https://www.rferl.org/z/23310 The main story of the day from RFE/RL Central Newsroom. https://www.rferl.org/Content/responsive/RFE/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.rferl.org/z/23310 en Copyright 2026 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Wed, 13 May 2026 22:20:55 +0200 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL Trade tensions, Taiwan, and rare earth exports are expected to dominate talks, even as the war in Iran and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz raise the stakes for the Beijing summit. https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-xi-summit-iran-war-taiwan-energy-oil-minerals/33756013.html https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-xi-summit-iran-war-taiwan-energy-oil-minerals/33756013.html Wed, 13 May 2026 14:43:15 +0200 NewsIranThe Rundown HeadlineChina As the US-Israeli war with Iran continues to impact and shape the region, journalists from RFE/RL's Central Newsroom and Iranian service, Radio Farda, deliver ongoing updates and analysis. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-war-us-hormuz-oil-blockade-gulf-israel/33640284.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-war-us-hormuz-oil-blockade-gulf-israel/33640284.html Wed, 13 May 2026 07:30:00 +0200 IranNewsThe Rundown Headline US President Donald Trump described the cease-fire with Iran as being on "life support," adding he is considering restarting naval escorts -- dubbed Operation Enduring Freedom -- through the Strait of Hormuz amid a continuing a deadlock over how to bring the conflict to an end. https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-iran-response-peace-proposal-unacceptable/33753884.html https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-iran-response-peace-proposal-unacceptable/33753884.html Mon, 11 May 2026 00:00:37 +0200 IranNewsThe Rundown HeadlineMiddle East Russian President Vladimir Putin said he thought the conflict with Ukraine is "coming to an end," but stressed that he would meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy only once a final peace deal has been agreed. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ictory-day-parade-putin-speech-ukraine-war/33753222.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ictory-day-parade-putin-speech-ukraine-war/33753222.html Sat, 09 May 2026 11:47:28 +0200 NewsRussiaUkraineRussia Invades UkraineThe Rundown Headline For years, President Vladimir Putin has used Russia’s Victory Day parade to show off its weapons, accentuate his dominance, and deliver narratives on World War II and the present. This year is different, with Russia's struggles in Ukraine in focus amid signs his authority at home is "in decline." https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-parade-decline-weapons-ratings-slump/33752032.html https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-parade-decline-weapons-ratings-slump/33752032.html Thu, 07 May 2026 18:08:50 +0200 News AnalysisFeaturesRussiaUkraineRussia Invades UkraineThe Rundown Headline A Russian drone hit a kindergarten in northern Ukraine, and Moscow launched scores of drones and missiles across the country, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of ignoring a Kyiv-proposed cease-fire. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-kindegarten-drone-cease-fire-attacks-war/33751265.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-kindegarten-drone-cease-fire-attacks-war/33751265.html Wed, 06 May 2026 19:34:41 +0200 NewsRussiaUkraineRussia Invades UkraineThe Rundown Headline US President Donald Trump has announced that the operation called Project Freedom to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz will be “paused for a short period of time.” https://www.rferl.org/a/us-iran-war-cease-fire-shipping-blockade/33750501.html https://www.rferl.org/a/us-iran-war-cease-fire-shipping-blockade/33750501.html Tue, 05 May 2026 16:39:57 +0200 NewsIranThe Rundown Headline More than a million jobs have been lost since the United States and Israel attacked Iran in late February. With the US blockade showing no signs of abating and little headway made in peace talks, ordinary Iranians are paying the price. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-economy-war-job-loss/33748721.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-economy-war-job-loss/33748721.html Mon, 04 May 2026 18:24:30 +0200 IranFeaturesThe Rundown Headline It has been over two months since one of the world’s key oil chokepoints was shut down. And it has meant a seismic global readjustment and a number of creative workarounds. https://www.rferl.org/a/strait-of-hormuz-workarounds-adjustments-oil-shipping/33748056.html https://www.rferl.org/a/strait-of-hormuz-workarounds-adjustments-oil-shipping/33748056.html Sun, 03 May 2026 10:44:36 +0200 IranVideosThe Rundown Headline Jailed Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi has been transferred to intensive care and is "on the brink of death," her brother Hamidreza Mohammadi told RFE/RL's Radio Farda. https://www.rferl.org/a/iranian-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-on-the-brink-of-death-health/33747642.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iranian-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-on-the-brink-of-death-health/33747642.html Sat, 02 May 2026 14:34:31 +0200 IranNewsThe Rundown Headline Max Meizlish, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and a former official at the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), looks behind the "mafia state" that makes up the Iranian regime. https://www.rferl.org/a/meizlish-iran-supreme-leader-khamenei/33746594.html https://www.rferl.org/a/meizlish-iran-supreme-leader-khamenei/33746594.html Fri, 01 May 2026 10:21:37 +0200 IranNewsThe Rundown Headline Iran’s currency has fallen to a new record low against the US dollar as the two-month-long conflict rattles the country’s already battered economy. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-economy-blockade-war/33746016.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-economy-blockade-war/33746016.html Thu, 30 Apr 2026 12:56:58 +0200 IranNewsThe Rundown HeadlineMiddle East The unity that Iran’s rival political camps maintained through 40 days of US and Israeli strikes is fracturing over negotiations to end the war. The real divide, experts say, is not necessarily about whether to talk but rather when. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-politics-divide-us-israeli-war-/33745286.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-politics-divide-us-israeli-war-/33745286.html Wed, 29 Apr 2026 16:20:12 +0200 IranFeaturesThe Rundown HeadlineMiddle East The United States has deployed a third aircraft carrier to the Middle East, significantly boosting its capabilities, despite a cease-fire with Iran. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-strait-of-hormuz-blockade/33744467.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-strait-of-hormuz-blockade/33744467.html Tue, 28 Apr 2026 18:19:03 +0200 IranFeaturesThe Rundown Headline RFE/RL's senior Washington correspondent, Alex Raufoglu, was at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner when a gunman breached security at the black-tie gala attended by President Donald Trump. Raufoglu recounted the chaotic scenes inside the hotel during and after the incident. https://www.rferl.org/a/white-house-corresponents-dinner-trump-gunman-security/33742837.html https://www.rferl.org/a/white-house-corresponents-dinner-trump-gunman-security/33742837.html Sun, 26 Apr 2026 15:53:02 +0200 FeaturesThe Rundown Headline When Klavdia Omelchenko left her home in Pripyat, she thought it would be for a few days. But the 19-year-old had no idea that the biggest nuclear power plant disaster in history would change her life forever: destroying her health, killing her friends, and leaving her childless. https://www.rferl.org/a/chernobyl-40-anniverary-survivor-returns-home/33737962.html https://www.rferl.org/a/chernobyl-40-anniverary-survivor-returns-home/33737962.html Sat, 25 Apr 2026 12:14:51 +0200 UkraineFeaturesThe Rundown Headline While officials in Tehran have long emphasized self-reliance, experts say battlefield evidence points to a far more interconnected war effort, reflecting deepening partnerships that have helped Iran replenish its military, improve targeting, and blunt Western operations during the conflict. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-russia-china-war-cooperation-support/33741900.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-russia-china-war-cooperation-support/33741900.html Fri, 24 Apr 2026 21:52:17 +0200 IranFeaturesRussiaThe Rundown HeadlineMiddle EastChina Some analysts argue there’s a hidden struggle going on in the Kremlin between security structures and economic interests. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-politics-rift-putin-influencer-internet-economy/33740904.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-politics-rift-putin-influencer-internet-economy/33740904.html Thu, 23 Apr 2026 19:21:49 +0200 RussiaFeaturesThe Rundown Headline In a political climate where bipartisan unity is increasingly unique, a consensus is forming among US lawmakers and foreign policy heavyweights: the relationship between Moscow and Tehran has moved far beyond diplomatic convenience. https://www.rferl.org/a/us-iran-russia-ukraine-partnership/33737935.html https://www.rferl.org/a/us-iran-russia-ukraine-partnership/33737935.html Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:38:33 +0200 News AnalysisIranRussiaUkraineThe Rundown Headline As the clock ticked toward the end of a two-week cease-fire, US President Donald Trump on April 21 announced he was extending the truce to give Iran a chance to make a “unified” peace proposal but said a blockade of Iranian ports that has angered Tehran will remain in place. https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-ceasefire-iran-peace-talks-pakistan/33737273.html https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-ceasefire-iran-peace-talks-pakistan/33737273.html Tue, 21 Apr 2026 16:57:48 +0200 IranNewsThe Rundown Headline