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French crossing the border with jerry cans

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In cities like Madrid and Barcelona, ​​today Diesel starts at 1.94 euros per liter, with gasoline close to 1.60. These are absolutely sky-high prices if we compare them with those of the last few months before the start of the conflict between the United States and Iran. But for the French it is a candy they are not willing to reject. The French case. France is one of the countries with the most aggressive taxation of its fuels. Something that has caused prices to skyrocket above 2.30 euros. This same week, 12% of French stations have run out of fuel. Reason? TotalEnergies capped the maximum price at 1.99 euros per liter for gasoline and 2.09 euros in the case of diesel. Within a few hours they were practically out of supplies. Solution? Spanish. Those transport professionals and regular drivers close to the border are reactivating a practice they resort to when fuel costs skyrocket: refueling in Spain. In some cases the price difference reaches close to one euro per liter, which has caused a very high influx at low-cost Easygas stations in Guipúzcoa, according to Diario Vasco. Filling drums. A deposit may not make a difference. But a few, yes. On their gas station pilgrimage, the French are filling drums and jugs with fuel, according to the newspaper. The regulations allow up to 60 liters of gasoline per container to be transported, up to a total of 240 liters. Europe is not so happy. Although prices continue to be high, Spain is an anomalous case compared to Europe. Brussels is warning the Government that the VAT on fuel cannot be reduced from 21% to 10% as the executive stated, and threatens sanctions if the tax is not modified. Sources from the Ministry of Finance have defended that The measure is “temporary and not structural” and that its “priority” is “supporting families, self-employed workers and companies to mitigate the effects of a war that should never have started.” On March 26, Congress approved a package of measures that includes tax cuts to contain fuel, gas and electricity bills during the conflict. France sleeps peacefully. Spain, Croatia, Hungary and Germany are European examples of attempts at fuel containment. Either through reductions in the tax burden, or through limits on price increases by gas stations, such as the Alemán case. Meanwhile, in France, the Government has not intervened in the price in any way, which has catapulted the final ticket to one of the highest positions in the European ranking. In Xataka | Finding the cheapest gas station in your area is very simple thanks to this very powerful tool

We knew that mobile phones had an impact on children’s mental health. A study has defined the border: 16 years

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Today, we live in a time of great debate around Instagram, TikTok or X, wondering if they really negatively affect our minors, with several governments promoting the possibility of banning them, including Spanish. Now, a new study longitudinal has shed light on the true impact that using social networks can have on mental health, pointing to a much more complex scenario than we think. The study. It has been a team from the Miguel Hernández University that has decided to put the focus precisely on social networks at a time when research paints a very worrying picture. But in this case wanted to put the focus in the nuances that should really matter to us: age, gender and mental health status prior to entering the world of social networks. And its conclusions change the classical conception. It’s not how much, but how. Until recently, the most classic concept to measure danger was “screen time.” In this way, different reviews suggested that spending more hours in front of the cell phone was equivalent to having a worse well-being. But the UMH research goes a step further and focuses on how networks interfere with daily life, sleep or personal relationships. Here the most striking finding that the research team saw was that the impact of this problematic use on depressive symptoms has a very clear boundary: 16 years. But it fades. Although researchers have observed that increased depressive symptoms It is much more acute in those under 16 years of age, it has also been seen that around this age the effect diminishes. The reason that marks 16 years as a true frontier is precisely the greater capacity for emotional and cognitive self-regulation that adolescents have as they mature little by little. In this way, young people from the age of 16 become less vulnerable to the negative impacts of the digital environment, something pointed out by other external studies that already warned that early pre-adolescence is the true critical period of exposure to social networks as they are more sensitive. A gender gap. Another worrying point raised by science is how digital popularity affects depending on whether the teenager is a boy or a girl. And right now we live in the era of followers where anything is done to see how our accounts have more and more followers. And while it may seem like having more followers is a positive reinforcement for any teen, the data says otherwise. The researchers point out here that having a greater number of followers is associated with a greater number of depressive symptoms, and especially in girls. The reasons lie in the pressure to maintain a perfect image, the fear of being analyzed down to the last detail and, logically, the cybervictimization. A set of factors that act as a toxic cocktail towards mental health. In the boys. Here, having many followers has a neutral or even somewhat protective effect, operating as a status enhancer within a group of friends, for example. That is, the complete opposite of girls, marking a gender gap that has also been investigated by other third-party studies that already warned that the mental health of minors is much more susceptible to the dynamics of online validation. Previous vulnerability. Do social networks depress you or were teenagers already depressed? This is the question we can ask ourselves when addressing this complex issue, and science indicates that adolescents who already suffered from a previous vulnerability before using the networks are the most susceptible. In this way, if a young person already presents depressive symptoms, their evolution will be significantly worse if they develop problematic use of networks. In these cases, the screen becomes a true refuge that ends up worsening the original picture when exposed to a large number of people or by consuming negative content. What should we do? The great conclusion that can be drawn here is that We must protect preteens as they are the most vulnerable, and also give priority attention to girls because they suffer much greater aesthetic and validation pressure. This is where governments come in with the regulations that are already being put on the table to prevent these most vulnerable young people from being exposed to something that can be so harmful. Images | Johnny Cohen In Xataka | We say we are “depressed” beyond our means: where does the illness end and where does the illness begin?

There are only 20 fateful kilometers left on the Gobi border

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China and Mongolia have been trying to solve one of Asia’s costliest logistics problems for more than a decade: getting coal and metals from Mongolian mines to Chinese steel plants. without using eternal truck caravans. The solution: a railway corridor between the mines of Tavan Tolgoi and the Chinese network capable of transporting up to 50 million tons of cargo, such as declared the Mongolian president. The project carries on the table since 2012 and, after delays and stoppages, the first part was completed. In 2025 the second phase started: a cross-border link of just 19.5 kilometers in length at the Gashuunsukhait-Gantsmod pass whose completion is scheduled for 2027. Let China be capable of remodeling a train station in one night but it takes 22 months to build only eight kilometers, anticipating the technical and orographic challenges it faces. Context. Mongolia owns some of the largest reserves of coal and copper in the world. deserves special mention Tavan Tolgoione of the largest unexploited coking coal deposits on the planet, with an estimate of 6.4 billion tons of this resource. Copper and gold also works well in Oyu Tolgoi. In fact, has a projected production by 2030 of 500,000 tons of copper per year. But Mongolia is landlocked. China is historically the largest importer of Mongolian coal. As? With lines of trucks crossing the desert. From an environmental and economic point of view, the switch to rail makes the most sense but it has fine print: the Mongolian railway network It has 1,815 kilometers of Soviet gauge trackof which the majority are part of the TransMongolia line that connects Russia with China. The network is practically single track, with limited capacity and vulnerable to snowfall in winter and Gobi sand in the southern section. Trans-Mongolian crossing the Gobi Desert. PIERRE ANDRE LECLERCQ Why is it important. Because this fully completed corridor will close a strategic logistics chain for China at a time when there is tension in the supply of critical raw materials. Without going any further, he already faced a Australian coal veto a few years ago, having to seek supply in Russia and Mongolia. Mongolia also gains by improving its coal and metals export infrastructure. As declared the Mongolian governmentthe average export volume will go from 83 million tons to 165 million per year, which represents an increase of 1.5 billion dollars. Of course, it reinforces its dependence on China: It already exports 90% of its raw materials. First phase. The history of the Tavan Tolgoi–Gashuun Sukhait railway is checkered to say the least: it began in 2012, when Mongolian Mining Corporation announced a railway from Ukhaa Khudag to the Gashuun Sukhait border crossing, with completion scheduled for 2015. With the earthworks very advanced, the work became entrenched both due to economic and political problems how to choose what the track width should be. Work resumed in 2018 under new management. Finally, the line will be inaugurated in 2022 233.6 kilometers long crossing the Gobi Desert (258 km with auxiliary infrastructure), with 16 bridges and designed for loads of 25 tons per axle. According to Tavantolgoi Railway LLC and collected by AFPthe price of a ton of coal fell from 32 dollars to 8. The pending critical phase: the border. The Mongolian railway reaches the border from 2022, but the critical thing remained: coal could not cross to China by train. The main reason for being is pure engineering: Mongolia uses the Soviet width of 1,520 mm and China uses 1,435 mm, the international standard width. At the Gashuun Sukhait pass there was a physical gap that required the transshipment of goods, with the delays, costs and inconveniences that it entails. They are going to solve it with a double track widthwhich extends both the Mongolian and Chinese lines, thus allowing trains from both systems to enter the area without transfers. This cross-border link will have a main road 19.5 kilometers and includes bridge structures between 8 and 31 meters high, necessary to bridge the topographic gap between the two sides of the border. The Chinese side is being built by the state-owned company China Energy Investment Corporation and on the Mongolian side, Tavantolgoi Railway LLC. A corridor full of challenges. The delay of the railway corridor project due to financial and political issues is just the tip of the iceberg of other challenges it has faced, ranging from the engineering problem of the track gauge to the extreme climate of the Gobi: the Mongolian section passes through one of the most inhospitable places on the planet, with temperature ranges ranging from -40 °C in winter to more than 40 °C in summer. It is no longer that it is uninhabitable, it is that it affects the structure of the road itself. In Xataka | 125 kilometers of water separate 140 million inhabitants. China is going to solve it with a mega railway tunnel In Xataka | China has built the highest bridge in the world and has done what it must: turn it into a show Cover | Marcin Konsek and KUA YUE

In 1885, Finland mistakenly built a lighthouse in Sweden, so its neighbor redrew the border to return it to them.

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The Market Island It is most particular. How Guinness certifiesalong with Koiluoto, is the smallest uninhabited island shared between two nations: Sweden and Finland, once integrated into the Russian Empire (became independent in 1917but the history of Finland is another story). Unlike other islands with this casuistry such as Hispaniola (shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic), its border is not more or less a straight line: It looks like an S, as you can see in the image that illustrates this article. The reason for this winding muga is a lighthouse. As a curiosity, the Market lighthouse It had its lighthouse keeper in charge of managing it until it was automated in 1977, at which time the island became uninhabited, beyond tourists who came to visit its impressive fauna. Located at the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia in the Baltic Sea, Märket is halfway between the islands bordering the Swedish provinces of Uppsala and Stockholm to the west, and the Finnish archipelago of Åland to the east. The western part of the island is administered by Sweden and is also divided into two provinces: Uppsala and Stockholm. The eastern area corresponds to Hammarland, belonging to the Finnish autonomous territory of Åland. Although the exact date on which Märket emerged from the sea is unknown, geology is based in the postglacial rebound rhythm of the region (greater than 5 mm per year) to point to the 16th century. Märket barely has 0.033 square kilometers, spread over a surface of mostly smooth diabase rock, with a maximum elevation of about 3.5 meters above sea level. On its northern and southern coasts there are coves that serve as natural ports for small boats. To prevent ships from running aground on its reef, in 1885 the Tsar of Russia commissioned the construction of a lighthouse, designed by the Finnish architect Georg Schreck: the wayward Märket lighthouse. Stay with one piece of information: Schreck chose the highest point on the island to build it with all the sense in the world: it is the least exposed to waves and ice. The Märket Island lighthouse has caused Sweden and Finland to change their borders But before we go to 1885, let’s move to 1809, the moment when Sweden and the Russian Empire drew their borders in the Treaty of Fredrikshamn. According to this agreement, the borders would be fixed on geographical elements and the sea border would be fixed in the Åland Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, with the islands assigned to the nearest country. The topographical description of 1811 ruled: that line crossed Märket exactly through its geographical center. This original border can be revised in the historical archive Histdocwhich houses the official record: Original Märket border. Official document of the governments of Sweden and Finland. Via Histdoc You don’t have to pay much attention to observe an abysmal difference between the original border and the current one. Now it is time to travel back in time to 1885 when, after enduring the harsh climate (even in summer) of the island, the construction of the lighthouse was completed. Then two other attached buildings would arrive, a warehouse and a machine room. There was just one tiny, tiny problem.: They had planted it on the Swedish side. Märket is (and always has been) an inhospitable island in the wilderness, not a place to pass through or stay. So no one bothered to solve this little problem until the 1980s. Specifically, the formal border demarcation process of 1979-1981 officially showed that the lighthouse was between 35 and 60 meters west of the central point of the islet: on the Swedish side. As you can see on the map, the buildings are marked in part B, entirely on the Swedish side. So in 1985 they resolved it amicably. A joint Swedish-Finnish commission decided to modify the border so that the lighthouse was on the Finnish side through an exchange of territories, which generated that characteristic S shape. The maritime borders could not be modified without affecting the fishing areas, so they were limited to the land. Since then, the border has been marked with perforations in the rock itself (doing it any other way is not feasible due to its meteorological conditions) for almost 500 meters. In Xataka | A man bought a desert island in 1962: he planted 16,000 trees and turned it into an anti-rich sanctuary In Xataka | There is a paradise island that you only enter armed. And the United Kingdom wants to “liberate” it from the United States Cover | Google Maps and tt_koski

North Korea believed the threat was miles from its border. A video has revealed that it is a few meters away with a huge warhead

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For years, North Korea has built your security on the idea that the most dangerous thing came from afar and could be seen coming in time. But on the peninsula, threats do not always come from the other side of the world: sometimes they develop much closer than anyone imagined. A “monster” missile. a video has revealed that South Korea has begun to operationally deploy the Hyunmoo-5its largest ballistic missile to date and one of the most peculiar in the world due to the combination of size and mission. Although it remains shrouded in secrecy and there are no publicly confirmed test launches, its input in units indicates that Seoul already considers it a real instrument of deterrence. A weapon designed for an extreme scenario on the peninsula, where the problem is not just attacking, but hitting what is buried, protected and designed to survive. The key: the head. What it places to Hyunmoo-5 In a category of its own is its warhead gigantic penetrationmuch heavier than that of usual conventional missiles. Where it is normal to carry loads of less than a ton, here we are talking about a block that can be around several tons, with an important part dedicated to dense metal and structure to pierce before detonating. The logic is simple and we have seen it before in the United States MOP: enter the ground at enormous speed, break through like a kinetic hammer and then explode once inside, attacking bunkers, command centers, warehouses and shelters designed to withstand traditional attacks. Ballistic bunker-buster. In terms of effect, it is reminiscent of bunker buster bombs launched from a planebut with a decisive difference: here it is not falling from a bomber at subsonic speed, but rather hits like a ballistic projectile at speeds close to hypersonic or directly hypersonic. This multiplies the penetration capacity by pure impact energyeven before counting the explosion. It does not make the weapon “nuclear,” because the type of destruction is different, but it does create a conventional tool with the power of entry and demolition that seeks to get closer to what a regime fears most: losing its underground shelters. Ceremony celebrating the 65th anniversary of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Korea The mystery of scope. The huge warhead penalizes the range, and that is why many estimates They place their radius of action around about 600 kilometersmore typical of a short-range missile despite the size of the set. For South Korea that is not a problem, because the priority objective is close and it’s concrete: Hardened facilities in North Korea. Still, if the load were lightened, it could reach much greater distances, even entering intermediate-range missile parameters, opening the door to broader regional readouts. Total design freedom. For decades, Seoul developed missiles under agreed limits with Washington, first very strict and then increasingly relaxeduntil those guidelines disappeared completely in 2021. That change was not symbolic: it came at the pace of North Korea’s advance in missiles and nuclear weapons, and left South Korea with room to create heavier, more capable systems with greater range options. Hyunmoo-4 had already raised the bar with a powerful charge, but Hyunmoo-5 represents the definitive jump to the idea of ​​“demolition power” as a main feature. The three-way strategy. Plus: the Hyunmoo-5 is integrated into the South Korean scheme designed to avoid or respond to a North Korean nuclear attack, with three pillars that complement each other: a preemptive strike plan on nuclear and missile capabilities if deemed inevitable, an air and missile defense to intercept launches, and massive conventional retaliation against leadership and strategic infrastructure if the North strikes first. On that board, the missile serves both to punish and to decapitate capabilities, because its specialty is attacking what the adversary hides underground to guarantee its continuity. Deterrence and escalation. They counted the TWZ analysts that the South Korean bet aims to maintain a “balance of terror” with increasingly forceful conventional means, but it also fuels an uncomfortable debate about the future. If Seoul one day decided to pursue a nuclear arsenal of its own, a missile from this family would be a natural candidateand a nuclear charge would also be much lighter than the current conventional one, which would expand range and flexibility. Meanwhile, the mere existence of Hyunmoo-5 already serves as an unmistakable message: even without crossing the nuclear threshold, South Korea wants the ability to open any relevant bunker and force Pyongyang to assume that his depth no longer guarantees security. Beyond Pyongyang. In public, South Korea frames these weapons as an answer to North Korea, but the regional background weighs more and more. Have a missile potentially adaptable in range and with a devastating payload add margin facing scenarios where the threat is not only from North Korea, but also from nearby powers such as China or Russia. The idea of ​​​​increasing their survival and employment options with future naval platforms is even contemplated, following the trend global from “arsenal ships”because in deterrence it is not enough to have the weapon: we must also guarantee that it will remain alive when the time comes to use it. Image | Lightrocket, 촬영 – 이헌구 기자 In Xataka | “It’s a level 10 Godzilla, but they only see a tiger”: South Korea’s surprising response to North Korea’s rearmament In Xataka | If the question is what has North Korea achieved in the last four years, the answer is simple: an unimaginable arsenal

The border between Morocco and Algeria was closed in 1994. 30 years later, the fight threatens to claim its most unexpected piece: the date

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A strong, dry, accurate blow is enough. Only one, in the center of the chest. When this happens, the diaphragm contracts violently and the body exhales all the air it has inside: the person is temporarily unable to inhale. That is exactly what happened to the international date market on October 10, 2025: it was left breathless. And the reason was a misunderstanding. That and a very long diplomatic conflict that always ends up affecting Spain. What has happened? October 10. The advice of GIDattes (the Tunisian interprofessional date group) published a statement in which the start of exports was announced of dates. Business as usual, really. But they added a clarification that set off all the alarms: “to all markets except the Moroccan one.” In a matter of hours, everyone interpreted that Tunisia was vetoing the export of these fruits to the west. October 13 and 14. Given the widespread noise and uncertainty in the sector, the GIDattes He clarified that there was no type of exclusion. Simply put, as it is the main export market, These required a special calendar that would be approved on October 20. October 19, 20 and 21. But it was too late, the Moroccan employers’ associations and producer groups had smelled blood. For the first time in years, there was a 20% chance (19.7% in 2024) of the dates consumed by the country would disappear from the equation: the profits for local producers would be enormous. October 21. After the meeting on the 20th, the Tunisian press reported that there would indeed be exports to Morocco at the end of October: “like every year“. What does Algeria have to do with all this? Moroccan farmers have gone directly to where it hurts most: they have accused Tunisian dates of be Algerian. It is, moreover, a classic accusation of the Moroccan countryside. Something that no one can completely rule out (due to the traditional traceability deficits of the Maghreb), but that no one really takes seriously. Although it is not going through its best moment, Tunisia is a giant in the world of dates. He doesn’t need Algeria at all. But Algeria is a sensitive issue in the western end of North Africa. A little context. The historical enmity between Morocco and Algeria can be traced back to the very independence of these territories: border disputes ended up leading to the War of the Sands of 1963 and, above all, in the Algerian support for the Polisario Front in Western Sahara. In 94, an attack in Marrakech (in which two Spaniards died) caused a diplomatic conflict that closed the enormous land border between both countries. They have not been reopened and, in fact, in 2021, diplomatic and commercial relations they are broken. Suffice it to say that, if the accusations of the Moroccan producers are confirmed, the Tunisian date would disappear from the markets of the Alawite state. Why is all this so important? This has had an impact on the international date market because, although Tunisia is in the doldrums (and Saudi Arabia has overtaken it in recent years) it is still the second country in date exports. A decision such as that of vetoing the largest importer of dates in the world, Morocco, would have caused a violent restructuring of commercial networks around the globe. To all this we must add a key fact: the third country in date exports, Israel. Today (with or without a peace agreement) no one knows exactly what will happen to the tens of thousands of tons that the Hebrew country puts on the market each year. And that, logically, generates even more uncertainty. The important thing is in the details. In dates, for example. In recent days Steve Witkof and Jared Kushner (Trump’s special envoys) revealed that they were working to reach an agreement between Morocco and Algeria that would solve the Sahara issue. It is quite possible: the US president’s obsession with ‘ending all the world’s wars’ may have put a conflict like this in the spotlight. One, furthermore, that involves a traditional ally of Washington. However, dates show us that everything is more complicated than it seems. Is the delicate balance of the Mediterranean about to be blown up? We will see it in the coming months. Image | In Xataka | Morocco holds a new record: being the African country with the highest growth of millionaires in the last decade

There is a city that maintains much of Russia’s economy in times of war. And it is on the Chinese border

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On the Manzhouli map is a small point north of Mongolia inner, a city with a population similar to Las Palmas and one picturesque square full of replicas of Russian monuments and Matrioskas giants, including a 30 m high that works as a hotel. That is at least what is seen with the naked eye. In Manzhouli practice it is much more: an important Logistics node located right on the border between China and Russia that has gained weight as Moscow’s economy was distanced from the West and narrowed his links with Beijing. So much so that There are those who point since Manzhouli is playing a fundamental role to keep the Russian economy afloat in times of war. In a place in northern China … Manzhouli is far from being the most populous, dynamic or busy city in China, but over the last months has caught the attention of several analysts. He traveled recently Lisa Visentin, correspondent for The Sydney Morning Post. And there has moved now Keith Bradsher, head of the office of The New York Times In Beijing. What is special for this sub -prefecture of Mongola in the interior of just 382,000 inhabitants and a picturesque Russian -inspired theme park full of buildings topped in domes similar to those that can be seen in Moscow and Matrioskas Xl? The answer is simple: Manzhouli is on the border between China and Russia and has managed to carve a key role in the relationship between the two countries at a strategic moment, with the Russian economy marked by the severe sanctions With which the West responded to the War of Ukraine, more than three years ago. At the right time and place. In a wide analysis Posted this week in TnytBradsher points out that today much of the commercial flow between Beijing and Moscow is channeled through Manzhouli, something that is possible thanks in part to its roads and the railway line built at the beginning of the last century by Russia and that passes through the city towards northwest China. Today, trains and trucks traveling from Russia are carried out by the town loaded with wood, planks and other materials that help Beijing avoid imports from North America. From the Chinese town there are also a large number of vehicles destination Russia, where the market suffers the consequences of the sanctions and The withdrawal of European manufacturers. A fact: 65%. As a reference and to understand the economic weight of Manzhouli, in 2022 Global Times (GT)a medium linked to the Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, I calculated that the sight border land port moved up to 65% of all bilateral terrestrial trade between China and Russia. In fact, when many years ago Manzhouli suspended the customs office for weeks to meet the “anti covid-19” measures, a local businessman lamented in GT of losses that amounted to hundreds of thousands of daily yuan. How is it possible? For several factors, although there are two that stand out: their location and infrastructure. Manzhouli is The main one China shopping center with Russia just like Erenhot It is between China and Mongolia. In fact, the city is ceasing to be a “traffic station” of merchandise to become an industrial center. Over there It is processed For example, roller or wood. “Trains from all about China arrive in Manzhouli, one of the six railway ports through which Chinese-Europa trains pass before addressing Russia or other countries in Europe,” collected in 2023 Global Times. “The trains from Europe that go through Russia enter China through Manzhouli before addressing other cities in the country.” During the first quarter the flow of China’s load trains with the continent registered a 7.1% growth In the land port. It matters where … and when. The role of Manzhiuli is today more important because they are also the economic ties between Beijing and Moscow. In 2024 the combined imports and exports of China with Russia added nearby 240,000 million of euros, a historical maximum. The data is also 2% greater than that of 2023, although that increase is far from the 26.3% registered between 2022 and 2023, coinciding with the beginning of the Ukraine War. Bradsher points out that today almost 6% of the Russian economy is based on exports to China and that the flow of merchandise that comes out of China heading to the north It has triggered 71% Since the Kremlin troops advanced on Ukraine. Beijing has become the largest buyer of oil, wood and coal from Russia and in Manzhouli a relationship in which Moscow provides raw materials for the powerful Chinese manufacturing is evident. A perfect relationship? No. Despite this narrow link and that entrepreneurs in the region have managed to make fun of the use of dollars in transactions with Russia (Tnyt speaks With an Entrepreneur from the Manzhouli area that pays Russian wood in Chinese renminbi or rubles through the VTB bank), in the economic relationship between the two countries there are also friction. Moscow forces for example that the carved pines become tables in their own territory and months ago China applied Russian coal tariffs to boost their own production. After the success of Chinese cars in the Russian market, Moscow also chose a considerable rate to imported cars. Images | Wikipedia 1 and 2 Via | Tnyt In Xataka | Ukraine has opened Russia’s last drone and does not leave his astonishment: it is the first time that China does something like that

The US prepares to bomb the border of Mexico with sterile flies. It will not use genetic engineering, but 1950 technology

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The United States wants to stop the Cochliomyia hominivorax, A fly that when it is in the larval phase causes a parasitic disease that mainly affects cattle (although it can also affect humans). A few days ago we talked about the plan to end her: launch millions of sterile flies to stop their expansion. The funny thing is that they are not going to do it using Genomic editionbut for this they will use a technology ago. X -rays and planes. The objective of this initiative is to stop the expansion of this plague and for this what they are going to do is sterilize millions of flies. As? With A technology that has been using since the 70s To combat this plague: X -rays. After raising the larvae and that they transform into pupae, they are placed inside a metal cylinder that is introduced into a gamma irradiation chamber with a dose of between 40 and 65 gray, enough to reach 95% sterility without compromising their survival. The container (left) that is introduced into the irradiation chamber (right). Fountain Once sterilized, you have to reach the affected areas, in this case the southern Texas and Mexico. To ensure that they arrive in the appropriate phase, the pupae remain at 10 degrees so that their metamorphosis to adults slows down. They are released from airplanes and, when the temperature rises, sterile males emerge. Why not transgenic flies? Sterilization of insects by radiation has decades of proven efficacy. Genetic modification is potentially cheaper and efficientbut it is still in an experimental phase and is not ready for mass production. There is also the issue of regulation, more complicated in this case because it requires approvals from two countries: the United States and Mexico. The current legal framework under which sterile insects are released does not contemplate genetic modification and achieve approval I could take years and cost millions of dollars. The threat. The one known as “Cattle Barrenter” is a devastating species, especially for cattle. The females deposit their eggs in wounds and mucous animals and, when hatching, the larvae begin to feed on the meat, causing injuries that become mortal. According to the head of the American Association of Veterinary Medicine, They can kill a 450 kilos cow in two weeks. This pest affects mainly to countries in South America, but It is not the first time that the United States has to deal with it; In 1966 they already eradicated it and in 2017 there was a small outbreak in the Florida Keys. There is a hurry. Although the reduction of transgenic technique costs sounds attractive, the reality is that there is no time to lose. The boreride worm has reappeared in southern Mexico and, although it has not been detected near the border, from the United States They don’t want to take risks. In addition to the release of sterile flies, other measures will also take controls in the transfer of animals, collaborate with Mexico to improve surveillance and provide traps to catch larvae. Image | PSUBRATY in Pixabay In Xataka | Every week, millions of flies are released on the Valencia Community and, although it does not seem like it, it is a sensational idea

Europe fails to find the perfect solution for cross -border payments. Bizum and Banco Santander have just put it on a tray

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Santander has become the first Spanish bank that allows its customers Send Bizum to other European countries. It is something that is achieved thanks to the interoperability between Bizum, Bancomat and MB Waya connection that according to the bank will connect 50 million users and 186 financial entities. It is a first step waiting for a unique pawous solution for which no agreement is reached. The first in Spain. Banco Santander has formalized the possibility of sending money through Bizum in a cross -border way. The agreement has been necessary between different payment solutions such as Bizum (Spain), Bancomat (Italy) and Mbway (Portugal), being limited instant payments to these two countries, for the moment. After performing the corresponding successful pilot tests, the clients of this bank will be the first to be able to pay outside Spain. The method will be the usual: we will only have to write the mobile number of the user to which we want to send the payment, and this will be carried out immediately and without commissions. It will not be alone. Santander has been the first to move token, but the possibility of sending Bizum out of Spain will be a standard before summer. Abanca, OpenBank, Caixabank, BBVA and Banco Sabadell are advancing in the implementation of this service, planned for the second quarter of 2025. It has not been thanks to Europe. While Europe Follow in search of a unique solutionthe private company moves record. Cross -border payments are possible thanks to the European Initiative (European Payments Alliance), a joint project initiated by Bizum and followed by both Bancomat and MB Way, with the aim of adopting instant transfers paneuropeas using existing infrastructure. In other words, it has been necessary for those responsible for the platforms to agree, in the absence of a European alternative that encompasses. The European Bizum. The European Central Bank has been trying to advance in a system of instant payments to interconnect the different member countries. But he doesn’t get it. During the last two years we have seen progress as Free transfers in Europe, Tests with digital purseand brushstrokes on a “European Payment Initiative” which has barely advanced since 2022. Countries like Spain They make 95% of immediate payments with Bizumbut this is not the only name that sounds as a candidate for possible means for European payments. There are those who try strongly. Solutions such as Bizum, Bancomat, BM Way or Swish were born as responses to the national need to be able to pay freely and free. The problem for the EU? None have been thought from scratch as a single payment solution. This is where solutions such as Weroa proposal towards “a unique payment solution, all in one, instantaneous and paneuropea, capable of covering over time all cases of payment that consumers and professionals require.” Banks such as German and French They are already promoting this servicenot yet compatible with solutions like Bizum. Nothing clear. The ECB points out that “instead of combining strength and sharing resources to develop paneuropeas solutions, national communities have often preferred to preserve the legacy of the investments made in the past”, an attack on models such as Bizum and a clear look at proposals such as Wero. With many delays and few proposals on the table, the road to a “European bizum” continues to draw distant. But, meanwhile, in Spain we will not take to pay with virtually any bank outside our borders. In Xataka | Bizum and Finance: What changes in transfers control after eliminating the threshold of 3,000 euros

Now we know what the US Army did in Finland. Russia is expanding its troops on its border with Europe

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In April there was a paradox that we count. While Finland again became the “happier” nation From the planet, a United States army had reached its borders to prepare for “the worst.” Thus began a simulation where Finland’s defense forces and a Washington operation were trained together for a eventual invasion. If there was any questions about who the enemy was, Russia has just cleared it. Remove silent. I told it in Exclusive the Wall Street Journal supported by the satellite data that he had achieved. While much of international attention is still focused on war in Ukraine, Europe begins to worry to a series of strategic movements of the Russian army that, without making almost noise, are redefining the military balance of the continent. In the Russian city of Petrozavodsk, about 160 kilometers from the border with Finland, military engineers work on the expansion of bases and the creation of a new headquarters that will house tens of thousands of soldiers in the coming years, many of which today fight in Ukraine. These troops, according to Intelligence sources Western, they are not designed for the current war, but for future confrontations with NATO. Moscow has intensified recruitment, modernized rail infrastructure in border areas and duplicated its military budget, already exceeds 6% of GDP. President Putin has ordered that the size of the Russian armed forces increase until 1.5 million troopsand although publicly denies expansionist aspirations, its government continues to give contradictory signs, including official statements that affirm the need to prepare for a possible confrontation With the Atlantic Alliance. Rejuvenate the army. It is one of the consequences. The rebound of military spending has promoted an unprecedented acceleration in weapons production. Before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia manufactured around 40 T-90m tanks a year. Now produce almost 300although many are not sent to the front, but are reserved in national territory. Artillery and ammunition production has also increased, and Russian drones have won in quality and volume. Thus, the Moscow army, far from collapse, is being reconfigured faster than most analysts had planned, with new units, equipment and a constant rotation of troops that allows to maintain pressure in Ukraine while other formations are prepared on Russian soil. In fact, some European intelligence services alert A “B” scenario: If a fire is achieved in Ukraine, Russia could be in a position to launch a large -scale war in Europe within five years, or even before if you perceive weakness in NATO cohesion. Tensions on the eastern flank. No doubt, Russian military strengthening has unleashed immediate reactions in Baltic and Poland countries, which have already Started to reinforce Its borders with ditches, antipersonnel mines and anti -tanks, the acquaintances as “dragon teeth”. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland have abandoned international treaties on mines, and several governments consider plausible that Russia seeks to test the solidity of NATO through a limited incursion in a member state with Russian population, as Estonia. To this is added the concern caused by covert operations attributed to the Russian Intelligence Servicessuch as sabotage attempts and murders in Western Europe. Hence, many analysts warn that the Kremlin could bet on a lower provocation that fractures consensus within the alliance, especially if you perceive internal divisions or lack of coordinated response. Territorial strategy For its part, The Journal remembered that Putin has resorted to the historical legacy of the Russian military force (which beat Napoleon and Hitler) to justify the war in Ukraine and his ambition to recover influence on former allies who have leaned towards the West. The Russian government has reorganized its internal military structure creating new districts Around Moscow and St. Petersburg, and has increased logistics cooperation with Belarus, its main ally and basis of operations in the current war. In the Leningrad Military District, which borders Estonia, Latvia and Finland, medium -sized brigades are being transformed into divisions of up to 10,000 troopsand barracks, hospitals, warehouses and new railway routes are being built that connect with Norway, Finland and the south of St. Petersburg. Finland, who historically has tried to avoid tensions with Russia but is now part of NATO, Observe carefully The renewal of ancient border steps and the construction of railway headers that would allow the passage of mechanized forces, with direct implications for their national security. New social elite. Explained the medium that one of the pillars of this military reconstruction is the huge Increased recruitmentpowered by Financial incentives that in some cases exceed $ 20,000 to sign a contract. These sums far exceed Average annual income In many Russian regions, and have allowed a constant flow of new soldiers (between 30,000 and 40,000 per month According to estimates) that allows Russia to maintain its presence in Ukraine without exhausting its strategic reserve. Not just that. In addition, the medium exposed another measure that we have already counted a few weeks ago: veterans are receiving Extended benefitsas positions in local governments and seats in Parliament, consolidating the military estate as a New National Elite. The new recruits will be mostly intended for the units that are deployed at the border with NATO, and for them the new armament is reserved, while the Ukrainian front continues to receive reconditioned Soviet material. Russia’s next strategic military exercises, called Zapadthey will focus on these border regions, and they are expected to serve as a demonstration of force addressed to both NATO and internal public opinion. New power architecture. In summary, Russia is betting very strongly that her military resurgence, combined with a possible Western fatigue before the Ukrainian conflict, returns her back A seat in the table where new security rules in Europe are defined. Although figures like Trump They discard the possibility that Russia has ambitions beyond Ukraine, the facts Described in the Journal On land and warnings of multiple European intelligence agencies suggest otherwise. If you want also, Moscow seems to trust that an NATO divided, uncoordinated or weakened by internal conflicts will be forced to negotiate from a disadvantage … Read more

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