Iran War Enters a New Phase as Washington Expands Economic Pressure
With the Strait of Hormuz still severely disrupted, the Trump administration is intensifying Iran sanctions and wider economic pressure and warns countries that continue to support Tehran. The next phase could test U.S. relations with China and Gulf partners as much as Iran itself. WASHINGTON / MUSCAT / TEHRAN — Nearly six months into the […]
Bitcoin Is Surging Again. Washington May Be the Bigger Story.
Bitcoin’s latest rally is being driven by improving liquidity, a weaker dollar and short covering. But the approaching Senate test of the CLARITY Act raises a bigger question: whether the United States is moving toward a comprehensive federal framework for digital assets. Bitcoin surged toward $80,000 on Friday, extending one of its strongest weekly rallies […]
Nature Is Moving Onto the Sovereign Balance Sheet. Public Finance May Never Look the Same.
A new international accounting standard is giving governments a clearer path to recognize certain natural resources as public assets, as ministries of finance increasingly bring nature into decisions about national wealth, budgets and investment. For decades, governments have accounted for roads, buildings, financial holdings and public debt while many forests, wetlands, watersheds and other ecosystems […]
And Then There Were Eight: Ivonne A-Baki Enters the Race to Lead the United Nations
UNITED NATIONS — The race to become the next United Nations Secretary-General has a new entrant. Ivonne A-Baki, the veteran Ecuadorian diplomat nominated by the Kingdom of Tonga, has become the eighth candidate seeking to succeed António Guterres, adding a prominent new voice to a contest that remains unsettled after its first Security Council straw […]
Trump Sanctions the ICC’s Japanese President, Putting Washington and Tokyo at Odds Over the Rule of Law
The ICC sanctions targeting Judge Tomoko Akane brings the Trump administration’s escalating confrontation with the International Criminal Court directly into one of America’s most important alliances. TOKYO/THE HAGUE — The Trump administration’s campaign against the International Criminal Court has reached one of Washington’s closest allies after the United States imposed sanctions on the Court’s Japanese […]
Europe’s Seas Are Superheating. A New Scientific Report Shows Why.
Europe’s record-breaking summer heat is extending well beyond the continent’s cities and forests. From the Mediterranean to the Bay of Biscay and waters surrounding the British Isles, sea temperatures have climbed to extraordinary levels, with a new attribution analysis finding that human-caused climate change has sharply increased the intensity and likelihood of Europe marine heatwaves […]
The U.S.-Iran Truce Framework Has Expired. Trump Is Threatening Oman. What Happens Now?
WASHINGTON/TEHRAN: The U.S.-Iran truce framework, a 60-day diplomatic window intended to turn a temporary U.S.-Iran cessation of hostilities into a broader settlement has expired without a deal. President Donald Trump has ruled out extending the framework, Iran is warning that it could adopt a more offensive military posture, and Trump has threatened military action against […]
UNCCD COP17 Opens in Mongolia as Land, Drought and Food Security Move Up the Global Agenda
ULAANBAATAR: UNCCD COP17 has opened in Mongolia with a more consequential mandate than its relatively low global profile suggests: turn land restoration and drought commitments into finance, resilience and implementation. Running from August 17 to 28 under the theme “Restoring Land. Restoring Hope.”, COP17 brings together the Convention’s 197 Parties as land degradation, drought and […]
Makhtar Diop’s Push to Unlock Trillions for Emerging Markets
As governments face rising debt burdens, constrained public budgets and enormous infrastructure needs, International Finance Corporation Managing Director Makhtar Diop is pushing the World Bank Group to mobilize substantially more private investment into emerging markets, as job creation serves as the ultimate measure of success. Diop has led the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World […]
Trump Abruptly Scales Back South Korea Drills as Kim Jong Un’s Growing Russia Ties Reshape the Security Calculus
SDG News Defense Brief | August 18, 2026 President Donald Trump’s abrupt order to substantially scale back joint military exercises with South Korea is moving toward implementation, raising new questions over readiness and deterrence as North Korea expands its military capabilities and deepens ties with Russia. U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Xavier Brunson visited South […]
