WorldWatch
Europe
Sébastien Lecornu went down in the history books as France’s shortest-lived prime minister. He resigned on October 6 just after announcing his new cabinet. A few days later, President Emmanuel Macron named his replacement: Sébastien Lecornu. France’s mounting debt and political divisions are driving it into a seemingly hopeless situation and preparing the country for the prophesied rule of a German dictator who will govern all of Europe. The 13th annual “French Fractures” survey of 3,000 respondents found that 96 percent are dissatisfied or angry about the state of the country and 85 percent say France “needs a real leader to restore order.”
Almost all other European governments are struggling with similar problems.
Germany’s ruling coalition is lurching from one crisis to the next, arguing over pension reforms, immigration and a new military conscription. Fears are mounting that the coalition could break at any moment. The weak government was also humiliated in October by a defiant Polish court that refused Germany’s request to hand over a Ukrainian diving instructor accused of sabotaging Germany’s Nord Stream pipelines.
In early October, voters in the Czech Republic rejected Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s center-right coalition, reflecting voter fatigue with Western liberalism. However, the man who may be the next prime minister, Andrej Babiš, was prime minister from 2017 to 2021. He resigned amid corruption allegations. In his first term, Babiš cultivated close relations with Austria’s chancellor, Sebastian Kurz, a devout Catholic the Trumpet has watched closely. Babiš now faces the challenging task of forming a stable coalition.
Germany is militarizing rapidly. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced on September 25 a $41 billion, five-year investment in space defense to counter Russian spy satellites targeting German military assets. Germany plans to buy 15 F-35 jets for $2.9 billion, raising its fleet to 50 stealth jets, Spiegel reported October 20. The same day it was announced that Germany and the Netherlands will purchase 222 Jackal vehicles in a $4 billion deal. And Germany signed a $2.3 billion deal with Israel to coproduce Spike missiles with Rheinmetall, Diehl Defense and Rafael, Haaretz reported October 21.
Along with the weapons shopping, Germany is also practicing for war. It joined the annual “Steadfast Noon” exercises beginning on October 13 in the Netherlands, where 2,000 personnel and 71 aircraft from 14 nations tested nuclear deterrence readiness. Closer to home, the “Marshal Power” exercise in Bavaria, October 22–29, involved 500 soldiers and 300 emergency personnel, training in public areas to simulate real attacks and prepare civilians for conflict. On October 19, Germany signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance military cooperation with Iceland and to boost Germany’s Arctic operations. To understand the prophetic significance of these moves, read Gerald Flurry’s article “Germany Is Arming for World War III.”
Two German staff officers and a brigadier general will deploy to southern Israel to monitor the Gaza ceasefire, the German Defense Ministry announced October 18. They will join 200 soldiers stationed at the U.S.-led Civil-Military Coordination Center that monitors the ceasefire, clearing war debris, coordinating humanitarian aid and supporting a planned international stabilization force. This is a small beginning of the fulfillment of an earthshaking prophecy, leading to so-called peacekeeping troops surrounding Jerusalem. Read about this in Mr. Flurry’s free booklet Jerusalem in Prophecy.
Middle East
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced an arms embargo on Israel September 8. He explained: “Spain, as you know, doesn’t have nuclear bombs, nor aircraft carriers or large oil reserves. We alone can’t stop the Israeli offensive.” The implication was that if Spain did have nuclear weapons, he would be tempted to use them against Israel. This follows several high-profile anti-Semitic moves by Spain, including recognizing a Palestinian state on May 28 and letting activist Greta Thunberg set sail from Barcelona on September 1 to break Israel’s blockade. Even among Israel’s critics in the rest of the international community, Spain’s jabs seem especially frequent and heartfelt.
Spain has a long history of anti-Semitism, beginning with the 1492 eviction of all Jews who refused to convert to Catholicism. In the 19th century, it was easier to be a Jew in Russia or the Muslim world than it was in Spain. It appears Spain has never purged itself of its anti-Semitism. The Bible prophesies in Revelation 13 and 17 of a “beast,” a symbol for an empire, to rise from historical tradition in Europe and attack the Jewish people once more. Spain’s recent moves show that attitude rising in Europe right now.
Afghanistan’s Taliban released U.S. citizen Amir Amiri on September 28, the fifth U.S. citizen it has released this year. This comes as the Taliban and the U.S. are allegedly in negotiations to normalize relations. President Trump reportedly hopes the U.S. will regain Bagram Air Base, which it gave up amid the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021. The Taliban have stated that an American military presence in Afghanistan is out of the question. This is the regime that sponsored the 9/11 terror attacks, and there is no sign the Taliban have reformed their views.
President Trump’s outlook aligns with the utopian school of international relations. “Generally,” Trumpet executive editor Stephen Flurry wrote in our May-June 2025 issue, “they believe that 99 percent of humanity is basically good. The Trump administration is politically conservative regarding economics and certain domestic politics. But it has a strong liberal streak regarding foreign policy. This is not just a blind spot concerning Hamas and Iran.” If negotiations continue their current trajectory, we could add Afghanistan to the list.
Israel’s Knesset approved a preliminary bill October 22 to annex the West Bank in its entirety. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party mostly boycotted the vote. The bill faces more voting, extensive deliberation and strong opposition from Netanyahu’s government before it has a chance of becoming law. Nevertheless, how the Israeli government treats the West Bank is extremely important. That the bill had made it this far may indicate a changing attitude in Israel.
“God clearly gave the Jews their land,” Gerald Flurry writes in Jerusalem in Prophecy. “But the ‘peacemakers’ don’t like to refer to it as a gift from God, because they have no faith in God. So we see a ‘new Jewish people’ unwilling to fight as in the past. Now they have a broken will.” This bill’s fate may be a sign of the will of the Jewish people and an indicator of Israel’s geopolitical future.
Asia
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the drafting of 135,000 men on September 29, marking the largest autumn conscription drive in his nation in almost a decade. This number is some 10,000 higher than the typical fall figure and is part of an aggressive drive to recruit hundreds of thousands of new contract soldiers to fight in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Both measures are part of Putin’s aim to expand Russia’s armed forces to 1.5 million active personnel by next year and show that despite his perennial claims of wanting to end Europe’s biggest war since 1945, he has little interest in doing so.
Russia’s armed forces deployed additional units from North Korea to support Russian operations in Ukraine’s Sumy region, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported October 16. The North Koreans are helping Russian forces in the region with UAV reconnaissance, identifying Ukrainian positions, and carrying out strikes with multiple-launch rocket systems. This marks the third large wave of North Korean troops to join Russia’s war, bringing the total to around 16,000. The latest deployment appears to be of high-tech and specialized units.
The Bible prophesies of a massive Asian alliance, headed by Russia and China, that will include smaller Asian nations such as North Korea. The deepening military relationship between Russia and North Korea is one area where the groundwork for this future alliance is clearly being laid. Read Russia and China in Prophecy to learn more.
Japan elected its first female prime minister, the hard-line conservative Sanae Takaichi, on October 21, positioning the nation for a rightward shift. Takaichi is viewed as a China hawk, often warning that Japan is at risk from the Chinese Communist Party’s exploitative trade policies and growing military belligerence. While she says the Japan-U.S. alliance is “essential” to Japanese security, she wants the Japanese military to take on a larger, more autonomous role and has advocated for a revision of Japan’s pacifist Constitution. “A constitution should be created which reflects the heart of Japan,” she told a meeting of the Research Commission on the Constitution. She specifically advocates revising paragraph 2 of Article 9, the section formally banning Japan from maintaining “land, sea and air forces.”
Takaichi’s goals are ambitious, but she won only 237 of 465 votes cast in the lower house of the legislature, following her Liberal Democratic Party’s recent disastrous losses in both houses. Her government was formed thanks to an uneasy, last-minute coalition with the Japan Innovation Party, which analysts do not expect to last.
Whether or not Takaichi’s fragile alliance lasts long enough for her to accomplish her hawkish goals, we should expect Japan to continue its march toward remilitarization and independence from the U.S.
North Korea supports Russia’s war
July 3, 2022
North Korea officially recognizes the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic.
July 2023
North Korea begins large train shipments of artillery rounds and missiles to Russia to replenish depleted stocks. The number of shells shipped reached 3 million within a year.
Late 2024
North Korea sends some 11,000 troops to fight alongside Russian soldiers.
June 2025
Russia says North Korea will send 1,000 soldiers and 5,000 military construction workers to help with reconstruction and mine removal operations in Russia’s Kursk region.
October 2025
North Korea sends thousands of specialized units to support Russia’s operations in Ukraine’s Sumy region.
Anglo-America
Political divisions are deepening in the United States. On October 18, nearly 7 million protesters, 2 percent of the entire U.S. population, participated in “No Kings” protests across the nation. These roughly 2,700 protests against President Donald Trump’s policies and actions probably constituted the largest single-day protest in American history. Yet closer examination of the organizations behind the demonstrations reveals that they are not motivated by love for America and its principles.
The protests’ 200 or so sponsors include the Communist Party USA, Young Communist League, Freedom Socialist Party and Democratic Socialists of America. Members of these organizations openly admit that they want to replace the lawfully elected president and the entire republic with a socialist dictatorship. An August 27 Heartland-Rasmussen poll of 1,201 likely voters found that more than half of those under age 40 want the 2028 presidency to go to a “democratic socialist.”
Meanwhile, as President Trump has tried to take measures to step away from socialism and return power from the federal government to the American people, Democrats in Congress responded by forcing a government shutdown, putting about 800,000 employees on unpaid leave.
Not only does this “government shutdown” highlight deepening political division in America, it also highlights America’s inability to bring its bloated budget under control. Many Bible prophecies describe civil-war-like conditions in end-time America (Isaiah 1:7; 3:5; Ezekiel 5:12; 7:23). The recent protests represent the beginning stages of civil war, and the violence will get much worse when society suffers the effects of national bankruptcy.
Not only is every U.S. citizen responsible for $110,000 worth of national debt, the average U.S. citizen owes another $105,000 in consumer debt spread across mortgages, auto loans, student debt, credit card debt and more. A major U.S. auto lender, Tricolor Holdings, went bankrupt, highlighting the fact that approximately 5 percent of Americans are delinquent on their auto loans. Fifth Third Bank and Chase Bank will lose an estimated $200 million because of this bankruptcy, and Tricolor likely won’t be the last lender to go bankrupt as consumer debt levels in America rise.
In Deuteronomy 28, God specifically warned that debt problems are one of the many curses that come from disobedience. Specifically, God warned that if the Israelites turned away from Him, strangers would lend them money, but they would not lend to others. America’s current economic woes are not the cause of its problems. Instead, they are one of many symptoms that point to the greater problem of rebellion against God’s law. For help with your personal finances, read our free booklet Solve Your Money Troubles!
