United States

Friday, January 23rd 2026 - 19:29 UTC
Chavismo pushes oil-law reform to open Venezuela’s upstream to private firms

Venezuela’s National Assembly has approved, in a first reading, a reform to the country’s Hydrocarbons Law that would expand private participation in crude production and marketing—an important shift from the long-running “mixed-company” model in which the state held majority stakes. The bill still requires a second reading before it can become law, EFE reported.
Thursday, January 22nd 2026 - 21:51 UTC
US appoints career diplomat Laura Dogu as new mission chief for Venezuela amid thaw signals

The United States has named veteran Foreign Service officer Laura Dogu as its new mission chief for Venezuela, a step that aligns with broader signs of a tentative diplomatic reset — including discussions about reopening embassies and plans for Venezuelan acting president Delcy Rodríguez to travel to Washington, though no dates or agenda have been disclosed.
Thursday, January 22nd 2026 - 09:38 UTC
Trump says “framework” deal with NATO on Greenland is taking shape and drops tariff threat

US President Donald Trump said his administration has agreed with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on a “framework” for a potential understanding covering Greenland and the wider Arctic region, and announced he would pull back a tariff threat aimed at several European allies. Trump offered no operational detail, but framed the talks as a solution that would benefit the United States and NATO as a whole.
Thursday, January 22nd 2026 - 00:24 UTC
Trump is buying eleven icebreakers from Finland for Arctic Ocean patrolling

“We are buying the best icebreakers in the world, and Finland is known for producing them,” US president Donald Trump said, as part of his campaign to take over Greenland and his concern as the Arctic Ocean becomes more navigable and with more trade routes.
Thursday, January 22nd 2026 - 00:01 UTC
Why Trump is obsessed with Greenland and why Canada's staying out of it

By Gwynne Dyer - After the Danish and Greenland foreign ministers came out of a meeting in Washington on last week convinced that Donald Trump really intended to seize Greenland, things moved very fast.
Wednesday, January 21st 2026 - 19:22 UTC
White House confirms upcoming Washington visit by Venezuela’s Delcy Rodríguez

Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez is expected to travel to Washington “soon,” a White House official told EFE on Wednesday, without providing dates or an agenda. The planned trip comes as the administration of US President Donald Trump seeks to entrench a transition framework in Caracas following the US operation that captured and removed Nicolás Maduro in early January.
Wednesday, January 21st 2026 - 11:21 UTC
Why the Chagos Islands are strategically vital to US and UK military operations

The Chagos Archipelago is of major military significance as it hosts the strategically located Diego Garcia base.
Wednesday, January 21st 2026 - 11:17 UTC
US/UK controversy as Trump describes handing the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as a ‘great stupidity’

The UK Ministry of Defense has said, “it will never compromise on our national security,” after US president Donald Trump condemned London’s “great stupidity” for handing over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. Under the agreement UK is allowed to keep control of the Diego Garcia military base while agreeing to hand the islands to Mauritius.
Wednesday, January 21st 2026 - 03:52 UTC
Trump signals possible role for Machado as U.S. tightens Venezuela oil crackdown

United States President Donald Trump said Venezuela opposition leader María Corina Machado could “maybe” be brought into the transition process “in some way,” marking a notable shift in tone as Washington balances political messaging with day-to-day coordination in Caracas following Nicolás Maduro’s capture on January 3, according to a Reuters report.
Tuesday, January 20th 2026 - 18:09 UTC
Macron warns Davos of a “world without rules” as Trump’s Greenland row intensifies

French President Emmanuel Macron told the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday that the world is drifting toward a “world without rules,” where the law of “the strongest” prevails—remarks delivered against the backdrop of a deepening transatlantic dispute over Donald Trump’s push to secure control of Greenland and his fresh tariff threats.