World
Syria's Post-Assad Assembly Seated With 137 of 140 Elected Seats Filled; Sweida's Three Remain Vacant
Indirect voting by regional electoral colleges ran from October 2025 through May 2026, President Ahmed al-Sharaa appointed the other 70 members on July 1, and the chamber first met on July 12, 2026.
Taiwan's Defense Ministry Logs Four PLA Aircraft and Six Navy Ships Around the Island on Sept. 13-14, as Beijing Warns Over a Pending U.S. Arms Sale
Taiwan's military reported routine-scale Chinese air and naval activity in mid-September, while China's Foreign Ministry said a $14 billion U.S. arms package for Taiwan could cost Beijing's participation in a Sept. 24 Trump-Xi summit.
EU Ambassadors Extend Russia Sanctions List for One Week After France and Slovakia Block Six-Month Renewal
The bloc's roughly 2,600-name blacklist was due to expire September 15; envoys pushed the deadline to September 22 while Paris and Bratislava press to remove businessmen Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman.
North Korean State Media Publishes Kim Letter to Putin Backing Russia's 'Sacred War'; Ukrainian Intelligence Separately Puts Possible Deployment at 50,000
Kim Jong Un's Sept. 15 message pledged "invariable support" and broader cooperation but named no troop numbers; the 50,000 figure comes from separate Ukrainian assessments made in August.
Russian Drone Hits Locomotive of Warsaw-Bound Train at Ukraine's Yahodyn Station, About 2 Kilometers From Poland
Ukraine's railway says passengers were evacuated before the September 13 strike and no one was hurt; Russia's Defense Ministry says it struck rail infrastructure moving military cargo from Europe.
Philippine Defense Chief Reads Chinese Note Aloud at Seoul Forum; Beijing Calls It "Grandstanding"
Gilberto Teodoro rejected a Chinese attaché's note on the 2016 arbitration ruling on Sept. 8, China's foreign ministry answered the next day, and a U.S. think tank report says Chinese ships radio-questioned nearly 200 commercial vessels in the Philippine Sea between June and August 2026.
North Korea Says Sept. 12 Missile and Drone Launches Were a Joint Firepower Drill; Seoul Tracked Flights of About 250 Kilometers
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff detected the launches from the Wonsan area early Saturday, a day after the United States, South Korea and Japan ended their Freedom Edge exercise; North Korean state media called it a live-fire drill by five army units.
Algeria Cuts Diplomatic Ties With the United Arab Emirates and Orders Its Ambassador Out Within 48 Hours
Algeria's Foreign Ministry cited unspecified "provocative and hostile" Emirati actions on September 10, 2026, and closed its airspace to UAE aircraft; the UAE said it hopes the break is temporary.
Kyodo News Reports China Told U.S. It Could Cancel the Sept. 24 Trump-Xi Summit if a New Taiwan Arms Sale Is Approved
Citing unnamed sources, Japan's Kyodo News agency reported on Sept. 13, 2026 that Beijing has told Washington it would call off Xi Jinping's planned White House visit if the Trump administration signs off on new weapons sales to Taiwan.
Xi, Putin and Modi Open 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi; Bloc Adopts Joint Declaration
Leaders of the 11-member group met Sept. 12-13 at Bharat Mandapam and agreed on a declaration, a day after BRICS finance chiefs raised "serious concerns" about unilateral tariffs without naming any country.
European Commission Approves €6.1 Billion Ukraine Defense Tranche, Clearing About €2 Billion for U.S.-Made Patriot Interceptors
The Sept. 11 decision releases roughly $7.1 billion from the EU's €90 billion Ukraine Support Loan and grants five exceptions to the loan's buy-European rule, two of them for American PAC-3 missiles.
Houthi Fighters Take Yemen's Perim Island in Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a Day After Seizing Mokha Port
Yemeni government forces withdrew from the island overnight on September 11, 2026, and Houthi fighters moved in; Brent crude ended the week above $100 a barrel for the first time in nearly four months.