Frank O'Donnell

“With about three weeks before leaders of the world's two largest economies are due to meet, preparation for Trump's state visit to Beijing has been frantic, raising concerns that the U.S. position could be undermined, according to people familiar with the planning. The National Security Council coordinates with multiple agencies to set possible goals for such meetings, but it was significantly downsized last May and overhauled by Trump, who directed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to oversee the security body along with his other duties. The visit is also being administered by the Treasury and Trade Representative, according to a former American diplomat with knowledge of the plan.”

Treasury and USTR running the planning for the Trump-Xi summit rather than NSC - asia.nikkei.com/politics/int...

Timeless YouTube video by FM Attack - Topic

Friday #synthwave -

Hearing “Oberlin” triggers the thousand-yard stare

South Korea, US militaries discuss moving Patriot missiles to Iran war, Seoul says South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said on Friday the ​U.S. and South Korean militaries are discussing the possible redeployment of some ‌U.S. Patriot missile defence systems based in South Korea to be used in the war against Iran.

South Korea, US militaries discuss moving Patriot missiles to Iran war, Seoul says reut.rs/3OJNdnA

Iranian Ship Was Leaving Indian Naval Exercise When Sunk, Raising Concerns in New Delhi The Iranian frigate sunk by a U.S. submarine last week had just left an Indian naval exercise. Now India's political opposition is demanding answers.

My lord! The frigate the US submarine torpedoed, the one the White House has been bragging about, was unarmed and headed home from an international naval exercise, hosted by India, that the US pulled out of at the last minute! www.military.com/daily-news/i...

"Trump Says 'I Guess' Americans Should Worry About Iran Retaliating on U.S. Soil: 'Like I Said, Some People Will Die'

Quite the headline from People.com

people.com/trump-says-i...

Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat, questioned why Noem wasn’t fired officially today during a press scrum. “I mean look, Kristi Noem has done a great disservice to the Department of Homeland Security, to what it has stood for, to what has it meant historically,” she said. Healey said Noem, who also oversaw U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was an “absolutely terrible appointment.” “Under her watch, ICE has made us less safe, not just in Massachusetts, but all around this county. She had no business being in that role in the first place, and I’m glad she’s gone,” said Healey.

Even when criticizing Kristi Noem, Maura Healey can't help but reveal her inner cop.

www.wgbh.org/news/nationa...

Sorry, should be “either election” rather than “both elections”

What would have been truly nasty would
be to then ask Colby who won in 2024.

Then depending on how he answers, ask a) why he can give an answer for 2024 but not 2020 or b) ask him what he thinks the sitting President would make of his refusal to answer for both elections.

Congresswoman going deep into the Colby lore

The First 36 Hours of War Consumed Over 3,000 U.S.-Israeli Munitions Replenishing stockpiles depends on vulnerable critical mineral chains.

"This is a polite way of saying the American military should be hoping the next salvo with Iran is smaller—and that China won’t do the math to figure out what is left of American precision-guided munitions to defend Taiwan." foreignpolicy.com/2026/03/05/i...

i really don't think Hegseth realized the diplomatic consequences of that strike

FT comments section this morning - saying what everyone else is thinking, right?

Anger among Pakistan's Shi'ites underlines its Iran-U.S. tightrope walk Pakistan's efforts to preserve close ties with President Donald Trump are being put to the test after protesters stormed the U.S. consulate in Karachi last week and poured onto streets elsewhere over the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S. and Israeli strikes.

Anger among Pakistan's Shi'ites underlines its Iran-U.S. tightrope walk reut.rs/47t0szh

China to send envoy to Middle East for mediation, foreign minister says China will send a special envoy to the ​Middle East for mediation, Foreign ‌Minister Wang Yi told his Saudi Arabian and UAE counterparts on ​Wednesday according to statements ​from his ministry, as conflict ⁠in the region continued to ​escalate.

China to send envoy to Middle East for mediation, foreign minister says reut.rs/46Hnt1c

Exclusive: India reduces gas supply to industries after Qatar outage, sources say Indian companies on Tuesday reduced natural gas supplies to industries in anticipation of tighter supply from ​the Middle East after top producer Qatar halted production, four ‌industry sources with k...

gas rationing in india www.reuters.com/business/ene...

“And inside the administration, aides are still struggling to explain why the nation went to war — and what exactly comes next. “It’s a political risk, no ands, ifs or buts,” one Trump adviser said of an attack that the president has forecast could continue for weeks. “Let’s just hope something doesn’t go really wrong. Because if that happens, it’s going to be a problem.”

www.cnn.com/2026/03/04/p...

Beyond what he is actually saying, Hegseth is the most visibly and audibly anxious I’ve ever seen him. This suggests the realities of what they have started is setting in.

Indian Air Force gets defence board nod to buy 5 S-400s from Russia The board, headed by defence secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, accepted the IAF proposal which will now go to the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC).| India News

Indian Air Force gets Defence Procurement Board approval to buy 5 more S-400s from Russia, along with the 5 already contracted (and of which two remain to be inducted by India).

This US-Israeli raiding approach to warfare, if it continues at the current operational tempo for weeks, could draw down INDOPACOM & EUCOM stocks that will take many years to replenish, further weakening US military readiness.

Iran war upends India's pivot from Russian oil Strait of Hormuz shipments up 56% since August on rising imports from Saudi Arabia, Iraq

“The U.S.-Iran conflict is likely to upend India's diversification away from Russian crude after Tehran said it would close the Strait of Hormuz, through which over half the South Asian nation's crude imports pass, potentially raising India's fuel prices and pushing it back toward Russian supplies.”

IRGC says Iran in ‘complete control’ of Strait of Hormuz amid Trump threats One-fifth of the global oil is shipped through the strait, which remains effectively closed amid US-Israeli war on Iran.

“Islamabad has asked Saudi Arabia to route oil supplies through the Red Sea port of Yanbu after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupted shipping.”

Belief, border and bombs: What long-term instability in Iran means for Pakistan For a country battling insurgencies in two provinces, facing a hostile Afghan Taliban regime, and grappling with deep internal divisions, instability in a neighbouring state carries tangible security ...

Good Zia Ur Rehman piece on implications for Pakistan of the US-Israel war on Iran -

From 2022 when Biden's NPR was released - comparing selected hardware changes between Obama-Trump 1-Biden.

USDP confirms no NPR and says "I think the [nuclear] declaratory policy and so forth from the first Trump term was very good" subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026...

U.S. Troops Killed in Kuwait Had No Warning of Deadly Drone Attack A single Iranian suicide drone hit a commercial port in Kuwait, killing at least six servicemembers.

U.S. troops working at a tactical operations center at a commercial port in Kuwait on Sunday had no warning that a deadly Iranian drone was headed straight toward them.

Smart play from Colby would be to lay out the multiverse theory

Military officials question fortifications at site where U.S. troops were killed in Iranian strike The first American service members to die in the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran were killed in an apparent Iranian drone attack on a makeshift office space in Kuwait, sources told CBS News.

On the 6 US troops who died at Shuaiba port in Kuwait: Troops asked for more drone defeat capabilities, none came. It was recommended that the makeshift tactical operations center not be used because it was hard to defend and concentrated too many troops in one place. www.cbsnews.com/news/iran-st...

Polish sources have the final sentence as "As our own autonomous capabilities grow, we will also strive to prepare Poland in the future for the most autonomous actions *possible* in this matter."

In any case, this is proper nuclear hedging talk.

www.polskieradio.pl/399/7975/Art...

Conceptualizing and Measuring Geopolitical Alignments A vast literature examines how geopolitical alignments influence militarized conflict, trade, investment, aid, and other outcomes in international relations. Yet, considerable ambiguity remains regard...

Conceptualizing and Measuring Geopolitical Alignments - www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...