Latest news for 15 October 2026

UKRAINE

Starlink speed bump.

Starlink services are now reportedly operational again after a sudden 160 kmh (100mph) speed cap briefly disrupted Ukraine’s interceptor drone missions, potentially costing civilian lives. Elon Musk says the relevant Starshield variant is ultimately controlled by DC, not SpaceX. (Kyiv Independent) Comment: It seems President Trump has (again) hobbled Ukraine’s ability to defend itself, whether to i) force Ukraine (rather than its attacker) to the negotiating table, ii) punish Zelensky for not doing as he’s told, or iii) play to Trump’s midterms strategy of blaming Ukraine (rather than Russia or Iran) for today’s record fuel prices. Whatever the reason, Kyiv should take it as yet another wake-up call for how heavily dependent its air defence still remains on the shifting whims of the US and its tech titans.

UNITED STATES

Inflation uptick.

The latest CPI print shows US consumer prices accelerating by 3.7% (yoy) in September, with price pressures also broadening. It’s driven in part by spiking gasoline costs amid the Iran war. (Reuters)

Comment: Three weeks out from midterms already revolving around affordability, this also raises the chance of another hike at the Fed’s 27-28 Oct meeting, though the Fed officially targets the *PCE* index, which weights energy and shelter much lighter than the more famous CPI. That might give Warsh cover to hold rates steady until after the election, though keep in mind these CPI numbers have landed right after September’s meh jobs numbers, leaving Warsh with few good options either way.

BURUNDI

Don’t mind if we do.

Burundi has, along with 14 other nations (🇬🇭🇳🇬🇿🇲🇯🇵🇯🇴🇰🇼🇳🇵🇲🇩🇺🇦🇧🇷🇩🇴🇺🇾🇩🇪🇮🇪), won a seat on the UN’s Human Rights Council, unopposed. (AP)

Comment: We highlight Burundi because it’s got the worst human rights record of the bunch, whether scoring 14/100 (“Not Free”) in the Freedom House rankings, or having the cohort’s only active UN Special Rapporteur mandate (enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings). But it won a seat — and will milk that domestically and abroad — because nobody else threw their hat in the ring. Keep that in mind when reflecting on the state of the UN today: to the extent it sucks, it’s often because *we all* suck.

IRAN

Tweet trouble.

A court has handed a death sentence to 23-year-old accounting student Najmeh Amini for “blasphemy” over a social media post. (Guardian)

Comment: Meanwhile, the Saudis just quietly overturned their own death sentence for a Sri Lankan migrant worker over a Facebook post. Beyond the obvious obscenity of hanging someone for a tweet, there’s the bleak regional paradox of regimes now chasing futuristic tech (whether AI or nuclear) while channelling so much old-school paranoia.

COLOMBIA

Move those there.

In a scoop partly denied by the US embassy in Panama, The New York Times says the US is sending 600 troops to Panama, Colombia, and Honduras, purportedly to train and conduct exercises with local forces. (NYT $)

Comment: We say “purportedly” because while it’s all framed as Trump’s muscle-heavy approach to the cartels, it also neatly aligns with Trump’s broader Donroe Doctrine of reviving US preeminence across the continent.

ARGENTINA

Falklands friction.

London has urged Interpol to reject Argentina’s “politically motivated” arrest warrants targeting executives tied to oil projects near the Falklands. (MercoPress)

Comment: London is hoping Interpol recognises these escalations for what Argentines themselves are describing to local pollsters: a bit of Milei theatre to save his approvals and continue his historic economic reforms.

SINGAPORE

Hazy threats.

The city-state is weighing action under its own transboundary haze laws as Indonesian forest fires tank regional air quality. (Free Malaysia Today)

Comment: The 2014 statute theoretically gives Singapore’s courts the power to fine foreign firms (not states) if their smoke hits the island. But actually enforcing this requires corporate asset data and concession maps that Jakarta generally declines to share on sovereignty grounds. Singapore’s mere mention of the law sends the message it’s unhappy.