All posts tagged: Breaking News: Asia

Trump says U.S. ready for ‘next conquest,’ warns military to remain near Iran until ‘real agreement’ is honored

Trump says U.S. ready for ‘next conquest,’ warns military to remain near Iran until ‘real agreement’ is honored

Published by Sam Flores

U.S. President Donald Trump observes naval flight demonstrations on the deck of the USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier on October 5, 2025. Alex Wong | Getty Images News | Getty Images President Donald Trump said Wednesday U.S. military forces will remain deployed in and around Iran until Tehran fully complies with the “real agreement,” warning that any breach would trigger a military response larger than anything seen before. “All US ships, aircraft, and military personnel…will remain in place in, and around, Iran, until such time as the REAL AGREEMENT reached is fully complied with,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “If for any reason it is not…the ‘Shootin’ Starts,’ bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before.” Trump reiterated that it was agreed that Iran will not develop nuclear weapons, and the Strait of Hormuz will be open and safe for commercial shipping. “In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest,” Trump added. He ended the post, which was published near midnight, …

Trump targets Greenland again as Iran war deepens NATO rift

Trump targets Greenland again as Iran war deepens NATO rift

Published by Sam Flores

WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – APRIL 6: The United States President Donald Trump holds a Press Conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on April 6, 2026, in Washington DC, United States. Celal Gunes | Anadolu | Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump appears to have set his eyes on Greenland again while venting frustration at NATO, as the diplomatic fallout from Iran war exposes rifts in Washington’s ties with the security alliance. In a Truth Social post Wednesday evening stateside, Trump said that “NATO WASN’T THERE WHEN WE NEEDED THEM, AND THEY WON’T BE THERE IF WE NEED THEM AGAIN. REMEMBER GREENLAND, THAT BIG, POORLY RUN, PIECE OF ICE!!!” The latest broadside comes after Trump announced a 2-week ceasefire after more than a month of fighting with Iran. Trump has repeatedly criticized NATO members for not joining the war effort in Iran, saying his call for action was “a great test,” while threatening to pull out of the alliance. Trump has taken aim at NATO and Greenland in …

Trump warns US could ‘take the oil in Iran’ as Mideast war escalates

Trump warns US could ‘take the oil in Iran’ as Mideast war escalates

Published by Sam Flores

Smoke rises from the direction of an energy installation in the Gulf emirate of Fujairah on March 14, 2026. Smoke could be seen rising from the direction of a major UAE energy installation on March 14, in what appeared to be the latest strike targeting the Gulf’s petroleum facilities hours after the US struck Iran’s Kharg Island. – | Afp | Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump said he could “take the oil in Iran” and seize Iran’s export hub of Kharg Island, as hostilities in the Middle East continued into its fifth week. Trump told the Financial Times on Sunday that his “preference would be to take the oil,” comparing it to the U.S. military operation in Venezuela earlier this year where the U.S. effectively gained control of the Latin American country’s oil industry, following the capture of its leader Nicolas Maduro. The Trump administration has weighed sending ground forces to the Kharg Island, according to Reuters, with one of its sources warning or such an operation being “very risky.” Tehran has the ability …

Cargo ship struck by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz: UK

Cargo ship struck by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz: UK

Published by Sam Flores

Naval units from Iran and Russia carry out to simulation of rescue a hijacked vessel during the joint naval drills held at the Port of Bandar Abbas near the Strait of Hormuz in Hormozgan, Iran on February 19, 2026. Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images Three vessels off Iran’s coast have been struck by projectiles, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Wednesday, the latest in a flurry of incidents reported in or near the Strait of Hormuz. One of the ships reported it had been struck 11 nautical miles north of Oman in the Strait of Hormuz, causing a fire onboard and forcing the crew to evacuate, the UKMTO said. Two other incidents were also reported on Wednesday morning, with one vessel struck by a projectile about 50 nautical miles northwest of Dubai and another sustaining damage off the coast of the United Arab Emirates. The UKMTO urged vessels in the area to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity while authorities continue to investigate. Shipping traffic through the strategically vital Strait …

U.S. and Iran wrap up ‘most intense’ nuclear talks with no deal — more negotiations ahead

U.S. and Iran wrap up ‘most intense’ nuclear talks with no deal — more negotiations ahead

Published by Sam Flores

Iranian negotiating delegation departs for the site of the talks with U.S., in Geneva, Switzerland, Feb. 26, 2026. Iranian Foreign Ministry | WANA | Via Reuters The latest round of U.S.-Iran talks did not lead to a breakthrough, with both sides agreeing to extend negotiations, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said, describing the discussions as the “most intense so far.” “Further progress has been made in our diplomatic engagement with the United States,” said Araghchi, adding that both sides planned to engage in a more “detailed” manner on critical issues including termination of U.S. sanctions on Iran and “nuclear-related steps.” The two sides made “significant progress” in the high-stakes talks in Geneva, Switzerland, and agreed to meet next week to discuss technical details in Vienna, according to Oman’s foreign minister Badr Al Busaidi, the mediator of the talks. Al-Busaidi is headed to Washington to meet with Vice President JD Vance and other U.S. officials on Friday, according to MS Now. Vance has previously downplayed the possibility of the U.S. entering into a years-long war …

China lashes out at UK expansion of visa scheme following Jimmy Lai conviction

China lashes out at UK expansion of visa scheme following Jimmy Lai conviction

Published by Sam Flores

Sebastian Lai, son of Jimmy Lai speaks during a press conference outside Downing street in London on Sept. 15, 2025. Henry Nicholls | Afp | Getty Images China’s embassy in London Tuesday criticized the U.K.’s decision to expand a visa program for Hong Kong residents, calling the move an interference in its internal affairs after a court sentenced pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison under a national security law. The U.K. on Monday expanded the British National Overseas (BNO) visa scheme on Monday to allow children of BNO status holders — who were under 18 at the time of Hong Kong’s handover to mainland China in June 1997 — to apply for the route independently of their parents. “BNO has misled Hong Kong residents to leave their homes, only to face discrimination and hardship in the U.K., living as second-class citizens,” an embassy spokesperson said in a statement in Chinese translated by CNBC. The embassy described the scheme expansion as “despicable” and “reprehensible.” “China has always firmly opposed the UK’s manipulation …

U.S. urges ships to stay ‘as far as possible’ from Iran’s waters in Strait of Hormuz

U.S. urges ships to stay ‘as far as possible’ from Iran’s waters in Strait of Hormuz

Published by Sam Flores

An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) speed boat sailing along the Persian Gulf near a cargo vessel. Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images U.S.-flagged ships have been advised to stay “as far as possible” from Iranian waters when navigating the Strait of Hormuz as tensions between Washington and Tehran remain elevated. In a notice issued Monday, the U.S. Maritime Administration said ship captains should decline permission for Iranian forces to board U.S. vessels. Boarding attempts, including moves to force commercial vessels into Iranian waters through small boats and helicopters, have occured as recently as Feb. 3, the agency under the Department of Transportation said. Should Iranian forces board a U.S.-flagged commercial vessel, crews were advised not to “forcibly resist the boarding party,” the notice said. It added that refraining from forcible resistance does not imply consent or agreement to that boarding. The advisory recommended that ships transiting eastbound in the Strait of Hormuz stay close to the Omani side of the waterway. The guidance followed a round of indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran …

Hong Kong media baron and pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison

Hong Kong media baron and pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison

Published by Sam Flores

TOPSHOT – Media tycoon Jimmy Lai (R) is escorted into a Hong Kong Correctional Services van outside the Court of Final Appeal in Hong Kong on February 1, 2021, after being ordered to remain in jail while judges consider his fresh bail application, the first major legal challenge to a sweeping national security law Beijing imposed on the city last year. Str | Afp | Getty Images Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai on Monday was sentenced to 20 years in prison in one of the most prominent prosecutions under a China-imposed national security law that has reshaped the city’s political landscape since 2020. “Having stepped back and taking a global view of the total sentence for Lai’s serious and grave criminal conduct … we are satisfied that the total sentence for Lai in the present case should be 20 years’ imprisonment,” the city’s High Court said in its ruling. Lai, founder of the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper, was convicted in December for collusion with foreign forces, endangering national security, and conspiracy to publish seditious materials. …

U.S. asks American citizens to ‘leave Iran now’ ahead of high-stakes talks with Tehran

U.S. asks American citizens to ‘leave Iran now’ ahead of high-stakes talks with Tehran

Published by Sam Flores

Two armed members of Iran’s police special forces stand behind a country flag placed on an armored military vehicle during a pro-Government rally in downtown Tehran, Iran, on January 12, 2026. Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images The U.S. Virtual Embassy in Iran issued a security alert early Friday urging American citizens to “leave Iran now” and prepare departure plans that don’t rely on U.S. government assistance. The notice comes ahead of U.S. and Iran’s scheduled talks in Oman on Friday, with little indication that the two sides have found common ground over the agenda of the meeting. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, were due to take part in the meeting with a team led by Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, according to American and Iranian officials. The U.S. has issued several similar security alerts over the past month. The Embassy last urged American citizens to leave the country in a warning on Jan. 14 as Trump was weighing options for a possible intervention in Iran to …

Trump reportedly warns UK of doing business with China as Starmer seeks a reset

Trump reportedly warns UK of doing business with China as Starmer seeks a reset

Published by Sam Flores

US President Donald Trump greets Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer during a summit on Gaza, Egypt, in Sharm el-Sheikh on Oct. 13, 2025. Evan Vucci | Afp | Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday reportedly warned the U.K. that it would be “very dangerous” for the country to do business with China, after London and Beijing announced steps aimed at mending ties. After years of strained relations, China and the U.K. are looking to develop a long-term strategic partnership following a high-stakes meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Starmer is on a 4-day visit to China, the first trip by a British prime minister in eight years, signaling an attempt at resetting bilateral ties. On the sidelines of premiere of the “Melania” film at the Kennedy Center, Trump was asked to comment on Starmer’s efforts to get into business with China, and he said that “it’s very dangerous for them to do that,” Reuters reported. China on Thursday agreed to halve its import tariffs on British whisky …