| | | | WHAT WE'RE WATCHING | | 1. 🇺🇸 Trump to double steel tariffs to 50 percent. President Trump announced a significant increase in steel tariffs from 25 percent to 50 percent, aimed at strengthening the US steel industry. The decision follows his push for a partnership between US Steel and Japan's Nippon Steel, which he claims will secure American steel jobs. While the tariff increase is expected to shield US steel from foreign competition, it could drive up the cost of construction materials, affecting industries reliant on steel. | 2. 🇹🇼 Trump plans to double weapons sales to Taiwan. President Trump is aiming to ramp up arms sales to Taiwan, surpassing the levels seen in his first term, in a bid to deter Chinese aggression. The US is pushing Taiwan's opposition parties to back increased defense spending, with new weapons packages focused on missiles, drones, and munitions. While this move strengthens Taiwan's defenses, it's also likely to escalate tensions with China, which has been eyeing a takeover of the island. | 3. 🇮🇱 Israel agreed to America's latest ceasefire proposal. While details on the proposal are scarce, it reportedly includes a 60-day ceasefire, more aid being allowed into Gaza, and the release of some hostages in exchange for some Palestinian prisoners. Hamas had apparently not yet endorsed the deal, frustrating White House envoy Steve Witkoff. The terrorist group seemingly wants a more ironclad guarantee from Israel of its intention to end the conflict. | 4. 🇫🇷 Emmanuel Macron threatened to expand NATO into Asia. The move would come if China does not get a handle on North Korea, which has sent tens of thousands of troops to Ukraine, giving Russia a much-needed manpower boost in the conflict. While America has been seeking to pivot to Asia, it's unclear exactly what Macron means: there are no NATO members in Asia, nor are there ongoing wars there. |
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| | | INSIDER RADAR | The Kremlin pushes back on Trump | | Insiders behind the paywall: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Emmanuel Macron, Lindsey Graham, and Pete Hegseth. |
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| | | HOAX TRACKER | "Hamas accepts a US-proposed ceasefire deal" | |
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| | | QUICK AND IMPORTANT | France is banning smoking in most public places where children may be present. Argentine President Javier Milei will receive the Genesis Prize for his support for Israel; he will donate the $1 million in prize money to efforts to strengthen ties between Israel and Latin America. Poland will have the second round of its presidential election tomorrow as the populist right candidate Karol Nawrocki is effectively tied with his establishment-friendly opponent, Rafał Trzaskowski. South Africa offered to buy American liquefied natural gas (LNG) as part of a proposed trade deal.
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| | | | | Welcome to an Upward News Q&A with our foreign affairs editor, Anthony Constantini. | Anthony is what we would consider a geopolitics expert. He's been covering foreign affairs with Upward News for years and has been published in countless outlets, with his work catching the attention of leaders both in the US and abroad. | If you're not a member of Upward News, we highly suggest signing up so that you can read all of the Q&A! Now, let's dive into your questions. | | Q: It appears Vladimir Putin is basically ignoring President Trump regarding peace with Ukraine. Does Trump have any leverage to force Putin to come to the table? Or have we been prepared by VP Vance to walk away? — David | A: This is a good one to start off with, as we touch on this a bit in today's article. In short: yes, Trump still has leverage. The biggest piece of leverage right now is a bill pending in the Senate, which would tariff any country, at an astronomical 500 percent rate, that buys Russian oil. Without oil sales, Russia's economy will likely collapse. | That said, I absolutely think that Vice President Vance and Secretary Rubio have been laying the groundwork for the United States to simply wash our hands of the conflict. We'll probably know in the next few months whether that happens or not, as it's unlikely President Trump wants this war to hang over the entirety of his term. | Q: Is President Trump pressuring Israeli PM Netanyahu to cease and desist the war with Hamas? — Karla | A: No one can know for sure exactly what goes on in the room where it happens. That said, it seems clear to me that President Trump is pressuring Netanyahu to find a way to end the conflict. Like the Russo-Ukrainian War, Trump really does not want this war to drag on as he tries to make peace in the Middle East and shift America's focus to Asia. | I think that the idea that the administration has become actively anti-Israel is a misnomer; when things looked rocky between the US and Ukraine, for example, America stopped intelligence sharing and stopped military shipments. That hasn't even been discussed here at all. | However, the Trump administration is definitely striking a more nuanced tone than Israeli officials thought it would upon taking office… | |
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| | | Why Trump is furious with Vladimir Putin | | WHAT'S HAPPENING | During the 2024 campaign, Donald Trump promised to end the Russo-Ukrainian war in 24 hours. | Upon taking office, he acknowledged it might take longer, but expressed hope that peace would quickly be found… | |
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| _JOIN THE DISCUSSION_ | Do you think the Senate should pass the oil sanctions bill to devastate Russia's economy? | | Comments are for members only. |
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| | | MEDIA BIAS SPOTTER | How left and right outlets frame Trump doubling steel and aluminum tariffs | | Mentioned behind the paywall: Euronews, The New York Times, Just The News, and Fox Business. |
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| | | THE DAILY DEBATE | 📊 Which do you think is a greater interest for the US?Results will be in tomorrow's newsletter | | | POLL RESULTS FROM YESTERDAY | Amid Musk's departure, how do you feel about DOGE's accomplishments thus far? | 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 👏 Great Stuff (1,148)
🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️🤷♂️ Some Good, Some Bad (233)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👎 Not A Fan (12)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🤔 Unsure (32)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 💬 Other (21) | 👏 Great Stuff — "DOGE made a great start! The Beast will not willingly comply; remove the head!" — Jim 🤷♂️ Some Good, Some Bad — "As good and necessary as the cuts have been, they may have gone too hard to fast and cut things they shouldn't have" — Taylor 👎 Not A Fan — "Literally useless. Cool, you pointed out a bunch of issues, what did you do to solve them? Absolutely nothing." — AP 💬 Other: "I love what DOGE is doing, but livid that Congress isn't actually cutting any spending." — Kim | | | | 1,446 votes |
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| | | POP QUIZ | What's included in Israel's new ceasefire proposal? | |
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| Today's newsletter was written by Anthony Constantini, Brandon Goldman, and Ari David. We scoured 100s of sources to bring you stories and insights you won't find in the mainstream media. | | | | | 🔎 Tip line: See something the media won't touch? Got a story from your campus, community, or company that needs exposure? Send tips, questions, or ideas to tips@upward.news. |
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