Iran diplomacy as cover for decapitation
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Trump's coercive turn risks disastrous war with Iran
Nile Bowie analyzes the escalating Israel-Iran conflict, which threatens to drag Washington into another open-ended regime change war in the Middle East. Unless the US restrains Israel and reestablishes credible diplomacy, the conflict could spiral into a quagmire with global repercussions.
Washington's Iran ultimatum bolsters Kremlin hardliners
James Davis assesses how the Israel-Iran war is emboldening hardliners in Moscow and diverting global attention and weapons away from Kiev. Russian elites interpret recent US diplomacy as insincere and believe Trump is either unwilling or unable to negotiate a fair settlement.
Nippon Steel acquires US Steel minus one 'Golden Share'
Scott Foster evaluates Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion acquisition of US Steel, with unprecedented political oversight built into a 'Golden Share' agreement granting the US government veto power over key decisions. The acquisition offers mutual industrial benefits amid ongoing US-Japan tariff disputes.
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South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Why Israel's spy tactics against Iran have sparked fears in Taiwan
Israel's sweeping intelligence operations against Iran have jolted Taiwan's security community, raising concerns that Beijing could adopt similar tactics to cripple the island's leadership or critical infrastructure. As assassinations and sabotage rattle Tehran, analysts in Taipei warn that Beijing's infiltration of Taiwan is no longer a purely political threat, and it might be laying the groundwork for high-stakes covert warfare. In recent months, Taiwan has seen a surge in espionage cases implicating not only retired and active-duty military personnel, but also aides to senior government officials and lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The breadth and depth of these cases have sparked concerns that Beijing's intelligence network has already penetrated the island's political and defence systems. 'What Israel has done to Iran – through a combination of precision, infiltration, and intelligence dominance – is something Beijing could try to replicate,' said Max Lo, executive director of the Taiwan International Strategic Study Society. 'The difference is, this time Taiwan may be the one under the microscope.' According to experts, Taiwan's vulnerabilities lie not only in its geographic proximity to mainland China but also in decades of cross-strait social and cultural exchange, which have enabled mainland Chinese intelligence operatives to blend in and recruit more easily.
South China Morning Post
11 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
From Iraq to Iran: the US quest for Israeli military dominance
As Israeli jets and American bombers streaked across Iranian skies earlier this month, the world watched a familiar game plan unfold – one that had its origins in secret meetings, veiled ambitions and the relentless logic of regional dominance that has haunted the Middle East for generations. The process began decades earlier, in the smoke of American air strikes on Iraq and the calculations of US policymakers determined to keep Israel unrivalled. It was the late 1990s when a small, bipartisan delegation of senior US senators touched down in the United Arab Emirates . Their visit coincided with the American strikes, part of a legacy of US intervention in the Gulf that had left the region in a state of perpetual unease since the guns of Operation Desert Storm fell silent in Kuwait at the start of the decade. One ranking Emirati official, exasperated by the endless cycle of violence, posed the question that had been whispered in the corridors of power throughout the Gulf: why didn't Washington simply topple Saddam Hussein and be done with it? A US senator, unmoved by the query, offered a response with chilling candour. The objective, he told the official, was not regime change, but rather to 'reduce any regional state on a military and technological par with Israel to a pre-industrial society'. The official later shared that exchange with this reporter. A US F-18 fighter jet flies over gas flares at an oil well in northern Kuwait in 1995. Photo: AFP Such an agenda – once the preserve of neoconservative ideologues – soon became official US policy in the wake of the September 11 attacks.
RTHK
12 hours ago
- RTHK
Iran condemns Trump's comments on Khamenei
Iran condemns Trump's comments on Khamenei Donald Trump claims that he had been working on the possible removal of sanctions against Iran. Photo: Reuters Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned on Saturday the "disrespectful and unacceptable" comments from Donald Trump, after the US president claimed to have saved Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei from an "ugly and ignominious death". "If President Trump is genuine about wanting a deal, he should put aside the disrespectful and unacceptable tone towards Iran's Supreme Leader, Grand Ayatollah Khamenei, and stop hurting his millions of heartfelt supporters," Araghchi posted on his account on social media platform X. "The Great and Powerful Iranian People, who showed the world that the Israeli regime had NO CHOICE but to RUN to 'Daddy' to avoid being flattened by our Missiles, do not take kindly to Threats and Insults," the foreign minister said. The United States carried out strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites last weekend, with no consensus as to how effective they were. With those strikes, Washington joined Israel's bombardments of Iran's nuclear programme in the 12-day conflict launched on June 13. The foreign minister's condemnation on Saturday came after Trump said on his Truth Social platform that he had saved the Iranian leader from assassination, accusing Khamenei of ingratitude. "I knew EXACTLY where he was sheltered, and would not let Israel, or the U.S. Armed Forces, by far the Greatest and Most Powerful in the World, terminate his life," Trump posted. "I SAVED HIM FROM A VERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATH, and he does not have to say, 'THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP!'" Trump also said that he had been working in recent days on the possible removal of sanctions against Iran, one of Tehran's main demands. "But no, instead I get hit with a statement of anger, hatred, and disgust, and immediately dropped all work on sanction relief, and more," Trump added, exhorting Iran to return to the negotiating table. Iran has denied it is set to resume nuclear talks with the United States, after Trump said that negotiations would begin again next week. (AFP)
