#international-relations

#international-relations

Starmer's most costly quarter for foreign travel occurred in the last three months of 2025, with eight trips totaling £1.2 million, including a £413,000 visit to Brazil.

Steinmeier described the ongoing conflict as a 'politically fateful mistake' and a 'breach of international law,' emphasizing the need for a reevaluation of current foreign policies.

Microsoft's partnership with G42 aims to develop an artificial intelligence industry in the UAE, providing an alternative to oil income, reflecting a strategic investment shift.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has been viewing all of this as steps or small steps in the right direction, but will they be enough for the government that declared itself aggrieved by the Spanish monarch's latest statements? It won't be enough, says Humberto Beck, a historian at the Colegio de Mexico. The Mexican government will undoubtedly appreciate it, but will receive it as a substitute for an official apology.

The closure of the strait, which handles 20% of global oil and LNG, has already halved UAE production and reduced Iraqi output from 4.3 million to 1.2 million barrels per day.

We allow nobody to interfere in our domestic affairs. This is up to the Iranian people to elect their new leader. They have already elected the Assembly of Experts, and the Assembly of Experts will do the job. It is only the business of the Iranian people and nobody else's business.

If Micheál Martin's Oval Office meeting with Donald Trump last St Patrick's Day was a nervy encounter, then this year the stakes are even higher. Back then the largely cosy meeting was clouded by the ongoing war in Ukraine, a delicate ceasefire in Gaza and looming trade tariffs.

The US sank an Iranian warship off Sri Lanka's coast. Thirty-two of the 180 people on board were rescued, and the torpedo strike in international waters dramatically widened the war's geographical footprint.

Stop invoking 'rules-based international order' as though it still functions as advertised. Call it what it is: a system of intensifying great power rivalry, where the most powerful pursue their interests using economic integration as coercion.

American diplomats are supposed to represent the nation, advocate for the interests and policies of the U.S. government, and stay on generally good terms with the country to which they're assigned. Even when they are sent to places that have an adversarial relationship with the United States, they are expected to maintain decorum while conveying messages these regimes may not want to hear.

Iran's top diplomat said that success on this path requires seriousness and realism on the part of the other side and avoidance of any miscalculation and excessive demands. He did not elaborate on what those demands are.

We wiped it out and they want to start it all over again and are at this moment again pursuing their sinister ambitions. We are in negotiations with them. They want to make a deal, but we haven't heard those secret words, 'We will never have a nuclear weapon,' I will never allow [it].

Today is Tuesday, Feb. 17, the 48th day of 2026. There are 317 days left in the year. Today in history: On Feb. 17, 2013, Danica Patrick won the Daytona 500 pole, becoming the first woman to secure the top spot for any Sprint Cup race. Also on this date: In 1801, the U.S. House of Representatives broke an electoral tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr, electing Jefferson president; Burr became vice president.

Calls are growing for European countries to boycott the 2026 FIFA World Cup later this year in opposition to President Donald Trump, as many of the games are set to take place in the United States. The World Cup will be held in multiple locations across three countries in North America (Mexico, Canada, and the U.S.), with most games happening in the U.S. Many fans are concerned about traveling to the U.S., noting not only the high ticket and travel costs, but also difficulties getting travel visas due to Trump's immigration policies and the invasive surveillance measures his administration is implementing against people entering the country.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting kicked off in the Swiss resort city of Davos on Monday, with global figures from politics, business, academia and civil society attending the five-day event. The annual forum that attempts to shape global agendas comes at a time of massive global upheaval. United States President Donald Trump will attend the annual event along with other global leaders.