Russia

• Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko threatened to use nuclear weapons, deployed to his country by Moscow, if “aggression is launched against us.” AWC
• Newsweek reported on Wednesday that Ukrainian leadership is divided on what steps to take amid Ukraine’s stalling counteroffensive against Russian forces. AWC
• Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), a co-chair of the congressional Ukraine Caucus, said this week that he’s not sure if the Ukraine war is “winnable” and called for the US to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to pursue peace talks. AWC
• NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday said that only Ukraine can decide when to enter peace talks to end the war with Russia and vowed the alliance’s support for an open-ended conflict. AWC
• According to the Washington Post, the US intelligence community has assessed that Ukraine’s Spring counteroffensive will fail to meet its core objectives. Western officials said their war games had predicted massive Ukrainian losses, but that Kyiv would remain committed to the operations and gain the upper hand on the battlefield. AWC
• The US has approved the shipment of Lockheed Martin-made F-16 fighter jets from the Netherlands and Denmark to Ukraine as soon as the first batch of Ukrainian pilots complete training, which won’t happen until next year. AWC
• Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow’s nuclear deterrent is necessary because of NATO’s proxy war in Ukraine. The diplomat added that direct conflict between NATO and Moscow would lead to a nuclear war. The Institute 
• As Ukraine’s counteroffensive is failing, some US officials are wondering if they should have listened to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley’s calls for peace talks last November, POLITICO reported on Friday. AWC
• The New York Times reported on Friday that US officials “fear” Ukraine has become “casualty averse” as Ukrainian commanders have not been pushing as hard against Russia’s defenses as the US would like due to a high cost in Ukrainian lives. AWC

China

• On Saturday, China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) launched extensive air and sea drills around Taiwan after Taiwanese Vice President Lai Ching-te returned from a trip that included stops in the United States. AWC

Korea

• The US, Japan, and South Korea on Friday announced a series of steps to boost their trilateral military alliance as the leaders of the three nations met at the presidential retreat at Camp David. AWC

Iran

• A tanker believed to be carrying 800,000 barrels of stolen Iranian oil began unloading its cargo off the coast of Texas on Sunday despite Iranian warnings of retaliation, The Associated Press reported. AWC

Niger

• The Biden administration is considering ways to maintain its military presence in Niger following the July 26 coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum. AWC
• The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said Thursday that most West African nations are prepared to join a standby force that might intervene in Niger to reinstate President Mohamed Bazoum, who was deposed in a July 26 coup. AWC
• A delegation representing the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) traveled to Niger’s capital Niamey on Saturday to meet with the military junta that deposed Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum in a July 26 coup. AWC