https://www.scmp.com/rss/519507/feed J.D. Vance is an American politician who was elected vice-president of the US in 2024, as the running mate of former president Donald Trump. Vance, who was elected as a US senator from Ohio in 2022, wrote the bestselling memoir Hillbilly Elegy. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Reuters Reuters Israel bombed more targets in Lebanon on Thursday, putting the Middle East ceasefire in further jeopardy after the biggest Israeli attacks of the war on its neighbour killed more than 250 people and threatened to torpedo US President Donald Trump’s truce. In Pakistan, authorities locked down the capital Islamabad in anticipation of the war’s first peace talks, cutting off all access to a 3km (2-mile) zone around the five-star luxury Serena Hotel. Both the US and Iranian delegations are expected... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3349538/no-let-israeli-attacks-lebanon-us-iran-ceasefire-teeters?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3349538/no-let-israeli-attacks-lebanon-us-iran-ceasefire-teeters?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 10:40:10 +0000 Fan Chen,Alyssa Chen Fan Chen,Alyssa Chen Iran’s reclosure of the Strait of Hormuz has strained its tenuous ceasefire with the United States but will not necessarily send the two countries sliding back into war, according to analysts. However, Israel was a wild card, they said, following renewed Israeli strikes on Lebanon. The US and Iran agreed to the ceasefire on Tuesday, just before US President Donald Trump’s deadline for Iran to reopen the strait or risk being sent back to the “Stone Ages”. Trump said he agreed to “suspend the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349534/strait-hormuz-closed-again-end-iran-us-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349534/strait-hormuz-closed-again-end-iran-us-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 10:21:26 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado,Lucy Quaggin,Orange Wang Teresa Elena Frontado,Lucy Quaggin,Orange Wang Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz under a ceasefire agreement with the United States brokered by Pakistan, as the two sides also agreed to start negotiations in Islamabad on Friday for a peace deal. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the US would pause its bombing campaign in Iran for two weeks, calling it a “double-sided ceasefire” requested by Pakistani mediators in a last-minute bid to create space for diplomacy. In a social media post, Trump said the suspension of military action was... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3349299/trump-agrees-suspend-bombing-iran-2-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3349299/trump-agrees-suspend-bombing-iran-2-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 14:28:16 +0000 Reuters Reuters US Vice-President J.D. Vance lavished praise on Hungary and Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Tuesday as he arrived in Budapest to boost the veteran nationalist leader’s campaign ahead of an election that many opinion polls suggest Orban will lose. Orban, a Eurosceptic nationalist in power since 2010, is facing the toughest re-election bid of his career, with independent polls indicating his Fidesz party will lose Sunday’s vote to centre-right challenger Peter Magyar’s Tisza party. Vance’s visit,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3349288/president-loves-you-us-vance-visits-hungary-boost-orban-re-election-bid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3349288/president-loves-you-us-vance-visits-hungary-boost-orban-re-election-bid?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:18:02 +0000 Shi Jiangtao Shi Jiangtao As US President Donald Trump’s Tuesday deadline for reopening the Strait of Hormuz approached, Pakistan put forward a fresh proposal for an immediate ceasefire on Monday, offering what one analyst described as “a critical opportunity” for talks. The plan was brokered through overnight contacts between Pakistani army chief Asim Munir, US officials including Vice-President J.D. Vance and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, according to Reuters. It called for an immediate halt to hostilities... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349189/pakistans-peace-plan-critical-opportunity-us-iran-talks-ahead-trump-deadline?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349189/pakistans-peace-plan-critical-opportunity-us-iran-talks-ahead-trump-deadline?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:20:54 +0000 Finbarr Bermingham Finbarr Bermingham Major powers are closely watching Hungary’s election next week – a vote seen as a referendum on Europe’s right and crucial for Chinese interests in the EU. Recent polls show self-styled “illiberal democrat” Viktor Orban’s Fidesz trailing challenger Peter Magyar’s Tisza Party by between 19 and 23 points among likely voters ahead of an election on Sunday that has been described as “Europe’s most consequential”. For China, Russia and the United States under President Donald Trump, an Orban defeat... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349109/orban-brink-could-hungarys-election-dent-chinas-influence-europe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349109/orban-brink-could-hungarys-election-dent-chinas-influence-europe?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 04:00:08 +0000 Meredith Chen Meredith Chen US President Donald Trump’s war on Iran has not only exposed White House decision-making flaws but also “clear cracks” within the Republican Party and his political base, observers in China say, warning of the risks posed to the party’s midterm prospects. As the US-Israel war with Iran enters its fifth week, mixed signals from Trump and his administration continue to trigger questions about the trajectory of Operation Epic Fury and the exit strategy. Trump has repeatedly claimed victory, most... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3348205/trumps-iran-war-could-republican-rift-and-maga-discontent-doom-midterms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3348205/trumps-iran-war-could-republican-rift-and-maga-discontent-doom-midterms?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 11:00:09 +0000 Letters Letters Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words Critics of US President Donald Trump during his first term, from former FBI director James Comey to a former White House speech-writer, depicted him as a man who rarely laughed in public, suggesting his presidency was one defined by a lack of humour. But on March 19, during an... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3348079/us-allies-trumps-oval-office-offers-most-uncomfortable-seat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3348079/us-allies-trumps-oval-office-offers-most-uncomfortable-seat?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 03:30:11 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Iran on Wednesday dismissed an American plan to pause the war in the Middle East and launched more attacks on Israel and Gulf Arab countries, including strikes that hit a fuel tank at Kuwait International Airport, sparking a fire. Iran’s defiance came as Israel launched air strikes on Tehran and as the United States deployed paratroopers and more Marines to the region. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview on state TV that his government has not engaged in talks to end the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347913/iran-rejects-us-ceasefire-plan-issues-own-demands-strikes-land-across-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347913/iran-rejects-us-ceasefire-plan-issues-own-demands-strikes-land-across-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 18:50:01 +0000 Kandy Wong Kandy Wong With the US-Israel war on Iran entering its third week, the world faces the risk of a more severe oil shock as military strikes expand to major energy infrastructure, heightening fears of a prolonged conflict. In this explainer, the South China Morning Post examines the latest developments and factors driving oil price volatility and assesses the potential impact on the global economy. Energy infrastructure: what is the latest? An Israeli air strike hit energy facilities on Wednesday at Iran’s... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3347193/if-iran-war-takes-oil-above-us120-barrel-how-bad-could-shock-get?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3347193/if-iran-war-takes-oil-above-us120-barrel-how-bad-could-shock-get?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 12:00:13 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Twice on Monday, US President Donald Trump said he had wrangled a confession of sorts from an Oval Office predecessor who he said had expressed regret in a private conversation about not attacking Iran the way Trump has been doing for more than two weeks. But there’s just a little problem: representatives for the four living former presidents – three Democrats and one Republican – said none had been in touch with Trump recently. Trump declined to name the former president when reporters asked... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346927/trump-claims-mystery-ex-president-backed-his-war-iran-no-one-owning?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346927/trump-claims-mystery-ex-president-backed-his-war-iran-no-one-owning?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 14:15:45 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump’s love affair with the Chicago shoe brand Florsheim took over the internet last week, after it was reported that he had gifted several members of his cabinet with new shoes, particularly the brand’s black cap-toe Oxfords named The Lexington. The unusual gifts were first reported last week in The Wall Street Journal, which said Trump had given out pairs of Florsheim shoes worth US$145 – at times even guessing people’s shoe size in front of them. “It’s a nice shoe,” Trump... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/fashion/trends/article/3346877/all-about-florsheim-shoe-brand-has-caught-us-president-donald-trumps-fancy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/fashion/trends/article/3346877/all-about-florsheim-shoe-brand-has-caught-us-president-donald-trumps-fancy?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 10:00:13 +0000 Reuters,Agence France-Presse Reuters,Agence France-Presse South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok and US President Donald Trump discussed the possible reopening of talks between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in a meeting in Washington, Yonhap news agency reported on Saturday. Kim told Trump he was the only Western leader to have had dialogue with North Korea’s Kim and was currently the only person who could resolve issues on the Korean peninsula, Yonhap quoted Kim as telling reporters in Washington. “President Trump said he was curious if... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3346571/trump-tells-south-korea-he-only-leader-who-can-break-north-korean-deadlock?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3346571/trump-tells-south-korea-he-only-leader-who-can-break-north-korean-deadlock?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 01:15:08 +0000 Stephy Zhang Stephy Zhang Freestyle skiing star Eileen Gu said representing China had allowed her to fulfil her mission of popularising winter sport and dismantling gender barriers, but acknowledged it was something “a lot of people won’t understand or believe”. The 22-year-old, who brought her career total to six medals at last month’s Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, wrote on social media on Tuesday that her decision had turned her dreams into reality and maximised her global impact, encouraging young girls especially... https://www.scmp.com/sport/china/article/3345392/eileen-gu-says-people-wont-understand-or-believe-why-she-decided-compete-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/china/article/3345392/eileen-gu-says-people-wont-understand-or-believe-why-she-decided-compete-china?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 09:30:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press With Saturday’s military operation against Iran, US President Donald Trump showed a dramatic evolution in risk tolerance, adjusting in just a matter of months how far he was willing to go in using American military might to confront Tehran’s clerical rule. Guardrails were tossed aside, as Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered up a battle plan that included targeted strikes on Iran’s leadership, including the 86-year-old Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whose death... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345003/trump-was-once-not-keen-regime-change-iran-then-he-lost-patience?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345003/trump-was-once-not-keen-regime-change-iran-then-he-lost-patience?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 01:30:25 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse On a visit to Texas on Friday, US President Donald Trump gave a raucous speech on the economy and then stopped off at a fast-food joint. “Hamburgers for everyone!” Trump declared to cheering customers at the Whataburger restaurant in Corpus Christi, before the 47th president left clutching a bag with order No 47. Nine hours later, in the dead of night, Trump announced from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida that he had ordered the start of a major attack against Iran. It was the culmination of a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345001/burgers-then-war-trumps-bluffs-iran-strikes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345001/burgers-then-war-trumps-bluffs-iran-strikes?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Feb 2026 22:13:05 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump voiced frustration on Friday with Iran’s stance in nuclear negotiations but said he had not yet decided whether to carry out a threatened attack, as US staff were authorised to leave Israel due to heightened risks. Trump has ordered the biggest military build-up in decades in the Middle East, with the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, approaching the coast of Israel, as he demands Iran agree to sweeping concessions on concerns starting with its... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344925/us-tells-some-embassy-staff-leave-israel-iran-war-clouds-gather?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344925/us-tells-some-embassy-staff-leave-israel-iran-war-clouds-gather?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 13:31:47 +0000 dpa dpa US Vice-President J.D. Vance has said he does not believe potential military action against Iran would drag the country into a years-long war in the Middle East, according to an interview with The Washington Post published on Thursday. Vance said he did not know how US President Donald Trump would decide on the Iran issue. Options, he said, range from military strikes “to ensure Iran isn’t going to get a nuclear weapon” to a diplomatic solution. “The idea that we’re going to be in a Middle... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344888/vance-dismisses-prolonged-mideast-war-fears-us-iran-tensions-rage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344888/vance-dismisses-prolonged-mideast-war-fears-us-iran-tensions-rage?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 10:04:35 +0000 Chow Chung-yan Chow Chung-yan This year’s Munich Security Conference arrived as less of a shock to Europeans, who have largely accepted that the good old days are gone for good. A few might still have got teary-eyed when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described America as eternally “the child of Europe”, but most in the audience understood the underlying message: “You are on your own now, Granny.” The difference between Rubio’s more measured phrasing and Vice-President J.D. Vance’s blunt remarks last year is largely a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3344695/europe-ready-strategic-autonomy-what-cost?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3344695/europe-ready-strategic-autonomy-what-cost?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 01:00:10 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The two best bets to win the gold medal in women’s halfpipe skiing at the Winter Olympics were born in the United States. But while Zoe Atkin, who led qualification into the final on Saturday (Sunday 2.30am, Hong Kong time), competes for Britain, hardly anyone raises a fuss about it. However, Eileen Gu competes for China and never hears the end of it. Stories of athletes who lived in one country then decided to compete for another are nothing new to international sports. Throw some Olympic rings... https://www.scmp.com/sport/china/article/3344207/halfpipe-medal-favourites-were-both-born-us-only-chinas-eileen-gu-gets-heat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/china/article/3344207/halfpipe-medal-favourites-were-both-born-us-only-chinas-eileen-gu-gets-heat?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Feb 2026 12:00:10 +0000 Sumnima Kandangwa Sumnima Kandangwa Social media influencer and “incel-ibrity” Clavicular is grabbing headlines after making his runway debut at New York Fashion Week for American fashion designer Elena Velez’s namesake brand – and getting involved in an altercation at a New York City nightclub the same week. Born Braden Peters, the American streamer is better known by his online handle Clavicular, a nickname that comes from the 20-year-old’s obsession with the proportions of his clavicle and “looksmaxxing”, an internet subculture... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3343725/meet-clavicular-looksmaxxing-influencer-who-just-made-his-new-york-fashion-week-debut?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3343725/meet-clavicular-looksmaxxing-influencer-who-just-made-his-new-york-fashion-week-debut?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 22:00:21 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain After US and Iranian negotiators agreed on Tuesday to a set of “guiding principles” at their nuclear talks in Geneva mediated by Oman, Tehran went further – framing any eventual deal as a commercial proposition, not just a security arrangement. Iran is pitching access to its vast energy and mineral reserves as what it has called a “trillion-dollar opportunity” for American firms. In doing so, analysts say Tehran is speaking the language of a US president known for his deal-making... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343872/iran-tempts-trump-trillion-dollar-nuclear-deal-pitch?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343872/iran-tempts-trump-trillion-dollar-nuclear-deal-pitch?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 04:37:14 +0000 dpa dpa German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed irritation over the standing ovation for US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Munich Security Conference. “I wasn’t in the hall and even if I had been, I would have found it difficult to stand up,” Merz said on the political podcast Machtwechsel (“change of power”), which is due to be released on Wednesday. Rubio’s speech had not been as confrontational as the one delivered by US Vice-President J.D. Vance at last year’s conference, Merz said, adding... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3343873/germanys-merz-chides-standing-ovation-rubio-munich-security-conference?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3343873/germanys-merz-chides-standing-ovation-rubio-munich-security-conference?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 04:34:54 +0000 SCMP Reporters SCMP Reporters We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering US-China relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Trump faces rare pushback within his party over tariffs as polls slide President Donald Trump faced noteworthy pushback in February over his signature tariff policy in the US Congress while his popularity slipped and more lawmakers in his party appeared willing to risk his wrath. Read the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3343380/secret-nuclear-testing-claims-military-ai-race-7-us-china-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3343380/secret-nuclear-testing-claims-military-ai-race-7-us-china-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Feb 2026 14:00:08 +0000 Finbarr Bermingham Finbarr Bermingham At a Munich Security Conference drinks reception last week, a seasoned Chinese delegate who has been coming to Bavaria for more than a decade said China had long felt like an observer on the periphery. China was mentioned mainly to be blamed, they said – but things flipped last year when, instead of taking Beijing to task, US Vice-President J.D. Vance targeted Europe. Later in the weekend, the event’s CEO Benedikt Franke praised the China Centre for Globalisation – a Beijing think tank – for... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343639/transatlantic-divorce-plays-out-munich-china-enjoys-silence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343639/transatlantic-divorce-plays-out-munich-china-enjoys-silence?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 13:11:47 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow New Zealand’s government has come under fire for keeping its talks with the United States over critical minerals under wraps, as opposition parties level accusations of secrecy amid mounting concern about environmental damage and foreign influence. Analysts say Wellington is reluctant to promote any formal agreement with Washington or invite public debate on the issue, even as both governments have confirmed that they are “exploring further opportunities” on critical minerals cooperation. In a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343516/new-zealand-catches-flak-secret-us-critical-minerals-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3343516/new-zealand-catches-flak-secret-us-critical-minerals-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 03:00:08 +0000 Finbarr Bermingham Finbarr Bermingham US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Munich Security Conference that it would be “geopolitical malpractice” not to talk to China, as he pledged that Washington would carefully manage its differences with Beijing. “Because we’re two large countries with huge global interests, our national interests will often not align,” Rubio told the event in a keynote address on Saturday morning. “We owe it to the world to try to manage those as best we can, obviously avoiding conflict, both economic and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343577/rubio-european-allies-our-destiny-will-be-intertwined-yours?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343577/rubio-european-allies-our-destiny-will-be-intertwined-yours?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Feb 2026 08:13:34 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain The United States and Iran may be inching towards a renewed nuclear accord, following intensive behind-the-scenes diplomacy by Gulf monarchies and Turkey aimed at averting a new regional war. With US President Donald Trump indicating a clear preference for negotiation over confrontation, Washington appears to have quietly abandoned earlier talk of regime change in Tehran and efforts to assist Iranians caught in last month’s bloody protests. “If the Iranian people want to overthrow the regime,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343257/us-iran-eye-tentative-nuclear-talks-regional-diplomacy-intensifies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3343257/us-iran-eye-tentative-nuclear-talks-regional-diplomacy-intensifies?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Feb 2026 04:00:14 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof As Washington redraws the global map for critical minerals, Malaysia is pitching itself to the United States as a “trusted” link in the supply chain while making clear it will not serve as a quarry shipping out unprocessed resources. Analysts say the stance reflects a careful balancing act: Kuala Lumpur wants US capital and technology to build downstream industries at home but is wary of being seen as taking sides in an intensifying US–China contest over strategic resources. A ban on raw rare... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3343222/malaysia-courts-us-climb-critical-minerals-value-chain-while-keeping-raw-export-ban?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3343222/malaysia-courts-us-climb-critical-minerals-value-chain-while-keeping-raw-export-ban?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 13:16:17 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he was considering sending a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East, even as Washington and Tehran ‍prepare to resume negotiations aimed at averting a new conflict. Oman facilitated talks between Iran and the US last week, which a spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry said had allowed Tehran to gauge Washington’s seriousness and showed enough consensus for diplomacy to continue. The talks came after Trump had positioned one aircraft carrier in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343117/trump-hints-sending-second-aircraft-carrier-us-and-iran-plan-next-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343117/trump-hints-sending-second-aircraft-carrier-us-and-iran-plan-next-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Feb 2026 20:50:17 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang The United States has appeared “more threatening” over the past year, while perceptions of China have improved markedly in parts of the Western world, according to a global risk survey released on Monday. The same report, released in the lead-up to the Munich Security Conference (MSC) this week, also accused Beijing of “increasingly threatening regional stability” in the Indo-Pacific, while warning that President Donald Trump’s “vacillating” China policy was causing a “crisis of confidence”... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343087/trumps-vacillating-china-policy-leads-allies-crisis-confidence-security-report?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343087/trumps-vacillating-china-policy-leads-allies-crisis-confidence-security-report?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Feb 2026 14:00:15 +0000 Agencies Agencies US President Donald Trump criticised American Olympic ‌skier Hunter Hess as a “real loser” on Sunday, days after the athlete expressed ‍mixed feelings about representing the United States at the Winter Olympics in northern Italy. Freestyle skier Hess was asked at a press conference on Wednesday how he felt about representing America at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, given acute US tension over violent immigration raids and other political crises. “There’s obviously a lot going on... https://www.scmp.com/sport/other-sport/article/3342857/trump-insults-us-olympic-skier-hunter-hess-calling-freestyler-real-loser?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/other-sport/article/3342857/trump-insults-us-olympic-skier-hunter-hess-calling-freestyler-real-loser?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Feb 2026 21:27:26 +0000 David D. Lee David D. Lee Relations between long-time allies South Korea and the United States have hit another unexpected flashpoint even as Seoul struggles to iron out tariff talks with Washington – the uproar over a data breach involving online giant Coupang, dubbed the Korean Amazon. The US-listed company that provides e-commerce, entertainment streaming and food delivery services to nearly 34 million South Koreans – more than 60 per cent of the population – last November disclosed a massive data leak exposing the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342531/coupang-data-leak-threatens-south-korea-us-ties-amid-tariff-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342531/coupang-data-leak-threatens-south-korea-us-ties-amid-tariff-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 00:00:14 +0000 Khushboo Razdan Khushboo Razdan A senior US official on Thursday defended Washington’s new critical minerals push, telling the South China Morning Post that supply chain diversification is a national security measure, not an attempt to form an exclusive bloc as Beijing has claimed. Deputy State Department spokeswoman Mignon Houston, speaking a day after the launch of the Forum on Resource Geostrategic Engagement, or Forge, described the US-led global coordination of strategic minerals as a “prudent step”. She sidestepped... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/article/3342574/us-defends-new-minerals-alliance-rejecting-claims-it-targets-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/article/3342574/us-defends-new-minerals-alliance-rejecting-claims-it-targets-china?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 23:15:54 +0000 Finbarr Bermingham Finbarr Bermingham Luuk van Middelaar is the director of the Brussels Institute for Geopolitics, a think tank he co-founded in 2022. A political theorist and historian by trade, he has written several books and was in the cabinet of the first European Council president, Herman Van Rompuy. Van Middelaar is widely read and cited across Europe for his analysis of the EU’s political evolution, with his books translated into many languages and awarded major European literary prizes. He writes regularly for leading... https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/world/europe/article/3342456/historian-trumps-new-world-order-ukraine-war-and-europe-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/world/europe/article/3342456/historian-trumps-new-world-order-ukraine-war-and-europe-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 04:20:36 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Colombian President Gustavo Petro and US President Donald Trump appeared to bury the hatchet on Tuesday, after a year of sparring that culminated in threats by Trump to topple the left-wing leader like in Venezuela. “My impression of the meeting a few hours ago is first and foremost that it was positive,” Petro told reporters after meeting Trump at the White House behind closed doors. Trump said he “got along very well” with the leader whom he recently accused of pumping cocaine into the United... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342295/trump-makes-colombias-petro-fireworks-free-meeting-hes-been-very-nice?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342295/trump-makes-colombias-petro-fireworks-free-meeting-hes-been-very-nice?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 21:40:23 +0000 Reuters Reuters Palantir Technologies CEO Alex Karp defended the firm’s surveillance technology as it reported a big jump in sales on Monday, ‍saying it has safeguards to prevent government overreach, without mentioning US immigration enforcement efforts in Minnesota that have drawn widespread protests. The data analytics company said revenue derived from the US government spiked 66 per cent in the fourth quarter from the year-ago period to US$570 million. Total sales of US$1.41 billion exceeded analysts’... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342195/palantir-defends-surveillance-tech-us-government-contracts-boost-sales?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342195/palantir-defends-surveillance-tech-us-government-contracts-boost-sales?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 06:04:49 +0000 Igor Patrick Igor Patrick One of the leading scholars of China-Latin America relations, Francisco Urdinez is known for coining the concept of “economic displacement”, a theory that also gives its name to his Cambridge University Press book title published in November. The idea holds that China’s rise has reduced US relevance in the region by making partnerships with Beijing more consequential and ties with Washington less essential for many governments. Now, in the wake of US attacks on Caracas and the abduction of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3341536/francisco-urdinez-how-venezuela-tests-chinas-economic-advance-latin-america?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3341536/francisco-urdinez-how-venezuela-tests-chinas-economic-advance-latin-america?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jan 2026 22:00:08 +0000 Thomas O. Falk Thomas O. Falk America has endured intense political polarisation before. What it has not faced is a presidency that has transformed a federal law-enforcement agency into a potential instrument of political power. During Donald Trump’s second term as president, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) risks becoming just that. Created after 9/11 as a specialised arm of the Department of Homeland Security, ICE was meant to enforce immigration laws and combat transnational criminal networks. Its annual... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341509/ice-fatal-shootings-raise-fear-over-trumps-use-federal-authority?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341509/ice-fatal-shootings-raise-fear-over-trumps-use-federal-authority?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jan 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A branch of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will help with security for the Winter Olympics in Italy, it confirmed on Tuesday, sparking anger and warnings they were not welcome. Reports had been circulating for days that the agency embroiled in an often brutal immigration crackdown in the United States could be involved in US security measures for the February 6-22 Games in northern Italy. In a statement overnight, ICE said: “At the Olympics, ICE’s Homeland Security... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3341436/ice-agents-get-security-role-2026-winter-olympics-sparking-outrage-after-deadly-shootings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3341436/ice-agents-get-security-role-2026-winter-olympics-sparking-outrage-after-deadly-shootings?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Jan 2026 11:40:40 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Prominent Republicans and gun rights advocates helped elicit a White House turnabout this week after bristling over the administration’s characterisation of Alex Pretti, the second person killed this month by a federal officer in Minneapolis, as responsible for his own death because he lawfully possessed a weapon. The death produced no clear shifts in US gun politics or policies, even as US President Donald Trump shuffles the lieutenants in charge of his militarised immigration crackdown. But... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341413/trump-faces-second-amendment-backlash-over-ice-shooting-alex-pretti?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341413/trump-faces-second-amendment-backlash-over-ice-shooting-alex-pretti?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Jan 2026 09:35:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Former US presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton issued pointed calls on Sunday for America to stand up and defend their values after the second killing of a citizen in Minneapolis by immigration agents that Donald Trump blamed on Democratic “chaos”. The Trump administration has faced intensifying pressure over its mass immigration crackdown, particularly after federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, Saturday while scuffling with him on an icy roadway. That... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341185/minneapolis-killing-wake-call-us-values-are-under-assault-says-obama?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341185/minneapolis-killing-wake-call-us-values-are-under-assault-says-obama?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Jan 2026 18:59:22 +0000 Sebastian Contin Trillo-Figueroa Sebastian Contin Trillo-Figueroa Europe’s survival as an independent political power depends on its readiness to impose costs on the United States while reopening a sustained channel with China. The Arthashastra counsels that the enemy of one’s enemy is one’s friend. Europe has ignored this principle, absorbing repeated American bullying while refusing to leverage relations with China as a counterweight. The Greenland episode crystallises a reality enforced through trade threats, security conditionality and territorial... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341010/europe-must-make-us-feel-cost-coercion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3341010/europe-must-make-us-feel-cost-coercion?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Jan 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Reuters Reuters When Fabiola, a single mother and naturalised US citizen from Latin America, first learned of the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, ‌she said she was heartbroken and terrified. Then she joined the thousands of other Minnesotans who have volunteered to track ICE agents since Good was killed, despite her fears for herself and her son Asher, who is seven. “I ‍do feel scared, but at the same time, I know I have to take care of my people too,” she... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341136/minneapolis-resistance-ice-hardens-after-agents-kill-another-us-citizen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341136/minneapolis-resistance-ice-hardens-after-agents-kill-another-us-citizen?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Jan 2026 01:25:38 +0000 Coco Feng Coco Feng TikTok has officially launched a US joint venture tasked with “safeguarding the American content ecosystem”, with commercial activities such as e-commerce, advertising and marketing remaining under the company’s existing US entities. The arrangement has been widely compared with Apple’s 2018 move to transfer mainland Chinese iCloud user data to Guizhou-Cloud Big Data (GCBD), according to Chinese media. GCBD is a project owned by the Guizhou provincial government-backed company AIPO Cloud... https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3340996/tiktok-us-joint-venture-seen-resembling-apples-china-icloud-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/tech/policy/article/3340996/tiktok-us-joint-venture-seen-resembling-apples-china-icloud-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 14:00:09 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A 5-year-old boy arriving home from preschool in Minnesota was taken by federal agents along with his father to a detention facility in Texas, school officials and the family’s lawyer said, making him the fourth student from his Minneapolis suburb to be detained by immigration officers in recent weeks. Federal agents took Liam Conejo Ramos from a running car in the family’s driveway Tuesday afternoon, Columbia Heights Public Schools Superintendent Zena Stenvik told reporters on Wednesday. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340998/ice-detains-5-year-old-minneapolis-school-officials-claim-child-was-used-bait?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340998/ice-detains-5-year-old-minneapolis-school-officials-claim-child-was-used-bait?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 08:50:45 +0000 Nong Hong Nong Hong Talk of the United States acquiring Greenland has often been dismissed as rhetorical provocation. But the latest escalation is harder to wave away. President Donald Trump said it would be “unacceptable” if the US did not control Greenland only hours before Vice-President J.D. Vance hosted the Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers. When territorial language is paired with senior-level diplomacy, it forces allies to draw public red lines, narrows the space for quiet crisis management, and turns... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3340064/greenlands-stress-test-nato-will-ripple-beyond-arctic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3340064/greenlands-stress-test-nato-will-ripple-beyond-arctic?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 18 Jan 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump suggested on Friday that he may punish countries with tariffs if they don’t back the US controlling Greenland, a message that came as a bipartisan Congressional delegation sought to lower tensions in the Danish capital. Trump for months has insisted that the US should control Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Nato ally Denmark, and said earlier this week that anything less than the Arctic island being in US hands would be “unacceptable”. During an unrelated... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340228/trump-says-he-may-tariff-countries-dont-back-us-controlling-greenland?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340228/trump-says-he-may-tariff-countries-dont-back-us-controlling-greenland?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jan 2026 18:48:08 +0000 Kyodo Kyodo The defence chiefs of Japan and the United States on Thursday agreed that the bilateral alliance is “unshaken” and pledged to reinforce its deterrence capabilities amid concerns in Asia that Washington’s focus is shifting from the region. Following his meeting with US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon near Washington, Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said he was reassured that the administration of President Donald Trump remains committed to peace and stability in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3340096/japan-us-vow-unshaken-defence-alliance-despite-trumps-pivot-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3340096/japan-us-vow-unshaken-defence-alliance-despite-trumps-pivot-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jan 2026 03:47:38 +0000 Reuters Reuters European countries sent small numbers of military personnel to Greenland on Thursday as ‌Denmark said it was pressing on with plans for a “larger and more permanent” Nato presence to secure the island coveted by US President Donald Trump. The modest European deployments, meant to help ‍Denmark prepare military exercises, sent a strong message of support a day after a meeting of officials from the US, Denmark and Greenland failed to reach any breakthrough on the impasse. After that meeting, Trump... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340058/european-allies-send-troops-greenland-amid-trumps-purchase-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3340058/european-allies-send-troops-greenland-amid-trumps-purchase-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jan 2026 14:11:05 +0000