El Tribunal Constitucional polaco denunció en medio de disturbios frente a su sede, un "golpe de Estado" mientras el presidente, Karol Nawrocki, se encontraba fuera del país.
This week we also covered the Alyoshki ceasefire with Ukraine and Ursula von der Leyen’s attempt to shoehorn Canada into the EU
Russia’s diplomatic victories
Four years of unprecedented sanctions and an active conflict didn’t deter four dozen African nations from sending delegations to Moscow for the third Russia-Africa Summit this week. Forty-eight out of Africa’s 54 countries were represented at the summit, 22 of them by their heads of state.
More than 60 bilateral and multilateral agreements were signed, including a Russia-Africa Action Plan for 2027-2029, and a joint declaration opposing unilateral sanctions and the unlawful seizure of civilian shipping, pledging deeper counter-terrorism cooperation, and supporting increased African representation on the UN Security Council. RT covered the summit minute-by minute, and broke down Putin’s plan to help bring about the “second awakening” of Africa.
Before he welcomed the African delegations to Moscow, Putin held a rare phone call with Finnish President Alexander Stubb – a figure repeatedly floated as a potential EU envoy to Russia – and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store. Putin later said that Russia welcomes “any steps aimed at restoring full-fledged and comprehensive relations,” and while the call brought the Russia/Ukraine conflict no closer to an end, Russian analyst Sergey Strokan noted that it should serve as a warning to Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky that “metal fatigue is setting in across Europe’s political machinery – and that time is running out for the regime in Kiev.”
With the EU nowhere to be seen, and Stubb and Store incurring the wrath of their fellow European leaders for even daring to speak to Putin, the tone in the US could not be more different. There, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov touched down in Atlanta for a meeting of G20 foreign ministers on Friday. Sanctions on Russian diesel exports have been lifted, trilateral talks between Moscow, Kiev, and Washington are slated for next month, and Putin has been invited to the G20 leaders’ meeting in Florida in December. However, the most tangible result of Russian-American diplomacy came 5,000 miles away from Washington, in the besieged town of Alyoshki.
Moscow and Kiev agreed to a temporary ceasefire in the frontline town of Alyoshki in Russia’s Kherson Region last Friday, with both sides agreeing to suspend all military operations to allow humanitarian aid deliveries and prepare for civilian evacuations.
The Kremlin confirmed this week that the ceasefire was coordinated by US First Lady Melania Trump, who said she was moved by the plight of Alyoshki’s “elderly residents who urgently need medical attention, medicine, food, and clean water.”
Ukraine had accused Russia of preventing civilians from leaving the embattled town, but residents who escaped earlier this month told RT that Alyoshki was besieged by Ukrainian forces, who carried out drone attacks on vehicles carrying food, fuel, and medicine.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva narrowly defeated right-wing challenger Flavio Bolsonaro on Sunday, in the first of three major elections this week. After a first-round loss to Bolsonaro, whose father was jailed last year Brazil’s Lula-aligned Supreme Federal Court, Lula won the runoff election by a margin of 51.79% to 48.21%, securing a fourth term in office.
The drama did not end when the votes were counted. Bolsonaro was ordered by the court to surrender his passports the following day, but he instead fled Brazil to the US, with the help of Argentina’s right-wing government. After landing in Florida, Bolsonaro accused Lula of fraud, declared himself “the leader of Brazil,” and pledged to “lead the opposition” from abroad.
US President Donald Trump is a close ally of Bolsonaro, and it remains unclear whether Washington will turn up the diplomatic pressure on Lula in the wake of the election.
Hours after Lula claimed victory in Brazil, former Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic lost his bid to extend his party’s decade in power. Serbia’s Student List defeated Vucic’s SNS party by 53.03% to 38.97%, and despite accusing the students of doing the “dirty work” of “various European countries and the American deep state,” Vucic conceded and congratulated his opponents.
Although the Student List entered politics as an outgrowth of youth-led protests, its base is broader than similar pro-Western movements in the region. Student List representative Jovo Bakic told RT that his party will not sever relations with Russia or impose sanctions on Moscow, while representative Radomir Saicic has promised to negotiate long-term gas contracts with Russia.
However, the Student List has not yet chosen a candidate for prime minister, and Vucic has claimed that the party will walk back these promises in the coming months.
In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced voters on Tuesday for the first time since Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack plunged Israel into a multi-front war. Netnayhu’s opponents – most of whom differ little with the prime minister on matters of war and national security – accused him of corruption, incompetence, and failure to heed forewarnings of October 7. These arguments succeeded in destroying Netanyahu’s right-wing majority, but left neither him nor the opposition bloc in a position to form a government.
Enter the Arabs. Israel’s Arab parties almost doubled their representation in parliament, and are now in a position to play kingmakers – if only Netanyahu’s opponents would work with them. This outcome is highly unlikely, and as RT Middle East correspondent Elizabeth Blade reported, the only certainty is that somebody will be left feeling betrayed.
Spain’s train tragedy
The collision of two high-speed trains near the Spanish city of Toledo on Wednesday was the country’s deadliest railway disaster in more than a decade. At least 69 people were killed and 179 injured when a high-speed Renfe AVE train struck a stationary Iryo train on the Madrid–Seville line.
The crash happened at a time of political crisis in Spain, after weeks of anti-government protests over housing and inflation. While the circumstances are still being investigated, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is already bearing the brunt of public anger, with the right-wing Vox party blaming Sanchez and the left-wing Frente Amplio coalition demanding political accountability.
Fires were set outside the Spanish Transport Ministry in Madrid on Wednesday night, at a protest organized by the far-right Falange and Revuelta groups. “How many more people have to die before we throw these murderers and traitors out of our institutions?” Falange spokesman Federico Campanero said in a speech.
La manifestación frente al ministerio de transportes exigiendo la dimisión de Óscar Puente se calienta.
La gente está hasta los cojones. https://t.co/KGcoYNeIjU
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Montreal on Thursday on what should have been a straightforward mission: secure Canadian energy and resources, expand trade links, and extract money for Ukraine and backing for the EU’s latest push into the Arctic.
Instead, she picked a fight with the EU’s largest member states – France, Germany, and Italy – by insisting that Canada will become an “associate member” of the European Union. Although the term “associate member” is a legal fiction, the French, Germans, and Italians had insisted that she swap it out for “ever closer association.”
In space, not even Elon Musk’s Starlink network is safe from Israel’s sprawling spy-tech sector. RT has covered the activities of private spies in depth in our ‘Wired for War’ series, and this week it emerged that an Israeli advertising company targeted Starlink users in more than 200 countries with pop-up ads that allowed multiple Israeli spyware companies to plant surveillance software on their devices without their knowledge. The company was the largest purchaser of advertising space targeting Starlink users in more than 100 countries, with the leaderboard – Palestine, Syria, Libya, Yemen, and South Sudan – suggesting that its clients were more interested in picking targets than customers.
Finally, the following video is not taken from an upcoming Star Wars movie, but from Antarctica, where footage of Russia’s revamped Vostok Station went viral this week. Built in 1954, the “sci-fi fortress” received a futuristic makeover in 2024, and now sits on stilts above the snow, 1,500km inland on Antarctica and operating in temperatures as low as -89C.
This week we also covered the Alyoshki ceasefire with Ukraine and Ursula von der Leyen’s attempt to shoehorn Canada into the EU
Russia’s diplomatic victories
Four years of unprecedented sanctions and an active conflict didn’t deter four dozen African nations from sending delegations to Moscow for the third Russia-Africa Summit this week. Forty-eight out of Africa’s 54 countries were represented at the summit, 22 of them by their heads of state.
More than 60 bilateral and multilateral agreements were signed, including a Russia-Africa Action Plan for 2027-2029, and a joint declaration opposing unilateral sanctions and the unlawful seizure of civilian shipping, pledging deeper counter-terrorism cooperation, and supporting increased African representation on the UN Security Council. RT covered the summit minute-by minute, and broke down Putin’s plan to help bring about the “second awakening” of Africa.
Before he welcomed the African delegations to Moscow, Putin held a rare phone call with Finnish President Alexander Stubb – a figure repeatedly floated as a potential EU envoy to Russia – and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store. Putin later said that Russia welcomes “any steps aimed at restoring full-fledged and comprehensive relations,” and while the call brought the Russia/Ukraine conflict no closer to an end, Russian analyst Sergey Strokan noted that it should serve as a warning to Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky that “metal fatigue is setting in across Europe’s political machinery – and that time is running out for the regime in Kiev.”
With the EU nowhere to be seen, and Stubb and Store incurring the wrath of their fellow European leaders for even daring to speak to Putin, the tone in the US could not be more different. There, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov touched down in Atlanta for a meeting of G20 foreign ministers on Friday. Sanctions on Russian diesel exports have been lifted, trilateral talks between Moscow, Kiev, and Washington are slated for next month, and Putin has been invited to the G20 leaders’ meeting in Florida in December. However, the most tangible result of Russian-American diplomacy came 5,000 miles away from Washington, in the besieged town of Alyoshki.
Moscow and Kiev agreed to a temporary ceasefire in the frontline town of Alyoshki in Russia’s Kherson Region last Friday, with both sides agreeing to suspend all military operations to allow humanitarian aid deliveries and prepare for civilian evacuations.
The Kremlin confirmed this week that the ceasefire was coordinated by US First Lady Melania Trump, who said she was moved by the plight of Alyoshki’s “elderly residents who urgently need medical attention, medicine, food, and clean water.”
Ukraine had accused Russia of preventing civilians from leaving the embattled town, but residents who escaped earlier this month told RT that Alyoshki was besieged by Ukrainian forces, who carried out drone attacks on vehicles carrying food, fuel, and medicine.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva narrowly defeated right-wing challenger Flavio Bolsonaro on Sunday, in the first of three major elections this week. After a first-round loss to Bolsonaro, whose father was jailed last year Brazil’s Lula-aligned Supreme Federal Court, Lula won the runoff election by a margin of 51.79% to 48.21%, securing a fourth term in office.
The drama did not end when the votes were counted. Bolsonaro was ordered by the court to surrender his passports the following day, but he instead fled Brazil to the US, with the help of Argentina’s right-wing government. After landing in Florida, Bolsonaro accused Lula of fraud, declared himself “the leader of Brazil,” and pledged to “lead the opposition” from abroad.
US President Donald Trump is a close ally of Bolsonaro, and it remains unclear whether Washington will turn up the diplomatic pressure on Lula in the wake of the election.
Hours after Lula claimed victory in Brazil, former Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic lost his bid to extend his party’s decade in power. Serbia’s Student List defeated Vucic’s SNS party by 53.03% to 38.97%, and despite accusing the students of doing the “dirty work” of “various European countries and the American deep state,” Vucic conceded and congratulated his opponents.
Although the Student List entered politics as an outgrowth of youth-led protests, its base is broader than similar pro-Western movements in the region. Student List representative Jovo Bakic told RT that his party will not sever relations with Russia or impose sanctions on Moscow, while representative Radomir Saicic has promised to negotiate long-term gas contracts with Russia.
However, the Student List has not yet chosen a candidate for prime minister, and Vucic has claimed that the party will walk back these promises in the coming months.
In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced voters on Tuesday for the first time since Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack plunged Israel into a multi-front war. Netnayhu’s opponents – most of whom differ little with the prime minister on matters of war and national security – accused him of corruption, incompetence, and failure to heed forewarnings of October 7. These arguments succeeded in destroying Netanyahu’s right-wing majority, but left neither him nor the opposition bloc in a position to form a government.
Enter the Arabs. Israel’s Arab parties almost doubled their representation in parliament, and are now in a position to play kingmakers – if only Netanyahu’s opponents would work with them. This outcome is highly unlikely, and as RT Middle East correspondent Elizabeth Blade reported, the only certainty is that somebody will be left feeling betrayed.
Spain’s train tragedy
The collision of two high-speed trains near the Spanish city of Toledo on Wednesday was the country’s deadliest railway disaster in more than a decade. At least 69 people were killed and 179 injured when a high-speed Renfe AVE train struck a stationary Iryo train on the Madrid–Seville line.
The crash happened at a time of political crisis in Spain, after weeks of anti-government protests over housing and inflation. While the circumstances are still being investigated, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is already bearing the brunt of public anger, with the right-wing Vox party blaming Sanchez and the left-wing Frente Amplio coalition demanding political accountability.
Fires were set outside the Spanish Transport Ministry in Madrid on Wednesday night, at a protest organized by the far-right Falange and Revuelta groups. “How many more people have to die before we throw these murderers and traitors out of our institutions?” Falange spokesman Federico Campanero said in a speech.
La manifestación frente al ministerio de transportes exigiendo la dimisión de Óscar Puente se calienta.
La gente está hasta los cojones. https://t.co/KGcoYNeIjU
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Montreal on Thursday on what should have been a straightforward mission: secure Canadian energy and resources, expand trade links, and extract money for Ukraine and backing for the EU’s latest push into the Arctic.
Instead, she picked a fight with the EU’s largest member states – France, Germany, and Italy – by insisting that Canada will become an “associate member” of the European Union. Although the term “associate member” is a legal fiction, the French, Germans, and Italians had insisted that she swap it out for “ever closer association.”
In space, not even Elon Musk’s Starlink network is safe from Israel’s sprawling spy-tech sector. RT has covered the activities of private spies in depth in our ‘Wired for War’ series, and this week it emerged that an Israeli advertising company targeted Starlink users in more than 200 countries with pop-up ads that allowed multiple Israeli spyware companies to plant surveillance software on their devices without their knowledge. The company was the largest purchaser of advertising space targeting Starlink users in more than 100 countries, with the leaderboard – Palestine, Syria, Libya, Yemen, and South Sudan – suggesting that its clients were more interested in picking targets than customers.
Finally, the following video is not taken from an upcoming Star Wars movie, but from Antarctica, where footage of Russia’s revamped Vostok Station went viral this week. Built in 1954, the “sci-fi fortress” received a futuristic makeover in 2024, and now sits on stilts above the snow, 1,500km inland on Antarctica and operating in temperatures as low as -89C.
As Russia’s foreign minister gets down to business in Atlanta, his German counterpart throws a tantrum over a group photo
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s presence at a G20 meeting in the US has angered European diplomats, with several reportedly threatening to boycott a group photo. Germany’s top diplomat, Johann Wadephul, objected to being photographed alongside Lavrov but ended up in the same frame as him.
Lavrov arrived in Atlanta, Georgia, on Friday for the two-day gathering, which precedes the G20 leaders’ summit scheduled for mid-December in Florida.
US President Donald Trump has expressed hope that Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the summit, although Moscow has yet to decide whether to accept the invitation, according to the Kremlin.
Lavrov’s presence at the ministerial meeting has proved particularly contentious for several European delegations, which have opposed Washington’s decision to invite Russian officials.
“There will be no family photo featuring our European partners together with Mr. Lavrov,” Wadephul told reporters, insisting that “we must avoid sending the wrong visual signals.”
According to several media outlets, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio eventually scrapped the traditional group photo after European foreign ministers reportedly refused to stand alongside Lavrov and threatened to walk out.
However, the German minister was unable to avoid appearing in the same frame as his Russian counterpart.
A photograph of the G20’s first plenary session, published Friday on X by DW correspondent Benjamin Alvarez, showed Wadephul casting a sidelong glance at Lavrov.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul looks over to his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, during the first plenary session of the G20 Foreign Ministers's Meeting in Atlanta. pic.twitter.com/Z01xQmpO7A
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova seized on the image, suggesting in a Telegram post that Western journalists had disregarded the German diplomat’s objections by capturing the two ministers together.
Zakharova also pointed out that Wadephul himself had requested a last-minute meeting with Lavrov on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly just a month earlier.
The encounter was their first since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. Lavrov later described the discussion as disappointing, saying his German counterpart had merely repeated Berlin’s familiar anti-Russian positions.
The dispute in Atlanta follows earlier European objections to Washington’s decision to restore Russian participation in G20 gatherings.
When Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov attended G20 talks in late August, becoming the first Russian finance minister to do so since 2022, Trump defended his administration’s approach.
“We like getting along with everybody. One of the reasons I’m so successful, I get along with everybody,” the US president said at the time.
Lavrov last attended a G20 ministerial meeting in September 2025, on the sidelines of the 80th UN General Assembly in New York. Despite Western efforts to isolate Moscow diplomatically, he has maintained an active international schedule, including official visits to countries across Africa and Asia.
The latest gathering also comes ahead of a fourth round of Washington-mediated trilateral negotiations involving Russia, Ukraine, and the US, expected next month.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Wednesday that European representatives would be excluded from the talks despite their efforts to secure a seat at the negotiating table.
Wir befinden uns immer noch im Jahr 2022. Damals hatte sich ein Oberleutnant der Bundeswehr in Hammelburg der Verabreichung der Corona-Impfung verweigert. Anschließend wurde gegen ihn ein Verfahren wegen Gehorsamsverweigerung eingeleitet.
Im Herbst 2023 wurde er vom Amtsgericht Bad Kissingen freigesprochen. Die Richterin hielt, so berichtete damals LTO, "die Impfung zu diesem Zeitpunkt in Hinblick auf die sinkenden Fallzahlen für unverhältnismäßig und verwies zudem auf die bekannt gewordenen Nebenwirkungen."
Im Juli 2022 hatte das Bundesverwaltungsgericht die Impfpflicht aufrechterhalten. Dabei handelte es sich aber nicht um ein Urteil zum Strafrecht, sondern zum Dienstrecht. Verteidigungsminister Boris Pistorius hatte sich ebenfalls noch im Mai 2023 dafür eingesetzt: "Ich schließe nicht aus, dass wir über kurz oder lang die Duldungspflicht aufheben, aber der Zeitpunkt ist noch nicht gekommen." Am 29. Mai 2024 wurde die sogenannte "Duldungspflicht" aufgehoben.
Gegen das Urteil des Amtsgerichts Bad Kissingen hatte die Generalstaatsanwaltschaft München Berufung eingelegt, auf die im Januar 2024 ein weiterer Freispruch beim Landgericht Schweinfurt folgte, der mit der Gewissensfreiheit begründet wurde. Und die Staatsanwaltschaft ging in Revision, weil sich die Gründe der Freisprüche unterschieden und zu klären sei, "welche Anforderungen an die Annahme von Gewissensfreiheit zu stellen" seien.
Das Bayerische Oberste Landesgericht Bamberg hob nun den Freispruch auf. Die Begründung klingt etwas bizarr, sofern sie richtig kolportiert wurde (das BayObLG hat keine Presseerklärung dazu veröffentlicht): Die Kammer in Schweinfurt hätte das Interesse des Angeklagten mit den Interessen des Staates, der vulnerable Gruppen wie Soldaten schützen müsse, abwägen müssen.
"Vulnerable Gruppen wie Soldaten" sind eine äußerst schwer nachvollziehbare Formulierung. Schließlich haben menschliche Gesellschaften meist Hierarchien jener Gruppen, die als besonders verwundbar gelten: Alte, Kranke, schwangere Frauen, kleine Kinder – junge Männer werden üblicherweise nicht dazu gezählt. Erst recht nicht junge Männer der Variante Krieger, also Soldaten. Wenn die schon als vulnerabel gewertet werden, ist dann noch jemand übrig, der das nicht ist? Welchen Sinngehalt hat das Wort überhaupt noch, wenn man gesunde, kräftige junge Männer damit klassifiziert?
Das Gericht hat den Fall also nun zurück ans Landgericht verwiesen. Wobei zumindest ein Trost bleibt: Während das Revisionsgericht grundsätzlich an die rechtsfehlerfrei getroffenen Tatsachenfeststellungen gebunden ist und lediglich formale Rechtsfehler prüft, findet vor dem Landgericht erneut eine Tatsachenverhandlung über die Folgen der Injektion statt. Schließlich ist inzwischen weitgehend geklärt, dass die Injektion keinerlei Fremdschutz gewährleistete, also genau das, was durch den Impfzwang gesichert werden sollte, gar nicht erreicht werden konnte.
Allerdings ist es angesichts dieser Umstände erstaunlich, dass die Staatsanwaltschaft den Fall mit solchem Eifer weiter verfolgte. Der betroffene Soldat darf bis heute seinen Dienst nicht ausüben und erhält nur die Hälfte seiner Bezüge. Offenkundig hat sich in den Jahren seit 2022 zumindest in diesem Teil der Justiz nichts bewegt. Oder aber das Problem liegt im bayerischen Justizministerium, das schließlich der Staatsanwaltschaft gegenüber weisungsbefugt ist.
Eine Anerkenntnis, dass damals eine ganze Reihe staatlicher Instanzen schwere Rechtsverstöße begangen hat, während der vermeintliche Nutzen der Maßnahmen weitestgehend widerlegt ist, liegt jedenfalls noch in weiter Ferne.
Polens Präsident Nawrocki brach seinen Flug in den Senegal ab und kehrte zurück nach Polen. Grund dafür war eine massive Zuspitzung einer bereits seit Jahren schwelenden Auseinandersetzung um die Besetzung des polnischen Verfassungsgerichts.
Tusk, der 2023 an die Regierung kam, müht sich seitdem, EU-konforme Richter einzusetzen. Allerdings genügt für den Amtsantritt nicht, vom polnischen Parlament, dem Sejm, gewählt zu sein; erst wenn der Amtseid vor dem Präsidenten abgelegt ist, ist die Ernennung rechtmäßig. Und Nawrocki hatte seinen Spielraum genutzt und die Vereidigung verweigert. Was bedeutet, dass die von Tusks Parlamentsmehrheit gewählten Richter ihr Amt nicht antreten konnten und das Verfassungsgericht seit mehreren Monaten gelähmt ist, weil offene Richterstellen nicht besetzt werden.
Heute scheint es einen Versuch gegeben zu haben, die Lage im Handstreich zu lösen. Unter Berufung auf einen Paragrafen, dessen Anwendbarkeit auf das Verfassungsgericht umstritten ist, wurden der Präsident und der Vizepräsident für einen Monat suspendiert. Es befindet sich Polizei rund um das Gebäude des Verfassungsgerichts, aber es gibt widersprüchliche Berichte, ob sie auch im Verfassungsgericht ist. Die eine Version lautet, die anwesende Polizei würde nur die beiden Seiten, die Anhänger Nawrockis und die Tusks, voneinander trennen, habe das Gebäude aber nicht betreten; die andere besagt, die Polizei habe das Gericht gestürmt, um die beiden Vorsitzenden zu entfernen, und die Eingänge mit Ketten versperrt.
Dementsprechend verschieden sind auch die Reaktionen, bisher vor allem in den sozialen Medien. Während Nawrocki und seine Anhängerschaft von einem Staatsstreich reden, schreibt die Gegenseite von einer Wiederherstellung des Rechts. Klar ist, dass die neuen Richter in Brüssel auf Sympathien stoßen. Aber ob diese aktuelle Auseinandersetzung zwischen dem konservativen und dem liberalen Lager in Polen, die sich schon viele Gefechte geliefert haben und bei jeder neuen Wahl samt Machtwechsel abermals liefern, dauerhafte Folgen haben wird, ist zur Stunde noch nicht abzusehen.
2023 hatte nach der Wahl von Donald Tusk zum Ministerpräsidenten die Polizei das staatliche Fernsehen gestürmt, nachdem Tusk die Leitung des Senders entlassen hatte und diese sich weigerte, das Sendegebäude zu verlassen. Dennoch beruhigte sich die Lage in Polen wieder. Durchaus denkbar, dass die alte Auseinandersetzung nur in eine neue Runde geht. Auch wenn der polnische Botschafter in China in diesem Zusammenhang bereits seinen Rücktritt erklärt hat.
Im günstigsten Fall wird der Wahlkampf für den Sejm, der im kommenden Jahr ansteht, erbitterter werden. Allerdings wären, sollte die Reaktion des Nawrocki-Lagers heftiger ausfallen, noch zwei weitere Varianten vorstellbar: das die Auseinandersetzung zwischen den beiden Seiten weiter eskaliert, oder dass ein äußerer Konflikt gesucht wird, um von ihm ablenken zu können. Letzteres wäre in der augenblicklichen Weltlage brandgefährlich.
Riot police surrounded the Constitutional Tribunal as its leadership disputed suspensions and the president cut short a foreign trip
The longstanding struggle between Poland’s right-wing president and centrist government over control of the country’s top court dramatically escalated on Friday night as riot police surrounded the Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw.
Police were deployed as an announcement appeared on the court’s website stating that its president, Bogdan Swieczkowski, and vice-president, Bartlomiej Sochanski, had been suspended from their duties. Their profiles were reportedly removed from the website.
Shortly afterward, the tribunal’s official X account claimed that its website had been subjected to an “unlawful takeover” and insisted that both officials remained in their posts. “All persons participating in these actions are committing the crime of a coup d’état,” the account stated.
Protesters gathered outside the court building. According to the Polish Press Agency (PAP), Swieczkowski entered the tribunal’s grounds after his supporters cut through a gate lock with a circular saw. He subsequently left the grounds and called for calm, PAP reported.
Police said their deployment followed a warning from Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, whose status as a Constitutional Tribunal judge is disputed by the court’s existing leadership, about possible threats to judges and staff and the risk of public disorder. Officers denied entering the court building.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk defended what he described as efforts to restore the rule of law following the previous government led by the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party. “After years of lawlessness under PiS, this is a difficult, sometimes painful process that requires decisive action. There is no other way,” he wrote on X.
President Karol Nawrocki cut short a planned trip to Senegal and turned his plane around to return to Poland amid the escalating crisis.
Tusk has been locked in a prolonged battle with Nawrocki and the PiS over judicial appointments. Nawrocki has refused to administer the oath to five judges elected by parliament, while the tribunal’s existing leadership has challenged their authority to take up their posts.
Tusk’s liberal Civic Coalition leads Poland’s governing coalition, while Nawrocki holds the presidency. The Constitutional Tribunal remains dominated by judges appointed by PiS before Tusk took power in 2023. During PiS’s eight years in power, the EU repeatedly criticized the party’s judicial reforms, accusing it of undermining judicial independence.
Riot police surrounded the Constitutional Tribunal as its leadership disputed suspensions and the president cut short a foreign trip
The longstanding struggle between Poland’s right-wing president and centrist government over control of the country’s top court dramatically escalated on Friday night as riot police surrounded the Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw.
Police were deployed as an announcement appeared on the court’s website stating that its president, Bogdan Swieczkowski, and vice-president, Bartlomiej Sochanski, had been suspended from their duties. Their profiles were reportedly removed from the website.
Shortly afterward, the tribunal’s official X account claimed that its website had been subjected to an “unlawful takeover” and insisted that both officials remained in their posts. “All persons participating in these actions are committing the crime of a coup d’état,” the account stated.
Protesters gathered outside the court building. According to the Polish Press Agency (PAP), Swieczkowski entered the tribunal’s grounds after his supporters cut through a gate lock with a circular saw. He subsequently left the grounds and called for calm, PAP reported.
Police said their deployment followed a warning from Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, whose status as a Constitutional Tribunal judge is disputed by the court’s existing leadership, about possible threats to judges and staff and the risk of public disorder. Officers denied entering the court building.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk defended what he described as efforts to restore the rule of law following the previous government led by the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party. “After years of lawlessness under PiS, this is a difficult, sometimes painful process that requires decisive action. There is no other way,” he wrote on X.
President Karol Nawrocki cut short a planned trip to Senegal and turned his plane around to return to Poland amid the escalating crisis.
Tusk has been locked in a prolonged battle with Nawrocki and the PiS over judicial appointments. Nawrocki has refused to administer the oath to five judges elected by parliament, while the tribunal’s existing leadership has challenged their authority to take up their posts.
Tusk’s liberal Civic Coalition leads Poland’s governing coalition, while Nawrocki holds the presidency. The Constitutional Tribunal remains dominated by judges appointed by PiS before Tusk took power in 2023. During PiS’s eight years in power, the EU repeatedly criticized the party’s judicial reforms, accusing it of undermining judicial independence.
Das wird die Deutschen gewiss trösten, dass der Staatssekretär im Wirtschafts- und Energieministerium erklärt, "die Energieversorgungslage ist sicher". Obwohl der Füllstand der deutschen Gasspeicher nach den gesetzlichen Vorgaben am 1. November bei 70 Prozent liegen sollte und seit Monaten bekannt ist, dass zu wenig Gas gespeichert wurde, sind es mit Stand vom 29. Oktober laut agsi.gie.eu nur 61,61 Prozent. Aber wenn der Herr Staatssekretär sagt, dass das gut ist ...
Ende September wies Wirtschaftsministerin Katherina Reiche, nach längerem Zögern, das bundeseigene Unternehmen SEFE an, bis 15. Dezember den Gasspeicher in Rehden mit zusätzlich acht Terawattstunden Gas zu befüllen. Rehden ist mit einer Kapazität von 35 TWh der größte der deutschen Gasspeicher; am 30. September war er zu 12,6 Prozent gefüllt, mit 4,5 TWh. Aktuell sind es 7,09 TWh bzw. 19,8 Prozent; es sind also nur 2,5 TWh mehr bisher.
Das Problem? Rehden ist zwar riesig, aber nicht der Speicher, der am schnellsten befüllt werden kann. Die Erklärung, die geliefert wird, warum langsam gekauft wird, lautet, um die Gaspreise nicht weiter in die Höhe zu treiben. Allerdings werden sie, gesetzt den Fall, es kommt nach den US-Zwischenwahlen tatsächlich zu einem weiteren US-Angriff auf Iran, womöglich aus ganz anderen Gründen steigen. Seit Reiches Anweisung stieg der Gaspreis von etwa 72 Euro pro MWh auf knapp 100 Euro pro MWh; Ende August, als bereits absehbar war, dass die Speicherstände deutlich unter den Vorjahren liegen, hätte die Beschaffung besagter 8 TWh noch 360 Millionen Euro gekostet – jetzt sind es 800 Millionen. Zugegeben, die bereits eingelagerte Menge wurde zum Teil sicher noch für die erwähnten 72 Euro erworben, aber Reiches Zögern kann die deutschen Steuerzahler noch deutlich mehr kosten als 440 Millionen, wenn der Gaspreis weiter steigen sollte.
Übrigens kann man bei einer ganzen Reihe europäischer Speicher sehen, dass bereits nicht mehr zugeführt, sondern entnommen wird. Kein Wunder, schließlich hat die Heizsaison bereits begonnen. In Rehden selbst beträgt die Kapazität der Einspeicherung 282 GWh/Tag, theoretisch könnten die besagten 8 TWh also im Verlauf eines Monats eingespeichert werden. Praktisch lag die Zufuhrmenge in den 24 Stunden bis zum Morgen des 30. Oktober bei ganzen 9,93 GWh. Der Platz dafür wäre da – von den insgesamt 35,7 TWh Kapazität sind 19,4 gebucht und 7,09 belegt.
Während in den deutschen Medien die Zusatzkosten, die das Zögern der Ministerin ausgelöst hat, nicht thematisiert werden, kommt aus Italien scharfe Kritik am deutschen Verhalten. Ein Vertreter des italienischen Ministeriums für Umwelt und Energiesicherheit erklärte jüngst, es seien gerade die niedrigen deutschen Füllstände, die die Gaspreise in Europa in die Höhe trieben. "Die Preise sind gerade bei 100 Euro, weil die Deutschen einkaufen, ansonsten wären sie bei 70 Euro." Er sah auch die Lage für den kommenden Winter deutlich pessimistischer. "Wenn der Januar warm wird, haben wir kein Problem. Wenn der Januar wie letztes Jahr wird, als es in Nordeuropa, in Polen, in Litauen, in Deutschland sehr kalt war, dann haben wir Probleme."
Tatsächlich sind die niedrigen Speicherstände in diesem Herbst auch eine Folge ebendieses Winters – schon im vergangenen Jahr wurde der langjährige Durchschnitt der Speichermengen unterschritten, weshalb der Stand auch am Ende der Heizperiode ungewöhnlich niedrig war. Was dann aber für die Zukunft bedeutet, dass dann im kommenden Jahr der Ausgangspunkt für die Befüllung noch niedriger liegen könnte und die Probleme, sichere Reserven zu erreichen, noch größer werden.
"Wenn wir nicht sofort umsteuern, erleben wir dieselben Szenen in Wien, Berlin und München."
Mit dieser Warnung meldet sich Sebastian Kurz in einem Gastbeitrag für dieNeue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) zu Wort. Der frühere österreichische Bundeskanzler sieht in den Ausschreitungen in Frankreich ein Warnsignal für ganz Europa.
Kurz spricht von einer "toxischen Verbindung aus Linksradikalen und dem politischen Islam". Er kritisiert, dass Teile der Politik und der Medien die Gewalt als Jugendproteste verharmlosten, während Geschäfte geplündert, Polizisten angegriffen und jüdische Einrichtungen bedroht würden.
Deutlich schärfer kritisiert Kurz die Linke. Wer im Namen der Palästina-Solidarität Islamisten hofiere, verrate die eigenen Werte. Mit Blick auf die Verharmlosung von Judenhass hält er entgegen, dass sich Antisemitismus nicht mit besseren Schulen erklären lasse.
Für Österreich sieht Kurz dringenden Handlungsbedarf. Die Politik müsse selbst bestimmen, wer ins Land komme. Wer sich nicht integrieren wolle und gegen die geltenden Werte verstoße, müsse wieder gehen. Als Gegenmodell nennt er Ungarn, Polen und Tschechien.
Seine Warnung richtet sich vor allem an Wien. Die österreichische Hauptstadt könnte nach Ansicht des Ex-Kanzlers ähnliche Szenen erleben wie Paris. Sein Schlussappell ist unmissverständlich:
"Jetzt ist die vielleicht letzte Chance zu handeln, bevor wir das Europa, das wir kennen und lieben, verlieren. Frankreich ist nur der Vorbote."
Auch die Schweiz ist vor solchen Zuständen nicht sicher. Die französischen Verhältnisse lassen sich zwar nicht ohne Weiteres auf Schweizer Städte übertragen. Dennoch warnt der Nachrichtendienst des Bundes in seinem Lagebericht 2026 vor einer erhöhten Terrorbedrohung, dschihadistischer Online-Radikalisierung und einem weiterhin hohen Gewaltpotenzial in der linksextremen Szene.
Frankreich liegt vor der Haustür. Die Ausschreitungen in Lausanne und Bern zeigen, dass auch die Schweiz nicht immun gegen Straßengewalt ist. Von französischen Zuständen ist das Land weit entfernt. Die Warnsignale sollte Bern dennoch ernst nehmen.
In Deutschland wächst die Sorge, dass gewaltbereite Gruppen die Proteste nach französischem Vorbild für eigene Zwecke nutzen könnten. Für den 31. Oktober sind in knapp 30 Städten Demonstrationen unter dem Motto "Gen Z regelt" angekündigt. Die Sicherheitsbehörden beobachten die Mobilisierung genau.
Zwar liegen dem Bundesinnenministerium bislang keine konkreten Hinweise auf geplante Ausschreitungen vor, doch Teile der linksextremen Szene greifen die Aufrufe auf. Das hessische Landeskriminalamt warnt zudem vor einer zunehmenden Annäherung linksextremer Gruppen an islamistische Kreise, verbunden durch israelbezogenen Antisemitismus. Damit wächst die Sorge, dass gewaltbereite Extremisten friedliche Proteste erneut für Strassenschlachten und Angriffe auf die Polizei instrumentalisieren.
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