Latest news for 30 January 2026

CANADA

Bad neighbours?

President Trump has threatened 50% tariffs on all Canadian aircraft (like Bombardier) after accusing the Canadians of refusing to certify America’s own Gulfstreams. Meanwhile, the FT reports the Trump administration has been meeting with fringe separatists in Canada’s oil-rich province of Alberta (though FT notes the US is unlikely to provide any material support). (FT)

Comment: If any other country pulled that stunt with (say) the fringe independence movement in California, ambassadors would be booted out. Meanwhile, this news has set Indian social media on fire with claims of karma, given Delhi’s long-running gripes that Canada has been too sympathetic to Khalistani separatists in India.

UKRAINE

Tech vulnerabilities.

Ukraine's new defence minister (at the Doogie Howser age of 35) is reaching out to Musk’s SpaceX amid reports (backed by a top DC thinktank) that Russian forces are using Starlink to guide drone attacks on Ukrainian cities. Meanwhile, Trump is saying Putin has respected his request “not to fire on Kyiv” and other towns for a week due to extreme cold. (Euronews)

Comment: In adjacent news, Musk’s SpaceX is reportedly considering a merger with Tesla or xAI as the tech mogul aims to consolidate his empire. The latest rumours suggest he’s eyeing a mid-June IPO for SpaceX to raise $50B at a $1.5T valuation.

NIGER

You did this.

Niger’s military ruler (Tiani) has accused France, Benin, and the Ivory Coast of sponsoring an attack on a military base near the capital Niamey. The junta leader, who’s similarly blamed Paris before, also thanked his “Russian partners” for helping repel the attack. (Al Jazeera)

AFGHANISTAN

Hope?

Taliban-run Afghanistan is launching a $100M UN-backed food aid program amid mass deportations from neighbouring states, and a drop in foreign aid (partly due to Taliban extremism). The UN says hunger could hit 17 million locals this year. (NBC)

PANAMA

You’re out.

In a bombshell ruling, Panama’s top court has annulled a concession allowing China-linked Hutchison to operate two out of five Panama Canal ports. (AFP)

Comment: It’s a win for US efforts to wrest back control of the Canal via a US-led consortium, and a loss for China which has just spent months opposing such a move, only for a local court to rule the underlying contracts weren’t constitutional anyway.

INDONESIA

Family affair.

Indonesia is rushing to calm markets after a two-day, $80B stock market rout sent shares plunging 8% and the rupiah to record lows. The trigger? Index provider MSCI flagged transparency concerns, and earlier this month President Prabowo appointed his nephew as central bank deputy governor, months after abruptly firing Indonesia’s previous market darling of a finance minister. (SCMP)

Comment: We wrote about Gen Zers rising up against government corruption in Southeast Asia here — local gripes included nepo-babies, so Prabowo’s central bank appointment seems not just economically risky, but politically, too.

COSTA RICA

More of the same, please.

With violence hitting record highs under outgoing President Chaves, Costa Ricans are likely to back his chosen conservative successor Laura Fernández on Sunday, persuaded by her tough-on-crime vibes and lack of credible opposition. (AP)

Comment: Don’t make the wrong assumption this election was therefore drama-free — just a couple of weeks ago, there were sensational claims of an assassination plot against Chaves, though plenty of locals are dismissing it as pre-election theatre.

ETHIOPIA

Turbulence.

Ethiopian Airlines has cancelled all flights to the country's northern Tigray region amid reports of fresh clashes there, fuelling fears a fragile 2022 peace deal could be unravelling ahead of June elections. (BBC)

Comment: The brutal civil war displaced two million and left at least 600,000 dead, with Ethiopia enjoying military support from Eritrea, the UAE, Turkey and Iran.