## Ukraine just made itself impossible to abandon

Authored by readuncut.com

Ukraine is rewiring the fuse box of European and Middle Eastern security while everyone is looking at the meter.

Rather than hammering on the door and collecting vague promises and platitudes, Ukraine took a route it controlled, one designed to produce the same protection NATO membership would have offered.

Every bolt it sinks makes removal more expensive for the country hosting the furniture, not for Ukraine.

Israel wrote the exam, Ukraine is sitting it during an earthquake.

Ukraine is running the same playbook in 4, without the security guarantee Israel started with.

And a 2027 defense budget of €144.9 billion with €11.6 billion earmarked for Ukraine, a country Germany was sending helmets to four years ago.

Under the EU's SAFE fund (€150 billion in defense procurement), contracts must source 65% of components from the EU, EEA-EFTA states, and Ukraine. »

### At least 20 injured by a substance sprayed at Tokyo shopping centre

Authored by abc.net.au

More than 20 people have been injured at a luxury shopping complex in central Tokyo after a man sprayed a substance inside, police and fire department officials said.

The road in front of the shopping centre, located in the touristy and upmarket shopping district of Ginza, was blocked off following the incident.

Tokyo police examine the scene after a person allegedly sprayed a substance that caused an odour. »

### The MRZR Alpha 6x6 scratches a 1,000-pound itch for the military

Authored by wearethemighty.com

“The front half of the vehicle is all the same as our current SOCOM program of record vehicle, the Alpha 4×4.

Polaris kept more than 90% parts commonality between the 4×4 and the 6×6, which means the military is not being asked to learn a new vehicle.

The third axle also distributes the vehicle’s weight across six contact points instead of four, dropping ground pressure per tire. »

### Xbox Reportedly Canceled The Family Game Pass Plan Because Of Pressure From Electronic Arts

Authored by gameobserver.com

According to Windows Central journalist Jez Corden, Electronic Arts strongly pushed against the Game Pass Friends and Family plan.

One of the most requested ideas is still the return of the Game Pass family tier, along with exclusives.

In other news, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has publicly invited former PlayStation executive Shawn Layden to “chat sometime” after he shared a “grim prognosis” for the Xbox Game Pass model. »

### Pope Leo XIV makes historic apology for Vatican’s role in legitimizing slavery

Authored by apnews.com

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV made a historic apology on Monday for the Holy See’s role in legitimizing slavery and for having failed to condemn it for centuries, calling the Vatican’s record a “wound in Christian memory.”.

In his encyclical, Leo recalled that his namesake, Pope Leo XIII, was the first pope to explicitly condemn slavery in 1888, long after many countries had abolished it.

“Pope Leo has strengthened the moral credibility of the church with this admission and apology today,” he told The Associated Press. »

## In pictures

## Also in the news

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#### 'Incredible' milestone reached as Sweden becomes a smoke-free country

#### Finnish president: the figures show Ukraine is in best position since war began