# GZERO Media - Complete Content > GZERO Media: complete content export for LLMs - 75 sections and the 81 most recent articles. Navigation index: https://www.gzeromedia.com/llms.txt **Site Overview:** - Domain: https://www.gzeromedia.com - Total Sections: 75 - Recent Posts Included: 81 - Content Word Count: ~23033 words - Last Updated: 2026-09-16 - Generated: September 16, 2026 12:17:14 **Important Information:** - Site ID: 19128044 - Markdown version: append .md to any URL - Total sections: 75 ## Site Structure - [News](https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/index.md): Read the latest news from GZERO with insights on global events. (9973 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/news; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/news.rss) - [Analysis](https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/index.md): (1581 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/news/analysis.rss) - [What We're Watching](https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/index.md): Global news briefs from GZERO Media: what's happening in global politics (4448 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/news/watching.rss) - [Hard Numbers](https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/index.md): Global news through the lens of numbers. (1542 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/news/hard-numbers.rss) - [Remembering September 11, 2001](https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/september-11-2001/index.md): (15 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/september-11-2001; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/news/september-11-2001.rss) - [Editor's Picks](https://www.gzeromedia.com/editors-picks/index.md): Global news analysis, insights, and the occasional fun tidbit. (567 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/editors-picks; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/editors-picks.rss) - [Graphic Truth](https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth/index.md): The Graphic Truth series uses data to tell stories about the trends and dynamics shaping our world. (812 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/graphic-truth.rss) - [Games](https://www.gzeromedia.com/games/index.md): Prove your knowledge of world events by taking our weekly news quiz. (534 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/games; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/games.rss) - [by ian bremmer](https://www.gzeromedia.com/by-ian-bremmer/index.md): Making sense of global affairs in a leaderless (G-Zero) world with whatever I decide is honest and fair analysis. (P.S. – don’t panic) (479 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/by-ian-bremmer; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/by-ian-bremmer.rss) - [Climate](https://www.gzeromedia.com/climate/index.md): Climate change news and analysis - the global politics of addressing the climate crisis, from sustainability and net zero carbon strategies to multilateral agreements to find climate solutions. (493 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/climate; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/climate.rss) - [Israel](https://www.gzeromedia.com/israel/index.md): (1006 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/israel; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/israel.rss) - [GZERO Explains](https://www.gzeromedia.com/gzero-explains/index.md): Geopolitics is complicated. GZERO breaks down the biggest - and most confusing - stories in world news to help you make sense of it all. (19 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/gzero-explains; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/gzero-explains.rss) - [Viewpoint](https://www.gzeromedia.com/viewpoint/index.md): (266 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/viewpoint; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/viewpoint.rss) - [GZERO North](https://www.gzeromedia.com/gzero-north/index.md): GZERO goes to the heart of US-Canada affairs, bringing you the latest on one of the world’s most important international political relationships. (1511 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/gzero-north; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/gzero-north.rss) - [GZERO AI](https://www.gzeromedia.com/gzero-ai/index.md): The latest on artificial intelligence and its implications (858 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/gzero-ai; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/gzero-ai.rss) - [Hunger Pains](https://www.gzeromedia.com/hunger-pains/index.md): GZERO Media’s special coverage of the ongoing food crisis: the world faces the sharpest “hunger pains” since the end of World War 2. The world is on the brink of a crisis that could push more than a billion people towards starvation. A crisis that could upend governments, roil global markets, and rattle households around the world. (66 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/hunger-pains; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/hunger-pains.rss) - [Video](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/index.md): GZERO Media videos bring you the latest news and analysis about global news and geopolitics, including our television program "GZERO World with Ian Bremmer" and political satire series "Puppet Regime." (3534 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video.rss) - [GZERO World with Ian Bremmer](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-with-ian-bremmer/index.md): Hosted by Ian Bremmer, GZERO World is an award-winning, nationally syndicated PBS television program featuring the most influential leaders and thinkers in the world. (733 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-with-ian-bremmer; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/gzero-world-with-ian-bremmer.rss) - [GZERO World Clips](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips/index.md): Highlights from the GZERO World with Ian Bremmer weekly television show. (2396 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/gzero-world-clips.rss) - [Quick Take](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/quick-take/index.md): Ian Bremmer, political scientist and president of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media, shares insights on global political events. (803 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/quick-take; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/quick-take.rss) - [Ian Explains](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ian-explains/index.md): On Ian Explains, host Ian Bremmer makes complex issues about global politics understandable. Ian Explains is a weekly segment on GZERO WORLD with Ian Bremmer, GZERO's weekly program about global news and current affairs. (229 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ian-explains; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/ian-explains.rss) - [Puppet Regime](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/puppet-regime/index.md): PUPPET REGIME is GZERO's award-winning political satire series that uses puppets to parody world leaders. Now more than ever, sometimes all you can do is laugh. (590 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/puppet-regime; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/puppet-regime.rss) - [ask ian](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ask-ian/index.md): Ian Bremmer takes a look at the week's top stories in geopolitics. (646 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ask-ian; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/ask-ian.rss) - [GZERO Europe](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-europe/index.md): Watch insights on the latest news about Europe from Carl Bildt, Co-Chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations and former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Sweden. (405 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-europe; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/gzero-europe.rss) - [GZERO Reports](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-reports/index.md): Our journalists bring you on-location video reports digging into news stories around the world. (76 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-reports; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/gzero-reports.rss) - [The Debrief](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/the-debrief/index.md): The latest in geopolitical news explained by GZERO Media and Eurasia Group experts. (38 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/the-debrief; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/the-debrief.rss) - [US Politics In 60 Seconds](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/us-politics-in-60/index.md): Get insights on the latest news in US politics from Jon Lieber, head of Eurasia Group's coverage of political and policy developments in Washington (530 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/us-politics-in-60; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/us-politics-in-60.rss) - [GZERO Live](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-live/index.md): Explore GZERO’s past virtual conversations, featuring global experts on the world's urgent issues. (135 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-live; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/gzero-live.rss) - [State of the World](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/state-of-the-world/index.md): In Ian Bremmer's annual "State of the World" speech every year, he presents his vision for the year ahead and outlines the major themes and forces shaping the geopolitical landscape. (24 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/state-of-the-world; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/state-of-the-world.rss) - [GZERO AI Video](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-ai-video/index.md): GZERO AI is our weekly video series intended to help you keep up and make sense of the latest news on the AI revolution. (56 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-ai-video; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/gzero-ai-video.rss) - [The Red Pen](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/the-red-pen/index.md): On GZERO Media's series The Red Pen, Ian Bremmer and colleagues pick apart the argument in a major opinion piece. (74 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/the-red-pen; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/the-red-pen.rss) - [Work In 60 Seconds](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/work-in-60/index.md): (68 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/work-in-60; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/work-in-60.rss) - [Cyber in 60 Seconds](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/cyber-in-60/index.md): (108 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/cyber-in-60; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/cyber-in-60.rss) - [Tech in 60 Seconds](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/tech-in-60/index.md): Watch as Nicholas Thompson, editor-in-chief of WIRED, explains what's going on in technology news, (129 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/tech-in-60; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/tech-in-60.rss) - [Money in 60 Seconds](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/money-in-60/index.md): (71 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/money-in-60; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/money-in-60.rss) - [A. I. in 60 Seconds](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ai-in-60/index.md): (16 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ai-in-60; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/ai-in-60.rss) - [In 60 Seconds](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/in-60-seconds/index.md): Short, concise, and to the point, In 60 Seconds covers world news, US politics, the view from Europe, and more. (1212 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/in-60-seconds; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/in-60-seconds.rss) - [Closing The Gap](https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/closing-the-gap/index.md): How can technology and digital tools help close the inequality gap globally? A special series frrom GZERO Media, presented by Visa. (36 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/closing-the-gap; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/video/closing-the-gap.rss) - [Podcasts](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/index.md): Listen to GZERO's podcasts about global politics, including the GZERO World with Ian Bremmer Podcast. (412 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast.rss) - [GZERO World with Ian Bremmer Podcast](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/gzero-world-podcast/index.md): The United States will no longer play global policeman, and no one else wants the job. This is not a G-7 or a G-20 world. Welcome to the GZERO, a world made volatile by an intensifying international battle for power and influence. Every week on this podcast, Ian Bremmer will interview the world leaders and the thought leaders shaping our GZERO World. (614 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/gzero-world-podcast; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast/gzero-world-podcast.rss) - [Energized: The Future of Energy](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/energized/index.md): Dive into the biggest ideas about the current energy transition to learn where we’re going, and how it will impact geopolitics, the economy, and your bottom line on the “Energized: The Future of Energy” podcast series. (14 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/energized; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast/energized.rss) - [Local to global: The power of small business](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/local-to-global/index.md): Small businesses play a role in our everyday lives, but their influence and importance extend far beyond their communities. In this podcast series, "Local to global: The power of small business," from GZERO and Mastercard, we look at how new technologies can support the growth of small businesses and their impact on the global economy. (8 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/local-to-global; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast/local-to-global.rss) - [Next Giant Leap](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/next-giant-leap/index.md): Next Giant Leap is a podcast series exploring how the competition for success in space drives innovation, business, science, and economic growth here on Earth. (20 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/next-giant-leap; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast/next-giant-leap.rss) - [The Ripple Effect: Investing in Life Sciences](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/the-ripple-effect/index.md): This limited podcast series examines the unexpected ways that life sciences influence everything from national security to economic prosperity, to breakthroughs in other fields. (4 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/the-ripple-effect; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast/the-ripple-effect.rss) - [Patching the System](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/patching-the-system/index.md): The Patching the System podcast series explores the biggest cyber risks and challenges for governments, corporations, and consumers alike. (22 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/patching-the-system; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast/patching-the-system.rss) - [Living Beyond Borders Podcasts](https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/living-beyond-borders-podcasts/index.md): GZERO Media and Citi Global Wealth Investments present “Living Beyond Borders,” a special-edition podcast series, as well as articles and graphics that examine how our lives change as the world changes. (72 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/living-beyond-borders-podcasts; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/podcast/living-beyond-borders-podcasts.rss) - [Global Stage](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/index.md): Global Stage delves into the issues that are shaping our world and explains how they will affect people, industries, and economies everywhere. Global Stage is a partnership between GZERO Media and Microsoft. (423 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage.rss) - [Commission on the Status of Women](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/commission-on-the-status-of-women/index.md): Global Stage brings you interviews and livestream discussions from the annual United Nations Commission on the Status of Women meetings at UN headquarters in New York City. (16 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/commission-on-the-status-of-women; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/commission-on-the-status-of-women.rss) - [Paris Peace Forum](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/paris-peace-forum/index.md): Global Stage interviews and insights from the Paris Peace Forum. (38 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/paris-peace-forum; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/paris-peace-forum.rss) - [UN General Assembly](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/un-general-assembly/index.md): The UN General Assembly takes place at United Nations headquarters in New York City every September. World leaders make speeches and diplomats convene to discuss global priorities. (105 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/un-general-assembly; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/un-general-assembly.rss) - [AI For Good Summit](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/ai-for-good/index.md): Global Stage brings you interviews and updates from the AI for Good Summit in Geneva, Switzerland. (42 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/ai-for-good; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/ai-for-good.rss) - [UN STI Forum](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/un-sti-forum/index.md): The Global Stage series covers the United Nations Forum on Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI Forum), which convenes once a year to discuss science, technology, and innovation cooperation towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals. (12 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/un-sti-forum; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/un-sti-forum.rss) - [World Economic Forum](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/world-economic-forum/index.md): Global Stage brings you livestreams, interviews, and updates each year from the World Economic Forum at Davos. (59 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/world-economic-forum; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/world-economic-forum.rss) - [Munich Security Conference](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/munich-security-conference/index.md): Watch our Global Stage updates from the Munich Security Conference every year, with livestreams, video interviews, and on the ground coverage from GZERO Media. (59 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/munich-security-conference; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/munich-security-conference.rss) - [World Bank & IMF Meetings](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/world-bank-imf-meetings/index.md): Global Stage interviews and insights from the IMF-World Bank meetings (36 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/world-bank-imf-meetings; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/world-bank-imf-meetings.rss) - [Abu Dhabi Global AI Summit](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/abu-dhabi-ai-summit/index.md): Global Stage coverage of the Abu Dhabi Global AI Summit, focused on charting pathways for responsible and inclusive artificial intelligence development and diffusion. (14 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/abu-dhabi-ai-summit; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/abu-dhabi-ai-summit.rss) - [Global Stage Interviews](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/global-stage-interviews/index.md): Meet the influential policymakers, diplomats, innovators, and disruptors who play key roles in addressing the most pressing challenges for our world. (110 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/global-stage-interviews; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/global-stage-interviews.rss) - [AI and Society](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/ai-and-society/index.md): How can we keep up with AI to protect the world from its risks while maximizing the opportunity to use it for good? (39 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/ai-and-society; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/ai-and-society.rss) - [Posts](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/posts/index.md): Through livestream discussions, interviews, podcasts, and coverage of major global gatherings, Global Stage delves into the issues that are shaping our world and explains how they will affect people, industries, and economies everywhere. (272 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/posts; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/posts.rss) - [Events](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/virtual-events/index.md): Global Stage events present conversations about critical global issues at the intersection of technology, politics, and society, featuring leaders and experts from around the world. (57 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/virtual-events; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/virtual-events.rss) - [Upcoming](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/virtual-events/upcoming/index.md): Stay updated about our upcoming Global Stage events. (2 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/virtual-events/upcoming; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/virtual-events/upcoming.rss) - [Digital Equity](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/digital-equity/index.md): How can digital access and inclusive approaches to education and skilling connect global citizens to the next billion jobs? (34 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/digital-equity; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/digital-equity.rss) - [Crisis Recovery](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/crisis-recovery/index.md): As the world faces one crisis after another, can we build a more inclusive, green, and resilient global system? (139 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/crisis-recovery; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/crisis-recovery.rss) - [Digital Governance](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/digital-governance/index.md): With the world more online and interconnected than ever before, how can we achieve digital peace? (128 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/digital-governance; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/digital-governance.rss) - [Caught in the Digital Crosshairs](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/caught-in-the-digital-crosshairs/index.md): “Caught in the Digital Crosshairs: The Human Impact of Cyberattacks” is a new video series on cybersecurity produced by GZERO in partnership with Microsoft. (16 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/caught-in-the-digital-crosshairs; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/caught-in-the-digital-crosshairs.rss) - [Sustainability](https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/sustainability/index.md): As societies grapple with climate change, innovators and pioneers are making bold commitments - but will it be enough? (41 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/global-stage/sustainability; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/global-stage/sustainability.rss) - [Living Beyond Borders](https://www.gzeromedia.com/living-beyond-borders/index.md): GZERO Media and Citi Private Bank are pleased to present “Living Beyond Borders” with a special-edition podcast series, articles, and graphics that examine how our lives change as the world changes. (0 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/living-beyond-borders; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/living-beyond-borders.rss) - [Living Beyond Borders Articles](https://www.gzeromedia.com/living-beyond-borders-articles/index.md): (127 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/living-beyond-borders-articles; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/living-beyond-borders-articles.rss) - [Living Beyond Borders Newsletters](https://www.gzeromedia.com/living-beyond-borders-newsletters/index.md): (32 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/living-beyond-borders-newsletters; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/living-beyond-borders-newsletters.rss) - [Economic Empowerment](https://www.gzeromedia.com/economic-empowerment/index.md): How can technology and digital tools help close the inequality gap globally? (51 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/economic-empowerment; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/economic-empowerment.rss) - [Events](https://www.gzeromedia.com/events/index.md): (113 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/events; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/events.rss) - [Upcoming Events](https://www.gzeromedia.com/events/upcoming-events/index.md): Find out about GZERO Media's upcoming events. (1 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/events/upcoming-events; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/events/upcoming-events.rss) - [Careers](https://www.gzeromedia.com/career/index.md): GZERO Media is a digital media company dedicated to providing the public with intelligent and engaging coverage of global affairs. It was created in 2017 as a subsidiary of Eurasia Group, the world's leading political risk analysis firm... (2 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/career; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/career.rss) - [Announcements](https://www.gzeromedia.com/announcements/index.md): Announcements about GZERO Media, a company dedicated to providing the public with intelligent and engaging coverage of global affairs. (50 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/announcements; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/announcements.rss) - [Subscribe](https://www.gzeromedia.com/subscribe/index.md): Stay informed with GZERO Daily. Sometimes there are puppets. Subscribers also receive a weekly evening edition: GZERO Daily by Ian Bremmer! (Yes, that Ian Bremmer) (6 posts; HTML: https://www.gzeromedia.com/subscribe; RSS: https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/subscribe.rss) ## Recent Content --- ### The land of the living (long) **Published:** September 15, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/the-land-of-the-living-long.md Figures show Japan is now home to over 100,000 centenarians, the highest number in the world. Roughly 88% of the 100+ plus crowd are women – the oldest of whom is Kishimoto Fuyo, a 114-year-old from Kyoto City. Japan has the highest share of elderly people out of any country in the world, with over 28% of its population over the age of 65. Like many other countries, that figure is expected to rise before the end of the century. --- ### Syrians take to the streets over fuel price hikes, China cracks down on foreign travel for citizens, Panama Canal water levels threaten shipping **Published:** September 15, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/syrians-take-to-the-streets-over-fuel-price-hikes-china-cracks-down-on-foreign-travel-for-citizens-panama-canal-water-levels-threaten-shipping.md Fuel price protests rock Syria Protests erupted across several regions of the country after the government on Sunday announced increases of up to 40% for diesel and 30% for gasoline. In Syria, government-related energy companies price and distribute fuels. The price hike was a response to soaring oil prices caused by the war in Iran, as well as a long-term maintenance project that knocked one of Syria’s largest refiners offline. Syria’s oil industry, battered by years of war and neglect, currently produces about 100,000 barrels per day, covering barely a third of the country’s energy needs — and the rest is imported. The protests are the first instance of broad-based economic unrest on the watch of President Ahmad al-Sharaa, the former jihadist who overthrew the Assad dictatorship in late 2024. They are the latest in a global wave of protests over fuel price hikes caused by the Iran war. China tells officials: “Now you’se can’t leave!” Call it the Sonny LoSpecchio policy, from “A Bronx Tale” – Beijing has passed a sweeping new law that restricts foreign travel for higher-level civil servants as well as private citizens who work in economically sensitive areas of technology or education. The government says the measure — which harkens back to the days before China began opening to the world in the 1990s — is needed to protect the country’s sovereignty and security. It comes alongside tightened export controls for tech more broadly as Beijing vies with the United States to dominate artificial intelligence and other frontier technologies. Beijing’s attention to protecting its trade secrets from prying eyes abroad has a certain irony to it: for decades China has actively, and in some cases clandestinely, drawn on outside technology and know-how to fuel its dramatic economic rise. Now, it seems, Beijing is becoming more protective of its own achievements. Drought puts a squeeze on Panama Canal traffic Worsening drought conditions brought on by El Niño are forcing the Panama Canal to reduce the number of ships allowed to pass through each day. The canal relies on water from Gatun Lake to fill its locks, but unusually low rainfall this summer has pushed water levels down significantly. Typically, an average of 36 ships pass through each day, but officials are lowering the target average to 29.5, with further cuts possible if rainfall doesn’t recover over the next three months. Around 5% of global maritime trade passes through the canal, including roughly 40% of US container traffic, so prolonged disruptions could become a headache for global supply chains. Traffic has also increased by 10% to 20% since February as conflict in the Middle East pushes shipping toward alternate routes. Panama is building a new reservoir designed to keep the canal operating through future droughts, but it is still at least five years from completion. --- ### Are prediction markets the new polls? **Published:** September 15, 2026 | **Author:** Tasha Kheiriddin | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/are-prediction-markets-the-new-polls.md Want to know who will win the US midterms? Forget the polls – and follow the money. That’s the idea behind political prediction markets. Platforms such as Polymarket and Kalshi allow people to speculate on political outcomes, turning everything from control of Congress to individual races into tradeable events. And many of these bets are big business: Polymarket’s top market by volume in 2025 was the New York City mayoral race, which drew over $150 million in wagers from 70,000 traders. Prediction markets have exploded since then. Monthly trading volume across major platforms jumped from roughly $1.2 billion in early 2025 to more than $20 billion by January 2026, according to crypto analytics firm TRM Labs. This monetized “wisdom of crowds” has become attractive to political junkies, polling firms and news organizations. CNN, CNBC and The Wall Street Journal have all partnered with prediction-market companies to include their odds in political coverage. As Americans head toward November’s midterms, the boom is raising a bigger question: can prediction markets rival – even replace – traditional polling? The case for markets: accuracy, speed, and data. As far back as 2008, research found that earlier versions of prediction markets beat pollsters 74% of the time, and significantly outperformed polls when forecasting more than 100 days in advance. Fast-forward to today, newer prediction market sites like Polymarket have also proven accurate: a 2025 Vanderbilt University study comparing the platform with traditional polling during the 2024 presidential election found it forecast the outcome better, particularly in swing states. The researchers suggest this may be because Polymarket bettors represent a wider population than those sampled by polling firms. Prediction markets may also be valuable in races such as primaries, where many voters don’t pay as close attention until closer to Election Day. Prediction markets also deliver faster results than polls. Polls can take days to conduct and tabulate, but markets move instantly. Events like debate disasters, candidate scandals, or major endorsements can alter prices within minutes, making markets into a “real-time” political barometer. The 2024 assassination attempt on Donald Trump, for example, caused an immediate surge in Polymarket bets predicting a Trump victory. Traditional polling has other problems. Pollsters must determine not simply what people think, but who is voting. Getting the electorate's composition wrong can distort the result. This was one reason polls misjudged the 2016 presidential election: white voters without college degrees were underrepresented in many polls, causing surveys to underestimate Donald Trump’s level of support and overstate Hillary Clinton’s. But polls and markets don’t always measure the same thing. Instead of asking whom voters intend to support, prediction markets ask a different question: Who do you think will win? A voter can tell a traditional pollster she supports Candidate A, even if she believes Candidate B will ultimately be victorious. But traders in a prediction market are interested in the second call – and in the hopes of a financial reward. A poll also attempts to construct a representative sample of actual voters, but in a prediction market, anyone eligible to trade can participate, regardless of where they live. Prediction markets can show who people around the globe think will win, but a public opinion poll will show the inclinations of the electorate in a particular area – information which campaigns can then use to tailor their messaging or ground game. Some observers say prediction markets won’t replace polling. Tufts political scientist Brian Schaffner sees them as “downstream from polling” because bettors may base their wagers on what polls are showing. While some have likened prediction markets to casinos, researchers found that bettors often factored in a host of data, including past voter turnout, fundraising numbers, breaking news, and traditional polls, to distill it into the probability of victory. Money and manipulation. Prediction markets may not replace traditional polling because of their fundamental motivator: money. Someone betting $100,000 arguably has much greater influence than someone risking $10, because they will change the prediction and affect other bettors in the pool. A wealthy partisan who cares little about losing money could theoretically bet enough to make his preferred candidate appear more likely to win, and the candidate can then tout those odds to donors, activists, and journalists to create the illusion of momentum. Election officials are increasingly worried prediction markets could impact public trust. More than half of US states already restrict election betting in some form, and states are now wrestling with whether those rules cover prediction market contracts. Twenty states have taken prediction markets to court over whether they fall under state laws governing sports betting. Both Kalshi and Polymarket were contacted for this article but did not reply for comment. Complement, not replace? Rather than the new polls, prediction markets may be more like a political futures market: fast, data-rich and potentially valuable, but also volatile, financially driven and vulnerable to manipulation. Each has its use: polls measure the electorate, while prediction markets measure expectations. The future of election forecasting may not belong to one or the other, but to analysts who can read both. --- ### The AI risks being ignored **Published:** September 14, 2026 | **Author:** Ian Bremmer | **Section:** Quick Take **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/quick-take/the-ai-risks-being-ignored.md In this Quick Take, Ian Bremmer breaks down why the AI risks dominating the headlines may not be the ones worth worrying about. Ian says people are increasingly worried about the concept of p(doom), the probability that AI causes a civilization-ending event. However, he argues that framing is overblown, and that it shifts attention away from near-term threats that are very real. The more pressing concern, Ian says, is p(crisis): the near-certain likelihood that AI will support dangerous events in the short term, from cyberattacks and ransomware to biological weapons and market disruptions. These aren't hypotheticals. They are already happening in small but significant ways. Ian also examines why effective governance remains out of reach: the Trump administration is focused on winning the AI race against China, not regulating it. Voluntary steps from AI companies are welcome but insufficient. And China has little interest in any framework that would constrain its own development. --- ### AI leaders call for development slowdown, Saudis running out of options for oil shipping, Sweden’s left fends off the far-right **Published:** September 14, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Will Fitzpatrick, Natalie Johnson | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/ai-leaders-call-for-development-slowdown-saudis-running-out-of-options-for-oil-shipping-swedens-left-fends-off-the-far-right.md The “prisoner's dilemma” with AI regulation In recent days, the bosses of the top US AI companies have supported more stringent regulation of the industry. Their statements came after a viral post from an Anthropic employee who said he quit over fears that AI could “kill us all.” A strong majority of US voters want more regulation, but the companies themselves face a classic “prisoner’s dilemma”: slowing progress only works if everyone does it. But if everyone does, any one company that doesn’t stands to reap huge rewards, given how transformative (and lucrative) the AI race is. Could government keep everyone in line? Maybe, but not everyone thinks that’s a good idea given the geopolitical stakes. President Donald Trump said over the weekend that any “guardrails” shouldn’t hamstring the US in its broader competition with Beijing. Saudi runs out of routes for its oil Saudi Arabia has shut down its East-West pipeline over the weekend after drone attacks by Iran-backed militias in Iraq damaged the crucial export route. The move comes just days after the Iran-backed Houthis seized control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait from Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces following a rapid and unexpected offensive on Friday. Together, the developments are a massive blow to Saudi oil exports. The Kingdom had been sending nearly 75% of its oil through the East-West pipeline and onward through the Bab el-Mandeb amid disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz. Now, with the pipeline offline and the Bab el-Mandeb effectively closed to Saudi shipping, it has few options left to get its oil to global markets. Oil prices have already climbed above $108 a barrel, and the risk of taking Saudi crude – roughly 4% of global supply – off the market could push prices even higher. Things go left for Sweden’s right A coalition led by Sweden’s Social Democrats eked out a narrow victory over the current center-right government in Sunday’s general election. The big surprise was the poor performance of the far-right Sweden Democrats, whose hardline immigration message had propelled them to second place in the 2022 election. Although they were still shut out of the governing coalition after that election, they reached an agreement to provide tactical support to the government on key votes. This time around, they are on track to lose 11 seats, their first decline ever. Analysts cited broader unease that the party, which has its roots in (since disavowed) ultra-nationalist and neo-Nazi movements of the 1980s, could actually enter government. But in a sense the party has already won an important victory — over the past four years it successfully pushed for significant restrictions on Sweden’s famously permissive immigration policies. Even under a new center-left government, the country is unlikely to return to that. --- ### Brazilian Supreme Court scandal spills into presidential race **Published:** September 14, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/brazilian-supreme-court-scandal-spills-into-presidential-race.md Lula’s lead over Bolsonaro has narrowed in recent days following a Brazilian Supreme Court scandal. Earlier this month, a police report disclosed alleged links between Justice Alexandre de Moraes and Daniel Vorcaro, the suspected ringleader of a multibillion-dollar bank fraud. Though he hasn’t been accused of any wrongdoing in the case, the crisis poses a political risk for Lula as he is a close ally of Moraes. Bolsonaro has also been implicated in the scandal. Reports also emerged that he had procured millions of dollars from Vorcaro to fund a film about his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro. But the younger Bolsonaro has shifted the focus, and the scandal is tarnishing the reputation of an institution that the right argues has unfairly targeted conservatives, including Jair, in 2022 after a failed coup following his defeat to Lula. --- ### New safeguards for AI in schools **Published:** September 14, 2026 | **Author:** Microsoft | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/new-safeguards-for-ai-in-schools-msft-091626.md Microsoft and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) have announced a National AI Safety & Privacy Standard for schools. The agreement establishes enforceable protections that prevent student and educator data from being used to train AI models, require human oversight, and increase transparency around AI use in schools. This framework aims to help schools adopt AI responsibly while strengthening privacy, safety, and accountability standards for students, families, and educators. Read more here. --- ### African migration largely stays in Africa **Published:** September 14, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson, Eileen Zhang | **Section:** Graphic Truth **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth/african-migration-largely-stays-in-africa.md Tensions over migration are rising again between South Africa and its neighbors. Over the weekend, Nigeria’s Foreign Ministry said two Nigerian nationals were killed in South Africa earlier this month – one allegedly by police officers, the other by unidentified attackers. Nigeria said the deaths “raise questions about the safety of foreigners” in South Africa and the government’s commitment to curbing attacks on migrants. They come after months of anti-migrant protests and violence that have forced thousands of people to leave. Much of the resentment is economic. South Africa, the continent’s largest economy, has long drawn other Africans seeking work and opportunity. But it also has one of the world’s highest unemployment rates, and polls show that South Africans, particularly those already under financial pressure, blame migrants for taking jobs and straining public services. Tensions over migrants extend beyond South Africa. Last week, Kenya gave foreigners 90 days to regularize their immigration status and proposed reserving some small businesses for its citizens. Tanzania, East Africa’s second-largest economy after Kenya, also recently barred foreigners from several small-business sectors amid deep economic frustration. As our Graphic Truth shows, Africa produces tens of millions of migrants, most of whom move within the continent. In fact, less than 1% of people in sub-Saharan Africa migrate beyond the continent to places like Europe, North America, and Asia, according to the World Bank and the French Development Agency. The number of Africans moving from one country to another has risen sharply, from roughly 13 million people in 1990 to over 25 million in 2024. What’s behind the increase? Demographics are part of the story. Between 10 million and 12 million young Africans reach working age each year, but the continent’s economies create far fewer jobs than are needed to meet the demand. For every two people who joined the Democratic Republic of Congo’s working-age population between 2005 and 2020, only one job was created on average – a pattern that repeats across other large states. Because of this, many young migrants head for regional economic hubs – South Africa in the south, Kenya in the east, and Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire in the west – in search of work. For example, Kenya receives roughly twice as many migrants as it sends abroad, as do Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa. Cross-border migrants make up nearly 10% of Côte d’Ivoire’s population, among the highest shares on the continent. South Africa now hosts 60% of migrants from the Southern African Development Community, up from 31% in 1995. Logistics matters too. Moving to a neighboring country is easier and cheaper than financing sometimes dangerous journeys overseas, particularly as Europe and the United States tighten immigration rules. Regional agreements, including those within the Economic Community of West African States, have also made crossing borders, trade, and establishing legal residency in some areas much simpler. But implementation of agreements like these is also patchy. The African Union adopted a continent-wide free-movement protocol in 2018 that aims to allow Africans to live and work across member states. So far, only four countries – Mali, Niger, Rwanda, and São Tomé and Príncipe – have fully ratified it. Bureaucratic barriers and security concerns remain, and undocumented migration is high, though the exact figures are hard to track. Without enough jobs where they live, many Africans will keep moving toward the continent’s economic centers. The question is whether those countries can accommodate them – or whether migration will become an even sharper political fault line. --- ### Ex-Pentagon chief: Iran war won't end any time soon **Published:** September 14, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World Clips **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips/ex-pentagon-chief-iran-war-wont-end-soon.md The US may be winning some battles in its more than six-month war with Iran, but is it losing the bigger strategic war? On GZERO World, former Defense Secretary Mark Esper tells Ian Bremmer that the Trump administration appears to be on its “back foot” strategically, despite heavy damage inflicted on the Iranian navy, airforce, and industrial base. The mission has shifted from stopping Iran’s nuclear program to freedom of navigation in the. So what is the endgame? Esper makes the case for economic strangulation with a blockade and more sanctions as the “least-worst option” over a ground invasion or withdrawal from the Strait. The longer Washington remains consumed by Iran, he warns, the more it risks taking attention away from the United States’ biggest strategic threat: China. He and Ian also examine whether attacks on Iran’s leadership made a diplomatic resolution harder to achieve, and whether the administration’s approach has left the US trapped in a war with no clear political objective. “We're not in a position where I would want to be right now, but we need to see what the strategy is,” Esper says, “Otherwise right now, it seems like it's not going to end anytime soon.” --- ### The enduring legacy of 9/11, with former Defense Secretary Mark Esper **Published:** September 12, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World with Ian Bremmer Podcast **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/gzero-world-podcast/enduring-legacy-911-mark-esper.md This week marks 25 years since 9/11—the deadliest terror attack the world has ever seen and a defining moment in American history. The attacks transformed US politics and national security. The war on terror became the organizing principle of American foreign policy. Former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper joins Ian Bremmer on the GZERO World Podcast to reflect on the day that forever changed how Americans thought about national security, and how the United States wielded its enormous power around the world. How much did we learn from the post-9/11 era and do we risk repeating the same mistakes? 25 years after the US launched its war on terror, America is once again fighting a war in the Middle East without a clear endgame or exit strategy. The United States is on the back foot in its war with Iran, Esper says. The original goal of getting Tehran to the negotiating table about its nuclear program isn’t even being discussed anymore. And meanwhile, the United States is dropping the ball on countering its biggest existential threat: China. Subscribe to the GZERO World Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published --- ### 25 years after 9/11, how much has changed? **Published:** September 11, 2026 | **Author:** Ian Bremmer | **Section:** Ian Explains **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ian-explains/911-anniversary-how-much-changed.md Twenty-five years after 9/11, how much has actually changed? 9/11 is one of those rare moments that divides history into a “before” and an “after.” On Ian Explains, Ian Bremmer looks back at the attacks that reshaped US foreign policy, launched the war on terror, and ushered in an era of military intervention, mass surveillance, and profound geopolitical change. From the rise of China and Russia as security threats to social media and artificial intelligence reordering our politics and flow of information, the world today looks very different from the one we knew that September morning. But some things haven’t changed nearly enough. America is once again fighting a war in the Middle East without a clear endgame or exit strategy. The surveillance state born out of 9/11 is still expanding, now including private companies that can track our location and recognize our faces. Looking back on how much the world has changed in the last quarter-century, what did we learn from the past 25 years… and are we ready for what comes next? --- ### How 9/11 reshaped America and the world **Published:** September 11, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World with Ian Bremmer **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-with-ian-bremmer/how-911-reshaped-the-world.md September 11, 2001 was a day that forever changed America… and the world. It reordered domestic politics, reshaped how Americans thought about national security, and how the United States wielded its enormous power around the world. Former Defense Secretary Mark Esper joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World on the 25th anniversary of 9/11 to reflect on the immediate shock of the attacks and their lasting impact on American society and foreign policy. Has the United States learned the right lessons or do we risk repeating the mistakes of the post-9/11 era? Twenty-five years after 9/11, the United States is once again fighting a war in the Middle East without a clear endgame or exit strategy. Esper argues that the US has achieved tactical successes in the war with Iran, but is in a weaker strategic position. The war started as a means to bring Tehran to the negotiating table to discuss nuclear issues, and now “we’re not even bringing up the world nuclear.” He also explains why he sees China—not Iran—as America’s biggest threat and how years of pouring attention and resources into the Middle East and the war on terror led to the United States losing focus on its biggest adversary. "We lost our focus on China, which is my top concern," Esper says, "I think it's an existential threat to our country, to our way of life, and yet we lost 10, 15, 20 years taking our eye off of that ball."GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, airs nationwide on US public television stations (check local listings). New digital episodes of GZERO World are released weekly on YouTube. Don't miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔). --- ### All we’ve lost **Published:** September 11, 2026 | **Author:** Willis Sparks | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/all-weve-lost.md Twenty-five years ago this morning, I rolled out of bed ready for a big day. My return to grad school at New York’s Columbia University was set to kick off that morning with a class called “War, Peace, and Strategy,” and my friend David and I had tickets to Yankee Stadium to see Roger Clemens pitch that evening. David called early to ask if he could drop by on his way to take his little daughter Zoe to pre-school in my neighborhood. They arrived at my 103rd Street studio apartment, Zoe toddled around the floor, freaking out my cat Buster, while David and I planned where to meet before the game. When they left, I flipped on the TV to quickly check the weather...and was confronted with a split-screen image of both World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon on fire. I sat on the edge of my bed trying and failing to understand what I was looking at. Twenty minutes later, I arrived for War, Peace, and Strategy — in that morning’s chaos, Columbia didn’t cancel classes until after lunch — wearing a walkman to monitor radio news. Seeing my headphones, the teaching assistant asked me to keep listening while he explained the syllabus to the other shellshocked students who’d made it to class, and to raise my hand if I heard important updates. Over the next few minutes, I stopped class twice — first to relay that fighter jets were still tracking multiple passenger planes and then to confirm that US airspace was closed. That morning, the story could only be processed one small piece at a time. Back on the street, I looked to the sky for any sign of the still-unfolding horror six miles south, but all I saw was blue. No smoke. I heard no sirens or car horns. All was quiet, except for the sounds of televisions and radios telling the story through open windows on both sides of Amsterdam Avenue. After a dozen tries, I finally got a call through to my girlfriend, who lived in the East Village, much closer to Ground Zero than I was, and we agreed to meet and try to get as close as we could to what was happening. I still can’t explain why. We made our way down West Side Highway to a line of barricades within a mile of the site. Cheering and crying New Yorkers lined both sides of the road as cop cars and firetrucks came and went. I remember people, wanting to help, running into the street to pass bottles of water to blackened, exhausted firefighters as they passed. And I remember a procession of empty ambulances returning from the wreckage. A fear of what might come next settled over the city. After a few days, theaters reopened, and it seemed half the population suddenly needed to go to the movies. I remember sitting in a completely packed house waiting for a film to start. As the lights went down, a man down front abruptly stood up and walked briskly back up the aisle. He’s going to the bathroom, I told myself, but I didn’t relax until he returned three minutes later. I felt sure that every person in that darkened theater was waiting for him too. Is this how we’ll live now? I wondered. And I remember the flags. I climbed in a taxi one mid-September evening on East 6th Street for a five-mile ride uptown. Within a few blocks I stopped counting the American flags I saw in apartment windows and storefronts. I’ve now lived in New York City for four decades. Spalding Gray once called New York City “an island off the coast of America.” After all these years, it's hard to capture what it felt like, how much it meant, to know that America supported New York City and that New Yorkers were proud to be Americans. The mix of heartfelt grief, burning pride, nagging dread, and fellow feeling was unlike anything I’ve seen here before or since. In the days that followed 9/11, a Gallup poll found that public approval of the president of the United States, a man just nine months removed from one of the most controversial election outcomes in US history, had jumped from 51 percent before the attacks to 90% after. An American president with a 90% approval rating. Imagine. In our city, in Washington, and across the nation, it felt like everyone had rallied to everyone else. It didn’t last, of course, but it happened. Twenty-five years later, I remember so well how it felt. That’s one reason I feel such sadness today. Ian Bremmer, my boss, has asked many times over the years whether another national catastrophe would bring Americans together. You know the answer. In today’s polarized America, nothing, not even an entirely unimagined human tragedy, could recreate the national unity of 25 years ago. That’s what I’m thinking about on September 11, 2026. I want to believe that Americans can talk to one another honestly, passionately, and respectfully about all the things on which we disagree. Then laugh together over the never-ending absurdities of partisan politics and acknowledge all that we share. I know, of course, that many of you reading this are not Americans, and I wonder if you feel something similar about changes in your political culture. Memories of 9/11 always bring back shock and pain. But with each passing year, I miss the collective human response it inspired just a little more. I’m afraid we Americans can never get that back. Oh, how I want to be wrong. --- ### What we're still watching, 25 years later **Published:** September 11, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn, Alex Kliment, Natalie Johnson | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/what-we-re-still-watching.md The air quality Just a week after the Twin Towers fell, the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency declared the air in Lower Manhattan safe to breathe. However, files released by Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s office last week confirmed that 10 months after the attacks, health officials were still finding evidence of carcinogens like asbestos. The records, rediscovered only last year, suggest that city officials knew toxic chemicals were present yet continued to tell the public the air was safe. More people have died from 9/11-related health problems than those who were killed during the attacks themselves, according to the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund – and 25 years later, that number continues to rise. The trials As part of the Global War on Terror, the United States imprisoned close to 800 people in a military prison at Guantanamo Bay, under legally controversial circumstances. Fifteen people remain there, among them Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the Pakistani national accused of masterminding 9/11. After years of wrangling about the admissibility of his testimony, which was obtained in part via torture, his trial is finally set to begin in 2028. To date, just one person has been convicted of involvement in 9/11, Zacarias Moussaoui, a French national of Moroccan origin who pled guilty in 2005. The displacement Roughly 38 million people have been displaced by wars the US military has fought since 9/11, according to Brown University’s Costs of War project. Millions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Somalia have fled abroad or to neighboring countries as refugees, while others were displaced within their own countries. Iraqis account for the largest share, with more than 9 million people forced from their homes. The effects have endured long after the height of the US invasion and occupation: as recently as March 2023, more than 1 million Iraqis remained displaced. --- ### What America got right–and wrong–in the post-9/11 era **Published:** September 10, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World Clips **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips/america-post-9-11.md The terror attacks of September 11, 2001 radically altered the course of American history. They reshaped our politics and sense of security, sending the country on a completely different arc—from wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to the sweeping expansion of the national security apparatus. 25 years after that fateful day, has America learned the right lessons or do we risk repeating the mistakes of the post-9/11 era? Former Defense Secretary Mark Esper joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World to reflect on how 9/11 changed America and the biggest lessons from the last 25 years of US foreign policy.The attacks shattered Americans’ assumption that the country was fundamentally secure and made us much more aware of its vulnerability. Vigilance was a crucial lesson, Esper argues. But he also says that the post-9/11 era offers a warning about the limits of power. America has a tendency to overreach. The war in Afghanistan showed the danger of confusing military capability with political possibility and difficulty of trying to transform an entire society with sheer force. There’s also a risk of eroding the very freedoms we’re trying to protect in the name of national security. But maybe more importantly, Esper says that the Unites States' focus of so much resources on the war of terror took our attention off an even more serious threat: China. "I think that's often forgotten is keeping in mind what makes America great and that is our democracy and our values" Esper says, "Living in a democracy means we have to accept some risk when it comes to foreign threats and not sacrifice because we're afraid." GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the award-winning weekly global affairs series, airs nationwide on US public television stations (check local listings). New digital episodes of GZERO World are released weekly on YouTube. Don't miss an episode: subscribe to GZERO's YouTube channel and turn on notifications (🔔). --- ### The lasting impact of 9/11 on US leadership **Published:** September 10, 2026 | **Author:** Ian Bremmer | **Section:** ask ian **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/ask-ian/the-lasting-impact-of-9-11-on-us-leadership.md In this ‘ask ian,’ Ian Bremmer reflects on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, examining the long-term consequences of America's response to the attacks. Ian recalls the fear and trauma of that day, but also the extraordinary unity that followed. NATO invoked Article 5 for the first time in its history. Allies around the world rallied behind the United States. But the global solidarity of that moment gave way to costly overreach. The war in Afghanistan became a grinding campaign that ended with the Taliban back in power. The invasion of Iraq, a war of choice built on misleading intelligence, left a vacuum that fueled radicalism and instability. Ian says the United States not only failed to capitalize on a moment of shared purpose, it took actions that actively helped erode the order it had spent decades building. The rise of populism, the retreat inward, and the fracturing of alliances are all part of the aftermath 25 years on. --- ### Spain says Morocco knew about crossing into Ceuta, Trump makes promises to voters if GOP wins midterms, Zelensky looks to Canada to fill funding gap **Published:** September 10, 2026 | **Author:** Will Fitzpatrick, Lottie Tellyn, Alex Kliment | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/spain-says-morocco-knew-about-crossing-into-ceuta-trump-makes-promises-to-voters-if-gop-wins-midterms-zelensky-looks-to-canada-to-fill-funding-gap.md Sánchez releases classified documents on Ceuta crisis Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s government on Wednesday declassified documents showing that Morocco had knowledge of plans for a mass migrant crossing into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta days before it occurred. The disclosure may be an attempt to deflect some of the backlash Sánchez has faced over the surge of 70,000 people into the tiny North African territory, including mass protests, calls for his resignation, and criticism that his pro-immigration policies left Spain unprepared – all especially perpetuated by the far-right, anti-immigration party Vox that has been rising in the polls ahead of the 2027 election. But the release hasn’t taken the pressure off: critics of Sánchez are saying that the documents also show that some in Spanish intelligence also knew about the plans to cross the border. Both countries have blamed human traffickers and misinformation spread on social media for helping fuel the surge. Trump’s new plan to win over midterm voters US President Donald Trump promised to give Americans $5,000 if the Republicans win both the House and the Senate in the midterms yesterday – a cost of around $1.25 trillion. Despite his falling approval ratings, Trump seems intent on being center stage for the elections, urging voters to “pretend” he’s on the ballot. But while he polls well amongst MAGA voters, he struggles with Independents and non-MAGA aligned Republicans who will be crucial to the GOP in November. Some Republican candidates have even tried to expunge Trump from their campaigns; Eric Flores, Republican candidate for a Texas swing seat, removed “Trump Endorsed” and “Republican” from his signs after the primary. Trump is also struggling to mobilize young Republican voters, who worry he doesn’t have their cost of living concerns on his mind. Even so, it’s clear that Trump thinks he will be the deciding factor in November, and he might be – just not in the way he hopes. Zelensky visits Canada as budget shortfalls grow Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s ongoing international campaign for help against the Russian invasion takes him to Canada this week, where he will meet with PM Mark Carney to ask for more military and financial assistance. With the Russia-Ukraine aerial war intensifying daily, winter approaching, and recent US peace efforts yielding little of note, Kyiv’s sense of urgency is acute. But questions about the effectiveness of aid are also swirling. With the US no longer providing significant aid, Ukraine has relied almost entirely on Europe and Canada. But it recently emerged that Ukraine faces a $27 billion budgetary shortfall this year, even after securing $100 billion more from the EU. In addition, a recently leaked Ukrainian audit revealed that more than $1 billion in aid was lost to fraud or waste in 2024 alone. --- ### Terrorism fades as Americans’ top concern **Published:** September 10, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn, Paige Parsacala, Eileen Zhang | **Section:** Graphic Truth **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth/terrorism-fades-as-americans-top-concern.md The month after 9/11, terrorism was the most significant concern for Americans. In polling conducted by Gallup, 46% of Americans at the time said terrorism was their top concern. That year, trust in government hit a three-decade high in 2001, buoyed by President George W. Bush’s decisive response to the attacks. When the US invaded Afghanistan in October of that year, 92% of Americans supported the decision. Fast forward 25 years, the top problems have shifted away from terrorism – less than 1% of respondents ranked it their top problem in August 2026. Instead, the economy is increasingly on voters’ minds as fuel and living costs skyrocket, driven by another US president embarking on a far less popular war in the Middle East. But the most dramatic change has been the number of people whose concerns are related to Washington. Although trust in government spiked following 9/11, the last decade has seen the government itself rank among Americans’ top concerns. After the January 6 attacks on the US Capitol, the number of people who said the government, Congress, and politicians were their top concern spiked by 9 percentage points to 29% in January 2021. Since the beginning of 2026, when ICE agents were deployed to states like Minnesota as part of an immigration crackdown, that number has remained high, peaking at 32% in January. Over two decades after 9/11, terrorism has largely faded from Americans’ minds. In its place, Americans are largely concerned about the economy and the US government itself – an issue that could be exacerbated by hotly contested midterm elections this November. --- ### How China, BRICS, and a new balance of power emerged from 9/11’s shadow **Published:** September 10, 2026 | **Author:** David Meale | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/how-china-brics-and-a-new-balance-of-power-emerged-from-9-11s-shadow.md When the Pentagon and Twin Towers were struck on September 11, 2001, I was a US diplomat in Taiwan, focused on the globalization push coming from China’s impending accession to the WTO just three months later. My world changed dramatically that day, and 9/11 arguably set the world on a very different course that was felt by all of us, even if we were not living lives in the crosshairs of al-Qaeda. A month after the attacks, I traveled to Washington for the birth of my younger son, entering an anthrax-fearing US. National Guard troops monitored my arrival at the airport, and American flags flew from many passenger vehicles as I headed to stay with my in-laws. As I helped my wife during an extended stay, the State Department contacted me and asked that I take a couple of days for special training on countering terrorist finance networks. I took that knowledge back to Taiwan, where it shaped the work I did over the years that followed and led me into future efforts tied to countering illicit finance, boosting export controls, and developing sanctions packages. Meanwhile, 9/11 seemed to eclipse everything else, and I became acutely aware that the world was changing in other ways that few were registering. China went ahead with its WTO accession, arguably an earthquake moment in global economic history whose shockwaves are still being felt today. And on November 30th of that year, an economist at Goldman Sachs quietly coined a new term – BRIC, later BRICS – to highlight the growing importance of emerging economies. Most people hardly noticed, but Brazil, Russia, India, and China were definitely paying attention. Years later, the countries began meeting under the BRIC banner – and made an institution out of it. Next week, the 18th BRICS Summit will be held in New Delhi, symbolizing in so many ways just how different the world is from the one we knew 25 years ago. In the years since, I have spent much time working the threads of all three of these issues that bloomed in late 2001 — countering illicit finance, watching China’s rise, tracking the BRICS — and I still marvel at how much of today’s world was set in motion over just a few months, with almost no one paying attention. --- ### The world rebuilds its armies... without the US **Published:** September 9, 2026 | **Author:** Ian Bremmer | **Section:** by ian bremmer **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/by-ian-bremmer/the-world-rebuilds-its-armies-without-the-us.md Last month, India's Defense Ministry announced that it was nearing a deal with France to purchase 114 Rafale fighter jets and, even more importantly, to collaborate on the development of the next generation of military aircraft. It's a good deal for India, fulfilling a key supply need in its air force and boosting its domestic defense industry, with most of the Rafale jets being built in India. France wins as well, receiving much-needed financing for its project without taking on a partner who'd rewrite its blueprints. But the way France and India arrived at this deal reveals everything that's dangerous in a g-zero world racing to rearm. Rewind a year ago: France's plan was to work with Spain and Germany on the next generation of military jets. Their collaboration for the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) fighter was, at that time, evidence of the emerging European consensus on defense. For decades, the Europeans had underinvested in their militaries, confident in NATO's deterrence through the force of the US's undisputed place as the global hegemon. Yet as American power and security guarantees began to feel wobblier and Russia showed a willingness to use military force on bordering states, Europe raced to build a credible deterrent to Putin. As Germany elected to rebuild its military in the wake of Former Chancellor Olaf Scholz's "Zeitwenwende" (or "turning point") speech, it needed more fighter jets. Hence, the redoubled collaboration with France on the long-gestating FCAS project. And then the infighting started. Germany wanted a fighter able to lead drones into battle. France wanted a more typical fighter, able to carry nuclear weapons (which France has and Germany doesn't). The private sector companies involved, Dassault and Airbus, began warring over how much each company would contribute to the project. European defense cooperation broke down, and France turned to India, while Germany made its own plans. The broader FCAS cooperation will continue, but without its most important component: the fighter. Why does the breakdown between France and Germany on this deal matter? It captures what's at the heart of the global race to rearm, which has seen previously pacifist Japan vault into the top ten of global military spenders, Poland build the largest army in the European Union, and countries from South Korea to Saudi Arabia develop latent nuclear capacity. Notice a trend? The countries working around-the-clock to rearm are historical American allies who no longer trust that the United States will come to their defense. And who can blame them? Trump has repeatedly floated the notion of leaving NATO altogether, along with threatening a NATO ally in his saber-rattling around Greenland (a constituent country of Denmark). He's endangered America's Gulf allies with a poorly planned war on Iran. And he's been less than clear on whether the US would come to Taiwan's defense in the event of a Chinese invasion. But these trends pre-date Trump too. Biden alienated American allies in his rushed withdrawal from Afghanistan – the right (but unilateral) decision to end America's longest war, but a catastrophic failure in planning for what came next (an unexpectedly fast Taliban takeover of Kabul, followed by the US leaving behind many of the Afghans who'd helped them in the course of the war). We can go further back to Colin Powell's testimony at the United Nations that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, which later turned out to be false, seriously eroding international trust of the US. Trump is an accelerant to what was a previously gradual trend: the world realizing that the days of American hegemony are over. So, countries like Japan and Germany have realized that they need to rebuild their militaries. But in a world with only three true military superpowers – the United States, China, and, in a distant third, Russia – middle powers can't defend themselves without some level of cooperation. Infighting amongst European allies is dangerous because Europe needs to work together to deter Putin – a tall task as nationalistic, Putin-friendly parties gain strength in France and Germany. Just over the weekend, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) won a state election in Saxony-Anhalt: a development with little short-term relevance for Germany's foreign policy but an ominous sign for the 2029 federal elections. Meanwhile, in France, Marine Le Pen is currently atop the polls in next year’s presidential election. Even beyond deterrence, these countries must rebuild their defense industrial capacities. Right now, few countries can rival the defense production of the US, China, and Russia. A strong German military and a strong French military will improve those countries' security situations, but European defense will not offer a fourth leg to the military superpower stool until Europe can actually produce most of the weapons it needs, rather than buying them from their increasingly unreliable ally in the US. In the vacuum left by America's retreat, new blocs are emerging as well. Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey recently formed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, strengthening their deterrence through mutual defense and more greatly integrating their defense markets. Egypt, though wary the agreement could draw it into the Iran War, might soon join as well. It's not a NATO-level alliance, but it reveals the desire of middle powers to find substitutes for the deterrence they previously took as a given from the United States. What all this amounts to is a world where more countries are arming, new military alliances are emerging, and there's no global superpower with the autonomy, capacity, and willingness to enforce international law. From the United States’ perspective, this is not all bad news – European countries previously free-riding on American military might are finally paying their fair share. Instead of playing global policeman, the US is freed up to pursue other aims, from Iran to Cuba. But this is a real "be careful what you wish for" moment, as countries race to build up militaries in a time of surging nationalism and declining international institutions. Squint your eyes, and it looks more like 1914 than you should be comfortable with. Luckily, we are not on the brink of world war. International institutions, although weakened, still matter. The United States and China have shown a limited ability to work together in a crisis, and little appetite for direct conflict. But there is no doubt that we are entering an era where the risk of war is heightened, with little ability of the international community to prevent isolated regional conflicts from spiraling into something greater. --- ### America’s long arm of counterterrorism **Published:** September 9, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/americas-long-arm-of-counterterrorism.md In the 25 years since 9/11, the US has pursued counterterrorism operations in dozens of countries around the world. Brown University’s Cost of War Project tracked operations in nearly 80 countries between 2021 and 2023, or roughly 40% of countries worldwide. In most countries where the US conducted operations, it trained or assisted local security forces’ counterterrorism efforts. In the Middle East and North Africa, the US has also carried out proxy missions, called “127e” programs, where local operatives carry out US objectives. --- ### UK and others ban imports from Israeli settlements, Saudis and Houthis on the brink of war, Another African country cracks down on foreigners **Published:** September 9, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick, Alex Kliment | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/uk-and-others-ban-imports-from-israeli-settlements-saudis-and-houthis-on-the-brink-of-war-kenya-tightens-rules-for-foreigners.md Middle powers take on Israeli West Bank settlements The UK, Canada, and France announced sanctions on exports from Israeli settlements in the West Bank on Tuesday, later joined by nine additional European countries. In a speech announcing the sanctions – which have significant cross-party support in the UK – Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband condemned “settler terrorists” following an increase in violence in the Israeli-occupied territory. In response, Israel told the UK to close its consulate in Jerusalem. The impact of the sanctions is more symbolic than practical, given that goods and services from Israeli settlements are estimated to make up less than 5% of total Israeli exports. Even so, it marks another shared policy for the so-called “middle powers” amid Israel’s growing political isolation. As Israeli elections loom, PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is forging ahead with plans to build a settlement of 1,200 homes in the West Bank, which are considered illegal under international law. Saudi-Houthi escalation threatens to revive civil war The Houthis and Saudi Arabia are at risk of returning to all-out war. On Tuesday, the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels attacked energy facilities in the southern Saudi city of Abha, which they said were in retaliation for a Saudi strike on Yemen’s al-Hazm city on Monday that killed at least 11 people. Fighting between the Saudi-backed forces in Yemen and Iranian-aligned Houthis has been limited since a 2022 UN-brokered ceasefire, but tensions have intensified since the war in Iran began and the Houthis started targeting ships traveling through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. A return to full-scale war risks further destabilizing Yemen and disrupting shipping in a waterway that Saudi Arabia now sends about 75% of its exports through because of disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz – adding even more pressure to global energy markets. Oil prices hit $100 a barrel on Wednesday. Kenya tightens rules for foreigners The Kenyan government has given all foreigners 90 days to ensure that their immigration status is legal. On top of that, President William Ruto, seeking to address frustrations about unemployment ahead of next year’s election, has proposed wider legislation that would reserve certain kinds of small businesses and hawking professions for Kenyans only, while continuing to court foreign investment in capital-intensive industries. Kenya’s move comes amid similar anti-migrant backlashes in other large, relatively stable African economies that have attracted large populations of migrants. Last year, Tanzania, the second largest East African economy after Kenya, banned foreigners from 15 small-scale business professions. South Africa, the continent’s largest economy, has seen a huge surge in anti-migrant protests and violence this year. --- ### Celebrating America 250 **Published:** September 9, 2026 | **Author:** Bank of America | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/celebrating-america-250-boa-091026.md America’s next chapter is being built now. Bank of America is mobilizing $250 billion over the next 18 months to help finance the infrastructure behind it. Learn more. --- ### The cascading consequences of 9/11 for America and the Middle East **Published:** September 9, 2026 | **Author:** Firas Maksad | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/the-cascading-consequences-of-9-11-for-america-and-the-middle-east.md “This will devastate America and the region!” I howled as I watched the second plane slam into the Twin Towers in New York from my distant Beirut living room. Osama bin Laden was killed in 2011, a decade after the September 11th attacks, and al-Qaeda’s core leadership was dismantled. But my fears were not misplaced. Bin Laden achieved something more consequential than survival: he provoked the United States into a series of self-inflicted wounds that reshaped the Middle East for the worse — and eroded America’s own standing in it. The US-led invasion of Iraq is the starkest example. Launched on a since-discredited premise linking Saddam Hussein to al-Qaeda, it removed a ruthless dictator without a coherent plan for what came after. The resulting vacuum produced sectarian civil war, empowered Iran, and ultimately incubated ISIS, a movement more brutal and expansive than al-Qaeda. Rather than containing extremism, the war multiplied it. Afghanistan followed a similar arc. What began as a justified response to remove the Taliban stretched into America’s longest war, costing trillions of dollars and vast numbers of lives. It ended in 2021 with the Taliban back in power, as though two decades of intervention had rearranged the furniture rather than changed the outcome. Bin Laden had reportedly hoped to lure Washington into precisely this kind of prolonged, bleeding entanglement, modeled on the Soviet experience in Afghanistan. The war on terror also carried costs at home and abroad. Mass surveillance, indefinite detention, and profiling of Muslim communities damaged America’s moral authority and its relationships with Muslim populations worldwide, feeding the narrative of Western hostility toward Islam that extremist groups relied on for recruitment. Authoritarian governments across the Middle East and North Africa, meanwhile, borrowed the language of counterterrorism to justify their own repression, often with tacit American support. In this light, the “victory” over al-Qaeda looks pyrrhic: bin Laden died, but the strategic overreach he helped provoke left the region less stable, and the United States’ global standing measurably diminished. --- ### Former top US official regrets Iraq becoming a ‘magnet’ for terrorism **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/former-top-us-official-regrets-iraq-becoming-a-magnet-for-terrorism.md If Michael Chertoff has one regret from his tenure in the Bush administration, it's Iraq. Chertoff, who led the Department of Homeland Security for four years after 9/11, said the US-led war there not only distracted from Afghanistan, but the unclear mission and lack of post-war planning ultimately turned Iraq into “a magnet for all kinds of attacks on Americans,” consuming resources and attention that could have been used elsewhere. In an interview with Ian Bremmer filmed around the 20th anniversary of 9/11, Chertoff reflected on America’s counterterrorism strategy and the decisions that drew the country deeper into Iraq. “There was uncertainty about how long we were going to stay and how we were going to deal with the disorder there,” he said. At first, Chertoff explained, there was a sense that Iraq’s instability wasn’t America’s problem. But that became harder to maintain as the US settled in for what would become an eight-year mission. - YouTube www.youtube.com --- ### The problem with "wars of choice" **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/war-of-choice-iraq.md In 2003, the US led an invasion of Iraq in search of weapons of mass destruction as part of the post-9/11 global War on Terror. No WMDs were found, but the US was drawn into eight years of a brutal, costly war. Richard Engel, NBC's chief foreign correspondent, was one of the few American TV journalists on the ground in Baghdad when the invasion began. In fact, he was there when Iraqis and US forces famously toppled the statue of Saddam Hussein. “I was right there, and watched it happen,” Engel recalled. People were cheering and excited, he said, but that sentiment only lasted “a little while.” In a discussion on GZERO World three years ago, Ian Bremmer and Engel reflected on the lessons from the Iraq war. While many Iraqis expressed their joy that “Americans were coming in and getting rid of Saddam,” the situation deteriorated quickly. The Bush administration made a lot of mistakes, while lingering resentment among Iraq’s Sunni Muslim community gave way to animosity. For Engel, the key takeaway is to avoid “a war of choice” and the long-term, unforeseen blowback it can unleash. “War truly must be the last resort.” - YouTube Over time, if you launch a war of choice you're going to have problems, says Richard Engel. Subscribe to GZERO on YouTube: ... --- ### The First Five Minutes: Using AI to detect wildfires **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** Microsoft | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/the-first-five-minutes-using-ai-to-detect-wildfires-msft-090926.md Across California, AI linked to nearly 1,300 cameras is helping firefighters spot the earliest signs of wildfire smoke, sometimes hours before the first 911 call. Developed by ALERTCalifornia, along with fire departments, wildfire experts, and Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab, the system analyzes millions of images each day and sends verified alerts within minutes, giving first responders precious time to act before a small fire becomes a major crisis. Read more here. --- ### How the AfD's rise could reshape German politics **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** Ian Bremmer | **Section:** Quick Take **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/quick-take/how-the-afd-s-rise-could-reshape-german-politics.md In this Quick Take, Ian Bremmer breaks down the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party's historic win in the Saxony-Anhalt state election and what it could mean for the country's political future. The far-right party, considered extremist in many German states, came in first with 43.8% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt, more than doubling its 2021 result. It is the first time since World War II that a far-right party has won a German state election outright. The center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the ruling party, came in at just 17.2%. Ian explains the forces driving the AfD's surge: economic frustration, anger over immigration, and opposition to Germany's support for Ukraine. He also lays out the party's core positions, including ending Ukraine aid, lifting sanctions on Russia, leaving the EU, and rejecting what it views as ideologically driven policies from Berlin. Though the AfD cannot form a government alone, Ian argues the longstanding firewall keeping other parties from working with them is likely to break. A weakened federal government and no national election until 2029 could give the AfD the runway to grow even larger. --- ### AfD’s big win sends shockwaves around Germany, Australia wants to give social media users an algorithm opt-out, Milei tests Falklands recognition by suing oil company **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/afds-big-win-sends-shockwaves-around-germany-australia-wants-to-give-social-media-users-an-algorithm-opt-out-milei-tests-falklands-recognition-by-suing-oil-company.md AfD trounces rivals in German state election The far-right party won a landslide in Saxony-Anhalt this weekend, taking nearly 44% of the vote. The result left embattled German Chancellor Friedrich Merz “in shock” – his incumbent center-right CDU party finished a distant second, at 17%. The AfD, an anti-establishment party that opposes immigration and favors closer ties with Russia, has surged in recent years, especially in economically struggling parts of former East Germany. The party is now three seats short of a majority in Saxony-Anhalt. Establishment parties have ruled out working with the AfD, which German intelligence characterizes as “extremist,” but the party is aiming to pluck off enough defectors in order to form the country’s first far-right government since World War II. Meanwhile, two more state elections loom on September 20th: the AfD tops polls in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and is a leader even in liberal-leaning Berlin. Merz has pledged to remain in power, and to improve “communication” with voters. Australia wants to allow social media users to opt out of algorithm Australia plans to give social media users the ability to opt out of algorithms, as it continues to establish itself as a world leader in social media regulation. Under new legislation proposed by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s government on Tuesday, users would be able to choose to only see content from accounts they follow, as opposed to being fed content suggested by highly personalized algorithms. Companies that don’t comply with the proposed law could face penalties up to $79 million. Opponents accuse the government of censorship and algorithm “rigging,” while the social media lobbying group DIGI defended the tech as valuable for users wanting to discover diverse content. Countries including Spain, Britain, and Malaysia have since followed Australia’s ban on social media for children, which was announced late last year, though research shows it has only been partly effective. Milei makes his move on the Falklands Argentina is once again resurfacing its sovereignty claim over the British-controlled Falkland Islands. President Javier Milei’s government announced on Monday that it will file criminal charges against Israeli energy company Navitas Petroleum for plans to drill around the islands under a UK-issued license that Buenos Aires does not recognize. The territorial dispute is a long-running one: Argentina invaded the islands in 1982, but lost a 10-week war with Britain, accelerating the collapse of the Argentine military dictatorship. Successive Argentine governments have maintained the claim ever since and is officially enshrined in their constitution. But this latest push has an unusual source of momentum: President Donald Trump. He said last week that the US may review its officially neutral position on ownership of the islands amid tensions with Britain over its lack of support for the US war with Iran. --- ### The global geography of terrorism is shifting **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** Graphic Truth **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth/the-global-geography-of-terrorism-is-shifting.md In the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, the global fight against terrorism was overwhelmingly focused on the Middle East. Al-Qaeda had found sanctuary under the Taliban, and the United States was about to embark on wars in Afghanistan and Iraq that would define the War on Terror for the next two decades. Twenty-five years later, the geography of terrorism looks very different. South Asia also remains a major hub of terrorism, particularly in Afghanistan and Pakistan, but the most dramatic shift in the number of terrorist attacks has been toward sub-Saharan Africa. The rise of Boko Haram since 2009 in northeastern Nigeria helped turn the Sahel into a hot spot of terrorism. Al-Qaeda affiliates have established roots in the region through militants pushed south from Algeria, eventually building relationships with local armed groups. ISIS followed a similar model, encouraging existing organizations to pledge allegiance to its global movement. Boko Haram did so in 2015, giving rise to ISIS’s “West Africa Province.” The Sahel proved to be a fertile ground for insurgency. Weak governments and porous borders left huge areas with little state presence, while poverty, sectarian tensions, corruption, and abuses by security forces provided grievances extremists could exploit. A wave of military coups has further weakened institutions, and the withdrawal of French and other Western forces has created new security vacuums that military governments have struggled to fill. The terrorist threat that defined the beginning of the 21st century hasn’t disappeared. But the conditions that allow it to thrive, and the places where those conditions exist, have changed significantly. --- ### The last time America watched together **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** Tony Maciulis | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/the-last-time-america-watched-together.md The summer of 2001 was a slow one for journalists. It marked my first few months in the business, and I have long referred to that time as “the summer of shark attacks and Chandra Levy.” Cable news had found its footing just a few years before, turbo-charged by the O.J. Simpson trial's round-the-clock drama, and it needed feeding. Shark attacks launched hundreds of reporters at beachside stand-ups from Florida to North Carolina, despite the fact that 2001 actually saw fewer attacks than the year before. The disappearance of congressional intern Chandra Levy and her alleged affair with California Congressman Gary Condit had camera crews camped outside his apartment building constantly, as TV legal pundits offered endless theories on the mystery. On the morning of September 11th, Levy's parents were reportedly on their way to tape an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show. It was, as Time later put it, a media ecosystem turning fear into “infotainment.” Then the planes hit, and everything changed. As I sat on my couch that night, seeing the endless loop of images from the day and able to smell the rancid electrical smoke coming from downtown Manhattan, I blasted my resume out to any station manager whose email address I could find. Two days later, I was working at MSNBC. One of my first assignments was to find a large wall map of the world that clearly showed Afghanistan. (That’s the truth.) Broadcast networks aired wall-to-wall coverage for 93 straight hours after the attacks. In many ways, it was the last moment when Americans turned to network anchors for the gravity and authority they brought. But when those networks eventually returned to regular programming, viewers who wanted more came to cable, and largely stayed. My time at MSNBC gave me a front-row seat to a historical shift. Story selection and coverage changed in an instant, but simultaneously the ever-expanding media landscape was eroding trust in the institution overall. According to Pew Research data, the attacks led to a sustained increase in foreign policy and global conflict coverage on evening newscasts. After years of cutting foreign bureaus and pulling back from geopolitics, American media was suddenly reminded, at catastrophic cost, that the world doesn't wait for a slow news cycle. Public trust in the press also briefly surged in the aftermath of 9/11. According to Gallup data, 89% of Americans said the media’s coverage was good or excellent. But then began a long, largely unbroken decline. In the 1970s, roughly 70% of Americans trusted the mass media to report the news fully and fairly. By the late 1990s, that had slipped to around 53%. It briefly held there in the early 2000s before falling below 50% in 2004, and it has never recovered. Today, only 28% of Americans express a great deal or fair amount of trust in mass media, an all-time low. The attacks on 9/11 united us in ways I hadn’t seen before or since, but as the years of aftermath unfolded, a patriotism vs. skepticism schism began to grow. I remember in the weeks leading up to the US invasion of Iraq looking up at the monitors in our control room to see a segment on “freedom fries” airing on Fox News, as an MSNBC anchor was about to interview a Code Pink anti-war activist. More than 20 years later, those ideological divides are even more present in many publications and programs. On September 11, 2001, 90% of Americans said their primary source of news was television. Just 5% cited the Internet. Today, more than half of the population gets its news from social media. Filter bubbles, algorithms, and echo chambers are the new broadcasts of our time, offering countless choices about whom to believe and what to believe. The attacks didn’t cause that change, but they set in motion forces that are still at play today. September 11th also marked the end of the long era of collective experience, decades of gathering around a television and watching the same events in real time as tens of millions of others. Just as the global goodwill extended to America on 9/11 would prove fleeting and evaporate in the smoke of the Iraq war, so too did the credibility the media had earned by covering that day with such gravity. Both are still waiting to be reclaimed. --- ### Merz confronts Putin over drone plot **Published:** September 8, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** Puppet Regime **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/puppet-regime/merz-confronts-putin-over-drone-plot.md Don't fly off the handle. Watch more PUPPET REGIME! --- ### Far-right AfD poised to win big state election in Germany, Nigel Farage engulfed in new scandal, Pentagon says location data was used to attack US troops **Published:** September 4, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/far-right-afd-poised-to-win-big-state-election-in-germany-nigel-farage-engulfed-in-new-scandal-pentagon-says-location-data-was-used-to-attack-us-troops.md Far-right AfD set to win German state election on Sunday The party, which opposes immigration and favors closer ties with Russia, has a double-digit polling lead in Saxony-Anhalt, a former East German region where many people have felt economically and socially left behind since reunification in 1989. That poses a big dilemma for German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s center-right CDU party, which is polling second in Saxony-Anhalt: it has ruled out a coalition with the AfD, which German intelligence has classified as an “extremist” party. But it’s also rejected cooperation with the far-left Left party, which is currently polling third. To prevent the AfD from forming Germany’s first far-right local government since World War II, Merz may have to make some bitter compromises. And this weekend is just the start of his woes. The AfD, which has surged in national popularity and is now the second-largest party in the Bundestag, is set to make gains in two other upcoming elections in the former East this month as well. Farage in hot water after undercover donations sting Two of Nigel Farage’s aides have stepped down after undercover journalists caught them on camera appearing to arrange clandestine foreign political donations to his far-right party, Reform UK. Another video shows Farage himself thanking the journalists, who posed as an American businessman and his British son, for their support. British law requires disclosure of all political donations and bans contributions from foreign sources. This is not the first time that Farage has come under fire for undisclosed donations. Earlier this summer, he triggered a by-election after an investigation was launched into an undisclosed £5 million ($6.7 million) personal gift from a crypto billionaire. At the party’s annual conference today, Farage said he had “not done anything wrong” and that the new report had been “entrapment.” This latest report could affect his previously high chances of becoming Britain’s next prime minister, with his favorability rating falling to 23% in August. The Pentagon addresses location data vulnerability The US military is disabling advertising trackers on military-issued phones and computers following reports that commercially available location data was used to locate and attack American troops in the Middle East. The Air Force, Army, Navy, and US Special Operations Command have all taken steps to limit the tracking technology known as mobile advertising IDs (MAIDs), which advertisers use to track usage locations and other useful advertising data across users’ devices. It’s not the military’s first run-in with the risks of location tracking. In 2018, the Pentagon restricted the use of GPS on mobile devices in war zones and sensitive locations after US intelligence analysts noted that GPS data from the popular running app Strava inadvertently revealed the locations and layouts of military installations worldwide. --- ### Africa, unshrunk **Published:** September 4, 2026 | **Author:** Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/africa-unshrunk.md Gall-Peters, Mollweide, Eckert IV – take your pick. There are plenty of world maps that show Africa in closer proportion to its true size, and today the UN General Assembly will vote on a resolution encouraging governments, schools, and international organizations to use them. Led by Togo and backed by the African Union, the push targets the centuries-old Mercator projection, which dramatically enlarges landmasses farther from the equator. The vote is nonbinding, but supporters hope it will make more proportional maps the global norm. --- ### You vs. the News: A Weekly News Quiz - September 4, 2026 **Published:** September 4, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Daily | **Section:** Games **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/games/quiz-090426.md Think you know what's going on around the world? Here's your chance to prove it. From Tokyo to London, global bond markets are rattled. What is driving investors to sell off government bonds around the world? A) A better ROI on crypto B) Fears about rising inflation and unsustainable government spending C) NFTs are making a comeback Take the quiz to see if you guessed correctly! --- ### Official Communiqué from the PUPPET REGIME Ministry of Merch! **Published:** September 4, 2026 | **Author:** Puppet Regime Store | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/official-communique-from-the-puppet-regime-ministry-of-merch-puppetregime-090426.md WINTER IS COMING. But Fall is coming first, so be prepared with seasonal items from the Puppet Regime official store. Our top pick: the PUPPET REGIME hoodie, perfect for stormy weather, chill breezes, or clandestine machinations. Available in "can't stop, won't stop" black and "the power of YES" pink. Never mind tariffs, we ship (just about) worldwide (sorry Iran, Russia, and North Korea)! Browse our full collection, which also includes: A big, beautiful mug for drinking coffee... very strongly A handsome tote bag for carrying your most classified documents Collectible stickers for tagging the Regime's many territories. The original Puppet Regime t-shirt -- for those who know. Shop now at shop.puppetregime.tv! --- ### International students sour on the US **Published:** September 3, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson, Alex Kliment, Eileen Zhang | **Section:** Graphic Truth **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth/international-students-sour-on-the-us.md Rrrrinnnng! School bells are blaring as classes get back in session across the northern hemisphere, but something is increasingly absent from US college classrooms: international students. There were 110,000 fewer international student visa applications at US colleges and universities for this academic year than last year, a drop of nearly 10%, according to a new report published by NAFSA, a non-profit focused on international education and exchanges. That comes after two years during which the Trump administration, as part of its push to stem immigration, has increased visa restrictions for students, banned applications from some countries altogether, and revoked more than a thousand international student visas. The administration has argued that tighter restrictions on foreign students are necessary to protect national security, secure intellectual property, and preserve jobs for American citizens. The policies contrast starkly with the Biden administration’s expansion of access for foreign students, creating an atmosphere of uncertainty that has dampened on foreign interest in studying at US institutions. The US still educates more international students than any other country in the world, hosting more than a million of them every year. But its slipping appeal – one study found that the UK is now a more popular destination – can have several important effects. The first is increased financial strain on colleges and universities. International students, who usually pay full - and often inflated - tuition, account for more than 10 percent of revenue at US higher education schools, despite making up just 6% of enrollment. The dropoff in international students has already forced universities across the country to cut thousands of jobs. There may also be “soft power” impacts. The US economy has generally benefitted from the desire of the world’s best and brightest minds to study and conduct research at American universities. Many of the biggest drop offs in foreign enrollment have occurred at the post-graduate level. And when foreign students go home to their countries, they often carry a heightened understanding of American culture and norms, which can help to facilitate cross-border business or political ties later on. --- ### Thousands rally against immigration in Spain, Mexico’s homicide rate falls, Xi pushes for new security framework in Middle East **Published:** September 3, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick, Alex Kliment | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/thousands-rally-against-immigration-in-spain-mexicos-homicide-rate-falls-xi-pushes-for-new-security-framework-in-middle-east.md Immigration protests rock Spain Tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Spain on Wednesday in protest against Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s welcoming immigration policy and his handling of the immigration crisis in the North African Spanish enclave of Ceuta. In July, more than 70,000 people crossed into Ceuta from Morocco in the space of 48 hours. At least 100 people died in the rush, and around 5,000 migrants remain stranded in makeshift camps in Ceuta. At the protests, calls for his resignation were accompanied by signs reading “Sánchez to prison” and “Invaders — go home!” Sánchez has deflected criticism for the crisis toward Russia and Israel, which he has suggested, without clear evidence, spread misinformation about Spain’s migration policy in order to encourage the rush. Frustrations over the crisis now put Sánchez, who has adopted a permissive but polarizing approach to immigration, in a tough spot as he faces re-election next year. Mexico’s murder rate plunges – but questions remain Mexico’s homicide rate has fallen by 50% since 2020, with a notable decline under President Claudia Sheinbaum who has pushed to curb surging violence among powerful drug cartels since taking office in 2024. Her approach – targeting cartel leadership with policing actions while also seeking to address the underlying factors that draw young people into organized crime – contrasts sharply with other regional leaders who have, following the example of El Salvador’s right-wing president Nayib Bukele, embraced tougher security policies centered on mass arrests and incarceration. But how much credit Sheinbaum deserves is up for debate: Some experts argue that shifting cartel dynamics and rivalries have also helped drive down killings. And while homicides have fallen, “disappearances” remain high and controversial – many argue that those who remain missing are in fact dead but will never make it into the homicide statistics. Xi Jinping calls for new Middle East order Chinese president Xi Jinping visited Egypt this week for the first time in a decade, in a trip meant to boost Beijing’s partnership with the Arab world’s most populous country, while also taking a swipe at US missteps in the region. The visit comes amid roiling regional instability, with the US locked in a stalemated war with Iran that has choked off Gulf energy supplies, exposed US allies to retaliatory Iranian strikes, and raised fresh questions about Washington’s role in the region. Standing in Cairo, which is still one of the world’s largest recipients of US military aid, Xi Jinping said the region should take control of its own destiny without “double standards” from “powers outside the region.” But China’s ambition to take on a bigger regional role itself faces an obvious challenge — the US retains a massive military and security presence in the region which China cannot match. --- ### America’s expanding proletariat **Published:** September 3, 2026 | **Author:** Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/americas-expanding-proletariat.md There is no official definition of “working class” – an economist might point to a certain income bracket or education level, while a Marxist might say it includes anyone who has to sell their labor to survive. But in the US now, the label seems to extend well beyond the traditional industrial proletariat – according to the poll, nearly half of college graduates and adults earning more than $200,000 a year consider themselves “working class.” At first gloss that seems strange, but it reflects the fact that concerns about affordability and social mobility now span a much broader spectrum of income and education brackets. --- ### Going to the moon is easier than ever before **Published:** September 3, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World Clips **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips/going-to-the-moon-is-easier-than-ever-before.md More than 50 years after the Apollo missions, advances in engineering have dramatically lowered the cost of reaching the Moon. But cheaper spaceflight isn’t the only thing that has changed. On GZERO World, astronaut Chris Hadfield tells Ian Bremmer how new technology and the discovery of vast reserves of frozen water near the lunar poles have changed the possibilities for exploration. With near-constant sunlight and potentially billions of gallons of water available, the Moon could be far more hospitable to a long-term human presence than scientists understood during the Apollo era. --- ### Germany accuses Russia of planning drone attack, New UK PM lays out his plan, US and Iran return to fighting but remain in a deadlock **Published:** September 2, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/germany-accuses-russia-of-planning-drone-attack-new-uk-pm-lays-out-his-plan-us-and-iran-return-to-fighting-but-remain-in-a-deadlock.md Germany and EU to hit back at Russia over drone plot The German government has formally accused Russia of orchestrating a failed drone attack at Leipzig airport last month. The drone, which approached a cargo plane that was taking weapons to Ukraine, failed to explode as planned. In response, Berlin will shrink Russia’s diplomatic presence in Germany and tighten visa restrictions. The EU, meanwhile, will hold a special meeting on countering increasing instances of Russian “hybrid warfare” and sabotage in Europe. Moscow denied the accusations and said it was “an unprecedented escalation in Russian-German relations.” Rising Berlin-Moscow tensions create an awkward split-screen inside Germany, as the Moscow-friendly rightwing populist AfD party, which is strongest in eastern areas of Germany that were once under Soviet domination, holds a commanding polling lead in two of the three key German local elections coming up this month. Burnham sets out plan as PM Britain’s new Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Tuesday addressed the House of Commons (the UK’s lower house) for the first time since taking power. In the speech, he set out his vision for his term, and blamed Brexit, deindustrialization, and the 1980s privatizations under PM Margaret Thatcher for the country’s current economic malaise. He called for reclaiming public control of services and utilities, decentralizing political power, addressing the climate crisis, and increasing defense spending, while also introducing measures to ease the cost of living. Despite being one of the UK’s most popular politicians (46% of Britons have a favorable opinion of him), he will quickly face tough tradeoffs as he seeks to advance an ambitious agenda without blowing out the budget. The global bond selloff is already reducing his room to issue more debt, and he’ll be in trouble fast if he reverses his predecessor’s pledge not to raise income taxes. US and Iran trade big blows again The US and Iran traded blows overnight in their biggest escalation since July. Iran launched missiles at US targets across the region while Tehran said a US strike had hit a wedding in Hormozgan province in southern Iran. Just last week, President Donald Trump said Washington would prioritize economic pressure to force Tehran back to the negotiating table, but Iran, which has signaled it believes it can wait out Trump’s presidency, has not moderated its positions since. Despite signing a memorandum of understanding in June, which envisioned a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as prelude to a wider deal on Iran’s nuclear program and regional posture, the two sides remain deadlocked. Trump wants to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to ease inflation ahead of the midterms, but is reluctant to fully resume a deeply unpopular war. Iran seeks to avoid full scale war again, but wants to preserve its critical strategic hold over Hormuz. --- ### China’s solar eclipse of the US **Published:** September 2, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/chinas-solar-eclipse-of-the-us.md China now produces more power via solar than coal for the first time ever, with rays of the sun accounting for more than 30% of the country’s total installed power generation, according to Chinese state TV. China, which remains the world’s leading overall greenhouse gas emitter, has leaned heavily into renewable energy installation and generation in recent years and is now the global leader in wind and solar power. --- ### Invested in America’s legacy **Published:** September 1, 2026 | **Author:** Bank of America | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/invested-in-americas-legacy-boa-090326.md When iconic art from America’s History needs preserving, we are there. See how we're investing in America. --- ### Bond investors continue sell off, Israel looks to LatAm for new friends, Brazilian presidential candidates push for data centers **Published:** September 1, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/bond-investors-continue-sell-off-israel-looks-to-latam-for-new-friends-brazilian-presidential-candidates-push-for-data-centers.md Global bond-fire rages as investors fret about inflation Investors around the world are selling off government bonds amid concerns about rising inflation and unsustainable spending by some large economies. The yield on 10-year bonds issued by Japan, for example, has reached its highest level in 30 years as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pushes a new debt-fueled spending amid rising inflation. UK bonds have also soared amid inflation concerns. Refresher: A bond’s yield, expressed as a percentage of its current market price, gets higher when its market value falls. Investors sell bonds when they’re worried that a government can’t manage its debt or spending, or when they believe the central bank will raise interest rates again, meaning that new bonds will pay higher interest rates than existing ones. With the war in Iran continuing to push up energy and food prices, investors expect major central banks to raise rates again soon. Israel racks up friends in Latin America On Tuesday, Israel and Colombia scrapped visa requirements for each other’s tourists. It’s the latest move by Colombia’s new rightwing president Abelardo de la Espriella to build ties with the Jewish state. Last week he recognized Israel’s disputed sovereignty over the Golan Heights. This is all a big change: under his left-wing predecessor Gustavo Petro, Bogotá slashed ties with Israel over its military action in Gaza. But it reflects a bigger trend: Israel’s widening inroads with the (re)ascendant Latin American right — the rightwing leaders of Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Honduras, and El Salvador are all friends of Israel. Israel’s global isolation may be growing, and it remains unpopular among Latin Americans broadly. But right-leaning Latin Americans specifically hold the country in high esteem, either out of admiration for what they see as Israel’s strong security policies, or because of Israel’s legacy of support for the Latin American right during the Cold War. Brazil’s presidential candidates agree on one thing: data centers While data centers have become a contentious topic in the US ahead of the midterms, Brazil’s presidential frontrunners are embracing them. Both left-wing incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and right-wing challenger Flávio Bolsonaro have made attracting new data center investment part of their plans to boost Latin America’s largest economy. Lula has emphasized data sovereignty and foreign investment, while Bolsonaro is pushing for massive tax breaks on imported computer chips to attract international investors. Brazil has one key advantage: an abundant supply of renewable energy, which accounts for more than 88% of its electricity, making it an attractive market for the energy-intensive industry. The push has faced some backlash, particularly from Indigenous groups who are worried about the environmental impact, but nothing like the opposition seen in the US, where 71% of Americans oppose data center construction in their area. --- ### All eyez on the verdict **Published:** September 1, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/all-eyez-on-the-verdict.md For three decades, Shakur’s death remained one of America’s most famous cold cases, spawning dozens of conspiracy theories but no conviction. That changed yesterday, when a Las Vegas court found Duane “Keffe D” Davis, a former gang leader, guilty of orchestrating the murder, which came amid crisscrossing tensions between Los Angeles gangs and an East Coast vs. West Coast hip hop rivalry of the 1990s. Shakur was just 25 and at the height of his global fame when he was shot and killed. Three decades later, his music and political commentary remain influential. --- ### Nigeria’s economic gains collide with a kidnapping boom **Published:** September 1, 2026 | **Author:** Tasha Kheiriddin | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/nigerias-economic-gains-collide-with-a-kidnapping-boom.md The Nigerian economy is on a hot streak. New data published on Monday showed a 4.4% year-over-year expansion in the second quarter of 2026, up from 3.9% in the first. Oil production rose from 1.6 million to 1.7 million barrels per day, while fuel exports climbed amid higher prices and global demand fueled by the Iran war. But the non-oil economy, which accounts for the majority of Nigeria’s real GDP, also accelerated, led by services, agriculture, information and communication, growing 4.3%, up from 3.9% in the previous quarter. Together, they helped deliver Nigeria’s fastest growth in five years. But as the economy in Africa’s most populous country expands, so does one of its most lucrative criminal industries: kidnapping. According to Lagos-based risk consultancy SBM Intelligence, 7,825 people were kidnapped in Nigeria between July 2025 and June 2026, a 66% increase over the previous year. At least 1,142 people were killed in kidnapping incidents, while confirmed ransom payments more than tripled to nearly $5.8 million. The attacks are growing in scale, as mass abduction becomes the “new normal,” according to SBM. Last week, gunmen stormed communities around the district of Dekera in north-central Niger State, killing villagers and abducting worshippers from mosques. An armed group later released a video purporting to show roughly 600 captives, including women, children, and elderly people. While officials have yet to confirm the figures, they would make the kidnapping one of the largest in Nigeria’s recent history. The violence presents a stark contrast with Nigeria’s economic gains – and could ultimately threaten them. A boom that many Nigerians can’t feel. President Bola Tinubu has won praise for a series of market-friendly reforms. Since taking office in 2023, Tinubu has scrapped Nigeria’s costly fuel subsidy, liberalized the foreign-exchange market, which increased access to capital, and introduced electricity tariffs to eliminate chronic deficits in the power sector. The reforms have boosted the naira, Nigeria’s currency, by 5% against the dollar this year and helped stabilize public finances. Nigeria’s stock index has risen 52% in 2026, making it the world’s fourth-best performer. The IMF projects Nigeria will be the sixth largest contributor to total world output, ahead of the economies of Germany, Brazil and Indonesia. But that prosperity is not equally shared – and has come at a cost. Higher currency and market prices for electricity have sent the prices of food, water, electricity, fuel, and transport costs soaring. Sixty-three percent of Nigerians live below the national poverty line, while nearly 30 million face food insecurity, according to the IMF. In the north, where most of the kidnappings are concentrated, the United Nations’ World Food Program found that over 17 million people across nine states “are experiencing crisis, emergency, or catastrophic levels of hunger.” Tinubu has even been nicknamed “T-pain” as food costs rise. Cattle traders turned bandits. That cost-of-living crisis, rural underemployment, and the prospect of “easy money” from kidnapping ransoms have helped fuel a boom in abductions, and made kidnappings a lucrative business for bandit groups. The story is also one of ethnic and sectarian conflict. Most bandits belong to the Fulani ethnic group, who are predominantly Muslim and traditionally make their living by raising animals. Their livelihoods have come under growing pressure: Climate change has reduced traditional grazing grounds, while the practice of cattle rustling, in which criminal gangs steal animals from cattle herders, has plunged entire communities into poverty. Conflicts with farmers, who mostly belong to majority Christian ethnic groups, exacerbate the problem, as grazing lands are converted into farmland. Weak state security has allowed that violence to flourish. So has the presence of jihadist organizations such as Boko Haram, which made international headlines for the abduction of over 200 Chibok schoolgirls in 2014. The group has had success in recruiting young people with few other prospects in the northern Lake Chad area with promises of steady income. SBM estimates that a Boko Haram faction collected roughly 90% of the recorded ransom money paid in northeastern Nigeria over the past year. The hidden tax on Nigeria’s growth. The IMF warned this year that a deterioration in domestic security could impact oil production, fiscal and export revenues by deterring investment, and aggravate poverty and food insecurity. Kidnapping for ransom also allows criminal networks to buy arms for further attacks and perpetuate a cycle of violence. That disruption is concerning because Nigeria needs growth at a faster rate than 4% to lift millions of people out of poverty – even double digits, according to some economists. Tinubu had set a goal of 7% by 2027, but reaching that goal would require huge amounts of domestic and foreign investment – precisely the kind that worsening security could deter. Can Tinubu turn things around? Tinubu is now facing pressure to improve security. His government has ordered rescue operations, including one that freed over 300 captives in early August, as well as another recent one for kidnapped members of the National Youth Corps in Kogi state. This week, Defense Minister General Christopher Gwabin Musa reiterated a pledge to increase resources for Nigeria’s Armed Forces and other security agencies. The timing may be no accident: security promises to be a major issue in Nigeria’s national elections in January. If Tinubu wants to remain in power and reassure foreign investors, clamping down on kidnapping would be an effective means of doing both. --- ### What's it like to sleep in space? **Published:** September 1, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World Clips **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips/what-s-it-like-to-sleep-in-space.md What’s it actually like to sleep in space? After spending nearly six months aboard the International Space Station, Chris Hadfield says it’s one of the most comfortable parts of life in orbit – no mattress, pillow, or rolling over required. On GZERO World, Hadfield tells Ian Bremmer what it feels like to sleep in zero gravity and how circling the planet every 90 minutes gave him a new perspective on Earth. After traveling around the world roughly 2,600 times, he says seeing its borders, geography, and immense history from above left him with a deeper sense of our shared humanity – and greater optimism about its future. --- ### Microsoft’s 2026 Responsible AI Transparency Report **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** Microsoft | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/microsofts-2026-responsible-ai-transparency-report-msft-090226.md Microsoft recently released its 2026 Responsible AI Transparency Report, highlighting how its responsible AI program is evolving to address emerging opportunities and risks as AI capabilities become more powerful and autonomous. The report outlines new approaches to governance, evaluation, and oversight designed to help organizations deploy AI responsibly while maintaining trust, security, and accountability. The report also examines how governance is evolving alongside agentic AI, including updates to Microsoft's Responsible AI Standard and greater emphasis on continuous evaluation, monitoring, and controls that help organizations manage increasingly dynamic and interconnected AI systems. Read more here. --- ### Lack of AI governance is a real threat **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** Quick Take **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/quick-take/lack-of-ai-governance-is-a-real-threat.md In his latest Quick Take, Ian Bremmer examines why artificial intelligence has become one of the most politically charged issues in America — and why almost nobody is actually governing it. AI and the data centers powering it are now driving a significant share of US economic growth, but public skepticism is rising fast. Some of that resistance is straightforward nimbyism: concerns about zoning, energy costs, and eyesores, while some reflects a deeper distrust of the tech CEOs and hyperscalers benefiting most from the buildout. Politics plays a role too, as critics tie Trump to the billionaires who backed him, and disinformation from actors like Chinese bot farms further muddies the debate. Ian remains a longtime proponent of AI's potential, but argues that the near-total absence of governance is becoming untenable, pointing to a recent incident in which OpenAI agents escaped a sandbox environment and infiltrated Hugging Face, illustrating what's known as the "paperclip problem," where an AI single-mindedly pursuing one goal can produce dangerous, unintended consequences. Even more striking, over a thousand employees at frontier AI companies — along with figures like Bill Gates have urged the US government to slow development down. "I'm increasingly convinced that they are right, but that doesn't mean it's going to happen," Bremmer says. With political leaders lacking expertise, companies unwilling to self-regulate, and China showing no signs of pausing its own AI race, Bremmer warns that the risks of unchecked AI development are growing faster than our ability to understand them. --- ### Hormuz Crisis SOLVED with stroke of a pen! **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** Puppet Regime **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/puppet-regime/hormuz-crisis-solved-with-stroke-of-a-pen.md All it took was the stroke of a pen. Watch more PUPPET REGIME! --- ### The US stakes its claim on Venezuelan oil fields, Greece inks a massive weapons deal with Israel, Russia comes to Niger’s rescue **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/the-us-stakes-its-claim-on-venezuelan-oil-fields-greece-inks-a-massive-weapons-deal-with-israel-russia-comes-to-nigers-rescue.md US strikes controversial Venezuela oil deal The US government will take a majority stake in a new company that has the rights to develop 65 million barrels of Venezuelan crude, or about one-fifth of the country’s total proven reserves. The deal aims to secure massive investment in the dilapidated Venezuelan oil industry, boost US energy security, and yield huge new tax revenues for the Venezuelan government to spend on economic development. But it’s controversial. There is little precedent for one government having such direct control over another country’s oil resources. The deal was also struck with Venezuelan acting president Delcy Rodriguez, installed under duress by Washington after the US deposed her former boss, strongman Nicolás Maduro. That lack of democratic legitimacy surrounding a matter of such critical importance to Venezuela’s economy and society could poison the deal under future governments or administrations. It is already unpopular both among Venezuelan hardliners who see it as a capitulation, and among Venezuela’s opposition, which sees it as illegitimate. Greece and Israel sign “Achilles Shield” defense deal Greece has signed a deal with Israel on Monday worth $3.5 billion for a multi-layered air defense system – one of the largest defense agreements in Israel’s history, according to Israel’s Defense Ministry. The “Achilles Shield” feeds into Greece’s push for military modernization and growth in domestic defense manufacturing, with Greek companies’ participation accounting for roughly $870 million of the project. Greece is already one of NATO’s top spenders, contributing 3.1% of its GDP to defense in 2024. However, a tense relationship with neighboring Turkey, with which it shares a long-disputed sea border, coupled with its being partially within reach of Iranian medium- and long-range missiles, has driven an interest in strengthening its security. Israel has also significantly ramped up its weapons sales after its combat-proven systems have generated strong international demand, overtaking the United Kingdom in March as the world’s seventh biggest weapons exporter. Russia to the rescue for Niger’s junta Niger’s military junta survived a mutiny over the weekend from Russian forces stationed in the country. Gunfire erupted in the capital city of Niamey late Friday after soldiers took loyalist troops hostage at an air base and attacked government forces near the presidential palace. That sparked an hours-long standoff before Russia’s Africa Corps, a Kremlin-controlled paramilitary force, stepped in to help put down the uprising. The mutineers were reportedly frustrated by Niger’s security situation, which has deteriorated since the military seized power in a 2023 coup. It’s the second time in recent months that Russian forces have helped prop up a military government in the region, after assisting Mali’s junta during an attack in May. The episode is another sign of Moscow’s growing influence in the Sahel, where as many as 2,000 Russian mercenaries are now stationed across Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, allowing Moscow to pursue resource deals and fill a vacuum left by retreating Western powers. --- ### Big win in the Little League World Series **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/big-win-in-the-little-league-world-series.md It’s the second time Curaçao has won the Little League World Series, a global tournament for baseball teams of 10- to 12-year-olds. The tiny Caribbean nation of 150,000 people — once a Dutch colony and still affiliated with the Kingdom of the Netherlands — is an unexpected baseball powerhouse. The sport was introduced by Dominican and Venezuelan immigrants in the 1930s, and today Curaçao is the largest per-capita exporter of Major League Baseball players of any country in the world. Earlier this summer, 1990s star Andruw Jones, one of the greatest center-fielders ever to play the game, became the first Curaçao-born player to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Pabien to Curaçao! --- ### The US and China are racing to settle the moon **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World Clips **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips/the-us-and-china-are-racing-to-settle-the-moon.md A new space race is taking shape, and this time the goal isn’t simply getting to the Moon – it’s establishing a lasting presence there. On GZERO World, Ian Bremmer speaks with astronaut Chris Hadfield about the growing competition over the Moon and what history can teach us about managing it. Hadfield points to Antarctica and the International Space Station as examples of rivals finding ways to cooperate, even amid geopolitical tensions. With the US-backed Artemis Accords and China’s International Lunar Research Station attracting separate groups of partners, Hadfield says the challenge now is getting competing powers to the table and establishing rules for humanity’s future beyond Earth. --- ### The Strait Escape **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson, Tim Rickard | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/the-strait-of-hormuz-escape.md Six months into the Iran war, oil exporters are finding ways to bypass Hormuz Scroll to read https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb." target="_blank">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb." target="_blank">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb.." target="_blank">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb..." width="100%"> --- ### The Strait Escape **Published:** August 31, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/interactive/the-strait-escape.md Six months into the Iran war, oil exporters are finding ways to bypass Hormuz Scroll to read by Natalie Johnson and Tim Rickard https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3799883/" target="_blank" rel="noopener 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noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb.." target="_blank">https://public.flourish.studio/story/3803353/thumb..." width="100%"> --- ### Humanity's next giant leap in space exploration **Published:** August 30, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World with Ian Bremmer **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-with-ian-bremmer/next-in-space-exploration.md More than 50 years after the Apollo missions, humanity is entering a new era of space exploration. Falling launch costs, private companies, and the discovery of water on the Moon are making a permanent human presence beyond Earth more realistic than ever. On GZERO World, Ian Bremmer sits down with astronaut Chris Hadfield to discuss what it will take to return to the Moon – and stay there. They explore the growing competition between the US and China, whether the Moon can avoid becoming the next geopolitical battleground, and how countries might establish rules for settling and developing the lunar surface. Hadfield also explains how private companies are transforming spaceflight, the technological hurdles to building permanent lunar settlements, why humans will eventually need to make the journey to Mars, and what spending nearly six months aboard the International Space Station taught him about life on Earth. --- ### The race to build humanity's future in space, with Chris Hadfield **Published:** August 29, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World with Ian Bremmer Podcast **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/podcast/gzero-world-podcast/the-race-to-build-humanity-s-future-in-space-with-chris-hadfield.md More than half a century after humans last walked on the Moon, the next era of space exploration is taking shape. Getting there is cheaper, private companies are playing a much bigger role, and discoveries like vast reserves of lunar water have made the prospect of establishing a permanent presence on the Moon far more realistic. Ian Bremmer sits down with Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield to talk about what this new space age could look like. They discuss the growing competition between the US and China, whether rivals can cooperate on the lunar surface, and who gets to write the rules as governments and companies begin looking beyond simply planting a flag. Hadfield also breaks down the practical challenges of living on the Moon – from powering a settlement through long lunar nights to the unanswered question of whether humans can develop normally in low gravity. He explains how private companies are turning space into a commercial marketplace, why regulation will inevitably struggle to keep pace, and why robots alone can never satisfy humanity’s drive to explore Mars. And drawing on nearly six months aboard the International Space Station, Hadfield reflects on the surprisingly wonderful experience of sleeping in zero gravity, circling Earth 2,600 times, and how seeing the planet from above fundamentally changed his perspective on humanity and our place in the universe. --- ### The race to build on the Moon **Published:** August 28, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Staff | **Section:** GZERO World Clips **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-world-clips/the-race-to-build-on-the-moon.md Humanity is heading back to the Moon, but this time the goal is bigger than planting a flag. Cheaper launches and the potential discovery of usable lunar water could make permanent settlements possible – and turn the Moon into a valuable economic and strategic prize. Ian Bremmer breaks down the new race for the Moon, from NASA’s Artemis program and the rise of commercial spaceflight to competing US and Chinese visions for the lunar surface. With existing treaties offering few answers about permanent settlements and infrastructure, who will write the rules – and can the Moon avoid becoming the next geopolitical battleground? --- ### Iceland votes on restarting EU talks, Ebola vaccinations begin in DRC, US wants a huge stake in Venezuelan oil fields **Published:** August 28, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick, Alex Kliment | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/iceland-votes-on-restarting-eu-talks-ebola-vaccinations-begin-in-drc-us-wants-a-huge-stake-in-venezuelan-oil-fields.md Iceland votes on restarting EU accession talks Polls remain tight as Iceland holds a referendum tomorrow on whether to restart EU accession talks. Membership has long been a divisive topic on the island, which gained independence from Denmark in 1944 and remains fiercely protective of its sovereignty. During previous talks, the bloc’s fisheries policy, which grants EU members access to each other’s waters, was a major sticking point: fisheries were worth around $8.8 billion in 2023, roughly a fifth of Iceland’s economy. But many Icelanders have a new concern. Threats from US President Donald Trump to annex Greenland, which he has previously confused with Iceland, revived interest in joining the union thanks to its shared defense agreement, as well as hopes that joining the Eurozone might help stabilize Iceland’s high cost of living. Unlike a Brexit-style vote, the referendum isn’t a final decision. Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir characterizes voting “yes” as the chance to find out what kind of deal Iceland can get. Final terms would also be voted on by Icelanders. Vaccines land in the DRC as outbreak continues at record pace Vaccination efforts against the rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo kicked off on Thursday. The World Health Organization has approved 70,000 doses of the Ervebo vaccine, which was used during the 2014 to 2016 West African outbreak. While the vaccine has proved effective against Ebola in the past, it’s unclear how well it will work against Bundibugyo, the rare strain of Ebola driving the current outbreak. Of the available doses, 50,000 will be reserved for first responders and healthcare workers, while the remaining 20,000 will be used in a clinical trial to assess the vaccine’s effectiveness against the new strain. The stakes are high: The outbreak, already the deadliest the DRC has ever seen, is on pace to become the deadliest in the entire history of the virus, with the country reporting 2,744 deaths so far. US aiming for direct stakes in Venezuela’s oil The Trump administration has been angling for the US to take ownership of Venezuela’s oil reserves, according to a new report by Axios. Venezuela holds the largest proven oil reserves of any country on earth, though the oil is heavy and especially difficult to refine. The report doesn’t detail the precise mechanism of control — would Washington own the oil directly or perhaps create a consortium with public and private companies? The arrangement reportedly would last for 100 years and would vastly increase US energy security. But it could generate significant backlash from Venezuelans. There is little precedent for the government of one sovereign country to directly own the oil resources of another. (One close parallel is what the UK did in Persia in the early 20th century.) US Energy Secretary Chris Wright may be in Caracas as soon as next week to announce a deal. --- ### Denmark pays for its past **Published:** August 28, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/denmark-pays-for-its-past.md The new law will offer those affected a one-time payment of 300,000 Danish kroner, or around $47,000, following a landmark report last year by officials in Denmark and Greenland. Greenlandic women and girls as young as 12 were implanted with IUDs, often without their consent or knowledge, sometimes leaving them infertile. The Danish government at the time hoped to slow population growth on the island, which now has a population of around 57,000. It also comes as Denmark looks to strengthen relations with Greenland, after repeated threats from US President Donald Trump to annex the semiautonomous Danish territory. The Danish government gave an official apology for the contraception scandal last year. --- ### You vs. the News: A Weekly News Quiz - August 28, 2026 **Published:** August 28, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Daily | **Section:** Games **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/games/quiz-082826.md Think you know what's going on around the world? Here's your chance to prove it. Vladimir Putin is known for carefully staged displays of physical strength. Which of the following was part of one of his famous photo ops? A) 100-meter sprint against Volodymyr Zelensky B) A shirtless horseback ride C) A choreographed solo moonwalk at the Kremlin's annual New Year gala Take the quiz to see if you guessed correctly! --- ### Show your undying devotion to The Regime **Published:** August 28, 2026 | **Author:** Puppet Regime Store | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/show-your-undying-devotion-to-the-regime-puppetregime-082826.md Check out the latest swag from the official Puppet Regime merchandise store! Browse an array of products that will show the world you are a devoted subject of the Regime, including: A big, beautiful mug for drinking coffee very strongly A handsome tote bag to carry your favorite classified documents Collectible stickers Stylish t-shirts and hoodies – now also available in pink We ship worldwide! Shop now at shop.puppetregime.tv! --- ### Devastation in Nepal and China after flash flood, Tanzania’s political infighting tests its political stability, French presidential candidates face off in first debate **Published:** August 27, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson, Will Fitzpatrick, Alex Kliment | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/devastation-in-nepal-and-china-after-flash-flood-tanzanias-political-infighting-tests-its-political-stability-french-presidential-candidates-face-off-in-first-debate.md Catastrophic flooding in Nepal tests its young, new leader A massive wall of mud and rock crashed into a river along Nepal’s Himalayan border with Tibet on Wednesday, triggering catastrophic flooding that swept away bridges, destroyed buildings, and swamped roads. Over 300 people were killed, and over 1,000 remain missing – including hundreds of foreign tourists – with officials warning that the death toll is likely to rise. The disaster poses a daunting recovery challenge for Nepal, one of Asia’s poorest and slowest-growing economies, which is already struggling with high fuel costs driven by the war in Iran. It is also a major test for Balen Shah, the country’s 36-year-old prime minister, who took office just five months ago after a wave of Gen Z frustration with the political establishment. Shah is visiting Nuwakot, one of the hardest-hit districts, today, and floods will be an early marker of whether his political appeal is matched by his ability to steer through a crisis. President and VP infighting threatens Tanzania’s political stability Tanzania’s reputation for political stability is being tested after former Vice President Emmanuel Nchimbi, who resigned earlier this week, was expelled from the ruling party in an apparent act of retaliation. Nchimbi stepped down amid continued fallout from President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s contentious election victory last October. Her government was accused of using security forces to suppress protests over the jailing of her main rival, Tundu Lissu, and 518 people were reportedly killed in the violence. Tensions between Nchimbi and Hassan’s ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) had escalated in recent weeks after he urged Tanzanians to “fight for a new constitution.” Tanzania is regarded as one of the most politically stable countries in East Africa and technically has a multiparty democratic system. In practice, the CCM and its predecessor have governed continuously since independence in 1961 and lacks strong opposition. Infighting within the CCM is rare, and human rights experts say the government is sliding towards repressive tactics. With center caving, France holds first presidential debate The country’s seven leading presidential hopefuls will answer questions about the economy today at the first debate ahead of the 2027 vote. The key issue? How to rein in France’s spiraling budget deficit and revive an increasingly moribund economy. Business-friendly centrists are flailing in the polls, which show right-winger Marine Le Pen with a commanding lead at nearly 40%, while far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, at 16 to 17%, is increasingly likely to make it to a runoff against her. In most scenarios, Le Pen wins in the end. Tonight’s debate comes against the backdrop of Mélenchon’s popular call for the European Central Bank to stop receiving interest payments on its holdings of French sovereign debt, a plan which has spooked foreign investors in the EU’s second-largest economy. --- ### A big settlement for Big Tech **Published:** August 27, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/a-big-settlement-for-big-tech.md The Facebook and Instagram owner settled with 47 states, the District of Columbia, and US territories on Wednesday, agreeing to pay financial penalties and make changes to its products over claims that its platforms endangered children. Meta agreed to limit how long teenagers can spend on its apps, allow teens to turn off “autoplay" on videos, and invest more in age-verification software. That last measure could be particularly important: Australia became the first country to ban social media for teens last year but has struggled to enforce the ban while young people find workarounds. After the settlement, Meta said in a blog post that it was “building on our longstanding efforts to empower parents and support teens.” --- ### The UN’s “major donor syndrome” **Published:** August 27, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/the-uns-major-donor-syndrome.md On August 4, the Trump administration notified Congress of its intent to pay the United Nations $725 million – less than a fifth of the roughly $4 billion the UN says the United States owes in unpaid membership dues. It will also pay $125 million towards UN peacekeeping operations in Haiti and the Democratic Republic of Congo, although it was asked to contribute $1.5 billion to peacekeeping in 2025. This comes as the UN faces what Secretary General António Guterres called an “imminent financial collapse” due to unpaid fees and is undergoing a significant cost-cutting exercise. It has cut its budget by 9% this year and is moving thousands of jobs away from expensive cities like Geneva and New York. Even so, the shortfall has left the UN struggling to fund human rights projects in 87 countries including Ukraine, Sudan, Gaza, Haiti, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo – last year, they observed over 1,300 trials, supported 67,000 torture victims, and helped release 4,000 people from arbitrary detention. A significant part of the UN’s funding problem comes down to a very small number of countries. Just two members – the US and China – account for 42% of the UN’s regular budget, contributing 22% and 20% respectively. China also currently owes around $455 million. That concentration creates what Raphaël Viana David, a program manager at the International Service for Human Rights who researches UN funding, called “major donor syndrome”: the biggest contributors expect to see their priorities better reflected across the organization. For example, his research found instances of China and Russia blocking or cutting funding to UN investigations into human rights abuses, which they see as infringing on state sovereignty. How does the UN decide who pays? Fees are shared among member states by the Committee for Contributions, largely based on each country’s share of the global economy and their ability to pay, said Brett Schaefer, who was a member of that committee from 2019 to 2021. These numbers are then adjusted according to a set of factors including GDP per capita and debt burden. China, which has a high share of the global economy but low GDP per capita due to its population size, has previously seen its fees reduced to account for this. Who has the power? In January, US President Donald Trump issued an executive order withdrawing from dozens of UN bodies that he called “contrary to the interests of the United States” and cut millions of dollars in voluntary funding. “The US is embracing a very disruptive and a very anti-system position,” Viana David said. Despite those cuts, the US remains the largest contributor to the regular UN budget and has used that financial weight as leverage, repeatedly withholding payments to push for organizational reforms. For example, Washington told the UN in April that it would not release the billions of dollars it owes unless the UN cut costs and made changes to counter China’s influence in the organization. Viana David explained this as part of a broader shift in the US approach: not abandoning the UN, but pushing for a smaller organization more closely aligned with US priorities – “a trimmed-down UN that is more palatable to the US.” China has pushed back against that pressure, instead pointing to Washington’s unpaid dues. Its UN mission said in April that the “root cause” of the financial difficulties facing the UN was the unpaid fees from “its largest contributor” – the US. However, Schaefer said that the two aren’t unreasonable for wanting more control over what they pay. Budgets and contributions are often voted on by countries with little “financial skin in the game,” Schaefer said, explaining that “the obligations or the implications financially for those decisions are not necessarily distributed.” What can the UN do? The UN’s only real lever is Article 19 of its charter, which strips a member state of its vote if it owes more than two years’ unpaid fees to the regular UN budget, which excludes voluntary contributions to other UN agencies, such as UNICEF or the WHO. But even if applied, Schaefer said Article 19’s impact would be more symbolic than practical: the rule would affect only the UN General Assembly, not bodies such as the Security Council, where the US holds a permanent seat regardless. And votes at the General Assembly are rarely close, coming down to a one-vote margin just a few times in UN history – in 2003 in an 80-79 vote on human cloning, and again in 2007 in a 79-78 vote condemning human rights abuses in Iran. What comes next? Although the US and China pay a significant share of the UN’s budget, Viana David emphasized that the countries that contribute the remaining 58% shouldn’t be forgotten. He pointed to the EU as a possible bloc – which collectively funds 22.3% of the budget – to challenge the dominance of the US and China by coordinating amongst its 27 member states to present a unified position. In 2025, EU members voted against Russia and the US to pass a resolution condemning the war in Ukraine, which passed. “We need middle ground states to really step up… and reaffirm their support to the UN and to multilateralism and to be bold in the reform that they undertake to ensure that the organization does not depend on hegemonic powers,” Viana David said. Schaefer also said that the UN could seek to diversify its funding by spreading costs among members, making it less vulnerable to missed payments from any individual state. For now, though, two countries continue to exert an outsized influence on what the UN can achieve, depending on how much they are prepared to pay – even though each officially gets just one vote at the assembly. “What is the future of an organization where 42% of the budget is in the hands of only two countries, and those two countries are clearly seeking to wield influence?” Viana David asked. “Are we still, at UN, one country, one vote, or is influence commensurate to your ability to pay?” --- ### Celebrating America 250 **Published:** August 26, 2026 | **Author:** Bank of America | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/celebrating-america-250-boa-082726.md America’s next chapter is being built now. Bank of America is mobilizing $250 billion over the next 18 months to help finance the infrastructure behind it. Learn more. --- ### Kurdish SDF and new Syrian government find common ground, Gangs in Haiti push into new territory, Colombia’s new president cracks down on immigration **Published:** August 26, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Will Fitzpatrick, Lottie Tellyn | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/kurdish-sdf-and-new-syrian-government-find-common-ground-gangs-in-haiti-push-into-new-territory-colombias-new-president-cracks-down-on-immigration.md Syria’s main Kurdish militia disbands Some of our readers may recall German sociologist Max Weber’s famous definition of a state as having “a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence.” Well, now you can watch that monopoly expanding in real time in Syria as the country’s main Kurdish militia, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), has officially dissolved itself. The move, agreed several months ago with the Islamist-led government of Ahmed al-Sharaa, the former jihadist who overthrew the Assad dictatorship in late 2024, marks a major step forward in stabilizing and strengthening the new Syrian state. The SDF fighters, who once controlled vast swathes of territory in Northern Syria and were critical in the fight against ISIS, will now be integrated with the Syrian army. Across the border in Turkey, meanwhile, the main Kurdish rebel group, the PKK, has also agreed to disband — marking a broader move away from militancy among the region’s key Kurdish groups. Gang violence in Haiti reaches the last safe enclave Gang violence continues to wreak havoc in Haiti, with 47 people killed near the capital of Port-au-Prince on Sunday night. This includes 22 people reportedly killed inside a church in Kenscoff, an affluent suburb that is home to embassies and was believed to be insulated from the violence unfolding in the capital. Gangs now control roughly 90% of Port-au-Prince, and have significantly expanded their grip since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. International efforts by the UN and the United States to deploy a large security force haven’t made a significant impact, and experts say the latest attacks are a warning from gangs against further foreign intervention. The violence also comes at a critical moment for Haiti, which is scheduled to hold its first election in a decade this December. Colombia’s new president vows immigration crackdown As Colombia grapples with the aftermath of a 7.4 magnitude earthquake earlier this month, its new president is turning his attention to immigration. President Abelardo de la Espriella announced this week that he would begin cracking down on irregular migration, or people in the country without permits. Approximately 90% of migrants to Colombia, around 2.8 million people, come from Venezuela, which has lost nearly a fifth of its population in the last decade as people fled the repressive regime and a shrinking economy. De la Espriella came into office after four years of Gustavo Petro’s left-wing leadership, and echoes the right-wing rhetoric of US President Donald Trump and Salvadorian President Nayib Bukele. He promised to put “Colombians first” in the first concrete policy of Colombia’s rightward swing. Human rights groups warned that the crackdown would end a long-running policy which has allowed people to flee the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela. --- ### Fired up **Published:** August 26, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/fired-up.md For years, an economically booming China built more gas-fired power plants each year than the US. But now that trend has reversed, as US construction of this type of plant surged by 76% this year. The main driver of the gas-fired plant boom is the staggering electricity demand of AI data centers. Gas is cleaner than coal, of course, but it is still a fossil fuel. Some estimates warn that data centers’ power demand could push up US power-related greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 20%. The US’s main AI competitor, China, by contrast, has leaned into renewables, like solar and hydropower, for its own data centers, betting that the trade-off of less immediate power generation in favor of more long-term sustainability is worth it. --- ### The case of the missing world leader **Published:** August 26, 2026 | **Author:** Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** GZERO Reports **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/gzero-reports/the-case-of-the-missing-world-leader.md On June 7, Cameroonian President Paul Biya left the country for what his office described as a “brief private stay in Europe.” Then he didn’t come back – for 73 days. As the weeks passed with little information about the 93-year-old president’s whereabouts, rumors swirled about his health. Opposition figures questioned whether the country was effectively running on autopilot and even called for an interim leader. Finally, on August 20, Biya returned to Cameroon, waving to supporters from his motorcade in the country’s capital, Yaoundé, and presented a trophy to the national women’s soccer team three days later as if it were business as usual. Biya’s long absence highlights something that can be easy to overlook in politics: visibility can be a tool for world leaders. Public appearances aren’t always just photo ops. They can be a way to project health, authority, and control. That’s especially true for aging leaders, whose physical condition can quickly become a question about the stability of government. Some leaders lean heavily into that visibility. Russian leader Vladimir Putin has spent years cultivating an image of physical strength. From carefully planned meetings at ridiculously big tables, to his infamous shirtless horseback ride, and even his staged discovery of “ancient” Greek urns while diving, each move is designed to project his prowess as a leader. Cuba’s Fidel Castro was known for speeches that could stretch on for hours, just to keep eyes on him and to project power over the crowd and other members of the communist party for as long as he could. But staying out of sight can be useful too. Governments can hide illness, avoid images of a frail leader, and decline to answer questions about who is making decisions. And authoritarian political systems generally have fewer checks and balances that can force those answers into the public conversation. In fact, prolonged absences for leaders and politicians in democracies tend to generate scrutiny quickly. When then-President of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari spent months receiving medical treatment in London in 2017, limited information about his illness fueled rumors and demands for answers about his condition and leadership. And in the US today, Senator Mitch McConnell’s months-long absence from public view following a fall has fueled speculation, despite his office releasing photos and saying he is recovering at home. So, how long can a political leader stay out of sight before their absence becomes a problem? The answer can depend a lot on where you rule. --- ### Election crisis in one of Africa’s most stable democracies, Mecca agreement may get another signee, SCOTUS sides with Trump on mail-in ballots **Published:** August 25, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Will Fitzpatrick, Lottie Tellyn | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/election-crisis-in-one-of-africas-most-stable-democracies-mecca-agreement-may-get-another-signee-mail-in-ballots-barred-from-midterms.md Zambia’s post-election crisis deepens The mineral-rich southern African nation is slipping into political crisis following last week’s disputed election, in which incumbent President Hakainde Hichilema won a second five-year term. In the days since, his government has launched a deadly crackdown on the opposition. On Friday, a former minister was shot dead when the police raided a house linked to opposition leader Brian Mundubile. The authorities accuse Mundubile, who is now in hiding, of fomenting an insurgency. On Monday, the government sealed off access to courts as the deadline approached for filing legal challenges to the election result. The official tally showed Hichilema with 60% of the vote against Mundubile’s 38%, but election observers have questioned the integrity of the count. One bitter irony is that when Hichilema first won power in 2021, his victory against strongman Edgar Lungu was seen as a fresh chance at democracy. Five years later, that promise appears to be cracking. Bangladesh eyes Mecca agreement Just over two weeks after Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, the pact could soon have a new signatory: Bangladesh. The country is considering joining the other Sunni Muslim-majority nations after an invitation from the Saudis, looking to bolster its defenses amid rising regional tensions fueled by the Iran war. The agreement is modeled on NATO’s collective defense principle, stating that an attack on one member would be treated as an attack on all. If Bangladesh does join, it would mark a significant shift in the country’s traditionally non-aligned foreign policy, which has tried to avoid taking sides in ways that could threaten its export-focused economy. It would also likely raise tensions with neighboring India, with which relations have already been strained in recent years. As a result, India could find itself sandwiched between two members of the defense pact: Bangladesh to the east and Pakistan – with which it has decades-long tensions – to the west. SCOTUS lets Trump move ahead with mail-in voting restrictions In an emergency ruling on Monday, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to move forward with plans to tighten rules on mail-in voting. While the ruling did not decide the legality of President Donald Trump’s March 2026 executive order, it could sow doubts about what ballots will be counted in the upcoming midterms. The first mail-in ballots are due to be sent out in just over a week, which could leave election officials and voters uncertain about how to comply. Democratic officials in 23 states and the District of Columbia had argued that the Constitution gives states and Congress, not the president, the power to run elections. Trump, who voted by mail in the Florida primaries, has repeatedly claimed that mail-in votes are a source of election fraud, which experts say is incredibly rare in reality. --- ### The Great North American trade war **Published:** August 25, 2026 | **Author:** Tasha Kheiriddin | **Section:** Analysis **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/analysis/the-great-north-american-trade-war.md It’s official: the US and Canada are in a trade war, a remarkable rupture in one of the world’s closest alliances. After Canada withdrew from talks last Friday, the US applied a 50% tariff on roughly $20 billion worth of Canadian goods, including wine, furniture, dairy products, cement, clothing, fishing rods and hockey equipment. In response, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said today that Canada will retaliate with its own tariffs, as high as 50%, on $20 billion in American imports starting next month. US President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has plans for 50% tariffs on Canadian automobiles, trucks and auto parts starting January 1. The war of words has escalated too, with Carney accusing the US of signing deals “in pencil,” suggesting its commitments can’t be trusted, while Trump said Canada wants the benefits of being a US state “without being one.” Ontario Premier Doug Ford, whose province is heavily dependent on the auto sector, said Trump could “kiss my ass.” Trump later called Ford a “flunky,” and Ford called him a “loser.” North of the border, the Canadian public is largely elbows up with Carney: 76% agree with his decision to break off negotiations. But regional divisions threaten to surface as the country prepares for fall elections in Quebec and a referendum on secession in Alberta. South of the border, the bitter standoff is worrying American lawmakers, who fear new tariffs will raise costs for businesses and households ahead of the midterms dominated by concerns about affordability. Autos, imports, and the US midterms. One reason Canada said it backed out of talks was Washington’s insistence on excluding medium- and heavy-duty trucks from proposed tariff reductions. That includes some of America’s best-selling models, the Ford F-Series and Chevy Silverado, which are built at plants in Ontario. Autos are a major part of the province’s economy, making up 18% of its export earnings. But the cost of the auto fight could cut both ways. Trump’s threatened 50% auto tariffs could have a particularly significant impact on Michigan, a state facing a nail-biter Senate race that could determine which party controls the chamber. Canada is also Michigan’s largest export market; the state exported $24 billion in goods to Canada in 2024, including nearly $14 billion in vehicles and vehicle parts. It also imported roughly $40 billion in goods from Canada, chiefly from Ontario. Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, who narrowly leads in polls, slammed Trump for the breakdown in talks, which he says will mean a higher cost of living, and said that his opponent, former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers, would be a “rubber stamp” for Trump, citing Rogers’ defense of the president’s trade strategy. The implications extend even beyond Michigan. Canada is the top customer for 26 US states, including Maine, Iowa, and Wisconsin, all of which have crucial races in November. Canada’s retaliation could also stoke inflation at the same moment when the Iran war’s energy shock is putting pressure on prices – which could hurt Republicans in key races across the country. In Canada, there’s the Quebec factor. The most politically explosive issue north of the border is French language and culture. The US pushed Canada to scrap requirements that American streaming companies fund Canadian programming, a policy that helps support French-language productions in the French-speaking province of Quebec. Washington also sought an end to rules requiring bilingual French-English product labels and instruction manuals, which US companies have long complained raised their production costs. Protection of French has shaped Quebec’s politics for generations. Threats to the French language contributed to the rise of Quebec nationalism since the 1960s and fueled the establishment of a separatist political party, the Parti Québécois (PQ). It’s also a live issue for Carney: Canada holds three federal byelections on August 31, including one in the Quebec riding of Chicoutimi–Le Fjord, while Quebec holds a provincial election this fall. Polls show the PQ on track to form the next government there. For Carney, conceding French-language protections would be politically toxic – and Washington likely knows it. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer alluded to this on Monday, insisting that the US gave Canada a good deal but that the government walked away “perhaps for political reasons,” noting the upcoming byelections. But by citing the French language as one of the reasons for ending negotiations, Ottawa risks reopening old wounds within Canada. Alberta has long resented what some in the province see as Ottawa’s “favored” treatment of Quebec. Grievances include the federal equalization program, which sees federal taxes from wealthier provinces such as Alberta redistributed to poorer provinces like Quebec to fund social services, and pro-environment policies promoted by Quebec that hampered oil and gas development in Alberta. Those tensions are particularly relevant now. On October 19, Alberta will hold a vote asking whether the province should remain in Canada or hold a binding referendum on separation in the future. By pressing Ottawa on an issue virtually guaranteed to be rejected, Washington could end up increasing anti-Ottawa sentiment in Alberta. Where do things go from here? For now, negotiations are off: Carney told reporters on Monday that Canada will come to the table when the US “has the right attitude.” Trump, for his part, says he’s considering renaming Lake Ontario to “Lake America”. In the short term, that means more pain for both sides. For the US, Canada’s retaliatory tariffs will target American products and hit their wallets ahead of the midterms. For Canada, Carney’s concern may be whether the trade dispute undermines Canadian unity, not just its economy. The question is whether public support holds as pain sets in – and whether regional grievances begin to resurface. In his latest Quick Take, Ian Bremmer also examines the collapse of the US-Canada trade talks and what they reveal about Trump’s political vulnerability. As other countries look beyond Trump’s current term, Ian argues that Canada’s stance could foreshadow a broader shift in how allies respond to US pressure. Watch the video here. --- ### Singapore’s baby push **Published:** August 25, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/singapores-baby-push.md Like many countries around the world, Singapore is experiencing a fertility crisis, with too few babies born to maintain the population level without net immigration, much less increase it. Last year, Singapore registered a record low rate of just 0.87 children per woman. At the same time, advances in healthcare that help people to live longer have put Singapore on course to become a “super aged” society, where more than a fifth of the population is 65 or older. To change that dynamic, the government will offer huge bonuses and other incentives, totaling more than $55,000 per child up to age 17. That would make it one of the most generous cumulative fertility incentives in the world. --- ### US-Canada trade war heats up **Published:** August 24, 2026 | **Author:** Ian Bremmer | **Section:** Quick Take **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/video/quick-take/us-canada-trade-war-heats-up.md In his latest Quick Take, Ian Bremmer examines the collapse of US-Canada trade talks and what it reveals about President Trump’s growing political vulnerability. Once considered one of the world’s most stable and friendly relationships, US-Canada ties are now under increasing strain as Trump threatens new tariffs and Canada pushes back. Negotiations broke down after the Trump administration introduced new demands that Canadian officials viewed as an infringement on their sovereignty. While the higher tariffs will create real economic costs for Canada, Prime Minister Mark Carney appears increasingly willing to challenge Trump, betting that the US president’s political leverage is weakening. Ian points to Trump’s declining approval ratings, economic pressures and the approaching midterms as reasons for greater caution. “Trump is getting frustrated, he's throwing punches, but he's not seen as credible,” Ian says. As other countries look beyond Trump’s current term, Ian argues that Canada’s stance could foreshadow a broader shift in how allies respond to US pressure. --- ### AI speaks more African languages **Published:** August 24, 2026 | **Author:** Microsoft | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/ai-speaks-more-african-languages-msft-082626.md AI systems work best when they reflect the languages people actually use. Through LINGUA Africa, the Microsoft AI for Good Lab and its partners are supporting 26 African-led projects spanning more than 50 languages and reaching over 500 million speakers across 47 countries. By investing in open language datasets, tools, and real-world applications, the initiative aims to make AI more accessible and relevant to communities across Africa. Read the full story here. --- ### Germany rebuilds its ranks **Published:** August 24, 2026 | **Author:** Lottie Tellyn, Eileen Zhang | **Section:** Graphic Truth **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth/germany-rebuilds-its-ranks.md Germany’s military has reached its largest size in 13 years – and is still growing. Earlier this month, the Bundeswehr, the country’s armed forces, announced it had 186,705 active troops, having added roughly 3,700 over the last year. Germany’s armed forces have slowly ticked up after a sharp decline following the 2011 decision by then-Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government to suspend mandatory national service. This recent growth is part of a much larger ambition: in May of last year, Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced plans to build the strongest conventional army in Europe in response to a growing threat from Russia following Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. These threats are now compounded by doubts about US security guarantees under US President Donald Trump, who withdrew 5,000 troops from Germany earlier this year after Merz criticized Trump’s war in Iran. “We must be able to defend ourselves so that we do not have to defend ourselves,” Merz said when he first announced the plans. “Our goal is a Germany and a Europe that are so strong together that we never have to use our weapons.” In April of this year, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced the Bundeswehr’s first military strategy independent of NATO, titled “Responsibility for Europe,” which set out plans to expand its armed forces to 460,000 soldiers ready for combat by 2035, with 200,000 of them in reserve. The personnel growth targets were considered ambitious at the time, with Pistorius himself admitting that recruitment would be a challenge, in a climate of high employment and an aging population. But these new numbers put the Bundeswehr within its 2026 target range of 186,000 to 190,000, and it expects this figure to grow as the year progresses. It also reported “new record highs” in applications and recruitment this year, in part due to a new mandatory registration and screening for military service, which may have increased visibility for careers in the armed forces. Beneath all this, Germany – the largest economy in Europe – is significantly ramping up its defense spending, which is set to account for a third of its federal budget - more than €190 billion ($221 billion) by the end of the decade. By contrast, France’s defense budget should reach €76.3 billion ($89 billion) by 2030. With Russia’s war in Ukraine looking unlikely to end any time soon, and as Russia increasingly tests Europe’s defenses with hybrid warfare techniques, Germany is rebuilding its ranks to deter what Berlin views as its biggest external threat in decades. --- ### European leaders head to Ukraine, US and Canada butt heads over trade, US threatens “economic D-Day” on Iran **Published:** August 24, 2026 | **Author:** Alex Kliment, Lottie Tellyn | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/european-leaders-head-to-ukraine-us-and-canada-butt-heads-over-trade-us-threatens-economic-d-day-on-iran.md “Coalition of the Willing” summit begins in Kyiv The gathering today, which falls on the 35th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union, brings together nearly three dozen European countries supporting Ukraine with financial and military aid against Russia. Top on the agenda is Kyiv’s urgent request for more air defenses ahead of winter, as Russian airstrikes continue to pummel Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure. But Kyiv’s Western backers are themselves running low on missile interceptors because of previous allocations to Ukraine and the US’s use of Patriots to fight Iran. The US is still weighing a request to allow Ukraine to produce Patriot missiles domestically, amid pushback from US arms manufacturers who don’t want to send production elsewhere. Europe is now the main supplier of military and financial aid to Ukraine, with €90 billion (around $105 billion) in EU funds allocated through 2027, along with a number of bilateral commitments. Norway announced another $9 billion package for next year on Sunday. US and Canada now “at war” over trade That’s how Canadian PM Mark Carney described things over the weekend after trade talks between the US and its second largest trade partner collapsed late last Friday, triggering substantial new duties on both sides. A deal had seemed close, but Carney ultimately scrapped negotiations, citing last-minute US demands to restrict Canadian entertainment content and limit Ottawa’s freedom to strike deals with third countries. As a result, the US on Saturday slapped 50% tariffs on 5% of Canada’s total exports, in addition to existing tariffs on Canadian metals. Both sides now run risks: some US politicians and business leaders have warned that the spat with Canada could boost inflation ahead of the midterms. Carney, meanwhile, is banking on his country’s ability to withstand a trade war with the world’s top economy. US threatens economic “D-Day” for Iran In an op-ed in the Financial Times today, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that Washington plans to inflict severe economic pain on Iran through a series of new measures starting this afternoon. The plan will likely include secondary sanctions on countries that continue to do business with Iran, although it remains unclear how China, the largest buyer of Iran’s oil, will respond. With Iran’s economy battered by the war and its currency hitting a record low of 2.02 million rials to the US dollar this morning, the Trump administration is betting that economic warfare will be enough to force Iran to return to negotiations. Tehran, meanwhile, is digging in its heels, threatening to fine and confiscate cargo from 46 ships in the Strait of Hormuz, and announcing the discovery of a massive 7.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas that it says is worth “tens of billions of dollars.” --- ### A ball that's about much more than sports **Published:** August 24, 2026 | **Author:** Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/a-ball-that-s-about-much-more-than-sports.md One sports fan this weekend took home an important piece of soccer history: the ball Diego Maradona famously punched into the net with his left hand against England during the 1986 World Cup. The controversial “Hand of God” goal helped knock England out of the tournament, just four years after the two countries fought the Falklands War. It also cemented a fierce football rivalry that resurfaced at this year’s World Cup, when Argentina’s football association was fined more than $300,000 after players paraded a banner reading “the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) are Argentine.” --- ### China calls Trump’s bluff over new Iran sanctions, Botswana saves citizens from shady Russian military recruitment, Brazil tries to cash in on rare earth reserves **Published:** August 21, 2026 | **Author:** Natalie Johnson, Lottie Tellyn, Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** What We're Watching **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/watching/china-calls-trumps-bluff-over-new-iran-sanctions-brazil-tries-to-cash-in-on-rare-earth-reserves-botswana-saves-citizens-from-shady-russian-military-recruitment.md China rebuffs US economic threats over Iran Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump threatened “tremendous economic consequences” for countries that do business with Iran as Washington tries to squeeze Tehran economically. China, Iran’s biggest trading partner, quickly rejected the warning. On Thursday, Beijing said that US pressure would not work. China has defied Western sanctions for years and buys as much as 90% of Iran’s oil exports. Some Iranian oil has continued to reach China despite restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The greater risk, then, may be for Washington and the impact of those threats on its relationship with Beijing. As Ian Bremmer recently noted, the US and China are already in a fragile détente after last year’s trade war, during which Beijing cut off exports of critical minerals. With Xi Jinping set to meet Trump in Washington next month, US threats over China’s ties with Iran could add another layer of friction to an already shaky relationship. Botswana acts to keep citizens off Russia’s front lines Botswana is cracking down on efforts to recruit its citizens to fight for Russia against Ukraine. On Friday, the government said eight of its citizens were recently stopped from being recruited at airports in Botswana, Ethiopia, and South Africa. For months, several African countries, including Kenya, Zimbabwe, Ghana, and Botswana, have alleged that their citizens have been lured into fighting by shadowy efforts online, often under false pretenses and with promises of high-paying jobs and hefty signing bonuses. Botswana has identified 22 who have been successfully recruited. One recent investigative piece by the New York Times revealed that some Africans are pressured into signing vague contracts written in Russian before being deployed to the front lines. The recruitment comes as Russia is increasingly low on manpower: casualties surpass 1.4 million by some estimates. Could Brazil be the new China for rare earths? Brazil is emerging as an alternative to China’s dominance in the rare earth elements (REEs) market, as foreign investment flows into the country’s mineral resources. A new analysis of mining permits from the Associated Press found that applications, largely from the US, Canada, and Australia, had surged in the last three years, with 42% submitted by or linked to foreign ownership. The market for rare earths, which are essential for products ranging from AI and missiles to smartphones, has historically been dominated by China, which accounted for around 60% of rare earth mining and 91% of rare earth refining in 2024. As a result, prices are highly sensitive to decisions in Beijing. Earlier this month, prices of erbium, an REE commonly used in fiber-optic cables, surged amid fears that China would tighten export controls. Brazil’s move could help diversify the market, but it also faces obstacles. Indigenous communities and environmental groups have raised concerns about the climate impact in a country that is home to much of the Amazon rainforest, often referred to as the world’s “lungs.” --- ### The world’s oldest president returns to his post **Published:** August 21, 2026 | **Author:** Will Fitzpatrick | **Section:** Hard Numbers **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/news/hard-numbers/the-worlds-oldest-president-returns-to-his-post.md He’s back! The 93-year-old finally returned from his “brief private stay in Europe,” during which rumors abounded about his health and ability to govern. Biya, the world’s oldest president, has led the Central African country since 1982 and has previously disappeared from public view for extended periods. Many worry about what would happen if Biya can no longer govern. Decades of political repression have weakened civil society and political opposition, and Biya’s death or incapacitation could trigger a contested succession and create a significant political vacuum. --- ### You vs. the News: A Weekly News Quiz - August 21, 2026 **Published:** August 21, 2026 | **Author:** GZERO Daily | **Section:** Games **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/games/quiz-082126.md Think you know what's going on around the world? Here's your chance to prove it. A landmark trial kicked off this week, with California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey leading more than two dozen states in a lawsuit against Meta. What do the states allege? A) The company illegally shared user data with foreign governments, including China B) Meta spread political misinformation that contributed to real-world violence C) It knowingly designed addictive features and collected data on children without parental consent Take the quiz to see if you guessed correctly! --- ### Show your undying devotion to The Regime **Published:** August 20, 2026 | **Author:** Puppet Regime Store | **Section:** General **URL:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/sponsored-posts/show-your-undying-devotion-to-the-regime-puppetregime-082126.md Check out the latest swag from the official Puppet Regime merchandise store! Browse an array of products that will show the world you are a devoted subject of the Regime, including: A big, beautiful mug for drinking coffee very strongly A handsome tote bag to carry your favorite classified documents Collectible stickers Stylish t-shirts and hoodies – now also available in pink We ship worldwide! Shop now at shop.puppetregime.tv! ## Contributors & Authors - [Risa Grais-Targow](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/risa-graistargow): Risa Grais-Targow leads Eurasia Group's Latin America practice, with a focus on Argentina, Venezuela... - [David Meale](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/david-meale): David Meale leads the China practice at Eurasia Group, GZERO Media's parent company. He advises glob... - [Firas Maksad](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/firas-maksad): Firas Maksad is the managing director for the Middle East and North Africa practice at Eurasia Group... - [Veronica Vargas](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/veronica-vargas) - [Andrew Lorenzen](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/andrew-lorenzen) - [Tim Rickard](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/tim-rickard): Tim Rickard is a designer for GZERO Media. He is an award-winning cartoonist, illustrator and graphi... - [Lottie Tellyn](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/lottie-tellyn): Lottie is a reporter at GZERO, where she covers all things geopolitics for the website and daily new... - [Kevin Witzenberger](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/kevin-witzenberger) - [Puppet Regime-Shop](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/puppet-regimeshop): The official store for Puppet Regime swag. Show your loyalty to the Regime and look good at the same... - [Pat Hroncich](https://www.gzeromedia.com/u/pat-hroncich) ## API Access & Integration - [Search](https://www.gzeromedia.com/search): Site-wide content search - [Main RSS Feed](https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/feed.rss): Latest content in RSS format ## Optional - [Navigation index (llms.txt)](https://www.gzeromedia.com/llms.txt): Compact section index with markdown links for every section - [Main RSS Feed](https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/feed.rss): Latest content in RSS format ## Content Discovery - **Search Interface:** https://www.gzeromedia.com/search - **All Sections:** Each section available at `https://www.gzeromedia.com/[section-path]/index.md` - **Individual Posts:** Each post available at its URL with `.md` extension - **RSS Feeds:** Main feed at `https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/feed.rss`, section feeds at `https://www.gzeromedia.com/feeds/[section-path].rss` ## How to Use This Content 1. **For Site Overview:** Review the "Site Structure" section to understand content organization 2. **For Specific Topics:** Use section-specific RSS feeds or browse section markdown pages 3. **For Recent Updates:** Check the "Recent Content" section for latest articles 4. **For API Access:** Use the documented endpoints for programmatic access 5. **For Individual Articles:** Access any post by appending `.md` to its URL --- *This complete content index contains 81 recent posts and represents the current state of GZERO Media as of September 16, 2026 12:17:14. 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