Somalia, DR Congo and Yemen among states forced to sign deals and barter their minerals for aid or military support
Some of the world’s poorest countries have started paying millions to lobbyists linked to Donald Trump to try to offset US cuts to foreign aid, an investigation reveals.
Somalia, Haiti and Yemen are among 11 countries to sign significant lobbying deals with figures tied directly to the US president after he slashed US foreign humanitarian assistance.
Continue reading...Sean Parnell repeats Trump claim that key sites were destroyed, based on ‘assessments inside the department’
The Pentagon has collected intelligence material that suggests Iran’s nuclear program was set back roughly one to two years as a result of the US strikes on three key facilities last month, the chief spokesperson at the defense department said at a news conference on Wednesday.
The spokesperson, Sean Parnell, repeated Donald Trump’s claim that Iran’s key nuclear sites had been completely destroyed, although he did not offer further details on the origin of the assessments beyond saying it came from inside the defense department.
Continue reading...Spokesperson Sean Parnell confirms defence department reviewing shipments may not affect only Ukraine
The Pentagon has said that it is reviewing weapons deliveries to allies around the world as reports grow of concerns over dwindling stockpiles of crucial munitions including anti-air missiles.
The announcement came after the White House confirmed that it was limiting deliveries of weapons to Ukraine to “put America’s interests first following a Department of Defense review of our nation’s military support and assistance to other countries around the globe”.
Continue reading...Experts stress that a weakened Iran isn’t in a position to attack on US soil and doesn’t want to invite Trump’s wrath
As the war between Iran and Israel intensified, teasing the eventual involvement of the US military, American security agencies began to warn of a looming threat of Tehran-backed “sleeper cells” known to be active stateside that could be called in for retaliatory attacks.
But as the B-2 bombers struck nuclear sites across Iran and the Iranian military responded with a missile barrage on US bases in the region, a ceasefire took shape. In the end, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) – Iran’s elite military and intelligence branch, wielding a global web of terrorist groups and agents acting on its behalf – didn’t appear to sponsor or carry out any covert operations inside the US, nor has it since.
Continue reading...Nato spending plan overlooks risks to security posed by environmental breakdown and social decay, say economists
Europe risks choosing militarism over social and environmental security, economists have warned, as the head of Nato said all 32 members had agreed to increase weapons spending.
Analyses drafted in anticipation of a Nato summit beginning on Tuesday warned of the opportunity cost that higher military spending would pose to the continent’s climate mitigation and social programmes, which are consistently underfunded.
Continue reading...US strikes on Iran are adding to the pressure on carriers, which are having to avoid war-torn regions, lengthening routes and pushing up costs
With barely 48 hours elapsed since the US launched strikes against Iran, the swift resumption of near-normal service circumnavigating the war zone underlines that few crises, short of the global pandemic, have stopped airlines and their passengers flying for long.
British Airways had been planning to restart flights to the Middle East cities of Doha and Dubai again, after cancelling departures from Heathrow at the weekend. However, on Monday evening Qatar temporarily closed its airspace again as Iran launched a missile attack on US bases in the country.
Continue reading...The emergence of Hawk Trump dismayed some of his Maga base but students of US adventurism were unsurprised
So the military parade that brought tanks to the streets of Washington on Donald Trump’s birthday was more than just an authoritarian ego trip. It was a show of strength and statement of intent.
Exactly a week later, sporting a “Make America great again” (Maga) cap in the situation room, the American president ordered the biggest US military intervention in decades as more than 125 aircraft and 75 weapons – including 14 bunker-busting bombs – struck three Iranian nuclear sites. Trump called it a “spectacular military success” – but it remains unclear how much damage had actually been inflicted.
Continue reading...UK foreign secretary also sidesteps questions on legality of strikes and Donald Trump’s ‘regime change’ post
The UK foreign secretary has repeatedly refused to say if the UK supported the US military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities on Saturday or whether they were legal.
Interviewed on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Monday for the first time since the US launched airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, David Lammy also sidestepped the question of whether he supported recent social media posts by Donald Trump that seemed to favour regime change in Tehran, saying that in all his discussions in the White House the sole focus had been on military targets.
Continue reading...Trump claims the assault ‘totally obliterated’ the key facilities, but what do we know about its impact?
Donald Trump was quick to claim that US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities had “completely and totally obliterated” them. Still, it remains unclear how much physical damage has been done or what the longer-term impact might be on Iran’s nuclear programme.
Continue reading...As Trump considered striking Iran, some advisers adjusted public arguments to suggest quick bombing run
Donald Trump’s move to bomb three nuclear sites in Iran came as those inside his orbit who were opposed to US intervention in the conflict shifted their views in favor of a limited and one-off strike.
The US president had been under immense pressure from Republican anti-interventionists not to engage in any action against Iran out of concern that the US might be dragged into a protracted engagement to topple Iran’s leadership, or that strikes on facilities might have limited success.
Continue reading...Ro Khanna and Bernie Sanders denounced the decision to launch attack, while most Republicans praised the action
American politicians reacted to the news of the US bombing of nuclear targets in Iran with a mix of cheering support and instant condemnation, reflecting deep divisions in the country that cross party lines as Washington grapples with yet another military intervention overseas.
Donald Trump announced on Saturday night that the US had completed strikes on three nuclear sites in Iran, directly joining Israel’s effort this month to destroy the country’s nuclear program.
Continue reading...Officials tell Reuters bombers moving to Pacific Island but unclear whether deployment tied to Middle East tensions
The United States is moving B-2 bombers to the Pacific island of Guam, two US officials told Reuters on Saturday, as Donald Trump weighs whether the United States should take part in Israel’s strikes against Iran.
It was unclear whether the bomber deployment is tied to Middle East tensions.
Continue reading...Republican Thomas Massie joins with Democrats in effort to require Congress approval before Trump attacks Iran
As Donald Trump publicly threatens to join Israel in attacking Iran, an unlikely coalition of lawmakers has moved to prevent the president from involving US forces in the conflict without Congress’s approval.
On Tuesday, Republican congressman Thomas Massie, whose libertarian-tinged politics have often put him at odds with Trump, joined with several progressive Democrats to introduce in the House of Representatives a war powers resolution that would require a vote by Congress before Trump could attack Iran. Democrat Tim Kaine has introduced companion legislation in the Senate.
Continue reading...Protesters march in nation’s capital hours before army’s 250th birthday celebration, and Trump’s 79th, to begin
Thousands of troops accompanied by dozens of tanks and aircraft will stream through the National Mall in Washington DC for a military parade billed as celebrating the US army’s 250th birthday on Saturday – which also happens to be the day Donald Trump turns 79.
The president has long desired to hold a military parade in the capital, and is finally getting his wish months after returning to the White House for a second term, and days after ordering federalized California national guard and US marines to the streets of Los Angeles in response to protests against deportations.
Continue reading...California governor Gavin Newsom filed suit challenging US president calling up troops to suppress protests against Ice
A federal judge expressed skepticism on Thursday with the Trump administration’s arguments that the president has the power to federalize national guard troops and deploy them to suppress protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles.
The US district judge, Charles Breyer, said he intends to rule on California’s request for an injunction halting the deployment “very soon”, and that he was hopeful his ruling would come by the end of the day. He said he would also decide on whether the justice department could stay the order pending appeal.
Continue reading...Draft agreement may reassure top US military suppliers after president’s tariffs flip-flopping threatened production
The draft trade agreement with China announced by Donald Trump on Wednesday would ease concerns from top US military suppliers about rare-earth metals and magnets that, if cut off permanently, could hobble production of everything from smart bombs to fighter jets to submarines and other weapons in the US arsenal.
While the deal has not yet been finalised, it may reassure major defense companies such as Lockheed Martin, the largest US user of samarium – a rare-earth metal used in military-grade magnets – whose supply is entirely controlled by China.
Continue reading...The US president says he’s deploying 2,000 troops to Los Angeles amid immigration protests. Here’s what to know
Donald Trump said on Saturday he’s deploying 2,000 California national guard troops to Los Angeles to respond to immigration protests, over the objections of the California governor, Gavin Newsom.
Here are some things to know about when and how the president can deploy troops on US soil.
Continue reading...Gen Michael Guetlein of Space Force will be in charge of defense system that could cost $540bn over 20 years
Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that his administration will move forward with developing the so-called “Golden Dome” missile defense system that he envisions will protect the United States from possible foreign strikes using ground and space-based weapons.
Flanked by the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, in the Oval Office, Trump also said that he wanted the project to be operational before he left office. He added that Republicans had agreed to allocate $25bn in initial funding and Canada had expressed an interest in taking part.
Continue reading...Exclusive: The intervention to marginalize Ricky Buria is aimed at insulating the Pentagon from any more missteps
Exasperated by the turmoil that has dogged Pete Hegseth’s office in recent weeks, the White House will block the US defense secretary’s choice of chief of staff and select a candidate of its own, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Hegseth had suggested giving the chief of staff position to Marine Col Ricky Buria after the first person in the role, Joe Kasper, left last month in the wake of a contentious leak investigation that brought the ouster of three other senior aides.
Continue reading...Order to cancel 11 military aid flights – which were quickly reinstated – originated in defense head Pete Hegseth’s office
Roughly a week after Donald Trump started his second term as president, the US military issued an order to three freight airlines operating out of Dover air force base in Delaware and a US base in Qatar: stop 11 flights loaded with artillery shells and other weaponry that were bound for Ukraine.
In a matter of hours, frantic questions reached Washington from Ukrainians in Kyiv and from officials in Poland, where the shipments were coordinated. Who had ordered the US Transportation Command, known as TransCom, to halt the flights? Was it a permanent pause on all aid? Or just some?
Continue reading...