TheChek News Flow

Putin signals Russia may start nuclear weapons tests in response to Trump

Russian president asks officials to draft proposals amid fears of a new atomic arms race

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his officials to draft proposals for a possible commencement of nuclear weapons tests in response to Donald Trump’s vow to resume such activity.

The US president raised fears of an American-led new global nuclear arms race when he said last week he had ordered his defence department to resume testing nuclear weapons on an “equal basis” with Russia and China.

Putin told members of Russia’s security council on Wednesday: “If the US . . . conducts such tests, then Russia must also take appropriate retaliatory steps.”

He also demanded “proposals on the possible commencement of preparations for nuclear weapons tests”, which Moscow has not performed since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Preparing these proposals will take the time needed to “understand the intentions” of the US, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters after the security council meeting.

Trump sparked confusion on Wednesday last week when he unexpectedly announced on his Truth Social platform that the US would resume nuclear weapons testing after a 33-year hiatus.

It was not immediately clear whether Trump was referring to an explosive test of a nuclear warhead, or a test of a missile or other weapon system that would be capable of delivering a nuclear weapon.

But Trump on Friday appeared to double down on resuming nuclear weapons testing, saying “we’re going to do some testing”.

Putin’s call for proposals on possible nuclear weapons tests by Russia at the security council bore the hallmarks of a carefully choreographed performance.

He described Trump’s remarks as “serious” and invited other council members to comment on it.

Russian defence minister Andrei Belousov urged a focus on the actions of the US, which he said “point to an active build-up of Washington’s strategic offensive weapons”.

Belousov suggested immediately starting Moscow’s “preparations for full-scale nuclear testing”, adding the testing could be conducted on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago in northern Russia “within a short timeframe”.

Other Russian military and intelligence officials also stressed the “seriousness” of the situation, but noted the exact meaning of Trump’s statements was unclear and that the US was not giving Russia any clarifications.

Sergei Naryshkin, head of Russia’s foreign intelligence unit, told Putin about a “telegram” from Moscow’s ambassador to Washington, Alexander Darchiev, who had sought comment from the US National Security Council and the State Department, but said both had “avoided giving a substantive response”.

Shortly before Trump’s Truth Social post, Putin announced Russia had conducted tests of two nuclear-powered delivery platforms: the Burevestnik, a long-range cruise missile, and the Poseidon, an underwater drone.

Peskov said at the time that both tests were non-nuclear, meaning the testing involved delivery systems, rather than atomic warheads.

Sweetened offer is latest escalation of bidding war over US biotech coveted for promising weight-loss treatment

Pfizer has matched Novo Nordisk’s offer to buy weight-loss drug start-up Metsera for up to $10bn, in the latest escalation of a dramatic bidding war over the coveted US biotech.

The US drugmaker submitted its sweetened bid, which matches Novo’s offer from Tuesday valuing Metsera at $86.20 a share, ahead of a deadline on Wednesday, keeping it in the race for the anti-obesity biotech, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Pfizer’s latest bid would be largely in upfront cash alongside further payments when certain clinical milestones are achieved, according to the people. It is the latest development in a back-and-forth battle between the US drugmaker and its Danish rival over the biotech.

At stake in the takeover battle is a biotech with a pipeline of weight-loss drugs, including a monthly injectable, which could give any acquirer a potential edge in the lucrative weight-loss drug market.

Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk is one of the dominant players in obesity drugs alongside Eli Lilly, while Pfizer is trying to become a competitor in what is forecast to become a $100bn market by the end of the decade.

Novo last week went public with an unsolicited offer to buy Metsera, aimed at gatecrashing Pfizer’s earlier agreement with the biotech in September, sparking a fierce takeover battle that has spread to the courtroom.

Pfizer sued to halt Novo’s overture to Metsera, arguing its unusual, two-step structure to pay the biotech almost immediately upon signing was illegal. At a crucial hearing on Wednesday, a Delaware judge rejected Pfizer’s arguments.

After the judge’s ruling, Pfizer insisted it still planned to fight Novo’s bid to gatecrash its deal in the courts.

“Pfizer intends to continue to pursue its claims vigorously through the ongoing litigation process as well as in its parallel antitrust litigation pending in Delaware federal court,” the company said in a statement. “We are confident that Novo Nordisk’s unprecedented and illegal scheme to circumvent antitrust scrutiny will not stand.”

Under the terms of the merger agreement, Novo has no hard deadline to submit a counterbid. If it submits a further sweetened offer, Pfizer must match the bid within two days or walk away. The shareholder vote on the deal is scheduled for November 13.

The takeover contest has also drawn scrutiny from US antitrust regulators. The Federal Trade Commission warned Novo that the structure of its deal to buy Metsera “may violate” competition laws and requested that the companies address concerns before completing any deal. 

Novo said it was in “constructive dialogue” with the FTC and remained confident its offer complied with antitrust rules. Pfizer said it believed Novo’s bid was illegal and welcomed the regulator’s intervention.

“We were encouraged to learn that the FTC sent a letter today to both Metsera and Novo Nordisk also expressing serious concerns,” Pfizer said.

Pfizer and Metsera did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the improved offer. The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that Pfizer was preparing an improved bid.

On Tuesday, Novo and Pfizer increased their bids with Metsera deeming Novo’s improved offer, which pays the US biotech $62.20 a share upfront and a further $24 down the line, to be superior. Pfizer on Tuesday improved its offer to $70 a share, valuing the business at up to $8.1bn.

Shares in Metsera jumped by 8 per cent in post-market trading to just over $77.

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Uber-backed groups Pony.ai and WeRide fall as much as 15% as analysts raise concerns about profitability

Two of China’s biggest robotaxi start-ups fell as much as 15 per cent upon listing in Hong Kong on Thursday, as analysts raised concerns about profitability in an increasingly competitive sector.

Pony.ai and WeRide, which compete fiercely in China and are both backed by Uber, raised HK$6.7bn ($862mn) and HK$2.4bn respectively in their secondary offerings.

The two companies already trade on New York’s Nasdaq, but Chinese technology groups have considered listing closer to home on fears that US President Donald Trump’s administration might pursue delistings of Chinese companies.

Hong Kong has benefited from the dealmaking boom as mainland businesses seek capital in the city. But in contrast to CATL, the battery maker that surged 16 per cent upon listing, the robotaxi start-ups struggled to gain altitude, driven by concerns over profitability and an increasing number of entrants in the sector.

“Investors should be cautious and avoid overly optimistic expectations,” said Dickie Wong, a director at Hong Kong’s Institute of Securities Dealers, who attributed Thursday’s decline to the two stocks’ underperformance in the US.

Pony.ai’s US shares have risen 7 per cent since January, while WeRide’s have dropped 36 per cent, compared with a 22 per cent rise for the Nasdaq Composite.

Within China, the two companies compete with search engine giant Baidu’s Apollo Go. Chinese electric-vehicle maker Xpeng on Wednesday said it planned to launch three robotaxi models next year, with a starting price of as low as Rmb200,000 ($28,000) a vehicle, compared with Pony.ai’s estimated $38,000 and WeRide’s $40,000.

Pony.ai’s net loss widened to $96.1mn from $51.3mn in the first half of the year, according to its prospectus. WeRide recorded a first-half net loss of Rmb791.5mn, from Rmb881.7mn a year earlier.

HSBC analysts said in a recent research note that profitability could be years away.

“Remote supervisors, parking, charging, cleaning and infrastructure costs, plus the incremental costs of technology and AI support are often overlooked,” analysts wrote. “When we factor in these costs, we believe robotaxis won’t be break-even on a cash flow basis until seven to eight years after launch.”

Globally, the companies are competing against Google parent Alphabet’s Waymo and Elon Musk’s Tesla. Uber in May agreed a deal with Pony.ai to launch services in the Middle East on the ride-hailing app this year.

Uber’s arrangement is one of more than 10 partnerships announced this year with robotaxi providers as the ride-hailing company faces pressure from Waymo in the US. Uber also has deals with Baidu and WeRide.

Pony.ai is testing autonomous vehicles in countries including the US, Luxembourg, the United Arab Emirates and South Korea. Its chief executive said it hoped to launch in Japan and potentially Australia in the next two to three years.

“In these regions, taxi fares are relatively high,” James Peng told the Financial Times ahead of Pony.ai’s Hong Kong listing, adding that other criteria for selecting new markets included a sizeable population, strong government support and reliable local partners.

“But regulatory frameworks in overseas markets are less developed compared to China,” said Peng, noting that the company had to carry out testing with a human driver in foreign markets, whereas the Chinese government has eased such rules in several cities.

“China and the US are the only two countries with comprehensive legislation governing [robotaxis],” he said.

WeRide is testing robotaxis in Singapore, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Uber is also in talks to participate in a spin-out of Pony.ai’s US arm, led by the company’s co-founder and former chief executive Travis Kalanick, according to people familiar with the matter. Uber declined to comment. Kalanick and Pony.ai did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the talks.

The US commerce department this year passed a rule blocking autonomous vehicle software used in the country to be operated or maintained by “foreign adversaries”, namely China and Russia, and set a deadline of March 2026 to meet the rule.