick twice. Observation of coordination, not a full acoustic proof of every human opera mechanism.

University of Warwick and University of Turin researchers find the world’s only singing lemur opens its mouth wider on higher notes, just like a trained soprano.

We are often left open-mouthed in awe as an opera singer hits a soaring top note. Now, researchers at the University of Warwick have found that the indri, the world’s only known singing lemur, appears to use a strikingly similar vocal technique to hit high notes.

The new study, published in PLOS Computational Biology, shows the first direct evidence that wild indris (Indri indri) coordinate their mouth opening with the frequency of their songs. In short: finding that the higher the pitch of the song, the wider the indris open their mouth to sing it.

The Opera Singer of the Forest

Found only in the rainforests of Madagascar, indris produce complex, haunting songs that carry across vast distances, strengthening bonds within their social group and warning neighbouring groups to keep their distance.

Human singers are trained to widen their mouths as pitch rises, aligning the resonant frequencies of the vocal tract with the harmonics of the voice and amplifying the sound. This process, known as formant tuning, may serve a similar purpose for the indri. For an animal communicating through thick forest, it could make the difference between a song that carries and one that doesn’t.

“Every time the pitch of an indri’s song rose, we could see its mouth opening wider, frame by frame,” said Dr Chiara De Gregorio, corresponding author and Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Warwick. “It’s the kind of fine-tuned coordination between voice and body that we usually associate with trained human singers, not with a lemur singing from the forest canopy.”

How They Found It

The research team analysed 83 video recordings of 19 wild indris, combining field audio with markerless motion-tracking technology. They tracked upper and lower lip position frame by frame, comparing changes in mouth opening with changes in vocal frequency, finding the indris opened their mouths wider to project higher-pitched vocalisation through the forest.

“Applying markerless pose estimation to footage recorded in the wild allowed us to look not just at the sounds indris make, but at the physical movements behind them,” said first author Dr Filippo Carugati, University of Turin. “It let us study how the face and mouth move while an animal is singing, almost frame by frame, and connect those movements directly to changes in pitch. That’s something you simply can’t capture by listening to the audio alone.”

74 million Years Apart, Yet Remarkably Similar

Humans and indris last shared a common ancestor approximately 74 million years ago, meaning the similarities in vocal production between the two species are likely the result of convergent evolution, the same solution arrived at independently across deep evolutionary time.

What Goes Into Diesel Prices? – Analysis



September 22, 2026

By EIA


Key Takeaways:

U.S. retail diesel averaged $6.29 a gallon as of Sept. 14, 2026—the highest nominal price in EIA’s series since 1994 and the highest inflation-adjusted level since 2022—lifted by crude prices plus a wide diesel crack spread (wholesale diesel minus crude).

Global distillate is tight because of weaker refining in Russia, China, and the Middle East, which has raised import costs and U.S. export demand; high diesel prices feed through to truck and rail freight, farms, and Northeast heating.

U.S. distillate output averaged 5.1 million b/d from January–August (strongest since 2019) with refinery utilization at 97% the week of Sept. 11, but net exports stayed high, inventories were 15.8 million barrels (13%) below the five-year seasonal average, and EIA’s September STEO expects prices to stay elevated.

The price of distillate fuel oil, often sold as diesel, is driven by the price of crude oil, retail margins, distribution costs, taxes, and crack spreads, the indicator we use for refining margins. Tight global supplies of distillate fuel oil and elevated crude oil prices have driven prices higher in recent months.

Crack spreads are indicators of the profitability of refining crude oil into petroleum products such as gasoline and diesel and are used as a proxy for refinery margins. We calculate the diesel crack spread by subtracting the spot market price of a gallon of crude oil from the wholesale price of a gallon of diesel. The high crack spread for diesel on top of the elevated price of a barrel of crude oil has driven retail prices up. High diesel prices can contribute to higher on-road and rail freight costs for all goods. The fuel also has significant seasonal uses in agriculture and home heating in the northeastern United States.

Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration,

Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update


As of Monday, September 14, U.S. retail diesel prices averaged $6.29 per gallon (gal), according to our weekly Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update. On an inflation-adjusted basis, this is the highest price since 2022, and the number is the highest on record in nominal price terms since EIA started publishing this series in 1994.
What’s driving global distillate prices?

Global distillate fuel (including diesel) supplies are tight because of reduced global refining activity in Russia, China, and the Middle East. Reduced distillate production abroad has caused international prices to increase, driving up both the cost to import diesel to the United States and increasing demand for diesel exports from the United States.

Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update; Bloomberg L.P. Note: Refinery margin is calculated as the difference between the price of a gallon of wholesale diesel at New York Harbor and the spot market price of a gallon of Brent crude oil. Retail, distribution, and taxes captures retail margins, distribution costs, and federal and state taxes; it is calculated as the difference between the U.S. average diesel retail price and the wholesale diesel price at New York Harbor. Crude oil reflects the spot market price of a gallon of Brent crude oil.

What’s happening to supply in the United States?

U.S. distillate production between January and August of this year averaged 5.1 million barrels per day (b/d), the most since 2019. Refineries in the United States are also running at near-maximum levels with utilization of 97% the week ending September 11, according to our Weekly Petroleum Status Report.

Because of import and export dynamics, distillate net exports from the United States have remained near or above the previous five-year (2021–2025) high since February. As U.S. net exports increased, particularly during March and April, U.S. distillate inventories declined. Although distillate inventories typically build in the summer months, inventories have remained relatively flat this year. In the week ending September 11, U.S. distillate inventories were 15.8 million barrels, or 13%, below the five-year (2021–2025) seasonal average. Low distillate inventories have driven refining margins up.

In our September Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), we assume that global production of distillate fuel will remain below last year’s levels in the coming months, contributing to sustained high net exports, inventories remaining low, and prices remaining elevated.This article was published by EIA


About EIA
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment.
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Armed Group Shuts Libya Oil Pipeline Valve, Threatens Sharara Output


Map of Libya’s largest oil and natural gas fields. Credit: EIA

September 22, 2026
Al Bawaba News
By Mansour Al-Maswari

Key Takeaways:

Libya’s NOC said an armed group shut valve No. 7 on the Sharara–Zawiya crude pipeline, cutting output from one of the country’s largest fields (~300,000 bpd, Akakus Oil Operations) and risking a full halt.

Teams cannot reach valves 6 and 7; the NOC warned of possible force majeure, lost state revenue, and a Zawiya refinery shutdown that would increase fuel imports.
The incident follows earlier valve closures and force majeure this month and drone strikes on Zawiya-area oil sites, amid Libya’s east–west split and armed-group control of infrastructure.

(Albawaba) — An armed group has shut a valve on a crude oil pipeline linking Libya’s Sharara oilfield to the Zawiya port, sharply reducing production and raising the risk of a complete shutdown, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said on Monday.

The group closed valve No. 7, causing pressure to build in the pipeline and significantly reducing output from Sharara, one of Libya’s largest oilfields. NOC technical teams have been unable to access the area around valves 6 and 7, while efforts to secure access through the Southwest Oil Facilities Security Department have so far failed, the corporation said.

The NOC warned that if the closure continues, production at Sharara and related transport and export operations could be suspended. It said the disruption would reduce state revenues and could also force the Zawiya refinery to shut down, increasing Libya’s reliance on imported refined fuels.

The corporation said it could declare force majeure if the situation persists and called for the pipeline to be reopened immediately. It also urged authorities to protect oil facilities from armed groups, protests and other disruptions.

Sharara, operated by Akakus Oil Operations, has a production capacity of about 300,000 barrels per day. The field is located in southwestern Libya, with crude transported through the pipeline to the Zawiya terminal on the Mediterranean coast.

The latest disruption comes amid repeated attacks and closures affecting Libya’s oil industry, which has faced instability since the 2011 uprising. Earlier this month, similar valve closures linked to armed groups disrupted production at Sharara and other fields, prompting temporary force majeure declarations.

Western Libya has also experienced recent drone attacks targeting oil infrastructure around Zawiya. The NOC has reported strikes on a blending facility and fuel storage tanks, including a gasoline tank containing millions of liters.

Libya remains politically divided between rival authorities in the west and east, while armed groups continue to exert influence over key infrastructure. The recurring disruptions have increased concerns over the security and reliability of the country’s oil production and export operations.


About Al Bawaba News
Al Bawaba provides top stories and breaking news about the Middle East and the world. The Al Bawaba network consists of several web portals and media platforms.
View all posts by Al Bawaba News →

India And Russia Are Rewriting Their Defense Partnership – Analysis


India's PM Narendra Modi and the President of Russia, Mr. Vladimir Putin witnessing the Exchange of MoUs between India and Russia in Hyderabad House, New Delhi on December 05, 2025. Photo Credit: India Prime Minister Office

September 22, 2026

By Nikola Mikovic

Key Takeaways:

After the Sept. 12–13 BRICS summit in New Delhi and Army Chief Gen. Dhiraj Seth’s first Russia visit by a top Indian commander in eight years, the article says the old buyer–seller model is giving way to tech-sharing and production in India.

Russian-origin kit still anchors much of India’s army, and Moscow still hopes to sell Su-57s, but Peskov says local manufacture is under negotiation; India now claims about 65% of hardware is made at home and is also buying from the U.S., France, and Italy.

Possible next steps include further BrahMos work, a Rosoboronexport offer to co-produce T-90MS tanks, and the Feb. 2025 RELOS logistics pact (troops, ships, and aircraft on each other’s soil). The author argues Ukraine’s strain on Russia leaves India freer to set terms—and perhaps even supply Moscow later.

Asia’s oldest defense relationship is changing, with India and Russia moving beyond traditional arms sales toward greater technology sharing and joint production. For decades, the partnership has been built around Russian military hardware, but India’s growing defense capabilities are now reshaping the balance between the two countries.

During the BRICS summit in New Delhi on September 12-13, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed a wide range of issues. In addition to political, economic, and energy ties, reports indicate that defense cooperation was also on the agenda.

Coincidentally or not, just days after their meeting, Indian Army Chief General Dhiraj Seth traveled to Russia for an official tour — marking the first such journey by a top military leader from New Delhi in eight years. India has traditionally been a major buyer of Russian military equipment, which is why Moscow hopes to sustain this one-sided purchasing relationship.


From infantry rifles and armored transports to heavy tanks and missile defense nodes, Russian weapons form the bedrock of India’s ground forces. India’s frontline armored and mechanized units are practically defined by their Russian-designed equipment. That reality, however, is beginning to look very different.

While Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed Russia’s plans to supply India with the Su-57 fifth-generation multirole fighter, he emphasized that local manufacturing remains a point of negotiations. Historically, India was Russia’s largest weapons customer, importing finished military hardware straight from Russian factories. But now, a major portion of the Indian military’s flagship Russian-origin platforms are built right on Indian soil through licensed production and joint ventures.

“Every country, when producing new complex machines, wants to keep those technologies to itself. However, to strengthen the strategic partnership with New Delhi, the Russian side might share them,” Peskov suggested.

In other words, to maintain good military ties with India, Russia might have to make significant concessions to its partner, as New Delhi is no longer interested in purely commercial transactions and insists that any new contract include robust technology-sharing guarantees. In addition to developing closer military ties with Russia, India is also actively strengthening its own defense capabilities.


According to Ukrainian military intelligence, New Delhi continues to maintain close military ties with Moscow while steadily diversifying its defense imports in an effort to reduce its reliance on Russia. At the same time, India is placing greater emphasis on strengthening its domestic defense industry and expanding defense partnerships with Western countries, particularly the United States, France, and Italy.

Indian government estimates that roughly 65 percent of the country’s military hardware is now produced domestically, marking a major reversal from a decade ago, when approximately two-thirds of its military hardware was imported.

Thus, Russia’s mounting losses in Ukraine, combined with the rapid expansion of India’s military-industrial complex, could ultimately turn the two countries’ defense relationship on its head, with Moscow potentially looking to New Delhi not only as a customer, but also as a supplier of military equipment. In the meantime, the two countries are expected to expand their military cooperation, particularly in the area of joint production.
Future Options for India-Russia Military Collaboration

Looking ahead, Russia and India could deepen their work on missile development, particularly through further upgrades to the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. Developed jointly by the two countries, BrahMos is derived from Russia’s P-800 Oniks missile family, specifically its export variant, the Yakhont. Over the past 25 years, however, India has introduced numerous modifications and upgrades to BrahMos, giving the missile capabilities that distinguish it from its Russian predecessor. International experts argue that further modernization will nevertheless be necessary to keep pace with increasingly advanced air defense systems.


There is also room for deeper collaboration in the field of armored vehicles. In July, Russia’s state arms exporter, Rosoboronexport, offered India the opportunity to jointly produce the advanced T-90MS main battle tank. The proposal would represent an extension of an existing production arrangement, under which India already builds the vast majority of its T-90S tanks domestically, using a combination of locally manufactured and Russian-supplied components. However, as the Ukraine war has shown, in the era of drones, tanks are no longer the undisputed kings of the battlefield. Even Russian military experts argue that drones have made tanks and other armored vehicles unnecessary for both offensive and defensive operations. Therefore, it remains unclear whether India will be willing to invest heavily in expanding its fleet of conventional armored vehicles, particularly if the focus of its military modernization continues to shift toward newer technologies.

The broader trend, however, is clear: India and Russia are moving away from straightforward arms sales and toward jointly developing and producing military equipment in India. But the shift is not limited to weapons production. In February 2025, Moscow and New Delhi signed the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics (RELOS) agreement allowing each country to have up to 3,000 troops, five warships, and 10 military aircraft present on the other’s territory at any one time, while also providing for services such as refueling, repairs, maintenance, and supplies.

Russia’s heavy naval losses during the war in Ukraine could significantly affect RELOS. Unable to maintain its own ships, Moscow could potentially seek assistance from India under the RELOS agreement.

Taken together, these developments put India in a stronger position in its defense partnership with Russia. As its own defense industry grows and Moscow faces increasing pressure from the war in Ukraine, New Delhi now has more room to shape the relationship on its own terms.

This article was published by Geopolitical Monitor.com


About Nikola Mikovic
Nikola Mikovic is a freelance journalist based in Serbia, reporting on geopolitics, energy, economics, tourism, and regional developments across Eurasia. His work has been featured in leading international outlets, including the South China Morning Post, CGTN, The Times of Central Asia, the Lowy Institute, Diplomatic Courier, and Byline Times, among others.
View all posts by Nikola Mikovic →

Norwegian Justice Ministry Overrules Court Decision Allowing Seizure Of Russian Ship In Svalbard To Satisfy ICC Appeal By Ukraine – OpEd


Russia's Professor Molchanov oceanographic research vessel at Barentsburg in Svalbard, Norway. Phhoto Credit: Alastair Rae, Wikipedia Commons

September 22, 2026
By Paul Goble

Key Takeaways:

Three weeks after a Svalbard court allowed seizure of a Russian ship to enforce a 2023 ICC award to a Ukrainian company, Norway’s justice ministry reversed the seizure, citing Svalbard’s treaty status and the need for signatories to supply their people on the islands.

The ministry treats the original court ruling as valid when issued but bars this seizure and similar future ones; the author says Moscow will read that as an Oslo retreat and a win over what Russia called “state terrorism.”

The piece warns that yielding after Putin’s protest may invite Russia to test Western limits around ICC rulings and North Atlantic islands, raising the risk that a Svalbard-type incident could escalate toward a Russia–NATO clash.

Three weeks ago, a Norwegian court allowed for the seizure of a Russian ship in Svalbard in fulfillment of a 2023 decision of the ICC to compensate a Ukrainian company for Russian seizures of its assets. Putin expressed outrage, and now the Norwegian justice ministry has overruled that court decision.

The ministry said that the special status of Svalbard means that countries signatory to the treaty governing use of that land must have confidence they can supply their citizens on the island, a not unreasonable position but one that Norwegian experts say Moscow will treat as a retreat by Oslo and a victory by Russia over what Moscow called “state terrorism.”

The justice ministry’s action means that Svalbard court’s decision will be declared valid at the time it was made but that the ministry’s action means that the seizure will be reversed and future seizures of that type, regardless of the status of the court which ordered them, will not be allowed.

(For the original action, see windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2026/09/with-norwegian-s.eizure-of-russian-ship.html; for Norway’s retreat in the face of Russian protests, see ru.thebarentsobserver.com/novosti/norvegia-usloznila-ukraine-vozmoznost-arestovyvat-rossijskie-suda-na-svalbarde/458379.)

What makes this course of events worrisome is that it is likely to encourage Russia and its supporters to believe they can get Western countries to vacate ICC decisions by Moscow’s protests and that they will continue to test the limits of Western tolerance by further raising the stakes.

Given Moscow’s current moves against NATO countries and especially against European islands in the North Atlantic like the Svalbard archipelago, what Norway has done may cause the Kremlin to expand its subversive activities to a point that Western countries will find it impossible to accept.

That scenario is now increasingly likely and could mean that a war between Russia and NATO could in fact be triggered by a sequence of events like this one, a possibility that had been suggested by some analysts earlier. (On that, see jamestown.org/moscows-first-move-against-nato-could-take-place-in-norways-svalbard-archipelago/.)

Romania Probes Far-Right Former Presidential Candidate Georgescu For Fraud


Romania's Calin Georgescu. Photo Credit: Calin Georgescu, X

September 22, 2026
Balkan Insight
By Marian Chiriac

Key Takeaways:

Romanian police detained far-right politician Călin Georgescu on Monday and anti-fraud teams searched his home and other sites in a DIICOT case alleging he and two others defrauded a businessman of more than €1 million.

Prosecutors say that from September 2021 the group promised a €6 million loan for a guarantee, took about €1 million, then sought another guarantee for a €15 million loan and received €100,000 more; the loan never came. Georgescu has not commented on this case; ally George Simion called it a dictatorship.

It is his third criminal file, alongside probes over fascist rhetoric and a trial for alleged constitutional subversion, false information, and founding an antisemitic group—charges he denies. He won the Nov. 2024 presidential first round, was barred from the 2025 rerun after a court cited foreign influence, and Nicușor Dan later won.

Romanian police on Monday detained far-right politician Calin Georgescu and anti-fraud investigators searched his home and other locations as part of an investigation in which he faces charges of defrauding a Romanian businessman of more than 1 million euros, according to judicial authorities.

“We carried out five residential searches … in a case in which three people acted with the aim of obtaining undue financial benefits,” said Romania’s Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism, DIICOT.

Prosecutors allege that from September 2021, a group allegedly led by Georgescu convinced the businessman that he could obtain a loan of 6 million euros in exchange for providing a guarantee. The victim then allegedly transferred some 1 million euros.

Subsequently, the suspects allegedly told him that the loan could be increased to 15 million euro, but an additional guarantee was required, after which the businessman allegedly transferred another 100,000 euros. The promised loan never materialised.

Georgescu has not issued any statement on this issue but he has previously claimed he was being investigated by the authorities because of his political activities.

His political ally, George Simion, who heads the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, AUR, condemned the move. “Any of us could be next. Stop the abuses! Romania is a dictatorship!” he wrote on Facebook.

Hundreds of Georgescu’s supporters gathered outside DIICOT headquarters, where he and other people were to arrive for questioning. Authorities have installed protective barriers and deployed gendarmerie units in the area.

This would be the third criminal case against Georgescu. He is already under investigation for endorsing fascist ideas in interviews, online posts and public appearances and also faces trial for complicity to undermine the constitutional order, spreading false information and founding an anti-Semitic organisation.

He denies all the charges.

After he unexpectedly won the first round of the Romanian presidential elections in November 2024, the Constitutional Court ordered a rerun of the vote, citing alleged manipulation of public opinion by a “foreign state”, likely referring to Russia.

Georgescu was banned from participating in the re-run in May 2025, which was ultimately won by centrist Nicusor Dan.

‘Modern Day Slavery:’ Myanmar’s Military Swells Ranks Through Corruption And Deceit – Analysis

 
New recruits from Military Service Training Batch No. 24 upon completing their training in April 2026. (MOI)

September 22, 2026
By RFA

Key Takeaways:

An RFA Burmese investigation, citing more than 30 families and defector Maj. Naung Yoe of MDSI, says Myanmar’s junta has filled post-coup manpower gaps since reviving a 2010 conscription law in February 2024 by capturing and selling young men into service—what he calls “modern day slavery.”

Quotas fall hardest on the poor; substitutes sell for about 10–30 million kyat ($2,500–$7,500). Families describe job lures and street abductions, new IDs to fill other townships’ quotas, ransoms that sometimes fail, and cases such as Zin Win Paing, sold then killed fighting the Arakan Army in May 2026.

MDSI estimates more than 130,000 recruits since 2024. The UN IIMM is examining enforced disappearances as possible crimes against humanity; even a USDP MP in Mandalay called the trade trafficking. Junta officials say unlawful summons will be punished; RFA got no reply from the recruitment body or a junta spokesperson.

The Myanmar military junta’s recruitment practices are “modern day slavery,” an expert from the volatile Southeast Asian country told Radio Free Asia. An investigation by RFA Burmese shows that for more than two years, thousands of young men in Myanmar have been captured, sold, and conscripted in ways that rights groups say may be crimes against humanity.

Ever since the military junta seized power in the 2021 coup, it has faced a growing armed resistance and significant personnel shortages. To fill the gap, the military has resorted to a conscription system, based on a 2010 law, that has resulted in mass human trafficking.

RFA interviewed more than 30 families of people they say were trafficked into the military. Their testimonies reveal that trafficking networks operate at the grassroots level—where young people are captured in every possible way and sold to recruiters for millions of kyat (thousands of U.S. dollars). The scheme involves various actors that include the junta’s low-level administrative officials, immigration officers, police and military officers, ex-soldiers and criminals who have links with the authorities according to interviewees.


“This is modern day slavery,” Maj. Naung Yoe, the military affairs official at the Myanmar Institute for Peace and Security, or MDSI, and a former military officer who defected and joined the anti-coup Civil Disobedience Movement or CDM, told RFA Burmese.

“They are trading people like goods. They are forcibly capturing these people for their own financial gain, treating them like slaves,” he said. “If they refuse to join the army, they are beaten all night.”

The MDSI tracks military recruitment, and said the system provides financial incentives for funneling the country’s youth into active-duty service.

“Once they agree to join, they are held, and then sold to the necessary locations for exorbitant fees,” said Naung Yoe. “We can call this modern human trafficking, a modern slave market.”
Soldiers for sale

The military’s conscription order demands a specific quota of recruits from each village, ward, or township proportional to its population. Findings show that the burden falls disproportionately on the poor. Though technically all men of conscription age – between 18 and 35 – are vulnerable, young men from wealthy families that get the call can pay to make poorer youth serve in their place.


The market price starts at 10 million kyat per person (about $2,500). Those who are healthy and pass the medical examination for military service can fetch up to 30 million kyat ($7,500), according to those who have purchased substitutes.

The people who were interviewed for the RFA Burmese investigation shared details about how the conscription scheme worked.

Ko Kaung, a youth from a suburb of Yangon whose real name is changed here for safety reasons, was working odd jobs to support his family in the volatile post-coup economic situation, a member of his family told RFA.

One day, a friend told him he could get a job loading construction materials for 40,000 kyat (about $10) per day. Ko Kaung accompanied him, hoping to land the job. The friend was actually working with traffickers and Ko Kaung was sold into military recruitment.

“They came to get him, saying there was a job in North Okkalapa township loading construction materials for 40,000 kyat a day,” Ko Kaung’s family member said. “Because there was no other work, he went. We lost contact completely. It was 18 days later that we finally made contact as he joined the military training where he could use a phone. We then learned he had been sold.”

Ko Kaung told his family he was sold to someone in Zayatkwin, Hlegu township in Yangon region; from there he was transported to Kyaing Tong, eastern Shan state bordering the Golden Triangle region, an area at the convergence of the borders of Myanmar, Thailand and Laos that is notorious for human and drug trafficking. It was August 2, 2026 when he could contact the family informing them that he was at military training.


The friend who recruited Ko Kaung allegedly has connections with the military, and currently is stationed at the No. 11 Infantry High-Level Training School, Ko Kaung’s family member said.

The People’s Military Service Law was first introduced and enacted by the previous junta led by Sr. Gen. Than Shwe, on November 4, 2010 in order to address the recruitment shortage in the possible future.

In February 2024, the current junta, led by Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, implemented the law and formed the Central Body for Summoning People’s Military Servants which would oversee all recruitment activities across the country.

Ko Kaung was recruited by an unknown individual recruitment group and transported to a military training camp under the body.

When RFA contacted the central body for the CBSPMS to inquire about Ko Kaung’s disappearance and illegal forced recruitment on August 17, 2026, no one answered.

Ko Kaung is not alone. Many others were also trafficked and conscripted under similar circumstances.

Zin Win Paing was abducted and sold as a new recruit for military service, his family told RFA. He was captured by a group of people as he came back from work to his home while waiting for a bus in South Dagon Township, Yangon, on March 5, 2025.

According to the family, Zin Win Paing was sold for 15 million kyat ($3,800). He was sent to Infantry Battalion 213 in Hlegu Township, Yangon, and subsequently to the front lines. He was killed in battle against the Arakan Army in Kyaukphyu, Rakhine State, on May 18, 2026.

Aung Ko Ko (a pseudonym) from Htantabin Township, Yangon, was also abducted and sold, his family told RFA. Aung Ko Ko was a welder in the Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone of Yangon and was captured while returning home on May 3. The family said he was sold for 12 million kyat ($3,000) to serve in the military for the Maubin Township area of Ayeyarwady Region.
Government corruption

Under the conscription law, every jurisdiction has a recruitment quota proportional to its population, but some of the youth were trafficked to fill the quota of nearby jurisdictions. This requires a change in registration and the issuance of a new national ID to count toward the second jurisdiction’s quota.

Such a change would have been impossible without the participation of government officials.

Zin Win Paing, who died in a battle in Rakhine state, is originally from Insein Township, but was sold to serve under South Dagon Township. Similarly, Aung Ko Ko, from Htantabin Township, was sold to serve for Maubin Township, Ayeyarwady Region. Both received new IDs prior to their conscription.


Interviews conducted by RFA with family members and village representatives reveals a belief that government officials of all levels are working together in collusion at every step of the scheme.

A village administrator from Mandalay Region, who wished to remain anonymous for safety reasons, told RFA that military authorities work together with trusted brokers to make the scheme work.

Pro-junta militia groups and others associated with the military “capture suspicious people or criminals and persuade them to join the army. They hand these kids over to the broker. The military (officers) give the order. The (brokers) then give (the captured recruits) to the administrators,” the local administrator told RFA.

“Since they are captives taken by the military-affiliates, they can be bought for 4,000,000 to 5,000,000 kyat (about $1,000 to $1,250). The middlemen handle the talking, the shifting, and the persuading, then they resell them for around 15 million kyat ($4,000)” the local administrator told RFA.

The local administrator admitted that he, too, had sourced recruits from brokers every three months to fill the conscription quota for his village. If the recruit is from a different township, immigration officials immediately issue a new ID card, receiving payments from the brokers for doing so.

While abductions are carried out directly by the military and police, or by junta-appointed administrators and their associates, the end result is always the same: they are forced into military service.

If families want to avoid their loved ones being sold, they sometimes have to pay hundreds of thousands of kyat in ransom to get them back. A family from Sinbaungwe Township, Magway Region, paid 20 million kyat (about $5000) to release their son after he was abducted last month.

“It is heartbreaking to have to buy back our own lives in our own country,” a family member of one of the victims said. “There is no one to rely on. We have no hope for justice from the leaders or the law because they are the ones openly doing this.”

In some cases, even after paying the ransom, the person is not released and is still sent to military training, resulting in the loss of both the person and the money. These incidents are widespread in areas where military control is strong, including Yangon, Mandalay, and Naypyidaw.

The money is simply too good for many government officials to resist, a lawyer in Yangon, who requested anonymity for security reasons, told RFA.

“I see this as using the law for business profit. This is not a military matter; it is forced, illegal coercion,” the lawyer said. “It is not part of the military service law. If subordinates are abusing this law, the military leaders should investigate and take severe action.”

RFA contacted Daw Khaing Khaing Soe, spokesperson for the former coup leader Min Aung Hlaing, but there was no response.


In state and local parliaments, questions on incidents of forced disappearance and illegal recruitments have been raised but the resulting discussions are often not highlighted by the junta-controlled media.

Meanwhile, the police often do not act on these cases because military officials are involved, Aung Ko Lin Han—a former deputy police inspector in Yangon who defected to the anti-coup Civil Disobedience Movement after serving until late 2025, told RFA.

“Retired army captains and active-duty military personnel—along with what you might call thugs or, essentially, their henchmen—collude to carry out these acts,” he said. “It is true that victims can be ransomed back. If one has the means, they can secure a release based on what they can afford to pay.”

Aung Ko Ling Han said that there have been cases where the police arrested traffickers.

“But we were unable to take action against those belonging to the active-duty military,” he told RFA.
Swelling the ranks

Since the implementation of the Military Service Law in 2024, thousands of young people across the country have been sent to 28 military training centers each month, So far, 28 batches of trainees have been recruited.

MDSI estimates that the military has recruited more than 130,000 new soldiers since the law went into effect, based on a newly imposed national quota of 5,000 recruits per week that was announced in April. RFA was not able to determine exactly how many of these 130,000-plus young people have been subjected to trafficking.

“Myanmar security forces have carried out abductions or detentions without informing families about where they are or their condition,” the United Nations Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, or IIMM, stated on August 29.

“Their families and loved ones live in uncertainty and anxiety. The Mechanism is investigating reports related to enforced disappearances. Under international law, if enforced disappearances are committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, it may constitute a crime against humanity.”

Concerns about human trafficking have even been raised by politicians who support the military.

In the Mandalay Regional Parliament on August 4, Ko Ko Htwe, a regional member of parliament from the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), criticized these activities, calling them a massive human trafficking ring.

“Since the initial call-up began, levies labeled as ‘military service fees’ have been collected from every household in the neighborhood, leading to financial issues and corruption,” he said. “Furthermore, these collected funds are being used to ‘purchase’ young people for military service—a practice akin to human trafficking. Consequently, young residents of Mandalay and migrant workers from other regions no longer feel safe.”


When questioned about these issues in the Naypyidaw parliament in July, the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Maj. Gen. Min Thu, claimed they were acting systematically and that they would punish those acting outside the law.

“On behalf of the Chairman, and based on the coordinated responses from the Ministry of Defence and the Sagaing Region Government, I state that the People’s Military Service Summoning Body is issuing strict instructions at all levels to prevent summons that do not comply with the law, and that effective action will be taken against any activities that exceed the scope of the law and its bylaws,” the deputy minister said.

USDP spokesperson Hla Thein told RFA that it was necessary to take strict action against the perpetrators.

“If the authorities take action, these things will eventually disappear,” he said. “If people file complaints with concrete evidence, as has appeared in the newspapers, and if it is true, they will take action.”

About RFA
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