Following Putin. Xi Jinping Is Going to Take Over Taiwan


China’s president, Xi Jinping, has vowed to reunify China and Taiwan in his annual New Year’s Eve speech in Beijing.

Speaking the day after the conclusion of intense Chinese military drills around Taiwan, Xi said: “The reunification of our motherland, a trend of the times, is unstoppable.”

China claims Taiwan, a self-governing island, as part of its territory and has long vowed to annex it, using force if necessary.

US intelligence is increasingly concerned about the advancing capabilities of China’s armed forces to launch such an attack if Xi decides the time is right.

On Monday and Tuesday, China’s People’s Liberation Army launched live-fire military drills around Taiwan, simulating a blockade of main ports and sending its navy, air force, rocket force and coastguard to encircle Taiwan’s main island.

The drills, called “Justice Mission 2025”, came closer to Taiwan than previous exercises, and involved at least 89 warplanes, the highest tally for more than a year.

The drills were expected by analysts before the year’s end but were also connected by Chinese commentators to a recent arms approval by the US government for a record $11bn weapons sales to Taiwan.

Speaking in Beijing on Wednesday evening, Xi said China “embraced the world with open arms” and highlighted several multilateral conferences hosted by Beijing this year, including the Shanghai Cooperation Summit in August, when world leaders including Putin, India’s Narendra Modi and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, gathered in Tianjin, a port city near Beijing.

The broadcast of Xi’s speech on Chinese state media was interspersed with several shots of China’s largest ever military parade, which was held in September to mark 80 years since the end of the second world war.

During the parade, which was viewed as an unbridled display of military force, Xi, Putin and North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, stood side by side in Beijing – a geopolitical alignment that has been called the “axis of upheaval”.

Central to Xi’s vision of a new world order is the annexation of Taiwan and the support of other countries in recognising Taiwan as part of “One China” ruled by the Chinese Communist party in Beijing, something that the majority of Taiwanese people reject.

In his speech, Xi also highlighted “Taiwan Retrocession Day”, a memorial day created in 2025 to mark the anniversary of the end of Japanese imperial rule in Taiwan in 1945.

This year, Taiwan also passed a law to recognise the date, 25 October, as a national holiday. The legacy of the second world war has been a big theme in political rhetoric in China and Taiwan this year.

China has emphasised its role in defeating the Japanese in that conflict, something that China feels has been underappreciated in the west.

Taiwan’s president, Lai Ching-te, gave a punchy speech this year comparing Taiwan to European democracies in the 1930s that faced a threat from Nazi Germany.

Xi’s speech also praised China’s progress in hi-tech development this year, mentioning kickboxing robots and Tianwen-2, a comet exploration mission that launched in May.

He also flagged the global success of Chinese cultural exports, such as the video game Black Myth: Wukong and the animated film Ne Zha 2.

Earlier in the day, Xi addressed a meeting of top Chinese Communist party officials and said that China was on track to meet its 5% GDP growth target.

#putin #xi #jinping #taiwan #onechina

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The Kennedy Center Would Limit Voting to Trump-Appointed Trustees


The Kennedy Center reportedly adopted bylaws earlier this year that would limit voting to Trump-appointed trustees – a controversial move that appears to reveal the long-held plan to install Trump’s name to the center.

The bylaws, in a possible breach of the institution’s charter, were revised in May and specified that board members appointed by Congress, known as ex-officio members, could not vote or count towards a quorum, according to the Washington Post.

The new rule was in force when the board voted unanimously on 18 December to add Trump’s name to the center, rebranding the building as the Trump and the JFK Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.

The name change has since triggered a wave of protests. Artists have cancelled bookings and members of Congress have vowed to overturn the name change.

Joyce Beatty, a Democrat from Ohio, is even suing to reverse it on the grounds that changing the center’s name requires an act of Congress.

Trump took over as chair of the board in February, quickly purging sitting members, while installing his supporters – including his longtime foreign policy adviser Ric Grenell, whom he appointed as president of the center.

Grenell had been a vocal tribune of Trump’s “America First” ideology, and was not afraid to ruffle feathers during past spells as ambassador to Germany and acting director of national intelligence (he was the first openly gay person to lead the intelligence community).

Just prior to his Kennedy Center appointment, Grenell served as the president’s envoy for special missions, and was involved in securing the release of Americans detained in Venezuela.

The center lists 34 presidentially appointed board members and 23 ex-officio members, who by law must include the mayor of Washington DC, head of the library of Congress, and the majority and minority leaders of the Senate.

The federal law underpinning the center’s establishment identified ex-officio members as among the venue’s trustees, charged with maintaining it as a memorial to John F Kennedy, the Post reported.

Roma Daravi, the center’s vice-president for public relations, told the Post that the rules had been changed in line with longstanding convention that ex-officio members did not vote:

“The bylaws were revised to reflect this longstanding precedent and everyone received the technical changes both before the meeting and after revisions.”

Daravi continued: “Some members attended in person, others by phone, and no concerns were voiced, no one objected, and the bylaws passed unanimously.”

Ellen Aprill, a legal scholar at UCLA, told the paper that such voting right limits breached the center’s charter.

“Clearly the intent of the charter provisions was to entrust Kennedy Center guidance to a broad group, not just those appointed by the president,” she said.

The disclosure comes as new figures showed a sharp fall in television ratings for this year’s Kennedy Center honors awards.

A record low audience of 3.01m watched this year’s broadcast of the annual honors awards – hosted by Trump himself – when it was screened by CBS, marking a stark 25% downturn from last year.

The event included appearances from some of Trump’s favorite artists, including Gloria Gaynor, Kiss and George Strait.

As artists cancel bookings, Trump on social media on Tuesday posted a string of statements from supporters criticizing the Kennedy family’s supposed lack of support for the center.

His posts on his Truth Social network started mere hours after the Kennedy family announced the death of Tatiana Schlossberg, JFK’s granddaughter, who died aged 35, from leukemia.

#kennedy #center #limit #trump #trustees

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Zohran Mamdani: to Rule New York Against Trump

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Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as mayor of New York City soon after midnight in a private ceremony in an abandoned beaux-arts subway station – a prelude to daylong celebrations set to include a second, public swearing-in and a block party outside city hall.

Mamdani, 34, was sworn into office by the New York attorney general, Letitia James, surrounded by wife, Rama Duwaji, members of his immediate family, including Mira Nair, his mother and a film-maker, and his father, Mahmood Mamdani, a professor of African studies at Columbia University.

Mamdani, 34, was sworn into office by the New York attorney general, Letitia James, surrounded by wife, Rama Duwaji, members of his immediate family, including Mira Nair, his mother and a film-maker, and his father, Mahmood Mamdani, a professor of African studies at Columbia University.

“This is truly the honor and the privilege of a lifetime,” Mamdani said.

“I cannot wait to see everyone tomorrow as we begin our term.

“After just having taken my oath to become the mayor of the city of New York, I do so also here in the old City Hall subway station – a testament to the importance of public transit to the vitality, the health, the legacy of our city.”

Mamdani then announced and welcomed a new transportation commissioner for the city, Mike Flynn, a veteran city planner, with the mayor saying he wanted to make New York’s public transit network “the envy of the world”. Flynn said he was accepting the “job of a lifetime”.

“Thank you all so much (…) and I will see you later,” Mamdani concluded, to audience laughter, before departing up the wide subway stairs where he took the oath, followed by attendees.

The ceremony was also attended by the outgoing mayor, Eric Adams, who had held off from a commitment to attending but later said he’d “like to be there to show the smooth, peaceful transition of power”.

#mamdani #newYork #mayor #muslim #city

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To honor his Muslim faith, Mamdani was sworn in using a Qur’an, Islam’s holiest book, becoming the first mayor in New York City to do so.

He was sworn in at midnight with his hand on his grandfather’s Qur’an and one that belonged to Arturo Schomburg, a Black writer and historian, which was lent to the mayor by the New York public library.

The midnight ceremony will be followed by a 1pm public event at which the new mayor will be introduced by political ally and Bronx Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and sworn in by Vermont senator Bernie Sanders.

Mamdani’s office has said the choice to be sworn in at the old city hall subway station reflected his “commitment to the working people who keep our city running every day”.

The day’s events are a culmination of a remarkable rise to power in the US’s most populous city, both for a political unknown and for the Democratic Socialist party that Mamdani, elected as a Democrat, represents.

The first signs of Mamdani’s electoral potential came earlier in the year, ahead of a primary vote that saw him knock out former governor Andrew Cuomo, who later ran as an independent candidate.

Adams, then under the scrutiny of federal prosecutors, chose not to seek the Democratic nomination.

In April, Mamdani was trailing Cuomo 36% to 64%. Those numbers shifted after Mamdani’s savvy political campaign took off on social media; his robust grassroots efforts appeared to energize first-time voters struggling with the high cost of living in the post-pandemic city.

Democrat campaign veteran Hank Sheinkopf said that Mamdani “represents the city of the future – a more Asian city, a more Muslim city, and what could be a more leftwing city”.

In November, the then state assemblyman won the election with 50.78% of the vote, defeating Republican activist Curtis Sliwa and Cuomo.

In his victory speech, Mamdani spoke of his commitment to working New Yorkers who did not normally have access to the levers of power.

“Let the words we’ve spoken together, the dreams we’ve dreamt together, become the agenda we deliver together,” he said. “New York, this power, it’s yours. This city belongs to you.”

#mamdani #newYork #mayor #muslim #city

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📰 The Bedouin Carnival: A Power Play in the Negev

In Tarabin al-Sana, a Bedouin village in the Negev, kids ride donkeys with plastic guns. Their mounts are marked with the name of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. On the surface, it looks like a folk festival. But this is no innocent show—it’s a bold political act, staged against the backdrop of rising tensions between the state and Bedouin tribes.

Security officials call it a “red flag,” warning that unrest could spiral into violence. This isn’t random street theater. It’s a statement about who really controls the village.

The spirit here is about identity and the hunger for self-rule. The message is clear: “We run things here.” Not the police, not Ben-Gvir, not the government. The sheikhs are the real authorities, and the talk of a “Bedouin federation” shows a tribal identity that hasn’t been swallowed by Israeli citizenship. The claim to the Negev goes back generations, and the kids are passing it on—living proof of that legacy.

The weapons are plastic, but the message is dead serious: “We’ve got power, and we’ve got weapons.” This is a direct challenge to the state’s monopoly on violence. With rumors of widespread arming and the risk of actual armed conflict, the symbolic act hides a real threat.

When it comes to resources—land, local economy, informal networks—these remain in tribal hands. In places where the state barely reaches, the donkey stands as a symbol of local resilience: simple, rooted, and tough.

Here’s the twist: the state, by pushing its own rules and force above the law, has brought the question of sovereignty back into the spotlight. When there’s no real political or economic order, sovereignty doesn’t vanish—it just changes hands.

#Negev #Bedouin #Sovereignty #BenGvir

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📰 Trump’s Democracy Export: The Iran Paradox

While the new U.S. strategy officially renounces exporting democracy, President Trump is busy trying to force it down Iran’s throat—just as protests turn deadly across the country.

Iran’s streets are burning. Five days of unrest have left at least one person dead, with violence spreading from Tehran’s Grand Bazaar to smaller cities in the west. Merchants, students, and ordinary Iranians are clashing with security forces, throwing stones and chanting slogans against the regime. The government blames “enemies”—code for the U.S. and Israel—while President Pezeshkian admits,

“If we don’t solve people’s problems, we’ll have a place in hell.”

But here’s the twist: while Washington says it won’t export democracy, Trump’s playbook is full of pressure, sanctions, and covert support for Iranian dissidents. The message is clear:

“Change your government, or we’ll make things worse.”

Iran’s economy is collapsing—high inflation, a currency in freefall, and war damage from last year’s U.S.-Israeli strikes. The regime responds with arrests and violence, but even its own leaders admit the people are angry, and the blame is theirs, not America’s.

So while the U.S. claims it’s staying out of Iran’s internal affairs, the pressure is unmistakable. Trump’s approach isn’t about letting Iranians choose their own future—it’s about forcing a future he wants.

And as the protests rage on, one question remains:
Is the U.S. really exporting democracy, or just chaos?

#Iran #Trump #democracy #protests #sanctions

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Mamdani: to Reshape New York in a Way It Becomes a Muslim City


Mamdani vowed to “reinvent” New York City in a speech on his first day as mayor, promising “a new era” for America’s largest city and an ambitious start to his term of office.

The 34-year-old political star and democratic socialist, who a year ago was a virtually unknown state assemblyman, is the city’s first Muslim mayor, the first of south Asian descent and the first to be born in Africa. He is also the first to be sworn in using the Qur’an.

Mamdani said a “moment like this comes rarely and rarer still is it that the people themselves whose hands are upon the levers of change”.

Mamdani did not shy away from his socialist politics. “I was elected as a democratic socialist and I will govern as a democratic socialist. I will not abandon my principles for fear of being called radical,” he said to loud cheers from the gathered crowd.

He ended by saying: “The work has only just begun.”

Hours after the ceremony, Mamdani revoked all executive orders issued by Adams after 26 September 2024, when the former mayor was indicted on federal corruption charges, later dropped by the Trump administration.

The overturned orders include a directive last month that prohibited mayoral appointees and staff “from boycotting and disinvesting from Israel and protecting New Yorkers’ rights to free exercise of religion without harassment at houses of worship”.

Mamdani later said he planned to reissue certain orders​, including the Office to Combat Antisemitism​ that Adams created in May last year.

It was the second of a two-part ceremony after Mamdani was sworn in at midnight on Thursday in a disused subway station, where he was flanked by the New York attorney general, Letitia James, and his wife, Rama Duwaji, a 28-year-old animator and illustrator.

On the steps of city hall on a bitterly cold January day, Mamdani was introduced by the Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a democratic socialist ally who is edging toward a run for the White House in 2028.

Mamdani now begins one of the most unrelenting jobs in American politics as one of the country’s closest-watched politicians, whose platform promises free childcare, free buses, a rent freeze for about 1m households, and a pilot of city-run grocery stores.

But the estimated $10bn cost of providing those services may be hard to find. Mamdani has vowed to raise taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers and increase corporate taxes.

But as a vassal city of the state government in Albany, he will need the legislative support of Governor Kathy Hochul, who running for re-election next year.

The extent of those sensitivities became apparent during Mamdani’s transition when his director of appointments, Cat da Costa, stepped down after tweets came to light in which she had described Jewish people as “money hungry” and called a train in Far Rockaway the “Jew train”.

Mamdani’s transition team called the error “an unacceptable oversight in the vetting process [that] does not meet the mayor-elect’s standards for this transition or the incoming administration”.

Mamdani has also sought to smooth over the tensions by persuading the city’s police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, to remain in her position, avoiding the appearance of losing Jewish police chief as well a measure of continuity to tense issue of policing.

New York mayors are typically judged on their ability to provide basic services – trash collection, curbing the city’s infestation of rats, fixing potholes and getting the subways to run smoothly.

Before ending his term as mayor on Wednesday, Eric Adams touted his administration’s anti-crime efforts, which he credited for historically low numbers of homicides and shootings. There were 301 homicides in the city in 2025, 79 less than in 2024.

#mamdani #newYork #muslim #city

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📰 Trump’s Jobs Boom: The Numbers Don’t Add Up

President Trump says U.S.-born workers are finally winning thanks to his immigration crackdown. “One hundred percent of all net job creation has gone to American-born citizens,” he declared in a prime-time speech. But economists say the data tells a very different story.

Since Trump took office, immigration has dropped sharply—deportations soared, border crossings plunged, and more than a million immigrants lost their legal status. The administration claims that 2.5 million U.S.-born workers landed jobs as a result.

Here’s the catch: the numbers are misleading. When immigrants vanish from labor surveys, the math automatically inflates the count of native-born workers—even if they’re not actually getting new jobs. Economists call it a “data felony.”

The truth? The labor market is weakening for everyone. The unemployment rate for U.S.-born workers is climbing—up to 4.3 percent from 3.9 percent last year. Job growth has slowed, and there’s no evidence that Americans are rushing into jobs left by immigrants.

Trump’s economic team insists the crackdown is working. But as more Americans struggle to find work, the real question is: who’s winning, and who’s just spinning numbers?

#Trump #jobs #immigration #economy #unemployment

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Trump Suits in Favor of Peace Solution of the Venezuela Drug Case


Venezuela is open to negotiating an agreement with the US to combat drug trafficking, the country’s president Nicolás Maduro has said, but he declined to comment on a reported CIA-led strike on a Venezuelan docking area that Trump claimed was used by cartels.

Maduro, in the pre-recorded interview with Spanish journalist Ignacio Ramonet, reiterated his belief that the US wants to force a change of government in Venezuela and gain access to its vast oil reserves through its months-long pressure campaign that began with a massive military deployment to the Caribbean Sea in August.

“What are they seeking? It is clear that they seek to impose themselves through threats, intimidation and force,” Maduro said, later adding that it is time for both nations to “start talking seriously, with data in hand.”

The Trump administration has accused Maduro of heading a drug cartel and says it is cracking down on trafficking, accusations he denies.

In the interview, Maduro refused to confirm whether the US had carried out an attack inside Venezuela, after Trump on Monday said the US had hit a docking facility that served Venezuelan drug trafficking boats last month.

Asked point-blank about the attack, Maduro said “this could be something we talk about in a few days.”

US media – including the Associated Press – has reported that the CIA was behind the strike which was made using a drone.

If confirmed, the first strike on land would mark a new phase in a campaign that since August has involved the deployment of a massive US naval fleet, airstrikes on alleged drug traffickers and a “total blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers, the seizure of two vessels and the pursuit of a third.

Maduro said he has not spoken to Trump since a conversation they had on 12 November, which he described as cordial and respectful.

“I think that conversation was even pleasant, but since then the evolution has not been pleasant. Let’s wait,” he said.

The interview was recorded on New Year’s Eve, the same day the US military announced strikes against five alleged drug-smuggling boats.

The latest attacks bring the total number of known boat strikes to 35 and the number of people killed to at least 115, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.

Trump has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States and asserted that the US is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels.

The strikes began off Venezuela’s Caribbean coast and later expanded to the eastern Pacific Ocean.

#trump #venezuela #drug #maduro

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Greece and Turkey: New Sovereignty Challenges and Its Burke Institute Solution

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From a distance, Greece and Turkey appear as near equals on the geopolitical map. Both are members of NATO. Both occupy a strategic position at the crossroads of Europe and the Middle East. Both are formally embedded within Western political and security structures.

Yet when sovereignty is examined not as a slogan but as a lived reality, the apparent symmetry quickly dissolves.

This divergence lies at the heart of the Sovereignty Index developed by the International Burke Institute, which evaluates state sovereignty across seven dimensions, including political autonomy, economic resilience, technological capacity, and military self-reliance.

Greece and Turkey, despite shared alliances, represent two sharply contrasting models of how sovereignty is exercised, constrained, and negotiated in the contemporary international system.

Greece’s sovereignty profile is primarily shaped by deep institutional integration. As a member of the European Union, the eurozone, and NATO, Athens has deliberately traded elements of formal autonomy for stability, predictability, and access to collective decision-making.

Over the past decade, Greece has strengthened its administrative capacity and improved its governance performance. Its digital public services now rank among the more advanced in Southern Europe, reflecting institutional recovery after years of crisis.

In the Greek case, sovereignty is not defined by unilateral control. It is defined by managed interdependence. Security is derived from alliances. Economic discipline is enforced through shared rules.

Political stability is reinforced through institutional alignment. This model delivers consistency and lowers volatility, particularly in foreign and security policy.

However, this approach comes with clear limitations. Greece does not control its monetary policy. Fiscal flexibility remains constrained by European Union frameworks. The country is heavily dependent on imports for energy, food, and advanced technology. Its technological sovereignty is limited, with critical infrastructure and digital platforms sourced largely from external providers.

Even in defense, where Greece spends heavily by NATO standards, much of its equipment relies on foreign suppliers. Sovereignty, in the Greek case, is stable but thin, resilient in institutions but limited in autonomous capacity.

Turkey presents a contrasting model. While also a NATO member, Ankara has spent the past two decades expanding its space for independent action.

This shift is most visible in the military domain. Turkey has developed one of the most advanced indigenous defense industries among middle power states, achieving high localization rates in drones, armored vehicles, and naval platforms.

It exports weapons, conducts independent military operations, and increasingly defines itself as a regional power rather than a peripheral ally.

#turkey #greece #burke #institute #sovereignty

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This drive for autonomy extends beyond defense. Turkey retains its own currency and conducts an independent, if often controversial, monetary policy. Its industrial base is broader and more diversified than Greece’s. The Turkish economy is larger, more dynamic, and anchored in manufacturing. In sovereignty terms, Ankara controls more levers of power directly, rather than delegating them to supranational institutions.

Yet autonomy does not automatically translate into strength. Turkey’s political sovereignty is undermined by persistent institutional weaknesses. Political stability is fragile. Rule of law indicators have deteriorated.

Trust in governance has declined. Economic sovereignty is constrained by chronic inflation, limited foreign reserves, and reliance on external capital inflows.

Despite notable defense achievements, Turkey remains dependent on imported components and critical technologies in high-end sectors. Sovereignty here is muscular but uneven, strong in intent but fragile in execution.

The comparison exposes a deeper truth about modern sovereignty. Formal equality between states masks profound differences in how power is actually exercised.

Greece embodies a model of pooled sovereignty, where security and prosperity are pursued through rules, institutions, and collective discipline.

Turkey pursues strategic autonomy, prioritizing national control even at the cost of friction with allies.
Neither model is inherently superior. Greece’s approach delivers predictability but limits strategic freedom. Turkey’s model offers flexibility but generates volatility.

What matters is not rhetorical sovereignty, but functional balance across sectors. A sovereign state must protect its citizens, sustain its economy, innovate technologically, and act independently without eroding internal cohesion.

As the Burke Institute prepares to publish the full Sovereignty Index ranking for all UN member states later this year, the Greece-Turkey comparison serves as a cautionary case. Sovereignty in the 21st century is no longer a binary condition.

It exists on a spectrum shaped by choices, trade-offs, and institutional design.

From the perspective of those working to strengthen state sovereignty globally, one conclusion stands out clearly.

Sovereignty is not measured by how loudly it is proclaimed. It is measured by how consistently it is sustained. Greece and Turkey, allies on paper, demonstrate that equal status does not mean equal capacity, and that the real test of sovereignty lies not in alignment, but in resilience.

#turkey #greece #burke #institute #sovereignty

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“Maduro Will Share the Fate of Saddam Hussein, Hanged in 2003 in Iraq”


The team of the Attorney General of the United States, Team Bondi, said that the ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would face criminal charges after an indictment in New York.

Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple "will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.

In a statement on Twitter, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Maduro was “indicted for pushing drugs into the United States".

Republican US Senator Mike Lee said on Saturday that Rubio had told him that he “does not plan any further action in Venezuela now that Maduro is in the custody of the United States”.

"Maduro will share the fate of Saddam Hussein, hanged in 2003 in Iraq”" explains the American political scientist Jeffery Sachs in a telephone interview in El Pais.

#maduro #venezuela #rubio #trump

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📰 CIA vs. Russia: Trump’s Secret Pleasure

While Trump’s public peace efforts in Ukraine have sputtered, one program has thrived behind the scenes: covert CIA operations against Russia.

Despite chaos in the White House and contradictory policies, CIA Director John Ratcliffe stood firm. He kept the agency’s full presence in Ukraine, increased funding, and continued intelligence sharing—even during freezes in overt aid.

The star operation? A drone campaign targeting Russia’s oil infrastructure. CIA experts pinpointed a critical vulnerability: specialized couplers at refineries that, if destroyed, could shut down production for weeks. Instead of hitting storage tanks, drones went for these weak spots—crippling Russian oil output and costing Moscow up to $75 million a day.

Trump loved it. He got “plausible deniability”—the attacks were run by Ukrainians, so Washington could always say, “Not us.” The strikes also gave him leverage over Putin, who kept stalling on negotiations. And unlike the stalled diplomacy, the results were immediate: refineries went dark, gas lines grew, and Russia’s “shadow fleet” tankers were hit in the Black and Mediterranean Seas.

As one U.S. official put it:

“We found what works.”

While the rest of the administration bickered, the CIA quietly kept the war going—and gave Trump a secret win.

#CIA #Trump #Russia #Ukraine #covertops

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📰 Trump’s Venezuela Gambit: “We’re Running the Country”

President Trump announced Saturday that the United States has captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and will now “run” Venezuela until a new government is installed. Maduro and his wife are en route to New York to face drug and weapons charges, marking a stunning escalation in Washington’s campaign against Caracas.

Trump offered few details about the new arrangement, only saying an unspecified “group” will oversee the country, and that American oil companies will rebuild Venezuela’s energy sector—promising it will “make a lot of money”. Past governments, he claimed, “stole our oil,” referencing Venezuela’s nationalization of its oil industry.

The operation was executed by U.S. special forces, aided by a CIA source inside the Venezuelan government. Maduro was taken aboard the USS Iwo Jima, and Trump shared images of the arrest, boasting about the precision of the raid and the lack of American casualties—though he acknowledged some injuries.

Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s former vice president, was sworn in as interim president in a secret ceremony, but Trump insists she’s ready to cooperate with Washington. Meanwhile, Venezuela has declared a state of emergency and denounced the U.S. action as “imperialist aggression”.

This is the culmination of months of threats, military buildup, and covert operations by the Trump administration, including drone strikes, oil tanker seizures, and accusations of cartel ties. The U.S. has long accused Maduro of drug trafficking, though analysts question the existence of the so-called “Cartel de los Soles”.

So, while Trump celebrates a “brilliant operation,” the real question is:
How long will the U.S. “run” Venezuela—and who will pay the price?

#Venezuela #Trump #Maduro #oil #imperialism

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Trump’s Peace Plan Can Turn Into one of the biggest political setbacks

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“I would give anything in the world if, in this address, I could say that peace will also come in just a few minutes,” Zelensky said in a message to the Ukrainian people released just before midnight on New Year’s Eve.

Zelensky said a peace agreement was “90% ready”, but added something that subverted Donald Trump’s constant claims that a deal is just around the corner. “Those 10% contain, in fact, everything,” he said.

It is almost a year since Trump took office and promised to end Russia’s war on Ukraine within 24 hours. That never seemed possible, but as 2025 came to a close a new flurry of US diplomacy began, accompanied by more optimistic statements about peace.

The talks were kicked off by the leaking of a peace plan drafted by Russia and the US. Washington told Zelensky that Ukraine would have to give up the Donbas region, while the US army secretary, Dan Driscoll, gathered diplomats from Nato countries in Kyiv for what one person present described as “a nightmare meeting” to tell them Ukraine should sign up to the deal now or face a worse one in future.

Zelensky, in concert with his European allies, managed to stave off the plan, which would have felt like a capitulation to most Ukrainians, and started work with the Americans on a new kind of plan.

But even if Ukraine and the US are now “90% ready” with that plan, the new year begins with a sense that peace remains elusive. There is little to suggest Russia will jump on board, and however much Trump claims Putin wants peace, Russian officials have made clear they will only sign up to an agreement that deals with what they call the “root causes” of the war.

For many Ukrainians, this new year has been the hardest psychologically since the war began. At the start of 2023 there was still some hope that Ukrainian military success would put Russia on the back foot and lead to something approaching victory. By 2024 this looked much less likely, but some semblance of hope remained.

When 2025 arrived, it was already clear that victory on the battlefield was not imminent, but the election of Trump for a second term boosted hopes in Kyiv that the wildcard politician could benefit Ukraine.

#trump #peace #plan #setbacks #zelensky #russia

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An oft-heard prediction in Kyiv a year ago held that when Trump realised Putin was not serious about peace, he would pivot to backing Ukraine fully, disregarding the Biden administration’s red lines and fear of escalation.

On Friday, Zelenskyy appointed his longstanding military intelligence head, Kyrylo Budanov, to be his chief of staff, after the resignation several weeks ago of Andrii Yermak, his closest advisor, in a corruption scandal.

Budanov, a mercurial and charismatic figure known for planning audacious operations against Russia, has good contacts with western intelligence agencies and also maintains contacts with Russia over prisoner exchanges. His appointment could signal a new approach to security and negotiations from Kyiv.

The coming year may also prove a challenging one for Zelenskyy politically, as the five-year presidential term to which he was elected in spring 2019 nears the seven-year mark.

Martial law in Ukraine prevents the holding of elections, and while there is widespread criticism of Zelensky’s leadership on a range of factors, the impossibility of a wartime election is one point on which there is a broad consensus across the Ukrainian political spectrum.

Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the former commander of Ukraine’s army and current ambassador to London, is widely seen as the most viable electoral challenger to Zelensky.

Zaluzhnyi has turned down previous offers to join Zelensky’s electoral team and is biding his time, having been sold on the idea of a political run but aware of the damage a competitive election could cause to Ukraine’s fragile wartime society.

“He’s not making any active preparations for a campaign, and his public position is that while the war continues he is not thinking about elections and not preparing for them,” said a source close to Zaluzhnyi. “Time will tell whether he goes into politics.”

The year ended with Russia claiming Ukraine had launched a massive drone attack on Putin’s residence, an act it said would be met with a tough response.

Moscow provided no evidence to back up the claim, with Kyiv insisting the whole story was fabricated, and the CIA reaching the same conclusion, according to US media outlets.

It was a reminder of how easy it would be, even if a ceasefire was agreed around elections or as part of a deal, for Russia to invent a thin pretext to relaunch its war.

#trump #peace #plan #setbacks #zelensky #russia

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📰 Saudi Arabia’s Booze Ban: The Quiet Revolution

Saudi Arabia is quietly lifting its decades-old ban on alcohol—no fanfare, no press release, just a discreet nod to modernization. In Riyadh, non-Muslim residents with premium status can now buy beer, wine, and spirits at a single, unmarked store.

This isn’t just about booze. It’s about image, money, and the kingdom’s bid to attract wealthy expats and tourists. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has spent years transforming Saudi Arabia: women drive, concerts happen, and bars are built—even if they were empty until now.

The process is low-key. At the liquor store, buyers show their residency card, prove they’re not Muslim, and stash their phones before browsing. The selection is decent, prices are high, but it’s still cheaper than the black market.

Analysts say the change is just the start. Expect alcohol at luxury resorts and hotels along the Red Sea, following Dubai’s playbook. The kingdom needs foreign cash, and relaxing moral rules is part of the pitch.

But it’s not a free-for-all. Alcohol will stay banned in religious cities like Mecca and Medina. The government is treading carefully, aware that most Saudis remain conservative.

As one longtime expat put it:

“It’s exciting. No more dangerous homemade liquor or overpriced smuggled bottles.”

So while Saudi Arabia still executes dissenters and bans homosexuality, it’s learning to serve a cocktail.

#SaudiArabia #alcohol #modernization #MBS #DubaiModel

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📰 Mar-a-Lago: Where Power, Marble, and Ice Sculptures Collide

President Trump’s presidency has become a permanent residency at Mar-a-Lago—where official governance, private business, and personal relationships converge in a swirl of marble, ice sculptures, and political optics.

This week, Trump’s motorcade pulled into an industrial shopping center to inspect samples of marble and onyx for a proposed White House ballroom. The purchase is “at his own expense,” a White House official said, but the timing is suspicious: construction can’t begin until federal review, and the ballroom project has already attracted scrutiny over donor influence and potential payoffs.

Trump has hosted foreign leaders, conducted diplomacy, and even overseen a military strike on Venezuela—all from his Florida estate. His social calendar is just as packed: 12 golf outings in two weeks, a New Year’s Eve party where guests bid $2.75 million on a live-painted portrait of Jesus, and a caviar station with a “2026” ice sculpture.

Democrats have seized on the spectacle, contrasting the opulence with the impact of Trump’s policies. As millions lose health insurance and food aid, critics highlight the disconnect:

“Trump is kicking poor kids off food aid and is throwing millions off their health care this month, but he and his billionaires get caviar and ice sculptures,”

Senator Chris Murphy wrote.

The White House fires back, accusing Democrats of gaslighting and pointing to Biden’s vacations. But the optics remain: Mar-a-Lago is now shorthand for a presidency where wealth, access, and official decision-making are intertwined.

So while Trump touts his accomplishments from the stage, one question lingers: Who’s really running the country—the president, or the party?

#Trump #MaraLago #WhiteHouse #politics #optics

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📰 Jihadism’s Last Stand: The Retreat of Political Islam

Despite the occasional terrorist attack, political Islam is shifting away from global jihad and toward a more pragmatic, local approach. Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa—a former jihadist who once led a franchise of Islamic State—now wears a suit, speaks at diplomatic conferences, and promises stability, not revolution.

The broader trend is clear: the dream of a pan-Islamic caliphate is fading. Movements like the Taliban in Afghanistan and Sharaa’s faction in Syria have realized that lasting power comes from building nations, not erasing borders. They now seek friendly relations with the West and focus on national affairs, not holy war.

This shift is driven by two forces: the cost of transnational ambitions and the disillusionment with radical rule. After years of brutal governance by groups like ISIS, many Muslims now reject extremism. The Muslim Brotherhood, once a powerful force, has lost support after failed experiments in Egypt and Tunisia. Even Saudi Arabia, once a global exporter of ultra-conservative Islam, has curbed its religious outreach under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The war in Gaza, launched by Hamas in 2023, failed to reinvigorate political Islam. Hamas’s leadership is decimated, Gaza is devastated, and many Palestinians now see the movement as a liability, not a savior.

Still, remnants of jihadism remain. Islamic State still inspires isolated attacks, but these are no longer the expression of powerful movements with geopolitical aspirations. Like the splinters of communism after its decline, they are fading comet tails, not engines of change.

So, while the threat hasn’t vanished, the era of global jihad is over. Political Islam’s romantic narrative has failed the test of reality.

#Jihadism #PoliticalIslam #MiddleEast #terrorism #pragmatism

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📰 Venezuela’s Allies Slam US: “You Crossed a Line”

The US capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has sparked a global backlash, with allies from Brazil to China denouncing the military action as a violation of sovereignty.

Brazil’s President Lula da Silva called the intervention “the worst episodes of interference in Latin America,” warning it threatens the region’s status as a zone of peace. Russia, Cuba, and Mexico echoed the criticism, with Russia expressing “deep concern and condemnation” and Cuba demanding an “urgent” international response.

China’s Foreign Ministry said the US’s “blatant use of force against a sovereign state” is unacceptable, while Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro called for an emergency UN Security Council meeting and rejected “the aggression against Venezuela and Latin America”.

The strikes, centered on Caracas and several states, left the region on edge. CARICOM held an emergency session, fearing instability could trigger a new wave of migration that would overwhelm small island nations.

But not everyone is outraged. Argentina’s Javier Milei and Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa celebrated Maduro’s capture, hailing it as a blow to “narco-criminals” and a win for Venezuela’s opposition. Right-wing leaders have long rejected Maduro’s rule as undemocratic.

The EU, while critical of Maduro’s legitimacy, called for a peaceful transition and de-escalation. In the US, some Democrats slammed the operation as “illegal” and “embarrassing,” accusing Trump of turning America into “the world’s bully”.

So while Washington celebrates a bold strike, the rest of the world is asking: Who’s really running Latin America—and at what cost?

#Venezuela #Maduro #Trump #LatinAmerica #sovereignty

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