In Other News
“If we have a referendum, I would vote for the unification with Romania,” Moldovan President Maia Sandu told British podcast The Rest Is Politics on Sunday. The small East European country, which borders Romania and Ukraine, has been targeted by Russian hybrid warfare, according to Sandu. She fears that Moldova, home to a population of only 2.4 million, will not “survive” on its own. The late Herbert W. Armstrong often referred to the “fear of Russia” as a trigger for Europe unifying into an empire. In 1980, he wrote that Romania could be one of the 10 nations that Revelation 17 prophesies will constitute this empire. As he and Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry have also stated, it is feasible that the prophesied “ten kings” will rule over nation-groups.
Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to five years in prison today on charges that included the use of government forces to block his own arrest following his failed attempt to impose martial law in 2024. Yoon’s declaration of martial law to supposedly thwart “anti-state forces” within the government stunned the nation and plunged it into its worst political crisis in decades. Hours later, the parliament voted 190-0 to reverse it on the grounds that Yoon was only trying to protect himself from impeachment. He blocked the enforcement of a court-issued arrest warrant with hundreds of presidential security officers, and he attempted to do the same when a second warrant was issued, but was finally arrested by police. Today’s conviction marks the start of an unprecedented reckoning in South Korean history, with Yoon still facing other charges, including insurrection and a possible death sentence. While democracy is better than other human systems of government, South Korea’s crisis underscores the fact that even this system is fundamentally inadequate for justly governing mankind. To understand the only government that truly works, read “Democracy Is Dying.”
Chinese universities have pushed Harvard down to the world’s No. 3 spot, according to Leiden University’s 2025 rankings. Furthermore, eight of the world’s top 10 universities are now Chinese. The reason for this evaluation is that Chinese universities are producing more research than their American counterparts. According to Rafael Reif, a former president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the number of papers from China dwarfs what the U.S. produces. The decline of America’s educational institutions is a symptom of the country’s overall decline in the wake of China’s rise, a trend the Trumpet has warned about for decades.
Several stories are out that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked the United States to delay or halt any attacks on Iran. The reports say the reason was that Israel is unprepared to handle an Iranian counterattack on its homeland. While Netanyahu may have asked the U.S. to reconsider strikes, it’s unlikely the reason was unpreparedness: Israel has spent the past six months since Iran’s most recent ballistic missile attacks bracing itself for another round. Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reports that President Trump didn’t attack because several inside his cabinet said a single strike couldn’t guarantee regime change. All could be smoke and mirrors, especially since Israel’s Mossad director arrived in the U.S. this morning, reportedly to discuss potential action on Iran. We watch and wait.
The USS Abraham Lincoln is moving from the South China Sea toward the Arabian Sea as tensions between the U.S. and Iran rise. The Pentagon announced yesterday that the aircraft carrier and its strike group, which includes fighter jets, guided missile destroyers, support vessels and at least one attack submarine, would steam westward after advisers informed President Trump that the U.S. military needs more troops and equipment in the Middle East to launch any large-scale strike while still protecting U.S. forces in the region from retaliation.
Last year’s laureate for the Nobel Peace Prize, María Corina Machado, visited the White House yesterday, where she gifted U.S. President Donald Trump her prize. Machado, the leader of the opposition to Venezuela’s regime, told the media it was “a recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom.” Trump called the medal “a wonderful gesture of mutual respect.” The Norwegian Nobel Committee considers the prize nontransferable, but Machado probably hopes the gesture will result in her receiving a position in Venezuela’s new government structure now that President Trump has arrested former dictator Nicolás Maduro. Trump has claimed he should win the prize for all of his peace deals over the past year, but as the Trumpet has explained, his peacemaking has a fatal flaw.
Health Minister Josie Osborne announced Wednesday that the Canadian province will let a program that decriminalized hard drug use expire at the end of the month. “The pilot hasn’t delivered the results that we hoped for,” she said. The province operated the first government-supervised injection site in the world and allowed possession and use of up to 2.5 grams of opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine and mdma. The expiration of this “pioneering” program shows that letting people have drugs is not the way to win the war on drugs.
Russia’s alliance with North Korea has transformed the latter into East Asia’s most “combat-ready” force, Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, told reporters on Monday. North Korea has given significant support to Russia’s war effort against Ukraine, including transfers of munitions and deployments of troops. The arrangement gives North Korea the benefit of battlefield experience as well as Russian weapons technology and training. The alliance has dramatically strengthened North Korea’s military power and reached a “no limits” level, Brunson said. The Bible prophesies of a colossal multinational Asian force, led by Russia, that will include China and several smaller Asian countries such as North Korea. That is why the Trumpet continues to monitor the strengthening military relationship between Russia and North Korea.
The British government has revoked Dutch journalist Eva Vlaadingerbroek’s electronic travel authorization, effectively banning her from the United Kingdom. She has criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for his attacks on free speech and tolerance of migrant rape gangs. In issuing the ban, the government told her, “Your presence in the UK is not considered to be conducive to the public good.” The contrast is stark: The governing Labour Party will allow in almost unlimited numbers of anti-British and anti-Semitic foreign migrants to stay indefinitely, but it will not allow a visit from a journalist critical of such policies.
Robert Jenrick was abruptly sacked today, accused of plotting to defect to Nigel Farage’s Reform party. Jenrick is not a minor figure: He narrowly missed becoming leader of the Conservative Party in 2024. Jenrick had dinner with Farage last month and was apparently negotiating the best exit he could. He’s the most senior of a string of Conservatives defecting. Reform’s rise may provide a temporary resurgence for Britain at some point, but the chaos and drama point to wider political dysfunction in the UK.
In Minneapolis yesterday, an alleged Venezuelan immigrant reportedly assaulted an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent with a shovel, resulting in the agent shooting the man in the leg. Reports state that both individuals are hospitalized. The shooting came one week after an agent shot and killed a citizen who had positioned her vehicle in front of federal vehicles. That fatality touched off the current protests, which have included demonstrators throwing rocks and shooting fireworks, and federal officers firing tear gas. The Department of Homeland Security has arrested more than 2,000 illegal immigrants in Minnesota since December, and it is promising arrest more, while Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has demanded that agents stop arresting illegal immigrants. The Bible says such violence will continue and intensify until “Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers” (Isaiah 1:7).
Six Palestinian terrorists were killed while assaulting Israel Defense Forces troops yesterday in Rafah in what Israel called a “serious violation” of the United States-brokered ceasefire with Hamas. This comes as the ceasefire’s second phase is to be implemented, in which Hamas is to lay down arms in exchange for Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza. U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that the ceasefire would bring “eternal peace,” but attacks like yesterday’s show otherwise.
Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said Monday that the people of Greenland may vote to join Russia if President Trump does not swiftly establish U.S. authority over the Arctic island. “Trump needs to hurry,” the former Russian president wrote. “According to unverified information, in a few days there could be a sudden referendum, at which the entire 55,000-strong Greenland could vote to join Russia. And then that’s it. No new little stars on the [American] flag.” Watch for Russia to keep exploiting tensions in the nato alliance, with public trolling, backchannel influence and political pressure, as it seeks to divide and weaken the alliance.
On Sunday, 70 European academics urged members of the European Parliament to adopt a “strong public digital euro” to safeguard “European sovereignty, stability and resilience.” Dependence on U.S. payment providers exposes Europeans “to geopolitical leverage, foreign commercial interests, and systemic risks beyond Europe’s control,” their statement said. They said they fear that U.S.-backed private digital currencies will cause Europe to “lose control over the most fundamental element in our economy: our money.” The European Central Bank is currently preparing a digital euro, but tensions with the U.S. could speed up its implementation. The Bible reveals that Europe, Latin America and Asia will turn against the U.S. in an unprecedented trade war and economic siege.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi completed a six-day tour of African nations yesterday, underscoring China’s ongoing efforts to boost its power over the resource-rich continent. Wang’s visits to Ethiopia, Lesotho and Tanzania further advance China’s global Belt and Road Initiative, in which the Chinese regime loans vast amounts of money to smaller nations to help build ports, railroads, highways, airports and other infrastructure improving their links to the Chinese economy. The terms of the deals often enable China to gain full control over these and other trade assets. China is continuing to develop the massive, anti-American trade bloc prophesied in the Bible.
Yesterday, Pope Leo xiv met with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado in a private audience at the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace. The Vatican has not released any details about the discussion, but Machado said she asked the pontiff to help pressure Venezuela’s regime into releasing political prisoners. The United States arrested Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro for drug trafficking on January 3, and President Trump said the U.S. will essentially “run the country.” Although the Vatican’s influence might seem slight at this point, Bible prophecy forecasts that it will soon exert much more influence in Venezuela—to the detriment of the United States.
Israel and Germany signed a major counterterrorism and cyberwarfare agreement in Jerusalem on Sunday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said cybersecurity “is one of the main threats to our internal security, and in many ways also our infrastructure and other threats.” Netanyahu said Israel and Germany “are natural partners” in countering cyberthreats, citing Israel’s recent sale of its Arrow 3 missile defense system to Germany. That sale was announced on the same day it was expanded by another $3.1 billion. Israel may see Germany as a close strategic partner it can depend on for intimate security, but Bible prophecy warns that such cooperation is actually setting Israel up for a heinous betrayal.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa visited Syria and Lebanon on Friday, meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa to discuss economic issues and the return of many Syrian refugees residing in Europe, then meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to discuss regional stability and the disarmament of the Hezbollah terrorist organization. Earlier in the week, Costa visited Paris for a meeting on the Ukraine war, Cyprus for its opening ceremony for the European Council presidency, and Jordan for the first EU summit in Amman, which was also attended by von der Leyen. Watch Europe’s involvement: Iran once dominated Syria and Lebanon, but Bible prophecy says they will soon be dominated by a European superpower.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in India on Sunday to help bolster relations between the two nations. Europe is working to replace its past economic reliance on the U.S. with other nations, including India. The two nations have even planned a sale of German submarines to India. Bible prophecy forecasts that if Americans, who descended from the ancient Israelites, continue to rebel against God, they will suffer the same types of devastating consequences as their predecessors. It even specifies that much of this suffering will come from Europe, along with other nations disconnecting from and besieging the economy of the U.S., weakening it prior to a devastating military attack.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will arrive in China tomorrow to meet with Chinese General Secretary Xi Jinping, the first such visit by a Canadian prime minister in over eight years. Carney intends to reduce Canada’s dependence on the U.S., which has purchased about 75 percent of Canadian exports for decades. “We’re forging new partnerships around the world,” he said on Wednesday, “to transform our economy from one that has been reliant on a single trade partner, to one that is stronger and more resilient to global shock.” The Bible prophesies that global shocks are coming and that China and Europe will wage economic war on the U.S. Canada could provide a devastating vector for attack in this coming conflict.
Early Saturday morning, a fire blazed through the Beth Israel Synagogue in Jackson, Mississippi, the city’s only synagogue and the target of a 1967 bombing by the Ku Klux Klan. Local and federal authorities arrested a suspect by the end of the day, but have not yet publicly identified the individual. The attack, which is being treated by the fbi as a hate crime, is the latest demonstration of anti-Semitism, as brazen attacks against Jews increase worldwide.
A Oreshnik missile struck western Ukraine this morning, only the second time the powerful weapon has been used in four years of warfare. The strike was part of a night of air attacks that killed several and knocked out power to the capital Kyiv and other areas. The Oreshnik is categorized as an intermediate-range ballistic missile and flies at up to 10 times the speed of sound. This one carried conventional explosives, but it is also designed to carry nuclear warheads. “It is absurd that Russia attempts to justify this strike with the fake ‘Putin residence attack’ that never happened,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha posted on X. “Putin uses an irbm near EU and nato border in response to his own hallucinations—this is truly a global threat. And it demands global responses.” As Russian aggression intensifies, watch for Europe to increasingly unify and militarize.
Iranians are heading toward a third week of unrest, as tens of thousands or perhaps millions continue to protest the regime, resulting in massive shows of open defiance, arson, violent clashes, thousands of arrests and dozens of deaths. Demonstrations have taken place in all 31 of the nation’s provinces, with protest sizes expanding in Kurdish-majority areas. The regime has blocked the Internet across the country and taken the rare move to deploy troops from its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. These protests could be a turning point in Iran’s political system, but the Bible prophesies that Iran will remain radically Islamic and forcefully belligerent.
The Lebanese military announced yesterday that the terrorist group Hezbollah has been completely disarmed in southern Lebanon and that the military now has operational control throughout the region, except for places controlled by the Israel Defense Forces. In a statement, Israel expressed concerns that “Hezbollah is rearming faster than it is being disarmed,” but called the Lebanese government’s actions “encouraging.” Hezbollah, backed by Iran, dominated Lebanon for decades, but Bible prophecy foretold its collapse. Expect Iran’s grip on Lebanon to continue to loosen—and for another power to seize even more power in Lebanon and to display even more aggression.
Reports have emerged this week that the long-standing leader of Saxony-Anhalt will resign. Reiner Haseloff, a member of the Christian Democratic Union, has led the German state since 2011. If the coalition agrees on Monday, his proposed successor, Sven Schulz, could succeed him as state premier. State legislators were slow to support Schulz, but that has changed due to fear of the far-right AfD party, which is now polling at nearly 40 percent in Saxony-Anhalt. Many fear the AfD could win the September election. Germany’s intractable state and federal political chaos is contributing to the emergence of a strong German leader.
Pope Leo spoke out against the persecution of Christians during his annual meeting of ambassadors to the Vatican. Christian persecution is affecting 380 million people, he said. “I would especially call to mind the many victims of violence, including religiously motivated violence in Bangladesh, in the Sahel region and in Nigeria, as well as those of the serious terrorist attack last June on the parish of Saint Elias in Damascus,” he said. “Nor do I forget the victims of jihadist violence in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique.” He also expanded his warning beyond violent persecution: “At the same time, we must not forget a subtle form of religious discrimination against Christians, which is spreading even in countries where they are in the majority, such as in Europe or the Americas.” Watch for the Vatican to push Europe to become more Catholic and even more outspoken and belligerent as global religious conflicts intensify.
