Politics

Israel Strikes Syria, Trump Escalates the Economic War on Iran, the US Seems to Move Toward Diplomacy With North Korea

US President Donald Trump and Air Force Col. Christopher M Robinson walking to board Air Force One on August 14, 2026.

(Samuel Corum / Getty Images)

Danny and Derek must disclose that they have had Hasan Piker on this program. They are listening and learning from him. In this week’s news: Israel bombs a Syrian airbase, potentially moving closer to a conflict with Turkey (1:22); Jared Kushner and Benjamin Netanyahu agree to scrap the Gaza Board of Peace’s Hamas disarmament plan (7:09); the Iran MOU expires as Trump escalates the economic war (9:20); the Islamic Republic might restart the shooting war (13:36); the Pentagon and Arab governments rethink America’s military presence in the Gulf (15:58); Trump curtails military exercises with South Korea, possibly moving toward diplomacy with North Korea/DPRK (18:53); the Sudanese military concludes a new cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia (24:47); the Ebola outbreak in the DRC continues to expand (27:39); in Ukraine, Zelensky faces calls for new elections (30:06); Trump suspends new tariffs on Canada (33:01); the US moves Operation Southern Spear onto land (34:50); and a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report details the cost of the new “Trump class” battleships (36:45).

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Derek Davison

Derek Davison is a writer and analyst specializing in international affairs and US foreign policy. He is the publisher of the Foreign Exchanges newsletter, cohost of the American Prestige podcast, and former editor of LobeLog.

Daniel Bessner



Daniel Bessner is a historian of US foreign relations and is the author of, among other books, Imperialist Realism.

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