Global Pulse

分类： politics

  • Watch: Trump leads tour of White House helipad construction site

    Watch: Trump leads tour of White House helipad construction site

    In a move that underscores the high-stakes logistics of upcoming high-level diplomacy between the United States and China, former President Donald Trump has led an on-site tour of the ongoing construction work to upgrade the White House helipad. The project, which is already moving forward at an accelerated pace, is being fast-tracked to meet a critical deadline: the planned state visit to Washington by Chinese President Xi Jinping, scheduled for late September.

    Diplomatic visits of this caliber require rigorous infrastructure planning and security preparations, and the upgrade to the White House helipad is a key component of these pre-visit arrangements. The expedited construction timeline reflects the significance that the U.S. administration has placed on hosting the high-level Chinese delegation, with logistics teams working to ensure all facilities meet the strict security and protocol standards required for a head-of-state visit. Trump’s personal presence at the construction site tour draws additional attention to the meticulous preparations underway ahead of what is expected to be one of the most high-profile international diplomatic engagements of the year.

  • Explainer: Have European countries been involved in the US-Israeli war on Iran?

    Explainer: Have European countries been involved in the US-Israeli war on Iran?

    Nearly six months into the US-Israeli military assault on Iran that began in late February, Europe finds itself deeply divided over its involvement, caught between widespread public opposition to the conflict and intense diplomatic and economic pressure from Washington to back the war effort. On March 16, European Union top diplomat Kaja Kallas framed the conflict clearly: “This is not Europe’s war.” The comment underscored widespread discomfort across the continent, where the conflict has already sent fuel prices skyrocketing and drawn sharp public condemnation for documented civilian casualties in Iran. With only a small handful of European leaders openly endorsing the campaign, the degree of quiet and implicit involvement varies sharply from nation to nation. Adding to the pressure, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to impose new tariffs on uncooperative European states and even floated a potential full US withdrawal from the NATO defensive alliance if allies refuse to align with the war. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has pushed back against narratives of European non-participation, revealing in June that European states have cleared takeoff access for between 4,000 and 5,000 US warplanes operating against Iran from the dozens of American military bases permanently hosted across European territory. Meanwhile, Iranian retaliatory strikes targeting Western military facilities in the Gulf have pulled the United Kingdom and France deeper into the conflict against their initial plans. As stalled peace talks offer no near-term path to a ceasefire, independent outlet Middle East Eye has broken down the divergent positions of European nations, from full-throated support to outright opposition. The United Kingdom, which has long emphasized its special transatlantic relationship with Washington, has offered the most substantial backing for the Iran campaign of any European power. In the opening days of the assault, then-Prime Minister Keir Starmer initially rejected US requests to use American-leased bases on UK territory for bombing runs, creating an immediate public rift with Trump. However, Starmer reversed course on March 1, authorizing US operations against Iranian missile sites from UK-based facilities, framing the move as serving a “specific and limited defensive purpose.” This authorization cleared the way for US heavy bombers to deploy from both Diego Garcia – the joint US-UK base in the Indian Ocean’s Chagos Islands – and RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, the only US-leased base in Europe with a runway long enough to accommodate the heavy bombers used in strikes on Iran. Other UK bases leased to the US, including Suffolk’s RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath, have also supported the war effort by servicing F-35 stealth jets and refueling combat aircraft operating over Iran. Beyond hosting US operations, the UK has leveraged its own network of military outposts across the Middle East to launch independent strikes on Iranian drones, and has repositioned warships, fighter aircraft and advanced air defense systems in the Gulf region. UK officials maintain these actions fall under “collective self-defense” for its regional allies, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. This policy has been fully maintained by new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who approved additional US strike operations from UK bases immediately after taking office in July. In retaliation for the UK’s involvement, Iran has designated all US-utilized UK bases as legitimate military targets. Iran launched missile attacks against UK bases in Iraq, Qatar and the UAE, and carried out an unsuccessful missile strike against Diego Garcia in March. A drone also struck the UK’s RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus that same month, though British officials have declined to confirm Iranian responsibility for the attack. Across the Channel, French President Emmanuel Macron has similarly framed any French military involvement as “strictly defensive.” On March 3, Macron publicly condemned the opening wave of US-Israeli strikes on Iran as a violation of international law, saying Paris could not endorse the offensive. Despite this public criticism, France has allowed US military support aircraft to land and refuel at its Istres and Avord air bases. Senior French military commanders insist they have received “full guarantees” that these aircraft are not directly involved in offensive strike missions against Iran. France was nevertheless dragged into direct military positioning after its Abu Dhabi base, Camp de la Paix, which hosts more than 750 French personnel, was hit by an Iranian drone strike in March, prompting Paris to deploy additional fighter jets to patrol UAE airspace. Both Washington and Jerusalem have accused France of obstructing the war effort, pointing to Paris’s decision to block munitions flights bound for Israel from transiting French airspace. Trump labeled France “very unhelpful” in a March 31 post on his Truth Social platform, and Israel retaliated by announcing a full boycott of the French arms industry. Early in the conflict, Macron led negotiations for a European-led escort mission for commercial container ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, but the proposal never moved forward despite France repositioning several naval vessels to the region. Paris later offered to assist Iran with mine clearance in the strait, a proposal Tehran rejected for violating the terms of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding. Among all European nations, Spain has taken the clearest and most uncompromising stance against the US-Israeli war. “The position of the government of Spain can be summed up in four words: no to the war,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in a national televised address on March 4, just days after the assault began. “You can’t respond to one illegality with another because that’s how humanity’s great disasters begin,” he added. From the conflict’s opening hours, Sanchez made clear Spain would not grant the US permission to use its two American bases – the Rota naval base and the Morón air base – for any war-related operations. On March 30, Spain went a step further than any other European nation, closing its entire airspace to all US military aircraft, including refueling tankers. Spain’s opposition has drawn fierce pushback from Trump, who has called the country “terrible” and “unfriendly.” The US president imposed new punitive tariffs on Spanish imports in June and threatened to cut off all bilateral trade with the country in July. This is not the first time Trump has clashed with Madrid; he has previously called for Spain to be expelled from NATO over its relatively low military spending, and has criticized Spain’s repeated condemnation of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. Germany, which hosts more US military personnel than any country outside the United States – with over 36,000 active troops stationed across dozens of bases dating back to the end of World War II – has maintained a deliberately ambiguous stance. The most critical of these facilities is Ramstein Air Base, the largest US Air Force installation outside the US and home to US European Command headquarters. The full scope of Ramstein’s role in the Iran war remains classified, but the base has long served as a key coordination hub for US drone strikes and bombing campaigns in past Middle Eastern conflicts. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, a conservative leader with longstanding close ties to both Washington and Jerusalem, drew widespread condemnation from German human rights groups when he refused to condemn the initial US-Israeli strikes or the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Instead, in a March 1 statement, Merz said: “Together with the United States and Israel, we share the goal of ending the terror of these regimes.” But Merz later shifted his tone, sparking outrage in Washington when he said on April 27 that the US was being “humiliated by the Iranian leadership” in ongoing ceasefire negotiations. Trump responded by calling Merz’s performance as chancellor “terrible” and announced on May 1 that he would withdraw 5,000 US troops from Germany in retaliation. Italy, which hosts more than 12,000 US troops across dozens of domestic bases, has also walked a fine line, balancing widespread domestic public opposition to the war against Iran against longstanding security ties with Washington. In July, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni pushed back against NATO Secretary General Rutte’s claim that Italy had allowed roughly 500 US aircraft to use its bases during the war, insisting none of the aircraft had been used for offensive combat missions. “We will not participate in attacks against Iran,” Meloni told attendees at the July 8 NATO summit in Ankara. “We have had a very clear line from the beginning of the conflict.” Meloni faced domestic criticism in March after the US military posted public videos of US military helicopters conducting training flights over Sicily. A procedural dispute later led Italy to temporarily block US aircraft from landing at Sicily’s Sigonella air base. Though Meloni had close ties to Trump in prior years, relations between Rome and Washington have deteriorated sharply over Italy’s war stance. “Italy has not been any help to us,” Trump said on May 1, shortly after threatening to withdraw all US troops from the country. Meloni’s government, which had been a staunch supporter of Israel during its military campaign in Gaza, also announced in April that it would not renew its 2003 bilateral defense pact with Israel. The decision came just days after Israeli forces opened fire on Italian peacekeepers serving with a UN convoy in Lebanon. Since the conflict began in February, Greece has repeatedly stated it is not a participant in the war on Iran, and its involvement remains limited to minor logistical support. The only significant exception came in March, when Greece allowed the US Navy’s USS Gerald R. Ford – the world’s largest aircraft carrier, which played a key role in the opening days of the Iran war – to dock for repairs at Souda Naval Base on Crete, the only deepwater port in the Mediterranean large enough to accommodate the 100,000-ton warship. Greek military personnel stationed in Saudi Arabia also shot down Iranian drones targeting the kingdom in March, a deployment that dates back to 2021, when Athens positioned air defense squadrons in the kingdom to protect its energy imports from the Gulf. Bulgaria, which shares a regional neighborhood with Iran separated only by Turkey, has granted the US full permission to use its domestic military bases throughout the conflict. Like many other European leaders, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev has insisted the bases “categorically” will not be used for offensive US operations, claiming American activities are limited to radar operations and refueling. The decision has drawn sharp warnings from Iran, with foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei stating on July 27 that Bulgaria will “bear responsibility for the dangerous decision.” Trump, by contrast, has publicly praised Bulgaria’s stance, writing on Truth Social the same day: “Thank you, Prime Minister Radev! Bulgaria stands with Trump and supports the deployment of a US Air Force base despite Iran’s threats.” Romania, a NATO member that hosts roughly 1,000 US troops, approved US use of its strategically positioned Black Sea bases for Iran-related missions in March. Romanian President Nicușor Dan has maintained that all US activities in the country are limited to a “strict defensive role.” The decision came after the US announced it would reduce troop numbers in Romania in October, stoking widespread anxiety in Bucharest about the reliability of US security support in the event of an attack from neighboring Russia. Middle East Eye is an independent outlet providing unrivaled original reporting and analysis on the Middle East, North Africa and surrounding regions.

  • Trump says will meet North Korea’s Kim later this year

    Trump says will meet North Korea’s Kim later this year

    In a surprising on-the-record briefing with reporters Wednesday, former and current U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed plans to hold a long-awaited meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before the end of 2026, marking the first face-to-face encounter between the two leaders since Trump began his second presidential term. The confirmation came as Trump answered questions from journalists during a walking tour of a newly constructed helipad on the White House grounds, offering little additional logistical detail beyond his basic commitment to the summit.

    Unconfirmed reporting from The Wall Street Journal has since shed light on potential timing, indicating the meeting could be scheduled to align with Trump’s already planned November trip to China for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders’ summit, a convenient arrangement that would avoid adding a separate, high-stakes diplomatic journey to the president’s already packed fall schedule.

    In a striking departure from the vague, generalized assessments of North Korea’s nuclear program that have become standard for sitting U.S. presidents, Trump offered an unusually specific count of Pyongyang’s atomic stockpile, stating that Kim currently holds 57 “very powerful” nuclear weapons. The president went on to acknowledge that the proliferation of North Korea’s nuclear program should never have been allowed to progress to its current state, a comment that implicitly criticizes the policy choices of previous administrations. Even so, he emphasized that the current reality of North Korea’s nuclear status cannot be ignored, and framed his longstanding personal rapport with Kim as a unique asset for U.S. diplomacy.

    The announcement of the planned meeting comes at a particularly fraught moment for U.S. foreign policy, as Trump is currently leading active military operations against Iran, a campaign he has explicitly justified on the grounds of blocking Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapons. Trump defended the apparent contradiction of pursuing diplomacy with a nuclear-armed North Korea while waging war to stop Iran from acquiring the same capability, arguing that the two scenarios are fundamentally separate. “I can’t let Iran have a nuclear weapon. And I know Kim Jong Un very well, and he’s going to be fine,” Trump told reporters, drawing a clear distinction between his approach to the two nations rooted in his personal relationship with the North Korean leader.

    Wednesday’s confirmation is the latest in a series of steps Trump has taken to reset U.S. engagement with North Korea. Just two days prior, the president issued an order scaling back what he described as “inappropriate and hostile” joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea, a decision he explicitly tied to his “good relationship” with Kim. The two leaders held three historic summits during Trump’s first term in office, a period of unprecedented personal diplomacy that included Trump’s famous remark that the two had “fell in love” after exchanging a series of what he called “beautiful letters.” No meeting has taken place since Trump returned to the White House for his second term, though in recent weeks the president has dropped increasing hints that behind-the-scenes communications have resumed. When pressed Wednesday, however, he declined to explicitly confirm whether letter exchanges between the two leaders are currently ongoing.

    The report of renewed communication drew a measured response from Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of Kim Jong Un and one of the North Korean regime’s most prominent senior officials. Speaking Wednesday, she stated that she was “unaware” of any reported correspondence between her brother and President Trump, but nonetheless noted that diplomatic ties between the two leaders remain “excellent,” leaving the door open for future high-level engagement.

  • Why is Ukraine’s ex-defence minister calling for wartime elections?

    Why is Ukraine’s ex-defence minister calling for wartime elections?

    A surprising call from Ukraine’s former Minister of Defence Mykhailo Fedorov has reignited fierce debate across Ukrainian political circles over the possibility of holding national elections while the country remains locked in a full-scale defensive war against Russian invasion.

    Fedorov, who stepped down from his defence post earlier this year and currently serves as a deputy head of the President’s Office, has publicly pushed for wartime balloting, but has so far failed to address the most pressing, practical concerns that come with organizing a democratic vote amid active conflict.

    Ukraine has been under martial law since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, and current Ukrainian law prohibits national elections while martial law remains in effect. Key barriers to holding a vote include the fact that millions of Ukrainians have been displaced internally or fled abroad as refugees, large swathes of the country’s eastern and southern territory remain under Russian occupation, and ongoing Russian missile and drone strikes threaten public safety at any large-scale gathering of voters.

    Political analysts note that the call for wartime elections has sparked division among Ukrainian policymakers. Some argue that holding a vote would demonstrate the strength of Ukraine’s democratic institutions even amid war, reinforcing the country’s pro-Western credentials and maintaining the legitimacy of state leadership. Others warn that rushing to hold an election under current conditions would produce a result that does not reflect the will of the entire Ukrainian people, and would divert critical resources and attention away from the war effort that remains the country’s top priority.

    As of yet, Ukraine’s presidential administration and parliament have not announced any plans to move forward with lifting the martial law election ban or organizing national balloting before the current war concludes.

  • Trump administration can target Ethiopians for deportation

    Trump administration can target Ethiopians for deportation

    A U.S. federal judge has cleared the way for the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status, a critical humanitarian immigration program, for approximately 5,000 Ethiopian nationals currently residing in the United States. This ruling marks the final step in the administration’s broader push to terminate TPS designations for more than a dozen countries, advancing its sweeping immigration enforcement agenda.

    The decision by U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy reverses a prior temporary hold that had blocked the cancellation of Ethiopian TPS, and comes just months after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld similar terminations of TPS protections for thousands of immigrants from Haiti and Syria in June. Immediately following the ruling, the Department of Homeland Security issued a stark statement on social media platform X declaring that all immigrants whose TPS has been canceled are present in the country unlawfully, adding that they face only two outcomes: immediate voluntary departure or forced deportation. DHS General Counsel James Percival also celebrated the ruling in a separate post, confirming that all previously ordered TPS terminations are now fully in effect.

    Temporary Protected Status is a longstanding humanitarian program that grants eligible immigrants from crisis-stricken nations temporary protection from deportation and formal authorization to work in the U.S. The designation is granted to people who have fled their home countries due to extraordinary, life-threatening circumstances such as large-scale armed conflict, natural disasters, and public health emergencies. Ethiopia was first added to the TPS program in 2022 by the Biden administration, following the outbreak of the brutal two-year Tigray war that killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions more.

    Today, nearly four years after the signing of the 2022 Pretoria peace agreement that formally ended the Tigray conflict, instability persists across Ethiopia. Recent weeks have seen renewed fighting and drone strikes in multiple regions of Tigray, as tensions between the Ethiopian federal government and Tigrayan regional leaders have escalated. Both sides have repeatedly accused one another of violating the terms of the Pretoria Agreement, and the TPLF, Tigray’s ruling political faction, has moved to reestablish its pre-war regional government while dissolving the interim administration appointed by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government. In turn, the federal government has accused Tigrayan leaders of colluding with neighboring Eritrea and the Sudanese military, raising widespread fears that Eritrea could reenter the conflict and spark broader regional instability. Beyond Tigray, Ethiopia also continues to face active armed insurgencies in Oromia and Amhara, its two most populous regions, leaving large swathes of the country facing ongoing violence and insecurity.

    Despite this persistent crisis, DHS announced the termination of Ethiopian TPS last December under then-Secretary Kristi Noem, claiming that security conditions in Ethiopia had improved enough to no longer require the humanitarian protection. Prior to this, the administration had already ended TPS designations for multiple other nations, including Venezuela and Honduras.

    Immigrant advocates and the Ethiopian plaintiffs who brought the lawsuit to block the termination have expressed deep disappointment and alarm over Murphy’s ruling, warning that the decision will put thousands of lives at grave risk. “The crisis in Ethiopia is still ongoing, and this decision puts the lives of thousands of Ethiopians living in the US at severe risk,” said Diana Konaté, deputy executive director for policy and advocacy at advocacy group African Communities Together, in comments to Reuters.

    While Murphy dismissed a number of the legal claims raised by the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, he did allow challengers to move forward with litigation over one core allegation: that the Trump administration’s decision to terminate TPS for Ethiopians was motivated by illegal bias based on race or national origin, which would violate the U.S. Constitution. That legal challenge will continue even as the termination itself takes effect.

  • UN rights chief is concerned about arrest of opposition figures in Zambia’s election

    UN rights chief is concerned about arrest of opposition figures in Zambia’s election

    In the wake of a contentious presidential election that has left southern Africa’s copper-rich nation in political turmoil, the United Nations’ top human rights official has sounded the alarm over the controversial arrest of 11 opposition officials, amplifying already simmering tensions over the poll’s final results.

    The unrest traces back to election night last Thursday, when Zambian law enforcement units carried out a raid on a property where main opposition leader Brian Mundubile was in attendance. According to official government accounts, the operation erupted into an exchange of gunfire, after which authorities claim to have recovered high-grade military weaponry at the site. Officials assert the 11 detained opposition figures were arrested on grounds that they posed an imminent threat to national state security.

    Mundubile, however, has forcefully refuted every element of the government’s narrative. He says the opposition group present at the property was entirely unarmed, and that state agents opened fire on the group unprovoked. Currently, the opposition leader says he is under informal protection over fears for his personal safety, declining to disclose his exact location to the public. He has also added another alarming allegation to the growing controversy: a former opposition minister who was present during the raid was shot and has since gone missing.

    The broader election has been fraught with disruption, a notable shift for Zambia, which has a three-decade track record of largely peaceful electoral contests since it reintroduced multiparty democracy in 1991. Vote counting was suspended for multiple hours the day after polls closed, after the national electoral commission reported that election officials faced violence at scattered polling stations, and that a number of ballot papers were stolen. The commission has not named any group or individual responsible for these disruptions.

    Late last week, incumbent President Hakainde Hichilema was officially declared the winner of the election, securing a second five-year term in office. Official results show Mundubile, his main challenger, garnered roughly 38 percent of the national vote. But the opposition leader has already rejected the outcome, citing widespread claimed irregularities, and has confirmed his opposition alliance intends to challenge the results in Zambia’s court system.

    In a formal statement released Wednesday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called on Zambian authorities to immediately end arbitrary arrest practices, and ensure that any individuals detained in connection with post-election unrest are brought before a court without delay to face formal charges. He stressed that all detentions carried out in the wake of the election must comply fully with both international human rights norms and Zambia’s own domestic legal frameworks. As of Wednesday, the Zambian government has not publicly disclosed where the 11 arrested opposition officials are being held, nor has it confirmed what specific criminal charges they will face.

  • Iran warns Gulf countries against helping US after UAE cuts trade ties

    Iran warns Gulf countries against helping US after UAE cuts trade ties

    Fresh regional tensions have erupted across the Persian Gulf this week, after the United Arab Emirates announced a full halt to all economic and commercial relations with Iran, prompting a sharp public warning from Tehran’s top military leadership against any cooperation with U.S. forces operating in the area.

    The latest escalation began on Tuesday, when UAE authorities confirmed that Iran had launched two ballistic missiles targeting commercial vessels off the Emirates’ coast. In response, the Gulf nation moved to sever all bilateral trade, financial and commercial ties with Iran indefinitely. “In light of regional escalations… all trade, commercial exchanges, and financial transactions with Iran have been halted until further notice,” Afra Al Hameli, communications director for the UAE foreign ministry, confirmed in an official statement.

    This move marks a major breakdown in what had been long-standing economic ties between the two neighboring Gulf states. Prior to the outbreak of open regional conflict earlier this year, the UAE – which hosts a large Iranian expatriate community – was one of the largest trading partners for Iran, which has long been subject to sweeping U.S. economic sanctions. Since hostilities began in February, the UAE has already recalled its ambassador from Tehran and closed multiple Iran-linked community institutions including schools and a hospital. ADNOC, the UAE’s state-owned oil giant, has also seen multiple commercial tankers targeted in recent weeks amid the ongoing shipping attacks.

    Just hours after the UAE’s trade cut announcement on Wednesday, Ali Abdollahi, chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, issued a stark warning to all Gulf countries that any support for U.S. military operations in the region would be considered an act of aggression against Tehran, according to Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agency. “Any assistance or facilitation provided to the aggressor US military amounts to participation in the US military operation,” Abdollahi said.

    The Persian Gulf already hosts a sprawling network of permanent U.S. military installations, including multiple bases located within the UAE. While most Gulf states have publicly stated they will not allow the U.S. to use their territory as a staging ground for offensive attacks on Iran, Abdollahi cast significant doubt on these claims. “It seems unlikely that such a large number of military aircraft, particularly refuelling aircraft, could be present at regional bases without knowledge of host countries,” he added, noting that Iranian intelligence has full situational awareness of all military activity across the region. Multiple regional media outlets have reported that Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain have all launched retaliatory strikes against Iranian targets in recent weeks in response to attacks on Gulf shipping, though all four nations have publicly denied these allegations.

    The current standoff centers on the Strait of Hormuz, the critical narrow trade chokepoint through which roughly a fifth of the world’s daily oil and gas shipments pass. While tensions between Washington and Tehran had seen a brief lull in recent weeks, the Strait remains one of the world’s most dangerous flashpoints. Iran imposed a blockade on the waterway months ago, and attacks on commercial transiting vessels have continued nonstop. A preliminary framework deal between the U.S. and Iran to reopen the strategic corridor collapsed earlier this year, and diplomatic efforts to restart negotiations have now fallen apart entirely.

    The current cycle of open conflict began on February 28, when joint U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting Iranian assets kicked off major hostilities, to which Iran responded with a wave of missile and drone strikes targeting U.S. and allied assets across the Middle East. After months of military operations, the U.S. has failed to achieve a decisive victory over Iran, and U.S. media reports have indicated that the prolonged conflict has severely drained stockpiles of critical U.S. munitions – a claim both the Trump administration and the Pentagon have publicly denied.

    In a dramatic reversal of comments made by his own senior envoy just one day earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed on Tuesday that all diplomatic talks with Iran are off the table. Trump also reiterated his extraordinary claim to the Strait of Hormuz, posting a viral social media graphic that labeled the strategic waterway “NEW U.S. Territory” – echoing a previous threat to formally annex the global energy conduit. “There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Naval Blockade remains in full force and effect,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, referring to the U.S.’s own counter-blockade of all Iranian commercial ports.

    Just one day before Trump’s announcement, Jared Kushner, Trump’s special envoy and son-in-law, had claimed that the two sides were holding “very positive and active conversations” to de-escalate the conflict. Trump also insisted that the Strait of Hormuz is open for commercial traffic, despite multiple shipping industry reports confirming that the Iranian blockade has cut traffic through the corridor by more than half for months.

    U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke by phone with the UAE’s national security adviser on Tuesday, reaffirming U.S. support for the Emirates and discussing joint efforts to “hold Iran and its terrorist proxies accountable” for the ongoing shipping attacks. The two sides also reaffirmed their shared commitment to ensuring unimpeded free passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

    Amid the escalating standoff, Iranian officials have maintained a uniformly defiant stance against U.S. threats. Last week, Iranian parliament speaker and chief nuclear negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf conducted an official visit to neighboring Iraq, framing the trip as an effort to build a new regional order independent of foreign interference. “The trip was aimed at strengthening the new order in the region” and boosting bilateral cooperation “without foreign interference,” Ghalibaf said. He also added that “Resistance in Iraq is also one of the elements of this country’s power,” a comment widely seen as a public endorsement of pro-Iranian armed groups operating within Iraqi territory.

  • Ukrainian man arrested in Croatia over Nord Stream pipeline blasts

    Ukrainian man arrested in Croatia over Nord Stream pipeline blasts

    Nearly three years after coordinated explosions shattered three of the four Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines linking Russia and Germany, a second Ukrainian suspect has been taken into custody in Croatia in connection with the 2022 sabotage attack, German law enforcement authorities have confirmed.

    German federal prosecutors allege the detained man — identified only as trained scuba diver Vladimir Z, widely reported to be Volodymyr Zhuravlyov — was one of the underwater specialists who placed explosive devices on the pipelines in September 2022, just months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. “The suspect participated in the necessary dives” to carry out the sabotage, prosecutors stated in an official release, confirming they have formally submitted a request to Croatian authorities for the suspect’s extradition to Germany.

    Zhuravlyov’s path to this latest arrest dates back to 2025, when he was first detained by Polish authorities in connection with the same plot. At that time, a Polish judge rejected Germany’s extradition request, controversially ruling that if Ukraine was behind the attack, it constituted a “just” act. Zhuravlyov was subsequently released from custody, a decision that drew audible surprise from courtroom observers and left the suspect smiling as he exited the dock.

    He is the second individual taken into custody in the ongoing investigation. The first, former Ukrainian military officer Serhiy Kuznetsov, was arrested in Italy in August 2025 and later extradited to Germany to stand trial. Kuznetsov has repeatedly denied any involvement in the bombings, and made his first public court appearance in Hamburg earlier this year in June.

    Per the prosecution’s narrative of the plot, Kuznetsov allegedly led a small team that chartered a civilian yacht from the German port of Rostock, sailing to the pipelines’ location off the Danish Baltic Sea island of Bornholm to plant the explosives. At the time of the attack, Nord Stream 1 was actively transporting Russian natural gas to Western Europe, while Nord Stream 2 — a second parallel pipeline system — had completed construction but had not yet entered commercial operation.

    If extradited from Croatia, Zhuravlyov will be brought before an investigating judge in Germany to formalize charges of sabotage and intentionally causing explosive damage. The blasts, which permanently disabled the controversial energy infrastructure project that had divided European policymakers for decades, initially triggered widespread speculation that Moscow was responsible. That narrative shifted in recent years as investigators uncovered increasing evidence pointing to possible Ukrainian involvement.

    Ukrainian officials have repeatedly and unequivocally denied any connection to the attack. The case has created unanticipated diplomatic friction between Kyiv and Berlin, one of the most steadfound military and political backers of Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s full-scale invasion.

    Long before the 2022 attack, the Nord Stream projects faced fierce opposition from a bloc of countries including Poland, Ukraine, and the United States. Poland was particularly vocal in its criticism, arguing the pipeline would increase Germany’s dangerous energy dependence on Russia while cutting Warsaw out of lucrative transit fees for Russian gas shipped to Western Europe.

  • Queen Camilla says was ‘difficult’ keeping King Charles’ cancer private

    Queen Camilla says was ‘difficult’ keeping King Charles’ cancer private

    In a rare, candid conversation recorded for a leading UK cancer support organization, Britain’s Queen Camilla has pulled back the curtain on the personal struggle of keeping King Charles III’s 2024 cancer diagnosis private in the days immediately after it was revealed to the royal family. The revelation comes in a short collaborative documentary produced by Buckingham Palace and Maggie’s, the cancer support charity of which Camilla has served as president for years. The 7-minute conversation, filmed at Camilla and Charles’ London residence Clarence House with Maggie’s Chief Executive Laura Lee, was uploaded to YouTube on Tuesday, and it offers an intimate look at the royal household’s first weeks after the diagnosis.

    Buckingham Palace first publicly announced Charles’ shocking cancer diagnosis in February 2024, confirming that the 77-year-old monarch had immediately begun a regular course of treatment. To this day, the Palace has never released details about the specific type of cancer Charles is being treated for, out of respect for his privacy. Camilla explained in the interview that she was scheduled to open Maggie’s new Royal Free centre shortly after Charles received his diagnosis, at a time when the public had not yet been told of his condition.

    “Nobody could say anything at the time. That was quite difficult,” Camilla told Lee. “I almost said something but, you know, I felt that it wasn’t the time to say. I was just longing to let it out but obviously I couldn’t.” The queen added that visiting the Maggie’s centre while carrying the private news of her husband’s diagnosis deepened her appreciation for the vital work the charity does across the United Kingdom. Maggie’s currently operates 27 free support centres located on the grounds of major NHS hospitals, offering emotional and practical support to people living with cancer and their loved ones.

    “(I) looked at everybody who was suffering and all the relations and I think it made me realise even more how important these places were,” Camilla said.

    Despite his diagnosis, King Charles has refused to step back from his royal duties, and gradually resumed a full public schedule within months of beginning treatment. In a pre-recorded televised address to the nation last December, Charles shared an encouraging update on his health: thanks to early detection, successful medical intervention and his adherence to clinical guidance, his ongoing treatment regimen will be scaled back starting in 2026. Camilla praised her husband’s resolve in the face of his diagnosis, noting that his commitment to his role as head of state never wavered even in the earliest days of his treatment.

    “Nothing stopped him. He just said: ‘This is my way. I’m going to cope with it,’” Camilla said.

  • ‘Catastrophic’ hotel mix-up at the heart of Australia’s mushroom murder appeal

    ‘Catastrophic’ hotel mix-up at the heart of Australia’s mushroom murder appeal

    A high-profile Australian murder conviction known widely as the ‘mushroom murder’ case is now the subject of a major appeal, with the defendant’s legal team arguing that a critical, unprecedented error during the trial invalidated the guilty verdict. Erin Patterson, the woman convicted in the poisoning death linked to toxic death cap mushrooms served at a family lunch, is seeking to have her conviction overturned on the grounds of a deeply problematic procedural misstep. According to Patterson’s defense lawyers, the entire trial process was compromised by what they describe as a ‘catastrophic’ hotel mix-up that put the jury in the same accommodation as the prosecution’s legal team and one of the prosecution’s most critical witnesses. This close, unplanned proximity between decision-making jurors and parties involved in building the case against Patterson has raised serious questions about whether the jury remained impartial throughout the proceedings. Legal experts note that core judicial guidelines require strict separation of juries from prosecution teams and witnesses to prevent any unintended interaction, informal communication, or perceived bias that could alter the outcome of a criminal trial. The appeal is now drawing significant national attention, as observers wait to see whether the courts will rule that the procedural error was serious enough to warrant a retrial or overturn the original conviction entirely.