US News

• The Pentagon claims the threat from China is the reason for increased military spending. [Link]
• The Trump Administration is requesting an $85 billion budget for intelligence agencies in 2020. [Link]
• Trump’s heavy-handed use of oil sanctions will lead to an increase of gas prices for Americans. [Link]

New Zealand

• Jason Ditz breaks down how the New Zealand shooting was censored on some sites. [Link]
• New Zealand is threatening to jail its citizens for sharing videos of the mosque attack. [Link]

Ukraine

• Canada will extend its deployment of 200 troops to Ukraine The troops are on a training mission and were scheduled to return to Canada in March. [Link]
• The EU sanctions eight Russians as punishment for the Sea of Azov dispute. Russia announced they will respond to the sanctions. [Link]  

Korean Peace

• South Korea is looking to hold talks with North Korea in hopes of easing tensions between the US and North Korea. [Link]
• South Korean leader Moon Jae-in’s approval ratings are at an all-time low. [Link]

Middle East

• Israel was the 8th largest weapons seller in 2018. [Link]
• Iran and Turkey launch a joint military operation against the PKK. [Link] Iran denies they agreed to the joint operation. [Link]
• The US is trying to cut Iran’s oil exports from 1.25 million bpd to 1 million bpd. [Link]
• The US plans to keep 1,000 troops in Syria. [Link] Joint Chiefs commander General Dunford claims the report is factually incorrect. [Link]
• A report says that in two areas of Yemen 350 civilians have been killed over the past three months. [Link]
• Daniel Larison explains why the US needs to listen to Yemenis about the Yemen War. [Link]