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October 30, 2026 4:53 PM

Was the US capture of Venezuela’s president legal?

The U.S. captured Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro in a military operation early on Saturday morning, culminating a months-long pressure campaign by President Donald Trump's administration that drew condemnation from some international leaders. Maduro was on a warship bound for New York to face criminal charges, according to U.S. officials. Below is a look at the legality of the U.S. action. WHAT HAPPENED? On Saturday, U.S. forces attacked Venezuela and seized Maduro, who has been widely...

October 30, 2026 4:53 PM

No quick wins in tapping Venezuela’s oil reserves

Venezuela is unlikely to see any meaningful boost to crude output for years even if U.S. oil majors do invest the billions of dollars in the country that President Donald Trump promised just hours following Nicolás Maduro's capture by U.S. forces. The South American country may have the world's largest estimated oil reserves, but output has plummeted over the past decades amid mismanagement and a lack of investment from foreign firms after Venezuela nationalized oil operations in the 2000s tha...

October 30, 2026 4:53 PM

Trump’s bet on regime change in Venezuela is a sharp departure from MAGA agenda

President Donald Trump’s decision to attack Venezuela, arrest its president and temporarily run the country marks a striking departure for a politician who long criticized others for overreaching on foreign affairs and vowed to avoid foreign entanglements. His vision for U.S. involvement in Venezuela, sketched out in a midday news conference, left open the possibility of more military action, ongoing involvement in that nation’s politics and oil industry and “boots on the ground.” The t...

January 4, 2026 12:50 PM

Iran supreme leader says will not yield as protests simmer and US threatens

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed not to yield after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to come to the aid of protesters, as rights groups reported a sharp rise in arrests following days of unrest sparked by soaring inflation. Speaking in a recorded appearance on television on Saturday, Khamenei said the Islamic Republic "will not yield to the enemy" and said rioters should be "put in their place". Rights groups say more than 10 people have been killed and scores detained ...

January 4, 2026 12:50 PM

Trump says he’s ‘not thrilled’ with Putin over war in Ukraine

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the continued war in Ukraine, repeating that he had initially believed that ending the war would be easy. "I'm not thrilled with Putin. He's killing too many people," Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, during a press conference to discuss the overnight U.S. military operation in Venezuela and capture of its President Nicolas Maduro. Trump said he did not ...

December 29, 2025 9:31 AM

US and Ukraine ‘a lot closer’ on peace deal, Trump says after meeting with Zelenskiy

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy were "getting a lot closer, maybe very close" to an agreement to end the war in Ukraine, while acknowledging that the fate of the disputed Donbas region remains a key unresolved issue. The two leaders spoke at a joint news conference after meeting at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Sunday afternoon. Both leaders reported progress on two of the most contentious issues in peace talks - security ...

December 12, 2025 1:19 PM

Can Trump invalidate Biden actions recorded by autopen?

U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed, without evidence, that some actions by former President Joe Biden were invalid because he signed them using an autopen, including appointments to the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors. Below is a look at the controversy and legality of the device. WHAT IS AN AUTOPEN? It is a mechanical device that replicates a signature with a pen or other writing device and is used by government officials, celebrities, business leaders and members of Congress. It a...

December 12, 2025 1:22 PM

US strategy shakeup asks tough questions of Germany and Japan

As the final session began at last month's Berlin security conference, U.S. ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said he looked forward to the day when Germany would volunteer to take over the role of Supreme Allied Commander Europe, the officer who would lead the alliance in a major conflict. It prompted some consternation on the panel, and even more beyond. The senior German speaker, NATO Lieutenant General Wolfgang Wien, Berlin’s military representative to the EU, was taken aback. While Ge...

December 12, 2025 1:08 PM

Trump plan to require social media handles from Europeans and other expedited travelers sparks pushback

A U.S. travel association, a top Democrat, and would-be travelers from Europe and Australia are bristling at President Donald Trump's new plan to require Europeans and other visitors using the visa waiver program to provide social media handles used over the past five years. The change, announced in a U.S. government notice this week and effective February 8, would require travelers from countries in the visa waiver program to submit the social media data. Applicants for immigrant and non-immig...

December 12, 2025 12:57 PM

Trump administration unlawfully cancelled disaster prevention program, US judge rules

A federal judge ruled on Thursday that U.S. President Donald Trump's administration unlawfully terminated a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant program designed to protect states and communities against natural disasters before they occur. U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns in Boston sided with 20 mostly Democratic-led states in finding that the Republican president's administration lacked authority to end the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program and use money Congre...