Who is calling the shots in Iran?
The answer points unmistakably to the hardline Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its leader, Ahmad Vahidi
The US counterterrorism czar without a counterterrorism plan
Bad timing, when the Iran war has locked the Trump administration into a showdown with a sophisticated state sponsor of terrorism
Japan’s Takaichi chooses guns over butter — at her peril
Takaichi increasingly focused on constitutional reform and remilitarization, neither of which will fix Japan’s many economic ills
China’s drone-laid mines aim to trap US in a Taiwan war
Minelaying drones could turn Taiwan’s waters into a chokehold, denying access, disrupting intervention and forcing costly responses
Next, an Iran nuclear deal with Chinese characteristics
Signatory to the JCPOA and a country already helping Iran with weapons and finance, China could lead a consortium to handle the enriched uranium
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APRIL 17, 2026
Disrupted supply chains, divided politics
- Merz’s paralysis and the EU’s anti-growth order
- Iran war tests Japan’s supply chains and crisis response
- Ukraine drone factories in Europe risk becoming Russia’s next targets
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North Korea taking its nuclear threat to the high seas
Choe Hyon destroyer missile test signals shift to more flexible sea-based nuke deterrent, offsetting submarine capability gaps
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