U.S. companies will be allowed to do business with Venezuela’s state-owned oil and gas company after the Treasury Department eased sanctions, with some limitations, on Wednesday as the Trump administration looks for ways to boost world oil supplies during the Iran war.
The Treasury issued a broad authorization allowing Petróleos de Venezuela S.A, or PDVSA, to directly sell Venezuelan oil to U.S. companies and on global markets, a massive shift after Washington for years had largely blocked dealings with Venezuela’s government and its oil sector.
Separately, the White House said Trump would waive, for 60 days, Jones Act requirements for goods shipped between U.S. ports to be moved on U.S.-flagged vessels. The 1920s law, designed to protect the American shipbuilding sector, is often blamed for making gas more expensive.
The moves highlight the increased pressure that the Republican administration is under to ease soaring oil prices as the United States, along with Israel, wages a war with Iran without a foreseeable end date. Global oil prices have since spiked as Iran halted traffic through the narrow Strait of Hormuz, where one-fifth of the world’s oil typically passes through from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide.
India is likely to double its installed power generation capacity from the current 520 Gigawatt (Gw) to 1,121 Gw by 2036, with non-fossil fuel sources contributing around 70 per cent of the total, according to the projections of the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), the apex power planning body under the Power Ministry.
The projection includes 315 Gw coal-based capacity, 20 Gw gas capacity, 22 Gw nuclear, 78 Gw of large hydro, 509 Gw solar, 155 Gw wind energy, 16 Gw biomass and 6 Gw small-hydro power capacity.
Joe Kent, Director of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center, has resigned from the Trump administration.
Kent said he “cannot in good conscience” back Trump’s war in Iran.
Iran “posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” Kent posted on social media Tuesday.
Kent is a former political candidate with connections to right-wing extremists who was confirmed to his post last July on a 52-44 vote.
Take a look:
After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today.
I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this… pic.twitter.com/prtu86DpEr
After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today.
I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.
I support the values and the foreign policies that you campaigned on in 2016, 2020, 2024, which you enacted in your first term. Until June of 2025, you understood that the wars in the Middle East were a trap that robbed America of the precious lives of our patriots and depleted the wealth and prosperity of our nation.
In your first administration, you understood better than any modern President how to decisively apply military power without getting us drawn into never-ending wars. You demonstrated this by killing Qasam Solamani and by defeating ISIS.
Early in this administration, high-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media deployed a misinformation campaign that wholly undermined your America First platform and sowed pro-war sentiments to encourage a war with Iran. This echo chamber was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, and that should you strike now, there was a clear path to a swift victory. This was a lie and is the same tactic the Israelis used to draw us into the disastrous Iraq war that cost our nation the lives of thousands of our best men and women. We cannot make this mistake again.
As a veteran who deployed to combat 11 times and as a Gold Star husband who lost my beloved wife Shannon in a war manufactured by Israel, I cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people nor justifies the cost of American lives.
I pray that you will reflect upon what we are doing in Iran, and who we are doing it for. The time for bold action is now. You can reverse course and chart a new path for our nation, or you can allow us to slip further toward decline and chaos. You hold the cards.
It was an honor to serve in your administration and to serve our great nation.
Two top Iranian leaders have been killed as the United States and Israel continue their joint operation against the Iranian regime.
Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and Gholamreza Soleimani, the commander of the Basij Force, have been eliminated, the Israeli Defense Forces announced Tuesday.
“Under Soleimani, the Basij unit led the main repression operations in Iran, employing severe violence, widespread arrests, and the use of force against civilian demonstrators,” according to the IDF.
Larijani was closely associated with the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and was one of the nation’s top security officials. The former supreme leader tasked Larijani and several other officials with ensuring the regime would survive if he were killed, The New York Times reports.
“Throughout the years, Larijani was considered one of the most veteran and senior figures within the Iranian regime leadership,” according to the IDF.
?Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and the regime’s effective leader, has been eliminated.
Throughout the years, Larijani was considered one of the most veteran and senior figures within the Iranian regime leadership, and was a close associate… pic.twitter.com/kBIgSSGBm0
Diesel fuel, the lifeblood of U.S. industry, crossed an alarming and historic benchmark Tuesday.
Amid the Iran War and the Strait of Hormuz crisis, the U.S. average retail diesel prices have crossed $5 a gallon, the highest since December 2022.
This marks only the second time diesel prices have hit the historic 5-dollar benchmark, according to Reuters. Tuesday’s new average of $5.04 is now a record high, according to analysts at GasBuddy.
Meanwhile, gas prices across the country have surged 74 cents a gallon. This reportedly marks nearly a 30% increase over the past month, the highest monthly spike since Hurricane Katrina.
“The problem is, is we’re so strained financially coming into this issue,” explained Littleton, a third-generation farmer from Gibson County in the state’s northwest.
“We have had a couple of record losses over the last couple of years, so everyone’s kind of grabbing at straws anyway, and then to have input prices increase yet again, it just really couldn’t happen at a worse time.”
Littleton, who cultivates corn, soybeans, and wheat, is one of thousands of farmers nationwide who will pay significantly more this spring for the essential nutrients their crops require.
Nitrogen-based fertilizer is particularly crucial for corn, typically the largest crop in the U.S., which feeds the nation’s livestock and is converted into fuel for most U.S. vehicles.
This action has caused a significant slowdown in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical choke point for 20 per cent of the world’s oil and natural gas.
Democrats and liberal media have been all in trying to disparage Operation Epic Fury against Iran.
If you listened to them, you would think we were being destroyed and were losing, despite the unparalleled success of the military operation.
It’s legitimate to ask questions. You can reasonably have concerns or maybe be against the actions now. What isn’t reasonable is pushing out false stories to undermine our effort and essentially help provide propaganda that could benefit Iran.
Then the public has to wade through that and evaluate what they think, rather than just assessing the facts. Which, of course, is why Democrats/liberal media are doing that.
But a new poll is putting paid to the Democratic narrative that people don’t support the effort.The McLaughlin survey of likely voters found strong support.
When voters were asked whether they approved of President Trump using the U.S. military to eliminate Iran’s nuclear missile program and its support for terrorism — given Iran’s refusal to negotiate an end to its nuclear weapons and missile development — 51% approved, while 41% disapproved.
“The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not.”
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr warned that US broadcast networks could face consequences, including the loss of their licenses, if they continue airing what he described as “hoaxes and news distortions” related to coverage of the ongoing conflict involving Iran.
Carr made the comments in a post responding to a statement from President Donald Trump lambasting media reporting about alleged damage to US tanker aircraft in Saudi Arabia.
In his post, Carr said broadcasters that “are running hoaxes and news distortions – also known as the fake news – have a chance now to correct course before their license renewals come up.”
Two Indian-flagged tankers together carrying over 92,000 metric tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas have arrived at ports in Gujarat state after safely passing through the Strait of Hormuz. New Delhi has been negotiating with Iran, but the government denies discussing the possible release of Iranian tankers it seized in February as part of the bargain. Meanwhile, global crude prices jumped again amid new Iranian attacks on the UAE.
Nearly three weeks into a war against a crazed theocracy, the political and media focus has been, like a complaining child in the back seat of a car on a long trip, “When will it be over?”
This ridiculous impatience is a product of a Democrat opposition to Operation Epic Fury that will exploit every misstep, whether occurring out of strategy, operations, rhetoric, or unintended consequences. It is akin to getting a work assignment that the employer and employee both know will only reasonably produce results after weeks of long hours, at minimum, but nonetheless getting harangued by the boss every day: “You’re not done yet!?”
Now, the boss may be just an intolerable micro-manager, or he may be trying to get you to quit out of frustration. But it’s fairly certain, given the Democrat decades-long foreign policy record, that productive oversight of the conflict is not their goal.
Between the now ascendant neo-Marxist left and the “river-to-the-sea” crowd, the Democrat war objectives are clear: sabotage.
Ali Larijani was the head of Iran’s Security Council and a key voice in the ear of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Gholamreza Soleimani was the head of the Basij militia. Both were pillars of Iran’s security apparatus. If they have indeed been taken out, the question is who replaces them, and will they take Iran down an even more hardline path?
The death of Iran‘s key figure Ali Larijani raises more questions than answers.
First, Israel says it has killed him in an air strike, but Tehran has yet to confirm or deny.
While Israel and the United States rejoice and call on the Iranian people to rise up and overthrow what is left of their Islamic leadership, the reality on the ground is less certain. The systematic killing of the leaders of Iran since February 28 has created a vacuum in Tehran.
The fear among analysts is that the space will be filled by regime insiders who will be hardened and more radical.
Larijani was the lead negotiator at the now aborted talks to find a peaceful way forward.
Fires have broken out in Baghdad’s Green Zone after a drone swarm, believed to have been launched by groups aligned with Iran. Al Jazeera’s Assed Baig witnessed the attacks.
High-profile attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz have epitomized Iran’s hit-and-run response to superior American and Israeli firepower, but analysts warn that Tehran’s asymmetric strategy isn’t limited to guns, bombs or the physical geography of the battlefield.
from www.washingtontimes.com
The concept of freedom of the press isn’t ruined by criticism of the press. But when liberal TV hosts roll out their lectures, they sound a little like the president they routinely attack. Any criticism of their work must be Fake News.
MS NOW host Ana Cabrera expressed indignation on March 16 after FCC chairman Brendan Carr tweeted that broadcast stations should watch what they’re airing on the war in Iran: “Freedom of the press has been such a huge, huge underpinning of the democracy in this country, right? In order to hold people in power accountable to be that government watchdog.” But Carr is “squashing” press freedom with a simple tweet.
NPR media reporter David Folkenflik lamented Carr wanted to “get in the weeds of what’s said,” but allowed that “you can argue there are good principles involved about wanting to make sure certain kinds of coverage is fair to all sides” – yet the government shouldn’t interfere.
MS NOW host Ana Cabrera freaked out at Brendan Carr tweets, arguing press freedom is a huge underpinning of democracy. He’s quashing it! NPR’s David Folkenflik says Carr’s FCC wants to “get in the weeds of what’s said.” Yes! Much of what they say would fit the weeds metaphor. pic.twitter.com/7GATuVWf8X
Dr Dorsey pointed out that there may also be a hardening of the lines on both sides of the war following the security chief’s death.
“You could see Israel, the United States, seeing this as a major body blow that sets the stage for trying to finish Iran off,” he said.
Already, Iran has retaliated for the assassination of its security chief, targeting Tel Aviv with missiles carrying cluster warheads, which are difficult to intercept.
Larijani’s death is also likely to lend more power to the more radical leaders and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, said Dr Mehran Kamrava, professor of government at Georgetown University Qatar.
“As an insider with deep connections within the Islamic Republic’s deep state and with impeccable revolutionary credentials, he would have been indispensable to any decision to end the current war,” Dr Kamrava told CNA.
“His death is likely to strengthen the hands of President Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Araghchi on the one hand, and the more radical, less compromising commanders of the Revolutionary Guards on the other.”
LIMA, Peru — Peru’s prime minister resigned Tuesday ahead of a mandatory vote in the nation’s Congress, where she needed a majority of legislators to confirm her recent appointment.
Denisse Miralles was appointed as prime minister in late February, after Interim President José Jerí was removed from his post following corruption allegations and replaced by congressman Jose María Balcázar.
In Peru, prime ministers coordinate the implementation of government policies, but they are not elected into office and do not lead the executive branch, which is headed by the president.
Miralles, the former economy minister under Jerí, did not say why she resigned. However, she informed journalists that she was uncertain she could secure the congressional majority required for her confirmation on Wednesday.
Chile National Prosecutor Ángel Valencia on Monday requested U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to interrogate Nicolás Maduro about the assassination of exiled Venezuelan dissident Ronald Ojeda.
Valencia traveled to Washington and had a work meeting with Bondi, seeking to strengthen security cooperation between Chile and the United States as well as cooperation in the fight against organized crime. The Chilean Public Prosecutor’s Office detailed that the first topic addressed by Valencia and Bondi was the prosecution of money laundering and the protection of the two countries’ financial systems.
The second subject, Valencia said, was to continue strengthening Chile’s cooperation with the United States regarding the pursuit of Tren de Aragua (TdA) and the “Aragua Pirates,” a TdA faction operating in Chile, as well as prosecution of crimes committed by “associated gangs in our country, such as the murder of Lieutenant Ronald Ojeda.”
The ministry detected 26 Chinese military aircraft around the island on Saturday, with 16 of them entering its northern, central and southwestern Air Defense Identification Zone. Seven naval ships were spotted around the island, it reported.
The increased number of aircraft came after the ministry reported a fall that left analysts scratching their heads about what China’s military may be up to.
Taiwan didn’t report any Chinese military planes that went beyond the median line and entered the zone for a week from Feb. 27 to March 5. After two were detected on March 6, the next four days had none. Such flights resumed in small numbers between Wednesday and Friday.
🚨🇨🇳🇹🇼 FLASH | La Chine a encerclé Taïwan avec 26 avions de combat et 7 navires de guerre. pic.twitter.com/i57dhsTvoN