December 21, 2025 – Short News

Red hats on black slopes!!

Anyone afraid of Santa Claus might want to look away. Over the weekend, the slopes of Sunday River in Maine were transformed into a red and white spectacle. More than 300 skiers dressed as Santa raced down the runs at the same time, turning the resort into a winter anomaly. Instead of contemplation there was speed, instead of jingle bells the scrape of edges on snow. The annual Santa ski event deliberately combines silliness with purpose and raised more than 10,000 dollars for charitable projects. Red suits everywhere, fake beards, helmets and ski goggles, laughter and applause in between. For visitors it looked like a mix of carnival and slalom race. For the participants it was above all one thing: shared fun with a serious purpose. Maine knows winter. And humor.

We wish all our readers a beautiful fourth Advent

May this time allow a little room to breathe – and perhaps mark the beginning of things calming down again, at least a bit.

Ukraine – talks continue, the war too

On December 20 and 21, 2025, Russian and American representatives are meeting south of Miami for talks on the war in Ukraine. On the Russian side, Kirill Dmitriev is taking part, a close Kremlin special envoy who has been acting for months as a central channel of contact with the United States. The American delegation is led by Steve Witkoff, accompanied by Jared Kushner, who is once again informally involved in diplomatic talks. Representatives of Ukraine and European states are, according to consistent reports, not part of this direct round but are informed and involved at a later stage. This is therefore not a summit, but a limited format with clearly defined actors. The selection of participants shows that both sides are relying on familiar intermediaries with close political ties. Substantively, it is about sounding out room for maneuver, not about final agreements.

Trump’s new business – nuclear power as a personal risk

Donald Trump’s media company wants to merge with a company working on nuclear fusion, drawing the next direct line between the presidency and private wealth. Trump remains a major shareholder of the new corporation and thus effectively competes with other energy companies whose regulation lies in the hands of his own government. At the same time, the White House is pushing the accelerated expansion of nuclear power, loosening review procedures and lowering radiation thresholds. Precisely these political decisions could benefit a company from which the president himself profits. Former nuclear regulators openly speak of a serious conflict of interest. The White House rejects this, but the suspicion remains. Where political power and personal capital intertwine, trust becomes a scarce resource.

Nuclear fusion is considered a clean energy of the future, but it is still far from market-ready. Nevertheless, the Trump administration is prioritizing speed while simultaneously weakening the independence of nuclear oversight. Several decrees have shortened approval timelines and put safety standards up for debate. Particularly explosive is the dismissal of the previous head of the regulatory authority – a historic move. Critics warn that regulatory restraint is not driven by technical maturity, but by political pressure. While start-ups collect billions and the state launches new programs on military sites, concern grows about oversight operating in the shadow of politics. Nuclear power is supposed to become faster, perhaps safer – but above all more profitable. For whom exactly is no longer a theoretical question.

Drones against tankers – Ukraine targets Russia’s war finances at sea

Four attacks, four hits, a clear signal. Ukraine has for the first time openly confirmed that it has attacked tankers from Russia’s so-called shadow fleet. Three ships were hit in the Black Sea, one even in the Mediterranean, more than 1,200 miles from Ukrainian territory. None of the ships was carrying oil, but all were on their way to Russian ports. That is precisely the message. Anyone transporting Russian oil is no longer a neutral actor. Oil is war money, and that is where Kyiv is applying pressure.

Russia’s war is financed through the energy sector, through a fleet of old, poorly maintained tankers with obscured ownership structures, dubious or nonexistent insurance, and frequently disabled transponders. This shadow fleet supplies primarily India and China and has been undermining Western sanctions for years with remarkable ease. Ukraine’s attacks are not aimed at spectacular images, but at economic pressure. Insurers withdraw, premiums explode, shipowners grow cautious, ports become nervous. Every damaged tanker raises the cost of this business, even if not a single barrel of oil is lost. Particularly sensitive is the attack on the tanker Qendil in the Mediterranean. Where the drones were launched from remains unclear. That they were able to strike there is the real rupture. Ukraine is showing that the maritime war is no longer limited to the Black Sea. For Europe, this is a warning. Sanctions that exist only on paper create real risks at sea. Trade routes that were long considered safe suddenly become part of an active conflict.

Vladimir Putin speaks of piracy and threatens retaliation. The attacks are ineffective, he says. At the same time, Russia has begun escorting tankers with military vessels. This is less a show of strength than an admission. Anyone who needs warships to transport old oil has a structural problem. Ukraine is forcing Moscow to tie up resources without deploying a single soldier on the ground, shifting pressure to where it is politically and economically felt.

More than 500 ships are now on the European Union’s sanctions lists, with hundreds more identified. Yet Russia responds routinely. Renamings, flag changes, new shell companies, new hulls. Ukraine is adding what the West has so far enforced only inadequately. Deterrence not through paragraphs, but through real risk. Anyone sailing to Novorossiysk sails at their own risk. Volodymyr Zelenskyy knows these attacks will not decide the war. But they shift the calculus. In negotiations, it is not only endurance that counts, but the ability to impose costs on the adversary. Ukraine is showing that it can reach Russia’s revenues, far from the front, at sea, where Moscow had long felt secure.

Europe steps on the brakes on climate protection

At the beginning of the year, the president of the European Commission declared that climate protection remained at the top of the agenda. Eleven months later, that assurance sounds noticeably weakened. Brussels is rowing back on key projects, from the planned phaseout of combustion engines to corporate transparency obligations. Instead of a clear cutoff in 2035, the auto industry is now only required to cut emissions by 90 percent, with the rest allowed to be offset. Pressure comes from multiple directions: a weakening economy, aggressive competition from China, and new U.S. tariffs. The EU formally sticks to its goals, but shifts the burden. Climate policy remains, as long as it does not become too expensive. The signal is clear: the economy once again takes precedence over speed. Europe’s role as a frontrunner looks fragile.

The new caution is also evident in forest protection. A law intended to keep products linked to deforestation off the EU market has once again been postponed. Companies complain about bureaucracy, partner countries speak of paternalism. The EU responds with deadlines and simplifications, not enforcement. At the same time, new rules are coming, such as stricter methane requirements and a carbon border tax on steel and cement. But even here resistance is growing, from Washington as well as Beijing. The ambition to shape the world with European standards is losing force. Climate protection remains the goal, but no longer at any price. Europe continues to lead, but more cautiously, more quietly, and increasingly alone.

A+++++ on paper, F in everyday life

In Allentown, Trump’s self-praise collides with a reality many find oppressive. Rents, groceries, energy – everything more expensive, everything tangible. Those living on social benefits can barely keep up. While the president hands out top grades to the economy and dismisses price anxiety as imagination, people on the ground respond with sarcasm and frustration. Vice President JD Vance acknowledges the burden but promises better times and points to the past. Few are convinced. Polls show declining approval of economic policy. In cities like Allentown, talk of strength sounds like it comes from another world. Between speeches and bills lies a gap that is becoming politically dangerous.

Allentown, Pennsylvania, is long more than a nostalgic symbol of industry. Today the city stands for change, political fatigue, and razor-thin margins. High prices hit people here regardless of party affiliation. Blame shifts, solutions remain vague. Republicans fear for their seats, Democrats sense opportunity. A newly won congressional seat is already considered shaky. Even party loyalists speak of excessive exaggeration when Trump praises the situation. At the same time, exhaustion with constant campaigning and confrontation is growing. But Allentown cannot escape it. The next vote is coming, along with the question of whose story is closer to lived reality.

30 deaths in ICE custody – numbers that oblige

Thirty people have died in ICE custody this year, more than ever before. Behind the number are lives, not files. Particularly grave is the fact that many of those who died had no prior convictions, some were arbitrarily detained without a warrant. These tragedies show how urgently oversight, transparency, national and international media attention, and protection standards are needed. They also show that our work must continue – better, more precise, with full determination. We work at every border, together with many organizations and local institutions, to better protect, assist, and support people. Progress is possible, even if it is arduous. On Saturday alone, three cases were concluded with release from ICE custody. Every single one counts. And each one obliges us to keep going.

Protest at the school – Detroit stands up against ICE arrests

In front of Martin Luther King Jr. High School in Detroit, many people gathered on Friday for a rally, even before the final DPSCD School Board meeting of the year began. Parents, classmates, teachers, and activists demanded action from the superintendent and the school board, clearly and forcefully. The reason is the arrest and impending deportation of students Kerly, Antony, and Mor. The demonstrators accuse authorities of criminalizing children and young people whose only “offense” is their immigration status. Banners, chants, and speeches made clear that silence is no longer an option. The demand is unmistakable: protection instead of looking away. Schools must remain safe places, not waiting rooms for deportation. The protests were also directed against the close entanglement of educational institutions and immigration authorities. In the end, there was a shared appeal: Kerly, Antony, and Mor must be released from ICE custody.