Joseph Hammond

Russian forces active in uranium-rich West Africa

Russia is doubling down on its military role in Africa despite the growing demands of its war in Ukraine, with the latest example featuring a direct intervention in recent days by Russian military forces to help Niger's military junta suppress a mutiny.

August 31, 2026

New Peruvian president could be key U.S. ally against drug cartels, Chinese influence

The Trump administration desperately needs Western Hemisphere partners to help battle powerful drug cartels and stem the tide of Chinese influence across the Americas. It may have a new one in Keiko Fujimori, Peru's recently inaugurated president.

August 27, 2026

Mexican cartel in Europe sought mortars, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades

Washington is striking back at a powerful Mexican cartel that federal prosecutors say sought to treat Europe as a safe base for drugs and weapons deals. Alleged cartel operatives attempted to exchange drugs bound for the United States for battlefield weaponry in Eastern Europe.

August 17, 2026

U.S. aid cuts, Ebola crisis in Africa open door to Beijing’s bid for influence in Congo

When a team of Chinese medical experts landed earlier this month at the airport in Kinshasa, healthcare officials from the Congo were there to greet them with open arms.

August 4, 2026

Burnham touts ‘warm’ call to Trump, but says he won’t put U.S. interests ahead of Britain

Britain's new prime minister, Andy Burnham, said he would stand up to President Trump "if it is right for Britain" in his first major interview since taking power.

July 28, 2026

Starmer’s Waterloo? Andy Burnham emerges as Labor’s answer to Reform Party surge

A parliamentary election Thursday in a working-class district on the outskirts of Manchester, England, has become a surprisingly critical referendum on Prime Minister Keir Starmer's leadership -- and perhaps the future of British politics.

June 17, 2026

Innovative rare-earth minerals project could reset South Africa’s rocky relationship with Trump

A proposed U.S.-backed investment in a South African rare-earth project is emerging as an unlikely bright spot in relations strained by disputes over Israel, refugee policy and South Africa's growing ties to China.

May 26, 2026

African terror groups expand beyond Sahel as death toll nears 24,000

Terrorism is skyrocketing across the troubled African continent, with almost 24,000 deaths in 2025 blamed on terror-related violence --a 24% increase over the previous year, according to recently released statistics.

April 30, 2026

Ukraine launches renewed attacks on Russia’s oil facilities

Ukraine is ramping up its assaults on oil-rich Russia's energy infrastructure in a bid to dampen the windfall Vladimir Putin stands to gain as prices and demand skyrocket in the wake of the U.S. blockade of the Persian Gulf.

April 15, 2026

Rival opposition groups jockey for primacy in a post-regime Iran

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei's appointment to succeed his father as Iran's supreme leader is unlikely to settle the question of who ultimately will hold power in postwar Tehran.

March 19, 2026

Houthis missing in action as U.S., Israel pummel terrorist group’s backers in Iran

As American and Israeli forces wage an air campaign with far-reaching implications for the Middle East, Iran's Houthi allies have stayed out of the fight. The Yemeni militants may be calculating that direct involvement would invite devastating retaliation, analysts say.

March 17, 2026

Kurdish militias move to strike back at Tehran despite U.S. hesitation

U.S. President Trump said over the weekend he doesn't want the well-armed militias of the Kurds -- the northern Iran and Iraq ethnic group that has often aligned itself with the U.S. in the past -- to join the fight against the regime in Tehran. But the Kurds, who have their own longstanding grievances against Iran's ruling clerics, may not be waiting for permission.

March 10, 2026

Trump blasts Starmer after Iran U-turn as U.K. leader navigates domestic pressure from Muslim voters

President Trump took aim at British Prime Minister Keir Starmer again over the weekend, even as the U.K. backpedaled from earlier efforts to distance itself from the ongoing war in the Middle East.

March 8, 2026

Poland confronts subterranean threat as Russia weaponizes migration against Europe

Polish officials say four tunnels discovered under the border with neighboring Russian ally Belarus were being used to bring immigrants into Poland illegally as part of Russian President Vladimir Putin's ongoing hybrid war on Europe.

March 2, 2026

African leaders sound alarm over Russia’s recruitment of fighters for Ukraine war

As Russia's battlefield losses mount in Ukraine, African leaders are increasingly condemning what they describe as a cynical campaign to recruit African men to fight and die in a foreign war.

February 19, 2026

Cape Town conference highlights rising tensions over U.S. moves to secure rare earth deals in Africa

President Trump's push to create a critical minerals trading bloc is forcing African nations to take sides in a widening geopolitical contest over resources essential to the global economy.

February 13, 2026

British PM Starmer vows to fight for his job after furor about former ambassador’s Epstein ties

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed Monday to fight for his job as a growing chorus of voices across Britain's political spectrum called for the Labor Party leader to resign amid mounting controversy over his close political ties to Peter Mandelson.

February 9, 2026

Moscow talking tough on Iran, but Russia’s grip on the Middle East has slipped

As the Trump administration weighs the possibility of new military action against Iran in support of anti-regime protesters, Moscow has issued a sharp warning against any external intervention. But the tough talk from Russia comes at a time when the Kremlin's influence in the region is at its lowest point since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

January 20, 2026

From Canada to China, fall of Maduro is transforming global oil market

Reverberations from the most consequential U.S. intervention since the 1989 invasion of Panama -- the stunning Jan. 3 capture and removal of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro -- are reshaping energy calculations around the globe, from pipeline politics in Canada to investment strategies in China.

January 14, 2026

Maritime crime hits post-pandemic high as piracy surges worldwide

From Africa's Gulf of Guinea to America's Caribbean Sea, 2025 was a growth year for pirates. Globally, maritime crime is at its highest levels since COVID-19.

January 8, 2026