Today In Issues:
FDD Research & Analysis
The Must-Reads
Trump’s $1 billion-a-seat diplomacy club takes aim at the U.N. Israel clashes with U.S. over Turkey, Qatar involvement in Gaza oversight WSJ Editorial: Gaza’s ‘phase two’ peace trusts Hamas In Iran, streets full of soldiers and warnings from loudspeakers With military action on hold, the U.S. puts new sanctions on Iran MEI’s Alex Vatanka: Iran protests seem different. They may lead to real change. Putin’s global standing takes a hit as Russia’s allies are brought low Bloomberg’s Marc Champion: Putin’s recent silence is worrying Syrian president forces major concessions from U.S.-backed SDF in cease-fire deal WaPo Editorial: North Korea is a nuclear power. Trump’s omission is an admission. Europe contends with a big new threat: the U.S. WSJ Editorial: The Greenland war of 2026In The News
Israel
President Trump has expanded the mission of his proposed Gaza Board of Peace into a global body that would take on the role mediating conflicts currently held by the United Nations and carry a $1 billion fee for a permanent seat, according to a charter sent to prospective members. – Wall Street Journal
Israel is publicly pushing back against the makeup of a U.S. committee created to oversee Gaza, which includes Israeli rivals like Turkey and Qatar. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that the committee established by the White House to help advance the next phases of the Gaza cease-fire was “not coordinated with Israel and contrary to its policy.” – Wall Street Journal
Israel has received an invitation from the United States to join President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts, two sources briefed on the matter told Reuters. – Reuters
Israel’s Finance Ministry said on Monday it delivered the 2026 state budget draft to parliament ahead of a preliminary vote on Wednesday, though the plan’s prospects are clouded by political fractures that have strained the ruling coalition. – Reuters
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to shut a U.S.-led multinational coordinating centre that supports President Donald Trump’s plan to end the Gaza war. – Reuters
The US is planning to hold a signing ceremony for President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace later this week, as it seeks to jumpstart phase two of his Gaza peace plan while also establishing the nascent international oversight body as the address for conflict resolution around the globe. – Times of Israel
Israel’s defense establishment believes that Hamas is increasingly motivated to rebuild and recover from the heavy losses inflicted upon it throughout the last two years of war, encouraged in part by US President Donald Trump’s plan for the Gaza Strip, Hebrew language media reported Sunday, citing unnamed security sources. – Times of Israel
The Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet on Saturday revealed the identities of several Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad operatives killed in strikes across the Gaza Strip earlier in the week, which Israel said were carried out in response to a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire in western Rafah when gunmen opened fire at troops. – Times of Israel
Israeli security forces arrived to evacuate and destroy the UNRWA (UN Relief Works Agency) headquarters on Ammunition Hill in northern Jerusalem on Tuesday morning. – Jerusalem Post
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a direct and tense conversation with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio regarding the composition of the Gaza Executive Board, despite an earlier public statement indicating that the matter would be handled by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar. – Arutz Sheva
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Sunday with Honduran President-elect Nasry “Tito” Asfura at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem. – Arutz Sheva
Documents seized in the Gaza Strip indicated that the Hamas terrorist organization intended to carry out a raid on communities in Judea and Samaria and along the security barrier, Channel 12 News revealed on Friday evening. – Arutz Sheva
Editorial: Israel counts 78 violations by Palestinian terrorist groups since October, including shootings and infiltrations. But the biggest remains Hamas’s refusal to disarm. That’s what holds back progress for Gazans and Israelis. Perhaps Hamas will hand over some weapons, but the Israelis expect to have to do the job themselves once U.S. officials realize no one else will. The smart move would be for the Board of Peace to impose a deadline on Hamas to disarm and let Jerusalem enforce it. Having received all the living hostages up front, Israel can no longer be blackmailed. – Wall Street Journal
Editorial: One proposal being floated by Hamas is to decommission or “freeze” some weapons in depots overseen by Arab countries. Another is offering a “buy back” program to pay militants to voluntarily surrender their light firearms. Neither would amount to real disarmament. This second phase of the Gaza plan is supposed to focus on what Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff calls the “full demilitarization and reconstruction of Gaza.” Rebuilding the war-shattered enclave is expected to take decades and cost $70 billion. Just removing all the debris will take an estimated three years. But that work cannot start until Hamas no longer poses a threat. – Washington Post
Salem Alketbi writes: Hamas negotiates from exposure rather than strength or ambition. Gaza has become a place it can neither control nor govern freely. It has gone through military and geographical changes. Holding weapons fails to translate into governance, or even long-term survival. So any political shift is not a real strategy. It is simply an attempt to reduce the cost of staying alive under total siege. – Jerusalem Post
Iran
The Iranian businessman was chanting antigovernment slogans along with hundreds of other protesters on the streets of northern Tehran on Jan. 8 when police opened fire. A man a few feet away crumpled to the ground, bleeding profusely. – Wall Street Journal
Members of the Basij pro-government militia patrolled the streets of Tehran on motorbikes in recent days, with some shouting, “Don’t come out! We’ll shoot you!” according to residents of the capital. A medical student in Tehran said he counted the charred remains of at least five banks. Many shops remain closed. Universities, a hotbed of protests, are still closed. – Wall Street Journal
The son of Iran’s late shah called for strikes on military targets to speed the collapse of the regime. Reza Pahlavi, whose father was toppled in the 1979 revolution that installed Iran’s clerical rulers, sought Friday to position himself as the leader of the country’s fragmented opposition. – Wall Street Journal
With a decision on military action on pause, the U.S. turned to economic pressure on Iran, rolling out a host of new sanctions on officials it said were responsible for the bloody crackdown on nationwide protests. – Wall Street Journal
President Trump said it was time for new leadership in Iran after that country’s supreme leader called the U.S. president a criminal responsible for the deaths of protesters during the latest unrest in the country. – Wall Street Journal
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the longest serving leader in the Middle East, faces an existential choice if he wants to preserve his rule and the theocracy that has governed Iran for nearly 50 years. – Wall Street Journal
Iran may lift its internet blackout in a few days, a senior parliament member said on Monday, after authorities shut communications while they used massive force to crush protests in the worst domestic unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. – Reuters
The Munich Security Conference, one of the world’s top security forums, said on Friday it was withdrawing an invitation to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi after the Tehran government’s crackdown on protests across Iran this week. – Reuters
Top Iranian officials called for “leniency and compassion” for some of the protesters arrested during the latest wave of unrest, despite a pledge from the police to continue cracking down on dissenters. – Bloomberg
Two protesters, including a child, say they were sexually assaulted by Iranian security forces who detained them in Kermanshah, the France-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) reported. – Jerusalem Post
A senior Iranian diplomat, who was previously based at the United Nations’ headquarters in Geneva, has left his post to apply for asylum in Switzerland, Iran International reported on Sunday. – Jerusalem Post
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar spoke with European Union officials to discuss the designation of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization on Friday, amid the Iranian government’s violent crackdown on anti-regime protests. – Jerusalem Post
Iranian authorities plan to permanently seal the country off from the internet, and limit all but a select few citizens to a much narrower national network, both at home and abroad, according to a report from Filterwatch, an organization that tracks internet censorship in Iran. – Times of Israel
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned Sunday that any attempt to target the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would amount to a declaration of war. His comments, quoted by The Guardian, came amid speculation that US President Donald Trump is considering an effort to assassinate or remove Khamenei. – Arutz Sheva
Iran’s top police officer issued an ultimatum on Monday to protesters who joined what authorities have deemed “riots,” saying they must hand themselves in within three days or face the full force of the law. – Agence France-Presse
But The Sunday Times has obtained a new report from doctors on the ground, which says at least 16,500 protesters have died and 330,000 have been injured, most of them in two days of utter slaughter in the most brutal crackdown by the clerical regime in its 47-year existence. – The Times
Editorial: Mr. Trump gave Iran every chance to cut a deal but was rebuffed. Even after the June bombing of its nuclear sites, the regime won’t budge on nuclear ambitions or regional aggression. It wants to continue its forever war. Iran’s bloody record since 1979 underscores that it is a revolutionary regime rooted in Shiite extremism that wants to dominate the Middle East, destroy Israel and kill Americans. There are prudential questions on the best ways to help topple the regime. But helping the Iranian people end this regime is the right goal that would make America and the world safer. – Wall Street Journal
Michael Doran writes: The system also pulls the U.A.E. into China’s economic orbit, binding an American ally to a financial architecture that serves Beijing’s interests. Mr. Trump grasped this logic when he cut China off from Venezuelan oil. That same logic applies here. After years of tightening sanctions, the U.S. has reached a point where financial action against Iran can finally have some bite. Moving now against the regime’s offshore cash would enforce existing legal mechanisms while raising the price on dictatorship. – Wall Street Journal
Melik Kaylan writes: As for Beijing losing investments and oil supplies from both Venezuela and Iran simultaneously, expect a sharp reaction from China. Already, unverified reports claim that Chinese tech is behind the disabling of Starlink’s contacts with the revolt. Meanwhile, nobody outside Iran is providing arms to the populace as the regime mows them down mercilessly. For the sake of regional and world peace, the best option may be to help secession happen and thereby take a downsized Iran, freed from a murderous regime, off the geopolitical chessboard entirely. – Wall Street Journal
Abbas Milani writes: Authoritarian regimes do not fall when they are exposed as cruel. Cruelty is their currency. They fall when they are exposed as fragile. The Islamic Republic may still rule by force and it may succeed in crushing this round of dissent, but it is losing its weapon of fear, the very heart of its power. It will not go on forever. – New York Times
Alex Vatanka writes: It will be whether the movement inside Iran can persist under repression and blackout, and whether fractures emerge within the ruling system that make continued violence unsustainable. Alongside that, a determining factor will be whether those seeking change can shift from competing for attention to building credibility: a shared vision, minimal unity and a transition story capable of defeating the regime’s two most powerful tools – fear and darkness. – USA Today
Karim Sadjadpour writes: Trump appears relaxed about the fate of Iran. Yet the machinery of war is already in motion: The USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier, is reportedly en route to the Middle East. Given their violent history with Trump, Iran’s leaders know they cannot rest easily. After Trump’s first term, one of his Cabinet secretaries reportedly quipped that whereas Henry Kissinger had cultivated the “madman theory” to convince adversaries of President Richard Nixon’s volatile unpredictability, Trump’s version was unintentional. With Nixon, it was a strategy, the former official said. With Trump, all foreign leaders had to do was watch CNN. – The Atlantic
Russia and Ukraine
Ukrainian troops had killed the rest of his crew several hours earlier, bombing them from drones as they crawled out of a defunct gas pipeline in Kupyansk, searching for a way into the center of this battleground city in northeastern Ukraine that Russia falsely claims to control. – Washington Post
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s credibility at home and abroad is crumbling in the eyes of President Donald Trump, Moscow’s key allies and Russia’s pro-war community who are growing more incensed by a seeming forever war in Ukraine, according to analysts. – Washington Post
In mid-December, as negotiations to end Russia’s war in Ukraine gathered pace, a group of Ukrainian officials sat in a conference room in New York for a meeting with senior executives at BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager. – New York Times
A recent combat video from Ukraine features what military analysts call a Russian “Frankenstein tank,” surrounded by a protective shell of roughly welded metal plates. The tank survives two dozen drone strikes before a last one ignites it and forces the crew to evacuate amid a hail of shellfire. – New York Times
President Vladimir Putin is mediating in the Iran situation to try to quickly de-escalate tensions, the Kremlin said on Friday, after the Russian leader spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. – Reuters
Russia launched a combined drone and missile attack on Ukraine early on Tuesday, knocking out power and heating supplies to thousands of apartment buildings in Kyiv amid freezing temperatures, Ukrainian officials said. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the Russian attacks cut heating supplies to 5,635 multi-storey residential apartment buildings. – Reuters
Ukraine will face enormous challenges to organise its first elections since Russia’s 2022 invasion, with its infrastructure shattered and millions of people displaced by war, the country’s election chief said. – Reuters
Russia is watching with glee as U.S. President Donald Trump’s drive to acquire Greenland widens splits with Europe even though his moves could have serious security ramifications for Moscow, which covets its own presence in the Arctic. – Reuters
Ukraine’s top negotiator Rustem Umerov said on Sunday that talks with U.S. officials on a resolution of the nearly four-year-old war with Russia would continue at the World Economic Forum opening this week in the Swiss resort of Davos. – Reuters
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy Kirill Dmitriev will travel to the Swiss resort of Davos this week and hold meetings with members of the U.S. delegation on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, two sources with knowledge of the visit told Reuters on condition of anonymity. – Reuters
Russian Security Council deputy chairman Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday that 422,704 people had signed contracts with the Russian Armed Forces last year, state news agencies reported. – Reuters
Russian troops took control of the village of Zakitne in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region and Olenokostiantynivka in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, the Defence Ministry said on Friday. – Reuters
China has stopped imports of electric power supplies from Russia, Kommersant newspaper reported on Friday, citing sources familiar with the situation and high prices, while Russia said it was ready to resume sales and talks were taking place. – Reuters
Ukrainian drone strikes damaged energy networks in Russia-occupied parts of southern Ukraine, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power on Sunday, according to Kremlin-installed authorities there. – Associated Press
US President Donald Trump confirmed that he invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to join a proposed Board of Peace for Gaza. Trump responded “yes” when asked if he extended the invitation in a briefing with reporters late on Monday in Florida. – Bloomberg
Ukrainian authorities are pressing ahead with a tax on self-employed entrepreneurs, one of the most contentious policies demanded by the International Monetary Fund to unlock more than $8 billion in wartime financing. – Bloomberg
Constant airstrikes by Kremlin forces are undermining “even the small opportunities for dialogue” between Kyiv and Moscow, said President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. – Bloomberg
Marc Champion writes: This is why European plans to deploy a stabilization force in Ukraine seem unreal, even as Trump’s envoys are hosted by Moscow. It would also explain why Trump on Wednesday told Reuters — and has said again and again since taking office last year — that he sees Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, not Putin, as the main obstacle to peace. The implication is that Trump aims to sideline Europe and pressure Zelenskiy into a deal giving Putin what he wants. I sincerely hope to be proved wrong. – Bloomberg
Hezbollah
After American forces seized Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, Secretary of State Marco Rubio cast the Latin American country as a regional platform for Iranian influence, and accused the government of hosting Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group. – New York Times
Israeli strikes in several areas of southern Lebanon on Monday targeted Hezbollah infrastructure, including rocket launching sites, the Israel Defense Forces said. – Times of Israel
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem has declared that the terror group will not give up its weapons, warning that such a move would mean “the end of Lebanon.” According to Qassem, Hezbollah is prepared to pay additional prices in order to preserve its military capabilities. – Arutz Sheva
Hanin Ghaddar writes: In addition to these immediate steps, President Trump could offer to host President Aoun in Washington once Beirut successfully implements phase 2. Conversely, if Lebanese military units do not expand their activities north of the Litani soon, Washington should be prepared to suspend aspects of its security assistance to the LAF, and signal that continued stalling would put the entire assistance package in danger of cancellation. – Washington Institute
Syria
Syria’s president forced major concessions from the U.S.-backed Kurdish-led militia that has dominated the northeast of his country, after launching a lightning offensive to seize strategic assets from the group and announcing a cease-fire. – Wall Street Journal
Senior U.S. officials are concerned that a new Syrian military offensive against Kurdish forces could expand into a broader campaign against the U.S.-backed militia, threatening to destabilize Syria and further divide two crucial U.S. security partners fighting Islamic State. – Wall Street Journal
In Syria, the destruction from 13 years of war has become part of the landscape. There is barely a town or city undamaged, or a community untouched, in the sprawling country of 23 million. – New York Times
Syria’s Interior Ministry said on Tuesday that about 120 Islamic State detainees escaped from Shaddadi prison, after the Kurdish website Rudaw reported that a spokesperson for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, Farhad Shami, said around 1,500 Islamic State members had escaped. – Reuters
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said on Monday that Turkish drones struck Syria’s far northeastern city of Hasaka, but Turkish security sources said the report was not true. – Reuters
Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa has cancelled his visit to Berlin on Monday and Tuesday, a German government spokesperson told Reuters. Al-Sharaa had been scheduled to meet with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Talks with German business leaders were also planned. – Reuters
Lebanon has arrested a Syrian national who was helping senior associates of ousted president Bashar al-Assad finance fighters as part of a plot to destabilise Syria’s new ruling order, four sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday. – Reuters
Yemen
The Trump administration issued fresh sanctions on Friday further targeting the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen and the transfer of oil products, weapons and other so-called dual-use equipment that it said helped fund the group. – Reuters
The U.N. warned on Monday that the humanitarian situation in Yemen is worsening and that gains made to tackle malnutrition and health would go into reverse due to funding cuts. – Reuters
The Saudi-backed Yemeni government accused the United Arab Emirates on Monday of running a secret prison at an airbase near the south Yemeni port city of Mukalla, an allegation denied by Abu Dhabi. – Reuters
Yemeni politicians met Sunday in Saudi Arabia’s capital in their first public gathering since a southern separatist group backed by the United Arab Emirates was disbanded following weeks of clashes. – Associated Press
A Houthi-run court in Yemen’s capital Sanaa on Monday confirmed death sentences for nine Yemenis convicted of espionage, Xinhua reported, citing the Houthi‑controlled al‑Masirah TV channel. – Arutz Sheva
Neville Teller writes: The UN is now reduced to issuing ineffective, if well-intentioned, aspirations for Yemen’s future. On December 22, the Security Council published a statement reaffirming its support for the efforts of the UN special envoy, and its “strong commitment to the unity, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Yemen, and to the Presidential Leadership Council and the government of Yemen.” Small comfort to the struggling, poverty-stricken, and battle-weary Yemenis. – Jerusalem Post
Middle East & North Africa
Turkey’s pro-Kurdish DEM Party said on Monday that the Turkish government had no more “excuses” to delay a peace process with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) now that a landmark integration deal was achieved in neighbouring Syria. – Reuters
U.S. forces have withdrawn from Iraq’s Ain al-Asad Airbase, which housed U.S.-led forces in Western Iraq, and the Iraqi army has assumed full control, the Iraqi defence ministry said on Saturday. – Reuters
Jordan’s foreign ministry said on Sunday that King Abdullah received an invitation from U.S. President Donald Trump to join the so-called “Board of Peace” for Gaza. The foreign ministry said it was currently reviewing related documents within the country’s internal legal procedures. – Reuters
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said he valued an offer by U.S. President Donald Trump to mediate a dispute over Nile River waters between Egypt and Ethiopia. – Reuters
Morocco’s King Mohammed VI has accepted US President Donald Trump’s invitation to join his new “Board of Peace” as a founding member, the Moroccan foreign ministry announced Monday. – Arutz Sheva
Paul Bachow writes: Saudi Arabia’s words have long been reassuring. Its actions now tell a different story. The West must stop treating Riyadh as a trusted partner based on promises and begin evaluating it based on its increasingly clear alignment with Islamist and anti‑Western blocs. – Jewish News Syndicate
Korean Peninsula
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Tuesday that there appeared to be a loophole in his country’s monitoring system to detect drones operated by civilians flying into North Korea, warning that such incidents risked inflaming tensions. – Reuters
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni agreed on Monday to expand cooperation in sectors such as artificial intelligence, aerospace, chips and critical minerals, according to the Blue House. – Reuters
South Korea will seek favourable terms for U.S. tariffs on imports of memory chips, a presidential office spokesperson said at a televised briefing on Sunday. – Reuters
South Korea’s planned investment of $350 billion in strategic U.S. sectors under a trade deal is unlikely to kick off in the first half of 2026, Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol said, meaning the weak won currency should not face major new dollar outflows. – Reuters
Editorial: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung visited China over four days this month and couldn’t convince Xi to reiterate China’s support for a nuclear-free Korean peninsula. But Lee said freezing Pyongyang’s nukes at the current number and halting future ballistic missile tests “would already be a gain.” The best course is candor. If Washington is ready to shift its posture from denuclearization to “freeze and cap,” it would be helpful to say so plainly, acknowledge the risks and coordinate closely with allies. It should also work to ensure some concessions from North Korea in return. Silence is not sustainable. – Washington Post
Richard Weitz writes: Other Asian governments face the same challenge as the Lee administration: how to balance the imperative of dealing with an increasingly assertive and economically preeminent China with their interest in sustaining economic and security ties with the United States and its allies. Lee has thus far adroitly juggled South Korea’s diverse interests through pragmatism and multi-vector diplomacy. But the viability of this strategy will be sorely tested if Sino-U.S. relations undergo a renewed downturn over trade, Taiwan, North Korea, or the many other policy differences between Beijing and Washington. – China-US Focus
China
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has directed relentless purges to assert a degree of autocratic control unseen in China in decades, with Communist Party enforcers punishing nearly a million people last year. But when it comes to getting things done, he still wants more commitment to his agenda. – Wall Street Journal
China quietly mobilized thousands of fishing boats twice in recent weeks to form massive floating barriers of at least 200 miles long, showing a new level of coordination that could give Beijing more ways to impose control in contested seas. – New York Times
China’s foreign ministry on Monday called on the European Union not to hurt enterprises’ confidence in investing there following an FT report of a move to phase out Chinese suppliers from key EU infrastructure. – Reuters
An explosion at a steel plate factory in China’s northern region of Inner Mongolia on Sunday killed six people, and rescue efforts were underway as four remained missing, state-run news agency Xinhua reported on Monday. – Reuters
China’s military said it had followed and monitored the transit of guided-missile destroyer USS Finn and oceanographic survey ship USNS Mary Sears through the Taiwan Strait on January 16 and 17, it said on an official WeChat account Saturday. – Reuters
A Chinese reconnaissance drone briefly flew over the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands at the top end of the South China Sea on Saturday, in what Taiwan’s defence ministry called a “provocative and irresponsible” move. – Reuters
A lawyer for a Chinese captain of a Hong Kong-registered ship alleged to have damaged undersea cables in the Baltic Sea said on Tuesday 18 witnesses would be called to testify in the case. – Reuters
Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, the nation’s economic czar and top trade negotiator, is scheduled to meet with a group of global CEOs while attending the World Economic Forum, according to a person familiar with the matter. – Bloomberg
China has been offered to join Donald Trump’s proposed Board of Peace for Gaza, as the US president heads to Davos to advance his plan for the Palestinian enclave. – Bloomberg
Editorial: Foreign economists want Beijing to build a bigger welfare state to encourage more household spending. But without reforms to unlock productivity in the private economy, a bigger government welfare bill will keep piling up public debt. China needs what President Xi Jinping is unlikely ever to grant: a freer market that unleashes the entrepreneurship of ordinary Chinese people. China could grow much faster if Beijing would let it. – Wall Street Journal
Editorial: Make no mistake: The press release wasn’t for the press. It is directed at President Trump—a warning not to push for Mr. Lai’s freedom when Mr. Trump travels to Beijing in April. It’s also aimed at British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who is visiting Beijing at the end of this month. In his news release about his looming trip to Britain, Mr. Johnson said “the true source” of British and American strength “comes from our shared commitment to individual freedom, human dignity and the rule of law.” Well said. If the Speaker mentions Jimmy Lai in his address to Parliament, as we hope he will, he will deserve a rousing ovation. – Wall Street Journal
Nicholas Kristof writes: Given the stakes, a top priority for American foreign policy must be deterring China without provoking China. Deterrence means working with Taiwan, Japan and others to achieve a common front not just against an invasion but also against gray zone pressures. If deterrence failed and a war actually erupted, then it obviously would be better to win than to lose, but this might be a case where, as President John F. Kennedy once put it, “even the fruits of victory would be ashes in our mouth.” – New York Times
South Asia
India signed a $3 billion deal on Monday to buy liquefied natural gas from the United Arab Emirates, making it the UAE’s top customer, as the leaders of both countries held talks to strengthen trade and defence ties. – Reuters
India’s central bank has proposed that BRICS countries link their official digital currencies to make cross-border trade and tourism payments easier, two sources said, which could reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar as geopolitical tensions rise. – Reuters
India’s Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL.NS), is exploring purchases of Venezuelan oil as it halts imports of Russian oil to comply with Western sanctions, its head of finance Devendra Kumar said on Monday. – Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump has invited India to join his “Board of Peace” initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts, according to a White House statement on Sunday, shared in a post on X, by Washington’s ambassador to New Delhi, Sergio Gor. – Reuters
The 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations will not send observers to army-ruled Myanmar’s ongoing three-stage election and will therefore not endorse the poll, Malaysia’s foreign minister said on Tuesday. – Reuters
In the dull glow of a single bulb lighting their tent on the outskirts of Kabul, Samiullah and his wife Bibi Rehana sit down to dry bread and tea, their only meal of the day, accompanied by their five children and three-month-old grandchild. – Reuters
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has received U.S. President Donald Trump’s invitation to join the Board of Peace for Gaza, a spokesperson for Pakistan’s ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement. – Reuters
Myanmar told the United Nations’ top court on Friday that Gambia had not proven its accusation that the Myanmar government had committed genocide against the minority Muslim Rohingya, part of a hearing on the landmark case. – Reuters
Pakistani security forces killed at least 12 militants and thwarted an attempted hostage-taking in southwestern Pakistan after assailants attacked a police station, the military said Friday. – Associated Press
Myanmar’s military-backed political party extended its lead after the second round of voting, official figures from the country’s election body showed Friday, leaving it on track for a parliamentary majority as the country heads into the final phase of its three-stage general election amid widespread conflict. – Associated Press
Asia
Sanae Takaichi, Japan’s prime minister, said on Monday that she would dissolve Parliament and call a snap election, in a bid to strengthen her power and revive the sagging fortunes of her party. – New York Times
China has initiated construction of a new natural resource development structure in the East China Sea between China and Japan, the Japanese foreign ministry said in a statement on Friday, adding it has lodged a “strong protest” with China. – Reuters
In an address to the Communist Party congress that will decide his political future, Vietnam’s top leader To Lam on Tuesday pledged annual economic growth of more than 10% for the remainder of the decade, despite global headwinds. – Reuters
Australia’s lower house of parliament has passed new laws for a national gun buyback, tighter background checks for gun licences and a crackdown on hate crimes, in response to the country’s worst mass shooting in decades at a Jewish festival last month. – Reuters
A lawyer filed an impeachment complaint against Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Monday, accusing him of betraying public trust by allowing his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte to be arrested and taken to The Hague to face trial. – Reuters
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev will join the “Board of Peace” proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, their press secretaries said on Monday. – Reuters
The procurement decisions of the Malaysian armed forces and the police linked to a corruption probed will be temporarily frozen until they fully comply with related rules, state media reported, citing Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. – Reuters
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced Monday the discovery of a new natural gas deposit near the disputed South China Sea, which could shield his country from a potential power crisis. – Associated Press
Former Thai leader Abhisit Vejjajiva expects to play a kingmaker’s role in any coalition that seeks to rule the Southeast Asian nation after next month’s election, pitching an agenda of “clean politics” to tackle systemic corruption and dismantle cyber scam operations. – Bloomberg
China doesn’t hold the solution for Canada’s economic issues and isn’t a trustworthy partner, Taiwan’s top representative to Ottawa said following Prime Minister Mark Carney’s tariff deal with Xi Jinping. – Bloomberg
Gearoid Reidy writes: In the prime minister, the opposition is battling one of the most media-savvy and popular politicians in Japan in a generation. There is room for a centrist, left-leaning bloc relevant to today’s voters; a strong alternative to keep the ruling party honest, even with just the risk of losing power, would also be welcomed. But the alliance must do what its predecessors did not, and present a compelling alternative vision that is more than stubborn opposition to the LDP and vague promises for a better economy. If not, it risks being seen, especially by younger voters, less as centrist — and more as merely mid. – Bloomberg
Europe
President Trump’s demands that Denmark hand over Greenland to the U.S. or risk a trade war and possible military action is confronting Europe with the unthinkable: Its major ally for more than 70 years has turned into one of its most urgent threats. – Wall Street Journal
Denmark dispatched additional troops to Greenland on Monday as President Trump added a new dimension to his pursuit of the Danish island, telling Norway that he no longer needed to think “purely of peace” after not winning the Nobel Peace Prize. – Wall Street Journal
European Union ambassadors met in Brussels on Sunday to weigh whether to retaliate against Washington after President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on eight countries unless they acquiesce to his push to acquire Greenland. – Washington Post
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu of France said on Monday that he would push through the country’s long-awaited budget without a vote in the lower house of Parliament, leading opposition lawmakers to announce largely symbolic plans to topple his minority government with a vote of no confidence. – New York Times
Greece plans to extend its territorial waters further, including potentially in the Aegean Sea, Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis said on Friday, despite Turkey’s long-standing threat of war should Athens take such a step. – Reuters
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called on Monday for calm discussion to avert a possible trade war with the United States over Greenland, appealing to President Donald Trump to respect alliances such as NATO rather than undermine them. – Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Denmark has not been able to do anything to get the “Russian threat” away from Greenland, and said, “Now it is time, and it will be done!!!” – Reuters
Five men have been charged in Poland with taking part in a Russian-run sabotage plot to send explosive parcels to Britain, the U.S., Canada and other destinations, and will face life sentences if convicted, prosecutors said on Friday. – Reuters
Top officials from the EU and the South American bloc Mercosur signed a free trade agreement on Saturday in Paraguay, paving the way for the European Union’s largest-ever trade accord after 25 years of negotiations. – Reuters
The UK appeared to lay the groundwork for approving China’s new embassy in London on the eve of a controversial decision that risks driving a deeper wedge both within the ruling Labour party and with the US administration. – Bloomberg
Kosovo’s election commission on Monday ordered a full recount of votes from last month’s snap elections after discrepancies were found in results for individual candidates in some municipalities. – Bloomberg
France is seeking to convene a meeting of Group of Seven finance chiefs as soon Wednesday to discuss US President Donald Trump’s threat to hit allies with additional tariffs for opposing his bid to annex Greenland. – Bloomberg
Giorgia Meloni is positioning herself as mediator between Europe and President Donald Trump over Greenland, suggesting the US may have misinterpreted European moves to send troops to the Arctic island. – Bloomberg
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was invited to join the Board of Peace for Gaza being set up by US President Donald Trump to oversee the reconstruction of the Palestinian enclave, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Sunday. – Bloomberg
The European Commission this week formally proposed a €90 billion ($104.4 billion) loan package for Ukraine spanning 2026 and 2027, with a novel condition that Kyiv must prioritize purchasing weapons and military equipment from European manufacturers. – Defense News
Editorial: The West is in the process of a diplomatic and economic hedging operation against Mr. Trump’s might-makes-right diplomacy. Whether or not Mr. Trump believes it, the U.S. needs friends in the world. He seems to think that if he captures Greenland, history will remember him as another Thomas Jefferson (Louisiana purchase) or William Seward (Alaska). The cost of his afflatus to U.S. interests will be greater than he imagines. – Wall Street Journal
Marc Champion writes: Until the two world wars, buying and grabbing territory from other states was common. None other than Denmark sold its possessions in the Caribbean – now the US Virgin Islands – in 1917. It’s thanks to the Cold War and US dominance thereafter that it hasn’t happened as much since. Europe, sadly, isn’t strong enough to go on holding that ring now the US itself is determined to break it. – Bloomberg
Becket Adams writes: We’re to believe these same countries would skip negotiation and diplomacy and jump straight into a shooting war with the world’s leading nuclear superpower, all for mere rhetoric? Come on. These deployments are a negotiating tactic. Denmark and her friends are putting on a show meant to drive up the price tag for Greenland. Bank on it. Members of the press might not realize what Denmark is doing, but I suspect a certain U.S. real estate mogul does. – The Hill
Africa
South Africa’s defence ministry has launched a probe into Iran’s participation in the BRICS+ naval exercises held near Cape Town this week, after reports that President Cyril Ramaphosa had asked Iran to withdraw to avoid antagonizing the United States. – Reuters
Congolese soldiers and combatants from a pro-government militia have re-entered the eastern town of Uvira, residents said on Monday, just over a month after it fell to Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in a blow to peace efforts mediated by the Trump administration. – Reuters
Central African Republic’s Constitutional Court on Monday validated President Faustin-Archange Touadera’s victory in a disputed December 28 presidential election that handed him a third term. – Reuters
Ugandan authorities partially restored internet services late on Saturday after 81-year-old President Yoweri Museveni won a seventh term to extend his rule into a fifth decade with a landslide victory rejected by the opposition. – Reuters
Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine’s party said he was taken by the army from his house and brought to an unknown location on Friday as President Yoweri Museveni closed in on a landslide reelection. – Reuters
South Sudan’s main opposition faction called on its forces on Monday to advance on the capital Juba after they captured a strategic town last week. – Reuters
Nigerian air force strikes destroyed about 10 canoes and killed more than 40 militants preparing attacks in Borno state, the military said late on Sunday, in the latest in a series of operations targeting groups around Lake Chad. – Reuters
Thousands of people in Nigeria’s strife-torn northeast are facing the risk of catastrophic food shortages for the first time in nearly a decade, as aid cuts deepen malnutrition across the region, the U.N. World Food Programme warned on Friday. – Reuters
The executive board of the International Monetary Fund completed the latest review of Ethiopia’s current financial program on Friday, the fund said in a statement, a move that will lead to the disbursement of around $261 million to the government. – Reuters
Mozambican President Daniel Chapo canceled a trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos after the worst flooding in decades in the southeast African nation killed more than 100 people and damaged or destroyed tens of thousands of homes. – Bloomberg
Guinea’s former military leader Mamadi Doumbouya has been sworn in as president for a seven-year term, marking a return to constitutional order in the West African nation four years after a putsch. – Bloomberg
Ehud Yaari writes: If the Trump administration decides to accept the fait accompli of Somaliland’s independence and recognize the republic, this may encourage more countries to adopt a different approach to the chronic crisis in the Horn of Africa. To be sure, this decision would carry the risk (or, in some eyes, the benefit) of fracturing Washington’s troubled relations with Somalia. Yet when it comes to staving off al-Shabab and other security threats, Mogadishu has no alternative to the counterterrorism assistance provided by U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), so it may not be willing to sever this relationship regardless of what happens with Somaliland. – Washington Institute
The Americas
During President Trump’s first term, Delcy Rodríguez was a pariah. The administration sanctioned Rodríguez, then vice president to autocrat Nicolás Maduro, citing corruption and mismanagement that left the country’s economy in tatters. She oversaw the intelligence agency that rounded up and tortured dissidents. – Wall Street Journal
During a dozen years under Maduro, Venezuela’s socialist state detained thousands of political prisoners. When U.S. special operators captured him on Jan. 3, the legal aid group Foro Penal says, at least 800 remained in custody without trial or access to an attorney. – Washington Post
Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro, a stalwart leftist, has promised to achieve peace settlements with armed groups that have kept the country in a near-constant state of conflict for more than half a century. – New York Times
At least 27 members of a leftist guerrilla group in Colombia were killed in clashes with a rival faction in a fight over control of a jungle area in central Colombia, military authorities reported on Sunday. – Reuters
Colombia on Friday launched a $1.68 billion project to develop a so-called anti-drone shield to protect the country from attacks by unmanned drones operated by illegal armed groups, the defense minister said. – Reuters
Venezuelan human rights group Foro Penal said on Saturday that it has confirmed the release of 139 political prisoners in Venezuela since January 8. – Reuters
Meghan L. O’Sullivan writes: If the Trump administration does not want to find itself in the same position, it should intensify its regional and global consultations on Venezuela. Although the impulse to handle the situation unilaterally is strong, actors in the region and beyond have huge stakes in Venezuela’s future. Bringing them in now will yield large payoffs later on […] Every U.S. president should not have to grasp the same lessons anew. It is not too late for Trump to learn from Iraq so that he does not need to answer a question about Venezuela the same way at the end of his presidency. – Foreign Affairs
North America
Prime Minister Mark Carney hailed a “new strategic partnership” and tariff deals with China on Friday, capping a visit to Beijing aimed at resetting a deeply troubled relationship and diversifying trade away from the United States amid President Donald Trump’s tariffs and threats against Canada’s sovereignty. – Washington Post
The Guatemalan government declared a state of emergency on Sunday to crack down on gang violence, in response to a surge of unrest in recent days that has included uprisings at prisons and the killing of eight police officers. – New York Times
With the Trump administration exerting control over Venezuela’s oil industry, Cuba is receiving only a trickle of the oil it needs — a shortage experts warn is increasingly likely to trigger a humanitarian crisis unlike any the country has ever experienced. – New York Times
Canada is considering whether to send a small contingent of troops to Greenland to take part in NATO military exercises, a source directly familiar with the matter said on Monday. – Reuters
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Friday that efforts to crack down on Mexican cartels and slow migration north were showing “compelling results” in an effort to head off intervention talk by the Trump administration. – Associated Press
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney says while he’s accepted Donald Trump’s invitation on principle to join the president’s “Board of Peace” to oversee next steps in Gaza, it’s just unclear now what the $1 billion permanent membership fee is for. – Politico
Jeffrey Scott Shapiro writes: Congress passed the Cuban Adjustment Act because the U.S. recognizes the cruel oppression taking place on the communist island. Mr. Trump has echoed these sentiments when visiting Miami and often depicts himself as a champion of those who risked their lives to seek freedom in the U.S. Giving those Cubans with an I-220A a fair chance to adjust under the 1966 law would be a heroic gesture—and send an unmistakable message that this administration stands against communism and with the exile community, where America belongs. – Wall Street Journal
United States
Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Caracas on Thursday to meet with acting President Delcy Rodríguez, in the first known visit by a senior U.S. official to Venezuela since U.S. Special Forces captured strongman Nicolás Maduro earlier this month. – Wall Street Journal
President Trump has threatened 200% tariffs on French wines and champagnes to push French President Emmanuel Macron to join his peace board for Gaza. Trump announced the Gaza Board of Peace last year as part of the cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas. – Wall Street Journal
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he had a “very good” telephone call with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte concerning Greenland. Trump also said he had agreed to a meeting of various parties in Davos, Switzerland, at the World Economic Forum. He did not specify who the various parties were. – Reuters
The U.S. government is not currently considering using Venezuelan oil in an exchange with U.S. oil companies to refill the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the Department of Energy said on Friday. – Reuters
Trump administration officials said on Friday that Canada would regret its decision to allow China to import up to 49,000 Chinese EVs, and that those cars would not be allowed to enter the United States. – Reuters
Wolfgang Ischinger writes: The Greenland issue does not have to become a rupture. Handled wisely, it could instead become another example of NATO’s enduring strengths: consultation, compromise and collective problem-solving. The alliance has survived other crises — precisely because members chose dialogue over confrontation. It is not too late to do so again. – New York Times
Sebastien Levi writes: In 2026, Mississippi is burning again, and the antisemitic fire that consumed the Jackson synagogue – is very much alive – is even more dangerous than it was in the 1960s, when it was part of a political battle that Jews were proud to fight. Today, it comes from all sides, whipped by gusts and a foul wind that make it uncontrollable, despite the goodwill of law enforcement, politicians, and educators – firefighters largely powerless, in the United States and everywhere else in the world. – Jerusalem Post
Liza Tobin and Addis Goldman write: Washington is still haunted by the same dilemma that confronted Clinton: tactical concessions cannot buy durable cooperation. Instead, they merely invite exploitation. Stability with a communist dictatorship is a fantasy. Breaking the cycle requires building leverage and resilience that Beijing cannot switch off at will. – Foreign Affairs
Cybersecurity
Britain is considering a range of measures to better protect children online, including an Australian-style ban on social media for those below a certain age and tougher guidance for use of mobile phones in schools, it said on Monday. – Reuters
British and Chinese security officials established a forum to discuss cyberattacks following a spate of hacking accusations that soured relations between the two countries. – Bloomberg
Iran is 10 days into one of the most extreme internet shutdowns in history, with 92 million citizens cut off from all internet services and even disruption to phone and text messaging. The Iranian government cut off services on 8 January, apparently to stifle dissent and prevent international scrutiny of a government crack down on protesters. – BBC
Access to Google has been restored across Iran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-linked Tasnim News Agency reported on Sunday. – Jerusalem Post
Cyber attacks on the U.K. noticeably dropped off during the recent protests in Iran, a senior British defense executive has reported. – Defense News
The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) confirmed on Friday that approximately 750,000 investors were impacted by a cyber incident last year. – The Record
Defense
A U.S. Navy veteran, who was reportedly sailing in international waters until Russian authorities forced him to dock his yacht with a firearm onboard, has been sentenced to five years in prison for smuggling weapons, court officials announced Monday. – Fox News
The U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy have sealed a deal with L3Harris Technologies for 34 large T7 robots to support the services in explosive ordnance disposal missions. – Defense News
A pair of U.S. naval vessels carried out Washington’s first reported Taiwan Strait transit of 2026, according to Chinese and U.S. officials. – USNI News
The Marine Corps is ramping up new training courses with plans to field 10,000 small drones and equip its ground combat teams with the unmanned aircraft systems by the end of the year. – USNI News
Anatoly Motkin writes: In an era of mass and attrition, Ukraine has built the world’s most agile, cost-effective, and combat-tested production system for war-winning weaponry. The United States now has the opportunity — and, frankly, the obligation — to plug that ecosystem directly into its own forces before competitors do. Speed replaces process. The Ukrainian defense industry is ready. The only question is whether America’s acquisition system is. – Center for European Policy Analysis
Long War
A British teenager who praised the killer of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance event and said he planned to bomb an Oasis reunion concert was sentenced to 14 months’ detention on Friday for possession of an al Qaeda manual. – Reuters
U.S. military forces on Friday killed an al Qaeda affiliate leader linked to an Islamic State attack on Americans in Syria last month, U.S. Central Command said in a statement on Saturday. – Reuters
Islamic State claimed responsibility on Monday for an attack on a Chinese-run restaurant in a hotel in Kabul. An explosion tore through the restaurant in a heavily guarded part of Afghanistan’s capital on Monday, killing a Chinese national and six Afghans and injuring several others, including a child, officials said. – Reuters
A Norwegian court on Friday found an Islamist man guilty of orchestrating a deadly shooting at a gay bar during Oslo’s 2022 Pride celebrations, sentencing him to the country’s maximum term of 30 years in prison. – Reuters
Iraq’s Counter‑Terrorism Service (CTS) announced Sunday that its forces arrested three Islamic State (ISIS) terrorists in intelligence‑driven raids carried out in Anbar and Sulaymaniyah provinces, the Xinhua news agency reported. – Arutz Sheva
Argentine President Javier Milei on Saturday signed a decree formally proscribing the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), along with 13 individuals linked to its overseas operations, as a terrorist group. – Arutz Sheva
Argentina has formally designated branches of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan as terrorist organizations, President Javier Milei’s office announced, according to UPI. – Arutz Sheva