U.S. Threats to Venezeula Are Ramping Up, Not Down
By Ted Snider | The Libertarian Institute | September 23, 2025
Reporting has recently emerged that the United States is considering direct strikes on Venezuela that could increase volatility in the region and the risk of war.
Under the pretext of disrupting the flow of drugs into the United States by Venezuelan drug cartels, the U.S. has militarized the waters off the coast of Venezuela, flooding them with Aegis guided-missile destroyers, a nuclear-powered fast track submarine, P-8 spy planes and F-35 fighter jets. On September 2, American forces fired on a small speed boat that the U.S. claims was running drugs for a Venezuelan cartel.
The Donald Trump administration is yet to offer evidence for its claim. They have neither publicly identified who the eleven people who were killed on the boat were nor what drugs they were carrying. Congress has still not been briefed.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the boat was “probably headed to Trinidad or some other country in the Caribbean.” Trump says it was bound for the United States. Turns out, it was headed back to Venezuela.
U.S. officials familiar with the operation have now told The New York Times that, having “spotted the military aircraft stalking it,” the boat has already “altered its course and appeared to have turned around before the attack started.” The twenty-nine second video that Trump posted on social media spliced together several clips but edited out the boat turning around. Despite this lack of imminent threat, the aircraft, either an attack helicopter or an MQ-9 Reaper drone, “repeatedly hit the vessel before it sank.”
The Trump administration has claimed the right to supplant the National Guard and law enforcement with the military and lethal force on the grounds that the drug cartels are terrorist organizations who pose a threat to the national security of the United States because the drugs they bring into the country to kill Americans. The U.S. has invoked the right to self-defense, and Rubio has insisted that the speed boat was “an immediate threat to the United States.” Except that if it had turned around, it wasn’t.
Setting aside the legitimacy of the terrorist justification, if the boat had already turned around, the immediate threat argument is also blown out of the water. “If someone is retreating, where’s the ‘imminent threat’ then?” Rear Admiral Donald J. Guter, a retired top judge advocate general for the Navy from 2000 to 2002, asked the Times. “Where’s the ‘self-defense’? They are gone if they ever existed—which I don’t think they did.” Rear Admiral James E. McPherson, the top judge advocate general for the Navy from 2004 to 2006, added, “If, in fact, you can fashion a legal argument that says these people were getting ready to attack the U.S. through the introduction of cocaine or whatever, if they turned back, then that threat has gone away.”
The Trump administration has made it clear that the attack was not a one-time anomaly. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said, “We smoked a drug boat, and there’s 11 narco terrorists at the bottom of the ocean, and when other people try to do that, they’re going to meet the same fate.” Since then, three more Venezuelan boats have met the same fate. Hegseth told U.S. troops on a ship in the waters off Puerto Rico that “What you’re doing right now—it’s not training.” He told them that they were on the “front lines” of a “real-world exercise.”
On a post on X (formerly Twitter), Hegseth told U.S. forces that, “It’s not if, it’s when. You’re on a mission…And the full power of the American military…will be used to ensure the American people are kept safe.”
Ken Klippenstein reports that, according to military sources, the Trump administration is considering further, and more significant, strikes on Venezuela. The strikes could take the form of either the shooting down of Venezuelan military aircraft or bombing Venezuelan military airfields. Such action could be taken in one of two situations: if Venezuela threatens the American forces off its coast or if Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro does not enhance his administration’s efforts against drug cartels.
The first situation is a dangerous possibility, depending on the interpretation of “threaten.” Venezuela has twice flown F-16 fighter jets over the USS Jason Dunham. Though Venezuelan aircraft are likely displaying a show of defense, as the United States would, at least, do if there were foreign attack vessels off their coast, Trump said that if Venezuelan jets fly over U.S. Navy vessels again, “they’re going to be in trouble.”
The second raises, once again, the question of what Venezuela is to do. “The Venezuelan government’s collaboration in the fight against drug trafficking was among the best in South America,” according to former Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Pino Arlacchi. And now, on top of that, Maduro has ordered the more than doubling of Venezuelan forces to monitor drug trafficking. In addition to the 10,000 troops already deployed, the Venezuelan military is ordering an additional 15,000 “to determine and verify the absence of illicit crops” and to “to block this area also of possible drug trafficking.”
Despite Venezuela’s stellar past record and the current enhancing of its efforts, the United States is still threatening military action if Maduro doesn’t enhance his administration’s efforts against drug growing and trafficking.
What makes the question of what Venezuela is supposed to do more difficult is that there is nothing Venezuela can do. The U.S. is demanding that Venezuela make a course correction to correct a problem that does not exist.
The 2025 UNODC World Drug Report assesses that Venezuela “has consolidated its status as a territory free from the cultivation of coca leaves, cannabis and similar crops.” The report says that “[o]nly 5% of Colombian drugs transit through Venezuela.” The European Union’s European Drug Report 2025 corroborates the United Nations report: it “does not mention Venezuela even once as a corridor for the international drug trade.”
The Trump administration has offered no evidence that the destroyed speed boat was carrying drugs or drug smugglers or that it was on its way to American shores. Even if it was, it posed no immediate threat because it had already turned around and headed back to port. The Maduro government has already addressed American demands and increased its efforts against the drug growing and trafficking that was never a problem in the first place. None-the-less, the United States is threatening further military strikes on Venezuela, raising the hard to answer question of what Venezuela is supposed to do.
New war power bill gives Trump sweeping authority to attack dozens of nations: Report
The Cradle | September 23, 2025
Legislation has been drafted that would give US President Donald Trump unchecked power to wage war against drug cartels as well as any nation he says has harbored or aided them, the New York Times (NYT) reported on 23 September, citing people familiar with the matter.
If passed, the legislation would allow the US president to deem as “terrorists” any groups that have trafficked in drugs or financed drug-related enterprises. The president would then have the authorization to use military force against such groups and any governments allegedly harboring them.
The US military carried out attacks this month on three boats that Trump claims were smuggling drugs in the Caribbean Sea. The strikes killed 17 people and were widely criticized as illegal. Human Rights Watch (HRW) called the strikes “unlawful extrajudicial killings.”
NYT notes that the draft legislation appears to be modeled on the Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) that Congress granted former US president George W. Bush to launch the so-called “War on Terror” after the 9/11 attacks in 2001.
While theoretically passed to allow the US to target Al-Qaeda and its hosts in Afghanistan, the broad nature of the AUMF allowed the Bush, Obama, and first Trump administrations to invade Iraq and to target Islamic militant groups in Libya, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen many times over a period stretching decades.
Neither the AUMF nor the new draft legislation being considered names a specific enemy. The president is therefore empowered to attack any group, anywhere, in an open-ended war.
NYT stated that this raises the question of whether Congress was giving Trump the “authority to wage a regime change war in Venezuela.”
In addition to striking the three boats, Trump has ordered additional US warplanes and naval ships to the Caribbean, while also accusing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of leading a drug cartel.
In July, Trump signed a still-secret order directing the Pentagon to begin using military force against certain Latin American criminal gangs and drug cartels, NYT added.
The Institute for Responsible Statecraft stated that the legislation could be used to justify US military intervention in at least 60 countries.
In comments given to NYT, Harvard Professor Jack Goldsmith called the draft legislation “insanely broad,” essentially “an open-ended war authorization against an untold number of countries, organizations, and persons that the president could deem within its scope.”
Earlier this year, the White House added a long list of Latin American drug cartels to the national “Foreign Terrorist Organizations” (FTO) list, giving the US the pretext to launch military action against many groups in dozens of different countries if the draft legislation is passed.
Google admits Biden regime pressured content removal, promises to restore banned YouTube accounts
By Dan Frieth | Reclaim The Net | September 23, 2025
After years of denying bias, Google now concedes that it gave in to pressure from the Biden White House to remove content that did not breach its own rules.
The admission comes alongside a promise to restore access to YouTube accounts permanently removed for political speech related to COVID-19 and elections, topics where government officials had applied behind-the-scenes pressure to control the narrative.
This move follows sustained scrutiny from the House Judiciary Committee, which Reclaim The Net covered extensively, led by Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), who issued a subpoena and spearheaded an investigation that revealed the extent of government influence on content moderation decisions at Google.
In a letter from its legal representative, Google confirmed that it faced pressure from the federal government to suppress lawful speech.
We obtained a copy of the letter for you here.
Google revealed that it had been contacted multiple times by top federal officials regarding content on its platforms, even when that content did not break any rules.
The company stated that “Senior Biden Administration officials, including White House officials, conducted repeated and sustained outreach to Alphabet and pressed the Company regarding certain user-generated content related to the COVID-19 pandemic that did not violate its policies.”
According to the company, this outreach took place in a broader political climate that made it difficult to operate independently.
Google noted that “The political environment during the pandemic created significant pressure on platforms, including YouTube, to address content that some deemed harmful.”
While describing the situation, Google made clear its disapproval of such efforts, stating bluntly that “This pressure was – and remains – unacceptable and wrong.”
In response to this period of politicized enforcement, the company said it is now taking steps to reverse prior censorship decisions.
As part of that process, Google confirmed that “Reflecting the Company’s commitment to free expression, YouTube will provide an opportunity for all creators to rejoin the platform if the company terminated their channels for repeated violations of COVID-19 and elections integrity policies that are no longer in effect.”
The letter also clarified YouTube’s approach to content moderation, explicitly rejecting the use of outside arbiters. “YouTube does not use third-party fact checkers to determine whether content should be removed or labeled,” the company said.
Acknowledging the role of political diversity on its platform, Google stated that “YouTube values conservative voices on its platform. These creators have extensive reach and play an important role in civic discourse.”
The company concluded with a broader statement rejecting government interference in lawful online speech, saying that “The federal government should not play a role in pressuring private companies to take action on lawful speech.”
The revelations echo findings in the Murthy v. Missouri case, where lower courts found that federal agencies had taken on a role similar to an “Orwellian ‘Ministry of Truth.’” While the Supreme Court dismissed the case on procedural grounds, the core issues around government pressure on speech remain unresolved.
The investigation into Google is part of a broader probe into how tech firms handled information related to the 2020 election, COVID-19, and high-profile political topics such as Hunter Biden’s laptop. The committee’s findings show a pattern of censorship aligned with political objectives.
US Attempts Won’t Affect Russia-China Contracts on Energy Resources – Chinese Mission
Sputnik – 24.09.2025
GENEVA – The US’s attempts to force China to abandon the purchase of Russian energy resources will not affect the contracts between the countries, the Chinese permanent mission to the World Trade Organization (WTO) told Sputnik on Wednesday.
When asked if the US’s position on energy contracts between China and Russia will have an impact, Charge d’Affaires Li Yihong replied in the negative, adding that relations between Russia and China are comprehensive and deep, which has been recognized and repeated more than once at the highest level.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump blamed the ongoing conflict in Ukraine to China and India for their purchases of Russian oil.
Pro-Israel tech giant to take over TikTok’s US algorithm to censor Gaza genocide
Press TV – September 23, 2025
A pro-Israel American company is supposed to provide data security and recreate an algorithm for the new US version of TikTok as part of attempts to censor the occupying regime’s genocide of Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip, a report says.
The move was prompted following the forthcoming sale of the popular Chinese-owned social media application to US investors, with the financial news outlet Bloomberg citing a White House official as saying on Monday that the arrangement with Oracle Corp. seeks to ensure US control of TikTok’s algorithm, which recommends videos and determines what users in the US see on their feeds.
Under a proposed agreement, owners of the US-based TikTok would lease a copy of the algorithm from its Chinese parent, ByteDance Ltd., that Oracle would then retrain “from the ground up,” according to the official.
“Data from US users would be stored in a secure cloud managed by Oracle with controls established to keep out foreign adversaries, including China,” the official was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
“Beijing-based ByteDance would not have access to information on TikTok’s US subscribers, nor would it have any control over the algorithm in the US.”
The White House official underlined, “Oracle, the US security partner, will operate, retrain, and continuously monitor the US algorithm to ensure content is free from improper manipulation or surveillance.”
Austin-headquartered Oracle, which is controlled by its founder, Larry Ellison, already provides cloud services for TikTok and hosts user data in the US and other countries as part of a multibillion-dollar partnership dubbed “Project Texas.”
Ellison is one of Silicon Valley’s most pro-Israel figures and has made significant donations to the so-called charity “Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF)”, which supports the Israeli occupation soldiers and is involved in funding emergency medical supplies and mental health treatment to those wounded in the Gaza Strip.
After the start of Israel’s genocide in Gaza in October 2023, Ellison pledged Oracle’s support for the occupying regime with cloud and cybersecurity infrastructure, highlighting his commitment to Israel’s military and tech sectors.
The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement says that US tech companies, notably Microsoft, Amazon, Google, Cisco, Oracle, and IBM, “are deeply complicit in atrocity (including apartheid and genocide)” for providing cloud infrastructure and AI technologies to the Israeli occupation army.
Social media companies, including TikTok, employ large numbers of former intelligence officers from Israel’s Unit 8200.
The Israeli regime also lobbies social media companies to remove pro-Palestine content, giving Tel Aviv significant influence over censorship decisions at the major US social media platforms.
In 2024, US Congress enacted the “TikTok divest-or-ban” law after Jewish lobby groups were ruffled by the large numbers of young American people viewing and sharing videos of Israel’s mass killing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
Access to TikTok was briefly blocked for US users in January as the ban came into effect. However, President Donald Trump issued an extension for a deal to be reached, allowing access to resume after just one day.
The move comes as the Israeli regime persists in its systematic oppression of Palestinians by worsening the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and launching a full-scale ground invasion across the territory.
Disturbing images and videos depicting emaciated children, relentless bombardments, and widespread destruction continue to surface on social media platforms, shedding light on the dire situation faced by Palestinians in the region.
Backed by the US, Israel launched its onslaught on Gaza on October 7, 2023, after Palestinian resistance fighters waged the surprise Operation al-Aqsa Flood against the Zionist entity in response to the regime’s decades-long campaign of bloodletting and devastation against Palestinians.
The Israeli military has so far killed more than 65,300 Palestinians, mostly women and children.
Thousands of victims are also feared trapped under rubble, inaccessible to emergency and civil defense teams due to relentless Israeli attacks.
Ex-CIA chief Petraeus hails former Al-Qaeda leader for ‘clear vision’ in Syria
The Cradle | September 23, 2025
Self-appointed Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa engaged in a wide-ranging dialogue on 22 September with former CIA director David Petraeus as part of his visit to New York.
Sharaa, a former Al-Qaeda commander, met Petraeus, who commanded troops in Iraq after the 2003 invasion, at the Concordia Summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. They discussed issues facing Syria, including reconstruction, governance, economic sanctions, and regional relations.
“We faced massive destruction over the past years, but we are focusing on economic development and building capabilities,” Sharaa stated.
“Syrians by nature are people of work and trade. So please lift the sanctions and see what we can do,” he added, referring to the 2019 US Caesar Act, which imposed crushing economic sanctions on Syria, impoverishing millions.
US President Donald Trump removed some sanctions earlier this year, but Congress must authorize their permanent removal.
Petraeus said that the conversation with the former Al-Qaeda in Iraq commander “has filled me with enormous hope.”
“Your vision is powerful and clear. Your demeanor is very impressive as well … We obviously hope for your success, Inshallah, because at the end of the day, your success is our success,” Petraeus added.
Though Sharaa was deemed a terrorist by the US State Department in 2012, the CIA covertly provided arms and funding to the Al-Qaeda affiliate he founded in Syria, then known as the Nusra Front.
According to journalist Seymour Hersh, Petraeus established a “rat line” between Libya and Syria to send weapons to the Nusra Front and other extremist groups seeking to topple the government of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
The CIA operation, known as Timber Sycamore, enjoyed a budget of over $1 billion per year. The operation finally allowed Sharaa to oust Assad and establish an extremist Islamic state over Syria in December.
According to former French intelligence officer and political analyst Thierry Meyssan, Petraeus continued to help fund Al-Qaeda groups, including ISIS, after he was forced to resign from the CIA in 2012 after a sex scandal.
Meyssan says that Petraeus joined the private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), headed by Jewish billionaire Henry Kravis, which funded the Nusra Front and ISIS on behalf of the CIA in an off-the-books manner.
Addressing Israel’s war on Gaza, Sharaa dismissed speculation about Syria joining the Abraham Accords to normalize relations with Israel.
He claimed the destruction of Gaza has made any broad normalization with Israel impossible, but said limited security arrangements could be considered.
Before Sharaa’s trip to New York, Syrian and Israeli officials were carrying out security talks that would allow Israel to maintain control of the strategic Mount Hermon, establish a no-fly zone over the south of the country, and prevent Syrian forces from entering a demilitarized zone in the south.
In a personal question, Petraeus asked how Sharaa manages the pressure of leading a country after years of conflict.
“I spent 25 of my 43 years in conflict and crisis, so I am used to hardship. Decisions that carry the destiny of a nation must be taken with calm and an open mind.”
Sharaa first traveled to Iraq to join Al-Qaeda after the 2003 invasion and was known for dispatching suicide bombers to kill civilians. He was allegedly arrested by US forces in 2005 and sent to the US prison at Camp Bucca.
After his release in 2009, he became the Emir of the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) in Mosul, before traveling to Syria to establish the Nusra Front in 2011 on the instructions of Islamic State (later ISIS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Ayatollah Khamenei rejects talks with US, warns of ‘serious, irreparable harms’
Press TV – September 23, 2025
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has rejected Washington’s demands over nuclear negotiations, saying that accepting talks under threat is something “no honorable nation would ever do, and no wise statesman would ever endorse.”
Speaking in a televised address to the nation on Tuesday, Ayatollah Khamenei said negotiations with Washington under the current circumstances would bring “no benefit” to Iran and instead carry “serious and possibly irreparable harms.”
“Accepting negotiations under such threats would mean that the Islamic Republic of Iran is susceptible to intimidation.”
“If we were to negotiate under such threats, it would mean that we tremble and surrender whenever threatened,” the Leader said.
“If such susceptibility to threats were established, it would never end. Today, they say: if you enrich, we will do this. Tomorrow they will say: if you have missiles, we will do that … There would be endless threats, forcing us to retreat step by step.”
Ayatollah Khamenei said the United States is predetermining the outcome of any dialogue, and that Washington’s demands amount to dictation rather than negotiation.
“They have announced that the only acceptable result of negotiations is the shutdown of Iran’s nuclear activities and enrichment. So, we would sit at the table, and the outcome of the talks would be exactly what they had dictated in advance.”
“That is not negotiation,” the Leader stated, “that is dictation, that is imposition.”
“To negotiate with a party where the result must necessarily be what they want, and what they say; is that negotiation?”
The Leader pointed to recent American calls for Iran to abandon not only long-range but even short-range missiles.
The aim of such demands, Ayatollah Khamenei said, was to render Iran so weak and defenseless that it could not respond in any form if attacked.
West’s grip slips with Saudi–Pakistan security deal
Riyadh’s pact with Islamabad redraws alliances, weakens Indian leverage, and hints at a new Muslim deterrence framework beyond western control.
By F.M. Shakil | The Cradle | September 23, 2025
On 17 September, Riyadh rolled out the rare royal purple carpet for Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif – an honor previously reserved for global power players like US President Donald Trump.
Accompanying him on the trip was Pakistan’s Army Chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir. His presence highlighted that Riyadh values its defense pact with a nuclear power that, despite economic challenges, remains militarily strong.
Nuclear umbrella over Riyadh
The centerpiece of their visit was the signing of a “Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement” (SMDA), which declares that an attack on either country will be considered an attack on both.
Described by a senior Saudi official to Reuters as covering “all military means,” the pact has triggered speculation that it includes a nuclear umbrella, which would be a game-changing development in the military balance of West Asia.
With 81 percent of Pakistan’s weapon imports coming from China, the agreement implicitly aligns Saudi Arabia with the Chinese military-industrial orbit, whether by design or default. The kingdom has long been reliant on US arms, training, and security guarantees.
The pact was signed just two days after an extraordinary joint session between the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was called, following the 9 September Israeli airstrikes on Qatar – a major non-NATO ally and Gulf neighbor – with no substantial response from Washington, reinforcing perceptions that western security commitments are both selective and expendable.
Mushahid Hussain Syed, a former information minister and chairman of Pakistan’s Senate Defense Committee, tells The Cradle that the US has pivoted away from Arab allies toward Tel Aviv, leaving the region disillusioned and increasingly leaning toward alternatives.
“The strategy of ‘Greater Israel,’ spearheaded by Netanyahu, has involved military actions against five more Muslim nations. Pakistan’s recent triumph against India has demonstrated its capacity to contest Israel’s significant ally, India, and establish itself as a strategic alternative for Gulf nations.”
Toward an Islamic NATO?
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani recently called for an Islamic military alliance, akin to NATO, in response to Israel’s airstrike on Doha. His proposal echoed Egypt’s earlier attempt to revive a joint Arab defense force under the 1950 treaty – an initiative blocked by Qatar and the UAE, reportedly under US pressure.
A similar proposal has also come from Islamabad when Pakistan’s Defense Minister, Khawaja Asif, urged Muslim countries to band together in a NATO-like military alliance in light of the Israeli aggression in Doha.
During an appearance on Geo TV last week, Asif drove home the point that a united Muslim military front is essential to tackle common security issues and fend off outside dangers. Asif invoked the wider role of the west in instigating instability in West Asia, emphasizing the intricate network of US support for Al-Qaeda and the CIA’s covert actions that led to Osama bin Laden’s relocation to Sudan or the regime change war in Syria.
Is nuclear deterrence a part of the Pact?
The nuclear dimension of the Riyadh–Islamabad pact remains opaque, but highly significant. While no official statement from either side confirms the presence of a nuclear component, Asif hinted that Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities could be shared with Saudi Arabia as part of the agreement.
Syed, however, clarifies to The Cradle that Pakistan’s nuclear doctrine is India-centric and that its deterrence posture is South Asia-specific and does not extend to the Persian Gulf.
“A novel security framework for the region appears to be taking shape, focusing on Global South nations such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, whereas the Indo-Israeli Axis, previously supported by the US, now finds itself significantly diminished.”
The defense agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, he says, represents a notable achievement for Pakistan, establishing it as a pivotal entity within the geopolitical framework of West Asia, particularly among Muslim countries.
“The agreement is shaped by three significant elements: the perceived neglect of Arab allies by the United States, Israel’s proactive maneuvers in areas such as Iran, Qatar, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, and Pakistan’s recent triumph over India in May.”
New Delhi, Tel Aviv on alert
Foreign media and analysts are already warning that the pact may have unintended consequences for India and Israel, despite claims that it targets neither. Others predict that this pact is really about Riyadh’s ambitions to counter Iran and Yemen’s Ansarallah-led government in the region.
Dr Abdul Rauf Iqbal, a senior research scholar at the Institute for Strategic Studies, Research and Analysis (ISSRA) at Islamabad’s National Defence University (NDU), tells The Cradle that New Delhi views the pact with unease as it formalizes Saudi–Pakistani security ties that could entangle Riyadh in South Asian rivalries, especially the India–Pakistan border tensions over Jammu and Kashmir:
“It represents a setback for Prime Minister Modi’s foreign policy, potentially leading to Saudi involvement in a prospective Indo–Pak conflict. Furthermore, future Saudi investments in Pakistan’s Gwadar port and economic corridors would challenge India’s regional influence and initiatives such as the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC).”
He adds that Saudi Arabia’s pivot toward Pakistan reflects a broader alignment of Muslim powers and could push Tel Aviv to recalibrate its war on Gaza. It also pressures Tel Aviv by placing Pakistan – a vocal opponent of Israeli expansionism – into West Asian affairs.
“This agreement is not meant to counterbalance Iran’s regional influence, but rather to promote the Saudi Iranian reconciliation, as Pakistan maintains friendly relations with both nations. By formalizing ties with nuclear-armed Pakistan, Riyadh secures a credible deterrent as US security guarantees weaken. While western think tanks view it as an effort to contain Iran, the Arab world emphasizes it as strengthening Gulf deterrence independently of Washington.”
Indian concerns also stem from fears that the pact’s NATO-style clause could complicate ongoing operations like Sindoor, which remains active in a limited capacity following the skirmish between the two nuclear powers in May, especially given that the Gulf states’ swift mediation to resolve the crisis reflects their own interests with India and makes any military action against it unlikely.
Secondly, India is strategically analyzing Pakistan’s nuclear capability, which could see a boost if Saudi Arabia, having no such capacity, begins channeling funds to share Pakistan’s nuclear assets.
A post-western Gulf order?
While Tel Aviv and New Delhi remain publicly silent, both capitals are undoubtedly scrutinizing the fallout. Israel’s failed assassination attempt on Hamas leaders in Qatar, and India’s pressure campaign along the Line of Control, suggest that the axis is nervous about the consequences of a Saudi–Pakistani alliance. Israeli media downplayed the Saudi–Pakistan defense deal, seeing it as a show of force after Riyadh failed to influence Trump or West Asian policy.
As Syed notes, “The traditional ‘Oil for Security’ framework, which once defined US relations with the Middle East [West Asia], now serves as a remnant of a bygone era. As Saudi economic power increasingly reinforces China’s backing of Pakistan, India may feel vulnerable and isolated.”
Mark Kinra, an Indian geopolitical analyst with a focus on Pakistan and Balochistan, tells The Cradle that this development holds particular significance for India. New Delhi, he argues, has sustained robust economic and diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia for many years, and the influx of Saudi investments in India continues to expand:
“India will be meticulously observing the progression of this agreement, particularly given that its specific terms are not publicly available. Any alteration in the regional security equilibrium may influence India’s strategic assessments, energy security, and diplomatic relations.”
As Washington’s selective security guarantees falter and Israel escalates unchecked, Persian Gulf states like Saudi Arabia are looking eastward for credible deterrents and strategic autonomy.
By aligning with nuclear-armed Pakistan, Riyadh is asserting greater independence from the western military order. It also signals the emergence of a multipolar Persian Gulf security architecture –one increasingly shaped by Global South coordination, not western diktats.
Russia Sets 1-Year Deadline for New START Treaty – Expert
Sputnik – 23.09.2025
Russia suspended participation in 2023, but kept a moratorium on expanding its nuclear arsenal, Alexei Leonkov, military analyst, explains. He adds that the extension proposal gives the US a year to de-escalate in Ukraine, stop supplying weapons, intelligence, and funding the Zelensky regime.
He emphasizes that Russia’s nuclear forces remain modern and capable, including two unique “retaliation” complexes.
“In order to somehow stop all the heat, Russia is coming up with a proposal that should encourage the American side to take more decisive, constructive action. Otherwise, in a year’s time, the START Treaty, as one of the few responsible for international nuclear security, will be denounced, that is, practically terminated,” he said.
The analyst stressed that the concrete actions Russia wants to see include:
- End to escalation in Ukraine
- Halt weapons supplies through NATO countries
- Stop intelligence sharing fueling attacks on Russian regions
- Cut funding to the Zelensky regime
Russia is giving the US a chance over the next year to address these issues before taking decisive steps regarding the treaty, he concluded.
Mohammad Marandi: Iran KILLS IAEA Deal — Cairo Agreement Wiped Out After SnapBack!
Dialogue Works | September 21, 2025
Maduro Sent Letter to Trump Offering Talks to Prevent Conflict
By Kyle Anzalone | The Libertarian Institute | September 22, 2025
A top Venezuelan official confirmed that President Nicolas Maduro sent a letter to President Donald Trump earlier this month offering talks to prevent a war.
The letter was published on Vice President Delcy Rodríguez’s Telegram account on Monday, and dated September 5. Maduro says in the letter that Trump has been led to believe “fake news” about Venezuela’s ties to drug trafficking and Caracas’ willingness to work with the Trump administration on returning Venezuelan migrants from the US.
The letter includes a map from a UN study that shows 87% of drugs from South America are trafficked to the Western US via the Pacific Ocean. Only seven percent of South American drugs make it into the US via the Caribbean.
The letter concludes with Maduro offering to engage in direct talks with Trump’s envoy Richard Grenell. In February, Grenell traveled to Venezuela and secured the release of six American prisoners after meeting with Maduro.
Following the meeting with Grenell, Secretary of State Marco Rubio began ramping up sanctions on Venezuela and seizing Maduro’s plane. In July, the State Department designated two Venezuelan cartels as narco-terrorist organizations. Trump has authorized military action against designated narco-terrorist organizations.
Trump and Rubio have claimed that Maduro is the leader of multiple narco-terrorist cartels and have offered a $50 million bounty on the Venezuelan President. The US intelligence community assessed that Maduro is not the leader of Tren de Aragua.
Washington also accuses Maduro of leading the Cartel de los Soles. However, a US-funded NGO has said there is little evidence that the Venezuelan government is the leader of the gang.
The letter from Maduro was sent to Trump in the days following a US strike on a ship in the Caribbean Sea that had left from Venezuela. The President claimed the attack killed 11 members of a narco-terrorist cartel that was attempting to bring drugs into the US. Trump has not offered evidence for the assertion.
The US has conducted two attacks on ships in the Caribbean after the letter was delivered to Trump.
In the post that included the letter, Rodríguez said, “The military threat against Venezuela, the Caribbean, and South America must cease, and the proclamation of a Zone of Peace must be respected.”
Trump scrambles to contain fallout from Israeli crime spree with meeting in New York
MEMO | September 22, 2025
President Donald Trump is set to host a high-level meeting with a select group of Arab and Muslim leaders on Tuesday in New York to discuss the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza. The summit, to be held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, comes as Western governments declared their recognition of the State of Palestine and amid growing international condemnation of Israel’s war crimes.
Two Arab officials confirmed to Axios that leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan and Turkey have been invited to the closed-door meeting, which will take place at 2:30pm Eastern Time.
The summit is expected to precede Trump’s meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, scheduled for 29 September at the White House. Sources familiar with the preparations said Arab leaders will call on Trump to pressure Netanyahu to end the assault on Gaza and to abandon plans to annex the illegally occupied West Bank.
Washington’s agenda reportedly includes a proposal for Arab and Muslim countries to contribute to a post-war stabilisation plan in Gaza, including potential troop deployments to replace the Israeli occupation forces. However, such proposals are expected to meet resistance unless a political framework guaranteeing Palestinian sovereignty is agreed.
Trump is also expected to hold a second meeting on Tuesday with leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), including Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait, to address broader regional concerns including Israel’s escalation in the region.
The unprovoked attack on Doha two weeks ago by Israel was met was global condemnation. Qatar reportedly demanded an apology before the resumption of negotiations.
Israel’s strike triggered an emergency summit of Arab and Muslim countries in Doha, and was swiftly followed by a new Saudi-Pakistani security pact—widely interpreted as a response to growing doubts about Washington’s reliability as a security guarantor in the Gulf.
Israeli intransigence is also threatening to unravel the hallmark foreign policy initiative of Trump’s previous presidency: the so-called Abrahm Accords. The UAE has reportedly warned that any annexation of the West Bank could lead to the collapse of the agreement which saw a number of Arab states normalise ties with the occupation state. The White House has not issued an official statement in response to the reports.
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