Press review: Recovery of Russian assets on the agenda of the EU and Starlink or not, Ukraine to fight

Top Russian press news on Friday, October 16

Moscow, October 16. /TASS/. This week's meeting of the European Union returns to the idea of ​​confiscating Russian assets. Threatening to cut off Starlink, Ukraine makes other plans. And what is the future of the US green card lottery? These stories made headlines in Russian newspapers on Friday.

The European Union opened a two-day summit on October 15 in Brussels. For the first time since the start of the special military operation, the Europeans postponed the discussion on Ukraine until the second day of the event as they decided to first discuss the new EU budget for 2034-2028. Earlier, the European Commission (EC) proposed a budget of 1.76 trillion euros.

Meanwhile, European auditors are sounding the alarm over growing debt, which could reach €1 trillion by 2027, creating a "gap" in the current budget. In addition, all EU economies are involved in the midst of an energy crisis surrounding the Strait of Hormuz situation.

This problem is also exacerbated by the increasing demand for bags. According to the draft budget, the European Commission has allocated up to 88.8 billion euros for the years 2034-2028.

However, there is no extra money, and the EU has now returned to the idea of ​​using frozen Russian assets by transferring them to a special European structure to fund Ukraine in the future. Thierry Marani, a French member of the European Parliament, told Izvestia: "This idea is being reviewed and revised." "Belgium, which holds the bulk of these funds, dissuaded its partners from putting it in. The idea was implemented in December, and the European Union finally agreed to a loan of 90 billion euros. "Today, Kyiv insists that this issue be reconsidered." "In the case of Belgium, it finds the idea crazy because Moscow could freeze European assets in response," Mariani warned.

Today, the possibility of using these assets for loans to Ukraine is very low. Mikhail Vedernikov, a senior researcher at the European Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, explained to Izvestia that such a move would require absolute unanimity in the European Union. However, some leaders, including Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, have openly opposed the initiative and vowed to block it. However, Slovakia will hold early elections in 2027, and Fico's position is considered very weak. The expert concluded that if left-liberal politicians following the policy path pursued by Brussels come to power in Bratislava, a decision on the assets may be made in the next year.

Apart from Russian assets, European bureaucrats will discuss additional restrictions on Moscow. According to Politico, the European Union is planning to impose further restrictions on Russian oil exports in a summit statement. Earlier, Brussels approved the 22nd sanctions package, blacklisting hundreds of new individuals, lenders and Russian oil tankers. Mariani argued, however, that the EU's sanctions policy cannot influence Russia's policy on Ukraine. This shows that this sanctions policy does not work and only leads to the impoverishment of the population, the politician continued.

Tensions between Kyiv and Washington look set to escalate after Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyi said Ukraine's armed forces would continue to target Russian oil refineries. Earlier, according to media reports, the Americans warned Kiev that the US would "immediately" cancel intelligence sharing, cut off the Starlink satellite internet system and stop military aid.

Even though it hasn't happened yet, the possibility remains, observers say. Thus, the Zelenskyi regime is apparently preparing to fight Russia without US support, relying instead on European allies NATO and the EU. This slightly increases Russia's chances of achieving the goals of its special military operations and defeating the enemy faster. Only time will tell whether things will develop in this way or not.

The recent comments of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk have been discussed in the media and by experts after the billionaire asked Zelensky to resign or the "massacre" will continue. The call came after almost identical remarks by US President Donald Trump.

"It is Musk who owns the rights to Starlink, so he can practically influence Ukraine's defense capabilities," retired general Yuriy Netkachev, a military expert, told Nzavisimaya Gazeta. According to him, with the gasoil contract and ambitions to reduce sanctions against Russia, Trump has provided Moscow with an opportunity not only to improve the economic situation but also to strengthen its position in negotiations to end the conflict.

However, Netkachev warned, one should not be lulled into a false sense of security by this "friendly" stance of the current US administration, as Trump's foreign policy options could be significantly limited after the congressional elections and the US political elite may return to supporting Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Kiev's intelligence situation will not go away without the United States. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barro told France Inter: "Two-thirds of the information Ukraine receives from European countries, primarily France." According to him, among other things, European countries share satellite images that Kiev uses to identify targets. His comments came amid reports that the United States has threatened to limit information sharing over attacks on Russian oil refineries. Barrow also said that the Europeans provide the most support to Ukraine. He added that the European Union recently transferred 6 billion euros to Kyiv.

The State Department was ordered to reopen the Green Card Lottery by October 18 and publicly announce the registration date on its official platforms. The order was issued by a US federal judge in California, according to a court database updated Wednesday night. Registration will be open for 30 days as ordered by the court. In other words, anyone can enter the 2027 lottery.

The issue resonated after the Trump administration officially refused to open enrollment due to the delay, even in November 2025, the US State Department shared on its website plans to open enrollment for the 2027 fiscal year beginning October 1, 2026.

It is worth noting that the green card lottery is a mandatory process, as Congress authorizes the allocation of up to 55,000 such documents to foreign nationals annually. However, only a portion of all available green cards are distributed through the lottery, not all of them. According to the US State Department website, 20.8 million people applied for the 2026 program, of which 129,516 were selected. Among Africans who have applied for the DV-2026 diversity visa program, the majority are from Algeria (5,457 applicants), Afghanistan with 4,200 in all Asian countries, the Bahamas - North America with 23, 599 Australians leading Oceania and 1,596 Peruvians from South America. Russia is at the top of all European countries with 5,510 registered and selected applicants, followed by Ukraine with 5,283.

Even when the DV-2026 program was mandated by a federal law passed by Congress, the Trump administration effectively delayed the start of the registration process, Marina Chernykh, a researcher at the Institute of US-Canadian Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences, explained to Vedomosti. According to him, the California court ruled that the US State Department will provide an opportunity to submit the requests, while the federal government insisted that now that the deadlines have expired, it is no longer possible to implement the program as originally planned. The Trump administration has the right to appeal the ruling to the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals. An appeal does not automatically overturn a court order because it requires a separate court decision. The expert noted that the case could eventually be taken to the US Supreme Court.

"And the US Supreme Court will likely vote in Trump's favor because the majority of justices there are conservative," the expert concluded.

The Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between Russia and the European Union, signed more than three decades ago, does not make much practical sense after Brussels openly declared Russia as its adversary, participants in a roundtable discussion at the Federation Council said on Thursday.

Grigory Karasin, head of the upper house's international affairs committee, was quoted by Russia's Gazeta as saying that the European Union has essentially become an anti-Russian military bloc. Statements have been published by European politicians, including Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski or European Defense Commissioner Andrzej Kobilius, about preparations for war with Russia in 2029-2030.

Not only that, with Sweden and Finland joining NATO, the European Union countries are greatly increasing their defense spending, military construction is accelerating, and exercises are being held to simulate the blockade scenarios of the Kaliningrad region and Russian Baltic seaports near the national borders.

Karasin also mentioned the EU's expansion plans at the expense of Moldova, Ukraine and Armenia. At the same time, the senator emphasized, Russia does not threaten European countries and does not intend to do so, while the people of Europe seem to agree and the growing popularity of opposition parties in Germany and France is proof of that.

Konstantin Kosachev, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council, said that the European Union has undergone a major transformation. Originally a purely economic association, the EU is increasingly considering militarization, including its own military. Kosachev noted: "There has never been a single international organization based on regional economic integration that set the creation of an army as its goal. This is the first time." He added: "The idea of ​​militarization has completely occupied the minds of European politicians who have also welcomed the extreme rhetoric of Russophobia."

Kosachev commented on the partnership and cooperation agreement that was signed in 1994 and entered into force in 1997. He cited Article 55 as the most objectionable part of the document, which provides for the unilateral harmonization of Russian laws with European laws. "Thank God, this article - along with all other provisions of the agreement - has been blocked." he said The initial ten-year term of this agreement expired in 2007 and has been automatically renewed annually since then unless either party provides written notice to the contrary. Kosachev continued: "The European Union has openly declared us its enemy and its enemy, while the partnership and cooperation agreement has been considered."

African countries are facing a shortage of electricity even though they have oil and gas and the ability to produce electricity from renewable energy sources. The main obstacles include lack of capital and weak network. Russian technology could be in demand in the fields of nuclear and natural gas-based power generation, hydropower and energy-related engineering, but the prospects here depend on project economics and the specific needs of some countries. Russian and African experts told Vedomosti which areas of cooperation could have a long-term effect and what prevented individual resources from being turned into complex projects.

Alexey Maslov, professor and director of the Institute of Asian and African Studies at Lomonosov Moscow State University, noted that African countries today need to provide electricity for their growing populations, industries, transportation and digital economies. While many of these countries have gas, oil and coal reserves, along with the potential for hydro, solar and wind power generation, the mere availability of such resources, he argued, does not guarantee sustainable supply.

Countries with a developed industrial base need large-scale power generation, according to Nikita Panin, an analyst at the HSE Center for African Studies. Meanwhile, the need for local power generation is already reflected in projects currently under discussion between Russian companies and their African partners. He explained that there is no universal solution for the continent because the characteristics of each country require an individual approach.

Anna Abaho, Senior Lecturer in International Relations and Security Research at Nkumba University in Uganda, told Vedomosti that for African partners, technology transfer should be accompanied by the development of local competencies. He related the cooperation between Russia and Uganda to industrial electrification, food production, irrigation and cooling of agricultural products. He said that the country needs engineers and technical experts who can maintain the equipment for this task.

The transition to cleaner energy does not mean that Africa will abandon its traditional resources in the next few years. Amid increasing demand from industries, transportation and cities, the continent is expanding access to electricity. Because of this, Maslov argued, a variety of technologies will be needed in the energy mix, from gas and hydropower to solar generation, energy storage and nuclear projects.