The Americas
Connectivity
Rubio Yerevan visit advances coordination on TRIPP Corridor and Critical Minerals
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s May 26 Yerevan stopover, en route from his recent India visit, was one of the highest-level senior level...
Iran
Iran framework deal emerging but more time required
In the middle of America's long Memorial Day weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump himself announced on May 23 that a peace deal is "largely...
Cuba
U.S. continues choking off the support lifeline for Cuba
Under unrelenting U.S. economic pressure, the Cuban economy in the first five months of 2026 has deteriorated into what many observers describe as the...
China
China hosts Trump: High scores on ceremony but modest deliverables
No one should be surprised that U.S. President Donald Trump’s China visit on May 13-15 had a heavy focus on ceremony and symbolic messaging,...
Sanctions and related policies
U.S. powers up Iran sanctions programs
The U.S. Treasury Department, under its new program called “Economic Fury,” announced in rapid succession five sets of fresh Iran sanctions beginning on April...
Global Economy
IMF warns of global downturn risk from continuing Iran conflict
It should surprise no one that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) - World Bank Spring meetings in Washington D.C. on April 13–18 were overshadowed...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
Social media giants found liable for child addiction: What happens next?
On March 25, a Los Angeles jury delivered a judgment poised to reshape the social media landscape for years to come. After nine intense...
Space Exploration and Utilization
Artemis II astronauts back to earth after NASA historic moon mission
Ending a nearly 10-day journey, the first astronauts to travel to the Moon in more than half a century returned to earth April 10...
Global Energy Supplies
IEA issues global energy shock warning
The war in the Middle East, the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and attacks on energy facilities is creating an oil shock...
Sanctions and related policies
U.S. waiver for Russia oil sanctions brings dismay, not price stability
On March 12, the United States temporarily waived existing sanctions on Russian oil that is already at sea, allowing it to be delivered to...
Transport
U.S. launches maritime reinsurance plan to reopen Persian Gulf shipping
The Trump administration’s March 6 plan to reopen shipping through the Strait of Hormuz will require some time before it can be activated and...
The Middle East
Economic shockwaves multiply as Iran war spreads
The United States' and Israel's ongoing major combat operations against Iran/Lebanon and the Islamic Republic’s indiscriminate strikes across the Middle East are escalating tensions...
The Middle East
Powerful opening salvo marks determined U.S. and Israeli strike on Iran
On February 28, a carefully coordinated American and Israeli attack on Iran -- which has for decades been calling for the destruction of both...
Minerals, Mining and Rare Earths
Uzbekistan, U.S. to jointly develop critical minerals, infrastructure, energy
Aiming to strengthen critical supply chains and drive economic growth, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has announced a historic collaboration with the...
Trade
Liberation Day tariffs overturned as flagship U.S. trade policy damaged
It was not unexpected. Warnings had been coming for months that U.S. President Donald Trump’s flagship “Liberation Day” tariffs announced last April were simply...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
The global economic tectonic plates are moving. So, what could this mean?
Love him or hate him, U.S. President Donald Trump will go down in history as the great disruptor, having completely shaken up the established...
Defense & Security
Transatlantic security relationship evolving after Munich conference
This year’s Munich Security Conference (MSC 2026) ran from February 13-15, traditionally held over the weekend. Running for three intense days, it was significantly...
Emissions targets and regulations
U.S. EPA retreats from global commitments on climate
In a sweeping climate change policy rollback, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has cancelled an Obama-era scientific finding that carbon dioxide and other...
Minerals, Mining and Rare Earths
U.S. moves to counter Chinese dominance in critical minerals
The United States hosted the first-ever Critical Minerals Ministerial at the State Department in Washington on February 4, bringing together ministers and senior officials...
Sanctions and related policies
New U.S. Iran sanctions for recent violent repression and corruption
After the reimposition of United Nations “snapback” sanctions on Iran on September 27, 2025, in connection with unfulfilled Iranian nuclear program control and inspection...
Global Economy
Davos 2026 — threats, climbdowns and false constructs
The 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (#WEF26) convened nearly 3,000 leaders from government, business, civil society and academia under the theme...
Global Energy Supplies
Venezuelan, Iranian oil disruptions unlikely to redefine oil market trajectory
The recent U.S. actions in Venezuela and the volatile situation in Iran as the government cracks down on demonstrations currently appear to have limited...
The Negroni Diaries
Another Trump Iran pronouncement – tariff details to follow
In typical Trump style, U.S. President Donald Trump’s January 12 announcement of stiff new tariffs on Iran’s trading partners was devoid of almost all...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
EU-Mercosur: a positive step away from the folly of isolationism
It is often said that pursuing protectionism is just like locking one's self in a dark room: wind and rain might be kept out,...
International Organizations
U.S. plans to exit dozens of international organizations
Following on U.S. President Donald Trump’s highly political decisions in early 2025 to withdraw the United States from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate...
Sanctions and related policies
Venezuela: Seizures, sanctions and now a U.S. oil blockade
Amid increasing tension between the U.S. and Venezuela with new U.S. economic sanctions announced on December 11 and the U.S. military’s seizure of the...
Artificial Intelligence - AI
U.S. launches “Pax Silica” initiative to unleash AI potential
Aiming to unite the countries that host the world’s most advanced technology companies to unleash the economic potential of the new AI age, Under...
Global Economy
Washington takes the reins of the G20 for 2026
Starting on December 1, the United States took the reins of the Group of 20 major economies (G20) for the first time since 2009,...
Climate Diplomacy
COP30 in Belém misses key targets but advances on secondary objectives
After two weeks of intense negotiations in a new geopolitical reality, COP30 concluded in the Amazon city of Belém, Brazil, where countries agreed on...
The Negroni Diaries
Another Russia-tilting Trump peace proposal emerges
President Donald Trump apparently has no more refined strategy than to disrupt the flow of world business/diplomacy with an outrageous opening salvo to make...
Terrorism
New U.S. Terrorist Designations in Europe and Latin America
As the U.S. Government shutdown has ended, a number of temporarily closed foreign affairs offices/functions have just re-opened, and we should expect to see...
Russia Sanctions
Watering down U.S. Russia sanctions for Hungary – what was gained?
For a while, it appeared as if the war in Ukraine was again a top priority in the White House, but ultimately that turned...
Energy
Cyprus, Greece, Israel and U.S. commit to deeper East Mediterranean energy cooperation
Following the 3+1 Energy Ministerial, Cyprus, Greece, Israel and the United States declared common intent to promote energy security and cooperation in the Eastern...
Europe & Eurasia
U.S. and Central Asia agree to extend and deepen economic ties
U.S. President Donald Trump presided over a historic meeting with five Central Asian leaders on November 6 at the White House in a period...
Sanctions and related policies
DPRK cybercrime and illicit IT workers targeted by new U.S. sanctions
North Korean (DPRK) state-linked cyber actors have stolen and laundered billions of dollars (primarily cryptocurrency) using a global ecosystem of hackers, shell companies, front...
Op-Eds & Guest Contributors
Serbia’s energy dilemma: How to break from Russia and save its stability
Serbia’s energy “decoupling” from Russia seems to be on the horizon. The Southeast European nation, long heavily dependent on Russian gas -- and, to...
Russia Sanctions
As Trump’s Ukraine peace initiative fades, new U.S. sanctions unleashed
The war in Ukraine is again front and center in the White House. While U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace drive had started to...
IMO
The IMO gets a taste of Trump’s “America First” foreign policy
After failing to reach consensus on an emissions reduction measure amid strong U.S. pressure, a majority of countries at the UN’s International Maritime Organization...
Environment
Strategic competition increases in the Arctic fueled by climate change
Finnish President Alexander Stubb broke the ice with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump quite literally, sealing an agreement on October 9 for the U.S....
Sanctions and related policies
After the “snapback,” large new set of U.S. Iran sanctions announced
Less than two weeks after the reimposition of United Nations “snapback” sanctions on Iran on September 27, the U.S. Government announced a substantial new...
Global Energy Insider
From Baku to Belém, COP30 works to salvage global climate action commitments
Ahead of COP30 UN talks in the Amazon city of Belém, Brazil, the second Baku Climate Action Week in Azerbaijan on September 29 to...
United Nations
The UN at 80 — Little to celebrate with multilateralism under stress
Like clockwork, at the end of September, many of the world’s leaders converge on New York for the annual UN General Assembly (UNGA) session...
Disasters and Reconstruction Initiatives
Washington kickstarts the U.S. – Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund
The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) announced on September 17 a $75 million equity commitment to the U.S.- Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund that...
United Nations
United States sanctions foreign NGOs engaged in ICC’s targeting of Israel
Further increasing tension between the U.S. and the UN ahead of this month’s UN General Assembly, scheduled to begin the UN's 80th anniversary celebrations...
Transnational Criminal Organizations
U.S. and Mexico focus on expanded security cooperation as fight against drug cartels intensifies
On September 3, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in Mexico City where he declared that security cooperation...
Invasion of Ukraine
Trump’s Ukraine peace initiative stalls out
U.S. President Donald Trump’s summer of disrupting almost everything is now winding down with major peace agreements still eluding him, along with a potential...
Invasion of Ukraine
Alaska summit hands Putin formal recognition but yields few results
U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin met for the first time in six years to discuss peace for Ukraine in...
Europe & Eurasia
Azerbaijan, Armenia agree to end conflict, unlock South Caucasus economic potential
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, in the presence of U.S. President Donald Trump, signed a Joint Declaration on August...
Counternarcotics
WANTED Nicolas Maduro: U.S. increases bounty for Venezuelan President as narcotics trafficker
The United States announced on August 7 it had doubled its reward offer for the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to $50 million...
Sanctions and related policies
U.S. expands sanctions against malicious actors in Middle East
Waiting for U.S. President Donald Trump’s go-ahead for new sanctions against Russia and its major oil customers, due in early August, Washington’s army of...
Must read