Historian Greg Grandin discusses the latest developments as Trump also intensifies efforts to topple Cuba's government. If you think our work is valuable, support us with a donation of any size. In the aftermath of the abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, Venezuela has agreed to submit a monthly budget to the Trump administration, which will release money from an account funded by oil sales. “This is an arrangement with transactional details that we've never seen before.” Copy may not be in its final form. On Thursday, Venezuela's interim leader, Delcy Rodríguez, signed a law that will open Venezuela's oil industry to privatization, reversing a key principle of the Chavista movement that's persevered in Venezuela for more than two decades. INTERIM PRESIDENT DELCY RODRÍGUEZ: [translated] In this law is President Nicolás Maduro's vision for the future, because there are those who think we pulled this law out of nowhere. No, we had already studied this law, its reform, together with President Maduro. I feel moved to be able to tell him from Caracas, his birthplace: President Maduro, we are delivering for you. We are delivering for the first combatant Cilia Flores. And we are delivering for the people of Venezuela. AMY GOODMAN: Soon after the legislation was signed, the Trump administration lifted some sanctions on Venezuela to facilitate access to the country's crude oil reserves for U.S. companies to buy, sell and store. President Trump also said Thursday the United States plans on opening up Venezuela's airspace. Trump spoke following a Cabinet meeting yesterday. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: And I just spoke to the president of Venezuela, informed her that we're going to be opening up all commercial airspace over Venezuela. … We have the major oil companies going to Venezuela now, scouting it out and picking their locations. AMY GOODMAN: This all comes as President Trump Thursday signed an executive order that would impose tariffs on goods from countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba, as Trump intensifies efforts to topple the Cuban government. The move appears to be intended to put pressure on Mexico, which has been an oil lifeline for Cuba as the Island has been devastated by decades of U.S. economic sanctions. Trump said Thursday, quote, “Cuba will not be able to survive,” unquote. Meanwhile, the Financial Times reports Cuba only has about 15 to 20 days left of oil. For more on this and other issues, we're joined by Greg Grandin, Yale University history professor, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, whose latest book is America, América: A New History of the New World, his recent op-ed in The New York Times headlined “Trump Picked the Right Stage to Act Out His Imperial Ambitions.” So, we last spoke to you, Professor Grandin, when Maduro and his wife were abducted. AMY GOODMAN: But talk about what's happening now. It surprised many when the Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced that Mexico would be cutting off oil supplies, but then she had to clarify her comments. I want to see if we can go to a clip of President Sheinbaum talking about exactly what Mexico would be doing. PRESIDENT CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM: [translated] It is Mexico's sovereign decision to send humanitarian aid, and Pemex fulfills its obligations under the contract once it ships. I never said it had been suspended. AMY GOODMAN: So, it's not exactly clear what she's saying there, that oil for humanitarian reasons would continue. But if you can explain what's happening and the connection between — it's something you've long said — Venezuela and Cuba, especially U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Cuban American's complete focus? GREG GRANDIN: Yeah, well, just to put it into larger context, I mean, Trump came into power saying, with a kind of buffoonish change of the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, and within a year, he had launched this campaign of chaos and murder, in terms of the speedboat operators and pilots, over a hundred dead, and then — you know, and then this fast strike into Venezuela. And he built up a military naval presence in the Caribbean that is still there. It hasn't wound down since the kidnapping of Maduro. You know, she could be in fear of — you know, he's basically threatened to take her out if they didn't — if they're not happy or satisfied with the level of cooperation that they're showing. So, basically, what we're seeing is a kind of new form of imperialism, where Trump is treating these countries like hostile takeovers, where — you know, whether it be Venezuela, whether it be Gaza, whether it be Haiti, whether it be Libya. But what the United States is planning for Venezuela is basically to run the country as a vassal state, basically giving it an allowance, taking its revenues, approving its budget. This is an arrangement with kind of transactional details that we've never seen before. And yes, oil is key to it in terms of isolating Cuba — or, oil as a weapon, not oil as profit, oil as a way of isolating Cuba, because Venezuela, in the mind of Marco Rubio and the greater Florida constituency within the Republican coalition, wants the end of the Cuban Revolution. GREG GRANDIN: Because it's based on no international law. When the United States says that Venezuela has sanctioned oil, that's just the United States asserting it. AMY GOODMAN: I wanted to go to new information, the Trump administration reportedly planning to establish a permanent CIA presence on the ground in Venezuela following the abduction of President Maduro. That's according to CNN, which spoke to several anonymous sources that outlined talks between the State Department and the CIA have weighed short- and long-term schemes to foster U.S. influence in Venezuela. The agency covertly installed a small team inside Venezuela in August to surveil Maduro, providing key intelligence for the attack on Caracas earlier this month. One CIA source reportedly operated within the Maduro government. GREG GRANDIN: Yeah, well, we could assume that in the Rodríguez government, the CIA is interpenetrated on all levels. I mean, the CIA has a presence in Latin America. Every embassy has CIA staff operating out of the basement office. It's basically turning the CIA into a colonial office, you know, how to run an informal empire. AMY GOODMAN: Let's go to Secretary of State Marco Rubio Wednesday refusing to rule out further U.S. attacks on Venezuela. His threat came during his testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where he told lawmakers that Venezuela's interim government has agreed to submit a monthly budget to the Trump administration, which will release money from an account funded by oil sales and initially managed by Qatar. I can tell you right now with full certainty, we are not postured to, nor do we intend or expect to have to, take any military action in Venezuela at any time. The only military presence you will see in Venezuela is our Marine guards at an embassy. GREG GRANDIN: Well, and they haven't drawn down the naval presence. About a 10th of the naval fleet is in the Caribbean, you know, doing — you know, both threatening Mexico, threatening Venezuela and isolating Cuba. So, they have many more ships in the Caribbean than they have in the Persian Gulf going into Iran. It's kind of like — it's kind of like the hostile takeovers of nations and turning them — and putting them in receivership, in which the United States takes the power to administer the funds, to run them transactionally, but not take any responsibility. But the idea of nation building, of course, it's not something that Trump ran on and his base is against. This is turning millions of people, Venezuela's population — but again, it's not just Venezuela — Venezuela, potentially Cuba, Gaza, Libya and so on, into interdependencies, you know, and kind of a new vassal — kind of technovassal imperialism. Atlantic magazine recently published an article headlined ”MAGA Thinks Maduro Will Prove Trump Won in 2020.” The article quotes MyPillow founder Mike Lindell saying, quote, “I'm hoping now that Maduro will actually come clean and tell us everything about the machines and how they steal the elections,” unquote. Some have speculated Trump could pardon Maduro in exchange for him stating that Venezuela interfered in the 2020 election, even though no evidence of that exists. And it might also explain why, when the FBI raided the election office this week in Georgia's Fulton County, seeking computers and ballots related to the 2020 election, inexplicably, the head of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, who would be dealing with international issues, was there. GREG GRANDIN: Yeah, apparently Tulsi Gabbard is going to be in charge of making the case that the 2020 election was rigged, drawing on all sorts of evidence. And there's long been a conspiracy that the voting machines had — I'm not exactly sure, but there were some Venezuelans that were invested in the company that ran the machines. Look, Trump pardoned Juan Orlando Hernández, who was convicted of drug running — he was former president of Honduras — basically as part of a deal to bring the conservative party in Honduras to power, to overthrow the left, and in alliance — if you read — there's a great op-ed in The New York Times yesterday by Jean Guerrero about, basically, the MS-13 — Trump — were acting as election monitors, basically threatening people to vote for the conservative party or be killed. AMY GOODMAN: And again, just to make that point, as Trump says that Maduro is sitting in this Brooklyn jail because he is a narcotrafficker — AMY GOODMAN: — that President Trump pardoned Juan Orlando Hernández, the former president of Honduras, who was sentenced to something like 45, 46 years in prison for bringing in 400 tons of drugs into the United States. So, you could imagine — I mean, who knows? And this is a way of setting up to discredit whatever comes in the midterms and whatever comes next presidential elections. AMY GOODMAN: Well, we will continue to talk — GREG GRANDIN: I mean, but there is one thing: The oil wasn't privatized. I do just want to make this point very quickly. It gives oil companies better control over their operations. Oil remains considered part of Venezuela's national patrimony, so that will still be a point of contention in future Venezuelan politics. AMY GOODMAN: I want to thank you for being with us, Greg Grandin, Yale University history professor, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, his latest book, America, América: A New History of the New World. We'll link to your piece in The New York Times, “Trump Picked the Right Stage to Act Out His Imperial Ambitions.” AMY GOODMAN: That's “City of Heroes,” a tribute to anti-ICE protesters in Minneapolis by the British folk singer Billy Bragg, the song written and released in response to the murder of Alex Pretti. In a note accompanying the release, Billy Bragg said, quote, “That these crimes can be committed in broad daylight, on camera and yet no one is held accountable only adds to the injustice.” We'll play more of his song later in the broadcast. Progressive nonprofits are the latest target caught in Trump's crosshairs. With the aim of eliminating political opposition, Trump and his sycophants are working to curb government funding, constrain private foundations, and even cut tax-exempt status from organizations he dislikes. We're concerned, because Truthout is not immune to such bad-faith attacks. We can only resist Trump's attacks by cultivating a strong base of support. The right-wing mediasphere is funded comfortably by billionaire owners and venture capitalist philanthropists. Our fundraising campaign is over, but we fell a bit short and still need your help. Please take a meaningful action in the fight against authoritarianism: make a one-time or monthly donation to Truthout. If you have the means, please dig deep. Amy Goodman is the host and executive producer of Democracy Now!, a national, daily, independent, award-winning news program airing on more than 1,100 public television and radio stations worldwide. Get the news you want, delivered to your inbox every day.

Catherine O'Hara, the radiant actress whose singular comedic delivery helped elevate movies and TV shows like “Beetlejuice,” “Home Alone” and “Schitt's Creek” to cult classic status, has died. A statement from CAA, the agency which represented O'Hara, said the actress died Friday “at her home in Los Angeles following a brief illness.” O'Hara got her start at Second City in her native Canada, before turning to film. Her roles in “Beetlejuice” (1988) and “Home Alone” (1990) won wide acclaim. Soon, she turned to collaborating with director Christopher Guest, starring in many of his iconic mockumentaries, including “Waiting for Guffman” (1996) and “Best in Show” (2000). In those films, O'Hara worked often alongside Eugene Levy, becoming a signature duo who went on to co-star in the acclaimed “Schitt's Creek” together. As wayward posh actress Moira Rose, O'Hara's one-liners were meme gold and earned her critical praise. O'Hara won an Emmy in 2020 during a Covid-era ceremony that saw stars masked up and celebrating while scattered across the globe, with the action captured on 130 dispatched cameras. O'Hara thanked creators Eugene and Dan Levy for “bestowing me the opportunity to play a woman of a certain age, my age, who gets to fully be her ridiculous self.” O'Hara also won a Golden Globe for her performance as Moira Rose in the show in 2021. O'Hara was known for bringing a full commitment to her roles, with exaggerated voice work and a brilliant comedic sense of timing. Most recently, she reprised her role as Lydia Deetz for the “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” sequel and played a felled executive in “The Studio,” for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe for best supporting actress in TV this year. A private celebration of life will be held by the family, according to her agency.

Lemon's lawyer called his arrest an “attack” on press freedom and a distraction from “crises” the administration faces. If you value what we do, please support our work with a donation. Former CNN host Don Lemon, who is now an independent journalist, was arrested on Thursday over his connection to a protest that occurred inside a church in St. Paul, Minnesota, earlier this month. Lemon was arrested by federal authorities in Los Angeles while he was covering the Grammy Awards, his lawyer Abbe Lowell said in a statement. “Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done,” Lowell said, adding: This unprecedented attack on the First Amendment and transparent attempt to distract attention from the many crises facing this administration will not stand. Don will fight these charges vigorously and thoroughly in court. “There is no evidence that [Lemon and his producer] engaged in any criminal behavior or conspired to do so,” Schiltz said in his decision. Independent journalist Georgia Fort, who is based in Minneapolis, was also arrested on Friday morning for her coverage of the protest. “This is all stemming from the fact that I filmed a protest as a member of the media,” Fort said in her video. [But] I don't feel like I have my First Amendment right as a member of the press because now federal agents are at my door, arresting me for filming the church protest a few weeks ago.” “It's hard to understand how we have constitutional rights when you can just be arrested for being a member of the press,” Fort added. “Agents are at my door right now” In addition to Don Lemon the Trump regime also Arrested Georgia Fort👇🏽 for covering the church protest (where an ICE field director is a pastor) “The government's arrests of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort are naked attacks on freedom of the press,” Stern said in a statement, noting that “two federal courts flatly rejected prosecuting Lemon because the evidence for these vindictive and unconstitutional charges was insufficient, and Lemon has every right to document news and inform the public.” These arrests, under bogus legal theories for obviously constitutionally protected reporting, are clear warning shots aimed at other journalists. Fort's arrest is meant to instill the same fear in local independent journalists as big names like Lemon. “The answer to this outrageous attack is not fear or self-censorship. In separate comments sent directly to Truthout, Stern rejected that premise. “There is a federal law against interference with religious observance, but it requires intent. Progressive nonprofits are the latest target caught in Trump's crosshairs. With the aim of eliminating political opposition, Trump and his sycophants are working to curb government funding, constrain private foundations, and even cut tax-exempt status from organizations he dislikes. We're concerned, because Truthout is not immune to such bad-faith attacks. We can only resist Trump's attacks by cultivating a strong base of support. The right-wing mediasphere is funded comfortably by billionaire owners and venture capitalist philanthropists. Our fundraising campaign is over, but we fell a bit short and still need your help. Chris Walker is a news writer at Truthout, based in Madison, Wisconsin. He can be found on most social media platforms under the handle @thatchriswalker. Get the news you want, delivered to your inbox every day.

Capital punishment taken off table but Mangione will still face federal charges over killing of Brian Thompson Mangione, 27, has previously pleaded not guilty to murder, weapons and stalking-related charges in the federal case. “This case will proceed to trial on counts one and two, which charge the defendant with causing Brian Thompson's death under two federal stalking laws,” Garnett wrote in the order dated Friday. “The potential maximum punishment for each of those offenses is life in prison without parole.” “Count three is a capital-eligible offense, on which the government filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty,” Garnett added. Prosecutors have not yet announced if they will appeal Friday's ruling. In a 39-page decision, Garnett said federal prosecutors could pursue their murder and weapons charges only if the stalking charges qualified as “crimes of violence”. She said the charges did not qualify because any use of force could be achieved through “reckless”, as opposed to intentional, conduct. Garnett acknowledged the “apparent absurdity” of the legal landscape, saying no one would seriously question that Mangione's alleged conduct – crossing state lines to kill a specific healthcare executive with a handgun equipped with a silencer – was violent criminal conduct. Separately, Mangione has also pleaded not guilty to murder, weapons and forgery-related charges in Manhattan state court. He is accused of shooting Thompson dead after approaching him on the street in Manhattan as the executive was attending an event. On Friday morning, the judge also rejected a defense motion to suppress evidence related to the case, including Mangione's backpack that was recovered from him at the time of arrest, and its contents, including a gun that prosecutors allege Mangione used to kill Thompson.

Scientists have discovered the largest organic molecule containing sulfur — a key ingredient for life — ever identified in interstellar space. Sulfur is the 10th most abundant element in the universe and a critical component of amino acids, proteins and enzymes on Earth. But while researchers had previously found sulfur-bearing molecules similar to the newly discovered one in comets and meteorites, there was a puzzling lack of large molecules including sulfur in interstellar space — the vast region between stars that is scattered with clouds of dust and gas. “Sulfur came to Earth from space long, long ago,” said Mitsunori Araki, a scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Germany and lead author of a study on the discovery, which was published last week in the journal Nature Astronomy. “However, we have only found a very limited amount of sulfur-bearing molecules in space, which is strange. The new detection, therefore, adds an important piece to this puzzle. “This is the largest sulfur-bearing molecule ever found in space, at 13 atoms,” Araki said. “Before this one, the largest only had nine atoms, but it was already a rare case, because most detected sulfur-bearing molecules only had three, four or five atoms.” Finding larger molecules is important, he added, because it helps to fill an existing gap between simple chemistry found in space and the more complex building blocks of life that have been discovered in comets and meteorites. The molecule, which also contains carbon and hydrogen, is called 2,5-cyclohexadiene-1-thione and adds to a growing catalog of over 300 molecules observed in space so far. Researchers first synthesized the molecule by applying an electric discharge to a substance called thiophenol — a foul-smelling liquid containing sulfur, carbon and hydrogen. “We had seen from earlier observation that sulfur molecules were quite abundant in this cloud,” Lattanzi said. “That's why it was a very good target for us. We believe that one of the possible origins of life on Earth is through collisions and impacts of small body systems like comets and meteorites with our planet in the past, that probably brought complex molecules, including ones containing sulfur. Kate Freeman, Evan Pugh University Professor of Geosciences at Penn State University, called the study “an exciting detective story made possible by powerful radio telescopes and a really good search strategy.” Meteorites are known to have large and complex sulfur compounds, said Freeman, who was not involved in the research, and they likely delivered many of them to Earth to help set the stage for the chemistry of life. “Yet, we didn't really know how these compounds ended up in meteorites or their precursor planetary bodies,” she added in an email. Sulfur is one of only six elements essential to life on Earth and may have been a critical ingredient in the earliest life on Earth, providing vital fuel to ancient microbes, according to Sara Russell, a professor of planetary sciences at the Natural History Museum in London. “Finding such molecules such a long way from our home planet also suggests that similar processes may be happening elsewhere — it makes the presence of life existing on another planet that little bit more likely.” “Sulfur as an atom exists in a very special place on the periodic table. It has a unique chemistry that allows molecules to do much more than what only oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon would allow,” Fortenberry said via email. More than 50 years ago it was a miracle to find any molecules in space, added Fortenberry, who was also not part of the study. “The common thinking was that the harsh environment would simply break them down — now we're finding molecules with 13 atoms and some with multiple dozen atoms,” he said. “Molecules are more resilient than we gave them credit for, and telescopes have shown us that the chemistry of space is far richer than we could have imagined. I fully expect that we will find amino acids in space beyond our solar system.” Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.

Batch will include more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, deputy attorney general Todd Blanche says In a testy news conference, Blanche said that the release would include more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, which will have “extensive redactions”. Under mounting pressure from both parties, Trump abruptly reversed course in November, signing the Epstein Files Transparency Act while dismissing the controversy as a “Democrat hoax”. The department has also filed court motions to release additional materials currently covered by protective orders from a civil lawsuit and grand jury materials from a case against corrections officers who worked where Epstein died. Blanche said that what was withheld were personal and medical files, documents depicting death, physical abuse and injury, as well as any depiction of child sexual abuse “that would jeopardize an active federal investigation”. He shared that the department will submit to the House and Senate judiciary committees a report listing “all categories of records released and withheld”. When asked if there were new names in the document drop, Blanche said he did not have anything to share. He did say that the release reiterated what “President Trump has said for years …which is detailing his relationship, and lack thereof, with Mr Epstein, and what he thought about Mr Epstein.” The justice department also established an email inbox for victims to report redaction concerns and will allow members of Congress to view unredacted portions under confidentiality agreements. “The DoJ said it identified over 6m potentially responsive pages but is releasing only about 3.5m after review and redactions,” Khanna said in a statement. “I will be reviewing closely to see if they release what I've been pushing for: the FBI 302 victim interview statements, a draft indictment and prosecution memorandum prepared during the 2007 Florida investigation, and hundreds of thousands of emails and files from Epstein's computers.” Just ahead of the files being released to the public, Blanche told Fox News Digital that “in none of these communications, even when doing his best to disparage President Trump, did Epstein suggest President Trump had done anything criminal or had any inappropriate contact with any of his victims”. Later in his press conference, the deputy attorney general said he wanted to dispel rumors about Trump and the justice department working hand-in-hand on Epstein. The huge document dump follows weeks of delay after the department conceded in a 5 January letter that only 12,285 documents totaling 125,575 pages had been published to date, falling far short of a 19 December deadline mandated by the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Documents released in prior batches under the act have detailed systemic failures by law enforcement officials to stop Epstein's abuse and included graphic testimony about the recruitment methods used to ensnare victims. Earlier disclosures under the act included grand jury testimony describing how Maxwell allegedly asked one victim to recruit other girls, telling her “they have to look young at least”, though the victim refused, saying she “didn't want anyone else to go through that”.

However, it is another story for their real-life counterparts — living out of sight and under pressure in the Alps as their snow cover slowly melts away due to climate change. “The ermine faces a mismatch when it finds itself completely white in a world that should be white, but is no longer so,” Granata said. With their camouflage gone, the white ermines now stand out starkly against their mountain backdrop, becoming easy targets for predators such as hawks, owls or foxes. While ermines are compelled to ascend, the snow voles and mice they depend upon for food have no need to do so. Ski slopes also encroach on ermine habitat because of “competition for the areas where it snows the most,” Granata said. There is little fuss made in Italy over ermines, which were once heavily hunted for their white pelts to adorn royal ceremonial robes. That influential list is out of date, said Granata, who hopes his research would lead to their protection. “The fact that a doctoral student is the expert on a species shows how little attention has actually been paid to this species,” he said. Every fall, Granata hikes the Alps, placing camera traps — plastic boxes with a motion-triggered camera inside — that help him analyze the animal's seasonal patterns. “You have to think like an ermine,” he said, placing the box in areas where the curious mammal might go to find food. “It's like unwrapping a gift because you don't know what's inside... you actually see this invisible world,” he said. Commentators in Saudi Arabia accuse the UAE of growing too bold, backing forces at odds with Saudi interests in various conflicts A Saudi Arabian media campaign targeting the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has deepened the Gulf's worst row in years, stoking fears of a damaging fall-out in the financial heart of the Middle East. Fiery accusations of rights abuses and betrayal have circulated for weeks in state-run and social media after a brief conflict in Yemen, where Saudi airstrikes quelled an offensive by UAE-backed separatists. The United Arab Emirates is “investing in chaos and supporting secessionists” from Libya to Yemen and the Horn of Africa, Saudi Arabia's al-Ekhbariya TV charged in a report this week. US President Donald Trump on Saturday warned Canada that if it concludes a trade deal with China, he would impose a 100 percent tariff on all goods coming over the border. Relations between the US and its northern neighbor have been rocky since Trump returned to the White House a year ago, with spats over trade and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney decrying a “rupture” in the US-led global order. Chinese President Xi Jinping's (習近平) purge of his most senior general is driven by his effort to both secure “total control” of his military and root out corruption, US Ambassador to China David Perdue said told Bloomberg Television yesterday. Chinese authorities said Zhang was being investigated for suspected serious discipline and law violations, without disclosing further details. “I take him at his word that there's a corruption effort under China executed 11 people linked to Myanmar criminal gangs, including “key members” of telecom scam operations, state media reported yesterday, as Beijing toughens its response to the sprawling, transnational industry. Fraud compounds where scammers lure Internet users into fake romantic relationships and cryptocurrency investments have flourished across Southeast Asia, including in Myanmar. Those conducting the scams are sometimes willing con artists, and other times trafficked foreign nationals forced to work. In the past few years, Beijing has stepped up cooperation

U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to decertify Canadian-made aircraft in the United States could hamper the services of several U.S. airlines and aircraft operators, according to Cirium, an aviation data company. “Based on the fact that Canada has wrongfully, illegally, and steadfastly refused to certify the Gulfstream 500, 600, 700, and 800 Jets, one of the greatest, most technologically advanced airplanes ever made, we are hereby decertifying their Bombardier Global Expresses, and all aircraft made in Canada, until such time as Gulfstream, a Great American Company, is fully certified,” Mr. Trump wrote. Where appropriate, aviation authorities certify aircraft for safety reasons, including updates or changes to existing models. Canada is reviewing electronics changes to Gulfstream G700 and G800 models the company made to increase its range and payload, said John Gradek, who teaches aviation leadership at McGill University. Reuters reported a Trump official said the President did not mean to say Canadian-made aircraft in operation are decertified. Presumably, it would affect new aircraft made in Canada by Airbus SE, Bombardier, De Havilland Aircraft of Canada and helicopter maker Bell Textron Inc., as well as their U.S. customers. “Bombardier is an international company that employs more than 3,000 people in the U.S. across 9 major facilities, and creates thousands of U.S. jobs through 2,800 suppliers. Bombardier shares fell by about 6 per cent in early trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange. “We believe that this can be resolved,” Ms. Joly said. “This is a trade war between Gulfstream and Bombardier,” he said by phone. Gulfstream owner General Dynamics GD-N, Bell Textron, De Havilland and the FAA did not immediately respond to e-mailed questions. Yves-François Blanchet, leader of the Bloc Québécois, called on Mr. Trump to withdraw his threats. Benoit Poirier, a stock analyst at Desjardins Group, said the matter could be resolved easily. “Both [Gulfstream] aircraft are already certified in the U.S. and EU. Assurances could likely be provided that Canadian certification will follow shortly,” Mr. Poirier said. According to Cirium, “decertifying” Canadian-made aircraft in the U.S. – normally a responsibility of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration – could affect Delta Airlines, SkyWest, NetJets and others. Cirium said there are 2,678 Canadian-made Bombardier aircraft registered in the U.S., flown by 1,202 operators. This includes 150 Global Express aircraft in service operated by 115 operators. Still, the U.S. market is key for makers of private and business jets. The market is undersupplied, he said, with a two-year wait for new deliveries. Study and track financial data on any traded entity: click to open the full quote page. Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following.

In 2025, Ukrainian armed formations launched more than 130,000 munitions on Russian civilian facilities, an increase of over 40,000 from 2024, Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador at Large on Kiev's War Crimes Rodion Miroshnik said at a briefing. Medical personnel and rescue workers are becoming casualties of Kiev's targeted strikes; they are being hunted, the diplomat noted. Meanwhile, the playbook used by certain UN agencies to collect data on the Ukraine conflict resembles an attempt at large-scale manipulation. The Kiev regime has responded to every new peace initiative to resolve the Ukrainian conflict with increased shelling of Russian territory or new terrorist attacks. The playbook used by certain UN structures to collect data on the Ukraine conflict raises serious questions and looks more like an attempt at "broad-scale manipulation:" "Eventually, this looks more like attempts to adjust the conditions of the problem to predetermined results." Those agencies rely on quite a strange playbook to collect the data based solely on reports from one side of the conflict and "ignore reports about killed or wounded civilians in Russian border areas." Medical personnel and rescue workers are becoming casualties of Kiev's targeted strikes; they are being hunted: "Attack unmanned combat aerial vehicles have become the primary means of attacking medical workers, medical facilities, and ambulances." Last year, Ukrainian militants, according to the Russian Health Ministry, "struck 56 civilian ambulances." "Over the past year, 50 medical workers have been injured and 10 killed" in such enemy assaults. The number of injured emergency service personnel has increased by 40%: in total, 77 employees who arrived to restore destroyed infrastructure have fallen victim to deliberate strikes and repeated attacks over the past year. "Eleven repair workers have been killed as a result of militant strikes," the diplomat emphasized. Last year, Ukrainian armed formations fired "at least 130,627 munitions" on Russian civilian facilities, an increase of over 42,000 from 2024. In 2025, "at least 6,483 civilians" suffered from criminal and terrorist attacks as well as extrajudicial executions carried out by Ukrainian armed groups. "No fewer than 1,065 Russian civilians were killed" and "at least 5,418 others" were injured as a result of Ukraine's criminal actions in 2025. At least 293 children suffered from Ukrainian attacks in 2025. Kiev has taken 12 civilians out of the Kursk Region and is holding them captive in Sumy: "Kiev has been demanding the release of Ukrainian war criminals held prisoner in Russia in exchange for the return of the civilians," Miroshnik concluded.

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Prime Minister Mark Carney in the Oval Office of the White House in October, 2025.Evan Vucci/The Associated Press Threats against Canada come in two varieties: manageable and existential. In the first category are economic threats – challenges that could leave our economy weaker, and us poorer. As Prime Minister Mark Carney put it at Davos, the hegemon is weaponizing our formerly mutually beneficial relationship of trade interdependence and economic integration. For Canada, an external existential threat is something new. Canadians have not known such a peril, and have not had to imagine one, since the 19th century. Economic threats are survivable, even if the worst comes to pass. An existential threat, in contrast, is one where if the worst comes to pass, we cease to be. The United States is now an existential threat to Canada. Opinion: Carney's speech makes Canada a threat to Trump Before I get into that, let's review the American economic threats. There are tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum, and U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly asked why the U.S. buys other manufactured goods such as cars from Canada. He's also mused about doing away with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. If we do not bend the knee, and even if we do, trade walls could be erected against many exports to the U.S. This is, I say again, a high-probability threat. Last week, Mr. Trump vaguely threatened a 100 per cent tariff on all Canadian exports. The erection of a wall effectively blocking nearly all exports to the current destination for most of Canadian exports would send our economy into a recession, at least at first. Carney calls for national unity in face of economic challenges ahead It would be a difficult transition today to move to trading far less with the Americans, or even, in the most extreme and improbable scenario, trading with them not at all. It would tend to make our economy less efficient, which would tend to lower Canadian living standards. But a slightly lower average Canadian living standard would not be the end of Canada. Per capita gross domestic product is currently just under $80,000; the country wouldn't cease to exist if the impediment of U.S. trade barriers, the higher costs of more domestic production and the inefficiencies of more trade with partners farther away permanently lowered that figure by a few percentage points. An economic hit, followed by adjustment, is manageable. Which brings me to the other kind of threat. Canada has gone to war many times since Confederation, but at no time was the enemy an existential threat. Modern Canadian foreign policy has been unconsciously shaped by the absence of such an external existential threat. As a result, Canada's military posture, training and procurement have been mostly about fitting into an American-led NATO and NORAD. The change in Washington is forcing a change in Canadian economic and trade policy, which Mr. Carney has repeatedly articulated. As part of that, there will be more defence spending, with more of the spending on weapons systems made in Canada and in concert with non-American partners. The other threats our military and intelligence services are designed to confront – Russia, China, Islamist terrorism, high seas piracy, whatever – are not existential threats. The revolution in Washington isn't just economic. It calls for a reorientation of Canadian foreign and defence policy. Now, we stand more alone than Greenland. Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following. © Copyright 2026 The Globe and Mail Inc. All rights reserved.

Russia and the UAE held Kremlin talks following recent Ukraine-related negotiations in Abu Dhabi; Denmark intends to expand its military presence in the Baltic; and NATO countries plan to launch a defense bank by 2027. These stories topped Friday's newspaper headlines across Russia. Talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and UAE President Mohammed Al Nahyan were held at the Kremlin. Experts told Vedomosti that the Kremlin talks may have focused on coordinating mediation ahead of renewed Russia-Ukraine negotiations in Abu Dhabi, exchanging positions on Iran, Syria, and Gaza to prevent regional escalation, as well as reinforcing the UAE's role as a key economic, energy, and diplomatic partner for Russia. Ahead of the talks, Al Nahyan met with Russian, Ukrainian, and American negotiators. Both countries, he added, work closely together in the fields of energy, logistics, and industrial technologies. Gasanov also suggested the possibility of joint participation in Syria's economic and military reconstruction, potentially with the involvement of financial resources from Abu Dhabi. At the same time, Denmark and 13 other European countries are gradually building a legal framework for actions against tankers in the Baltic Sea. Against this backdrop, discussions are underway about strengthening NATO's military presence in Greenland as well. "Copenhagen's plans to militarize Bornholm are being implemented consistently. A separate regiment is being formed on the island. An anti-ship missile battery will also be deployed there. The use of such missiles would mean a war between NATO and Russia, which would inevitably become nuclear, with corresponding consequences, Yuri Zverev, Director of the Center for Foreign Regional Studies and Country Studies at the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, told Izvestia. "There is a danger of tankers being detained by Denmark and other countries. Retaliatory measures may not be direct, meaning not at sea, but they could be sufficiently painful for the countries engaged in piracy. And I am confident that such measures are already being considered," the expert believes. Such narratives provoke military and political tension in the Arctic," Russian diplomats stressed. NATO countries will establish a special "Defense, Security, and Resilience Bank" (DSRB) by 2027 to prepare for a potential military conflict with Russia, Izvestia has learned. The new financial body is intended to help NATO members meet the required level of military spending of 5% of GDP, allowing them to spend more on weapons than their domestic laws would otherwise permit. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated bluntly that Russia is the alliance's main adversary. Last summer, member states agreed to increase the mandatory minimum level of defense spending from 2% to 5% of GDP by 2035. Toronto is considered the leading candidate due to Canada's strong financial sector and its relative distance from Europe. The prominent role of British nationals in this project is no accident. London has taken a particularly tough stance toward Russia and opposes initiatives by France and Italy to restore dialogue with Moscow. Unlike Donald Trump, who has stated that US priorities lie in the Western Hemisphere, London is interested in bolstering its influence in Eastern Europe, senior research fellow at the Center for British Studies of the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences Oleg Okhoshin told Izvestia. The White House and members of the US Senate are seeking to reach a deal to extend federal funding in order to avoid a partial shutdown, which could take effect on January 31 if the funds are not approved, CNN reported on January 29, citing sources. According to experts interviewed by Vedomosti, a bipartisan deal is still possible, but likely only after a partial shutdown, with the Trump administration expected to offer temporary funding for the Department of Homeland Security in exchange for keeping the rest of the federal government funded through the end of September. Public outrage over ICE's actions is no longer confined to Minnesota. According to the latest YouGov poll published on January 26, 57% of Americans do not support ICE's work, and 46% favor its abolition. More broadly, the agency's activities have long sparked concern among a significant segment of US society. Against this backdrop, Trump himself continues to face declining approval ratings. Republicans hold 53 seats in the Senate, but 60 votes are required to bring the bill to a final vote, where a simple majority of 51 votes or more would be needed for passage. In other words, Republicans must secure support from at least seven Democrats. A deal between the parties is possible, but they will not make it in time to avoid a shutdown, Vadim Kozlov, head of the Domestic Policy Studies Department at the Institute for US and Canadian Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Vedomosti. The most acceptable structure for the White House, in Kozlov's view, would be a deal under which funding for all federal agencies is approved through the end of September, while DHS funding is extended for two months, with the option of further extensions. If the deal is approved, Lukoil's business in Kazakhstan will not be included in it, and the discount could reach up to 40%. For Carlyle, the acquisition would provide an opportunity to benefit from the subsequent resale of Lukoil's most liquid foreign assets, Kommersant writes. Lukoil clarified that the agreement with Carlyle is not exclusive and is subject to a number of conditions, including obtaining clearance from the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Lukoil is also continuing negotiations with other potential buyers. According to Vladislav Bedrosov, lawyer in the special projects practice at Vegas Lex, the ability to negotiate with other bidders allows Lukoil to explore multiple options and avoid unjustified delays, given OFAC's previous positions. The statement that talks are continuing with other buyers also suggests that Lukoil may still be able to enhance the terms of the deal, Kirill Bakhtin, head of the Russian equity analytics center at BCS World of Investments, told Kommersant. Dmitry Kasatkin, a partner at Kasatkin Consulting, noted that the deal would give Carlyle control over a portfolio that includes European refineries, logistics, and retail operations. However, he added, the company itself describes its approach as ensuring operational continuity, preserving jobs, and stabilizing the asset base, which is typical of preparing for a subsequent exit. The most liquid assets, Kasatkin added, are minority stakes in major international projects with strong operators, where there are "natural" buyers in the form of partners, while refineries are the most politicized and could potentially be sold under regulatory pressure, possibly at a discount and through complex transaction structures. Igor Yushkov, expert at the Financial University under the Russian Government, agrees with this scenario, adding that Carlyle's primary objective will be the subsequent resale of Lukoil's foreign business. From a political standpoint, the expert believes it is important for US authorities that an American company profits from the deal, while the question of whether that profit comes from operating the assets or from reselling them is less critical. TASS is not responsible for the material quoted in these press reviews

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Jan. 30 rejected the Kremlin's proposal for holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow but signaled readiness for a meeting in a more appropriate format. I'm openly inviting him, if he dares," Zelensky said during a briefing with journalists, hinting that Putin is trying to avoid face-to-face talks. The comments follow Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov's statement that Moscow is prepared to ensure Zelensky's security and working conditions if he comes to Russia to continue discussions on ending the war. Ukraine previously said it was open to a meeting between Putin and Zelensky to discuss two crucial issues in an ongoing U.S.-led peace process: territorial questions and the future of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. Last year, Putin rejected Zelensky's proposal for talks in Turkey, instead inviting the Ukrainian president to Moscow — an offer Zelensky promptly declined. Any real format for a meeting of leaders is suitable," Zelensky said. The latest round of peace talks among Ukrainian, Russian, and U.S. officials took place in Abu Dhabi on Jan. 23-24, with U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff describing the discussions as "very constructive." Recent days saw renewed tensions in the Middle East as U.S. President Donald Trump is reportedly again weighing strikes against Iran following weeks of violent crackdown against anti-regime protests. According to the Ukrainian leader, there was no direct agreement between Kyiv and Moscow on halting strikes against energy facilities, but he pledged that Ukraine is ready to refrain from attacking if Russia does the same. Throughout this winter, Russia has escalated its attacks against Ukraine's power grid, causing one of the most serious energy crises during the war and triggering a state of emergency. A pause in Russian strikes — provided that Ukraine also refrains from attacking Russian oil refineries and tankers — was said to be discussed during the trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi. Martin Fornusek is a reporter for the Kyiv Independent, specializing in international and regional politics, history, and disinformation. Based in Lviv, Martin often reports on international politics, with a focus on analyzing developments related to Ukraine and Russia. The comment from Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov came a day after Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to his request not to strike Kyiv as well as other Ukrainian cities and towns for a week. The Kyiv Independent's Alisa Yurchenko investigates why China is buying Russian weapons, what Moscow gains from the deal, and what the deepening Russia–China military cooperation could mean for future conflicts. "They do not feel that it gives them anything," Zelensky said. I'm openly inviting him, if he dares," Zelensky said during a briefing with journalists. "We have close to 1 million combatants in Russia. "We have information that most of them will come to Europe after the war." The European Union aims to impose a 20th sanctions package against Russia on Feb. 24, the day marking the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters on Jan. 29. Ukraine has distributed industrial boiler equipment delivered by Italy among communities in 10 regions as part of a broader support program aimed at strengthening the country's heating infrastructure, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba said on Jan. 29. "I personally asked President Putin not to fire on Kyiv and the cities and towns for a week," Trump said. Ukraine says it is working with SpaceX to stop Russian drones from using Starlink, after reports that satellite-connected UAVs are extending their range to strike deeper into Ukrainian territory.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with additional comments from EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. Estonia is pushing for an EU-wide entry ban on former Russian soldiers who participated in the war against Ukraine, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said on Jan. 29. "There cannot be a path from Bucha to Brussels," Tsahkna told reporters in the Belgian capital, adding that he would raise the proposal at a meeting of EU foreign ministers later that day. Estonia, a NATO member sharing a border with Russia, banned access to the Schengen area for the first 261 Russian fighters earlier in January. Tallinn is now calling for a coordinated approach across the bloc. "We have information that most of them will come to Europe after the war. An undisclosed senior Estonian diplomat told Politico that existing methods for identifying and banning individuals are too slow and dependent on individual countries, which is why Estonia advocates for a more robust approach. Another European official told the outlet that while Estonia has the right to impose a blanket entry ban, this would be difficult for many other EU countries, which would have to list each fighter and the necessary evidence individually. When asked by reporters to comment on the proposal, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said that "many member states" have voiced their support for an entry-ban. "It poses a clear security risk to Europe," Kallas said. "This is one of the steps that we need to prepare for." Kallas added that the bloc will further consult with EU members to ensure it has a plan for after a ceasefire is reached. Over 1,000 people have been reportedly killed or injured by returning combatants over the past four years, with cases of robbery and drug trafficking also on the rise. Russia has been extensively recruiting convicts for the war in Ukraine, offering pardons in exchange for service at the front. The comment from Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov came a day after Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to his request not to strike Kyiv as well as other Ukrainian cities and towns for a week. "They do not feel that it gives them anything," Zelensky said. I'm openly inviting him, if he dares," Zelensky said during a briefing with journalists. "We have information that most of them will come to Europe after the war." The European Union aims to impose a 20th sanctions package against Russia on Feb. 24, the day marking the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters on Jan. 29. Ukraine has distributed industrial boiler equipment delivered by Italy among communities in 10 regions as part of a broader support program aimed at strengthening the country's heating infrastructure, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba said on Jan. 29. "I personally asked President Putin not to fire on Kyiv and the cities and towns for a week," Trump said. Ukraine says it is working with SpaceX to stop Russian drones from using Starlink, after reports that satellite-connected UAVs are extending their range to strike deeper into Ukrainian territory.

Since its founding in 1922, Foreign Affairs has been the leading forum for serious discussion of American foreign policy and global affairs. The magazine has featured contributions from many leading international affairs experts. DAN BLUMENTHAL is a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and Director of AEI's Asian Studies program. He served as U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs during the first Trump administration. In November, soon after taking office, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told parliament that a Chinese assault on Taiwan could constitute an existential threat to Japan and could warrant a military response. In response, Beijing stepped up military exercises near Japan, halted the imports of Japanese seafood, banned exports of dual-use goods—products that can be used for civilian and military purposes—to Japan, and advised its citizens not to travel there. Takaichi's comments are all the more worrying for China because Japan is undergoing a profound shift. The United States should capitalize on Japan's newfound muscularity by building its Indo-Pacific strategy around a revitalized U.S.-Japanese alliance. The two countries should harmonize their defenses and, along with its regional partners Australia and India, coordinate industrial policy in sensitive sectors. If the United States fails to take advantage of this moment or sees Japan's strength as a reason to pull away from the region, Washington will be in a much worse position to deter China from taking Taiwan or otherwise wreaking havoc in the Indo-Pacific. In response to an increasingly assertive China, which launched frequent incursions in and around Japan's Senkaku Islands (known in China as the Diaoyu Islands), Abe loosened constitutional constraints on Japan's armed forces and began building up Japan's military might. Abe did more than any other leader to encourage the United States and other like-minded countries to take a more assertive stance against an aggrandizing China. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 accelerated Japan's transformation into a modern military power. Then Prime Minister Fumio Kishida warned that “Ukraine today may be East Asia tomorrow,” summing up the fear that China might take a page from Russia's playbook and invade its neighbors. That year, Japan committed to doubling its defense spending to two percent of GDP by 2027 and explicitly and unequivocally identified China as its greatest threat. Tokyo also started acquiring counterstrike capabilities to target an adversary's missile launch sites, which, just a few years before, was considered unthinkable for fear of upsetting China and violating a self-imposed restriction on weapons that can be used offensively. (One of them, Yonaguni Island, is just 68 miles away.) Tokyo, for instance, has provided the Philippines with an air surveillance radar system and 12 of its 18 coast guard vessels. In 2023, it signed an agreement with Italy and the United Kingdom to jointly produce a fighter jet. And in 2025, Australia announced it would buy 11 Mogami-class stealth frigates from Japan for $6.5 billion—Japan's biggest defense export deal yet. Equally significant has been Tokyo's investment in collective defense arrangements. Japan is now more capable today than it has been at any point since the end of World War II. Yet it faces a paradox: the success of its fortification risks encouraging U.S. retrenchment. American policymakers and strategists who advocate foreign policy restraint may argue that with a more capable Japan, the United States can do less in the Indo-Pacific. Japan's new military posture offers the United States a rare gift: a fully committed ally willing to act as the forward anchor of regional collective defense. Washington should meet this moment by strengthening its defense cooperation with Japan. Deterring China will demand an alliance architecture built around combined planning, interoperable forces, and integrated economic security policy. Geography works against U.S. power projection: if the United States were to go to war with China over Taiwan, the logistical strain on U.S. forces would be immense. The United States and Japan have been collaborating more on defense over the past several years but they need to go further. Forces Japan, which oversees American troops in the country, from an administrative body to a joint force headquarters. But the two allies still don't have a body with the operational authority and structure to coordinate U.S. and Japanese forces in a crisis. Over time, the United States and Japan should work toward a truly combined command like U.S. Otherwise, if U.S. and Japanese troops come up against a common enemy, they will be fighting in parallel, leading to inefficiencies and, potentially, accidents. The United States and Japan must also integrate their missile defense systems, including fusing sensors between Aegis ships, ground-based interceptors, and space-based early warning systems to create a seamless defensive umbrella across the so-called first island chain, which stretches from Japan to the Philippines and separates China from the Pacific Ocean. Today, the United States stations precision-guided munitions, air defense interceptors, and antiship missiles in Japan. Tokyo learned the risks of relying too heavily on China earlier than most. In 2010, after Japan detained a Chinese fishing captain who rammed a Japanese coast guard vessel near the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands, Beijing retaliated by cutting off its exports of rare earths. Japanese industry was jolted, and the episode became a case study in China's willingness to weaponize interdependence. Almost a decade later, Tokyo established the Council for the Promotion of Economic Security, a government body that coordinates defensive economic policy, and passed the Economic Security Promotion Act to ensure stable supplies of critical goods, protect essential infrastructure, develop vital technologies, and safeguard sensitive intellectual property. In particular, Japan has upgraded its domestic chip industry. Founded by eight major Japanese companies, including Toyota and Sony, Rapidus aims to mass produce two-nanometer chips by 2027, bringing Japan back to the cutting edge of semiconductor manufacturing after falling two decades behind. It has joined the United States and Europe in restricting exports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China. Tokyo has also curbed Chinese investment in sensitive Japanese technologies. And crucially, Japan imposed sanctions on Russia outside a UN mandate—a notable departure from its historically cautious approach. Still, there is even more that Japan can do to improve its economic security, such as protecting its pharmaceutical supply chains. China dominates the global production of essential medicines, including breakthrough drugs, and controls many of the world's key pharmaceutical ingredients, giving it massive leverage over the public health of Japan and its allies. Tokyo and Washington should coordinate on pharmaceutical security by mapping supply chain dependencies, investing in alternative manufacturing capacity, and cracking down against unauthorized distribution networks that provide Beijing with backdoors to manipulate supply volumes and degrade drug quality. Instead, Australia, India, and the United States can work with Japan to build on Tokyo's manufacturing leadership. Japan has a history of transferring its manufacturing excellence to other countries. In the 1980s, when Japanese automakers established so-called transplant factories in the United States, they did more than just build cars—they transformed American manufacturing culture. Toyota sent hundreds of U.S. workers to Japan for intense training, then embedded Japanese managers as on-site mentors who worked side by side with their American counterparts. Today, the Quad should apply this model to the production of advanced batteries, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, aerospace and hypersonic materials, and precision robots. Japan, for instance, produces 45 percent of the world's industrial robots. Its expertise could dramatically improve manufacturing productivity across Quad countries. Once these countries have built up their capacity, they should, through a series of bilateral trade agreements or “minilateral” partnerships, finally cut China out of critical supply chains in pharmaceuticals, critical minerals, drones, and legacy chips. The end result would be a trading system protected from China's economic coercion. For at least two decades, Beijing has systematically squeezed Australian, Indian, Japanese, and U.S. companies out of its market when they are no longer needed for its industrial plans. Beijing's campaign to manufacture political controversy over Takaichi's Taiwan comments reflects a broader objective: to intimidate Japanese policymakers, divide Japan's governing coalition, and deter other supporters of Taiwan from speaking out. A Japan that is economically resilient, diplomatically active, and militarily capable undermines Beijing's plan to isolate Taiwan, coerce its neighbors, and raise the costs of U.S. engagement. The United States should stand with its ally by endorsing Takaichi's comments about the existential nature of a Taiwan crisis for Japan and other allies. Washington has an interest in fostering a broad coalition that speaks out against Chinese aggression toward Taiwan because China is more likely to be deterred from attacking the island if it believes many countries will rise in opposition. Silence, by contrast, signals to Beijing that it can peel off U.S. allies one by one through economic pressure—and that Washington will not defend those who call out China's behavior. The United States and Japan stand at a pivotal juncture. As Tokyo continues to take bold steps to prepare for an era of prolonged confrontation with China, Washington's commitment is wavering. Now it is time for Washington to step up. If it doesn't, it will prove Beijing right—that the United States' alliances are temporary, its promises are hollow, and its power is in decline. An Unlikely Partnership Could Allow Tokyo and Seoul to Counter China Selective Proliferation Will Strengthen the Global Order, Not End It America Needs a New Asian Alliance to Counter China Why Tokyo Must Strengthen Its Ties to Democratic Allies How to Turn Trump's Tantrum Into a Win for Everyone It Has Worked for America Before, but Trump's Approach Is All Wrong Our editors' top picks, delivered free to your inbox every Friday. * Note that when you provide your email address, the Foreign Affairs Privacy Policy and Terms of Use will apply to your newsletter subscription. Our editors' top picks from the week, delivered on Friday. * Note that when you provide your email address, the Foreign Affairs Privacy Policy and Terms of Use will apply, and you will receive occasional marketing emails.