Türkiye's navy begins the "Denizkurdu-I" exercise on Sunday, running through September 24 across the Black Sea, the Sea of Marmara, the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean. Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan renewed his accusation that Greece is militarizing Aegean islands that treaties require to stay demilitarized, and the Greek navy has deployed ships and submarines to monitor the drill.
Turkish Cypriot President Tufan Erhürman said after Thursday's meeting with Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides that no agreement had been reached on confidence-building measures: six of seven points are accepted, but not the opening of new crossing points. He welcomed Greek Cypriot statements calling the citizenship status of Turkish Cypriots born to mixed marriages a humanitarian issue, and the two leaders will now brief the U.N. secretary-general in New York.
Turkish authorities detained 175 of 239 suspects on Friday in raids on 286 addresses in Istanbul and Muğla, in an investigation into fake forex and cryptocurrency investment schemes that Justice Minister Akın Gürlek said defrauded victims across Europe, the Far East and Africa of roughly $266.4 million over two years. Officials said people linked to Israel were predominant in the companies' ownership structures.
President Nicușor Dan has nominated liberal MEP Siegfried Muresan to attempt forming a government, after two previous nominees failed since the pro-European coalition collapsed in May. Muresan's proposed coalition of Liberals, the Save Romania Union and the ethnic Hungarian UDMR commands only around 190 of the 233 votes needed, and he has ten days to present a cabinet to parliament.
French President Emmanuel Macron called on Friday for a G7 meeting on energy "in the coming weeks" to coordinate stock levels, after blockages in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait pushed fuel prices sharply higher. He also warned that the nature of Russian hybrid threats to Europe is changing, pointing to a drone carrying explosives found at Leipzig airport.
At the Eurogroup and Ecofin meeting in Dublin, EU finance ministers discussed windfall profit taxes on energy companies benefiting from price volatility, after Brent crude passed $100 a barrel and pushed inflation higher across the bloc. Germany is pressing the European Commission to present models, while France is more cautious; Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis says he is ready to share best practice with member states that want to move ahead.
Yemen's Houthi rebels say the Saudi-led coalition launched 26 strikes on their territory in 24 hours and around 300 over the past week, as ground clashes in Taiz province killed dozens: Saudi-backed forces say they killed 30 Houthi fighters and wounded over 60. The conflict has escalated since the Houthis took control of the Red Sea coast and the strategic Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, and the EU has raised the alert level for its naval mission in the area.
President Donald Trump signed a sweeping sanctions package on Friday, named the "Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026" after the late senator who negotiated it, which passed Congress with wide bipartisan margins. The law sanctions Russian banks and a "shadow fleet" of tankers and directs up to 100 percent tariffs on the top five importers of Russian oil or gas, exempting countries that already import less than 15 percent and have been reducing that share.
Warren Buffett, 96, became chairman emeritus of Berkshire Hathaway on Friday and keeps his board seat, having already handed the CEO role to Greg Abel nine months ago. His son Howard Buffett takes over as chairman and is expected to safeguard the company's culture while Abel runs operations, in what analysts call a carefully planned succession at the $1.1 trillion conglomerate.
Speaker Andreas Norlén formally tasked Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson with forming a government on Thursday, following her bloc's election win on September 13, giving her 28 days to report back. The Left Party is demanding cabinet posts as a condition for support, while the Centre Party is openly opposed to that arrangement, putting pressure on Andersson's planned four-party government before negotiations have properly begun.