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

Trump:

If I weren't president, Saudi Arabia wouldn't be here right now. Neither would Israel. They'd be wiped off the face of the planet.

Source: TIME

Q: Are you considering pardoning members of your administration prior to the end of your term?

Trump: Yeah, sure I’d do that. Sleepy Joe Biden, he gave pardons to everyone.

Source: TIME

Trump on Zohran Mamdani:

I like him, I think he’s great, but I think his policies are crazy.

You can’t have wealthy people leave. You can’t have companies that employ tens or thousands of people leave and go to Florida, Texas.

You’ve got to fight those companies that cherish—you’ve got to fight to keep them. And nobody’s doing that. I’ve never seen anything like it.

But I do—I like him, but I think his policies are not good.

Source: TIME

Q: There have been repeated reports that Netanyahu was warned prior to Oct. 7 about the possibility of an attack.

Trump: I heard that today for the first time.

Q: Reports say Egypt warned him, and the UAE warned him.

Trump: I don't think so. I think if he would have known, he would have done something about it.

Source: TIME

Q: If Gadi Eisenkot were to win the election in Israel, could the U.S. work better with him than Netanyahu?

Trump: Well, I don't know. I don't hear bad things about him... You think he's leading?

Q: He's the leading opposition candidate.

Trump: Well, people have written off Bibi many, many times, just like they've written off me many, many times. I wouldn't underestimate Bibi.

Source: TIME

Trump:

Biden gave away massive amounts of munitions to Ukraine. Much more so than what we spent, and—but we're in great shape.

And we're in great shape, but we're also now stocking up big and making—and we're keeping it. You know, we'll get it out to others, you know, our allies.

Source: TIME