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This aerial photo shows a tanker unloading imported crude oil at a terminal port in Qingdao, in China's eastern Shandong province on June 25, 2026. (Photo by CN-STR / AFP via Getty Images) / China OUT

China cuts deal with Houthis, adjusts for long US war with Iran

China is cutting its own deals and gaining wartime leverage as the Trump administration scrambles to contain the war and reopen Hormuz.

Houthi soldiers stand guard on a missile carrier during an official military parade marking the ninth anniversary of the Houthi takeover of the capital, Sanaa, on Sept. 21, 2023.

Exclusive

Saudi Arabia to announce Red Sea coalition to counter Houthi threats

Around 50 countries have been invited to join the Saudi-led initiative aimed at countering Houthi threats to Red Sea shipping and preventing a repeat of recent disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

Amberin Zaman

Jared Szuba

By Amberin Zaman , Jared Szuba

Latest News

Analysis

Katz riles Iran, US as Netanyahu-Trump meeting raises questions

Win McNamee/Getty Images

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

On eighth visit, Israel’s Netanyahu seeks to repair ties with Trump

Trump Netanyahu

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

A view shows a new S-400 "Triumph" surface-to-air missile system after its deployment at a military base outside the town of Gvardeysk near Kaliningrad, Russia March 11, 2019. Picture taken March 11, 2019. REUTERS/Vitaly Nevar - RC179E3FA920

Where will the S-400s be deployed?

Russian-made S-400 batteries are expected to arrive in Turkey before the end of July and be deployed in Ankara.

U.S. President Donald Trump, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are seen at the start of the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium July 11, 2018. REUTERS/Reinhard Krause - RC1C67E741D0

Pleasantries aside, can Trump deliver what Erdogan wants?

Turkey expects President Donald Trump to help it avoid US sanctions over the S-400 affair, but many in Turkey question whether Trump has that power.

Over ten-thousand Iranians joined in carrying 72 coffins, 07 July 1988 in Tehran, during the funeral service for those who died when an Iran Air passenger jet was shot down over the Gulf by Us navy. An Iranian commercial Airbus A300, operated by Iran Air from Bandar Abbas, Iran to Dubai, UAE, was shot down by mistake over the Southern Gulf by the US navy's guided missile cruiser USS Vincennes during confrontation with Iranian speedboats, 03 July 1988. 290 civilian passengers and crew members, including 66 c

Anniversary of Iran Air 655 tragedy offers lessons for US-Iran diplomacy today

Iran Air 655’s bitter legacy; Iraq as front line; Iran should talk … but it needs off-ramps.

Palestinian Authority woos Iraq, says Iran is no enemy

Nabil Shaath, an adviser to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, traveled to Iraq to galvanize Baghdad's support for the Palestinian cause and perhaps make new connections with Iran along the way.

Russian S-400 Triumph/SA-21 Growler medium-range and long-range surface-to-air missile systems drive during the Victory Day parade at Red Square in Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2015. Russia marks the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Europe on Saturday with a military parade, showcasing new military hardware at a time when relations with the West have hit lows not seen since the Cold War. REUTERS/Host Photo Agency/RIA Novosti ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS D

Intel: Why Washington still hasn’t sanctioned Turkey over Russian missile purchase

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed that Turkey will receive the first shipment of the S-400 missile defense system from Russia next week.

Despite Trump's gushing at G-20, Ankara, Washington still on collision course

US President Donald Trump’s fawning over his Turkish counterpart at the Osaka summit carried little real meaning, and a Turkey-US collision is still very possible.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani attends the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Dushanbe, Tajikistan June 15, 2019. REUTERS/Mukhtar Kholdorbekov - RC16F9F1C360

Iran's president warns of increased enrichment but says measures reversible

Amid near-zero progress between Tehran and the European signatories to the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, President Hassan Rouhani is sounding the alarm that reinstatement of uranium enrichment at pre-deal levels is only a few days away.

Is Iran bargaining chip for Russia in relations with the US?

Russia has a lot less incentives to bargain over Iran than the United States believes.

US envoy to Israel demolishes American Bahrain conference achievements

The participation of American Ambassador David Friedman in the tunnel-opening ceremony in Jerusalem undermines all his country's efforts at the Bahrain economic workshop.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L-R) pose for a family picture after the last plenary session at the United Nations building in Vienna, Austria July 14, 2015. Iran and six major world powers

World powers implore Iran to stick with nuclear deal

European nations expressed regret that Iran had exceeded a 300-kilogram cap on its stockpile of low enriched uranium, but diplomats said they were seeking ways to keep Iran in the nuclear deal.

Mossad director Joseph (Yossi) Cohen gestures as he addresses a budgeting conference hosted by Israel's Finance Ministry in Jerusalem October 22, 2018. REUTERS/ Ronen Zvulun - RC12EA778850

Israel’s Mossad chief spearheads campaign against Iran in Syria

Mossad head Yossi Cohen delivered an aggressive speech against Iranian entrenchment in Syria, reflecting the forceful policy adopted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during family photo session with other leaders and attendees at the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 28, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RC187E92FB00

Trump critics rethink US policy toward Saudi Arabia

A change in direction of US policy toward the Saudis should be part of a broader change in policy to the region, especially regarding Iran.