Reuters World News - Europe cyberattack, Estonia, H-1B visas and Trump-Xi

Episode Date: September 20, 2025

A cyberattack on a provider of check-in and boarding systems has disrupted operations at several major European airports. Estonia reports an unprecedented airspace violation by Russian jets in the latest test for NATO. The Trump administration says it'll ask companies to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas. The U.S. and China make progress on a TikTok deal. Plus, what to expect from a packed weekend in sports – including the World Athletics Championships. Listen to On Assignment here. Read today's recommended read here. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter here. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast here. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, major European airports are disrupted by a cyber attack. Estonia says Russian jets entered its airspace in the latest test for NATO. Tech companies brace for a new $100,000 fee per year for H-1B visas. The US and China make progress on a TikTok deal and what to expect from a packed weekend of global sports. It's Saturday, September 20th. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes, seven days a week. I'm Tara Oaks in London.

First, flight delays and cancellations after a cyber attack at a provider of check-in and boarding systems disrupted operations at several major European airports. Passengers with a flight scheduled are advised to confirm their travel plans with airlines, before heading to the airport. You can read more on this story as it develops on Reuters.com and the Reuters app. The Estonian government says three Russian military jets violated its airspace for 12 minutes. Estonia is a NATO member and the incident is the latest in a series of recent military actions by Russia that have rattled the alliance. Russia's Defense Ministry has denied its jets violated Estonian airspace, saying they flew over

neutral waters. A national security reporter, Graham's Latoury, in Washington, D.C., has been looking into the incident. They're looking at this with a lot of preoccupation. The principal concern of NATO is that Russia has territorial ambitions beyond just Ukraine. A lot of Western intelligence services believe this to be the case. So whenever you have Russian incursions into a NATO country, be Poland or Estonia or wherever else, the concern is that perhaps this presages something much more aggressive in the future. Graham says security experts say these incidents could offer Intel to the Kremlin. What happened in Estonia, it's simply too early to tell most intelligence services won't have made a formal determination. However, every time Russia does something like this, they fly some

jets or some drones into the airspace of a NATO country, and then they watch that country and NATO as a whole react. And when they do that, of course, they gather some intelligence as to how NATO would react in the case of a much more serious incursion. The Trump administration has announced it will impose a $100,000 a year fee on H-1B worker visas. It's potentially a major blow to the technology sector that relies heavily on skilled workers from India and China. But President Trump says he doesn't think tech CEOs will be concerned.

I think they're going to be very happy. Everyone's going to be happy. And we're going to be able to keep people in our country that are going to be very productive people. Microsoft and J.P. Morgan have already advised their H-1B visa holders to remain in the United States. In other tech news, President Trump says he and China's president, Xi Jinping, have made progress on a TikTok deal.

The leaders spoke on a call for the first time in three months, and Trump says they plan to meet face. to face in six weeks in South Korea. Trump credits TikTok with helping him win the 2024 election by connecting him with younger voters. And while U.S. officials say a framework deal has been reached, what it looks like remains unclear. White House reporter Trevor Honeygut has more. This is an extremely complicated financial transaction, right, as well as a political one. And so a lot of the details are still going to have to be hashed out in terms of who controls this algorithm. Do the Chinese still control this algorithm? Do they still have a stake in the company?

Does the U.S. government have a stake in the company? And how does that affect all of the investors that want a piece of the action here? And so all of that is still an open question. The UN General Assembly kicks off this week with leaders from across the globe set to arrive in New York. And the Trump administration plans to take its tough stance on immigration to the meeting. Officials will be presenting a proposal that would sharply limit the right to asylum. Under the plan, asylum seekers would have to ask for protection in the first country they enter, not a country of their choosing. Asylum would be temporary and host countries would decide when it's safe to send people home. Immigration reporter Ted Hessan says refugee

advocates are warning that people fleeing persecution could be left with nowhere to go. This is really an attempt by the Trump administration to take their own domestic immigration policy and export it globally. And it's important to note they're going before this body of the United Nations, which actually crafted the sort of framework for asylum that we have today in 1951 and 1967 in these sort of seminal agreements of countries around the world that defined who would be a refugee and who would be able to seek asylum. And now they're talking about wanting to revisit that and reopen them and say that no, they're not working for today and we want to do it differently. So that's really hugely significant. And if you're interested

in asylum policy, our latest episode of our long form on assignment podcast takes a look at the lasting impact of an unprecedented surge of migration to Europe 10 years ago, with many fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa. For me, I want to work. I want to have a life. I want to have kids. To take them to the school without afraid that a bomb will come over them and kill them. We look at how that influx has transformed the continent and its politics. description and you can hear on assignment wherever you get your podcasts. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr's Vaccine Advisory Panel has voted to drop broad support

for the COVID shot. Instead, they say it should be offered to all ages, but only after a shared decision with a healthcare provider. The call would typically maintain access through health insurance. It's time now for our sports roundup with our global sports editor, Ocean We've got a great variety of sport coming up this weekend. Most notably, perhaps, is the World Cycling Championships, which, after best part of a century, clattering over Belgian cobblestones and wandering through French vineyards, finally in Africa for the very first time in Kigali, in Rwanda, is hosting the World Road Championships. And the setting is going to be absolutely spectacular, but it's not all about the scenery. There is going to be some fantastic

sport. We've got Time Trial Metronome, Remko, Evanpool. against Tadej Podjikar, two of the biggest names in cycling coming head to head. Evan Paul is chasing a third straight time trial crown, which would really etch his name deeper into the history books, whereas Podjikar, he's looking to win the Tour de France and the World Championships in the same year. It's going to be a fascinating showdown in a brand new setting and a new panorama for world cycling perhaps.

And of course, it's the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, where Noah Lyles scorched to a full successive World 200-Nit. is gold on Friday. We've had an exhilarating first week of the world championships in Tokyo, and that's now coming into a really exciting climax this weekend, which is the Relays. America's new spring queen, Melissa Jefferson Wooden, she'll be leading the U.S. women there. She's the new 100-meter world champion. And there's going to be big showdowns expected with the Jamaicans, which are always pure voltage. And of course, there's always something for the petrol heads in week of sport. This time it's Formula One. It roars back for what could be a history-making

as a Bayesian Grand Prix. There are multiple permutations which would see McLaren win the Constructors' Championships, and that will see the move second in the all-time list with 10 titles behind only Ferrari on 16. An Oscar Piastri, Lando, Norris 1, 2 would do it, but so would a number of other results. I suspect either way we're going to hear lots of McLaren champagne this weekend. And finally, a British couple released by the Taliban, have reunited with their family. Bobby Reynolds, who's 76, and her husband, husband Peter, who's 80, arrived in Qatar after being freed from eight months in captivity in Afghanistan. The couple who ran a charity and had lived in Afghanistan for 18 years were detained in February

and released after months of negotiations between Qatar and Britain. And for today's recommended read, a special report into Syria, looking at how the country split along the Euphrates River after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, with a debate. divisions remaining between Islamist-controlled government forces and Kurdish-led fighters. You can read the story by following the link in the pod description. For more on any of the stories from today, check out Reuters.com or the Reuters app. Don't forget to follow us on your favourite podcast player. And if you're listening on a smart speaker, just ask for the latest news from Reuters, seven days a week.

We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.