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The future of the UN
The US begins paying off multi-billion dollar debt to the UN

The US plans to pay the equivalent of just over 8 billion kronor of the almost 50 billion kronor the country owes the UN. This is reported by the AP.

This is the largest payment the US has made since the Trump administration demanded extensive reforms in exchange for its continued support.

The Trump administration paid just over 1.5 billion kronor to the UN in February, after Secretary-General Antonio Guterres sounded the alarm that the UN is facing "imminent financial collapse" unless all 195 member states pay their dues.

The climate threat  Extreme weather in Europe
Bombs and grenades from the world wars pose a danger in European forest fires

The severe forest fires that raged in Europe during the summer have led to an increased risk of old rusty bombs and mines from the First and Second World Wars becoming dangerous. This is reported by the AP.

Reports of ammunition exploding in the heat have come from France, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.

Expert Sarah Njeri says that stable temperatures and predictable rainfall have previously rendered unexploded ordnance and buried weapons harmless.

– Climate change means that what was previously stable is now being dug up and reactivated.
 

Weekend Interviews
Italian Prime Minister: Thought the relationship with Trump would be better

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is surprised that the relationship with US President Donald Trump has deteriorated.

In an interview with the New York Times, the right-wing leader says that she and Trump agree on many issues, including migration policy. That's why she thought the cooperation would work well.

– Things have become different, she says.

Trump has been harsh on several European countries, including Italy. This summer, he and Meloni were in an open verbal spat with each other. In the interview, the Prime Minister says that she is an extremely honest person.

– I never say anything I don’t mean. 

Pope Leo XIV
Vatican invests billions in its own energy plant

The Vatican is to build its own renewable energy plant, Reuters reports, citing sources with insight. The plan is to spend the equivalent of around SEK 1.1 billion to be able to supply the Holy See with energy from, among other things, solar power within two years.

According to the sources, the plant could become one of Italy’s largest.

The plans are advanced, and the idea is that solar panels will be mounted several meters up in the air so that the land below can be used for agriculture.

Life-threatening crazy trips a trend on social media – boys dead in Ireland

Last week, five teenage boys died in Ireland after they collided head-on with another car on the motorway. The boys were driving on the wrong side of the road and the other car was carrying four family members who were seriously injured.

The death has sparked a huge debate in Ireland and highlighted a trend on social media where people film themselves driving their vehicles in a fast, reckless and dangerous manner. According to The Guardian, clips of police chases and violent crashes are popular.

Several of the boys who died in the crash had previously posted clips of their own crazy antics.

Social media giant TikTok told Sky News that it was investigating content that could be linked to the fatal crash.