Zelensky’s chief of staff, Andrii Yermak, has submitted his resignation – the highest level official to fall amid the massive graft probe which has brought rare international embarrassment on the Zelensky government.

As a reminder, Andrew Korybko recently opined that Yermak’s removal could prompt some progress in peace talks:

He’s Zelensky’s powerbroker so his downfall could undo the already shaky alliance between the armed forces, the oligarchs, the secret police, and parliament that keeps Zelensky in power, thus pressuring him into peace, especially if his warmongering grey cardinal is no longer pushing him to keep fighting.

Earlier The Associated Post reported Friday: “Anti-corruption units have raided the home, and reportedly also the office, of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, Andrii Yermak.” Zelensky now says he will hold consultations on replacing Yermak.

This is a huge and very high level development in the country’s ongoing graft investigation scandal as Yermak is essentially the closest one can get to Zelensky, given the top presidential aide was made by Zelensky chief negotiator in talks with the United States. Some speculate this appointment was made precisely to protect Yermak from criminal charges.

Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies, NABU and SAP, confirmed they had officially sanctioned searches at the office of President Zelensky’s top aide, again emphasizing the probe has extended all the way to the top. Could this be the beginning of the end for Zelensky himself?

The $100 million energy sector corruption scandal has already embroiled and resulted in the dismissals of several top ministers and officials.

Soros and the 2nd most corrupt man in Ukraine pic.twitter.com/UIupC9lPk2

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) November 28, 2025

Yermak had earlier deneid wrongdoing, and is vowing personal transparency as the investigation unfolds. “The investigators are facing no obstacles,” Yermak wrote on Telegram. He said his lawyers were present for the searches, and that he’s cooperating fully.

Zelensky makes the televised, ‘shocking’ announcement of Yermak being ousted dismissed:

Breaking news: Andriy Yermak has resigned from his longtime post of head of the Ukrainian presidential office, President Zelenskyy says in a statement. pic.twitter.com/seGDBbWJbh

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) November 28, 2025

It’s as yet unknown and unclear precisely what Yermak is being accused of in terms a potential role in the energy kickback and graft scandal, but the growing pressure which has entered the heart of the presidential office has huge political repercussions:

Although Yermak has not been accused of any wrongdoing, several senior lawmakers in Zelenskyy’s party said Yermak should take responsibility for the energy sector scandal in order to restore public trust. Some said that if Zelenskyy didn’t fire him, the party could split, threatening the president’s parliamentary majority. But Zelenskyy defied them.

Interesting timing, Yermak swears “no concessions” while NABU is raiding his office.
Nothing sounds tougher than a man negotiating peace with handcuffs warming in the background

— Irony Man (@IronyManHQ) November 28, 2025

But local critics of the anti-corruption action say this is an attempt to bring unprecedented pressure on Zelensky. Reports say that 10 NABU and SAPO officers were on premise to search Yermak’s office, which is just a few dozen meters from the president’s office.

One Ukrainian lawmaker, Yaroslav Zheleznyak of the Holos party, wrote that segments of parliament stand ready to defend the anti-corruption agencies should they find anything at this highest level of government. “NABU and SAPO are conducting searches at [the home of] Andriy Yermak this morning. If anything, get ready to defend NABU/SAPO if necessary,” Zheleznyak wrote.

What hard evidence involves Yermak? If there’s not enough, political retaliation could follow…

Yermak so far denying any wrongdoing. Key question: will his voice appear on compromising tapes. If the “rebels” fail a second time, retaliation will likely follow https://t.co/jFslHZDVjN

— Jakub Parusinski (@j_parus) November 28, 2025

As chief negotiator, Yermak has presented Zelensky’s hard line on the Trump-proposed peace plan to end the war. Yermak was for example just cited in The Atlantic as saying, “No sane person would sign away territory.” He has argued that the national constitution forbids it and thus Zelensky “will not” agree to territorial concessions.

And, if the Zelensky administration keeps losing public and international trust amid the massive corruption probe, which has already proven highly embarrassing, Kiev’s ‘firm line’ on the negotiations could indeed quickly soften.

*  *  * BLACK FRIDAY SALE IS HERE AT ZeroHedge Store!

Authored by Cecilia Jones via TheCollegeFix.com,

Harvard University’s Office of Undergraduate Education is raising concerns about mounting grade inflation, reporting that the school’s grading system is “damaging the academic culture of the College.”

The office sent a 25-page report to faculty and students, stating that 60 percent of all undergraduate grades are now A’s. This is a 35 percent increase compared to 20 years ago, according to The Harvard Crimson.

Veronica Bryant, academic affairs fellow at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, told The Fix that if Harvard allows grade inflation to skyrocket, the problem will worsen at other schools.

“‘As goes Harvard, so goes the nation’ is a phrase for a reason. If other schools see America’s oldest and most prestigious university as weakening standards, why should they keep high standards, especially as they compete for fewer and fewer students?” she said.

Bryant told The Fix that Harvard’s reputation has taken a hit in recent years with stories such as the resignation of President Claudine Gay and a 2023 New Yorker article in which a Harvard administrator stated that Harvard students struggled to identify the subjects and verbs within The Scarlet Letter. 

Furthermore, the question of academic rigor extends beyond grade inflation, with many voicing concerns about a general lowering of expectations, she said.

“Harvard students receive only the smallest educational foundation. It only requires one subject of all students: a writing course, according to ACTA’s What Will They Learn?(R) project,” Bryant told The Fix.

However, she also said it is a good sign that Harvard appears to be taking the issue seriously.

“Gen Z values authenticity. We hope they will take steps to ensure grades actually reflect student performance, not just reduce the number of A’s,” she said.

“If Harvard makes this bold move, others may follow their lead,” Bryant said.

The report itself underscores the severity of the problem.

Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Amanda Claybaugh wrote in the report that “Nearly all faculty expressed serious concern.”

They believe the grades students receive no longer reflect the actual quality of their work, she wrote.

Further, the dean stated that “grading is … also too inconsistent, as students have observed. More importantly, our grading no longer performs its primary functions and is undermining our academic mission.”

Claybaugh’s report also recommends several steps to curb this issue.

It urges instructors to clearly define what level of work merits each grade and to reintroduce in-person, sit-down exams, arguing they are vital in the age of AI.

It also calls for more consistent grading across different sections of the same course, noting that students are often frustrated by disparities among teaching fellows.

Moreover, the report notes that a faculty committee is considering allowing instructors to award a small number of A+ grades to distinguish exceptional work. The committee is additionally weighing whether to list each course’s median grade on student transcripts as another way to reduce grade inflation.

Harvey Mansfield, a retired Harvard professor, wrote in The Crimson, “The principle of merit used to get into Harvard is abandoned once there.”

He wrote that students seek to distinguish themselves through extracurriculars, creating an environment where academics are put on the back burner.

Mansfield added that a measure implemented in 2008, which required faculty to participate in course evaluations, led professors to inflate students’ grades.

The Crimson published a series of student editorials that present a wide range of responses. Some students praised the report for encouraging higher standards, while others suggested eliminating general education requirements.

Harvard students Jack Flanigan, Edward Hall, and Ari Kohn, who lead the university’s Intellectual Vitality Initiative, stated that the academic culture has eroded, as “faculty maintain low expectations for students’ effort, while students expect little of their professors in return.”

Though many students criticized the proposed solutions within the report, all acknowledged that grade inflation was negatively impacting the student experience.

The Fix reached out to Harvard media relations and Amanda Claybaugh for comments, but did not receive a response.

Authored by Dave DeCamp via Antiwar.com,

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday spoke favorably about the US’s initial 28-point draft for a potential peace deal in Ukraine, saying it could serve as the “basis” for a future agreement, though he said work still needs to be done to turn it into a concrete plan.

“In general, we agree that this could be the basis for future agreements,” Putin told reporters during a visit to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

“However, it would be inappropriate for me to speak now of any final versions, as these do not exist.”

The initial US draft was altered during talks between US and Ukrainian officials in Geneva, but the exact changes are unclear.

Putin said that he understood that the officials “decided among themselves that all these 28 points should be divided into four separate components. All of this was passed on to us.”

Putin speaking to journalists in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on November 27, 2025 (Kremlin photo)

Putin said that it was clear the US was taking some Russian positions “into account” but that more discussions were needed.

“There are, unquestionably, areas where we need to sit down and engage in serious discussions on specific points, and all such matters must be framed in proper diplomatic language,” he said.

The Russian leader also said it was “ridiculous” that Russia was being asked to commit to not attacking Europe since it has no plans to do so.

“We never had any such intentions. But if they want to have it formalized, let’s do it, no problem,” he said.

While speaking positively about the US proposal, Putin also said it was pointless to sign agreements with the Ukrainian government, which he said was not legitimate because of the lack of elections in Ukraine. The initial US plan called for elections within 100 days of the deal’s signing.

“Signing documents with the Ukrainian leadership is pointless. I have emphasized this on many occasions. I believe that the Ukrainian authorities made a fundamental and strategic mistake when they succumbed to the fear of participating in the presidential elections. As a result, the president lost his legitimate status,” Putin said.

Putin also made clear that if Ukraine doesn’t cede territory, he was content with continuing the war.

“If they don’t withdraw, we will achieve this through military means,” he said.

Putin also confirmed that President Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will be traveling to Moscow next week to discuss the deal.

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

President Trump refused to play the games of the leftist media Thursday, at one point going off on a reporter, labelling them a “stupid person.”

The reporter asked Trump “Why are you blaming Biden?! [for the DC National Guard attack]”

TRUMP responded, “Are you a STUPID PERSON?” adding, “Because they LET HIM IN,” referring to the Afghan national suspect.

“Are you STUPID? They came on a plane with thousands who shouldn’t be here,” Trump continued, adding “And you’re just asking questions ’cause you’re a stupid person!”

“And there’s a law passed where it’s almost IMPOSSIBLE to get them out. You can’t get them out once they get in!” Trump further blasted.

🚨 HOLY CRAP! President Trump goes BERSERK on the fake news 🔥🔥

“Why are you blaming Biden?! [for the DC National Guard attack]”

TRUMP: “Are you a STUPID PERSON?”

“Because they LET HIM IN. Are you STUPID? They came on a plane with THOUSANDS who shouldn’t be here. And you’re… pic.twitter.com/5ucQBNjbLr

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 28, 2025

As we earlier highlighted, somewhere in the region of 85 THOUSAND Afghans entered the U.S. under Biden, with a basically non-existent vetting process.

Earlier in the briefing, the President had to deliver the awful news that 20 year old U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom of Summersville, West Virginia has passed away after the horrific attack.

🚨 NOW – PRESIDENT TRUMP: “We have no greater national security priority than ensuring that we have full control over the people that enter and remain in our country. For the most part, WE DON’T WANT THEM!”

SEND THEM BACK. ALL. pic.twitter.com/qqsiGg7O2g

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 27, 2025

Trump further urged, “We have no greater national security priority than ensuring that we have full control over the people that enter and remain in our country. For the most part, we don’t want them.”

U.S. President Donald Trump said South Africa won’t be invited to the 2026 G20 summit in Florida, after the United States boycotted this year’s gathering in Johannesburg.

“At the conclusion of the G20, South Africa refused to hand off the G20 Presidency to a Senior Representative from our U.S. Embassy, who attended the Closing Ceremony,” Trump said in a Nov. 26 post on Truth Social.

“Therefore, at my direction, South Africa will NOT be receiving an invitation to the 2026 G20, which will be hosted in the Great City of Miami, Florida next year.”

In the post, Trump also accused the South African government of “killing white people” and “randomly allowing their farms to be taken from them,” which he said was the reason Washington boycotted this year’s summit.

“South Africa has demonstrated to the World they are not a country worthy of Membership anywhere, and we are going to stop all payments and subsidies to them, effective immediately,” he added.

As Guy Birchall details below for The Epoch Times, the presidency of the G20 rotates.

South Africa assumed it in December 2024 and will hold it through November, after which the United States will assume the role.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office described Trump’s missive as a “regrettable statement,” and said that not inviting his country to next year’s summit was a punitive measure. The office said the U.S. president was spreading “misinformation and distortions” about South Africa.

“As the United States was not present at the summit, instruments of the G20 Presidency were duly handover [sic] to a US Embassy official at the Headquarters of South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation,” Ramaphosa’s office said in the statement.

The office said South Africa “is a member of the G20 in its own name and right” and that its membership of the group “is at the behest of all other members.”

“South Africa is a sovereign constitutional democratic country and does not appreciate insults from another country about its worth in participating in global platforms,” his office added, saying that it will “never insult another country.”

During the G20 meeting in Johannesburg, leaders adopted a declaration on Nov. 22 to address climate concerns and other global issues despite U.S. objections.

The declaration, drafted without input from the United States, “can’t be renegotiated,” Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, told reporters at the time.

(Front row, L–R) Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Angolan President and Chairperson of the African Union João Lourenço, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney pose for a group photo on the opening day of the Group of 20 leaders’ summit, in Johannesburg on Nov. 22, 2025. Gianluigi Guercia/AP

The White House said in response that South Africa had “weaponized” its leadership of the group.

G20 declarations are usually made by unanimous consent. The United States had offered to send the U.S. chargé d’affaires for the handover. South Africa rejected that offer.

Magwenya said that the South African president “will not hand over to a junior embassy official the presidency of the G20.”

“It’s a breach of protocol that is not going to be accommodated,” Magwenya added.

Trump had announced that he would not be attending the G20 event this year on Nov. 7, repeating accusations of human rights abuses against white South Africans.

“It is a total disgrace that the G20 will be held in South Africa,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social at the time. “Afrikaners (People who are descended from Dutch settlers, and also French and German immigrants) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated. No U.S. Government Official will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue.”

South African officials at the time called the president’s remarks regrettable and denied allegations of persecution.

“The characterisation of Afrikaners as an exclusively white group is ahistorical,” South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation said in a Nov. 8 statement. “Furthermore, the claim that this community faces persecution, is not substantiated by fact.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the State Dining Room at the White House on Oct. 8, 2025. Evan Vucci/AP Photo

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also boycotted a meeting of G20 foreign ministers held in South Africa in February.

Since taking office, Trump has criticized South Africa’s domestic and foreign policies, including its land expropriation law and its accusations that Israel committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. Israel denies the accusations.

Since the end of apartheid, Pretoria has implemented what it calls affirmative action and Black Economic Empowerment policies, but the South African government has denied seizing land belonging to white citizens.

The next G20 summit will take place at the Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami, Florida, in December 2026.

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times,

Retail experts predict that 187 million people will shop between Thanksgiving Day and Cyber Monday, based on a consumer survey released on Nov. 20.

The survey by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights and Analytics showed this year’s prediction topping last year’s, when 183.4 million people were expected. Federation data from December 2024 show that 197 million actually turned out.

“The holidays are an important part of many consumers’ budgets, and that trend is especially true this season,” Katherine Cullen, the federation’s vice president of industry and consumer insights, said in a statement.

Gifts from the 1960s are making a comeback this season, as toy buyers are expected to focus on Lego, Barbie, Hot Wheels, and dolls. These vintage classics will be the top toys for consumers this year, according to the survey.

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, is still the most popular day to shop; 70 percent of shoppers plan to seek out discounts that day.

The second biggest retail day is expected on Cyber Monday; 40 percent of consumers surveyed said they planned to buy online on Dec. 1.

Another big shopping day is expected on Nov. 29, when 67 million people are expected to shop local and support small businesses, according to the survey.

“Many Americans consider shopping to be an important part of their Thanksgiving holiday and one of the best ways to get deals on gifts,” Phil Rist, Prosper Insights and Analytics executive vice president of strategy, said in a statement.

More than half of those surveyed who are planning to take advantage of the sales say it was because the deals “are too good to pass up,” Rist said.

Shopping has started early for nearly 60 percent of consumers, according to the survey.

Shoppers are expecting to spend an average of $890 on gifts and other seasonal items. Families with kids plan to spend $33 more on average on gifts, the survey revealed.

The retail federation’s survey asked 8,000 adult consumers about their holiday shopping plans. It was conducted from Oct. 31 to Nov. 6 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.1 percentage points.

Long exposure photo with people shopping on Black Friday at a mall in Hanover, Md., on Nov. 29, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Another survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) released on Nov. 17 predicts Americans will spend $127 billion on Thanksgiving weekend—an increase of $2 billion from last year.

“Younger generations are steadily growing in their spending power, and we expect to see that reflected during Thanksgiving Weekend,” ICSC President Tom McGee said. “Every year there’s a question about whether the long holiday weekend still matters. And every year, the answer from consumers is the same: It does.”

Nearly two-thirds of shoppers surveyed by ICSC said they plan to do all or most of their seasonal purchasing between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, including 76 percent of Gen Z shoppers and 71 percent of millennials.

Eighty percent of Thanksgiving weekend shoppers plan to visit a retail center during the holiday, according to the organization’s survey.

The ICSC survey was conducted online from Nov. 10 to Nov. 12 and is a demographically representative sample of 1,015 respondents, according to the organization.

Update (0830ET): CME Globex Futures & Options markets have officially reopened after their overnight ‘cooling issue’. For now, Nasdaq futs are rallying…

*  *  *

Update (0820ET): Headlines crossing over the Terminal show that CME Globex Futures & Options Markets will open at 08:30 ET after hours of being offline due to a “cooling issue” at data centers operated by CyrusOne in Chicago.

Here are the headlines:

• CME GLOBEX FUTURES & OPTIONS MARKETS TO OPEN 7:30 CENTRAL TIME

• CME: ALL GTCS THAT HAVE BEEN ACKNOWLEDGED WILL REMAIN WORKING

• CME GLOBEX FUTURES & OPTIONS MARKETS TO PRE-OPEN 07:00 CENTRAL

• CME Partially Restores Operations as Forex Platform Restarts

What a mess for this shortened post-Thanksgiving session to end the week.

* * *

A major “cooling issue” at data centers operated by CyrusOne forced the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to halt futures and options trading early Friday morning, disrupting activity across equities, FX, Treasuries, energy, and agricultural markets.  

“Due to a cooling issue at CyrusOne data centers, our markets are currently halted. Support is working to resolve the issue in the near term and will advise clients of Pre-Open details as soon as they are available,” CME wrote on X late Thursday night. 

Due to a cooling issue at CyrusOne data centers, our markets are currently halted. Support is working to resolve the issue in the near term and will advise clients of Pre-Open details as soon as they are available.

— CME Group (@CMEGroup) November 28, 2025

CME provided an update around 0500 ET, indicating, “BrokerTec EU markets are open and trading. All other CME Group markets remain halted due to a data center cooling issue at CyrusOne. We will provide updates as they are available.” 

BrokerTec EU markets are open and trading. All other CME Group markets remain halted due to a data center cooling issue at CyrusOne. We will provide updates as they are available.

— CME Group (@CMEGroup) November 28, 2025

The disruption, now longer than a similar 2019 outage, paralyzed CME’s Globex platform, prompting traders to describe conditions as “flying dark” as liquidity, price discovery, and market signaling disappeared in seconds.

Exchanges connected to CME, including CBOT, NYMEX, COMEX, and even the Gulf Mercantile Exchange, also experienced disruptions. CME has not provided a reopening time.

Thomas Helaine, head of equity sales at TP ICAP Europe in Paris, told Bloomberg the outage is “a bit like flying dark,” adding, “When you’re trading cash equity like us, US futures give you an indication of where the market is going before the open. I can only imagine how complicated it must be for derivatives desks.”

UBS equity trader Ed Abraham told clients, “Liquidity has reduced even more after the CME halted trading of commodities futures and options due to a cooling issue at a data center, providing no timeline for when the issue would be fixed. APAC.” 

“Traders sitting with a position are certainly quite angry,” said Gnanasekar Thiagarajan, head of trading and hedging strategies at Kaleesuwari Intercontinental.

Nick Twidale, chief analyst at AT Global Markets in Sydney, noted that traders “will be switching to alternative liquidity tools where they can. We’ve lost one of the market’s major liquidity sources. This heightens the risk of exacerbated moves if a big event occurs.”

The outage creates headaches for traders as they roll monthly contracts, leaving positions frozen. With US markets reopening for a shortened post-Thanksgiving session, broader equity markets in Europe and Asia were rather muted. 

Also, the outage highlights the extent to which CME serves as a backbone of global markets, where one data center cooling issue can ripple across exchanges worldwide.

Silver had to get cooled off

— marc friedrich (@marcfriedrich7) November 28, 2025

German analyst Marc Friedrich joked at CME’s X post, “Silver had to get cooled off.” 

Companies are rushing to implement AI, but it’s not all smooth sailing.

More than half of businesses say the dangers of AI have led to at least one negative consequence.

But which issues plague businesses the most?

This infographic, via Visual Capitalist’s Jenna Ross, breaks down the most common risks.

It’s a preview of the brand-new executive guide from Terzo and Visual Capitalist, AI’s Illusion of Truth: The Data Behind AI Errors.

The Top Dangers of AI

Inaccuracy is the biggest risk companies report, with almost a third experiencing a negative consequence at least once.

Source: McKinsey, online survey of 1,753 participants conducted June 25 to July 29, 2025.

The other dangers of AI are reported on a much lower scale. Explainability, which is the ability for people to understand an AI system’s inner workings, has affected half as many companies as inaccuracy has.

The Knock-On Effects of Errors

AI inaccuracy can lead to much bigger issues. It undermines trust in AI systems, causes operational inefficiencies, and can lead to flawed strategic decisions. When AI generates incorrect outputs, the damage is often amplified through cascading processes.

It also has the potential to create legal issues. As the Harvard Law School recently pointed out, many insurance companies are adding limitations or excluding coverage for AI-related losses. This means that leaders may not be covered under traditional Directors & Officers policies for any liabilities that arise from AI errors.

Next Steps for Leaders

Many companies have started taking steps to combat the dangers of AI. In fact, 54% of businesses are actively working to mitigate AI inaccuracies.

Leaders can take charge by ensuring their teams have humans in the loop to review AI’s output before it is used. 

See the data behind AI’s errors and how to get 99% accuracy in the free executive guide, AI’s Illusion of Truth.

Authored by Thomas Brooke via Remix News,

Poland’s government and leading opposition figures have publicly pushed back against suggestions that the European Union can compel Warsaw to recognize same-sex marriages, despite a landmark ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) requiring Poland to acknowledge a marriage legally concluded in another member state.

Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński insisted on Wednesday that this week’s judgment does not equate to Brussels overruling Polish sovereignty.

“Since yesterday, many untruths have accumulated in this matter. Interpretations are already emerging that say: the EU is imposing its legislation on us. So no – it cannot impose its legislation on us,” he said, adding that the judgment alone “cannot force a change in Polish law in this regard.”

He stated that the government will outline how the ruling will be handled only “after thorough analyses by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Justice.”

The ruling — issued on Tuesday by the EU’s top court — found that Poland acted incompatibly with EU law when it refused to recognize the marriage of two Polish men who married in Berlin in 2018 and sought legal recognition upon returning home.

The CJEU held that while marriage legislation remains a national competency, a member state cannot obstruct EU citizens’ freedom to move and maintain family life across borders.

The judges concluded that denying recognition “may cause serious inconvenience at administrative, professional, and private levels” and would breach both free movement rights and the right to family life, enshrined in the European treaties and human rights legislation.

The judgment stopped short of requiring Poland to legalize same-sex marriage domestically, but it does obligate Warsaw to treat foreign same-sex marriages the same way it treats opposite-sex marriages for the purpose of recognition.

Under current law, transcription of foreign marriage certificates is the sole method for acknowledgment — a system the court said must now apply equally to same-sex couples. The move opens the door to same-sex couples in Poland, knowing they can return and insist upon the same rights as heterosexual couples.

Political fallout was immediate. President Karol Nawrocki, who has repeatedly taken a hard line against perceived EU overreach and is framed as a Eurosceptic within the Polish political landscape, was publicly defended by Przemysław Czarnek, deputy chairman of the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party, who said Poland should not be expected to accept every directive from the EU.

“When they ask us to reduce CO₂ emissions by 90 percent, we really have to say: Down with it,” Czarnek said.

He argued the same stance should apply to “rulings of the Court of Justice of the EU on same-sex marriage,” adding: “We are not condemned to be in the European Union, the Union is not our homeland, Brussels is not our capital.”

Czarnek, a former education minister, said the EU was originally a peace project but has drifted toward unification that “goes beyond the original plans.” Membership still offers value, he said, but “if it destroys our Christian worldview, then we have to say NO. We have to weigh the costs and benefits.” He stressed that EU membership should last only so long as Poland can safeguard its interests.

Read more here…

Globally, real estate markets have been cooling over the last few years, with high mortgage rates and unaffordable prices affecting demand in many cities.

However, while housing bubble risks have eased across many markets, home prices in real estate hotspots like Miami and Tokyo continue to rise, inflating their bubble risk.

This infographic, via Visual Capitalist’s Niccolo Conte, shows the cities with the highest bubble risk worldwide based on the UBS Global Real Estate Bubble Index 2025.

Where Housing Markets Look Most Overheated

UBS’ Real Estate Bubble Index evaluates housing markets around the world using a range of indicators, including price-to-income ratios, price-to-rent ratios, and trends in mortgage lending and construction activity.

Cities are classified into three broad categories based on their index score:

• Bubble Risk: >1.5
• Overvalued: 0.5 to 1.5
• Fairly Valued: -0.5 to 0.5

Below is the full 2025 ranking of cities by UBS’s Bubble Index score, along with the annual real price change:

The majority of cities in the index saw their bubble risk decline since 2024, with Toronto and Hong Kong experiencing the largest drops.

However, bubble risk rose in Miami, which ranks highest with an index score of 1.73, supported by rising home prices. Tokyo and Zurich also sit above the critical 1.5 threshold.

Meanwhile, several real estate markets fall into the overvalued range but remain below the bubble-risk territory. These include Madrid, which saw the strongest rise in real home prices, up 13.6% from 2024 to 2025.

Dubai is another notable city in the overvalued bucket, with prices rising by over 11% year-over-year. According to UBS, average real prices in Dubai have grown by around 50% over the last five years. However, prices could potentially cool off in 2026 following a record increase in supply.

Where Real Estate Bubble Risk Declined in 2025

Several housing markets are undergoing corrections after the post-pandemic uproar in prices.

Toronto, one of the world’s most unaffordable housing markets, has seen its bubble risk score fall sharply, accompanied by a -7.5% real home price decline. Hong Kong saw an even larger drop in price levels, at -7.9%, pushing it into the fairly-valued category.

Other cities, including Vancouver, Frankfurt, London, and San Francisco, also reported price declines as affordability constraints and higher borrowing costs weighed on demand.

To learn more about this topic, see this graphic on the world’s most expensive housing markets on Voronoi.