https://www.scmp.com/rss/525186/feed The United States attacked Venezuela on January 3, 2026, abducted its leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife and placed them in detention in New York, in what was the most direct US military action in Latin America in nearly four decades. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Teresa Elena Frontado Teresa Elena Frontado The Trump administration has expanded its pressure campaign against Cuba into the critical minerals sector, sanctioning a nickel joint venture tied to Canadian miner Sherritt International in a move that could reverberate through China-linked battery supply chains. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced sanctions on Thursday against Moa Nickel SA, a joint venture between Sherritt and Cuba’s state-owned General Nickel Company, as part of a broader effort targeting Havana’s military-controlled... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352815/us-targets-cuba-nickel-operation-move-implications-china-linked-supply-chains?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352815/us-targets-cuba-nickel-operation-move-implications-china-linked-supply-chains?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 May 2026 18:15:08 +0000 Dewey Sim Dewey Sim Beijing’s study of the wars in Iran and Ukraine could sharpen its ability to wage information warfare against Americans during a Taiwan Strait conflict, exposing vulnerabilities in US preparedness, experts said on Wednesday. S. Clinton Hinote, a retired US Lieutenant General, said he was “impressed” with the propaganda coming out of Iran since the outbreak of the war in February, warning that Beijing would deploy similar tactics if conflict erupts over Taiwan. “That’s coming,” he told a... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352811/chinas-use-propaganda-may-outwit-us-if-taiwan-conflict-arises-experts-warn?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352811/chinas-use-propaganda-may-outwit-us-if-taiwan-conflict-arises-experts-warn?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 May 2026 17:00:29 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected six of the most interesting and important news stories covering Latin American relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Chile exposes smuggling ring that shipped US$917m in stolen copper to China Chinese buyers were the end destination of a five-year smuggling pipeline that drained an estimated US$917 million worth of stolen copper from Chile, authorities said in April after police dismantled the network... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351914/beijing-backs-cuba-brazil-slams-byd-slave-labour-conditions-latin-america-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351914/beijing-backs-cuba-brazil-slams-byd-slave-labour-conditions-latin-america-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 May 2026 15:00:09 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado Teresa Elena Frontado With Congress again failing to curb US President Donald Trump’s authority over Cuba, the centre of gravity in US policy towards the island is shifting decisively back to the White House – and to a narrower, more consequential question: what comes next? Tuesday’s 51-47 Senate vote to block a Democratic-led war powers resolution on Cuba does not change policy on its own. It was widely expected, reflecting a long-standing pattern in which Congress has struggled to assert its war powers authority... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3352085/senate-vote-leaves-cubas-uncertain-future-dangerous-crossroads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3352085/senate-vote-leaves-cubas-uncertain-future-dangerous-crossroads?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 20:39:15 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The first direct commercial flight between the United States and Venezuela departed a bit early on Thursday on its way to the capital of the South American country, seven years after the US Homeland Security Department ordered an indefinite suspension, citing security concerns. The resumption of a commercial flight between the two countries comes months after the US capture of then-president Nicolas Maduro in a stunning night-time raid on his residence in Caracas in early January. It also comes... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352078/first-direct-us-venezuela-commercial-flight-7-years-heads-caracas?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3352078/first-direct-us-venezuela-commercial-flight-7-years-heads-caracas?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2026 15:00:52 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A US special forces soldier involved in the military operation to capture former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro has been charged with using classified information about the mission to win more than US$400,000 in an online betting market, federal officials announced on Thursday. Gannon Ken Van Dyke was part of the operation to capture Maduro in January and used his access to classified information to make money on the prediction market site Polymarket, the federal prosecutor’s office in New... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351220/us-soldier-charged-using-inside-info-win-us400000-bet-maduros-capture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351220/us-soldier-charged-using-inside-info-win-us400000-bet-maduros-capture?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 22:29:41 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A senior Cuban diplomat on Monday confirmed recent talks in Havana with US officials, as the communist-led island faces a deep crisis over President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign. “I can confirm that a meeting between delegations from Cuba and the United States was recently held here in Cuba,” Alejandro Garcia, the foreign ministry’s under-director of Cuba-US affairs, told the Communist Party newspaper Granma. Garcia said that the negotiators included assistant secretaries from the US State... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350789/cuba-confirms-recent-respectful-talks-visiting-us-delegation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350789/cuba-confirms-recent-respectful-talks-visiting-us-delegation?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Apr 2026 19:54:56 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuela’s opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said on Saturday she had “no regrets” about symbolically handing over her Nobel Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump in January. “There is a leader in the world, a head of state in the world who risked the lives of his country’s citizens for Venezuela’s freedom,” she told a news conference in Madrid. Machado presented her Nobel Prize to Trump when she met him in the White House just two weeks after he ordered US forces to attack Caracas and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350601/venezuelas-machado-says-no-regrets-about-giving-her-nobel-prize-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350601/venezuelas-machado-says-no-regrets-about-giving-her-nobel-prize-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Apr 2026 20:10:19 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Thursday that while Cuba does not want military aggression from the United States, his country is prepared to fight should it happen. Diaz-Canel spoke during a rally that drew hundreds of people to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the declaration of the Cuban Revolution’s socialist essence. “The moment is extremely challenging and calls upon us once again, as on April 16, 1961, to be ready to confront serious threats, including military aggression. We do... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350396/cubas-president-says-island-does-not-wish-us-aggression-ready-fight?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350396/cubas-president-says-island-does-not-wish-us-aggression-ready-fight?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Apr 2026 03:35:53 +0000 Reuters Reuters The International Monetary Fund and ⁠the World Bank said on ⁠Thursday they had resumed dealings with Venezuela, which had been paused since 2019. The move paves the way for a full IMF assessment of Venezuela’s economy for the first time in some 20 years and could eventually unlock billions of dollars in ‌funding via frozen special drawing rights. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a statement that the Fund, guided by the views of a majority of its members, was now dealing with... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350384/imf-says-it-restoring-relations-venezuela?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350384/imf-says-it-restoring-relations-venezuela?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 23:50:14 +0000 Reuters Reuters Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva delivered a blunt critique of US President Donald Trump in an interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais published on Thursday, saying world leaders should seek respect rather than ‌rule by fear. “Trump has no right to wake up in the morning and threaten a country,” Lula told El Pais, referring to the president’s public threat on April 7 to wipe out Iranian civilisation as part of the US-Israeli war on Iran. “He wasn’t elected for that, and his... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350342/brazils-lula-blasts-trumps-fear-based-rule-calls-great-maturity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350342/brazils-lula-blasts-trumps-fear-based-rule-calls-great-maturity?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 10:38:32 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said the United States has no valid reason to carry out a military attack against the island or to attempt to depose him. Speaking in an interview on NBC News’ Meet the Press programme, the president said an invasion of Cuba would be costly and affect regional security. But should it happen, Diaz-Canel said, Cubans would defend themselves. “If the time comes, I don’t think there would be any justification for the United States to launch a military aggression... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349817/cubas-president-warns-us-against-attacking-island-or-trying-depose-him?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349817/cubas-president-warns-us-against-attacking-island-or-trying-depose-him?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 Apr 2026 16:47:00 +0000 He Huifeng He Huifeng Two months after the United States’ capture and forcible extradition of former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro – and as the South American country attempts to settle into a state of relative normalcy in the aftermath of the military incursion – a cohort of Chinese migrants are relocating there in search of business opportunities. Not all are new arrivals. Mey Hou, a long-term Venezuela resident in her 40s who fled the country during Maduro’s tenure, said many people from her hometown in... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347566/maduros-capture-sparked-outrage-confusion-and-chinese-migration-wave-venezuela?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347566/maduros-capture-sparked-outrage-confusion-and-chinese-migration-wave-venezuela?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 Apr 2026 02:00:07 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado,Igor Patrick Teresa Elena Frontado,Igor Patrick China and Russia expressed support for Cuba’s embattled government amid mounting pressure from the United States, as Moscow’s deputy foreign minister concluded a visit to Havana and Beijing signalled its willingness to step up diplomatic backing for the island. “China is willing to work with the international community to firmly support Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and security, and opposing external interference,” foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Friday. “The US... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3349715/china-russia-rally-behind-cuba-us-squeezes-havana-deepening-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3349715/china-russia-rally-behind-cuba-us-squeezes-havana-deepening-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 20:30:44 +0000 Xinyi Wu Xinyi Wu China’s state assets watchdog has established a new department to oversee foreign investments, as firms continue to expand their global footprint amid an increasingly turbulent geopolitical outlook. The new bureau, launched by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC) on Wednesday, will guide state-owned enterprises in their international operations, according to its website. It will also be responsible for helping firms optimise and... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3349496/china-strengthens-oversight-state-owned-assets-overseas-amid-global-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3349496/china-strengthens-oversight-state-owned-assets-overseas-amid-global-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 08:00:12 +0000 Reuters Reuters Venezuela’s government and its political opposition are seeking to coordinate their legal defence of the oil-rich country’s United States assets, after Washington’s official recognition of ‌interim president Delcy Rodriguez raised questions about who could represent the country in US courts. Lawyers for Rodriguez’s government and the opposition asked Manhattan-based US Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn on Monday to pause for 45 days a case in which creditors are seeking to seize funds linked to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349197/venezuelas-government-opposition-may-cooperate-safeguard-us-assets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349197/venezuelas-government-opposition-may-cooperate-safeguard-us-assets?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 19:47:22 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The United States on Wednesday lifted sanctions on Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez, according to an Office of Foreign Assets Control entry on the Treasury Department website. The newly announced sanctions relief is the latest US recognition of Rodriguez as a legitimate authority in Venezuela ever since the US military captured her predecessor, Nicolas Maduro, and his wife on January 3 in Venezuela’s capital, Caracas. The pair have since been taken to New York to face drug... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348729/us-lifts-sanctions-venezuelas-acting-president-rodriguez-who-praises-trump?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348729/us-lifts-sanctions-venezuelas-acting-president-rodriguez-who-praises-trump?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 02:09:16 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The United States has formally reopened its embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, after the restoration of full diplomatic relations with the South American country following the Trump administration’s removal of then-president Nicolas Maduro in early January. The State Department announced on Monday that it had resumed normal operations at the embassy in Caracas – which had been in need of significant repair, including remediation from mould – after a seven-year closure that began during US President... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348456/us-reopens-embassy-venezuela-months-after-military-operation-remove-maduro?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348456/us-reopens-embassy-venezuela-months-after-military-operation-remove-maduro?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Mar 2026 19:45:16 +0000 Reuters Reuters Russia said on Monday that an oil tanker carrying ‌100,000 tonnes of crude oil had arrived in Cuba and that Moscow would stand by its friends by working on further supplies despite a US blockade of the Communist-run island. The US cut off Venezuela’s oil exports to Cuba after toppling Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, and US President Donald Trump threatened to slap punishing ⁠tariffs on any other country that sent crude to Cuba. But Trump on Sunday signalled he ‌was reversing... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348420/russian-oil-tanker-arrives-cuba-moscow-vows-stand-havana?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348420/russian-oil-tanker-arrives-cuba-moscow-vows-stand-havana?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Mar 2026 10:58:32 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald ⁠Trump signalled he was reversing course on blocking oil shipments to Cuba on Sunday, saying he had “no problem” with any country sending in crude as a Russian tanker neared a Cuban port with a badly needed shipment. A sanctioned Russian vessel, part of the country’s “shadow fleet”, was just off the coast of eastern Cuba on Sunday, according to ship tracking data, and was expected to reach port on Monday, ‌a lifeline for the country’s economy that has nearly ground to a halt... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348329/us-allow-russian-oil-tanker-reach-cuba-possible-lifeline-caribbean-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348329/us-allow-russian-oil-tanker-reach-cuba-possible-lifeline-caribbean-island?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 23:29:59 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The Mexican navy said on Thursday that it was searching for two boats transporting humanitarian aid for Cuba with nine crew of different nationalities on board. The vessels set sail last Friday from Isla Mujeres in Mexico’s southeastern state of Quintana Roo and were due to arrive in Havana on Tuesday or Wednesday this week, the navy said in a statement. It said that there had been neither “communication nor confirmation of their arrival” in Cuba and that it has alerted naval commanders in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348065/mexicos-navy-searches-2-cuba-bound-aid-boats-are-missing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348065/mexicos-navy-searches-2-cuba-bound-aid-boats-are-missing?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 01:41:46 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Ousted Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro cut a relaxed figure Thursday as he returned to a federal court in New York for his second appearance since his capture by US forces in an extraordinary nighttime raid. During the one-hour hearing, the judge indicated he would not dismiss the case over Maduro and his wife’s apparent inability to afford their legal bill without aid from the Venezuelan government. The former leader, 63, and wife Cilia Flores have been held in a Brooklyn jail for almost... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348055/venezuelas-maduro-back-court-after-shock-capture-us-forces?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3348055/venezuelas-maduro-back-court-after-shock-capture-us-forces?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Mar 2026 19:26:45 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The first boat of a flotilla carrying medical supplies, food and solar panels reached Cuba on Tuesday to aid the island as a US fuel blockade deepens its energy crisis. The Maguro shrimp fishing boat docked in Havana three days later than hoped after battling strong winds, currents and a pesky battery during its journey from Mexico. As they approached Havana’s colonial-era fortification, the international activists stood on the cabin roof of the boat - symbolically renamed “Granma 2.0” as a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347810/humanitarian-aid-boat-arrives-cuba-amid-us-blockade-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347810/humanitarian-aid-boat-arrives-cuba-amid-us-blockade-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 05:27:07 +0000 dpa dpa Cuba has refused to allow the US embassy in Havana to import diesel to power its generators during the island’s ongoing energy crisis, according to a media report. The Cuban foreign ministry denied the request, The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing a protest note in which Havana described the embassy’s claim to such privileges as “shameless” and unavailable to the Cuban people. The move comes as the Caribbean island grapples with severe fuel shortages and widespread power outages. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347453/cuba-rejects-shameless-us-request-diesel-amid-trump-oil-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3347453/cuba-rejects-shameless-us-request-diesel-amid-trump-oil-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 23:39:39 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier The House Select Committee on China released a report on Friday asserting that China is manipulating its position at the United Nations to “undermine America’s interests and advance its international ambitions”. The 34-page report makes the case that China uses budget contributions, appointments to key UN executive positions and strategically deployed troops to expand its reach. The committee did not detail how these activities differed from how most countries operate at the UN, or the influence... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347399/us-claims-china-manipulating-its-position-un-undermine-americas-interests?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347399/us-claims-china-manipulating-its-position-un-undermine-americas-interests?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Mar 2026 23:17:06 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A US federal judge on Friday ruled as unconstitutional a Pentagon press access policy that withdrew accreditations from a host of prominent media organisations. Elements of the policy are “unlawful because they violate the First and Fifth Amendments of the United States Constitution”, a judge in Washington said in response to a lawsuit brought by The New York Times. US media and a host of international news outlets including Agence France-Presse, Associated Press and Fox News declined to sign... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3347398/us-judge-rules-restrictive-pentagon-press-access-unconstitutional?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3347398/us-judge-rules-restrictive-pentagon-press-access-unconstitutional?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Mar 2026 23:09:02 +0000 Alcott Wei,Seong Hyeon Choi Alcott Wei,Seong Hyeon Choi Iran’s power structure, succession mechanism and geographic conditions are all factors in its military resilience, despite the decapitation of its leadership by the US and Israel, according to Chinese experts. They also said the United States was unlikely to achieve regime change in Iran without deploying ground forces, a lesson one expert argued Beijing would take into account for any operation on Taiwan. Beginning on February 28, the US and Israel have killed a string of senior Iranian... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3347070/chinese-experts-assess-military-decapitation-iran-venezuela-lessons-closer-home?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3347070/chinese-experts-assess-military-decapitation-iran-venezuela-lessons-closer-home?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 13:37:24 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cuba’s leader on Tuesday said the US would face “unbreakable resistance” if it tries to take over the impoverished island nation, as communist authorities scrambled to fix a nationwide electricity blackout. Cuba’s government has been under increasingly crushing pressure, with Washington enforcing an oil blockade and openly stating it wants to end the nearly seven-decade-old US stand-off with the one-party communist state. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Cuba’s decision announced this week... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346971/cubas-leader-vows-unbreakable-resistance-if-us-tries-take-over-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346971/cubas-leader-vows-unbreakable-resistance-if-us-tries-take-over-island?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 05:01:17 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump vowed on Monday to “take” Cuba as the communist island plunged into darkness under a total power blackout linked to a crippling oil embargo imposed by Washington. After nearly seven decades defying the United States, Havana’s communist authorities are under massive pressure from a Trump administration determined to make history. “You know, all my life I’ve been hearing about the United States and Cuba. When will the United States do it?” Trump told reporters at the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346808/cubas-national-electric-grid-collapses-leaving-millions-without-power?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346808/cubas-national-electric-grid-collapses-leaving-millions-without-power?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Mar 2026 21:40:03 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The American flag was raised on Saturday over the US embassy in Venezuela for the first time since 2019, a move that highlighted the recent shift in relations between the two countries since then President Nicolas Maduro was captured by American troops in January. Though the flag is now waving, the building is undergoing renovations and it remains unclear when it will fully reopen. The move comes after several statements from US President Donald Trump in support of Maduro’s successor, acting... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346631/american-flag-raised-us-embassy-venezuela-first-time-2019?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3346631/american-flag-raised-us-embassy-venezuela-first-time-2019?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 20:43:46 +0000 Ji Siqi Ji Siqi Two prominent Chinese business leaders have pledged to double down on outbound investment – including in the Middle East and Latin America – even as geopolitical risks intensify following the outbreak of the US-Israeli war with Iran and Washington’s increasing interventions in the western hemisphere. Li Dongsheng, founder and chairman of Chinese electronics giant TCL, said the recent crisis in the Middle East had only a temporary impact on the company’s operations there and that the overall... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3346500/top-chinese-entrepreneurs-commit-middle-east-expansion-despite-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3346500/top-chinese-entrepreneurs-commit-middle-east-expansion-despite-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 04:00:09 +0000 Igor Patrick Igor Patrick The Chilean capital Santiago awoke on Wednesday to a mixture of celebration and tension. As the city prepared for the inauguration of its centre-right president, the new government’s first crisis was already unfolding behind the scenes: an undersea fibre-optic cable linking the South American country to Hong Kong that had enraged Washington and may prove a watershed moment in how Latin America handles critical infrastructure projects and its partnership with Beijing. Jose Antonio Kast was... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3346261/inauguration-day-chiles-new-president-inherits-chinese-cable-scandal-and-us-threats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3346261/inauguration-day-chiles-new-president-inherits-chinese-cable-scandal-and-us-threats?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Mar 2026 13:44:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump said Friday Cuba was next on his agenda after Iran, predicting that the communist-run island, crippled by a US energy blockade, is “gonna fall pretty soon”. “They want to make a deal so badly,” Trump told CNN in a phone interview, a day after suggesting that he would turn to an unspecified project for Cuba after the war against Iran. “We’re really focused on this one right now. We’ve got plenty of time, but Cuba’s ready – after 50 years,” he added, explaining that... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345780/trump-says-cuba-going-fall-pretty-soon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345780/trump-says-cuba-going-fall-pretty-soon?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Mar 2026 17:22:01 +0000 Lucy Quaggin,Mark Magnier,Xinmei Shen Lucy Quaggin,Mark Magnier,Xinmei Shen US President Donald Trump called on Iran’s armed forces on Thursday to surrender or face the consequences and urged the nation’s diplomats to request asylum at their postings around the world. “I’m once again calling on all members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, the military and the police, to lay down their arms,” Trump said. “So you’ll be perfectly safe with total immunity, or you’ll face absolutely guaranteed death, and I don’t want to see that.” Speaking at the White House at a sports... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345628/trump-says-he-must-be-involved-picking-irans-new-leader-khameneis-son-unacceptable?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345628/trump-says-he-must-be-involved-picking-irans-new-leader-khameneis-son-unacceptable?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Mar 2026 17:14:18 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang The bombs falling on Iran have extinguished any remaining doubt. The US-Israeli military campaign has ignited a major regional war. This explosion of violence is the ultimate rebuke to a central promise of US President Donald Trump’s second term: that America could disengage from distant quagmires to focus on confronting China. Over a year into this administration, the strategic picture affirms the conclusion I reached last summer: America’s hoped-for single-minded containment of China lies in... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345177/china-waits-and-watches-us-fights-all-its-tigers-once?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345177/china-waits-and-watches-us-fights-all-its-tigers-once?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Mar 2026 01:30:09 +0000 Tian Shichen Tian Shichen The smoke rising from Iran on Saturday signalled more than just a localised escalation in the Middle East. Coming on the heels of the United States’ military invasion of Venezuela earlier this year, the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran represent a watershed moment for the 21st century. We are witnessing the systematic dismantling of the post-1945 legal order, replaced by the unvarnished “law of the jungle” where strategic interests supersede legality, and the UN Charter is treated as a relic of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345081/attack-iran-normalises-global-descent-law-jungle?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345081/attack-iran-normalises-global-descent-law-jungle?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Venezuelan opposition leader and winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize Maria Corina Machado said on Sunday that she will return to Venezuela in the coming weeks and that elections will be held in the South American country. Machado did not set a date for her return but said one of the objectives will be to prepare “for a new and gigantic electoral victory”. In a message shared on social media, the politician called on her supporters to “strengthen the unity of Venezuelans that began with the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345059/venezuelas-opposition-leader-machado-will-return-country-coming-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3345059/venezuelas-opposition-leader-machado-will-return-country-coming-weeks?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 22:44:21 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg US President Donald Trump suggested a possible “friendly takeover of Cuba” as the White House looks to leverage the Communist-run island’s energy crisis to exert greater influence. “They’re in big trouble, and we could very well do something good, I think, very positive for the people that were expelled, or worse, from Cuba that live here,” Trump told reporters on Friday as he departed the White House for Texas. “You know, we have people living here that want to go back to Cuba.” “We could very... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344941/trump-says-us-discussing-friendly-takeover-cuba-theyre-big-trouble?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344941/trump-says-us-discussing-friendly-takeover-cuba-theyre-big-trouble?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 18:52:28 +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 Associated Press Associated Press US military forces boarded a third sanctioned oil tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from the Caribbean Sea in an effort to target illicit oil connected to Venezuela, the Pentagon said on Tuesday. An organisation that tracks ship movements said the vessel was the only tanker left to pursue after more than a dozen fled the coast of Venezuela following the capture of the South American country’s authoritarian then-president, Nicolas Maduro. The boarding is the 10th interdiction of an oil... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344520/us-boards-third-venezuela-linked-oil-tanker-indian-ocean?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344520/us-boards-third-venezuela-linked-oil-tanker-indian-ocean?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Feb 2026 21:46:22 +0000 Winston Mok Winston Mok In the early days of 2026, there has been an unexpected turn in China’s global relations. Some US allies have started reaching out to China just as China faced complications in ties with some friendly countries in the Global South. The underlying cause for both trends is the Trump administration’s imperial behaviour. With the dramatic abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and US President Donald Trump’s wish to control Venezuela’s oil, China’s economic stake in one of its closest... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3344410/chinas-latin-america-strategy-goes-well-beyond-venezuela-and-panama?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3344410/chinas-latin-america-strategy-goes-well-beyond-venezuela-and-panama?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Feb 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Venezuela’s National Assembly on Thursday unanimously approved a long-awaited amnesty law that could free hundreds of political prisoners jailed for being government detractors. But the law excludes those who have been prosecuted or convicted of promoting military action against the country - which could include opposition leaders like Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, who has been accused by the ruling party of calling for international intervention like the one that ousted former... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344082/venezuela-approves-amnesty-law-could-free-hundreds-political-prisoners?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3344082/venezuela-approves-amnesty-law-could-free-hundreds-political-prisoners?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 04:48:47 +0000 Reuters Reuters The top commander overseeing US forces in Latin America, General Francis Donovan, and senior Pentagon official Joseph Humire made a surprise visit to Venezuela on Wednesday for security talks, US officials said. The trip is the first by a US military delegation since US ‌forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in an audacious raid last month and whisked him to New York to face drug-trafficking charges. The visit was first reported by Reuters. Venezuela’s government said the US military... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343955/top-us-commander-makes-surprise-visit-venezuela-weeks-after-maduro-capture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343955/top-us-commander-makes-surprise-visit-venezuela-weeks-after-maduro-capture?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:37:23 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The US military said Tuesday that it carried out strikes on three boats accused of smuggling drugs in Latin American waters, killing 11 people in one of the deadliest days of the Trump administration’s months-long campaign against alleged traffickers. The series of strikes conducted Monday brought the death toll to at least 145 people since the administration began targeting those it calls “narcoterrorists” in small vessels since early September. Like most of the military’s statements on the 42... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343855/11-killed-us-strikes-3-more-alleged-drug-boats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343855/11-killed-us-strikes-3-more-alleged-drug-boats?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Feb 2026 23:32:54 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Spain said on Monday it will use UN channels to send humanitarian aid to Cuba, which is suffering an acute economic crisis worsened by a de facto US fuel blockade. “Spain will provide humanitarian aid … to Cuba through the United Nations system in the form of food and essential health products,” the foreign ministry said in a statement following a meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries in Madrid. The announcement follows the dispatch by Mexico of 800 tonnes of humanitarian... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343777/spain-send-humanitarian-aid-cuba-through-un-amid-us-fuel-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343777/spain-send-humanitarian-aid-cuba-through-un-amid-us-fuel-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Feb 2026 21:51:37 +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 President Donald Trump boasted on Friday about a secret US “discombobulator” weapon that can block Russian and Chinese defence systems, as he met the elite troops who captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. Trump’s comments at the Fort Bragg military base in North Carolina marked the first time he has talked about the mysterious device at a public event, after previously letting some details slip in interviews. “They even talk about the discombobulator, because they never got a shot off,”... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343546/trump-hails-us-discombobulator-weapon-he-meets-maduro-op-troops?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343546/trump-hails-us-discombobulator-weapon-he-meets-maduro-op-troops?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Feb 2026 20:57:22 +0000 Reuters Reuters The US eased sanctions on Venezuela’s energy sector on Friday, issuing two general licences that allow global energy companies to operate oil and gas projects in the Opec member and for other companies to negotiate contracts to bring in fresh ‌investments. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a general licence allowing Chevron, BP, Eni, Shell and Repsol to operate oil and gas operations in Venezuela. Those companies still have offices in the country and stakes in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343543/us-allows-oil-majors-resume-venezuela-operations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3343543/us-allows-oil-majors-resume-venezuela-operations?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Feb 2026 17:14:33 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg China has bought some Venezuelan oil that was bought earlier by the US, according to Energy Secretary Chris Wright. “China has already bought some of the crude that’s been sold by the US government,” Wright told the media in Caracas, without giving details. “Legitimate Chinese business deals under legitimate business conditions” would be fine, he said, when asked about possible joint ventures in the country. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said he wasn’t familiar with Wright’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343368/china-bought-legitimate-venezuelan-oil-us-after-maduro-seizure-energy-secretary-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343368/china-bought-legitimate-venezuelan-oil-us-after-maduro-seizure-energy-secretary-says?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Feb 2026 14:23:13 +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