2026, day 258 Good morning from over Australia. ‘US in direct contact with Yemen's Houthis, VP Vance says’ (Al Arabiya); ‘Saudi Crown Prince to meet Egypt's al-Sisi in Cairo on Tuesday’ (Al Arabiya); ‘US imposes Iran-related sanctions on Russia's VTB’ (Reuters): ‘Oil tanker exploded after colliding with mines in Hormuz, Iran's Fars reports’ (Fars); ‘Saudis Seek to Boost Hormuz Oil Exports as Key Pipeline Attacked’ (BBG); ‘Saudi Arabia may be just days away from not being able to export much oil’ (BBG); ‘Burnham Mulls Saudi Support Amid UK Fears of Houthi Economic Hit’ (BBG); ‘Israel unlikely to improve Saudi ties despite Houthi threat, expert tells 'Post'’ (JPost); ‘Hezbollah trying to establish footholds within gaps in southern Lebanon's Yellow Line, IDF reveals’ (JPost); ‘Golan Druze increasingly embrace Israel, reject Syria in seismic shift triggered by tragedy’ (ToI); ‘Donald Trump claims Russia and Ukraine have agreed energy truce’ (FT); ‘Russia Is Churning Out Smart, Cheap New Weapons Faster Than Ukraine or the U.S.’ (WSJ); ‘EU states to raise game as Arctic becomes strategic geopolitical frontier’ (AJ); ‘London gains largest weapons factory since Second World War’ (Telegraph); ‘Canada seeks Ukraine loan role to deepen EU ties’ (FT); ‘Carney seeks 'unique alliance' with EU’ (Telegraph); ‘Ottawa seeks tighter ties with EU without sacrificing sovereignty’ (Globe & Mail); ‘Mark Carney's elitist quest to turn us into Europeans’ (National Post); ‘Japan's LNG needs stymie response after Putin's disputed-island visit’ (Nikkei Asia); ‘U.S. has deployed first space-based weapon, Air Force secretary says’ (WaPo); ‘China Also Thinks Al Could Kill Us. But First, It Wants to Match the U.S.’ (WSJ); ‘China's Top Spy Chief Warns Artificial Intelligence Is a Threat to Party Rule’ (NYT); ‘How the Clash Between Money and Safety Created a Monumental Crisis for AI’ (WSJ); ‘Trump says a strong, smart president is the only "guardrail" Al needs’ (Axios); In geoeconomics, ‘EU trade chief to visit Manila to finalise Philippines trade deal’ (Euronews); ‘Germany explores pharma proposal with team Trump as tariff threat looms’ (Politico); ‘TD and Scotiabank join other banks in promising to deploy over $250 billion dollars worth of capital’ (Financial Post); In politics, ‘In a drab New Jersey building, Trump finds his voter fraud 'smoking gun'’ (Telegraph); ‘Second judge freezes Trump mail ballot plan as Supreme Court ruling looms’ (The Hill); ‘Nationalist leaders say U.K. union "coming to an end"’ (Axios); ‘Swedish election leaves government up for grabs’ (Euractiv); In markets, ‘Rate increase baked in, attention turns to BOT's outlook and mood’ (Japan Times); ‘Brics leaders act to hedge - not revolt - against US dollar dominance’ (SCMP); ‘China's Hunt for Barrels Threatens Oil Market Balancing Act’ (BBG); ‘Ten-year Treasury yield hits 5% for first time since 2023’ (FT)