Current Digest of the Russian Press, Vol. 77, No. 39 – Table of Contents

STROKAN: WORLD PERPLEXED AS TRUMP BLAMES EU FOR BUYING RUSSIAN FUEL, THEN CLAIMS KIEV CAN REGAIN 1991 BORDERS AND ‘GO FURTHER’ IN CHANGE OF TONE FROM ALASKA; POROSHENKO’S PARTY SAYS TRUMP AIMS TO ‘SIDELINE HIMSELF’ WITH OPTIMISM

(By Sergei Strokan. Kommersant, Sept. 25, 2025, p. 6. Complete text:) US President Donald Trump has made his first address to the UN General Assembly since returning to the White House, focusing mainly on Ukraine. In an emotional speech, he acknowledged the inability to end the war, placing the blame both on Russia and its partners, China and India, as well as on his Western allies who buy Russian energy. Later, at a meeting with [Ukrainian] President [Vladimir] Zelensky [sic; in a social media post – Trans.], he suggested that Ukraine, with the support of the EU and NATO, return to its previous borders and “go further,” probably realizing that this is unrealistic. On Ukraine, Trump is transitioning from diplomacy to Plan B, proposing that Kiev and its allies defeat Russia without the participation of the US…

NG: DESPITE BOOSTERS’ WISHFUL THINKING, TRUMP ‘NEVER PROMISED’ TO BE ‘OUR MAN IN WASHINGTON’; NEW TONE REFLECTS HIS HARD-BARGAINING NATURE

(Editorial) – ON TRUMP’S ALLEGED ‘LOSS OF PATIENCE’ AND ‘SURRENDER OF KIEV.’ (Nezavisimaya gazeta, Sept. 26, 2025, p. 2. Complete text:) What people had long and eagerly awaited from Donald Trump in the US and many places outside that country – from Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to the leaders of the post-Soviet Baltic states – has happened. The US president has changed his rhetoric…

EXPERT KORTUNOV: SEVERAL POTENTIAL MOTIVES BEHIND TRUMP’S COMMENTS, BUT HE STILL OPPOSES PROVIDING UKRAINE MONEY, SECURITY GUARANTEES

(By Andrei Kortunov, Valdai [International Discussion Club] expert. Izvestia, Sept. 26, 2025, p. 2. Condensed text:) The talks between the US and Ukrainian presidents on the sidelines of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly and Donald Trump’s subsequent comments on Truth Social made a big splash. . . …

NOVAYA EXPERTS: WHILE UKRAINE MANAGES TO KEEP RESERVES FOR TACTICAL COUNTERATTACKS, RUMORS OF KURSK-SCALE STRATEGIC OFFENSIVE ARE ‘WISHFUL THINKING’; TACTICAL MISSILE STRIKES ARE POSSIBLE

(By Ilya Volzhsky. Novaya gazeta Europe, Sept. 27, 2025, https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2025/09/27/budut-tomagavki-budet-nastuplenie. Complete text:) Editors’ Note. – In a secret meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky asked Donald Trump for Tomahawk [missiles] with a range of [up to] 2,500 kilometers, media reports said…

UK, CANADA AND AUSTRALIA RECOGNIZE PALESTINE; STARMER: THIS MOVE IS NOT A REWARD FOR HAMAS; NETANYAHU: DECISION IS A ‘NEW CHALLENGE’ THAT THREATENS INTERNATIONAL ISOLATION FOR ISRAEL

(By Leonid Tsukanov. Izvestia, Sept. 22, 2025, p. 2. Condensed text:) . . . On Sept. 21, the UK officially recognized the State of Palestine. It was joined by two other British Commonwealth countries – Canada and Australia. And, according to Reuters, also by Portugal. Thus, the number of countries that officially recognize Ramallah has increased to 153, which almost puts it on a par with Israel (164). The Europeans are determined and resolved to work to put the “two peoples, two states” formula into practice. . . …

LUKYANOV: RECOGNITION WILL NOT GIVE PNA ANY LEGITIMACY; THIS IS AN EMPTY GESTURE BEING USED BY STATES IN THE WEST AS DISTRACTION FROM THEIR OWN SOCIOECONOMIC PROBLEMS, WANING STATURE

(By Fyodor Lukyanov, research professor at the National Research University Higher School of Economics. Rossiiskaya gazeta, Sept. 23, 2025, p. 1. Complete text:) Leading Western countries – the UK, Canada, Australia and several EU countries led by France – have decided to make a grand political gesture: They announced their recognition of Palestinian statehood. Their argument for doing this was that the principle of two states in historical Palestine – a Jewish state and a Palestinian state – cannot be abandoned, that the Palestinian people have legal rights, that violence as a method must be prevented, and so on. Commentators believe this is a decisive step against the backdrop of the fire engulfing the Middle East. The leadership of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) is stressing that the decisions are the crowning point of years of painstaking diplomatic work. For its part, Israel calls them a reward for terrorism that undermines the hostage talks…

ABBAS TO UNGA: PNA WILL TAKE OVER RUNNING OF GAZA FROM HAMAS, HOLD ELECTIONS AND DRAFT A CONSTITUTION; EXPERT: PNA DIDN’T DO ANYTHING TO EARN RECOGNITION, MAY BE REPLACED IN VOTE

(By Igor Subbotin. Nezavisimaya gazeta, Sept. 24, 2025, p. 1. Complete text:) The PNA, which formally controls the West Bank of the River Jordan, has asserted its ambitions amid a string of recognitions made on the sidelines of the 80th session of the UNGA. Addressing attendees at the event in New York, PNA [President] Mahmoud Abbas said he was ready to take responsibility for administering the Gaza Strip. According to him, the PNA intends to hold elections and submit a draft of its own Constitution in the near future. Such plans throw down the gauntlet at Hamas, which claims not only to control Gaza, but also to represent the interests of all Palestinians…

(By Yevgeny Senshin. Republic.ru, Sept. 22, 2025, https://republic.ru/posts/116429. Condensed text:) Editors’ Note. – The outlook on the Russia-Ukraine war is uncertain: Trump made an attempt to distance himself from the conflict, and NATO proved itself unready for war and essentially defenseless even against Russian drones. But [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s authoritarian rule has chinks in its armor. What are they? In this interview with Republic, political analyst and columnist Fyodor Krasheninnikov (designated a foreign agent by the Russian Justice Ministry) answers this question and shares his ideas about the future of the Russian opposition movement.

Answer. – I wouldn’t say that what we’re seeing today is some new stage. Nothing new has happened since the start of the war. The regime has entered the militarist dictatorship stage. Regimes like this are not just built around a dictator; they are also built on a militarist ideology. Clearly, the regime will remain in this stage for as long as the war [in Ukraine] continues…

(By Tatyana Astafyeva. Nezavisimaya gazeta, Sept. 22, 2025, p. 2. Complete text:) The annual run that is part of the “Speak Up!” social action was held in Moscow’s Dubki Park. The participants – men, women and children, and both professional and amateur athletes – ran 2,025 meters, which symbolized the current year. This run is not just a sporting event, but a reminder that, in Moscow, a person suffering from domestic violence will not be left alone with their plight and can get help.

The run brings together people prepared to speak out about an important social problem – domestic violence. Participants in the event, which was organized by the Crisis Center for Women and Children with support from the Moscow government, share their stories to show that help is available and that no one should be afraid to seek it. According to center director Natalya Zavyalova, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin was behind the idea of creating a safe space for women and children affected by violence or in a difficult living situation. “Our center was established 11 years ago. Its main mission has not changed: to create a space where women and children can regain their psychological and physical balance. During this time, we have had over 3,000 clients in our temporary shelter. We have also provided psychological care and social services for both shelter residents and visitors” she said…

([No author indicated.] Meduza, Sept. 26, 2025, https://meduza.io/en/feature/2025/09/26/fox-news-is-the-channel-trump-watches. Complete text:) Editors’ Note. – Three months after his release from prison [see Vol. 77, No. 26, pp. 16 17], Belarussian opposition figure Sergei Tikhanovsky is facing backlash over what many users view as demeaning and controlling behavior toward his wife, opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. In a livestream earlier this week, he pressured Svetlana into cancelling a scheduled CNN interview, arguing that it would be counterproductive because it’s not [US President] Donald Trump’s preferred channel. Meduza unpacks the controversy.

Belarussian opposition figure Sergei Tikhanovsky has come under criticism after publicly pressuring his wife, opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, not to participate in a CNN interview during a livestream event in New York…

(By Daniil Sechkin. Izvestia, Sept. 26, 2025, p. 4. Condensed text:) . . . Greece has extradited Vladimir Plahotniuc to Moldova. In Chisinau, he is facing charges of creating an organized crime group and participating in the “theft of the century” – i.e., stealing $1 billion from the country’s banking system. . . . The billionaire was arrested in Athens in midsummer on an Interpol warrant [see Vol. 77, No. 30-31, p. 18]. The police found him in possession of [at least] 16 passports, including a Russian one. A Greek court approved his deportation in August, but the extradition did not take place until Sept. 25, just before [Moldova’s] parliamentary elections set for Sept. 28.

Plahotniuc stands accused of being the ultimate beneficiary in the so-called theft of the century, when $1 billion disappeared from three Moldovan banks in 2014 (at the time, the sum was equivalent to 12% of Moldova’s gross domestic product). The banks issued loans to shell companies for unviable business projects and then those companies transferred the money abroad. According to the investigation, Ilan Sor, another Moldovan oligarch and the leader of the now-banned opposition Sor Party, was also involved in organizing the scam. Specifically, Sor’s companies transferred $39 million and 3.5 million euros from fake loans to Plahotniuc-controlled entities. Sor has denied any wrongdoing…

(By political analyst Andrei Nikolayevich Serenko. Nezavisimaya gazeta, Sept. 24, 2025, p. 3. Complete text:) On Sept. 21, the Taliban Defense Ministry received an unexpected invitation from Beijing. The Chinese Defense Ministry invited Taliban Defense Minister Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob to visit the Chinese capital in the near future. Beijing’s invitation may be linked to US President Donald Trump’s statements about his intention to bring the Bagram air base in Afghanistan back under Washington’s control.

The Americans’ increased activity in Afghanistan is hardly a secret to the Chinese intelligence services. And it’s not just about President Trump’s statements concerning Bagram. Since at least the spring of 2025, American emissaries of various ranks and service profiles have significantly increased the number of their meetings with Afghan politicians in exile and leaders of various factions and groups within the Taliban – both in Afghanistan and at other regional venues. In Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan and several other locations, US intelligence officials, as well as emissaries from Trump’s inner circle, not only probed the political positions of their Afghan contacts but also offered them incentives to participate in the implementation of the new US strategy toward Afghanistan…

(By Oleg Falichev. Krasnaya zvezda, Sept. 24, 2025, p. 7. Complete text:) Editors’ Note. – Western media outlets continue to comment on the outcomes of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit held in the Chinese city of Tianjin [see Vol. 77, No. 35 36, pp. 3 7]. Alongside the expected disparaging remarks directed at Russia and China – long viewed by Anglo-Saxon elites as adversaries – India also came under sharp attack. What explains this reaction? In an interview with Krasnaya zvezda, prominent political analyst and doctor of political science Aleksandr Gusev addressed this and other related questions.

Question. – Aleksandr Anatolyevich [Gusev], American media, commenting on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China and his participation in the SCO summit, have labeled India a “political enemy” and called on the US’s allies to impose severe sanctions on the country. What is your assessment of this?…

(By Dmitry Yezhov and Anastasia Kostina. Izvestia, Sept. 26, 2025, p. 4. Condensed text:) Editors’ Note. – Experts interviewed by Izvestia believe that the sentence given to former French president Nicolas Sarkozy will exacerbate distrust in political institutions and deepen the country’s political crisis. . . .

On Sept. 25, a Paris court decided the fate of France’s former president and his associates. Nicolas Sarkozy, 70, was sentenced to five years in prison with deferred committal. He will be informed of his imprisonment date within a month. This sentence marked the end of a 14-year investigation and one of the most high-profile trials in the country’s history…