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  1. 01

    IRAN

    The latest.

    The US and Iran have again exchanged fire in the most intense bout of fighting in weeks, with Tehran targeting more US sites in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, and Iraq, while the US has resumed direct strikes on Iran’s mainland. Both foes are now warning they’ll escalate further. (BBC)

  2. 02

    CHINA

    Two birds, one ship.

    Beijing is rejecting US allegations that China’s state-owned shipping giant COSCO hides surveillance equipment to intercept rival military comms across Europe, North America, and Asia. The US flagged COSCO’s military links back in January 2025. (Independent)Comment: That countries spy on one another is nothing new. That they use civilian fronts as cover is also nothing new. But that doesn’t make these claims any less spicy: COSCO is one of the world’s largest liner fleets, with a hall-pass to strategic Western ports every week. The timing is interesting too, just ahead of Xi’s planned trip to the US — these kinds of pre-visit leaks can be a way to build leverage and shape the narrative.

  3. 03

    SYRIA

    Nuclear suspicions confirmed.

    It turns out the old Assad regime was indeed building a nuclear reactor in Deir el-Zour, according to a new UN report. Israeli airstrikes levelled the suspicious site back in 2007, and new IAEA verification work greenlit by Syria’s post-Assad government seems to have confirmed those fears. (AP)

  4. 04

    CUBA

    Unpaid lawyers quit.

    The regime’s London solicitors have quit a years-long UK case after going more than a year without fees. The fight is with a Cayman fund that bought defaulted 1980s Cuban loans on the cheap. Havana claims the paper was never validly assigned, and the issuing bank is no longer Cuba’s central bank, though UK judges are increasingly leaning the other way. (Bloomberg $)

  5. 05

    SOUTH KOREA

    Record budget.

    Seoul has unveiled a record $597B budget for 2027, a ~13% increase largely funded by a ~doubling of corporate tax receipts amid the AI boom. (Reuters)

  6. 06

    GERMANY

    Guess who.

    Berlin has now officially blamed Moscow for last month’s discovery of explosive-laden drones at Leipzig airport, including one near a cargo plane carrying arms for Ukraine to defend itself against Putin’s attacks. The Germans have now announced a series of retaliatory diplomatic actions, including the closure of Russia’s consulate in Bonn. (Politico)

  7. 07

    SENEGAL

    Hidden-debt hangover.

    The IMF has announced a new $2.2B, three-year deal with Senegal and is formally parking the old deal after it emerged that the previous government was under-reporting its debt. (France24)

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