Latest news for 11 February 2026

UNITED STATES

Don’t panic.

The dollar index is down ahead of US employment data due out 8.30am ET today (Wednesday), with top White House advisors pre-emptively blaming the expected bad news on AI, deportations, and government cuts. (Yahoo Finance)

Comment: Key stats agencies are still playing shutdown catch-up, but any weak jobs numbers will add to yesterday’s disappointing retail data to sour the mood on Wall St. Talking about suspense… we're wondering what's behind the breaking US decision to halt all El Paso flights for 10 days, citing “special security reasons“. It’s a rare order, and the location opens the possibility of (say) a cross-border cartel operation.

HUNGARY

Playing dirty.

With polls suggesting the centre-right’s EU-friendly Péter Magyar could end Putin-friendly Orbán's 16 years in power this April, the race has taken a spectacular turn: Magyar announced overnight he expects intimate footage of him with his then-girlfriend to emerge today (Wednesday), in an attempt to discredit him. (Péter Magyar’s X)

Comment: The timing would make sense, distracting from the opposition’s policy launch plus the government’s own latest corruption headlines. But lest you think this is just palace intrigue, keep in mind this election will shape whether Orbán can keep blocking EU and NATO responses to Putin’s aggression against Ukraine.

KYRGYZSTAN

I’m letting you go.

President Japarov has sacked his longtime ally (Tashiev) as security chief and deputy PM in a shock move he’s defending as crucial to "prevent division in society." (RFE)

Comment: It looks like an attempt to curb Tashiev’s enormous influence ahead of next year’s elections, with the president presumably fearing him as a potential rival. But why now? Tashiev is in Germany getting medical treatment.

ARMENIA

Sway away from Moscow.

In another sign of its continued push out of Moscow’s traditional orbit, Armenia has signed a civil nuclear deal with the US during the first-ever visit by a US VP, paving the way for US tech and investment. (Al Jazeera)

Comment: The disintegration of Moscow’s regional influence continues apace as Putin burns everything he has against Ukraine. But the news was almost overshadowed by a Vance tweet recognising the Armenian genocide, a guaranteed way to send NATO ally Turkey ballistic, which is why the White House quickly hit delete. This was realistically a staffer stuffup rather than any shift in US position, though it’s somehow now angered both the Turks and the Armenians.

PALAU

Do not come.

The US has designated senior figures from Palau (the island’s senate president) and the Marshall Islands (an influential ex-mayor) over significant alleged corruption linked to China. They and their families are now barred from US entry. (RNZ)

Comment: The US statement almost spells out that this is a response to China’s regional strategy of elite capture: corrupt key players then tilt national decisions in your favour. It’s tough to counter, as the name-and-shame approach can harden entrenched powerbrokers against you instead. In this instance, it’s also worth noting these two Pacific Islands are among the few still recognising Taiwan.

CHILE

LLMs for us.

Chile's national AI body has launched Latam-GPT, the first open-source AI language model trained on broader sources of Latin American data. Built over two years, it’s part of a regional effort to curb AI’s English language bias. (AP)

WESTERN SAHARA

Secret meeting.

The US has hosted not-so-secret talks in Madrid between the independence movement running parts of Western Sahara, the neighbour claiming it all (Morocco), and others (Algeria, Mauritania) hustling to maximise their own influence. The US seems to be pushing some version of Morocco’s UN-backed plan that’d see Western Sahara get autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty. (Middle East Eye)

DR Congo

Hired guns.

It turns out US mercenary tycoon Erik Prince has sent troops and drones to help the Congo secure its strategic city of Uvira against the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group. It’s the first known instance of Prince’s involvement in the conflict. (Reuters)

Comment: What’s Prince getting in return? Last year he agreed to help the Congo tax its mineral wealth, in a very similar deal to one he signed with Haiti in August.