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Geopolitics

Geopolitics: wars, alliances, sanctions, trade and the decisions between governments that shape the world.

1256 articles · page 14 of 27

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Geopolitics

US Vice President Vance calls for Iran to reduce uranium enrichment, softening earlier demands

United States Vice President JD Vance has called for Iran to make a meaningful reduction in its uranium enrichment capacity as part of an agreement to end the war, a demand experts say may signal a softening of Washington’s earlier insistence that Tehran abandon enrichment altogether. The comments come as the US-Israel war on Iran enters its eighth month, with hardline rhetoric from other senior US officials and growing skepticism from Tehran.

·2 min
Geopolitics

Rubio: Iran Missed Multiple Opportunities for Nuclear Deal as Talks Stall

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that Iran has passed up multiple chances to reach a deal on its nuclear program, as talks between Washington and Tehran over a lasting Middle East peace agreement remain stalled. The absence of an agreement has coincided with increased attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, where vessels now rely on U.S. military protection to navigate the critical waterway, and oil prices have moved higher following separate attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis on airports in Saudi Arabia.

·2 min
Geopolitics

Houthi rebels target airports in Yemen and Saudi Arabia as fighting intensifies

Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched ballistic missiles and explosive-laden drones at airports in Yemen and Saudi Arabia early Wednesday, escalating a conflict that has seen renewed fighting along Yemen's Red Sea coast. Yemen's Transport Ministry said a missile landed near the runway of Aden International Airport just before a flight from Cairo was due to land, forcing the aircraft to divert to Jeddah. The Saudi-led coalition reported intercepting a Houthi ballistic missile north of Riyadh, while Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed the group had targeted King Khalid International Airport with drones.

·2 min·2 sources
Geopolitics

Singapore's top diplomat warns against Iran gaining 'veto right' over Strait of Hormuz

Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan has said US President Donald Trump's suggestion that keeping the Strait of Hormuz open is Asia's problem holds some merit, but warned against allowing Iran to gain effective veto power over the critical waterway. Speaking at the Milken Institute's Asia Summit in Singapore, Balakrishnan stressed that freedom of navigation through international straits is an existential issue for the city-state.

·3 min
Geopolitics

Former German Spy Chief August Hanning Arrested for Allegedly Selling Secrets to Foreign Power

August Hanning, the 80-year-old former president of Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND), has been arrested on suspicion of espionage and treason in what could be Europe's gravest spy scandal since World War II. German prosecutors also arrested a senior BND official in a separate raid and allege the two men conspired since 2010 to sell state secrets to an undisclosed foreign intelligence service.

·2 min·3 sources
Geopolitics

Yemeni forces launch offensive to retake strategic district from Houthis

Forces aligned with Yemen's internationally recognised government have launched an operation to capture the strategic mountainous district of al-Waziiya in Taiz governorate from Houthi control. The offensive, part of the wider 'Dawn of Yemen' campaign announced Sunday, aims to retake all remaining Houthi-held territory, including the capital Sanaa. The operation came as Saudi Arabia intercepted a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis towards the city of Khamis Mushait.

·2 min
Geopolitics

Second drone attack off Bulgaria sinks ship, 16 crew rescued

A second drone attack in a week on merchant ships near Bulgaria has left one vessel sunk and another damaged. Prime Minister Rumen Radev confirmed that the Ukrainian-owned cargo ship Chelsea 3, sailing under a Maltese flag, was hit by three drones early Tuesday about 33 kilometres off Bulgaria's coast, adding that one crew member from the ship that sank was also rescued. Radev condemned the attacks as 'absolutely unacceptable' and said the Russian ambassador would be summoned.

·2 min·3 sources
Geopolitics

US Threatens Sanctions Over Sri Lanka's Aid to Stranded Iranian Tankers

The United States has warned Sri Lanka it will face sanctions if it continues supplying essential provisions to roughly 20 Iranian tankers stranded off its coast, according to a Wall Street Journal report confirmed by Sri Lankan diplomatic sources. The vessels are running short of food, fuel and fresh water, creating a humanitarian dilemma for Colombo between Washington's demands and the plight of the crews.

·2 min
Geopolitics

Strait of Hormuz oil exports surge despite wave of tanker attacks

Oil exports from the Gulf have resumed significantly despite a surge in attacks on ships around the Strait of Hormuz, with maritime intelligence firm Kpler reporting that Gulf oil flows, excluding Iran, recovered to more than 81 percent of pre-war levels in September. At least seven incidents involving tankers have been reported in the past week, according to shipping intelligence service Marisks, as shipping companies face higher freight, insurance and security costs.

·2 min
Geopolitics

Iran tanker attacks threaten fragile rebound in Strait of Hormuz oil flows

Iran has stepped up attacks on commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, threatening the fragile rebound of crude oil exports from the Persian Gulf. Nearly 20 vessels, mostly tankers, have been attacked in the past month, according to the Joint Maritime Information Center, a group of US-allied militaries. Crude shipments through the strait remain volatile, averaging about 23 percent below prewar levels even as the US military maintains a protected shipping lane along the coast of Oman.

·2 min
Geopolitics

Houthis warn against using Saudi airports after deadly Riyadh strike; Mecca Pact forces deploy

The Houthi movement has warned passengers and airlines against using Saudi airports, threatening further attacks after a strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed 12 people and wounded hundreds. The warning came as Pakistani and Turkish forces began deploying to the kingdom under the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, activated for the first time since its signing in August.

·2 min·5 sources
Geopolitics

Argentina warns it will stop Falklands oil exploitation, foreign minister tells UK ambassador

Argentina's foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, has told an audience that included the British ambassador that his government will prevent the Falkland Islands from exploiting offshore oilfields as part of a peaceful strategy to assert sovereignty over the disputed territory. Speaking at a thinktank event in Buenos Aires, Quirno condemned the UK for refusing to negotiate and for facilitating the Sea Lion oil project in the North Falkland Basin.

·2 min·2 sources
Geopolitics

Alleged terror plot near RAF Fairford deepens US, Iran tensions

Six men arrested over an alleged terror plot near the British airbase RAF Fairford have been released on bail, as Britain tries to support the United States without being drawn directly into its war with Iran. Prime Minister Andy Burnham cited strong indications of Iranian involvement; Tehran denies any role, while US President Donald Trump says Washington knows the people behind the threat and has ordered US bombers moved out of the UK.

·2 min
Geopolitics

Russian gold floods Hong Kong as sanctions redraw global bullion trade

Russian gold is flooding into Hong Kong at a record pace, with imports in the first seven months of 2026 already surpassing the previous annual record, as Western sanctions reroute bullion once bound for London toward China and other Asian markets. Hong Kong imported 112.7 tonnes of Russian-origin gold between January and July, according to precious metals investment firm BullionVault's analysis of Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department data, up from 92.1 tonnes in all of 2025 and just 3.3 tonnes in 2021.

·3 min