Geopolitics & Policy news — Monday 26 October 2026

Dili will seek to "ensure that ASEAN’s principles work together in support of peace and the well-being of its peoples," says the country's vice minister for ASEAN affairs.

South China Morning Post Tech 22:29 UTC

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted of ⁠his endorsement from Donald Trump on the eve of Israel’s election, suggesting the two leaders could restart their war against Iran if he wins, after Trump said they should “finish the…

Over the past few years, the country’s military has received hundreds of thousands of barrels of aviation fuel from Iran’s large tanker “shadow fleet.”

South China Morning Post Tech 22:00 UTC

US rapper Macklemore on Monday launched his new “Free Palestine Tour” in Dublin after being dropped as a supporting act by British pop star Ed Sheeran over pro-Palestinian comments. Standing in queues outside the venue for the first show…

South China Morning Post Tech 21:34 UTC

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that leftist incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s surprise win in Brazil’s presidential vote “looked like another rigged election”, although the party of defeated right-winger Flavio Bolsonaro…

South China Morning Post Tech 20:39 UTC

The European Union will from Sunday slap a €2 (US$2.25) handling fee on packages from outside the 27-nation bloc in a bid to curb the influx from China. The new levy – coming just weeks before the Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Christmas…

South China Morning Post Tech 19:47 UTC

Senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan held talks with Iran on Monday in an attempt to stop the Middle East war from reigniting, with Tehran saying the discussions were “very good”. Officials from the three Mecca pact…

War on the Rocks 19:45 UTC

Welcome to The Adversarial. Every other week, we’ll provide you with expert analysis on America’s greatest challengers: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and jihadists. Read more below.***IranIndications of a return to direct hostilities…

South China Morning Post Tech 19:16 UTC

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he would not return the UK to EU freedom of movement rules without a referendum, after ruling out the prospect of Britain rejoining the bloc within this parliamentary term. It comes after his…

South China Morning Post Tech 18:56 UTC

In the increasingly bitter legal stand-off between US President Donald Trump and media outlets whose reporting he dislikes, a new and crucial third party has emerged: citizens who watch and read the news and need it to do their jobs. A…

War on the Rocks 18:45 UTC

Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each week, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media…

From AUKUS to trade, the implications of the upcoming U.S. midterm elections for Australia are likely to be profound.

South China Morning Post Tech 18:21 UTC

⁠A woman infected with ⁠the Ebola virus and her husband, a ⁠Swiss diplomat, were flown from Nigeria to hospitals in Switzerland on Monday, Swiss authorities said. The Ugandan-born wife of the diplomat, based in Abuja, was being treated at…

If so, to what end? Panda and Putz discuss on the latest episode of the Asia Geopolitics podcast.

South China Morning Post Tech 17:58 UTC

Former FBI director James Comey has been charged with allegedly disclosing national defence information, the third criminal case brought against the outspoken critic of US President Donald Trump. In a criminal complaint unsealed on Monday…

South China Morning Post Tech 17:25 UTC

Actor Walter Koenig, who played Ensign Pavel Chekov, the youthful Russian navigator on the Star Trek television series and several films, has died. He was 90. Koenig died Monday at his home in the North Hollywood neighbourhood of Los…

South China Morning Post Tech 16:59 UTC

Democrats and outside watchdogs are planning a massive presence at the polls on US election day driven by concerns that US President Donald Trump will further leverage the vast resources of the federal government to interfere with a…

Regardless of the Sino-Vatican agreement, the practical, multifaceted ties between Taiwan and the Holy See have deepened over the past year.

Tashkent summoned the Iranian ambassador to lodge a protest regarding social media posts by Iranian diplomatic missions.

South China Morning Post Tech 13:53 UTC

Anthropic disclosed steep losses and explosive revenue growth on ⁠Monday as the Claude parent moved closer to a potentially record-breaking IPO, betting on AI’s ability to reshape the global economy. The listing is shaping up to be a major…

CSET Georgetown 13:41 UTC

Introduction If you asked Claude Mythos one hundred thousand questions about cybersecurity, would learning the answers make you better at hacking? Would doing so make another AI model better at hacking? Using those questions and answers to…

South China Morning Post Tech 13:33 UTC

French President Emmanuel Macron promised on Monday that his government would announce a package of measures in response to weeks of street protests over a broad set of grievances, while acknowledging the risk of more unrest ahead. His…

South China Morning Post Tech 13:02 UTC

Jordanian security forces arrested two brothers ‌and their brother-in-law after a shoot-out on Monday over a church attack that killed nine people, and the suspects appear to have no ties to other cells, senior government security…

South China Morning Post Tech 12:48 UTC

US singer Chris ⁠Brown was spared an immediate prison sentence in Britain on Monday for attacking a producer with a tequila bottle in a London nightclub in 2023, with his fans cheering as the musician walked free from court. Brown, 37, was…

In the wake of the Pukpuk Treaty, Australia and PNG continued to deepen relations with a new rotation planned, defense infrastructure investment, and expanded ADF recruitment.

South China Morning Post Tech 12:30 UTC

In October, two technology executives offered Europe similar advice. In Turin, Alibaba Group Holding chairman Joe Tsai urged European companies to use open-source models and their proprietary industrial data to build AI capabilities. In…

However justified or inevitable it might be, this represents a major shift in how the U.S. has thought about intellectual property for the last three decades.

Since June, civil society groups and local media warned of PLA encroachments into Arunachal Pradesh. Hitherto, Delhi’s response was to deny and dismiss their claims.

The largest Hindu religious festival went off smoothly – a credit to the new BNP government.

The Wire China 11:30 UTC

October 26th, 2026 | Welcome to The Wire’s daily news roundup. Each day, our staff gathers the top China business, finance, and economics headlines from a selection of the world’s leading news organizations. The post The Daily Roundup…

ChinaTalk 10:03 UTC

Charlotte Bullard is a recent graduate of Johns Hopkins SAIS, where she focused on China and tech policy. She writes the Substack PandaMonium . In this article, Charlotte shows how China’s gaming industry is a microcosm of a recurring…

South China Morning Post Tech 09:07 UTC

Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva staged a surprise comeback to secure a fourth term in office, extending a presidency that has overseen deepening ties with China and sporadic clashes with the United States. With almost all of the…

War on the Rocks 08:00 UTC

As the Pentagon races to buy hundreds of thousands of unmanned systems, acquisition professionals have turned to the special operations community to learn about how to buy commercial technologies fast. Cara Teeter, deputy assistant…

War on the Rocks 07:30 UTC

Early on the morning of July 16, 1808, Captain-General Francisco Javier Castaños of the Army of Andalusia launched a surprise attack against the divided forces of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte’s Army of the Gironde. After three grueling days…

In two outbreaks of war last year, the RTAF underlined its status as one of the region’s most effective and professional air forces.

South China Morning Post Tech 05:49 UTC

The Saudi-led military coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis struck several of the group’s missile launchers and storage facilities, a spokesman said on Monday, while the Iran-backed group claimed a new attack on Riyadh’s international…

The country's legal system may provide one of the few remaining means of bringing Myanmar's generals to justice.

Energy Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said last week that Jakarta would prioritize its own needs, and might cut off supplies to nations that did not respect Indonesia.

South China Morning Post Tech 04:45 UTC

We have put together stories from our coverage last weekend to help you stay informed about news across Asia and beyond. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China carries out in-depth…

Handing over prime land in a land-scarce country, on an island pitched as a lasting solution to an acute housing crisis, warrants deeper scrutiny.

Last week, Pakistan signed the Badr Pact with Türkiye, Qatar, and Indonesia, the latest in a string of defense-related agreements with key partners.

In recent years Indonesian waters have become an important route for the trafficking of Golden Triangle drugs to Asian and global markets.

South China Morning Post Tech 00:30 UTC

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva won re-election on Sunday in a dramatic comeback after trailing in the first round, extending the rule of a government that has overseen record Chinese investment. The Superior Electoral Court…