MOSCOW, November 9. /TASS/. The chances for the Russia-US-Ukraine talks to bring the Ukrainian conflict closer to a settlement; the future of the OSCE is at risk due to the inability to agree on a new budget or chair; and the possibility of the Israeli opposition forming a new government. These stories topped Monday’s newspaper headlines across Russia.

 

Media: Chances of UAE talks of bringing Ukrainian conflict closer to settlement

US President Donald Trump may use the time before the new Congress is sworn in to reach concrete agreements on the conflict in Ukraine, experts note. However, the recent consultations in Brussels ahead of the meetings in Abu Dhabi are unlikely to have affected the American position. The Europeans say they will attend the UAE talks, but Washington has no intention of involving them in the dialogue because the EU’s positions are unconstructive and serve only to prolong the conflict.

Russia believes that the US administration will make use of the window of opportunity that has opened up following the Republican defeat in the battle for Congress. "Trump will actively use the time remaining until January 3 to reach concrete agreements on advancing his previous initiatives. This could involve Ukraine, Iran, or the Middle East," Federation Council Vice Speaker Konstantin Kosachev told Izvestia.

However, Ukraine's position remains an obstacle to a settlement. Kiev still hopes for short-term agreements, including an energy ceasefire, while Moscow insists on discussing the full range of issues concerning the settlement, Ivan Loshkarev, an associate professor at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO), pointed out.

Meanwhile, the US negotiating team is not interested in bringing Europeans into the talks because it believes that Brussels would only complicate the situation. Their presence at the negotiating table would only highlight the EU’s insignificance, Luxembourgish European Parliament lawmaker Fernand Kartheiser emphasized. "They are coming to support Mr. Zelensky and his most extreme positions. Russia has no interest in allowing the EU to participate in any negotiations, since the EU’s positions are unconstructive and serve only to prolong the war," he noted.

At the same time, the Trump administration’s decision to finally focus on the root causes of the conflict is entirely correct, Dmitry Suslov, deputy director of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at the Russian National Research University Higher School of Economics, told Vedomosti. By "root causes," one should understand "not only and not so much the issue of Donbass and territorial demarcation," but rather the fundamental instability of European security and NATO’s desire to build a security system against it, including with Ukraine’s help, by excluding Russia from political Europe. "And in fact, without resolving this problem, the conflict itself will not be settled. It will merely be frozen," the expert stressed, adding that the White House has also come to understand this. What sets the Trump administration apart is that it is willing to acknowledge legitimate Russian concerns. However, the Europeans remain firmly opposed to discussing the root causes of the conflict, Suslov noted.

 

Izvestia: OSCE risks being left without new budget or chair

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) cannot reach an agreement on its budget for 2027. Russia and the US are against increasing spending, while European countries are pushing for additional funding. There is also no consensus on which country will take over the chairmanship: Turkey is blocking Cyprus’s candidacy, and Moscow has not yet taken a position on Georgia because Tbilisi has not presented its priorities to Russia. All of this is taking place amid a protracted crisis within the OSCE, whose effectiveness is being questioned by a growing number of countries.

Agreeing on the OSCE’s 2027 budget is proving difficult. The US, one of the organization’s largest donors, is playing a leading role in the negotiations. Its position carries particular weight in discussions of future spending, Russia’s permanent representative to the OSCE Dmitry Polyansky told Izvestia. "The Americans are against any budget increase. We are satisfied with this position because it aligns with our priorities," the diplomat emphasized. According to Polyansky, the negotiators understand that obtaining increased funding will be difficult. Nevertheless, European states continue to insist on higher spending, including on salaries for the organization’s staff.

An equally complex situation is unfolding over the choice of the organization’s future chair country. Switzerland currently heads the OSCE, but another country is set to take over on January 1, 2027. The decision requires consensus among all 57 member states. Cyprus and Georgia remain the leading contenders. However, Turkey opposes Cyprus because it does not recognize Nicosia. Against the backdrop of these disagreements, Georgia is also vying for the chairmanship. Polyansky emphasized that Russia still finds it difficult to formulate a clear and well-reasoned position on Georgia’s candidacy because Moscow "does not fully understand what a Georgian chairmanship could offer Russia and the organization as a whole."

Disagreements over funding and the OSCE chairmanship candidacy point to an ongoing crisis that has persisted for several years. It is primarily linked to deep political contradictions between Russia and Western countries, Russian International Affairs Council Director General Ivan Timofeyev said. The organization was created to prevent conflicts, yet it has become a hostage to the growing confrontation itself.

Nevertheless, even in its current state, the OSCE retains value for Russia. Withdrawing from the organization would deprive Moscow of one of the few platforms for direct dialogue with Western nations despite their fundamental differences on many issues. Therefore, leaving the organization can hardly be considered a constructive solution, Timofeyev emphasized. According to the expert, the organization’s capabilities are currently limited, but countries are in no hurry to abandon it entirely, as the need for such a mechanism remains.

 

Media: Prospects for Israeli opposition forming new government

Israeli President Isaac Herzog has tasked Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the center-right Yashar opposition party, with forming a cabinet. This decision followed consultations with members of the Knesset (the unicameral parliament) and personal discussions with Israeli politicians. During these discussions, 67 lawmakers supported Eisenkot’s candidacy, while 47 backed incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the presidential press service. The opposition leader now has 28 days to put together a new government.

"In theory, Eisenkot could reach an agreement with Arab parties. In that case, a minority cabinet would most likely be formed without Arab representation," Viktor Smirnov, Russia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and head of the Israel and Jewish Communities Department at the Oriental Studies Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Vedomosti. On the other hand, the politician could bring smaller right-wing parties over to his side, the expert noted.

Another option for Eisenkot is to form an alliance with ultra-Orthodox Jews from Netanyahu’s camp. However, to do so, Eisenkot would have to make concessions on his principles. He has always advocated for ultra-Orthodox Jews to serve in the army on an equal footing with everyone else, which was one of his main campaign promises. But this issue remains a "red line" for the ultra-Orthodox. Experts told Rossiyskaya Gazeta that they are "far more experienced than Eisenkot in political bargaining and coalition negotiations," and their approaches are becoming increasingly tough and demanding.

It will be difficult for Eisenkot to form a government, as the positions of the opposition parties differ considerably, Murad Sadigzade, president of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, stressed. Particularly sharp disagreements revolve around conscripting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the army and cooperating with Arab parties. "I would estimate Eisenkot’s chances of forming a cabinet at about 40-50%," the political analyst pointed out. "Theoretically, Eisenkot’s cabinet could last from six months to a year and a half under a minority government, and up to two years or more under a full-fledged coalition cabinet. Much will depend on the security situation, the economy, and the government’s ability to pass a budget. However, Netanyahu will certainly seek to return to power," the expert emphasized.

According to Smirnov, regardless of the outcome of the coalition talks, Israel’s foreign policy will not change. First, there has been no significant demand within Israeli society for resolving the Palestinian issue. Second, the country remains uncompromising toward Iran. "The predominance of the military component in foreign policy affects the mood of Israelis. New strikes against Iran are possible. Undoubtedly, the prospects for a new escalation depend on the situation in the US, especially in light of the Republicans’ defeat in the midterm elections," the expert noted.

 

Vedomosti: How Donald Trump will battle Democrats for power

Despite the Republicans’ crushing defeat in the November 3 midterm elections, US President Donald Trump has decided not to go easy on his Democratic opponents, but rather to prepare for an all-out confrontation with them on all fronts, from the economy and immigration to foreign policy, experts say. According to them, this is precisely what the appointment of Stephen Miller, one of Trump’s closest advisers, as White House Chief of Staff in place of Susie Wiles signals. Although the president initially expressed his willingness to work with Democrats, this reshuffle indicates his desire to maintain the initiative, even with an entirely opposition-controlled Congress.

"Miller is the ideologue behind the current fight against ‘internal enemies’ and anti-immigration policies. At the same time, he is a very astute manager who understands Trump well and knows how to convey the necessary information to him," political analyst Pavel Dubravsky emphasized.

By appointing Miller, Trump has decided to abandon the last of the "rules of the game" he had occasionally followed; now there will be no rules, Vladimir Vasilyev, chief research fellow at the US and Canadian Studies Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Vedomosti. Miller has been working for Trump since January 2016, when the latter’s victory in the presidential election at that time seemed far from certain. Since then, Miller has been directly involved in formulating the Trump administration’s domestic policy agenda, particularly on immigration.

With the Democrats set to control both the Senate and the House of Representatives starting in January 2027, Trump’s supporters are developing tools for the US president to use to circumvent Congress whenever possible. These include lawsuits, executive orders, and regulatory acts adopted by relevant government agencies, Vasilyev emphasized. According to him, litigation will be costly for both the administration and its opponents because legal battles will drain political and financial resources. Trump has already resorted to executive orders, but now he will rely on them virtually constantly.

In addition to bureaucratic tools, Trump will hamper the work of the new Congress. "Ideally, he would like to sow discord within the Democratic camp so that the party’s left wing paralyzes the moderate wing. Against this backdrop, Republicans could secure concessions from moderate Democrats on various issues in exchange for cooperation," Vasilyev stressed.

 

Izvestia: Gold records its worst October since the 2008 crisis

Gold got off to a good start in early 2026: in January, the price of the precious metal reached a new all-time high, with April futures climbing to $5,626.8 per ounce. However, the Middle East crisis and rising interest rates caused prices to tumble. By fall, prices had fallen nearly 28% overall, with October 2026 marking the worst month for gold in 18 years. The price dropped 7.3% over the month. The last time a similar result was recorded was in 2008.

Escalating geopolitical tensions traditionally boost demand for safe-haven assets, investment advisor Yulia Kuznetsova told Izvestia. However, this does not mean that gold prices will rise regardless of how the conflict develops. "Financial markets react primarily to changes in expectations, not to the mere existence of geopolitical risk. If investors have already priced in the likelihood of further escalation, then the absence of new negative events or signs of stabilization could prompt profit-taking," the expert noted.

Overall, Kuznetsova believes that a geopolitical crisis can bolster demand for gold while also creating conditions for a decline in its price. "However, it would be incorrect to attribute the October correction solely to events in the Middle East. One must take into account the combined impact of the foreign exchange market, interest rates, and investment flows," the economist emphasized.

This time, the geopolitical factor acted not as a driver of demand, but rather as a factor undermining it, fund manager and SharesPro fintech platform founder Denis Astafiyev pointed out. "Amid reports of efforts to resolve the crisis in the Middle East, investors reduced their expectations of an escalation. Accordingly, the risk premium in the metal’s price decreased. Demand for gold as a safe-haven asset temporarily weakened, which was one of the factors driving the decline in prices," he stressed.

In fact, Astafiyev believes that October’s decline was primarily a correction rather than an indication of a long-term trend reversal. Investors were selling liquid assets to cover losses in other areas and responding to signals from the US Fed. Therefore, the expert concluded that there is no reason to interpret this as the start of a long-term downturn.

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