Skip to content
Search
Human content, AI powered search.

Latest Stories

What We're Watching

What We’re Watching: Trump and Xi’s Friday phone call, EU introduces new Russia sanctions, US plots Afghanistan return

​In this photo illustration, TikTok logo is displayed on a smartphone with the national flags of China and the United States in the background.

In this photo illustration, TikTok logo is displayed on a smartphone with the national flags of China and the United States in the background.

Algi Febri Sugita/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa via Reuters Connect
By Zac Weisz,
Zac Weisz
Zac reports on global affairs, covering everything from battles between judicial branches and political leaders, to conflicts in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. With the Trump administration keen to alter the world order, though, there’s a heavy emphasis right now on US politics – an area with which he is intimately familiar. Prior to joining GZERO, Zac was a senior national politics correspondent at National Journal, where he covered the 2024 presidential election from its inception to the dramatic finish, as well as major congressional actions during the Biden administration. Prior to journalism, Zac worked as an economic analyst for Oxford Economics, calculating the impact of various tax policies, and of Britain’s exit from the European Union. Born in London, he currently resides in New York City, where you can find him playing football (the original version) or watching it on television while attempting to cook up a storm.
See Full Bio
Riley Callanan
Riley Callanan

Riley is a former writer and reporter for GZERO. When she isn’t writing about global politics, you can find her making GZERO’s crossword puzzles, conducting research on American politics, or persisting in her lifelong quest to learn French. Riley spends her time outside of work grilling, dancing, and wearing many hats (both literally and figuratively).

See Full Bio
September 19, 2025
Make us preferred on Google

The world’s most powerful pairing talk TikTok and trade

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reportedly discussed how they can keep TikTok online in the United States and whether they can ease trade tensions during a phone call Friday morning, their first since June. The topic of trade is a thorny one, most recently due to disputes over Nvidia chip purchases. As for TikTok, the two superpowers were expected to finalize a deal for the sale of the social media app – a consortium of US firms is set to control the company. If the TikTok deal is completed, it’s possible that Trump and Xi could meet in person during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit being held in South Korea around Halloween.

EU introduces new sanctions on Russia

The European Union rolled out its 19th sanctions package to squeeze Russia’s war chest, pledging to end Russian liquified natural gas (LNG) imports by early 2027, blacklist 560 oil tankers, and target crypto platforms and Chinese firms doing business with Moscow. The package still needs to gain the approval of the 27-member bloc, but is expected to be adopted, and comes as Trump has said he is ready to sanction Russia but only if European nations stop purchasing Russian oil.

Is the US about to return to Afghanistan?

Trump declared Thursday that he wants the US military to regain control of the Bagram air base, a move that would return American troops to Afghanistan four years after withdrawal from the Taliban-held state. The move is all about China: the US has become increasingly wary of Beijing’s growing stockpile of nuclear weapons, and Trump highlighted the base’s proximity to the Asian giant as a reason to take it back. Actually regaining Bagram would require cooperating with the Taliban, a once-hostile foe of Washington. The two sides have been talking, but the noises right now suggest that a return to Bagram won’t be easy.
tiktok afghanistan xi jinping russia european union united states china

Latest Videos

Trump flip flops on Iran threats play icon
ask ian

Trump flip flops on Iran threats

A "Mexican standoff" in Hormuz?
GZERO World Clips

A "Mexican standoff" in Hormuz?

Drone warfare shifts the Ukraine-Russia battlefield
Quick Take

Drone warfare shifts the Ukraine-Russia battlefield

The Iran war's global fallout (so far)
GZERO World with Ian Bremmer

The Iran war's global fallout (so far)

Why Trump can't find the exit ramp in Iran
Ian Explains

Why Trump can't find the exit ramp in Iran

Why the US-China summit changed very little
Quick Take

Why the US-China summit changed very little

More For You

The surprising US-Israeli plan for Iranian “regime change,” Hot air only at Russia-China summit, Baltic states on edge before NATO meeting

​Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad showing his identity document with the other hand on his heart

Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad shows his identity document to the media during registering his candidacy for Iran's upcoming presidential election in Tehran, on June 2, 2024.

Rouzbeh Fouladi/ZUMA Press Wire
The US and Israel planned to install a Holocaust denier as Iran’s presidentYou heard that right: before the Iran war began, the United States and Israel planned to make former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad – a Holocaust denier who has called for the destruction of Israel – the new leader, according to a New York Times report. Evidently, [...]

Bolivian labor protests get fiery, US-Iran deal looks increasingly unlikely, Trump critic faces Republican primary challenger

A protestor throws a tear gas canister back towards the police

A demonstrator throws a tear gas canister back towards the police during a march calling for the resignation of Bolivia's President Rodrigo Paz, as the country's economic and fuel crisis worsens due to a shortage of U.S. dollars and falling domestic energy production, in La Paz, Bolivia May 18, 2026.

REUTERS/Claudia Morales
Labor unions bring La Paz to a haltProtests and unrest have gripped the Bolivian capital of La Paz for the past two weeks, culminating in clashes between demonstrators and police on Monday. What began with the national labor union demanding a 20% wage increase quickly grew as other unions joined in, citing rising fuel costs and unsafe working [...]

Latest Ebola outbreak prompts WHO declaration, Taiwan urges US to continue arms supplies, Spain’s Socialists suffer in Andalusia

People at a hospital wearing masks amid an Ebola outbreak

People at Bunia General Referral Hospital, following confirmation of an Ebola outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain in Bunia, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 16, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone.

REUTERS/Victoire Mukenge
World Health Organization declares global health emergencyOn Saturday, the World Health Organization declared the current epidemic of Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda “a public health emergency of international concern,” but said it does not meet the criteria for a pandemic. The latest outbreak has killed over 100 [...]

CIA director goes to fuel-starved Cuba, Czech-German clash over “Sudeten” Congress, Rough week for LatAm’s right

CIA Director John Ratcliffe meets with Cuban officials

CIA Director John Ratcliffe attends a meeting with Cuban officials at a location given as Havana, Cuba in this image released May 14, 2026.

CIA via X/Handout via REUTERS
Cuba has run out of fuel, and the CIA director is there for it.US spy chief John Ratcliffe traveled to Havana yesterday just hours after the communist-run island said it had run out of fuel due to the ongoing US energy blockade. Ratcliffe, the highest ranking Trump administration official to visit, went to reiterate his boss’s vision of a “deal”: [...]