News

On Oct. 16, U.S. President Donald Trump, following a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin that lasted more than two hours and that he called «very productive,» announced plans for a summit to be held in Budapest, Hungary. According to Trump, the meeting could happen within two weeks, Reuters reported.

The announcement comes ahead of the planned talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy scheduled for Oct. 17, where he is expected to request additional military support, including long-range Tomahawk missiles, according to reports.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán welcomed the initiative:

U.S. President Donald Trump said he is speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, a day before his scheduled talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Bloomberg reported.

In recent weeks, Trump has signaled a desire to step up pressure on Moscow to end the war, calling on U.S. allies to reduce imports of Russian energy. He has also proposed that Washington could authorize Ukraine to use long-range Tomahawk missiles.

Such a move would be significant: the Tomahawk, a long-range weapon in the U.S. arsenal, would enable Ukrainian forces to target sites inside Russian...

The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2025 dazzled at the Brooklyn Arena in New York, celebrating beauty, confidence and femininity.

This year’s show marked a new era for the brand, emphasizing inclusivity, strength and self-expression. Legendary Angels Gigi Hadid, Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio, Lily Aldridge, Candice Swanepoel, Irina Shayk, Joan Smalls and Ashley Graham returned to the runway, joined by new stars like a pregnant Jasmine Tookes, Barbara Palvin, Barbie Ferreira, Angel Reese and Olympic champion Sunisa Lee.

The biggest surprise was the return of Behati Prinsloo, Namibian supermodel and wife of Maroon 5’s Adam Levine. The 36-year-old former...

Kazakhstan’s largest airline, Air Astana, announced the signing of a sponsorship agreement with the Kairat football club, becoming its official carrier, the airline’s press service reported.

Air Astana will handle the team’s flights to international matches and training camps, as well as provide benefits for domestic flights, transport luggage, and arrange charter flights when needed.

Air Astana noted that supporting Kazakhstani sports is an important part of the company’s corporate policy.

Kairat is one of the most titled football clubs in Kazakhstan and managed to qualify for the league phase of the UEFA Champions League in the...

A global uranium deficit — where demand exceeds supply — could emerge by 2030 as new nuclear power plants are built rapidly, according to Meirzhan Yussupov, CEO of Kazakhstan’s Kazatomprom. Yussupov made the remarks during a meeting with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

He said two factors — AI development and rising energy use in data centers — are expected to drive steady uranium demand. Forecasts indicate that rapid nuclear reactor construction after 2030 may lead to a persistent global uranium shortfall.

Yussupov also told Tokayev that Kazakhstan plans to further strengthen its position in the global nuclear...

«Good Boy,» a new supernatural horror movie, is quickly becoming one of fall’s breakout horror surprises. Directed by Ben Leonberg, the film debuted at SXSW in March 2025 and was released in the U.S. on Oct. 3.

Despite its modest $990,000 budget, the movie has earned strong box-office returns and glowing reviews, with a 90% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

In its second weekend, “Good Boy” reached $5.1 million at the back office, securing a top-10 spot.

The buzz began long before its release. A short trailer, featuring the story’s canine protagonist, sparked widespread speculation online about the...

The Japanese government told OpenAI to prevent violations of the rights of Japanese anime and manga creators and studios. Japanese users complained that the company’s new generative models can produce frames visually indistinguishable from popular anime.

Akihisa Shiozaki, a leader in Japan’s ruling party, reportedly tested OpenAI’s Sora 2 model. He found it generated anime-like characters, but avoided making those owned by major American companies (e.g., Mickey Mouse or Superman).

Shiozaki also warned that the government could invoke Article 16 of Japan’s AI Promotion Act, which allows authorities to investigate potential violations and require companies to...

FC Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski might continue his career with Turkish club Fenerbahçe. According to the Turkish media outlet Fanatik, the Istanbul football club is ready to start negotiations with the 37-year-old Polish footballer.

The outlet noted that Fenerbahçe President Sadettin Saran wants to create a sensation in the transfer market by signing Lewandowski. The club is reportedly ready to offer the player a two-year contract.

Lewandowski’s current agreement with FC Barcelona is valid until the summer of 2026. Earlier, the player’s agent, Pini Zahavi, said that the Catalan club’s management had not offered a contract extension to...

Musicians, athletes and fashion enthusiasts around the globe have embraced the Italian brand Stone Island for its high-end technical jackets and distinctive compass logo. But as the brand becomes more visible among extremist groups, partly because of its ties to British football culture in the 1990s, renewed debate has emerged over how brands respond when political movements co-opt their products, CNN reports.

The practice of extremists adopting certain brands is not new. In the 1990s, in Germany, far-right groups used coded clothing to bypass bans on Nazi symbols, wearing items from labels like Lonsdale and New Balance to...

Families of victims of the Dec. 29, 2024, Jeju Air Flight 2216 accident have filed a lawsuit against Boeing in the King County Superior Court in Seattle, Washington, Yonhap reported on Oct. 15.

The families claim that Boeing is responsible for defects in the landing equipment that ultimately led to the fatalities as the aircraft was approaching the runway.

According to Northwest Asian Weekly, the complaint stated that outdated systems, dating back to the 1960s, interfered with the pilots’ ability to safely land the aircraft after a bird strike.

The Jeju Air Flight 2216 accident occurred on...

Kazakh MP Aidos Sarym said Kazakhstani citizens are being misled by shaman-healers and self-proclaimed trainers selling pseudo-theories under the guise of “spiritual development.”

Dangers of shamans and «coaches»

At a recent parliament session, Sarym warned that «spiritual scammers» have already infiltrated government institutions. As a result, he noted, many people — especially women and young people — are suffering financial losses and developing psychological dependence. Some are also experiencing family and social stress.

Sarym cited Syutsai courses as an example. He said Syutsai claims to be “numerical psychology” but is actually an unscientific, esoteric business. Syutsai groups hold...

Plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) emit nearly five times more carbon dioxide in real-world driving than official tests show, according to the Guardian, citing a study by Transport & Environment (T&E).

The report draws on data from 800,000 vehicles across Europe between 2021 and 2023. It finds that PHEVs produce only 19% less CO2 than petrol or diesel cars, even though they have been widely promoted as a lower-emission alternative to regular vehicles. For example, under lab conditions, testers assumed the cars emitted 75% less.

Researchers identify the main reason for the difference is that drivers use electric mode...

Toyota model lineup expects an addition, according to Autocar. An affordable two-seat electric city car with a price tag below $10,000 is anticipated to be assembled in the U.K. The vehicle’s specifications will hardly match those of a regular car, so a driver’s license would not be required in many countries to drive one.

The exact date for the production launch has not yet been announced. Production is expected to take place at Toyota’s facility in Burnaston, the same plant where the Toyota Corolla model is manufactured. Under a U.K. government funding program, £15 million (approximately $20.1 million) is...

U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed he authorized CIA covert operations in Venezuela, which is an unusual public disclosure, according to Euronews.

Speaking at the White House, Trump cited drug trafficking and criminal activity tied to Venezuela as reasons for the measure. «They have emptied their prisons into the United States,» he said, adding, «A lot of the Venezuelan drugs come in through the sea.»

Trump added his administration was «looking at land» for further regional action but did not clarify whether the CIA’s mandate included targeting President Nicolás Maduro.

His comments follow a New York Times report that...

A 1.1 billion tenge (about $2 million) securitized bond issue has been listed on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE). The transaction was arranged by Freedom Broker. It marks the first securitization on Kazakhstan’s organized market in seven years. The securities are available to retail investors.

How the deal was structured

Freedom Credit, a microfinance organization, acted as the originator — the initial owner of the assets being securitized. The company holds a consumer microloan portfolio; from this, high-quality assets worth approximately $3.4 million were selected.

As required by law, a special financial company, SFC FF-1, was established. Freedom...

Several of Kazakhstan’s largest banks have suspended mortgage lending after the central bank raised the base rate to 18%, except Freedom Bank and Otbasy Bank, which specializes in housing savings and offers mortgages at preferential rates.

Halyk Bank, Nurbank and ForteBank have temporarily suspended their mortgage programs.

Bank CenterCredit continues to offer home loans, including under state programs, noting that the base rate hike alone is not grounds for rejection. However, the bank emphasized that new regulations for calculating the average annualized mortgage rate have tightened debt-to-equity ratios, disqualifying some borrowers.

The Guardian published a ranking of the world’s most talented young footballers. The outlet selected the 60 most promising players born in 2008. Dastan Satpayev, forward for Almaty’s Kairat and the Kazakhstan national team, is placed right in the middle of the ranking — 30th.

The Guardian called Satpayev «the brightest star at Kairat, the Kazakh team who qualified for the league stage of this season’s Champions League.»

«Chelsea must be delighted they signed Satpayev in January for €4m, because his value is expected to rise significantly. He combines speed and sound technical skills...

LVMH posted a 1% increase in third-quarter sales, buoyed by stronger spending in China and other Asian markets, excluding Japan. The world’s largest luxury group reported «noticeable» improvement in Asia, revealing positive overall results for the first time in 2025, according to Reuters.

Quarterly revenue rose to $21.17 billion, beating expectations for flat growth. Even the fashion and leather goods division, which includes Louis Vuitton and Dior, reported a 2% drop from last year, a much better result than the 9% in the previous quarter.

LVMH CFO Cecile Cabanis acknowledged ongoing challenges such as currency fluctuations and...

American reality TV star and entrepreneur Kim Kardashian is once again turning heads with her brand Skims, unveiling what may be the most talked-about collection in the company’s history.

The brand announced the release of a new lingerie line, the Faux Hair Panty — a thong designed to mimic the appearance of natural body hair. Marketed as «The Ultimate Bush,» the line includes 12 shades, ranging from clay-blonde straight to cocoa-black curly.

Skims described the collection as the boldest lingerie ever. Kardashian promoted the launch by declaring that the era of smooth, hairless skin is over.

The unveiling sparked...

On Oct. 15, South Korean Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung-kwan held talks in Seoul with a Kazakhstani delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev, Yonhap reported.

The two sides discussed prospects for strengthening bilateral economic cooperation across various sectors amid growing uncertainties in global trade. According to the ministry, Kim proposed expanding cooperation in the manufacturing sector and addressing obstacles faced by Korean firms operating in Kazakhstan, such as insufficient logistics infrastructure for Kia. He also suggested creating more opportunities for Korean companies to participate in Kazakhstan’s plant construction projects and expanding collaboration in...

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has revealed that the U.S. will deliver new «firepower» to Ukraine via European allies willing to pay for it. The statement was made shortly before NATO defense ministers gathered in Brussels. It is still unclear what kind of «firepower» U.S. officials were talking about, as reported by CNN.

According to Hegseth, «commitments» made by European nations to purchase American weapons would soon translate into real «capabilities» for Ukraine. The initiative is part of the new Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), which has already attracted $2 billion in pledges for military hardware — with...

Sanae Takaichi’s victory in the Liberal Democratic Party’s leadership contest — and her expected appointment as Japan’s first female prime minister — has drawn worldwide attention. Her ascent, widely hailed as a breakthrough in Japan’s male-dominated political culture, also underscores the paradoxes in the country’s pursuit of gender equality, said Peter Chai, a Ph.D. researcher at Waseda University, in a piece for Nikkei Asia.

Takaichi’s political views and leadership style unmistakably mirror those of her mentor, the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Like Abe, she claims to empower women in the workforce yet refuses to confront the...

While many Western countries respond to migration with restrictions and reduced aid, Spain’s approach to African migration stands out for pursuing a strategy of partnership and shared opportunity, according to the BBC.

By hosting events such as AfroMadrid2025, a conference supported by the African Union focused on restorative justice and development, Spain’s government aims to build stronger connections based on both moral responsibility and practical interests.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez argues that migration must be seen not only through the lens of control but also through that of rational economics. Spain funds training programs in countries like...

Cristiano Ronaldo, the forward for the Portugal national football team, set a new record for the number of goals scored in World Cup qualifying matches. On Oct. 14, he scored a brace in a 2026 World Cup qualifier against Hungary.

2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

Group F, Oct. 14, 2025

Portugal vs. Hungary: 2-2

Goals: Cristiano Ronaldo (22’, 45+3’); Attila Szalai (8’), Dominik Szoboszlai (90+1’)

These goals became Ronaldo’s 40th and 41st in World Cup qualification, making him the sole leader in this category. He surpassed retired Guatemalan striker Carlos Ruiz, who had scored...