Oct 2, 2026, 03:30 AM UTC

Former Slovenian national football team captain Aleš Čeh and striker Jan Mlakar have reflected on their career paths and the rivalry between NK Maribor and Olimpija Ljubljana.

Čeh, who led the national squad during its celebrated period under head coach Srečko Katanec, highlighted his affection for Olimpija and Austrian club GAK. After concluding his playing career, Čeh served for over a decade as an assistant coach under Katanec, including seven years working in Asia.

Meanwhile, 27-year-old forward Mlakar has embarked on his third stint with Maribor. Expressing trust in club leaders Zlatko Zahović and Darko Milanič, the Ljubljana native dismissed past rumors linking him to Maribor's main rivals, stating that he was "never close to joining Olimpija." Mlakar added that while Olimpija is facing a difficult period, the upcoming derby presents an unpredictable opportunity for both sides.

Sources: Delo, Siol.net

Recent historical analyses suggest that the modern international order was largely defined by pivotal developments in 1989. While European accounts often focus on the collapse of communist dictatorships and the fall of the Berlin Wall, scholars emphasize that events elsewhere simultaneously altered the global landscape.

In Asia, Beijing's military suppression of pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square permitted the Chinese Communist Party to maintain absolute political control while pursuing rapid economic integration worldwide. Concurrently, the retreat of Soviet forces from Afghanistan created power vacuums that reshaped regional security across Central and South Asia.

Rather than signaling an absolute victory for Western liberal democracy, experts contend that 1989 established the multi-polar, fragmented geopolitical framework that dominates global affairs today.

Sources: Die Presse

Following the departure of U.S. envoys from Kyiv, overnight missile and drone exchanges escalated between Russia and Ukraine. Russian forces targeted Kyiv with ballistic missiles, leaving at least two people dead and six injured, following earlier strikes on a British American Tobacco facility in northern Ukraine. In response, Ukrainian drones targeted industrial facilities across Russia's Samara and Saratov regions. Local officials reported casualties and confirmed that a fire broke out at the Kuibyshev oil refinery after air defenses intercepted numerous incoming drones. Meanwhile, U.S.-led NATO operations intensified near Russia's Kaliningrad enclave. The maneuvers involved American and Norwegian fighter aircraft, AWACS and EA-37 reconnaissance planes, and Polish ground forces. NATO characterized the mission as routine exercises aimed at enhancing defensive capabilities.

Sources: Investor.bg, Mediapool, Nova TV

Spanish authorities have established two temporary reception facilities in the North African enclave of Ceuta to house approximately 1,800 to 2,000 remaining migrants. The initiative, coordinated by Spain's Migration Ministry, aims to clear public areas, including municipal beaches, where individuals had been sleeping outdoors following late July's mass border crossing.

Anticipated secondary crossings around August 15 failed to materialize after Spanish and Moroccan border controls were significantly reinforced with additional security personnel and patrol vehicles. Although heightened surveillance prevented further arrivals, local residents report growing strain on municipal resources and rising political friction surrounding the enclave's situation. Officials noted the new shelters are intended as a short-term measure while administrative processing continues.

Sources: Correctiv, Die Zeit, FAZ, ORF, Tagesschau.