worldpoliticsnews

If Oman obstructs talks between Washington and Tehran about the fate of the Strait of Hormuz, the United States "will bomb them to hell." Such a threat to the sultanate was made by U.S. President Donald Trump in an interview with Fox News on Monday, August 17.
It is reported that at the moment Muscat is holding talks with Tehran on joint control of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, through which, before the start of the war between the United States and Israel against Iran, deliveries of a fifth of the world’s oil shipments were made. However, so far no agreement has been reached in these consultations.

The US president’s special envoy and son-in-law of Donald Trump, Jared Kushner, as part of efforts to implement the peace plan for the Gaza Strip, held a meeting in Egypt with representatives of the leadership of the radical Islamist movement Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist organization by the EU and the US. During the meeting, he once again urged Hamas to disarm, stating that Israel does not believe the militants will carry out the commitments they have undertaken in this regard. This was reported in the evening of Sunday, August 16, independently of each other by the US online publication Axios and the AFP news agency—both citing sources.

Qatar rejected claims about the detention of Iranian pilots earlier during the war in the Middle East. The corresponding statement by Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majid bin Muhammad Al-Ansari was circulated on Saturday, August 15, on the social media platform X.
According to him, in Doha they are "surprised by these misleading statements precisely at this time, amid ongoing diplomatic efforts and initiatives aimed at reducing tension in the region."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met in Belgrade with his counterpart Aleksandar Vučić for dinner in the evening on Friday, August 7, during his first visit to Serbia since the start of the war in Ukraine. "We started a bilateral discussion in Serbia," Zelensky briefly captioned a joint photo on Telegram at around 10:00 p.m. Central European time. He did not provide any other details or results of this preliminary meeting.

Against the backdrop of rising tensions in the Persian Gulf, the nuclear-armed state of Pakistan, NATO member Turkey, and Saudi Arabia have signed a defense agreement. Representatives of the three countries signed the relevant document on Friday, August 7, the Pakistani Foreign Office and Saudi state news agency SPA reported.

The Venezuelan government will hold its first in-person talks with the opposition in Caracas next week to discuss assistance for those affected by the recent earthquake and the democratization of the country.
This was reported on Saturday, August 1, by the speaker of the National Assembly and the government’s chief negotiator, Jorge Rodríguez.

China’s vice premier He Lifeng said he is concerned about US trade restrictions on China during a video call on Thursday with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamie Greer, Xinhua reported.
He Lifeng is China’s chief representative on China-US economic and trade issues. The discussion focused on implementing the understandings reached by the leaders of the two countries during their meeting in Beijing, Xinhua reports.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, July 28, received Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, at the White House. This personal meeting was the first for the two leaders since the war in Iran began on February 28.
Netanyahu after the meeting said that it was "excellent". "It was a conversation implying full partnership, mutual support, and understanding of the common goal of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, as well as other goals," the Israeli prime minister commented on the talks.

Brazil rejected visa applications from two U.S. State Department employees who planned to visit the country to cast doubt on the integrity of Brazil's electoral system. Two Brazilian officials familiar with the situation told Reuters on Saturday.

The United States lifted sanctions against Bel-Kap-Steel, a Miami-based company that forms a joint venture with OJSC “Belarusian Metallurgical Plant – Managing Company of the Belarusian Metallurgical Company holding.” This was reported by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on its website on Thursday, July 23.

The U.S. administration of President Donald Trump is considering conducting a military operation in Mali against jihadists from the "Support Group for Islam and Muslims" (JNIM), associated with "Al-Qaeda," the Washington Post reported on Wednesday, July 22, citing several sources.

The judge scheduled the start date of the trial against former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro for 01.06.2027 in a drug trafficking and drug-terrorism case in the United States. The hearing was Maduro’s first appearance in court since March.
U.S. Federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein set the trial date during a hearing in an overcrowded courtroom in Manhattan. According to the prosecution, Maduro, captured by U.S. forces on 03.01.2026, played a key role in a conspiracy aimed at smuggling cocaine into the territory of the United States.

The Parliament of Moldova on Tuesday, July 21, voted to appoint as the country’s prime minister an investor and manager with international work experience, Vasile Tofana. Along with him, the entire cabinet of ministers was also approved. Tofana made only four reshuffles, appointing new heads of the ministries of finance, health, culture, and agriculture. The remaining ministers stayed in their posts.

Germany and Azerbaijan have confirmed their common commitment to deepening bilateral partnership and cooperation based on mutual trust. This is stated in a statement published on Tuesday, July 21, following a meeting between the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Friedrich Merz, and the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, in Berlin.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has established new maximum stay periods in the United States for visas in category F for international students, J for participants in cultural exchange programs, and I for media representatives. The decision was announced on Thursday, July 16.

So far, his political activity has been limited to the Manchester region in the north of England: for 9 years, Andy Burnham served as mayor, earning the nickname “King of the North.” Under his leadership, the region’s economy grew significantly faster than the national average, and the level of poverty in urban areas noticeably decreased.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in India on Saturday with an official diplomatic mission aimed at revitalizing bilateral relations that have been complicated by trade tariffs and changes in Washington's foreign policy in the region, according to Reuters.
This four-day visit will be Rubio's first trip to this South Asian country and includes stops in New Delhi, Kolkata, Agra, and Jaipur. The State Department confirmed that high-level talks will focus on trade mechanisms, bilateral energy cooperation, and defense issues.

The U.S. State Department announced on Tuesday, June 16, that the United States will provide over a billion dollars to the UN for humanitarian aid and disaster relief. These funds are earmarked for UNICEF and the World Food Programme (WFP), which will utilize them to save lives in more than 40 countries.

The "Adilet" party was registered at record speed
On the very first day of June, "Adilet" was officially registered by the country's Ministry of Justice. In the history of political party building in Kazakhstan, no new political project has ever managed to hit the ground running from notification to registration this quickly. Typically, political organizations wait years for approval to operate officially, often facing rejections, and some haven’t been able to register since the days of Nursultan Nazarbayev's rule.

Israel and Lebanon, with the mediation of the United States, have agreed to implement a ceasefire. The three-party statement was published by the U.S. Department of State on Wednesday, June 3rd. This agreement is the result of two days of talks involving Israeli and Lebanese representatives in Washington.