China
(Liang Rui and Liu Xuanzun – Global Times) China’s third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, will undergo a full transition from initial to full operational capability in 2026, with far-sea training expected, official media reported on Sunday. Chinese military affairs experts said that the Fujian has moved from construction to launch to commissioning at a fast pace, achieving operational capability in a very short time. In April 2023, the Shandong, China’s first domestically built carrier, conducted its first far-sea training mission in the Western Pacific, marking the entry of a Chinese-built carrier into the far-sea training sequence. Now, the Fujian is expected to follow suit, the military channel of CCTV News reported on Sunday. – China’s aircraft carrier Fujian to achieve full combat capability in 2026, set for far-sea drills: official media – Global Times
Cuba/US
(Cheyanne M. Daniels – Politico) Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said he has “no fear” of President Donald Trump and his threats to “take” Cuba. In a wide-ranging interview with NBC’s Kristen Welker that aired Sunday, Díaz-Canel said his country is prepared to fight a U.S. invasion — and that he himself is willing to die for the cause. – Cuban president says he has ‘no fear’ of US – POLITICO
Nigeria
(Al Arabiya) At least 200 people are feared dead after Nigerian military jets struck a village market while pursuing extremist militants in the northeast of the country on Saturday night, a councilor for the area and residents said on Sunday. Nigeria’s Air Force said it had killed Boko Haram militants in the Jilli axis in Borno state, but in a statement released to Reuters on Sunday it did not mention hitting a market. It did not respond to further requests for comment. The strike occurred in a village in Yobe on the border with Borno, the heartland of a long-running insurgency that has killed thousands of people and displaced millions more. – Nigerian airstrike hits market, 200 feared dead in state northeast Yobe
War in Iran/Middle East/Gulf and beyond
(AFP/Al Arabiya) World figures urged the United States and Iran to keep negotiating after marathon Washington-Tehran talks in Islamabad ended on Sunday without a deal to end the war in the Middle East. – World urges more negotiations after US-Iran talks end without deal
(Abbey Fenbert – The Kyiv Independent) U.S. President Donald Trump announced on April 12 that the United States would blockade the Strait of Hormuz, after negotiations with Iran in Pakistan failed to reach a deal to end the six-week war in the Middle East. The news points to further disruption in global energy markets, as the closure of the key waterway — through which 20% of the world’s oil transits — stalls shipping traffic. The announcement also raises questions about the temporary waiver of U.S. sanctions on Russian oil, which expired April 11. Trump announced plans to blockade the Strait after peace talks in Pakistan, led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance, failed to secure a peace deal. The talks came amid a two-week ceasefire Trump declared on April 7, which he said was conditional on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. – Status of Russian oil sanctions uncertain as Trump vows to blockade Strait of Hormuz
(Al Arabiya) US President Donald Trump ordered the US Navy on Sunday to block key Gulf sea lane the Strait of Hormuz, furious with Iran’s refusal to surrender its nuclear ambitions after peace talks broke down without agreement. In response, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned it had traffic in the strategic waterway under full control and would trap any enemy who try to challenge it “in a deadly vortex in the strait if it makes the wrong move.” – Trump orders US navy to block Strait of Hormuz after talks with Iran fail
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Russian President Vladimir Putin has told his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian that he was ready to help mediate efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East, the Kremlin said. – Putin says ready to help peace efforts in call with Iran president
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Pope Leo XIV expressed his closeness to the people of Lebanon on Sunday, saying there was a “moral obligation” to protect them while calling on warring parties to seek peace. Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war last month as Israel pursues the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, with Lebanese authorities reporting more than 2,000 people been killed in Israeli strikes. “I am closer than ever, in these days of sorrow, fear, and unconquerable hope in God, to the beloved Lebanese people,” the pope told the crowd at St Peter’s Square following his Regina Coeli prayer. – Pope says he is ‘closer than ever’ to Lebanese people
(Reuters/Al Arabiya) Israel’s war with Iran incurred 35 billion shekels ($11.52 billion) in budgetary expenses, with 22 billion shekels of that going to defense, the Finance Ministry said on Sunday, citing a preliminary estimate. – Iran war has cost Israel $11.5 billion in budgetary expenses, ministry says
(Hanne Cokelaere – Politico) The U.S. “failed to gain the trust of the Iranian delegation” in the failed peace talks in Pakistan, Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday. In a statement on X, Ghalibaf said that his country had gone into the talks “with the necessary good faith and will” and had proposed “forward-looking initiatives.” But he added that “due to the experiences of the two previous wars, we have no trust in the opposing side.”. “The opposing side ultimately failed to gain the trust of the Iranian delegation in this round of negotiations,” Ghalibaf said. – Tehran says US ‘failed to gain the trust’ of Iran negotiators in Pakistan – POLITICO
