EUROPE - Playing host was German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who delivered a speech to his Baltic counterparts at a luncheon they enjoyed together. He said: “...Yes, it’s true that in Germany we often instinctively look to the west. The decades of the Iron Curtain still have an impact decades later. And it remains true that the Franco-German friendship is a fundamental element of a united Europe. But good European policy is only possible when my country works closely with all member states, in the north and south, in the centre of Europe and in the north-east.

EUROPE - The European Union shows all the signs of worsening economic, social and political decline, with symptoms ranging from tepid economic growth and chronically high unemployment to social unrest and rising political extremism. The idealistic roots and worthy intentions of early European integration in the wake of two world wars have long given way to a bureaucratic cadre steeped in etatist [the extreme authority of the state over the individual citizen] doctrines. At its heart, the EU is an elite-driven project that rejects the primacy of market economics over social welfare models, compounded by a disdain for democracy. Until Europe starts to acknowledge the increasing gulf between old and new Europe, and takes economic reform seriously, it will continue to experience tepid growth. But while it may be only a matter of time before the system collapses, it will probably have to await a major ‘existential’ crisis or the arrival of a new generation of realists.

DENMARK - Denmark-based toy company LEGO is introducing a new set for kids, inspired by the Netflix reality show Queer Eye — a series featuring five gay men who give straight men a makeover. The LEGO set, “Queer Eye — The Fab 5 Loft,” features each member of the “Fab Five” inside a decorated loft. “Get ready to be your true self as you join the Fab 5 for a rewarding building project with this LEGO® Queer Eye,” LEGO said in an announcement. “As you recreate all the details that make up the interior of the Fab 5’s original Atlanta loft, you’ll discover lots of features from the show with tributes to each of the Fab 5’s special talents,” the company added. This is not the first time LEGO announced a pro-LGBTQ set for kids. This year, the toy company also released a rainbow “Everyone is Awesome” set for kids, just in time for Pride month. The multicolored set features 11 single-colored, non-gendered figurines that together form a rainbow with black and brown stripes, as well as the “transgender flag colors.”

USA - The TRUE inflation rate is 13%, if using the Bureau for Labor Statistics’ original calculation method. They changed this method in 1980, to deliberately downplay inflation risks and manipulate public opinion. The last time it was at current levels was in 2008, just before the crash…

CANARY ISLANDS - Fears are growing that a volcano on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands could erupt after 1,000 earthquakes were registered on the island in the past five days. Experts have noticed an upsurge in seismic activity and magma displacements under the volcanic ridge of La Cumbre Vieja on the popular tourist hotspot, which has a population of 85,000. More than 11 million cubic metres (388 million cubic feet) of magma have seeped into Cumbre Vieja in recent days, swelling the peak by around 6 centimetres, the Volcanic Institute of the Canaries said. A 2001 research article claimed a change in the eruptive activity of Cumbre Vieja volcano and a fracture on the volcano that formed during the 1949 eruption may be the prelude to a giant ridge collapse. Authors Steven N Ward and Simon Day estimated such a collapse could cause tsunamis across the entire North Atlantic and severely impact countries as far away as North America.

CHINA - Are we in danger of stumbling into a major military conflict? This week, a couple of startling revelations have really shaken up those that closely watch US relations with China. The relationship between our two nations continues to deteriorate, and we are now closer to a war with China than we have ever been since the end of the Korean War. …Here in the United States, it is pretty much a non-issue, because the vast majority of the population does not think that such a war will ever happen in their entire lifetimes.

EUROPE - The European Union’s radical green agenda risks sparking widespread political unrest as seen during the Yellow Vest movement in France as energy prices soar throughout the bloc. According to the consumer prices index, energy costs have risen by 15 per over the past year in the EU, as Brussels continues to push its plans to decarbonise Europe’s economy by the year 2050. Toby Couture, director at consultancy at the Berlin-based renewable energy consulting firm E3 Analytics waned that the green transition could see political unrest across the bloc. “As we start phasing out coal and nuclear capacity that’s been in the system for decades, there’s a risk that prices will have to rise further,” he told the Financial Times. “If it starts jeopardizing power reliability and significantly increasing energy prices that people pay, it could lead to significant political pushback.”

IRELAND - About half of all Covid-19 patients in hospital and in intensive care are fully vaccinated against the disease, new figures show. One-sixth of deaths of people with the virus since April have been categorised as breakthrough infections of fully vaccinated patients, according to Health Service Executive data. More than one-quarter of ICU admissions since July were also breakthrough infections of fully vaccinated people. The proportion of vaccinated people requiring treatment in hospital has been increasing over recent months, as the number of vaccinated people in the wider population has risen.

USA - This wasn’t supposed to happen. We were promised that once Joe Biden was in the White House that the tremendous anger that was building up in our country would start to subside, but that obviously is not happening. In fact Americans have been getting even angrier. And everywhere I go on social media this week, I am seeing huge explosions of anger. What in the world is our country going to look like if all of this anger continues to grow?

GERMANY - This Is the candidate to beat in the race to become Germany's next leader. The hammering typically begins at 8 o'clock sharp and continues through the day, its pulsing sound echoing along the gleaming renovated buildings and canals of this city's harbor district. It's the heartbeat of Hamburg. For the past 10 years, this has been the soundtrack to the transformation of Germany's largest port from one of run-down warehouses to a thriving cultural center filled with loft apartments, hotels and pedestrian trails and capped with a massive philharmonic hall, a glass goliath whose roof is in the shape of undulating ocean waves. This is the city where Olaf Scholz, 63, grew up and served as mayor from 2011 to 2018. Supporters credit Scholz, of the center-left Social Democratic Party, for steering the city's construction spree. Now the German finance minister and vice chancellor, he's shaping up in national polls and debates as the front-runner to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany's election on September 26… "Schulz has a very, very clear plan of how things should develop and look like."

CHINA - Tensions between China and the US continue to boil amid another threat about warships "showing up near Hawaii". Earlier this month, the US deployed the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group (VINCSG) to the highly contested South China Sea for the first time during the group's 2021 deployment. The strike group is conducting maritime security operations, including flight operations and maritime strike exercises. Rear Admiral Dan Martin, commander of the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, said: "The freedom of all nations to navigate in international waters is important, and especially vital in the South China Sea, where nearly a third of global maritime trade transits each year.

CHINA - China's state-run Global Times tabloid, which is viewed as representing the view of Beijing if with a hyperbolic slant, published an op-ed from its editorial board on Wednesday vowing that China’s military will soon confront the US in a hostile exchange, American Military News reported. "The US will definitely see the PLA show up at its doorstep in the not-too-distant future," the op-ed said. “The two sides’ warships and aircraft on the seas will carry huge mutual strategic hostility, and the two countries will not yield to each other.” "Once the situation gets out of control and triggers military clash between China and the US, we must give full play to our home field advantage. China will definitely win once there is a war,” the Global Times op-ed said.

UK - Plans to introduce Covid vaccine passports have been scrapped as Sajid Javid confirms people won’t need them to get into nightclubs and cinemas. The Health Secretary revealed this morning that Covid jab passports won’t be introduced as a measure to fight the virus as we enter the winter months. He told the BBC today: “I am pleased to say that we will not be going ahead with plans for vaccine passports.” The Health Secretary said it was “absolutely right” of the Government to have looked into it, and that the idea will be “kept in the reserves” rather than implemented.

USA - Tropical storm Nicholas has Texas in its sights as it barrels towards the Gulf Coast. Here's the latest advisory, satellite images and maps. Tropical Storm Nicholas is bearing down on the Gulf Coast, bringing fierce winds and torrential rain to much of Texas and Louisiana. With forecasters predicting the storm to strengthen, residents have been warned to evacuate ahead of Nicholas making landfall. Today the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana are bracing for the arrival of Tropical Storm Nicholas. The second deadly storm in two weeks, Nicholas is expected to batter the region with life-threatening storm surge, flash flooding and gusty winds.

CHINA - Typhoon Chanthu exploded to life last week and underwent rapid intensification becoming the second super typhoon of the season. Typhoon Chanthu is bearing down on parts of China with torrential downpours and strong winds expected to lash at provinces during this week. The Ministry of Water Resources unleashed an emergency response for floods, while authorities evacuated 330,000 people from at-risk areas. Rainfall amounts of up to 18 inches could fall nearest to the coast, with a maximum rainfall amount of 30 inches expected in some regions.