This week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy demanded Belarus remove military equipment from their shared border, while Ukrainian forces continued attacking energy and transport infrastructure near Moscow and in Crimea. In the Indo-Pacific, China sanctioned two critical minerals companies in the U.S., while U.S. AI company Anthropic accused Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba of copying its software. In the Middle East, Israel continued airstrikes against Lebanon despite ongoing negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, with Israeli officials reiterating that they would not withdraw from the country.

This week, the United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding paving the way for a ceasefire and two months of negotiations aimed at settling their conflict.

Meanwhile, Israel stated it would continue to occupy territory in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza. In the Indo-Pacific, Taiwan’s opposition leader met with members of the U.S. Congress in Washington, while the U.K. and Japan agreed to boost defense and economic cooperation.

In Ukraine transatlantic relations, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced a six-month review of the U.S. military presence in Europe, while Ukrainian drones continued to strike oil in Russia, including one close to Moscow.

In the U.S., lawmakers continued to debate the renewal of the Foreign Surveillance Authorization Act (FISA), which the White House has now linked to its ambitions for voter identification reform.

Riley Sullivan sits down with Linda Robinson, Senior Fellow for Women and Foreign Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, to discuss the dynamics of democracy, gender equality, and women's leadership, as well as her new book, Women in Power: Fighting for Democracy in an Age of Authoritarianism.