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May 12, 2026

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US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands as they arrive for talks at the Gimhae Air Base in Busan, South Korea, on Oct. 30, 2025.

Analysis

Ahead of Trump-Xi summit, Iran looks to China as guarantor — but with reservations

Tehran is closely watching the Trump-Xi meeting to determine whether China will continue acting primarily as a protector or if it will gradually emerge as the power capable of pressuring Iran into a narrower strategic corner.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Artillery units are positioned near the Lebanese border in northern Israel, May 4, 2026.

Analysis

Israel’s drone dilemma: Hezbollah’s low-cost threat reshapes Lebanon front

While Israeli and Lebanese delegations are set to meet in Washington for the third time, the Israeli military faces a growing threat from Hezbollah’s cheap yet highly lethal drones.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos Hessebon meets with Marco Rubio in Washington on May 11, 2026.

Rubio hosts Ethiopia’s FM amid push to boost security ties: What to know

In response to heightening regional volatility, Ethiopia is prioritizing a strategic partnership with the Washington to secure its geopolitical standing.

Latest News

Trump calls Iran response 'piece of garbage,' set to meet military advisers

PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - MAY 2: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to journalists before boarding Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport on May 2, 2026 in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump is spending the weekend at his Mar-A-Lago resort. (Photo by Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images)

Netanyahu fears being left out as Trump pursues Iran diplomacy

Ronen Zvulun / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

Traffic passes a billboard depicting Iranian ballistic missiles in service, with text in Arabic reading "the honest [person's] promise" and in Persian "Israel is weaker than a spider's web," Valiasr Square, Tehran, April 15, 2024. ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

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

Joyce Karam

Editor-in-Chief

Rosaleen Carroll

News Reporter and Supporting Editor

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Paul J. Saunders

In Washington, DC, reporting on Russia in the Middle East

American pastor more excuse than reason for US-Turkey staredown

While the US administration continues to demand Ankara free pastor Andrew Brunson, skeptical analysts are debating whether the motivations for this are votes in the upcoming midterm elections or a reset with a Turkey whose interests no longer align with the United States'.

A protester holds a Palestinian flag as he poses for a photograph at the scene of clashes with Israeli troops near the border with Israel, east of Gaza City, January 19, 2018. "The battle between us and the Israeli occupation has been ongoing for decades. We will continue to protest and resist as long as there is one Israeli occupier on our land. Trump and anyone else in this world will not be able to control our anger," he said. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem SEARCH "PROTESTER PALESTINIAN" FOR THIS STORY. S

Is Trump's peace plan stillborn?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the leaders of Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are united in an unlikely coalition already opposed to the soon-to-be unveiled US peace plan for Israeli-Palestinian peace.

US sanctions cause big losses for Iraqi investors in Iran

As the United States reactivates sanctions against Tehran, Iraqi investors in Iran are taking major economic hits and some businesses are being forced to close.

What Israel wants from Qatar

By signing an arrangement with Hamas, and meeting Qataris, Israel opens the door for Qatari and Iranian influence in the Gaza Strip, and even in the West Bank.

A demonstrator waves a flag of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) during a gathering to celebrate the spring festival of Newroz in the Kurdish-dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey March 21, 2016. Turkey's Kurds on Monday marked the annual spring festival of Newroz with a call for the resumption of peace talks between the government and Kurdish militants, but four Turkish soldiers were killed in another rebel attack in the restive southeast region. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar - GF10000354403

PKK feels heat from Turkey as commanders fall

Baris Oner — code-named Tarik the Turk — is the third high-profile member of the Kurdistan Workers Party to be targeted this month.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu attend a news conference in Ankara, Turkey, August 14, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC14B67E5FF0

Russia, Turkey seek greater engagement amid US sanctions

Russia plans to lift visa requirements for some Turks and to begin delivery of the S-400 missile-defense system to Turkey next year in an attempt to further sway Ankara away from the United States.

Irani workers weld the pipeline during a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the inauguration of the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline, in the city of Chahbahar in southeastern Iran March 11, 2013. Ahmadinejad and Zardari marked the start of Pakistani construction on the much-delayed gas pipeline on Monday, Iranian media reported, despite U.S. pressure on Islamabad to back out of the project. REUTERS/Mian Khursheed (IRAN - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY BUSINESS) - GM1E93C06X401

How 'America First' could jump start Iran-Pakistan pipeline project

While there are important obstacles in the way of the realization of the Iran-Pakistan pipeline, the Trump administration’s policies amid the rise of Imran Khan could tip the scales in the project's favor.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia's President Vladimir Putin shake hands as they meet in Helsinki, Finland July 16, 2018. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC19BE6D3090

Congress ratchets up pressure on Trump, Russia over Syria

President Donald Trump wants to work with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to remove Iran from Syria, but Congress remains skeptical.

U.S. ambassador to Iraq James Jeffrey (L) speaks during a ceremony for the U.S. military to retire its ceremonial flags, signifying the end of military presence in Iraq, at the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center in Baghdad December 15, 2011. The U.S military officially ended its war in Iraq on Thursday, rolling up its flag at a low-key ceremony with Panetta nearly nine years after the invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein. This ceremony is called the "casing of the colors" and signifies the departing and inact

Pompeo names high-level Syria team as Trump looks for the exit

The Donald Trump administration has named former US Ambassador to Iraq and Turkey James Jeffrey to coordinate all aspects of US Syria policy.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel greets Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the beginning of the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, July 7, 2017. REUTERS/Bernd Von Jutrczenka/POOL - RC16778A3FD0

Is Washington pushing Turkey and Europe toward each other?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wants new allies amid his spat with US President Donald Trump, but the West remains his best bet.

U.S. President Donald Trump answers a reporter's question as eight different phones and recording devices placed on his desk by reporters and White House staff members record his words during an interview with Reuters in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S. August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1CEA11EEE0

Trump declares 'no concessions' for Turkey

The US president said in an interview he is "saddened" by Ankara’s refusal to free an American pastor in a dispute that has exacerbated Turkey’s economic woes and threatened a decades-long alliance.

Impacts of bullets are seen in a window of the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Tumay Berkin - RC1EF49A3800

Drive-by shooting targets US Embassy in Turkey

This morning's shooting attack on the US Embassy in Ankara is the most serious manifestation of the wave of anti-American hysteria gripping Turkey since sanctions were announced.