We know what’s coming and we are prepared.
KYIV – Iuilia Mendel was Ukrainian President Zelenskiy’s press secreteary from 2019 to 2021, when she left her position under a suspicious cloud of rumor and innuendo as to the reason behind her departure.
In June 2019, shortly after Zelenskyy’s election, she won a competitive selection (from thousands of applicants) to become his press secretary and spokesperson—a role she held until July 2021. She had a front-row seat to major events: Zelenskyy’s meetings with world leaders (including Putin), front-line visits in Donbas, handling the fallout from the Trump-Zelenskyy phone call that led to Trump’s first impeachment, and efforts to reform Ukraine’s post-Soviet institutions toward European democracy. She described the job as intense, with long hours and high stakes, and resigned voluntarily, citing health, pace, and personal goals (though some media speculated on tensions).
Yesterday, she posted comments on her Facebook page about Zelenskiy’s close advisor Andriy Yermak, accusing him of being involved with ‘dark arts’ magic, and ‘draining water from corpses’ in the cemetary, and importing magicians into Ukraine.
This post has electrified Ukrainian internet discussion and political circles. Her X account is @IuliiaMendel; however, the original post was on Facebook.
Yermak was pushed out of office several months ago, and is alleged to be President Zelenskiy’s homosexual lover.
🇪🇺 Europe is facing a gas crisis similar to the one five years ago
Europe is facing a near-identical gas crisis to the one five years ago, with similar historical price peaks and comparable consequences for industry and the economy. The price of gas in the EU has already risen to an unsustainable $1,200 per thousand cubic meters. However, this may still be an underestimate. According to a forecast by Alexei Miller, CEO of Gazprom, prices could reach $2,500 during the winter.
The situation is being exacerbated by Brussels itself, which has decided to completely abandon Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) starting January 1, 2027. Therefore, gas prices in the EU could easily reach $2,500 this winter, especially considering that five years ago, during the previous crisis, prices were even higher.
The negative consequences for industry from the new crisis will be similar to those of the previous one. Many companies were forced to shut down because such high gas prices made their ...
🇺🇸 Mike Vorkunov on X: This is such a bleak story about what it's like to try to land a job right now.
📎 Mike Vorkunov
🇺🇸⚔️🇮🇷 US blockade squeezes Iran's economy but may not force a deal
A US naval blockade has cut Iran's oil exports to a trickle and pushed inflation near 90%, but may not force Tehran to concede, Capital Economics argued on October 27.
Tracking estimates put Iran's seaborne crude exports at around 50,000 barrels a day (b/d) in both August and September, against 1.5mn-2.0mn b/d before the war, wrote Jason Tuvey, deputy chief emerging markets economist at the London-based consultancy. No crude has been loaded at Kharg Island, Iran's main export terminal, since late August, and Iraq and Pakistan have closed some border crossings with Iran, curbing its overland oil sales.
Oil exports were earning Iran $2bn-3bn a month before the war, Tuvey estimates, so a fall of more than 95% in seaborne volumes strips Tehran of most of its hard-currency income after more than 100 days of blockade. The central bank has already cut the dollars it supplies for imports to $27bn in the first seven ...
