US Confirms Weapons in Orbit for the First Time After Decades of Ambiguity

Washington has publicly acknowledged an on-orbit weapon capability for the first time, saying such systems can be used for offensive or defensive operations.

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Putin Moves Foreign Policy Forum to Moscow Over Ukrainian Drone Threat

Putin’s annual Valdai conference has been shifted from Sochi to Moscow after his security service raised concerns over Ukraine’s expanding long-range drone campaign.

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Major rail disruption hit the Netherlands after suspected sabotage on tracks across the country.

ProRail said pipes, cables and other materials were deliberately placed on railway lines, causing around 30 disruptions affecting routes including Amsterdam, Schiphol, Eindhoven and Utrecht.

One train struck an object but no injuries were reported. Police have launched a criminal investigation, with no suspects or motive identified.

Germany’s Chancellor Merz:

A different wind is now blowing from across the Atlantic.

As a result of the new U.S. tariff regime, cooperation and trade have now declined significantly.

We see fewer and fewer heads of state and government believing in the mutual benefits of economic openness.

Instead, they increasingly think in terms of zero-sum games, or even taking advantage of others and blackmail.

Trump:

Republicans just got another bad decision from the United States Supreme Court, one that the Court System took forever to give, and then blamed it, in part, on no time left to implement a solution to our totally CORRUPT and out of control Mail-In voting “disaster,” which is a laughing stock all over the World, and where we are the only country that has to endure such a Nation Destroying SCAM.

Germany’s Chancellor Merz:

I want us to be able to look forward to the future again, to be proud of our beautiful and modern country, and to be able to say with confidence:

Germany is strong. We can do this.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Chris Landau delayed plans for a bull statue at the U.S. pavilion for Expo 2027 in Belgrade because he worried its imagery could resemble Baal or the biblical golden calf.

Landau circulated an Aug. 19 email discussing the symbolism, prompting ridicule from some State Department officials, who said the episode reflected his tendency to focus on unusual online controversies.

Officials have since been debating how to keep the bull concept while avoiding any association with Satanic or pagan imagery.

Source: Axios

Malaysia has seized three more containers bound for Israel at Tanjung Pelepas port, intensifying scrutiny of Israel-linked shipments.

The containers, carrying electric bike parts from China to Ashdod, were detained on August 19 and remain held.

An earlier container bound for Israeli defense firm Elbit Systems was seized on August 7 over suspicions it contained weapons.

Malaysia bans direct trade with Israel, although transit cargo is normally exempt.

Source: Bloomberg

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets Egyptian President el-Sisi in Egypt.

BIG: Saudi Arabia has told European customers that some late-September crude cargoes will be cancelled after last week’s attack shut its East-West pipeline.

Source: Reuters

Footage shows massive fires at Aramco’s Abha bulk plant in southwestern Saudi Arabia after Houthi drone and missile attacks.

WATCH: CCTV captures Houthi ballistic missile launch from Taiz airport at 3:52am — followed by likely Saudi airstrike hitting the launch pad moments later.

Yemeni sources say warplanes targeted the platform immediately after the missile fired.

Bessent on Iran:

America is no longer managing the Iranian threat. We are ending it.

Iran says it shot down a third U.S. MQ-1 drone over the Strait of Hormuz today using an IRGC Aerospace air defense system.

An Iranian Sepehran Airlines Boeing 737 was forced to return to Mashhad Airport after a tire reportedly burst shortly after takeoff and the aircraft suffered engine damage.

The flight had been heading to Kermanshah.

Video from inside the plane showed tense passengers.

Canadian PM Mark Carney to Americans:

We will always be neighbors and Canada will continue to be the US’s most important partner in many key areas.

After all, even at times of disagreement over our long shared history, we have always maintained deep ties.

These arrangements work best when we engage as true partners that respect each other’s traditions and sovereignty.

And when those opportunities return, Canada will be an even better partner — stronger, more resilient, more independent, ready to advance our mutual economic and security interests.

Canadian PM Mark Carney:

We continue to have, in the broad sense, open trade with the United States. 80% of our trade is tariff-free into the United States. More of their trade is tariff-free into Canada, I might note.

And there is a mutually beneficial arrangement that can be had, and when it’s the right time to strike that deal, we’ll be ready to do that.

Oil loadings have been suspended at Saudi Arabia’s key Red Sea port of Yanbu following the earlier attack on the East-West pipeline.

Source: Reuters

Canadian PM Mark Carney:

Trump said, "I want to give you something very special, Mark. So special."

And I open this box and it’s this big gold key. I was like, "Wow, Mr. President, this is fantastic." He’s like, "Yeah, it’s a key. It’s a key to the White House. You just bring it. They’ll let you in."

And then he says, "Maybe they’ll shoot you."

I was like, "And that sort of sums up the relationship that we have."

Russia’s War in Ukraine is Fundamentally Imperial: Boris Johnson

Former UK prime minister said Russia’s war in Ukraine is rooted in Moscow’s imperial view of history, arguing that West must give Kyiv a clear path toward NATO and Western institutions.

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Iranian media released images of the supertanker El Gaia, which reportedly suffered an incident while attempting to cross a restricted area south of the Strait of Hormuz.

The IRGC Navy said the strait is closed and under its control, warning that vessels entering unsafe routes would face “incidents.”