Latest news for 13 January 2026

IRAN

Trump hits with secondary tariffs.

President Trump has announced a 25% tariff on any countries doing business with Iran, as the regime’s violent crackdown continues. (Financial Post)

Comment: It’s nominally an attempt to squeeze a regime now responsible for deathtolls estimated well into the thousands (though they’re impossible to verify). But it'll hit Iran’s trading partners too — not just the nearby Turks and Emiratis, but Iran's top (oil) customer, China. Beijing likes the discounts, but also the way this Iranian revenue stream helps tie the US down far from Taiwan.

MYANMAR

Top UN court opens genocide case.

The International Court of Justice has opened its first hearing into The Gambia’s claims that Myanmar's 2017 military operation (which drove 750,000 ethnic Rohingya into Bangladesh) breached the Genocide Convention. Myanmar’s military junta denies the charges. (The Diplomat)

JAPAN

Rare mud.

Japan has launched the world’s first mission to extract rare-earth minerals from deep-sea mud, as part of efforts to reduce its reliance on China. (mining.com)

Comment: It comes just a few days after China spectacularly banned the export of dual-use goods (including some minerals) to Japan amid their diplomatic spat.

GERMANY

Souvenir from India.

Germany’s Merz has chosen India as his first Asia trip since taking office, signing a deal with Modi to deepen economic and security ties. (AP)

Comment: The path to Delhi is a well-trodden one for any Western leader rattled by Trump 2.0 and needing to pivot away from China. European leaders are due in Delhi for an India-EU summit later this month, amid hopes Modi might now view the long-mooted EU-India trade deal as an answer to Trump’s tariffs.

NICARAGUA

Freeing prisoners.

Nicaragua’s interior ministry has announced it’ll release dozens of political prisoners following US pressure. (Independent)

Comment: All eyes are on Cuba as Trump’s next target, but Nicaragua’s Ortega family has (again) ruled Nicaragua since 2007, trampling institutions in parallel to (and financed by) Venezuela’s Chavistas. But with cheap Venezuelan oil drying up by 2019, and Maduro now behind US bars, the Ortegas will be feeling the burn.

SOMALIA

Reschedule the visit.

China’s top diplomat Wang Yi has postponed a highly-anticipated visit to Somalia, blaming a “complex security situation”. (SCMP)

Comment: It’s a big blow for Somalia, which was hoping for more international backing since Israel’s recognition of the breakaway region of Somaliland — rumours continue to swirl that others will follow Israel’s lead.

INDIA

Strike two.

India’s workhorse Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle has failed to reach orbit for the second time in a year (but just the third time since 1994). (Bloomberg $)

Comment: India’s space agency hopes these are minor blips on the road to land astronauts on the moon by 2040, though that mission requires some big leaps.