All posts tagged: Donald J

How Iran’s Islands Strengthen Its Hold on the Strait of Hormuz

How Iran’s Islands Strengthen Its Hold on the Strait of Hormuz

Sources: Vantor (satellite image); International Monetary Fund (shipping routes); Natural Earth (country boundaries). The New York Times The United States has ramped up its forces in the Middle East, even as President Trump has pledged to wind down the war against Iran soon. In recent days, more than 5,000 Marines, paratroopers and special forces have arrived in the region, raising the prospect of a ground invasion. Mr. Trump threatened last week to invade Iran’s main oil export hub, Kharg Island, and “obliterate” its facilities if Iran does not allow shipping to resume through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has essentially closed it off since coming under attack by the United States and Israel a month ago. To get to Kharg Island, U.S. amphibious forces — which experts say would most likely be a part of any ground operation — would have to make their way some 500 miles into the Persian Gulf. “That would be very risky,” said Mark F. Cancian, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a retired …

Why It’s Hard to Run Venezuela

Why It’s Hard to Run Venezuela

Under Nicolas Maduro, a status quo prevailed among Venezuela’s powerful armed factions: Paramilitary cells enforced the government’s priorities. Ever-expanding crime syndicates, deep-pocketed prison gangs and combat-tested Colombian rebels often colluded with local officials or the federal government. But with Mr. Maduro gone, and allies and opponents competing to fill the power vacuum at Venezuela’s center, there are many forces — or breakaway groups within them — that could frustrate the ambitions of whoever governs the country. Photos by Juan Barreto/Agence France-Presse and Adriana Loureiro Fernandez/The New York Times For now, Delcy Rodríguez, a Maduro ally who led the stabilization of Venezuela’s economy after a harrowing crash, has emerged as the Trump administration’s choice to lead the country. Ms. Rodríguez, the administration determined, has a firmer grip than the political opposition on Venezuela’s many security forces and intelligence agencies, and their paramilitary offshoots. But the transition from Mr. Maduro’s authoritarian rule is just starting. The huge investments Venezuela will need to revive its vital oil industry, and the broader economy, require at least a semblance of stability. …

See How Maduro’s Capture Unfolded After U.S. Strikes in Venezuela

See How Maduro’s Capture Unfolded After U.S. Strikes in Venezuela

President Trump said on Saturday that the United States had captured the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, and was taking him to New York to face criminal charges. American special operations forces captured Mr. Maduro with the help of a C.I.A. source within the Venezuelan government who had monitored his location in recent days, according to people briefed on the operation. Initial strikes Early Saturday, around 2 a.m. local time, U.S. forces struck multiple locations in northern Venezuela, including in its capital, Caracas. Venezuelan officials said in statements that some of their citizens had been killed but that the death and injury toll was still being assessed. The Venezuelan government declared a national state of emergency in response to the attacks. Eyewitnesses reported sounds of explosions in Fuerte Tiuna, a sprawling military base in the center of Caracas that is home to Venezuela’s top brass and many senior government officials, and where Maduro was suspected to be located. A photo shows the military site burning early on Saturday morning, after multiple locations nearby were targeted. Luis …

The Separation: Inside the Unraveling U.S.-Ukraine Partnership

The Separation: Inside the Unraveling U.S.-Ukraine Partnership

By Adam Entous Adam Entous conducted more than 300 interviews over more than a year with government, military and intelligence officials in Ukraine, the United States, Britain, Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Turkey. Dec. 30, 2025 The train left the U.S. Army depot in the west of Germany and made for Poland and the Ukrainian border. These were the final 800 miles of a trans-Atlantic supply chain that had sustained Ukraine across more than three long years of war. The freight on this last day in June was 155-millimeter artillery shells, 18,000 of them packed into crates, their fuses separated out to prevent detonation in transit. Their ultimate destination was the eastern front, where Vladimir V. Putin’s generals were massing forces and firepower against the city of Pokrovsk. The battle was for territory and strategic advantage but also for bragging rights: Mr. Putin wanted to show the American president, Donald J. Trump, that Russia was indeed winning. Advertising their war plan, the Russians had told Mr. Trump’s advisers. “We’re going to slam them …