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Description: The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has fired 70 foreign individuals working as research staff due to national security concerns of endangering the US food supply. USDA launched an internal review which identified individuals with ties to nations of concern such as China, Russia, North Korea and Iran who could have potentially compromised US food supply nationwide. Most of the identified individuals were Chinese post – doctoral researchers who worked under two – year contracts and have been previously vetted. The USDA is expected to experience shortages in research staff, following a hiring suspension initiated by the Trump administration which has been exte
Description: In his first official visit to the UK, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz vowed expanded strategic ties with Britain as he signed the so – called Kensington agreement with UK’s Prime Minister, Keir Starmer. The main topic of the meeting was tackling illegal migration, deeper economic and defense cooperation and a potential trilateral alliance between Germany, the UK and France. The Chancellor and the Prime Minister reportedly concluded agreements on 17 joint projects for future completion that envisaged extended cooperation in several key areas such as defense research and development, the incentivization of tourism and student exchanges, as well as larger infrast
Description: The US Senate and House of Representatives, in a contested vote, passed a bill cutting foreign aid and broadcasting federal financing of several media outlets such as PBS and NPR. The Senate passed the bill with 51 to 48 votes in favor while the House passed the bill with 216 to 213 votes in favor with some members of the Republican party voting against it. The bill arrives as the Trump administration advances its initiatives to cut excessive federal spending, the complete amount of federal spending which is projected to be saved from the budget cuts amounted to approximately $8 billion. The Democratic party voiced its concerns mostly over the expenditure limita
Description: Addressing the Parliament, South Sudan’s President, Salva Kiir, called for reconciliation with the political opposition in the country while much of its members were still imprisoned or in exile. South Sudan was entangled in a protracted political crisis in recent months which culminated with the arrests of Vice – President Riek Machar and most of the SPLM – IO’s political leadership. Clashes broke out between forces loyal to Kiir’s government and the White Army militia loyal to Machar in what was labeled as a constitutional and political crisis, threatening the previously agreed peace accord in 2018 which ended a long civil war in the country. Members of the SP
Description: Protests organized by the newly – formed National Citizen Party (NCP), commemorating the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, turned violent after members of Hasina’s Awami League party attempted to disrupt the gathering. Five people were reported to have been killed while more than 50 were hospitalized with severe injuries in the local hospitals. The Bangladeshi military assisted the local police forces in subverting the violent protests before imposing a curfew in the region. The NCP was formed last year by the student movement which protested against Hasina’s rule who has been indicted in absentia to 6 months in prison following her violent suppress
Description: Local elections in Togo saw a low civil turnout after the streets were filled with heavy presence by the military and police forces in the country. Togolese were set to elect municipal representatives in the 117 municipalities across the country following weeks of demonstrations and violent unrest, protesting the rule of Faure Gnassingbe. The violent protests were instigated after the imprisonment of the Togolese pop star Aamron who called for the protests on Gnassingbe’s birthday and transpired towards larger dimensions of civil unrest which left up to 7 people dead and scores of injured. The country’s civil movement, Don’t Touch my Constitution announced prote
Description: US President Donald Trum hosted Qatari Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani and Bahrain’s Crown Prince, Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, as he separately discussed regional issues and bilateral economic cooperation with the Middle East leaders. Trump followed up on his first foreign visit in the Gulf states, when he visited Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, as the President continued to develop strong strategic ties with traditionally close allied countries in the Middle East. Speaking at a press conference, Al Khalifa announced investments in the US which would reportedly amount to $17 billion stretching across several key industries s
Description: France has officially transferred command to Senegal of its last two military bases in the country, ending its military presence across west and central Africa. The withdrawal ends the 65 – year tenure of French troops in the country in times of growing terrorist threats and jihadists conflicts across the Sahel region. Senegal’s President, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, stated that France remains a stable partner to Senegal while also demanding an official apology from the French government for colonial atrocities committed to Senegalese soldiers fighting for France in the Second World War. The French government continues to conduct the continent-wide pullout of militar
Description: The E3 group of countries comprised of France, the UK and Germany met on the margins of the latest UN Security Council meeting and announced the reimposition of snapback sanctions on Iran if no agreement regarding their disputed nuclear problem is reached by the end of Aug. Recent developments regarding the multilateral post war relations between the US, Iran and Israel have positioned the three countries in a stalemate with multiple unresolved issues following the ending of US and Israel strikes on Iran. Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi stated that his country remained invested in resolving the dispute through diplomatic means if the US could guarantee the ces
Description: US President Trump on Truth Social announced the conclusion of a trade deal with Indonesia, which would pay 19% tariffs for exports on the US markets while agreeing towards imposing no tariffs on US exports in Indonesia. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto stated the deal to have been concluded after he talked over the phone with the American President agreeing to lower the levies from the previously imposed 32% of tariffs on Indonesian exports to the US. Indonesia reportedly also agreed towards purchasing $15 billion worth of US energy, $4.5 billion in US agricultural products and the acquisition of up to 50 Boeing aircrafts, according to Trump’s statements.