The United States is urging other countries to avoid doing business with Chinese satellite companies amid fears that such contracts fuel military development and help Beijing gather sensitive intelligence from allies. A leaked memo from the US State Department warned America’s allies not to use satellite services from “untrusted suppliers,” such as those from “China.” The memo stated, “It is important to ensure satellite services provided by untrusted suppliers, such as those from China, are not permitted to operate in your country.” The memo, obtained by Defense One, said that working with Chinese space providers operating in low Earth orbit (LEO)…

Zimbabwe’s claims of progress in compensating white commercial farmers have been described as misleading by a body representing the majority of the 4,500 affected farmers.

A Zimbabwean delegation is set to meet representatives of President Trump’s administration on the sidelines of the World Bank meeting scheduled for 21–26 April, according to Washington sources.  

Intelligence officials have claimed that North Korea is planning to deploy troops inside Ukraine, marking a significant escalation in its involvement in the war. The claim emerged as a new report revealed that at least half of all the munitions used by the Russian army in Ukraine were supplied by North Korea, highlighting the Kremlin’s increasing reliance on Kim Jong-un. Although Kim’s regime has sent around 14,000 troops to help the Russian army drive Kyiv’s forces out of Russia’s western Kursk region, North Korean troops have yet to enter Ukraine. But, Andrii Kovalenko, a senior member of Ukraine’s National Defence…

A senior Ukrainian official has called for urgent international action to secure the return of more than 20,000 children who she says have been kidnapped by Russia in what Kyiv is calling “the largest abduction operation” of its kind. Deputy Foreign Minister Mariana Betsa described the forced deportation of children from occupied territories as a systematic campaign of Russification and indoctrination, and said their safe return must be a precondition to any peace settlement. “Russia has abducted at least 20,000 Ukrainian children and deported them to Russia. Forceful assimilation, indoctrination, mobilisation. Huge mobilisation especially for young boys. Russification, erasing their…

California’s last remaining nuclear energy plant is harnessing artificial intelligence to make its processes more efficient. AI computer systems have been installed to help navigate billions of pages of documents required to manage nuclear facilities under US federal law. The Diablo Canyon nuclear facility, located in San Luis Obispo on California’s central coast, has been in decline for years and is slated to begin decommissioning in 2029. However, the plant remains critically important in California’s energy mix, providing nearly nine per cent of the state’s electricity and 17 per cent of its zero-carbon energy. Last year, the nuclear power plant…

If the ANC wants to survive in South Africa, it must conclude a deal with the Trump Administration.

The United States and Iran have resumed indirect talks, over Iran’s nuclear programme, after President Trump warned of “great danger” if a deal isn’t reached. Both sides described the discussions as “constructive,” though major differences persist. US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, speaking to Fox News, said Iran “does not need to enrich past 3.67 per cent,” the limit set by the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Iran has reportedly enriched uranium up to 60 per cent purity, close to the 90 per cent threshold required for nuclear weapons. “This is going to be very much about verification of the…

The Ukrainian Armed Forces are using fibre-optic cable-driven drones to conduct deep strikes against Russia. These drones have already targeted Russian munitions factories, troops, and armoured vehicles. Originally developed by Russia, fibre-optic drones were first seen on the battlefield in Ukraine earlier this year. However, Ukraine has been quick to catch up, even going so far as to target Russian fibre-optic factories in an effort to prevent further deployment of the technology on the front line. The low-flying drones are tethered to the ground via thin fibre-optic cables, which unwind as the drone flies farther from the controller. Unlike radio-controlled…

The United States issued fresh sanctions on Iran just days before talks between Washington and the Islamic Republic over its nuclear programme. The US Treasury designated five entities and one individual based in Iran for their support of the country’s nuclear programme, the department announced. The sanctions are intended to help prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. The designated groups played a crucial role in supporting two previously sanctioned entities that manage the country’s nuclear programme: the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and its subordinate, the Iran Centrifuge Technology Company (TESA), the Treasury said. The action comes after…

Attack drones are now responsible for 80 per cent of all battlefield casualties in the Ukraine war, Western officials have revealed. Unmanned aerial vehicles – also known as drones – have now replaced traditional artillery strikes against opposition targets and account for between 70 to 80 per cent of Russian and Ukrainian military casualties, the officials added. Russia has sustained over 900,000 casualties, of which 250,000 troops had been killed in action – the greatest number of battlefield losses since the Second World War, officials added. It has also emerged that it will take Russia at least five years to…

The history of major resource agreements is rife with examples of deals being renegotiated or annulled without compensation.

Washington has developed war plans for a strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities, a former US military chief has disclosed. General David Petraeus, the former commander of US Central Command, said the US was ready to strike at the heart of Iran’s nuclear programs if the Islamic Republic failed to reach a deal with President Trump. Gen. Petraeus also said that any potential US airstrike would target not only Iran’s nuclear facilities but also its air defense and missile capabilities, in a bid to prevent possible retaliation. He spoke ahead of President Donald Trump’s announcement that the US would hold “direct…

The Trump administration actions against South Africa could escalate significantly and include a range of tools that the US might employ if the ANC fails to enact substantive change.

We’ve cracked open the possibilities for deals between countries, which could be highly positive for Africa. However, we also need to remain vigilant, as some of the more negative scenarios could actually exacerbate conflict.

US Congressman Ronnie Jackson has called for a full review of US-South Africa relations and seeks to identify ANC leaders for the imposition of sanctions.

North Korean troops fighting in Ukraine have been warned by their commanders that their families will be executed if they are captured alive. Details of the threats were revealed by a former North Korean soldier who defected to South Korea after serving in the communist state’s armed forces. “If the soldiers are captured and tell information to the enemy, their families will be punished, go to a political prison camp, or worse—they will be executed in front of the people,” North Korean defector and researcher Pak Yusung said. Ryu Seong-hyeon, who defected to South Korea in 2019, said the threats…

The SADC mission was supposedly intended to neutralise M23, yet it was instead neutralised by M23. If that isn’t a failure, I don’t know what is. So, at the mission level and the national level, it’s a defeat.

The number of Russian spies in the UK is higher than at any time since the end of the Cold War, a senior police commander has revealed. Many of the Russian spies operating in the UK are believed to be part of a wide network of sleeper agents and foreign proxies hired by the Kremlin to conduct intelligence gathering operations in the West. Western officials have accused Russia and its proxies of staging dozens of attacks and other incidents across Europe since the invasion of Ukraine three years ago. The intelligence officials allege the disruption campaign is an extension of…

South Africa’s defence capabilities have reached a critical low raising serious concerns about the nation’s ability to defend itself, protect its 3,000 km coastline, manage its land borders, and provide regional stability.

Many commodity traders were caught off guard by the strength and conviction of the Trump administration in using tariffs as a tool to manage a whole range of issues.

The Pentagon is considering making significant cuts to the top of the US military as the Trump administration seeks to shrink the federal government, according to a leaked briefing document. The plans under consideration include consolidating combatant commands, possibly eliminating a directorate that oversees development, training, and education for the joint force, and halting the expansion of US Forces Japan. Among the measures being considered are merging European Command and Africa Command into a single command based in Stuttgart, Germany, and combining US Northern and Southern Commands into a single AMERICOM command. The document was prepared this month by US…

Reverend Daniel Alcock, aged 28, from Sunderland, is the youngest Padre in the British Army and only commissioned into the Royal Army Chaplains’ Department (RAChD) in May last year. Holding the rank of captain but known as Padre to the soldiers, he is on his very first overseas deployment, Exercise Steadfast Dart 25. Deployed as the Padre to the 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, Padre Alcock said: “Exercise Steadfast Dart has likely been the most memorable venture in my inaugural year. Travelling to Romania with my brigade to live in ‘heated tents’ will be hard to forget. “I was fortunate to lead…

The year-long ISS study found that key figures in South Africa’s influence industry were engaged in transnational coordinated campaigns.