
President Emmanuel Macron said France will increase the size of its nuclear arsenal and roll out a new “advanced deterrence” doctrine that would involve a group of European partners more directly in exercises, deployments and supporting capabilities—moves Paris framed as a response to a more unstable strategic environment.
Add your comment!
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Monday the Strait of Hormuz is now “closed” and threatened to attack any vessel attempting to transit, in the most explicit warning yet against the Gulf’s main maritime chokepoint. A Guards commander said they would set any ship “ablaze” if it tried to pass, according to remarks carried by Reuters.
4 comments
Global oil prices rose sharply on Monday and European equities fell as the regional conflict intensified, following attacks on vessels near the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian warnings to shipping in a chokepoint through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and gas trade moves.
Add your comment!
An Iranian-made drone struck the UK’s RAF Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus overnight, causing no casualties and only limited damage, in an incident that brought the Middle East conflict directly onto European Union territory. British authorities raised force-protection measures and ordered non-essential personnel to leave and disperse, while the base continued operating, according to official information reported by Reuters.
3 comments
Israel announced early Monday a new wave of airstrikes on targets in Tehran, as part of a U.S.-Israeli campaign that began on Saturday and has triggered a wider regional escalation involving cross-border attacks and strikes on U.S. forces and partners across the Gulf.
Add your comment!
Hezbollah launched three projectiles toward northern Israel early Monday, describing the attack as retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, prompting Israeli airstrikes on multiple locations across Lebanon, including the Beirut area, according to official statements and news reports.
Add your comment!
Prince and Princess of Wales have released a joint statement to mark St David, the patron saint of Wales celebrated this Sunday March first. The message was posted on Sunday on their official Instagram account, with the couple captured at Frogmore House on the Windsor Home Park estate and talking in Welsh.
Add your comment!
With Chile’s presidential handover set for March 11, outgoing President Gabriel Boric is closing his term amid a diplomatic dispute with the United States over a China Mobile-backed undersea fiber-optic cable project that would link Chile’s coast in the Valparaíso region to Hong Kong—an issue now landing on president-elect José Antonio Kast’s desk.
Add your comment!
Israel said on Saturday that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei died during a wave of airstrikes on Iranian territory. An Israeli official, speaking anonymously to local media, said “his body has been found.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also said there were “growing signs” that Khamenei had died.
Add your comment!
The United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Saturday, reigniting a regional conflict and further dimming hopes for diplomacy over Tehran’s nuclear program. Explosions were reported in Tehran as Israel moved to emergency measures and shut its airspace to civilian flights.
Add your comment!