Thirty years after its sinking, the sunken Soviet submarine Komsomolets continues to cause a stir in the Norwegian Sea. Although recent measurements show that the nuclear-tipped torpedoes are not yet leaking plutonium, the wreck’s nuclear reactor is indeed still emitting radioactive substances.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has appointed the head of the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU), Yevhen Chmara, as acting Minister of Defense. Chmara is to temporarily take over the ministry’s duties following the resignation of Mykhailo Fedorov, who held the position for only six months.
The Japanese parliament has approved a reform of the imperial line of succession, but a female emperor remains excluded. With this decision, Tokyo has opted for a limited modernization of the centuries-old succession system, without altering the male line that has formed the basis of the Chrysanthemum Throne for generations.
European highways will be busy on Saturday, with France once again posing the biggest bottleneck for holiday makers.
In the case surrounding the disappearance of Delphine Jubillar, a breakthrough finally appears to be in sight after six years. According to France24, on Thursday morning, French investigators found bones in an abandoned house in the Tarn department, near the spot where the woman was last seen in late 2020.
Volodymyr Zelensky has removed his popular defense minister, Mychajlo Fedorov, in a major cabinet reshuffle. This occurred just on the eve of a visit by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to Kyiv.
France is in the grip of an unprecedented wave of wildfires. During a visit to the heavily affected Fontainebleau Forest, President Emmanuel Macron said that the country “hasn't experienced a situation like this since the end of World War II.” According to him, some 35,000 hectares of natural areas have already gone up in flames, including more than 2,000 hectares in the iconic forest southeast of Paris.
Russian opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin has sharply criticized President Vladimir Putin. According to him, the Kremlin is steering Russia toward chaos—and possibly even a catastrophe. He made these remarks Wednesday during an interview in Dolgoprudny, a suburb of Moscow. Nadezhdin is one of the few Russian politicians who still speaks out publicly against Putin and the war in Ukraine without ending up in prison or fleeing the country.
The American news network NBC has learned from sources within the Trump administration that the war the United States is waging against Iran is costing much more than has been officially acknowledged so far.
The resignation of Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s Defense Minister, has drawn fierce criticism from the wider public: in numerous cities, young people are expressing their support for the popular minister and calling for his return.