Latest news for 28 May 2025

UNITED STATES

Trump halts student visa applications.

President Trump has told US embassies abroad to pause visa interviews for foreign students as the US prepares to expand the vetting of international students, including their social media presence. (Politico)

Comment: While this move will have its supporters, the broader signal of an across-the-board pause risks eroding America’s superpower (attracting the best and brightest), just as Trump 2.0 doubles down on efforts to sustain America’s tech edge.

CHINA

Sorry, that’s not for sale.

After an Australian outlet reported that a US private equity firm (Cerberus) wants to buy the 99-year lease for the Port of Darwin from China’s state-owned Landbridge Group, China’s foreign ministry has now reiterated the port isn’t for sale. (ABC)

Comment: Two big trends on display here: one is the continued race to secure chokepoints like strategic port assets, as world powers lose trust in one another. The other is the role private firms (with quiet government links) now play to make it happen, whether in Panama, Darwin, or beyond.

INDIA

Delhi cracks down on foreign CCTV.

Surveillance tech-makers are reportedly clashing with India’s new rules that require firms to submit their software, hardware, and source code for evaluation. (Reuters)

Comment: Delhi is worried about foreign intelligence agencies using compromised CCTV units to conduct espionage and transfer sensitive data offshore. But not just any agencies. Around 80% of the world’s CCTV cameras are made in China.

BRAZIL

Amazon tribe sues NYT over internet exposure story.

The Marubo tribe has sued the New York Times for defamation, claiming the outlet’s 2024 story on Starlink’s arrival portrayed locals as “unable to handle basic exposure to the internet”. The tribe is seeking $180M in damages. (Independent)

TIMOR-LESTE

ASEAN to get newest member in October?

Malaysia’s prime minister (and chair of the ASEAN regional bloc) has announced tiny Timor Leste will become ASEAN’s 11th member at October’s annual summit. (Strait Times)

Comment: After years of paralysis by consensus, whether on Myanmar’s civil war or China’s vast maritime claims, the significance of this ASEAN expansion is probably just the way it shows the bloc can indeed still agree on stuff, even if it takes 14 years.

SPAIN

Madrid fails to get minority languages on EU list.

Spain’s shockingly handsome if polarising Pedro Sánchez now holds power thanks to various minor separatist parties, but the deal was always that he’d in turn get Catalan, Basque, and Galician languages added to the EU’s official language list. (European Council)

Comment: No surprises here. Getting a language listed requires the unanimous support of all 27 EU members. But just think how many of them have their own minority language dynamics that’d be unleashed if Spain’s got pushed through. Less clear is whether those separatist parties will now punish Sanchez by, say, blocking his efforts to raise defence spending to meet NATO targets.

ZIMBABWE

A charge to listen to radio?

Zimbabwe’s president has signed a controversial law that requires all motorists to buy a license to listen to their car radios, before they can get vehicle insurance. It’s the latest effort to balance the state-run broadcaster’s books. (BBC)