Analysis and news on great-power rivalry, diplomacy, sanctions and alliances, from the UN General Assembly to the Gulf, Europe and the Indo-Pacific.
Israeli airstrikes on Kfar Rumman in south Lebanon killed at least 11 people as President Joseph Aoun warned the June ceasefire framework is at risk.
Zelenskyy said the war will likely run into winter after Kyiv talks with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner brought upbeat words but no breakthrough.
Iran’s Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that any further U.S. attacks will draw faster, more painful retaliation after the weekend tanker and warship clashes.
Iran’s Mohsen Rezaei said Tehran will declare a restricted maritime zone outside the Strait of Hormuz within days in response to the U.S. blockade line.
Iran’s IRGC Navy claims it attacked a U.S. unmanned surface vessel entering the Strait of Hormuz and targeted tankers using an “unauthorized” route.
Timeline of the Sept. 4-9, 2026 U.S. envoy visits to Moscow and Kyiv, the three-day pause on capital strikes, and the attacks that resumed on Sept. 8.
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner reached Kyiv after a three-hour Kremlin meeting with Putin, their first public Ukraine trip in their current roles.
Adm. Samuel Paparo and PLA Gen. Yang Zhibin met in Victoria, Canada, on Aug. 31, 2026, their first in-person talks, weeks before the Trump–Xi summit.
Kpler data show Iran’s crude loadings near 287,000 bpd under the U.S. blockade, while Hormuz war-risk insurance and shipping stay far from prewar levels.
After the Sept. 1-2, 2026 U.S.–Iran exchange of fire, Vance said there is no active war and Wright said a nuclear deal may never come. Midterms loom.
Iran launched missiles and drones at U.S.-linked sites in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq and the UAE, its widest retaliation since July after U.S. strikes.
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