Russia has plans to test NATO’s resolve, German intelligence chief warns

Russia has plans to test NATO’s resolve, German intelligence chief warns
The President of the German Federal Intelligence Agency (BND) Bruno Kahl attends the opening ceremony of the new BND (Federal Intelligence Service) headquarter in Berlin, Germany. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 10 June 2025
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Russia has plans to test NATO’s resolve, German intelligence chief warns

Russia has plans to test NATO’s resolve, German intelligence chief warns
  • Germany has pledged to step up its support further under the new government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, promising to help Ukraine develop new missiles that could strike deep into Russian territory

BERLIN: Russia is determined to test the resolve of the NATO alliance, including by extending its confrontation with the West beyond the borders of Ukraine, the Germany’s foreign intelligence chief told the Table Media news organization.
Bruno Kahl, head of the Federal Intelligence Service, said his agency had clear intelligence indications that Russian officials believed the collective defense obligations enshrined in the NATO treaty no longer had practical force.
“We are quite certain, and we have intelligence showing it, that Ukraine is only a step on the journey westward,” Kahl told Table Media in a podcast interview.
“That doesn’t mean we expect tank armies to roll westwards,” he added. “But we see that NATO’s collective defense promise is to be tested.”
Germany, already the second-largest provider of armaments and financial support for Ukraine in its war with Russia, has pledged to step up its support further under the new government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, promising to help Ukraine develop new missiles that could strike deep into Russian territory.
Without detailing the nature of his intelligence sources, Kahl said Russian officials were envisaging confrontations that fell short of a full military engagement that would test whether the US would really live up to its mutual aid obligations under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty.
“They don’t need to dispatch armies of tanks for that,” he said. “It’s enough to send little green men to Estonia to protect supposedly oppressed Russian minorities.”
Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea involved occupation of buildings and offices by Russian soldiers in unmarked uniforms and civilian clothes, who came to be known as the “little green men” when Moscow initially denied their identity.
Kahl did not specify which officials in Moscow were thinking along these lines.
Merz, who visited Donald Trump in Washington last week, pushed back against the US president’s assertion that Ukraine and Russia were like two infants fighting, telling Trump that where Ukraine targeted Moscow’s military, Russia bombed Ukraine’s cities.
Kahl said his contacts with US counterparts had left him convinced they took the Russian threat seriously.
“They take it as seriously as us, thank God,” he said.


Saudi Arabia’s NCNP drives non-profit growth, global ties at World Expo

Saudi Arabia’s NCNP drives non-profit growth, global ties at World Expo
Updated 18 sec ago
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Saudi Arabia’s NCNP drives non-profit growth, global ties at World Expo

Saudi Arabia’s NCNP drives non-profit growth, global ties at World Expo
  • NCNP hosted the panel session — The Future of Non-Profits — at the Saudi Pavilion
  • The panel demonstrated the NCNP’s goal of activating the Kingdom’s SDGs through innovation, collaboration, and strategic partnerships

OSAKA: Saudi Arabia’s National Center for Non-Profit Sector (NCNP) is expanding at a rapid pace with the number of registered NPOs surpassing 5,700 last year.

In a bid to capitalize on the situation and position Saudi Arabia as a global leader in the sector, the NCNP brought together leading voices from the Kingdom’s non-profit organizations (NPOs) for a high-profile panel discussion and for a separate U-Table meeting at the World Expo in Osaka.

NCNP hosted the panel session — The Future of Non-Profits — at the Saudi Pavilion to highlight how the Kingdom has advanced the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through non-profit entities.

The panel demonstrated the NCNP’s goal of activating the Kingdom’s SDGs through innovation, collaboration, and strategic partnerships.

The panel featured HRH Princess Luluah Bint Nawaf Al Saud, President of the Board at Mawaddah Association for Family Stability (MAFS), Reem Abukhayal, Media and PR Manager of Alwaleed Philanthropies, and Dr. Abdullah AlMuhanna, Vice President of Sector Empowerment at National Developmental Housing Foundation (Sakan).

NCNP’s International Communication lead, Alaa Alghamdi addressed the successful models and initiatives led by Saudi NPOs and the challenges and opportunities in scaling impact through innovation, partnerships, and sustainability.

“We were very excited to highlight how NCNP is building a sustainable future through non-profit innovation during our informative panel discussion,” Mishari Alturaif, GM of Government Outsourcing at NCNP, said.

“The Future of Non-Profits discussion underscores the ambitious efforts that NCNP is putting into supporting innovation across the local and global non-profit sector through constructive dialogue and engagement.”

NCNP also hosted a U-Table meeting with leading Saudi and international NPO’s that introduced NCNP and its international collaboration goals.

Participants from the Saudi nonprofit sector included Bunyan Charity, the National Developmental Housing Foundation (Sakan), Saudi Food Bank, and Alwdad Orphanage Care.

The participants exchanged best practices in non-profit governance and public-civil partnerships and identified areas for future collaboration aligned with national priorities and SDGS.

They also discussed the importance of shifting the mindset in the non-profit sector from one that focuses on charity to one of development, allowing for social innovation and entrepreneurship to support economic growth.

“At the U-Table, we had the opportunity to learn about how NCNP is partnering globally to advance non-profit solutions for a better world, solutions that support economic growth and innovation,” Sadakazu Ikawa, co-founder and Executive Director at the Trust Based Philanthropy Japan and Manager at the AVPN.

“We look forward to working with NCNP to activate solutions that help achieve sustainable development worldwide.”

In Osaka, the NCNP team also met with the Japan Foundation to explore opportunities for collaboration with Japanese entities and to exchange international expertise and best practices in the non-profit sector.

Under NCNP’s leadership, Saudi Arabia’s non-profit ecosystem has expanded rapidly. The number of registered NPOs surpassed 5,700 last year, with over 6,000 fundraising licenses issued and more than 2,000 active civil associations. Volunteerism has surged from just under 23,000 in 2015 to 1.2 million in 2024.

Thirty government entities now contribute to non-profit development, showing their rising national importance. Thus, NCNP continues to serve as the Kingdom’s catalyst for non-profit growth, linking local action with global collaboration to unlock sustainable impact.


French court tries couple accused of plan to ‘sacrifice’ son

French court tries couple accused of plan to ‘sacrifice’ son
Updated 49 min 16 sec ago
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French court tries couple accused of plan to ‘sacrifice’ son

French court tries couple accused of plan to ‘sacrifice’ son
  • The two music teachers were arrested in southern Spain in late 2023
  • The couple, who hold “anti-system” and “mystical” beliefs, vehemently reject their charges

BORDEAUX: A French couple went on trial on Thursday accused of planning to “sacrifice” their five-year-old son in the Moroccan desert, accusations they have strongly denied.

The two music teachers were arrested in southern Spain in late 2023 as they were about to board a ferry to Morocco after buying a new four-wheel-drive and subletting their apartment near the French city of Bordeaux.

An alarmed relative had told French prosecutors that the father intended to “sacrifice” his son in the desert because he believed he was “possessed,” the investigation showed.

The father, Florian L., denies ever having said that, his lawyer Audrey Boussillon said.

“Never did he have the intention to harm his son in any way,” she added.

The couple, who hold “anti-system” and “mystical” beliefs, vehemently reject the charges of being part of a criminal gang and failing in their duties as parents, their defense team has said.

The attorney for the mother Marie L., Aurelie Filippi-Codaccioni, said the couple had been to Morocco two years earlier and had wanted to return for an undetermined period.

But Merlene Labadie, a lawyer representing the interests of the child, said the couple’s beliefs endangered their son, who spoke of the importance of “being cold, scared and removing the snake within us” when found.

He is now in the custody of his maternal grandparents, she said.

The trial is to last a single day and the verdict will likely be announced at a later date.


Britain seeks German help against people smuggling gangs on landmark Merz visit

Britain seeks German help against people smuggling gangs on landmark Merz visit
Updated 50 min 29 sec ago
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Britain seeks German help against people smuggling gangs on landmark Merz visit

Britain seeks German help against people smuggling gangs on landmark Merz visit
  • Keir Starmer and Friedrich Merz signed the first ever ‘friendship treaty’ between their countries at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum
  • Undocumented migration has become a major headache for Starmer’s year-old Labour government, as support for the anti-immigrant Reform UK party soars

LONDON: Britain sought a firm commitment Thursday from Germany to change its law to help smash people smuggling gangs, as the two countries agreed to boost defense ties on the first official UK visit by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
The trip comes a week after undocumented migrants also topped the political agenda during a state visit to Britain by French President Emmanuel Macron.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Merz signed the first ever “friendship treaty” between their countries at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum before heading for talks at the PM’s Downing Street office.
Merz said London and Berlin had agreed an exchange program for German and British students.
Speaking in German, he said he believed allowing the “young generation” to get to know each other and their respective countries was a “good basis for the further development of our relations.”
The two leaders were also expected to unveil a deal to jointly produce military goods such as Boxer armored vehicles and Typhoon jets, which could lead to “billions of pounds of additional defense exports,” Downing Street said.
They were to commit to developing a precision strike missile with a range of more than 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) in the next decade.
“Chancellor Merz’s commitment to make necessary changes to German law to disrupt the supply lines of the dangerous vessels which carry illegal migrants across the Channel is hugely welcome,” Starmer said ahead of the talks.
His office said it was hoped the German legal changes could be made “this year.”
Undocumented migration has become a major headache for Starmer’s year-old Labour government, as support for the upstart anti-immigrant Reform UK party soars.
More than 22,500 would-be asylum seekers have arrived on England’s southeastern coast by small boat from northern France this year alone.
The “friendship treaty” also seeks to improve post-Brexit ties with its neighbors.

Macron’s trip in early July was the first state visit to the country by a European Union head of state since Brexit — the UK’s acrimonious 2020 departure from the bloc.
A German government source said “we shouldn’t underestimate” how much relations with the UK had improved since the “traumatic” experience of Brexit.
The friendship deal would be a “foundation on which we go further to tackle shared problems,” Starmer said.
The two leaders were also to discuss continued support for Ukraine, with both countries expected to play a role in US President Donald Trump’s plan to send weapons to Kyiv with financing from other NATO countries.
The visit is Merz’s first to the UK as chancellor, although he has already met Starmer several times, including on a trip by train to Ukraine just days after he took office in early May.
The wide-ranging treaty will refer to the turbulent security situation faced by both countries, and include a mutual defense pact.
“There is no strategic threat to one which would not be a strategic threat to the other,” pact says, with a pledge the two countries “shall assist one another, including by military means, in case of an armed attack.”
While Britain and Germany already have a commitment to mutual defense as NATO members, the treaty aims to pave the way for greater defense cooperation, including operations on NATO’s eastern flank.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul accompanied Merz, meeting with his British counterpart, David Lammy.
On migration, Merz’s government is expected to make a commitment to modify German law by the end of the year to criminalize the facilitation of “illegal migration.”
This will include action against storage facilities used by migrant smugglers to conceal small boats intended for Channel crossings.
The two countries will also commit to improving train connections.
Last month Eurostar said it planned to launch a new route from London to Frankfurt in the early 2030s — the first such direct connection between the UK and Germany.


Czech-arranged ammunition shipments to Ukraine are increasing, says government

Czech-arranged ammunition shipments to Ukraine are increasing, says government
Updated 17 July 2025
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Czech-arranged ammunition shipments to Ukraine are increasing, says government

Czech-arranged ammunition shipments to Ukraine are increasing, says government
  • Director Ales Vytecka of the defense ministry’s AMOS international cooperation agency said that so far this year, shipments totalled 850,000 shells
  • This compares with 1.5 million total, including 500,000 155-mm shells, throughout 2024

PRAGUE: Czech-arranged shipments of artillery ammunition to Ukraine are rising this year, proving partners’ trust in a government program matching donations from NATO partners with offers to sell ammunition, the Czech Defense Ministry said on Thursday.

As Ukraine suffered from shortage of ammunition last year, the Czechs set up a team which has together with private companies searched for available ammunition stocks and new production around the world.

The available ammunition batches are being offered to donor countries, which then pick which they want to finance.

The program, which makes use of the Czechs’ traditional arms trading contacts, has been a flagship of the center-right government’s international efforts to help Ukraine fight Russia’s aggression. It has also donated heavy equipment and other material worth hundreds of millions of euros.

Director Ales Vytecka of the defense ministry’s AMOS international cooperation agency said that so far this year, shipments totalled 850,000 shells, including 320,000 NATO artillery 155mm calibre projectiles.

This compares with 1.5 million total, including 500,000 155-mm shells, throughout 2024.

Andrej Babis, head of the Czech opposition ANO party that leads opinion polls ahead of an election in October, vowed to scrap the initiative if ANO returns to power, saying in a Reuters interview this week the program was overpriced and untransparent.

Vytecka rejected criticism of drive, saying there was as much transparency as security concerns allowed.

“Clear and undeniable proof of the satisfaction of our partners is the fact that in 2025 donors’ contributions have significantly risen,” Vytecka said.

So far this year, contributions have risen by 29 percent compared with the whole of 2024, he said without giving concrete sums, adding that countries raising their contributions included Canada, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Netherlands and Denmark.

He said donor countries always decided themselves which supplies and at what prices they would finance, and the offers were subject to audits in individual donor countries.

The Czechs have mostly acted as an intermediary. The government said last year it allocated around 35 million euros for ammunition purchases from a Czech supplier.


Ukraine seeks surge in domestic arms production as US diverts Swiss order for Patriots to Kyiv

Ukraine seeks surge in domestic arms production as US diverts Swiss order for Patriots to Kyiv
Updated 17 July 2025
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Ukraine seeks surge in domestic arms production as US diverts Swiss order for Patriots to Kyiv

Ukraine seeks surge in domestic arms production as US diverts Swiss order for Patriots to Kyiv
  • The Swiss Defense Ministry said Thursday it has been informed by the US Defense Department that it will “reprioritize the delivery of Patriot systems to support Ukraine”
  • “What we need is greater capacity to push the war back onto Russia’s territory,” Zelensky said

KYIV: A new Ukrainian government approved Thursday will race to expand domestic arms production to meet half the country’s weapons needs within six months as it tries to push back Russia’s invasion, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Meanwhile, Switzerland said Thursday that the US Defense Department had informed it that Washington is diverting a Swiss order for Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine, which badly needs to improve its response to increasingly heavy Russian aerial attacks.

The Swiss Defense Ministry, which in 2022 ordered five Patriot systems, said Thursday it has been informed by the US Defense Department that it will “reprioritize the delivery of Patriot systems to support Ukraine.”

Delivery to Switzerland of the systems, worth billions of dollars, was scheduled to begin in 2027 and be completed in 2028. But the Swiss government said Washington informed it of the delay on Wednesday, adding that it was unclear how many systems would be affected.

Domestic defense manufacturing already accounts for almost 40 percent of weapons used by the Ukrainian military, according to Zelensky. As uncertainty grows about how many more weapons shipments Western countries can provide — and how quickly — Ukraine is keen to increase its output and widen its strikes on Russian soil.

“What we need is greater capacity to push the war back onto Russia’s territory — back to where the war was brought from,” Zelensky said late Wednesday in his nightly video address.

“We must reach the level of 50 percent Ukrainian-made weapons within the first six months of the new government’s work by expanding our domestic production.”

The need to adequately arm Ukraine’s military is pressing as Russia looks to drive forward its summer offensive and pounds Ukrainian cities with hundreds of drones and ballistic and cruise missiles.

Meanwhile, it remained unclear when promises of US-made weapons, especially Patriot missile systems crucial for stretched Ukrainian air defenses, might reach Ukraine. US President Donald Trump agreed to send the weaponry, but it will be paid for by European countries.

NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, told the Associated Press Thursday that “preparations are underway” for weapons transfers to Ukraine and that NATO is working “very closely” with Germany to transfer Patriot systems.

Grynkewich said at a military event in Wiesbaden, Germany, that he had been ordered to “move (the weapons) out as quickly as possible.” He said the number of weapons being transferred is classified.

“We’re already in preparation phase for the first tranche of capability to start moving with respect to Patriots,” he said.

An expert working group under NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe will discuss concrete planning “very quickly but also with corresponding caution,” German Defense Ministry spokesperson Mitko Müller said Wednesday.

He said details were still being worked out.

“Regarding the systems that we are talking about, I can’t confirm that anything is currently on the way. I’m not aware of that,” he said.

NATO chief Mark Rutte said in Washington on Monday that the alliance is coordinating the military support with funding from allies in Europe and Canada. He said there were commitments from Germany, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Canada “with more expected to follow.”

Ukraine has also developed its own long-range drones, which it uses to strike deep inside Russia.

Russian air defenses shot down 122 Ukrainian drones overnight, the country’s defense ministry said Thursday. The wave of drones caused flights to be grounded at airports in Moscow and St. Petersburg, although most of the drones were reportedly destroyed over the border regions of Bryansk and Kursk.

Meanwhile, Russia attacked Ukraine with 64 Shahed and decoy drones overnight, killing at least one person, the Ukrainian air force reported. The assault centered on the industrial Dnipropetrovsk region, officials said.

In other developments:
Russia on Thursday sent to Ukraine 1,000 bodies, including some of the country’s fallen soldiers, the Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said.

At the same time, Russia received the bodies of 19 soldiers, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky said.

The exchange was part of a deal reached at direct peace talks last May and June that produced few other agreements between the sides.