Gizem Nisa Demir
20 September 2025•Update: 20 September 2025
ISTANBUL
Here is a rundown of all the news you need to start your Saturday, including Estonia accusing Russia of an airspace violation by three fighter jets; Trump announcing Chinese President Xi “approved” a TikTok deal; and the UN General Assembly passing a resolution allowing Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to deliver his speech via video after the US revoked his visa.
TOP STORIES
Estonia accused Russia of violating its airspace after three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets entered the Baltic country’s skies without permission.
The Foreign Ministry said the incident occurred in the area of Vaindloo Island, with the jets remaining in Estonian airspace for nearly 12 minutes, national news agency ERR reported.
According to officials, the aircraft had no flight plans, their transponders were switched off and they did not establish two-way radio communication with Estonian air traffic services during the violation.
US President Donald Trump said his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, "approved" a TikTok deal.
"I had a great call with President Xi, and as you know, he approved the TikTok deal," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "We have to get it signed. I guess it could be a formality.”
Trump hailed it as a "very productive" call with Xi.
He told reporters they talked for almost two hours.
"We talked about a lot of things ... We have a very good relationship. The TikTok deal is well on its way, and the investors are getting ready," he said.
The UN General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a resolution enabling Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to deliver his address to world leaders at next week's high-level General Debate via a pre-recorded statement.
The measure, concerning the participation of the State of Palestine in the assembly’s 80th session, passed with 145 votes in favor, six abstentions and five against, including the US and Israel.
The move follows Washington’s decision to deny and revoke visas for Abbas and senior Palestinian Authority officials, effectively banning them from traveling to New York for the UN’s annual gathering.
NEWS IN BRIEF
- President Donald Trump announced that the US conducted a lethal airstrike against a third vessel in the Caribbean, allegedly affiliated with a designated terror organization engaged in narcotrafficking.
- An elderly British couple held in Afghanistan was released by the interim Taliban administration.
- Portugal will officially recognize Palestine, the Foreign Ministry announced, becoming the latest country to take the step ahead of next week’s UN General Assembly.
- The UN Security Council failed to adopt a draft resolution aimed at preventing the "snapback" of sanctions on Iran that were lifted under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
- China said “hyping up tensions and creating confrontation” in the region runs counter to people’s aspirations about US President Donald Trump’s plan to retake control of Afghanistan’s Bagram Air Base.
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit the White House for talks on a range of issues, US President Donald Trump announced.
- Brazil formally filed a declaration of intervention at the International Court of Justice in a case brought by South Africa against Israel for violations of the Genocide Convention in the Gaza Strip, the court announced.
- France’s new Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced the abolition of several interministerial delegations under the new “Effective State” mission, aimed at cutting government spending amid a soaring public debt.
- European Council President Antonio Costa said EU leaders will address a “collective response” to Russia’s repeated airspace violations during an informal summit in Copenhagen on Oct. 1.
- The Russian Defense Ministry said three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets flying to the Kaliningrad region did not violate Estonian airspace.
- Estonia announced it will request NATO Article 4 consultations after three Russian fighter jets entered its airspace.
- Two Russian fighter jets breached the safety zone of a Polish drilling platform in the Baltic Sea, according to the country’s border guards.
- Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani met US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau in Washington, DC, to discuss relations between the two countries, Syria’s Foreign Ministry said.
- Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani raised the Syrian flag above its Embassy in Washington, D.C. for the first time in more than a decade.
- The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Syria, affecting more than 6,000 Syrian nationals residing in the US.
- Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said the nuclear-powered nation’s capabilities will "absolutely" be available under the recently signed strategic mutual defense agreement with Saudi Arabia.
- US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation demanding companies pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas.
- US President Donald Trump said discussions about reestablishing a small US military presence at Afghanistan’s Bagram air base are underway with Afghanistan.
- The Senate confirmed President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, Michael Waltz, to be US Ambassador to the UN.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
- US House passes stopgap spending bill to avert shutdown
The US House of Representatives passed a bill to fund the federal government until Nov. 21.
The Republican-led measure passed with a vote of 217-212, with Democrat Jared Golden voting in favor and Republicans Thomas Massie and Victoria Spartz opposing.
The short-term funding bill now goes to the Senate, which is expected to vote, along with a separate Democratic proposal.
- Trump launches ‘Gold Card’ visa program for wealthy foreign donors
President Donald Trump unveiled a new immigration initiative that offers an expedited path to US residency for wealthy foreign nationals who make significant financial contributions to the US.
Trump announced the creation of the “Gold Card,” a visa program designed to “realign Federal immigration policy with the Nation’s interests by ending illegal immigration and prioritizing the admission of aliens who will affirmatively benefit the Nation.”
“My Administration has worked relentlessly to undo the disastrous immigration policies of the prior administration,” Trump wrote, claiming those policies “produced a deluge of immigrants” and allowed “international cartels, transnational criminal organizations, terrorists, and foreign malign actors” to exploit US borders.
