https://www.scmp.com/rss/524708/feed The latest news and top stories on the United States government. A Washington DC-based federal governmental body, the United States government is dedicated to serving its citizens by establishing justice, ensuring domestic tranquility and promoting general welfare. Its main areas of focus include domestic and foreign policy, national security and economic stability. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Sameed Basha Sameed Basha Many American wars begin with the assumption that brute force will lead to a swift and decisive victory. While the US military is highly effective at conventional deterrence, it has consistently struggled to defeat adversaries employing asymmetric tactics. In conflicts such as Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan and Yemen, Washington repeatedly underestimated its adversaries by assessing their strength based on their ability to fight conventionally. Iran represents the most dangerous iteration of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3345222/us-war-iran-isnt-likely-go-planned?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3345222/us-war-iran-isnt-likely-go-planned?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Mar 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A federal appeal court on Monday rejected US President Donald Trump’s push to delay legal proceedings linked to refunds of his tariffs, allowing the battle to proceed in a lower court. The Supreme Court last month delivered a stinging rebuke of Trump’s signature economic policy by striking down many of his global tariffs, opening the door to a complicated legal fight as companies sue for their money back. The tariffs ruled illegal by the high court had generated more than US$130 billion for the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345188/us-appeal-court-denies-trump-bid-delay-tariff-refund-lawsuits?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345188/us-appeal-court-denies-trump-bid-delay-tariff-refund-lawsuits?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 19:17:42 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The United States Supreme Court, which dealt a serious blow to US President Donald Trump’s tariff-based trade policy, may have helped to steady the rocky trade ties between China and the United States ahead of a crucial summit meeting. In a stunning decision that cut across ideological blocs, six out of the nine justices ruled that Trump lacked the authority to impose the emergency tariffs he did last year on nearly all imports into the US, including the so-called reciprocal duties on dozens of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3344879/china-now-holds-more-cards-ahead-xi-trump-meeting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3344879/china-now-holds-more-cards-ahead-xi-trump-meeting?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 23:15:16 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Thousands of supporters of Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro demonstrated in cities across the South American nation on Sunday, as organisers hoped to build momentum for a right-wing victory in the coming presidential elections. Protesters draped in yellow and green – the colours of the national flag – took to the streets in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and the capital Brasilia to voice their opposition to current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva who faces a tough re-election bid in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345058/supporters-ex-president-bolsonaro-rally-across-brazil-against-lula?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345058/supporters-ex-president-bolsonaro-rally-across-brazil-against-lula?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 21:54:13 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse President Donald Trump told the US government on Friday to “immediately” stop using Anthropic’s technology after the AI start-up rejected the Pentagon’s demand that it agree to unconditional military use of its Claude models. Anthropic insists its technology should not be used for the mass surveillance of US citizens or deployed in fully autonomous weapons systems, while the Pentagon says it operates within the law and that contracted suppliers cannot set terms on how their products are... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344946/trump-tells-us-government-immediately-stop-using-anthropic-ai-tech?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344946/trump-tells-us-government-immediately-stop-using-anthropic-ai-tech?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 22:19:58 +0000 Reuters Reuters The US military shot down a government drone with a laser-based anti-drone system, an accident that prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to bar flights on Thursday in an area around Fort Hancock, Texas, congressional aides told Reuters. Congressional aides told Reuters the Pentagon used the high-energy laser system to shoot down a Customs and Border Protection drone near the Mexican border, in an area ‌that often has incursions from Mexican drones used by drug cartels. The Pentagon,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344810/us-military-laser-shoots-down-government-drone-texas-incident?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344810/us-military-laser-shoots-down-government-drone-texas-incident?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 03:36:29 +0000 Xinmei Shen Xinmei Shen Washington will keep pushing China to join a trilateral nuclear control deal with the US and Russia, but can’t compel it to do so, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, citing “strategic stability” in China-US relations ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China in April, despite long-term “irritants”. “We think ultimately, in the 21st century, for there to be a true arms control agreement, it has to involve China,” Rubio said during a press conference at a meeting of the Caribbean... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3344790/new-nuclear-control-agreement-should-include-us-russia-and-china-rubio?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3344790/new-nuclear-control-agreement-should-include-us-russia-and-china-rubio?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Feb 2026 20:37:52 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Iran and the United States held hours of indirect negotiations on Thursday over Tehran’s nuclear programme but walked away without a deal, leaving the danger of another Mideast war on the table as the US has gathered a massive fleet of aircraft and warships in the region. Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who mediated the talks in Geneva, said there had been “significant progress in the negotiation” without elaborating. But just before the talks ended, Iranian state television reported... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344787/us-and-iran-wrap-indirect-nuclear-talks-american-forces-mass-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344787/us-and-iran-wrap-indirect-nuclear-talks-american-forces-mass-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Feb 2026 19:49:28 +0000 Xinmei Shen Xinmei Shen Washington will keep China tariffs at their current level as the Trump administration seeks “continuity” after the Supreme Court struck down the levies it imposed last year, according to US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, weeks ahead of a high-stakes meeting between the two countries’ leaders. The US will keep in place current China tariffs, which have varied from 35 per cent to 50 per cent depending on the product, since the countries “de-escalated” the trade war last year, Greer said on... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3344658/us-keep-china-trade-tariffs-steady-ahead-key-trump-xi-meeting-greer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3344658/us-keep-china-trade-tariffs-steady-ahead-key-trump-xi-meeting-greer?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Feb 2026 23:11:22 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cuba’s coastguard shot dead four people and injured six others travelling in a US-registered speedboat in an exchange of fire off the Cuban coast on Wednesday, the interior ministry in Havana said. The “illegal” Florida-registered boat was detected one nautical mile from Falcones Cay in Villa Clara province, the ministry said in a brief statement. As a coastguard vessel approached to identify the boat “shots were fired from the boat”, injuring the commander of the Cuban vessel, the ministry... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344655/cuba-coastguard-kills-4-firefight-us-registered-speedboat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344655/cuba-coastguard-kills-4-firefight-us-registered-speedboat?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Feb 2026 20:08:14 +0000 Kandy Wong Kandy Wong A reported threat by US President Donald Trump to withdraw from the North American trade pact could push Canada closer to China, analysts say, even as his new global 15 per cent tariff has little immediate impact due to existing trade agreements. Washington, Ottawa and Mexico City are set to renegotiate terms of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) before a possible extension on July 1. Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that Trump was quietly considering exiting the trade deal –... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3344595/trumps-usmca-exit-threat-seen-pushing-canada-chinas-arms-hedge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3344595/trumps-usmca-exit-threat-seen-pushing-canada-chinas-arms-hedge?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Feb 2026 12:00:08 +0000 Finbarr Bermingham Finbarr Bermingham The European Union’s trade chief Maros Sefcovic has railed against the bloc’s glacial trade defences, warning that years-long probes and rigid rules will not protect the bloc from China’s increasingly fierce export machine. Speaking in the European Parliament on Tuesday, Sefcovic lashed out at Beijing’s “unsustainable” trade surplus and called for an urgent overhaul of world trading rules to account for “overcapacities”, “unfair trade policies” and “state subsidies”. He confirmed, meanwhile,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3344517/eu-too-slow-act-china-rewrites-global-trade-rules-trade-chief-sefcovic-warns?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3344517/eu-too-slow-act-china-rewrites-global-trade-rules-trade-chief-sefcovic-warns?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Feb 2026 18:55:55 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Japanese trade minister Ryosei Akazawa warned against any tariff moves that could leave the country worse off than under a Japan-US trade deal agreed to last year, during a phone call with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick as a new round of US tariffs is set to take effect. Akazawa and Lutnick agreed that Japan and the US would work closely to ensure the swift and smooth implementation of projects that are part of a US$550 billion investment mechanism, during a phone call on Monday evening.... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3344440/japan-wants-us-stick-trade-deal-new-global-tariffs-kick?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3344440/japan-wants-us-stick-trade-deal-new-global-tariffs-kick?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Feb 2026 07:36:56 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg US President Donald Trump has pushed back on reports that the Pentagon was concerned that an extended military campaign against Iran could prove difficult, even as he insisted his preference was still to strike a diplomatic deal. “Everything that has been written about a potential War with Iran has been written incorrectly, and purposefully so,” Trump said in a social media post on Monday. “I am the one that makes the decision, I would rather have a Deal than not but, if we don’t make a Deal, it... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344419/trump-pushes-back-reports-iran-war-risks-clock-ticks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344419/trump-pushes-back-reports-iran-war-risks-clock-ticks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Feb 2026 05:42:23 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The United States on Monday accused China of dramatically swelling its nuclear arsenal and doubled down on claims that Beijing had conducted secret nuclear tests, demanding again it be part of any future arms control treaty. Washington said the lapsing earlier this month of New Start – the last treaty between top nuclear powers the United States and Russia – presented the possibility of striking a “better agreement” including Beijing. Christopher Yeaw, the US assistant secretary of state for... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344385/china-has-massively-expanded-its-nuclear-arsenal-claims-us-state-department?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344385/china-has-massively-expanded-its-nuclear-arsenal-claims-us-state-department?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Feb 2026 20:48:21 +0000 dpa dpa Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that he believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin “has already begun” World War III, in an interview with British broadcaster BBC. Speaking in Kyiv over the weekend ahead of the fourth anniversary of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday, Zelensky said that his view of the conflict was different from that of US President Donald Trump. “We have different views regarding a third world war,” Zelensky said in the interview, translated... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344316/ukraines-zelensky-says-he-believes-putin-has-started-world-war-iii?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344316/ukraines-zelensky-says-he-believes-putin-has-started-world-war-iii?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Feb 2026 07:09:21 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran after ordering a major naval build-up in the Middle East aimed at heaping pressure on Tehran to cut a deal to curb its nuclear programme. The latest threat came after Iran’s foreign minister said a draft proposal for an agreement with Washington would be ready in a matter of days following negotiations between the two sides in Geneva earlier this week. Trump had suggested on Thursday that “bad things” would happen if... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344183/trump-weighs-limited-strike-iran-tehran-says-draft-deal-coming-soon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3344183/trump-weighs-limited-strike-iran-tehran-says-draft-deal-coming-soon?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 18:02:25 +0000 Jeoffrey Maitem Jeoffrey Maitem The United States’ plan to expand deployments of advanced missile systems and unmanned platforms in the Philippines is less about hardware than geography and what it signals about Washington’s long-term strategy in the region, analysts said. Announced after the 12th Philippines–US Bilateral Strategic Dialogue this week, the move reflects a steady effort to reinforce the so-called First Island Chain and bolster the US–Philippines alliance’s defensive posture in both the South China Sea and the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344020/us-missile-deployments-philippines-signal-deeper-strategic-shift-region?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344020/us-missile-deployments-philippines-signal-deeper-strategic-shift-region?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 10:58:23 +0000 Reuters Reuters Satellite images show that Iran has recently built a concrete shield over a new facility at a sensitive military site and covered it in soil, experts ⁠say, advancing work at a location reportedly bombed by Israel ⁠in 2024 amid tensions with the United States. Images also show that Iran has buried tunnel ⁠entrances at a nuclear site bombed by the US during Israel’s 12-day war with Iran last year, fortified tunnel entrances near another, and has repaired missile bases struck in the conflict. They... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343965/satellite-photos-show-iran-repairing-and-fortifying-key-sites-amid-tensions-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343965/satellite-photos-show-iran-repairing-and-fortifying-key-sites-amid-tensions-us?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 04:18:09 +0000 Xinmei Shen Xinmei Shen A senior state department official said that the US would resume nuclear tests to match “opaque” Chinese activity, flagging new details about a 2020 test the US recently accused China of secretly conducting, as US President Donald Trump seeks a new trilateral nuclear control deal with China and Russia. “As the president has said, the United States will return to testing on an ‘equal basis’,” Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation Christopher Yeaw said on... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3343858/us-offers-more-details-claim-china-conducted-secret-nuclear-weapons-test?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3343858/us-offers-more-details-claim-china-conducted-secret-nuclear-weapons-test?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 00:16:37 +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 Associated Press Associated Press US military forces boarded another sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking the vessel from the Caribbean Sea in an effort to target illicit oil connected to Venezuela, the Pentagon said on Sunday. Venezuela had faced US sanctions on its oil for several years, relying on a shadow fleet of falsely flagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains. US President Donald Trump ordered a quarantine of sanctioned tankers in December to pressure then-President Nicolas Maduro before... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343657/us-military-boards-another-oil-tanker-indian-ocean-after-tracking-it-caribbean?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343657/us-military-boards-another-oil-tanker-indian-ocean-after-tracking-it-caribbean?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 22:46:54 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Switzerland said on Saturday that Oman would host talks between the United States and Iran in Geneva next week, with Washington pushing Tehran to make a deal to limit its nuclear programme. “Switzerland stands ready at all times to offer its good offices to facilitate dialogue between the United States and Iran,” a Swiss foreign ministry spokesman said. On February 6, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held talks in Oman with US envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343601/us-iran-talks-be-held-geneva-next-week-hosted-oman?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343601/us-iran-talks-be-held-geneva-next-week-hosted-oman?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Feb 2026 18:10:50 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier The US Government experienced its second shutdown in four months on Saturday, as funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) halted, underscoring Washington’s growing partisanship and dysfunction. But in an ironic twist, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, at the centre of the Congressional showdown, will continue to operate despite being part of DHS, given its independent source of funding. In an unprecedented move, US President Donald Trump’s administration has allocated at... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/politics/article/3343562/partial-us-government-shutdown-throws-congress-turmoil-again?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/politics/article/3343562/partial-us-government-shutdown-throws-congress-turmoil-again?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Feb 2026 05:00:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The US military said on Friday it killed three alleged drug traffickers in a strike on a boat in the Caribbean. The attack raises the death toll from the Trump administration’s strikes on alleged drug boats to 133 people in at least 38 attacks carried out since early September in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. “Three narcoterrorists were killed during this action. No US military forces were harmed,” US Southern Command said in a statement on social media. A video linked to the post... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343553/3-dead-us-launches-new-strike-suspected-drug-boat-caribbean?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343553/3-dead-us-launches-new-strike-suspected-drug-boat-caribbean?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Feb 2026 02:26:44 +0000 Li Cheng,Tony Xiuye Zhao Li Cheng,Tony Xiuye Zhao The perpetual question of “who governs” finds stark expression in today’s US-China rivalry. As the two powers compete, the contrast between governance-by-technocrats in China and the predominance of lawyers in the United States is shaping each country’s respective development path. China is set to approve its 15th five-year plan, which will set development goals and strategies through 2030. It prioritises critical technological breakthroughs and industrial integration. Meanwhile, in the Trump... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3343150/how-washingtons-lawyers-stack-against-beijings-technocrats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3343150/how-washingtons-lawyers-stack-against-beijings-technocrats?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Feb 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Igor Patrick Igor Patrick China will support Cuba “in the best way possible” as the island grapples with an energy crisis following tougher measures imposed by US President Donald Trump’s administration, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday. Speaking at a regular press briefing in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said China “will do what it can” to assist Havana and again condemned what he described as “inhumane actions that deprive the Cuban people of their right to survival and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343242/china-vows-do-what-it-can-us-blockade-leaves-cuba-just-weeks-oil?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343242/china-vows-do-what-it-can-us-blockade-leaves-cuba-just-weeks-oil?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 22:37:01 +0000 Zhao Ziwen Zhao Ziwen China has rejected US claims that it conducted a nuclear test in 2020, saying the accusation is “an excuse” to justify a potential US return to nuclear testing. “The United States has persistently distorted and smeared China’s nuclear policy,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Wednesday. The pushback was in response to a statement by Thomas DiNanno, US undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, in Geneva on Friday. “The US government is aware that China has... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343204/china-accuses-us-seeking-revive-its-nuclear-test-programme?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343204/china-accuses-us-seeking-revive-its-nuclear-test-programme?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 10:52:06 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald Trump’s administration has removed a large rainbow ⁠Pride flag that flew over the ⁠Stonewall National Monument, which marks the birthplace of ⁠the modern gay rights movement in New York. The National Park Service, the federal agency overseeing US national monuments, said that it managed the flagpole at the monument and that the flag had been removed to ensure a “long-standing policy” was applied consistently across its sites. But some elected officials in ‌New York said the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343121/trump-admin-removes-rainbow-flag-stonewall-birthplace-us-gay-rights-movement?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343121/trump-admin-removes-rainbow-flag-stonewall-birthplace-us-gay-rights-movement?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Feb 2026 23:39:40 +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 Associated Press Associated Press Cuban aviation officials have warned airlines that there is not enough fuel for planes to refuel on the island, the latest step in its moves to ration energy as the Trump administration cuts the Caribbean nation off from its fuel resources. The government of Cuba published the notices to airlines and pilots on Sunday night, warning that jet fuel would not be available at nine airports across the island, including Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, starting on Tuesday and continuing... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343015/cuba-warns-airlines-its-almost-out-fuel-us-blockade-deepens-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343015/cuba-warns-airlines-its-almost-out-fuel-us-blockade-deepens-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Feb 2026 05:20:50 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US military forces boarded a sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking the ship from the Caribbean Sea as part of an oil quarantine meant to squeeze Venezuela, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Monday. Venezuela had faced US sanctions on its oil and relied on a shadow fleet of falsely flagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains. Following the US raid to capture then-president Nicolas Maduro in early January, several tankers fled the Venezuelan coast, including... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342982/us-boards-sanctioned-oil-tanker-indian-ocean-after-pursuit-caribbean-hegseth-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342982/us-boards-sanctioned-oil-tanker-indian-ocean-after-pursuit-caribbean-hegseth-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 23:49:33 +0000 Reuters Reuters The Trump administration will ‌fund efforts to promote free speech within Western countries allied with Washington, a senior State Department official said ‍on Monday during a visit to Europe focused on pushing back against European regulations that US officials have branded censorship. US officials have forcefully opposed online rules such as the EU’s Digital Services Act and Britain’s Online Safety Act, which Washington says stifle free speech, and in particular criticism of immigration... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342981/us-fund-free-speech-initiatives-europe-state-department-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342981/us-fund-free-speech-initiatives-europe-state-department-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 23:16:05 +0000 Reuters Reuters The Trump ‍administration is trying to make it more difficult for fired federal employees to contest their dismissal, according to a government plan released on Monday, by limiting their right to appeal their dismissal to an independent board. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the ⁠federal government’s human resources office, proposed ending the right of fired federal employees to dispute dismissals before the independent Merit Systems Protection Board, according to the plan. Instead,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342977/trump-seeks-limit-legal-options-government-workers-contest-dismissal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342977/trump-seeks-limit-legal-options-government-workers-contest-dismissal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 20:00:02 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have put together stories from our coverage last weekend to help you stay informed about news across Asia and beyond. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. US accuses China of secret nuclear testing after offering Beijing arms treaty 2. As Beijing and Moscow tout ties, China’s companies keep Ukraine’s lights on 3. Call for tougher animal welfare laws after invasive turtle found in Hong Kong 4. Mum urges China star Eileen Gu to ‘wake up’, sparks... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3342859/china-accused-secret-nuclear-tests-eileen-gus-big-comeback-5-weekend-reads-you-missed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3342859/china-accused-secret-nuclear-tests-eileen-gus-big-comeback-5-weekend-reads-you-missed?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 04:15:10 +0000 Associated Press,Reuters Associated Press,Reuters The Pentagon is cutting ties with Harvard University, ending all military training, fellowships and certificate programmes with the Ivy League institution. Friday’s announcement marks the latest development in the Trump administration’s prolonged stand-off with Harvard over the White House’s demands for reforms at the Ivy League school. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a statement on Friday that Harvard “no longer meets the needs of the War Department or the military services”. “For too... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342747/pentagon-ditches-harvard-hegseth-declares-university-too-woke?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342747/pentagon-ditches-harvard-hegseth-declares-university-too-woke?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Feb 2026 04:23:41 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Iran and the United States held indirect talks in Oman over Tehran’s nuclear programme on Friday, months after America bombed Iran’s uranium enrichment sites and just weeks following nationwide protests that convulsed the Islamic Republic. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described the talks as “a very good start” even as the parties met Oman’s top diplomat at different times at a palace on the outskirts of the country’s capital, Muscat. Both Araghchi and the Omanis described the talks... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342722/oman-mediates-iran-us-nuclear-talks-amid-tensions-and-trumps-threats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342722/oman-mediates-iran-us-nuclear-talks-amid-tensions-and-trumps-threats?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 14:17:59 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The US government on Thursday announced an additional US$6 million in aid for Cuba as the island’s crisis deepens and tensions escalate between the two countries, with Cuba’s president accusing the US of an “energy blockade”. The aid was largely meant for those living in Cuba’s eastern region, which Hurricane Melissa slammed into late last year. The supplies include rice, beans, pasta, cans of tuna and solar lamps that will be delivered by the Catholic Church and Caritas, said US Department of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342640/us-pledges-food-aid-cuba-while-putting-squeeze-fuel-supply?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342640/us-pledges-food-aid-cuba-while-putting-squeeze-fuel-supply?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 07:35:56 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier Combine three wary nations, deep historical mistrust, rapid technological change, the most destructive weapons ever developed and a US unwilling to extend Thursday’s last formal nuclear weapons guardrail, and you have the ingredients for much worse geopolitical tension, if not a slide towards global disaster, warn nuclear weapons negotiators, analysts and former government officials. While Moscow has offered to formally extend its New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New Start) with the US for... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342576/trump-balks-nuclear-limit-extension-calls-new-us-china-russia-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342576/trump-balks-nuclear-limit-extension-calls-new-us-china-russia-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 00:02:50 +0000 Agencies Agencies Iran’s state-run Press TV ‌said on Thursday that “one ‍of the country’s most advanced long-range ballistic missile Khorramshahr 4” ⁠has been deployed at one of the Revolutionary Guards aerospace underground missile cities. The Khorramshahr 4 has a ‍range of 2,000km (1,240 miles) and is ‌capable of carrying a 1,500kg warhead, it added. Tehran has also announced a significant change in its military policy following the 12-day war with Israel last June, moving to a first-strike from a previously... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342575/iran-media-says-projectile-deployed-revolutionary-guards-underground-missile-city?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342575/iran-media-says-projectile-deployed-revolutionary-guards-underground-missile-city?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 23:49:41 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump on Thursday unveiled a self-branded “TrumpRx” website allowing consumers to buy discounted drugs such as weight-loss and infertility treatments directly from companies. The move is part of Trump’s drive to tackle voter anger over the cost of living ahead of midterm elections in November, in which his Republicans risk losing control of Congress. “Starting tonight, dozens of the most commonly used prescription drugs will be available at dramatic discounts for all... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342568/trump-unveil-trumprx-website-people-buy-discounted-prescription-drugs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342568/trump-unveil-trumprx-website-people-buy-discounted-prescription-drugs?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 19:18:15 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo Now we know why they didn’t want to release the Epstein files. It’s not just about implicating US President Donald Trump, who was a long-time close friend of the infamous paedophile and sex trafficker, Jeffrey Epstein. Rather, they basically implicate the ruling and business elites of the Anglo-American world. In the 1980s and 1990s, there was a wave of mass hysteria sweeping across the United States based on fear of satanic cults, child abuse and sacrifices. Well, it turns out maybe it wasn’t... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3342046/epstein-files-reveal-underbelly-western-elites?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3342046/epstein-files-reveal-underbelly-western-elites?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 21:30:37 +0000 Jianlu Bi Jianlu Bi At this turbulent crossroads of 2026, the global order is undergoing a major paradigm shift. This is signalled most vividly by a wave of Western leaders visiting Beijing. From British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s historic mission last week – the first visit by a UK prime minister in eight years – to the high-profile arrivals of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo last month, a clear pattern of strategic recalibration has emerged. These moves represent a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3342113/american-allies-are-finally-hedging-against-american-risk?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3342113/american-allies-are-finally-hedging-against-american-risk?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 12:30:37 +0000 Reuters Reuters Cuba and the United States ‍are in communication, a Cuban diplomat said on Monday, although he said the exchanges have not yet evolved into a formal “dialogue”. Carlos Fernandez de Cossio, Cuba’s deputy foreign minister, told Reuters the US government was aware that Cuba was “ready to have a serious, meaningful and responsible ⁠dialogue”. “We have had exchange of messages, we have embassies, we have had communications, but we cannot say we have had a table of dialogue,” de Cossio told Reuters in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342162/trump-says-mexico-will-stop-sending-oil-energy-starved-cuba?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3342162/trump-says-mexico-will-stop-sending-oil-energy-starved-cuba?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 23:45:45 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered the start of nuclear talks with the United States, local media said, as his counterpart Donald Trump threatened “bad things” if no deal with the Islamic Republic was struck. Following the Iranian authorities’ deadly response to anti-government protests that peaked last month, the US president has threatened military action and ordered the dispatch of an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East. Trump has maintained he is hopeful that Washington... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342157/irans-president-pezeshkian-orders-nuclear-talks-us-trump-hopeful-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3342157/irans-president-pezeshkian-orders-nuclear-talks-us-trump-hopeful-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 19:18:03 +0000 Khushboo Razdan Khushboo Razdan After more than a year of haggling, US President Donald Trump on Monday announced a major trade deal between Washington and New Delhi that significantly de-escalates economic tensions between the two nations. A White House official confirmed to the South China Morning Post that the deal will remove the 25 per cent punitive Russia oil tariffs. Trump in a social media post earlier said that he held a phone call with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “He [Modi] agreed to stop buying Russian Oil,... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/economy-trade-business/article/3342155/trump-lifts-russia-related-oil-tariffs-india-under-new-trade-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/economy-trade-business/article/3342155/trump-lifts-russia-related-oil-tariffs-india-under-new-trade-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 18:00:12 +0000 Sylvia Ma Sylvia Ma US President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh to head the Federal Reserve is unlikely to support a sustained rebound in the US dollar despite the possibility of short-term relief, Chinese economists said. Persistent doubts about the Fed’s autonomy during Trump’s second term could cap any durable recovery, as policy appeared increasingly geared towards domestic goals at the expense of the US dollar’s role as a global public good, they added. Concerns over the central bank’s independence... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3342106/america-first-fed-chinese-economists-doubt-trumps-chair-nominee-can-shore-us-dollar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3342106/america-first-fed-chinese-economists-doubt-trumps-chair-nominee-can-shore-us-dollar?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 11:00:15 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have put together stories from our coverage last weekend to help you stay informed about news across Asia and beyond. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China’s visa-free waivers spark Korean travel boom, underpin tourism revival 2. China’s PLA tightens fuel rules as US investigates cause of twin air crashes 3. Failures on 2 fronts led to Hong Kong’s seat belt U-turn, experts say 4. China’s new YJ-18C missile: a logistics killer for US Navy? 5.... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3342036/korean-travel-boom-china-pla-tightens-fuel-rules-5-weekend-reads-you-missed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3342036/korean-travel-boom-china-pla-tightens-fuel-rules-5-weekend-reads-you-missed?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 04:30:07 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo A publisher kindly offered me an opportunity to interview Eyck Freymann, a Hoover Fellow at Stanford University, and to review his new book, Defending Taiwan: A Strategy to Prevent War with China. I think I must decline. I am sure he is a great scholar and thinker but I already have too many unread books on the shelves demanding my attention, a constant accusing presence reminding me what a slow and lazy reader I am. And Taiwan? I don’t think I want to waste time engaging with the indoctrinating... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3342009/how-prevent-war-china-return-taiwan-mainland?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3342009/how-prevent-war-china-return-taiwan-mainland?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 13:00:16 +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 The recent image released by the White House, of US President Donald Trump walking alongside a penguin in Greenland, would have triggered a distinct sense of deja vu among Hong Kong readers. We have seen this script before. In 2009, Horace Cheung Kwok-kwan – now our deputy... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3341786/what-image-trump-and-penguin-reveals-about-white-house?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3341786/what-image-trump-and-penguin-reveals-about-white-house?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 03:30:08 +0000