The United States has withdrawn from Afghanistan. Turkey, in particular, is preparing to take over its role on the ground. However, many Turks have been angered by their president's overtures to the Taliban.

Democratic Republic of Congo's environment minister said on Thursday (October 28) the country intends to ban all log exports and implement other measures to lessen threats to its carbon-absorbing tropical rainforest, a major bulwark against climate change. Home to a majority of the world's second-largest rainforest, Congo is under pressure to improve forest management and curb a high deforestation rate that has doubled in the last decade, according to U.N. figures. Environment Minister Eve Bazaiba announced the suspension of log exports to reporters in the capital Kinshasa, but did not say when it would come into effect.

The general global trend towards protectionism has been boosted by the pandemic, as countries try to buy more locally. That's a serious threat to jobs in Germany.

Western nations have agreed on more economic sanctions against Russia, but the energy sector is a delicate issue, says Theresa Fallon, director of the Centre for Russia Europe Asia Studies.

Crude oil futures touched 13-year highs on Monday as the US and UK signalled a willingness to include the previously untouched Russian energy sector in sanctions. Meanwhile, more US firms and Chinese social media giant TikTok are suspending Russian operations, and new UK laws to sanction Russian oligarchs could mean big changes for London's luxury real estate market.

Up to 300 ships have been stopped by Russian forces from departing the Black Sea, leaving one of the key global trade routes for grain virtually blocked. The fertile region is known as "the world's breadbasket."

Russian crude exports have declined substantially since the war began, fuelling global oil supply concerns. We also take a look at how sanctions against Russia are affecting tourism in Cuba, as well as a critical week ahead for Amazon, which faces two separate union elections in the US.

Just over a week before the first round of voting, candidates for France's presidential election are campaigning on marketplaces across France. The so-called smaller candidates are trying to close the gap with the top contenders. FRANCE 24's Campaign Commentator Philip Turle tells us why Marine Le Pen has been eating into Emmanuel Macron's lead in the polls. Plus, our reporters dive into the world of French Trotskyists.

The ban from the world's largest exporter has rocked an already precarious edible oil market. The price of cooking oil has soared as war rages between sunflower oil producers Russia and Ukraine.

Poland and Hungary have shared a tilt towards the nationalist right, bound also by a mutual distrust of the EU. But their relations with Russia are anything but alike.

The Economy and Climate Minister says the legal action against the accelerated construction of an import terminal for liquefied natural gas will make it harder to move away from Russian energy.

Wars and natural disasters tear families apart worldwide. The German Red Cross tries to put them back in touch.