Maritime strategy

Amirhossein KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP via Getty Images

3 Iranian tankers with 4.8M barrels of oil pass US blockade: What to know

At least three US-sanctioned Iranian-flagged tankers have exited the Gulf of Oman as the Trump administration eyes Tehran's moves ahead of sanctions waivers expected to begin Friday.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (2nd L) and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron (C) review the honor guard at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia on April 23, 2026, ahead of a meeting on the sidelines of a European summit.

Explainer

Turkey slams France-Cyprus military pact as East Med rivalries deepen

Ankara says a defense deal between France and the Republic of Cyprus risks upsetting the island’s delicate balance, as defense ties among Cyprus, Greece, Israel and France deepen.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan buttons up his jacket during a press conference after the conclusion of the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg on November 23, 2025.

Explainer

Turkey-Israel tensions flare over Syria, Lebanon, East Med: What to know

The Turkish president has accused Israel of threatening Turkey through its military actions in Syria, Lebanon and the Eastern Mediterranean, triggering a sharp exchange with the Israeli prime minister.

In this picture obtained from Iran's ISNA news agency, a katyusha rocket is fired from a speed boat during a military drill near the port of Bandar Jask in the Sear of Oman on May 10, 2010.

Iran unveils new missile-armed fast attack boat: What to know

The boats are the latest addition to Iran’s "mosquito fleet," a fleet of high-speed attack craft operated by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Latest News

Explainer

Turkey warns Greece, Cyprus not to engage in arms race: What to know

ETIENNE TORBEY/AFP via Getty Images

Egypt, Turkey push energy ties in Azerbaijan talks amid Hormuz crisis

A photo of Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, speaking at the high-level ministerial session of Baku Energy Week in the Azerbaijani capital.

UAE eyes first multifuel pipeline as Hormuz crisis drags on

Tankers are seen at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in the Sharjah Emirate, along the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which one-fifth of global oil output passes on June 23, 2025.

United Arab Emirates

Turkey maritime law prompts Greek rethink on Aegean marine parks

This photograph shows Kimom, the first of four modern French Defense and Intervention Frigate, part of Greece's major military modernization program, sailing upon its arrival in the Saronic Gulf, near Athens on Jan. 15, 2026.

A picture taken on February 21, 2022 shows fishing boats off a beach on Yemen's Red Sea coast in the Khokha district of the war-ravaged country's western province of Hodeida. (Photo by Khaled Ziad / AFP) (Photo by KHALED ZIAD/AFP via Getty Images)

Yacht carrying Russians, Egyptians goes missing off Yemen coast

The yacht’s owner says the crew sent a distress call about a pirate attack.

DONT USE - Gulf Pulse

A woman enjoys the sea as a Greek army rib returns from patrol on the tiny Greek island of Kastellorizo.

Turkey, Greece row reignited over 'Turkaegean' trademark dispute

Turkey’s tourism campaign with the slogan “Turkaegean” reignites tensions in Athens, which considers it both cultural usurpation and a threat to Greek sovereignty in the Aegean.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and his wife Emine Erdogan (L) sit in their Togg T10X, Turkey's first domestically-produced electric car, after receiving it from the company at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on April 3, 2023. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Egypt’s FM to visit Turkey ahead of restoration of ties: Cavusoglu

The Turkish government unleashed a fresh regional charm offensive ahead of the critical May 14 vote, as the top Turkish diplomat announced planned and potential meetings with his Egyptian and Syrian counterparts.

The USS Florida sails during "Giant Shadow," a Naval Sea Systems Command/Naval Submarine Forces exercise to test the capabilities of the Navy's future guided missile submarines January 22, 2003 off the coast of the Bahamas.

US Navy sends guided-missile submarine to Middle East amid Iran tensions

US show of force comes as Pentagon extends aircraft carrier deployment following last month's lethal attack by Iran-backed militias on US personnel in Syria.

A supporter of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi stands in the back of a pickup truck bearing his portrait and loudspeakers, in the capital Cairo's Tahrir square on January 25, 2018, as the country marks the seventh anniversary of the 2011 uprising that ended the 30-year reign of former President Hosni Mubarak. / AFP PHOTO / MOHAMED EL-SHAHED (Photo credit should read MOHAMED EL-SHAHED/AFP via Getty Images)

Egypt's Sisi unlikely to reconcile with Erdogan before Turkey's election

The Turkish military presence in Libya remains the key snag in Ankara’s efforts to mend fences with Egypt.

MICHAEL VARAKLAS/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey, Greece take strides in Ankara meeting as aid diplomacy continues

A meeting of senior Turkish and Greek diplomats in Ankara is the latest diplomatic contact spurred by post-disaster diplomacy, and the fourth meeting of the “Positive Agenda” initiative.

Egypt port

Egypt signs $1.6 billion deals with China, EU companies to develop sea ports

The Egyptian government wants its Red Sea and Mediterranean ports to help boost the economy amid rising inflation and declining foreign currency reserves.

An F-16 pilot from an airbase in Saudi Arabia gets ready to disembark from his aircraft after he was diverted to Kuwait because of bad weather after his mission into Iraq March 26, 2003 as Operation Iraqi Freedom continues after a pause in the air campaign due to bad weather. (Photo by Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)

Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt rank among world’s top 10 arms importers: SIPRI

Middle East countries made up more than a fourth of the top 40 global arms importers from 2018 to 2022, according to a new report.

MAZEN MAHDI/AFP via Getty Images

Western allies join US' experimental drone task force in Middle East

Task Force 59 is now fully operationally capable, Fifth Fleet commander Vice Adm. Brad Cooper told an audience of Navy personnel in Washington on Tuesday.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin greets Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi (R) as he arrives for meetings at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, December 14, 2022. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Egypt’s Sisi gets warm welcome at Pentagon as Cairo assumes naval role

Egypt took charge of Combined Task Force 153 on Monday as the Pentagon seeks to economize its footprint in the Middle East.

A handout picture provided by the Iranian Army official website on Sept. 12, 2020, shows Iranian naval ships parading during the last day of a military exercise in the Gulf, near the strategic strait of Hormuz in southern Iran.

Breaking | Last Updated: March 9, 2023, 12:26 pm

Iran’s IRGC navy harassed US ships in Strait of Hormuz, US says

An IRGC patrol boat harassed two US Navy ships just days after one of them was involved in the seizure of 50 tons of smuggled ammunition bound for Yemen.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan shakes hands with Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in Qatar on Nov. 20, 2022.

Erdogan-Sisi handshake sparks backlash from Turkey's Islamists

President Erdogan’s about-face on Egypt sparked backlash from some Turkish Islamists ahead of critical June elections.