.
Americas
North America
United States
March 22, 2026 / 9:00 AM EDT Iran war, rising gas prices fuel economic concerns; most say conflict not going well, don't want regime left in power, CBS News poll finds. When gauging a war, Americans consider at least two important things: what the goals are overseas and its impact back home. Right now, Americans want a lot of things to happen in Iran: Most feel it's important to stop its nuclear program, ensure the Iranian people are free, and, now that the conflict is underway, that it would be unacceptable to leave the Iranian regime in power at the end of it. But it's also important to end the conflict as fast as possible, they say, with growing economic pressure back home. Rising gas prices are fueling some pessimism about the U.S. economy more broadly, with concerns about negative impacts on it in at least the near-term, if not the long term. That uncertainty is underpinned by a rising number of people who feel the Trump administration hasn't explained things. In all, most Americans feel the conflict isn't going well right now, though it gets continued support from most of the president's Republican base, in part because they express a lot of confidence in him personally. Most Americans don't think the conflict with Iran is going well so far. Many aren't sure how long it will last. They don't see payoffs, not in making the U.S. safer, nor in making the economy stronger. Americans see this as a war of choice, not a war of necessity. MAGA Republicans say Trump is doing what he promised in the 2024 campaign regarding Iran. (Survey conducted with a nationally representative sample of 3,335 U.S. adults interviewed between March 17-20, 2026). /Source: CBS News - U.S./
March 22, 2026 12:12 AM Pentagon adopts Palantir AI system after dispute with Anthropic. Concerns about AI warfare continue to grow. The move signals long-term reliance on advanced artificial intelligence tools for defense operations. According to Deputy Defense Secretary Feinberg, the Maven Smart System will provide warfighters with advanced tools to detect and respond to threats. He explains that the system analyzes battlefield data and identifies potential targets. The decision ensures stable funding and wider adoption across all military branches by the end of the fiscal year. The Maven platform already serves as a key command-and-control system and has supported thousands of targeted operations in recent weeks. The Pentagon plans to shift oversight of the program to its Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office. The U.S. Army will manage future contracts with Palantir which states that humans remain responsible for final decisions. (Source: Daily Times - Pakistan)
March 20, 2026 Hundreds of millionaires are trying to escape the US. California’s millionaires are trying to pay hand over fist for golden visas, an extremely expensive and controversial form of residency. New Zealand, along with several other countries like Greece, Portugal and Italy, are currently offering wealthy foreigners what’s called a golden visa. To obtain one of these visas in New Zealand, aka the Active Investor Plus visa, applicants must spend a minimum of $2.9 million on “Growth” investments for three years or $5.8 million on “Balanced” investments for five years, and simply processing this paperwork costs an equivalent of over $15,000. In exchange, applicants receive an “enviable lifestyle brimming with adventure,” as boutique immigration firm Greener Pastures New Zealand puts it on its website, and cinematic views of rolling hillsides. Once this investment period is fulfilled, they and any immediate family members who were included in the original application can become permanent New Zealand residents. Over the last several years, the super-rich have set their sights on the island country as a place to build elaborate bunkers and opulent estates in anticipation of societal collapse. Many of investor applicants are merely interested in summer homes. According to the advocacy group Transparency International, golden visa programs are allowing criminals to treat residency and citizenship in European countries as luxury commodities and use them for money-laundering schemes. In April 2025, the European Court of Justice declared that Malta’s “golden passports” program was illegal, and Spain, Ireland, the UK and the Netherlands have recently ended their investor visa programs amid rising security concerns, Forbes reported last year. Meanwhile, New Zealand officials announced in September that golden visa holders can now buy or build homes valued at the equivalent of around $3 million or more. Ultimately, Kiwis pity us, and they’re right to: Our behavior is embarrassing. I thought of my friends who are educated and employed and living in cars and on couches. I thought about the laid-off tech workers who could be entering another year of unemployment, unsure of how they’ll pay their mortgages and medical bills. My biggest fear, though, is that I’ll look back on this years later and reminisce about how good we had it. (Source: SFGate - U.S.)
March 18, 2026 8:00 pm ET The Pentagon has deployed the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, a rapid-response force of about 2,200 Marines, to the Middle East, The Wall Street Journal reported. The U.S. could use the unit to seize one or more of the islands off the southern coast of Iran to use as leverage or as a base to counter Iranian attacks on commercial shipping. The unit, aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli, is slated to arrive in the Middle East from Japan in just over a week. (Source: WSJ - U.S.)
Caribbean
Cuba
(Wednesday), Mar 18 2026 Two vessels heading for energy-starved Cuba carrying Russian oil and fuel are due to arrive as early as next week in defiance of US President Trump’s energy embargo. The Hong Kong-flagged Sea Horse, believed to be carrying some 27,000 tonnes of Russian gas, was headed towards the island after appearing to divert course last month. The Russian-flagged Anatoly Kolodkin, carrying some 100,000 metric tons of crude - equivalent to 725,000 to 728,000 barrels depending on oil grade - was estimated to arrive in Cuba on April 4. 'Whether I free it, take it, I think I could do anything I want with it, if you want to know the truth,' Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday. “They are a very weakened nation right now.' Cuba’s last delivery was an oil shipment from Mexico on January 9. (Source: Financial Times - United Kingdom)
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