Norway Joins France's Nuclear Umbrella Talks as Europe Hedges US Security Bet

☢️ DETERRENCE — Europe's nuclear hedge just got its first formal member state. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: France-Norway talks formalize what the bilateral defense pact signed yesterday only implied. Norway is NATO's Arctic flank — its inclusion signals Paris is building a credible alternative deterrence architecture, not just bilateral goodwill. Washington loses monopoly on nuclear guarantee leverage over Europe precisely as it needs allied bases for Gulf ops.

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US Diplomats to Return to Middle East Embassies After Iran War Evacuations

🏛️ EMBASSIES — Washington signals reduced threat, but the strait is still closed. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: Returning diplomatic staff requires a formal security reassessment — it signals the Pentagon and State believe direct-strike risk has dropped below operational threshold. That reading runs directly against Hormuz still at one vessel and an escorted tanker

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China Warns US: Sanctions Threatening Iran Ties Will Be Met With Force

🇨🇳 BEIJING — Beijing just told Washington its Iran ultimatum has a hard ceiling. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: "All necessary measures" is diplomatic code for economic and financial countermeasures — not military. But it signals Beijing will not quietly comply with Bessent's package. Chinese refiners now have political cover to keep

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Oil Slides to One-Week Low as Markets Shrug Off Iran Sanctions

🛢️ MARKETS — Hormuz near-closed, sanctions live. Oil falls anyway. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: Markets priced Bessent's package before it landed — weeks of telegraphing gave traders time to position. Hormuz near-zero traffic means supply disruption is already in the price; new sanctions add no new data. The drop signals the

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Iran War Energy Bill Hits Italy at Nearly €12 Billion

🛢️ ROME — Italy is paying a €12B war premium it has no vote in ending. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: With Hormuz functionally closed and Brent anchored above $92, Italian industrial and household energy costs absorb the shock directly. Rome imports roughly 75% of its energy needs — no domestic buffer. Meloni has no bilateral

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US Diplomats to Return to Middle East Embassies After Iran War Evacuations

China Warns US: Sanctions Threatening Iran Ties Will Be Met With Force

Oil Slides to One-Week Low as Markets Shrug Off Iran Sanctions

Iran War Energy Bill Hits Italy at Nearly €12 Billion