Russia’s overnight launch of more than 650 drones and 50 missiles—the heaviest barrage since February—deliberately hit five thermal-power plants and forced Kyiv to impose rolling blackouts just as winter sets in (reuters.com)

Moscow’s strategy is brutally clear: by weaponising kilowatts it seeks to erode not just Ukraine’s grid but Western staying-power. Energy-sector repairs already swallow over 40 % of Ukraine’s monthly budget; another winter of outages could shave a full point off Euro-area GDP via higher gas imports and disrupted grain and metals transit. The attack also tests President Trump’s promise of “deterrence through LNG”—yet US shipments are near capacity and European inventories sit at just 88 %, below last year’s 94.

History reminds us that air power rarely breaks civic morale (London 1940, Hanoi 1972), but it can bankrupt enemies who fight with balance-sheets as much as battalions. Unless G7 capitals accelerate grid-hardening aid and secondary sanctions on Russian energy earnings, Putin’s drones will keep dictating market prices—and political narratives—far beyond Donbas.

“Energy security is national security,” warns IEA chief Fatih Birol. Today the frontline runs through transformer yards as surely as through trenches.

The Gist AI Editor

AI’s Credibility Crisis

Artificial intelligence is now actively shaping European electoral politics, moving from a theoretical risk to a deployed tool of influence (Politico.eu). During recent elections in the Netherlands and Ireland, AI-generated deepfakes infiltrated public discourse, designed to mislead voters. A study of Dutch election content revealed that of 20,000 posts analyzed, over 400 were created by AI. This development injects a new level of uncertainty into the information marketplace, challenging the core function of open debate. From our perspective, the knee-jerk reaction will be calls for regulation, but the greater risk lies in centralized control over speech; market-based solutions for content verification and a more discerning electorate are the libertarian answer to a technological problem.

Europe’s Shifting Alliances

In Rome, a notable meeting between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orbán signals a strategic realignment among Europe’s populist leaders (Politico.eu). Meloni, positioning herself as a pragmatic bridge between the nationalist right and mainstream conservatism, is attempting to temper the more erratic, anti-market impulses of figures like Orbán. This nascent alliance aims to challenge the regulatory and fiscal centralization of Brussels from within. For markets, this pivot is a double-edged sword: it could lead to greater economic competition between member states but also introduces political instability that could unsettle the Eurozone. The key variable remains whether this bloc will champion freer markets or protectionist policies.

Stay tuned for the next Gist—your edge in a shifting world.

‘Rely on America at your peril’: the vagaries of Trump’s foreign policy
— Financial Times

Billionaire owner hopes members’ club will boost Fulham’s fortunes
— Financial Times

Pursuit of ‘healthy hedonism’ drives UK sauna boom
— Financial Times

Singapore Dollar Strengthens Slightly on Likely Technical Recovery
— Wall Street Journal

What Makes Taylor Sheridan a Billion-Dollar Man
— Wall Street Journal

Rossi Ralenkotter, Who Redefined How Las Vegas Sold Itself to Tourists, Dies at 78
— Wall Street Journal

Eastern Defiance on Trade

Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia are extending their unilateral bans on Ukrainian agricultural imports, defying a newly effective EU trade deal with Kyiv (Politico). This action pits national protectionism directly against the EU’s single market principles, prompting Brussels to consider legal challenges. The defiance from Warsaw, Budapest, and Bratislava underscores a critical friction point: the EU’s geopolitical goal of supporting Ukraine’s economy via Autonomous Trade Measures (ATMs)—the suspension of import duties—is inflicting direct economic pressure on farmers in neighbouring states. The resulting supply gluts have triggered state interventions that challenge the bloc’s foundational free-trade policies, illustrating how centralised aid strategies can create unintended market distortions and political fractures.

London’s Bubble Gambit

A striking policy contradiction is emerging in the UK, where Chancellor Rachel Reeves is actively campaigning for increased retail investment in equities precisely as City analysts warn of a potential AI stock bubble (Politico). The government’s objective is to deepen capital markets by encouraging citizen participation. However, urging the public into equities during a period of intense, sector-specific speculation is a high-risk strategy. It substitutes political encouragement for individual risk assessment and market timing. This state-led push into a potentially frothy market risks damaging public trust in investing if a correction materialises, highlighting the perennial danger of official efforts to steer private capital flows.

Catch the next Gist for the continent’s moving pieces.

“Wir vernachlässigen unsere gesamte Verkehrsinfrastruktur”
— ZDF

Weihnachtsgebäck und die Inflation
— ZDF

Künstliche Intelligenz und der Arbeitsmarkt
— ZDF

Hungary’s foot-dragging on Russian oil crashes into reality
— Politico Europe

Bohemian Rhapsody, i 50 anni di un capolavoro misterioso
— Ansa

Goldman Sachs coloca a Amadeus y Solaria en el centro de la diana de posibles opas
— El Pais