France’s army chief, Fabien Mandon, warned that the United States is becoming “increasingly unpredictable,” affecting France’s security and interests.

“We were surprised by an American ally… who is becoming increasingly unpredictable and doesn't even bother to inform us when they launch military operations,” he said.

Despite tensions, he stressed the U.S. “remains an ally,” but France must adapt to protect its own citizens and priorities.

Source: Reuters

Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro has been allowed to serve his 27-year sentence for an attempted coup under house arrest due to poor health.

Supreme court justice Alexandre de Moraes approved an initial 90-day “humanitarian” period after Bolsonaro was hospitalized with pneumonia and other ongoing health issues.

The court will review the decision after 90 days, possibly extending it.

Jake Sullivan on Iran:

You can strike Iran’s nuclear program. But at the end of the day, they still have a stockpile of enriched uranium.

They still have centrifuges lying around various facilities we may not even know about.

And they still have scientists who know how to put all that together.

Jake Sullivan on Iran:

When it comes to Iran, what Israel would like to do under this particular government is just break Iran—cause chaos. Because as far as they’re concerned, a broken Iran is less of a threat to Israel.

Now, the United States of America cannot think about it that way. Because a broken Iran means a broken global economy, as they continue to threaten the Straits of Hormuz. It means a potential refugee flow, like we saw after the war in Syria into Europe. It means a lot else besides.

So I do believe that when it comes to this war in Iran, there is a real divergence between Israel’s ultimate aims and the United States’ ultimate aims.

Jake Sullivan on Iran:

Just a few days before we started bombing Iran, the Iranians put a proposal on the table in Geneva that went a long way towards resolving the nuclear issue.

And my understanding is that our side, our negotiators, simply didn't understand what they were being offered.

Taiwan has about 11 days of liquefied natural gas reserves—a limited buffer that has become critical after Iran disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, cutting off key supplies from Qatar.

Because Taiwan relies heavily on LNG to power its grid and semiconductor industry, any prolonged disruption could force energy rationing and threaten chip production.

Source: POLITICO

Iranian official Saeed Jalili:

The one who once spoke of regime change and the fragmentation of Iran now hopes that someone in Iran will engage in dialogue with him; though this, too, is merely an attempt at deception.

Iranian official Ali Akbar Ahmadian:

We have just one message for the American soldiers: Come closer.

Iran has told the Trump administration through back channels that it would rather negotiate with JD Vance than with Steve Witkoff or Jared Kushner.

Source: CNN

Kim Jong Un said the US conflict with Iran shows why Pyongyang was right to hold onto its nuclear weapons.

In a speech to North Korea’s parliament, Kim said “the present situation clearly proves” North Korea was justified in rejecting US pressure and “sweet talk” to give up its arsenal.

Iranian officials told mediators they believe Trump has “tricked” them twice already and “we don’t want to be fooled again.”

Iranian officials told mediators that recent U.S. troop movements and military buildups make Trump’s peace offer look like “just a ruse.”

Source: Axios

U.S. officials are considering seizing Kharg Island, the Persian Gulf island through which roughly 90% of Iran’s oil exports flow.

Officials believe ground forces could likely seize the island quickly, but they may then have to weather sustained Iranian drone and missile barrages for as long as they remain there.

Source: WaPo

Iranian-backed groups in Iraq released footage showing FPV drone strikes on Camp Victoria in Baghdad.

One drone appears to hit an AN/MPQ-64 radar, while a second seems to target two UH-60 Black Hawks visible at the end of the video.

Iran has set tough conditions for returning to cease-fire talks with the Trump administration. According to people familiar with the matter, Tehran is demanding major concessions, including:

Closure of all U.S. bases in the Gulf
Reparations for attacks on Iran
A new system in the Strait of Hormuz allowing Iran to collect transit fees
Guarantees the war won’t restart
An end to Israeli strikes on Hezbollah
Full sanctions relief
The right to keep its missile program without limits

A U.S. official dismissed the demands as unrealistic, and Arab and U.S. officials said they make any deal harder to reach.

Source: WSJ

A New York Times investigation found that a military strike in northern Ecuador, promoted by U.S. and Ecuadorian officials as the destruction of a drug traffickers’ training camp, appears to have actually destroyed a working dairy and cattle farm.

Residents, farm workers, and the owner said Ecuadorian soldiers raided the property, beat and tortured workers, burned buildings, and later returned to drop explosives on the remains. The video later shared by U.S. officials as evidence of a strike on a narco camp was reportedly filmed during that second attack.

The Ecuadorian military claimed the site was used by the Colombian armed group Comandos de la Frontera for weapons storage, rest, and training, but offered no public evidence.

Source: NYT

Israel struck Iran’s Caspian Sea port of Bandar Anzali, targeting a key Russia-Iran supply route used to move drones, ammunition, and other military goods.

The route has been important for both countries, especially for transferring Shahed drones and other weapons since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The port is also used for civilian trade, including wheat and oil, raising concerns that the strike could affect Iran’s food and supply chains as well as its military operations.

Source: WSJ

Trump:

VIKTOR ORBÁN WILL NEVER LET THE GREAT PEOPLE OF HUNGARY DOWN. I AM WITH HIM ALL THE WAY!

Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei:

We have a very catastrophic experience, I should say, with the United States diplomacy.

We were attacked two times within a span of nine months when we were in the middle of a negotiating process to resolve the nuclear issue.

This was a betrayal of diplomacy. It is a very famous phrase in Iran right now because it happened not once, but twice. So no one can trust the United States diplomacy.

Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei:

I understand that the world economy is impacted by what is going on in our region, but this is not our fault.

You are concerned about the price of oil, the price of groceries, but we are concerned about the life of our citizens.

Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei:

The impact, the consequences for the world economy is directly because of the United States and Israel’s reckless illegal war they have imposed on Iran and on the whole region.

Pete Hegseth argued in a 2017 PragerU video that George W. Bush had effectively "won" the Iraq War through the 2007 troop surge, and that President Obama later squandered that "victory" by withdrawing U.S. troops.