On April 7, 2026, President Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran after previously threatening to “send them back to the stone age” with overwhelming military force. The announcement appeared to mark a turning point and potential pathway toward de-escalation following weeks of intensifying conflict. The administration framed the agreement narrowly. Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for a cessation of U.S. military action, while both parties would engage in further negotiations in Pakistan for a broader resolution. However, the terms of the agreement were never clearly defined, and competing interpretations quickly emerged. Pakistan, which brokered the deal, along with Iranian officials, asserted that the U.S. had…

Since the release of GLP-1s on the public market, citizens from countries across the globe have flocked to what some medical professionals have called this new generation’s miracle drug. According to the Indiana University School of Medicine, prior research suggests that, in the United States alone, the use of GLP-1s have increased by fortyfold between 2017 and 2021. While it is true that the United States has the largest GLP-1 market in the world, data from the last few years shows that GLP-1s have become popular in other markets such as the United Kingdom, who is currently leading the European market with their rise in NHS Ozempic Prescriptions. Looking at…

America is looking to the stars more than ever before. And no, Rocky and Ryan Gosling from the new movie “Project Hail Mary” are not the reasons for it (as fun as Rocky seems to be having flying through and saving the stars). The reason is largely NASA’s Artemis II mission. Artemis II represents the first-time humans have orbited the Moon in over half a century and paves the way for potential crewed landing missions in the coming years. Artemis II also represents a check in the timeline of the so-called “New Space Race,” which has pitted the U.S. against other nations, such as Russia and China, tested the limits…

On February 28, 2026, a conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran arose after weeks of building tension. Since then, both parties have carried out strikes targeting military assets. This conflict has yet to be resolved, and its continuation is affecting global trade. The Middle East is a crucial location for many shipping routes and a key hub for energy production. Conflict within this area disrupts supply chains, energy markets, oil markets, and trade overall, negatively affecting the global economy by reshaping trade patterns. Specifically, the Strait of Hormuz in Iran is a crucial shipping route, with around 25% of the world’s oil and 20% of the world’s natural…

Mexico’s President Claudia Shienbaum Pardo and Secretary of Culture, Claudia Curiel de Icaza, alongside Mexican actress Salma Hayek Pinault unveiled the country’s plan to support the local Mexican film industry this past February. This plan is a modernization of the 1992 Film Plan as film producers have sought out fiscal support while filming in Mexican states. The ultimate goal of the plan is to attracting major film productions to Mexico, establishing Mexico as a benchmark in the Latin American film industry. The crown jewel of this plan is a thirty percent tax incentive promised to projects that are shot in Mexico. In order to qualify for the Mexican film tax…

Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz to international passage and trade, depriving the world of the movement of approximately a fifth of globally produced oil. Iranian attacks on commercial ships in the strait demonstrate the regime’s determination to broadly retaliate against the international community for the joint, American-Israeli attack, known as Operation Epic Fury, which began on February 28, 2026. Now, President Trump is not only calling on NATO allies to assist American military forces to keep the Strait of Hormuz open for business, but he’s making a rare call on China to assist as well. Closing the Strait is not simply a reactive, defensive countermeasure by an…

On February 9, Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych stepped onto the starting line at the Milano–Cortina Winter Olympics wearing a helmet that resulted in his disqualification. The helmet was more than protective equipment; it served as a tribute to lives lost since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It displayed images of Ukrainian athletes and coaches killed in the war, a conflict that has claimed more than 650 members of the sporting community and destroyed over 800 sports facilities, including Olympic training centers. For Heraskevych, the images represented mourning and remembrance. For Olympic authorities, they constituted prohibited political expression. After repeatedly refusing to change helmets, Heraskevych was disqualified by…

Last week, at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, the United States swept the sport of Ice Hockey. The Men’s and Women’s teams both beat Canada in overtime to achieve greatness, with each athlete earning not only gold medals but also a place in history. The Men’s team accomplished the feat exactly 46 years after the 1980 “Miracle on Ice.” The story of the 1980 Games? A ragtag group of amateur U.S. hockey players rising to the occasion and taking on the juggernaut Soviet Union. The Soviets, comprised of professional all-stars, were the undisputed world’s best. On the other hand, the American team consisted of recent college graduates who had…

The United States prides itself on being a prominent leader in the global financial system, yet the gaps in their financial framework continue to be exploited by illicit actors. Through the use of shell companies and lack of beneficial ownership reporting, profits from illegal activities are laundered to appear legitimate. The lack of reporting transparency places the U.S. at risk of international scrutiny, indirect economic repercussions, and Grey listing by the global task force, Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The U.S. Secretary Treasury, Janet Yellen stated that “the best place to hide and launder money ill-gotten gains is actually the United States…because we allow people to establish shell companies.” Shell…

Three months after the Louvre Museum in Paris was hit by a dramatic heist, the investigation remains incomplete where it matters the most: recovery. Authorities have charged suspects, but none of the stolen jewels from the historic Napoleon collection have been found. That kind of disappearance is not an outlier. The illegal trade in cultural property artworks, antiquities, and other high-value heritage objects is among the world’s oldest and most profitable forms of criminal activity. Estimates suggest roughly $4 billion to $6 billion in art is stolen each year. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime has ranked cultural property smuggling alongside arms and drug trafficking as the most lucrative…