Diplomacy

US envoy Tom Barrack’s Israel criticism tests his credibility as a mediator - analysis

Barrack’s apparent support for the Turkish-Syrian account over Israel’s may have undermined his credibility in Jerusalem as a mediator in potential Israel-Syria security talks.

S Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack accompanies US President Donald Trump (not seen) during a press conference following the annual NATO Summit at Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey on July 8, 2026; illustrative
ANKARA IS seeking to entrench itself in Syria for strategic and economic reasons, but Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s broader ideological and historical ambitions are putting Turkey on a collision course with Israel, the writer argues. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Erdogan.

Israel’s new Syria dilemma: Netanyahu’s Russia playbook faces 'Turkey test'

View of the unrecognized Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, near Ma'ale Adumim, in the West Bank, on May 19, 2026. (Illustrative

France, Germany, UK, Italy condemn Israel's 'E1' West Bank plan, UK threatens sanctions

South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-Back, speaks during the joint press conference with US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, following the 57th Security Consultative Meeting at the Defense Ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, November 4, 2025.

Trump's Iran war is reshaping US alliances from South Korea to the Middle East - analysis


Trump vows US will retrieve enriched uranium from Iran

"I can think of nothing more important than the fact that we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon," said Trump.

US President Donald Trump looks on during an event in the Oval Office of the White House on May 21, 2026 in Washington, DC.

'I speak to everybody': Trump says he will speak to Taiwan's president in diplomatic shift

During Trump's visit last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping warned Trump directly that Taiwan would be a “very dangerous situation” if not handled correctly.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he departs Joint Base Andrews for the United States Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut, in Maryland, U.S., May 20, 2026.

Israel can win in Lebanon, just not in the way Netanyahu promised - analysis

A path forward in Lebanon exists, but only through realism, as Hezbollah’s grip limits both military gains and diplomatic options

Hezbollah’s entrenched presence – military, political, and social – continues to operate independently of the Lebanese state.
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Iran war pulls some Gulf states toward Israel, while pushing others away

DIPLOMATIC AFFAIRS: The Iran war is pushing the UAE and Israel into unprecedented cooperation, while Saudi Arabia looks elsewhere to counter Tehran without empowering Jerusalem.

US President Donald Trump attends a GCC summit photo session in Riyadh, alongside Qatari, Saudi, and  Bahraini leaders, May 2025.

US charges Raúl Castro with murder as Trump escalates pressure on Cuba

The indictment comes as US President Donald Trump has pushed for regime change in Cuba, where Castro's communists have been in charge since his late brother Fidel Castro led a revolution in 1959.

Cuba's former President Raul Castro claps during a ceremony marking the 69th anniversary of the July 26, 1953 rebel assault which late Cuban leader Fidel Castro led on the Moncada army barracks, in Cienfuegos, Cuba, July 26, 2022.

Trump says Netanyahu 'will do whatever I want him to do,' amid concerns of Iran war restarting

A source with knowledge of the matter later told the 'Post' that there has been progress in talks with the Iranians regarding groundwork for negotiations.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he departs Joint Base Andrews for the United States Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut, in Maryland, U.S., May 20, 2026.

Iran is consolidating control of Hormuz with checkpoints, diplomatic deals, and fees

With Iran now in de facto control of the strait, the system can involve government-to-government arrangements, intense vetting by the Iranian government, and sometimes fees in exchange for passage.

 A drone view shows the Malta-flagged tanker Agios Fanourios I, an oil tanker that sailed through the Strait of Hormuz, arriving in Iraq's territorial waters off Basra, Iraq, April 17, 2026.

Croatian president not approving Israel’s proposed ambassador due to ‘policies of Israeli gov’t’

The official statement came after Israeli media reported that Croatian President Zoran Milanovic has been refusing for seven months to approve the appointment of Israel’s ambassador to the country.

Croatia's President Zoran Milanovic addresses the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at the U.N. headquarters in New York, US, September 24, 2025.

A growing alliance: Panama’s Jewish ambassador wants to bring Israel closer to Latin America

“Jewish members were part of the foundation of Panama,” Panama’s charismatic Ambassador to Israel, Ezra Cohen, tells the Magazine.

PANAMA’S AMBASSADOR Ezra Cohen: Full circle. (Marc Israel Sellem) COHEN’S FATHER in the Israeli army in 1948, right before his capture by Jordanian forces.

Putin’s peace rhetoric clashes with Russia’s battlefield actions in Ukraine - analysis

“That is not negotiation,” Smart said. “It is surrender language packaged as diplomacy.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia May 12, 2026.