Hudson Institute

In this week’s episode of China Insider, Miles Yu discusses Taiwan’s National Day celebrations and what Taipei’s steadfastness in the face of the Chinese Communist Party’s coercion signals for the island’s future and its ties with the United States.

On Kudlow, Rebeccah Heinrichs discusses the role that President Donald Trump plays in negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine War. VIDEO

Saudi aviation under pressure.The Houthis launched systematic strikes against airports in Saudi Arabia, which disrupted connectivity and imposed mounting economic costs across the kingdom—and potentially gave Tehran additional leverage in negotiations. Maritime threats widen.Iranian attacks hit anchored tankers beyond the Strait of Hormuz transit lanes and placed regional trade and energy flows at greater risk. Iran signals missile resilience.

The Nobel Peace Prize has a serious problem. Beyond occasional questionable choices, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has become increasingly ideological, rewarding fashionable political causes and the international establishment’s preferred personalities while overlooking those who have sacrificed their freedom — and sometimes their lives — fighting tyranny.

New banks used to be a sign of America’s economic vitality, bringing with them new businesses and new depositors. But over the past 16 years, bank-formationrateshave collapsed. Thank the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act.It was supposed to primarily regulate banks that were “too big to fail,” preventing a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis. But Dodd-Frank has also handicapped small banks and discouraged new bank creation.

After nearly six years in the White House and more than a decade at the center of American politics, Donald Trump can still shock the world.

OMB Director Russell Vought testifies during the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing on oversight of the Office of Management and Budget, in Rayburn building on Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (Getty Images)

OMB Director Russell Vought testifies during the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing on oversight of the Office of Management and Budget, in Rayburn building on Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (Getty Images)

The Vatican has been widely criticized for its 2018 provisional agreement with China. While the agreement’s contents are secret, the Holy See revealed that it gives Beijing a role, along with at least a papal right to veto, in appointing Catholic bishops in China. Due to President Xi Jinping’s “Sinicization” of religion campaign, eight years on, the agreement is even more disastrous than previously thought.

This translation was generated using AI and edited lightly. Read the original in French here. After US Vice President JD Vance’s attack in Munich in February 2025 on European leaders accused of betraying their own values, Donald Trump’s secretary of state, Marco Rubio, chose to extend an olive branch. Speaking from the Pnyx in Athens, he called on Europe to “emerge from its long slumber” and take part in a Western renewal built on power, industry, and defense.