The European Commission has rolled out Element Pro, a self-hosted alternative to Microsoft Teams, as a backup if U.S. technology becomes unavailable.

Some officials have slammed the system, with one calling it “absolute shit” and another saying the U.S. would “instantly win the war” if access to American technology were cut off.

Element says the Commission is still testing the platform and that early technical and usability problems are expected.

Source: POLITICO

NEW: The Trump administration has told France and Germany to release emergency diesel stocks or risk a U.S. diesel export ban.

The U.S. wants the EU to release about 120 million barrels of diesel over six months as Trump seeks to lower fuel prices ahead of the November midterms.

Source: Reuters

Zelensky:

A target in the Black Sea was hit, as well as a launch and storage site for attack drones in the Oryol region.

Sanctions were also applied against an oil facility in the Samara region and a supply depot for the occupiers in the Bryansk region.

We will continue depriving Russia of the ability to continue this war.

Explosions were heard overnight in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, as fighting in northern Ethiopia escalates.

A source linked to the opposition alliance fighting federal forces claimed it carried out several drone strikes in the capital, including against military headquarters.

If confirmed, it would be the first known drone attack by anti-government forces on Addis Ababa.

Ethiopia had already banned drone flights over the capital and surrounding areas for security reasons.

Source: Reuters

Türkiye has signed an agreement with the UK to acquire 12 C-130J transport aircraft, the Defense Ministry said.

The first two aircraft are expected to arrive in December after maintenance in the UK, with the rest delivered gradually.

Training is also underway, with six pilots and six technicians in the U.S. and 29 maintenance personnel in the UK.

Sens. Josh Hawley and Chris Murphy plan to introduce bipartisan legislation making AI companies criminally and civilly liable when autonomous AI agents hack systems.

The proposal challenges the Trump administration’s preference for industry self-regulation and its argument that existing consumer protection and liability laws are sufficient.

Congress is also considering bipartisan AI “kill switch,” testing and transparency bills, but broader legislation remains stalled amid disagreements over how quickly the technology is evolving.

Source: Axios

Kremlin:

Russia’s warning about the consequences of possible attempts to blockade Kaliningrad should not be seen as a confrontational statement.

Kremlin:

The whole world is waiting for Putin’s speech at the Valdai forum.

The Trump administration is slowing exports of key U.S.-made aircraft parts to China to gain leverage in trade negotiations.

The Commerce Department has delayed export licenses, limited parts shipments to Chinese planemaker COMAC and considered making it easier to restrict items such as landing gear and hydraulic fluid.

Washington sees China’s dependence on U.S. aviation suppliers as leverage as it pushes Beijing to loosen controls on rare earth minerals critical to U.S. manufacturing.

China has also sought years’ worth of spare parts for 200 Boeing jets, but the U.S. has been reluctant to provide guarantees because the parts could be used in future negotiations.

Source: Reuters

Polish Foreign Minister Sikorski:

Kremlin’s assets frozen in Europe are never going back to Russia.

They can be used in the future as war reparations or to help Ukraine rebuild, or they can be used now to help prevent further destruction and make future reconstruction cheaper.

Polish Foreign Minister Sikorski:

Unfortunately, even if the war ends tomorrow, Russia will remain a threat.

We cannot afford to once again underestimate the danger of Moscow’s militarism.

Polish Foreign Minister Sikorski:

Europe is not a global empire and does not intend to become one. We don’t need military bases in every corner of the world.

We need to be strong enough to deter Putin.

Polish Foreign Minister Sikorski:

I once did a quick calculation of where Russia would be if she developed since 1913 at the pace of Canada.

She would have the economy of the United States.

It has the economy of less than Italy now.

Polish Foreign Minister Sikorski:

When I was defense minister, my Mongolian counterpart gave me a beautifully framed collection of medals minted for the 800th anniversary of Genghis Khan.

My guest was very surprised when I told him that in Poland, Genghis Khan is a controversial figure.

China has suspended most fuel exports for October as Beijing prioritizes rebuilding domestic stocks amid disruptions from the Iran war and attacks on Russian refineries.

PetroChina canceled some gasoline and jet fuel shipments, while Zhejiang Petrochemical scheduled no exports during the holiday week. It remains unclear whether exports will resume after October 7.

China’s diesel stocks are estimated to be about 20 million barrels below pre-war levels and gasoline stocks about 9 million barrels short.

Source: Reuters

Türkiye issued a new NAVTEX for the Eastern Mediterranean, where the Oruç Reis and three support vessels will conduct scientific and underwater surveys from October 1–25.

The work is linked to plans for a subsea natural gas pipeline between Türkiye and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), following a July 10 energy agreement.

TRNC Prime Minister Ünal Üstel said the gas project would be followed by plans for an undersea electricity connection from Türkiye.

Trump:

I have the highest of IQs. I have the highest. I'm fine.

Source: TIME

Q: Last week, you said you might annihilate Iran. That was the word you used.

Trump: Yeah, I would do that. It's possible.

Q: How can the president of peace be calling for the annihilation of an entire people?

Trump: Because by annihilating Iran, we've created peace in the world. With Iran, I don't think you could ever have peace.

Source: TIME

Q: On Iran, are you going to ramp up bombing after the midterms? There have been reports of that.

Trump: Possible. We have a lot of weapons.

Source: TIME

Q: You initially said that the Iran war would take about six to eight weeks. We’re now entering the seventh month. Can you explain why it’s taking so long?

Trump: Only because I wanted to go further. I took them out. I could have stopped then, but I wanted to go further.

Source: TIME