United States

Europe

Russia

Economics

Energy

The United States and the European Union imposed sweeping new sanctions on Russia's energy sector, targeting its two largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, and banning Russian liquefied natural gas imports to Europe by 2027, Reuters reported on Oct. 23. 

U.S., EU, Russia: New Energy Sanctions Tighten Pressure on Moscow but Highlight the Limits of Economic Warfare

Colombia

Dominican Republic

Ecuador

Haiti

Mexico

Venezuela

Military & Security

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that the U.S. military struck two alleged drug vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Oct. 21 and 22, killing several alleged drug smugglers, Reuters reported on Oct. 22.

U.S., Latin America: U.S. Military Strikes Against Drug Traffickers Expand to Pacific Ocean

Israel

Palestinian Territories

Politics

U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States would withdraw "all of its support" from Israel should it carry out annexations in the West Bank, saying he had given his word to Arab countries that he would oppose such action, Time Magazine reported on Oct. 23. 

U.S., Israel: Trump Threatens U.S. Support Over Annexation

The United States announced new sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia's two largest oil companies, and several of their subsidiaries as part of efforts to pressure Moscow to end its war in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 22.

U.S., Russia: U.S. Sanctions Rosneft and Lukoil, Increasing Pressure on Russia's Energy Revenues

North Korea

South Korea

South Korea detected at 8:10 a.m. that North Korea launched multiple short-range ballistic missiles from Junghwa south of Pyongyang, Yonhap News Agency reported on Oct. 22. 

North Korea: Missiles Launched Ahead of APEC, Regional Leadership Talks

Japan

New Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is compiling a list of purchase pledges, including of U.S. pickup trucks, natural gas and soybeans, to deliver to U.S. President Donald Trump when he visits Japan on Oct. 27-28, according to Reuters sources on Oct. 22. 

Japan: Takaichi Aims To Finalize Investment Terms of U.S. Trade Deal

China

Kazakhstan

The U.S. Trump administration is supporting Cove Kaz Capital Group's bid to develop two of Kazakhstan's largest tungsten deposits, facilitating negotiations with the sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna and exploring financing through the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and Export-Import Bank, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 21. 

Kazakhstan, U.S.: Trump Team's Tungsten Push Invites U.S. Investment, Risks Chinese Ire

Qatar

The United States and Qatar urged the European Union to withdraw or substantially amend its planned Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), arguing it would otherwise complicate liquefied natural gas exports from both countries to the bloc, the Financial Times reported on Oct. 22, citing a joint letter.

EU: U.S. and Qatar Urge Brussels To Amend or Scrap CSDDD, Warning of Risks to LNG Imports

Assessments

Syria

Turkey

Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa (right) meets with U.S. envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, at the presidential palace in Damascus on July 9, 2025. 

The U.S. will leverage permanent sanctions relief to pressure Syria to finalize a security pact with Israel, but the Kurds will resist integrating with President Ahmad al-Sharaa's government. 

U.S. Engagement With Syria Will Promote Stability, but Kurdish Integration Will Continue To Lag

Tracking U.S. Naval Power

This map shows the approximate locations of U.S. Carrier Strike Groups and Amphibious Ready Groups.

U.S. Naval Update Map: Oct. 23, 2025

Australia

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (left) and U.S. President Donald Trump speak to reporters during a bilateral meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Oct. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. 

Trump and Albanese agreed to tighten defense and supply chain integration as a way to reduce their countries' reliance on China, but industrial bottlenecks mean implementation will be slow.

U.S.-Australia Leadership Summit Yields Critical Minerals Pact, AUKUS Reaffirmation

Snapshots

Japan's new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Oct. 21, 2025.

Sanae Takaichi's appointment as prime minister will reduce short-term political instability in Japan and strengthen U.S. ties, but her conservative government will struggle to recover domestic support and could alienate neighboring countries.

New Premier Takaichi a Quick Fix for Japan's Long-Term Political Problems

A poster displaying a photo of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is seen as members of the Bolivarian Armed Forces take part in a military exercise in Caracas on Sept. 20, 2025. 

The U.S. will most likely conduct kinetic attacks on cartel sites in Venezuela over the next three to six months. Other scenarios, ranging from a negotiated settlement to a decapitation strike on Maduro, are comparatively less likely.

U.S. Confrontation With Venezuela: Potential Scenarios

Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) attends a lunch meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump (R) at the White House on Oct. 17, 2025, in Washington, D.C. 

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Recent statements by U.S. President Donald Trump suggest a significant U.S. pivot toward a negotiated settlement in Ukraine that prioritizes freezing the conflict and may involve territorial concessions favorable to Moscow.

Trump Signals Shift Toward Russian Position on Ukraine Ahead of Putin Meeting

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Aug. 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. Delegations from the United States and Russia, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov, respectively, will meet this week to resume conversations about their countries' bilateral relationship and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: U.S. and Russian Delegations Meet, a Still-Fragile Hamas-Israel Ceasefire 

U.S. Naval Update Map: Oct. 16, 2025

Cameroon

France

Palestinians on Oct. 10 on Al-Rashid road headed toward Gaza City. U.S. President Donald Trump said he might visit the Middle East just as 20 hostages are meant to be released by Hamas after surviving two years in captivity as the White House pushes for the solidification of a frail ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The Weekly Rundown: Trump Tries To Solidify the Gaza Ceasefire, a Presidential Vote in Cameroon

Columns

President Donald Trump delivers remarks in the Oval Office of the White House on Oct. 6, 2025.

The White House's expanding campaign of retribution against perceived political opponents threatens to weaken the rule of law and create lasting instability for domestic governance, foreign alliances and the investment climate.

The Risks of the Trump Administration's Campaign of Retribution

Egypt

People react at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv on Oct. 9, 2025, following news of a new Gaza ceasefire deal.

Violence in Gaza will almost certainly decrease as both Israel and Hamas are pressured to comply with the first phase of the ceasefire, keeping the truce intact in the coming days and possibly weeks.

After Two Years of War, a Permanent Gaza Ceasefire?

U.S. Naval Update Map: Oct. 9, 2025

The United States encompasses territory spanning from the Arctic Circle and Central Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico and the North Atlantic.    The Greater Mississippi Basin is the United States' core and serves as the underpinning of its role as a global superpower.    The basin hosts an extensive network of navigable rivers that overlay the world's largest contiguous piece of arable land. This naturally interconnected river system facilitated integration among settlers and allowed for cheap transport of goods, providing the United States with the ability to feed itself efficiently and rapidly build up industry and capital to expand west. The Midwestern core gave early America strategic depth, while an expanding U.S. coastline, naturally indented with deep harbors, provided its opening to the world.    After reaching the Pacific coast in the mid-19th century, the United States found itself insulated by two oceans. On the continent itself, geography again has worked in the country's favor: lakes to the north and deserts to the south insulate the United States' population centers, with both Canada and Mexico facing too many natural constraints of their own to seriously rival it.    This unparalleled level of wealth and protection gives the United States options that few to no countries can claim. For one, the United States has used its wealth and security to build up the world's largest navy. Control of the world's major sea-lanes gives the United States the power to facilitate or deny trade to allies or rivals of the day. The onus therefore is on the United States to carefully manage its engagements abroad and build up strategic allies to protect its overseas interests and preserve its strength at home. 

SITUATION REPORTS

U.S., EU, Russia: New Energy Sanctions Tighten Pressure on Moscow but Highlight the Limits of Economic Warfare

U.S., Latin America: U.S. Military Strikes Against Drug Traffickers Expand to Pacific Ocean

U.S., Israel: Trump Threatens U.S. Support Over Annexation

U.S., Russia: U.S. Sanctions Rosneft and Lukoil, Increasing Pressure on Russia's Energy Revenues

North Korea: Missiles Launched Ahead of APEC, Regional Leadership Talks

Japan: Takaichi Aims To Finalize Investment Terms of U.S. Trade Deal

Kazakhstan, U.S.: Trump Team's Tungsten Push Invites U.S. Investment, Risks Chinese Ire

EU: U.S. and Qatar Urge Brussels To Amend or Scrap CSDDD, Warning of Risks to LNG Imports

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