Donald Trump

Trump Whirlwind to Test NATO Summit Unity

Will he play nice? That's the question for NATO leaders nervously waiting to see if a carefully choreographed show to please US President Donald Trump will pay dividends when the alliance summit gets down to business on Wednesday. Every precaution is in place to avoid a Trump blow-up at the Hague summit, from giving him credit for a historic ...

Trump Rattles NATO Allies as He Descends on Summit

US President Donald Trump swept into NATO's Hague summit Tuesday, with allies hoping a pledge to ramp up defence spending will keep the mercurial leader of the military superpower committed to protecting them. Trump joined leaders from NATO's 31 other members to kick off the two-day gathering with a dinner hosted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander in ...

As War Recedes, Oil Prices Plunge and Markets Rally

From Cold Sweats to Cooling Oil: Why Crude Prices Are Plunging After the Iran-Israel De-Escalation A bomb can send oil prices soaring – unless it doesn’t hit as hard as expected. That’s exactly what played out in the markets following Iran’s limited strike on a United States base in Qatar, followed by a surprise ceasefire between Tehran ...

Oil Slides, Stocks Rise as Trump Says Iran-Israel Ceasefire Holds

Oil prices sank and stock markets rose Tuesday as US President Donald Trump said a ceasefire between Iran and Israel was taking hold after he berated both countries for violating the truce. In volatile trading, crude futures slumped more than five percent after Trump announced a ceasefire. "This morning's ceasefire further reduced the perceived ...

Trump on Ceasefire Violations: Iran and Israel 'Don't Know What the F... They're Doing'

The Israeli army carried out a “symbolic attack” against Iran on Tuesday afternoon in retaliation for the Iranian strike earlier that morning, which killed seven people on Israeli territory. The Israeli attack took place despite a strong warning issued a little earlier by US President Donald Trump in Tel Aviv. Trump made an urgent ...

The 12 Days That Redefined the Middle East

With the announcement of a ceasefire, Donald Trump blew the final whistle. Twelve days were all it took to upend the geopolitical order of the region. Twelve days of war between Israel and Iran, following years of shadow conflict, thunderous ultimatums and unspoken red lines. Twelve days that reshaped the strategic balance in the Middle East and, ...

Qatar PM Persuaded Iran to Accept Ceasefire

Qatar's prime minister persuaded Iran to agree to a US-proposed ceasefire with Israel after Iranian missiles targeted an American base near Doha, an informed source said on Tuesday. Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani spoke to the Iranians at Washington's request following Monday's unprecedented attack on Qatari soil, the ...

Israel says Agreed to Trump Plan for Ceasefire with Iran

Israel said Tuesday it has agreed to US President Donald Trump's declaration of a ceasefire with Iran, adding that it has achieved all its objectives in the 12-day war with its arch-foe. Hours after Trump said his ceasefire had taken effect, Israel said it intercepted two Iranian missiles, with Defence Minister Israel Katz vowing that the ...

NATO Summit Seeks to Keep Trump Happy and Alliance United

  NATO leaders will seek to lock in US President Donald Trump's commitment to their alliance with a summit pledge to boost defence spending, as they gather Tuesday in The Hague with global attention focused on Iran. The overriding focus of the gathering, which kicks off with dinner hosted by the Dutch king, has been on keeping Trump ...

Oil Prices Drop as Israel Agrees to Ceasefire Proposal

Oil prices sank more than five percent Tuesday after Israel said it had agreed to US President Donald Trump's proposal for a bilateral ceasefire with Iran. Shares in Asia were buoyant, as fears of an energy market shock eased following 12 days of war between Israel and its arch-foe. London, Paris and Frankfurt also rose at the open. At around ...

Debating Tom Friedman on ‘Global Struggle’

I have great admiration for Thomas Friedman and have long followed his writings. He was instrumental in shaping my support for democracy when he argued that two democracies would not go to war. He supported toppling Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq, as I did, and we both believe that the nation-state is, in some ways, a defunct concept. Today, ...