Today's newsletter: -Europe Shows Backbone in Munich -Tracking America's Military Buildup in the Middle East -Regular roundup of under-the-radar global headlines Check it out, and subscribe: fronts.co/warfronts-we...

WarFronts team is tracking US flight movements very closely. Per @oalexanderdk.bsky.social on X, the US is about to have: 24xF-15E 30xF-35A 6xEA-18G 12xA-10C At one single airbase in Jordan. (1/3)

Middle Eastern pivot toward Somalia is telling. -Egyptian troop deployment ongoing -Turkish heavy armor and fighter jets stationed in Mogadishu -Pakistan reportedly about to sign a deal for Somali JF-17s. All a direct response to UAE/Israeli backing of autonomous zones. www.dw.com/en/why-is-eg...

South Korean Intelligence 🤝 WarFronts This week, lawmakers in Seoul revealed that North Korean First Daughter Kim Ju-ae is Kim Jong-un's likely successor. We covered Kim Ju-ae in October, on our sister channel HomeFronts. Check it out. www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZLJ...

Also in Asia, Thailand's ruling coalition surged to victory on a wave of nationalist support, after two limited conflicts with Cambodia in the last year. Will that victory embolden Anutin to pursue further conflict? Or relieve pressure on Thai leaders to stoke nationalist fervor? Time will tell.

Two major election results in Asia this weekend, and this is the biggest. With a supermajority, Takaichi has a real shot at revising Japan's Constitution, to allow for a dramatic expansion of the Japanese military. In an age of rearmament, the world's fifth-largest economy is coming online.

Today on WarFronts: Simon sits down with Greg Scarlatoiu, President and CEO of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK). Check it out! www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO0U...

Critical shift, from a nation that was advocating forcefully against US military action just days ago. With Saudi Arabia in alignment, and US air defenses positioned in Qatar and Bahrain, remaining Gulf states will struggle to muster continued opposition to strikes. www.axios.com/2026/01/31/s...

Third prototype, in less than 15 months since the first was revealed. Regardless of the weird control surfaces and other stealth-questionable characteristics, it's impressive for China to be iterating on a design like this at such a rapid pace.

Final surge of US assets toward Iran appears to be underway: -Tankers leading photo-documented F-35s toward the Middle East -B-52s to Guam, likely continuing to Diego Garcia -Warships taking up position in eastern Mediterranean Busy weekend upcoming?

Today on WarFronts: We combine flight/maritime data, OSINT reports, journalistic sources, and accounts from within Iran, to map out the contours of likely US action against the Islamic Republic. www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Klm...

Today on WarFronts: We make the case for a Taiwan-style armament of Moldova, as a European strategic bulwark against Russia. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Msmg...

This week on our sister channel, PoliticalFronts: We examine Washington's plan to govern Venezuela... www.youtube.com/watch?v=XE_X... And the major ramifications for Venezuelan oil. www.youtube.com/watch?v=gS8Z...

The Latest on WarFronts: The team switches gears, to discuss potential US military action against Greenland. www.youtube.com/watch?v=beF8...

And if our OSINT friends are correct...not just next. Imminent. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOjs...

Our latest WarFronts coverage on Venezuela: youtube.com/watch?v=JE1gx3yHdHg

Might be a good moment to queue this one up for a re-watch. www.youtube.com/watch?v=unAX...

No introduction needed. www.youtube.com/watch?v=iddn...

This Week on WarFronts: We interview Illya Sekirin 🇺🇦 -- front-line drone operator, drone warfare expert, and advisor to some of Ukraine's top decision-makers. Check it out. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eigt...

The UAE's full statement, in context, matters greatly here. The UAE's actual statement is far from the media frame our team has observed, implying a UAE disengagement or admission of defeat in Yemen. Instead, this is far closer to what we've seen from Rwanda re: M23, denial of complicity.

Today on WarFronts: We answer your questions in our ask-us-anything Holiday Special! Depressing? Often. Merry? Occasionally. Worth the watch? Certainly. www.youtube.com/watch?v=uO4T...

Recently on WarFronts: The Life and Power of Xi Jinping: youtube.com/watch?v=c4Kg... Is the United States Committing War Crimes in the Caribbean? youtube.com/watch?v=C4M5... Russian Ships Surveilling British Waters...Why? youtube.com/watch?v=cmdh...

Today on WarFronts: Ukraine's Moment of Truth. www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bMU...

Today on WarFronts: The Ugly Truth About China's Air Force. www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xIr...

Today on WarFronts: www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIPe...

Read this. Nothing short of capitulation--and it quite clearly sets the groundwork for a far easier second attempt at an invasion.

Today on WarFronts: We discuss the escalating tensions across South Asia, the recent terror attacks in Delhi and Islamabad, and the danger that accelerationist non-state actors will prompt a war among nations that are open to the possibility. www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP8z...

The World Ignored Sudan's Genocide. Now It's Too Late. www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRt4...

Today on WarFronts: We dive into the claims of a Christian genocide in Nigeria: What's actually going on, how religion factors into the conflict, and whether the label of "genocide" helps to address the root causes of the violence. Context & Nuance. That's how we do it on WarFronts.

Headlines aside, JNIM has neither the resources, nor the manpower, nor the geopolitical capital, nor the apparent will to take direct control of Mali--at least, not anytime soon. For now, chaos is an objective in itself.

Watching this very closely. Ethiopia is, as usual, a ticking time bomb in multiple dimensions at once, in an African Horn region that is exceptionally prone to sudden, catastrophic destabilization.

Tigray was the centre of a devastating two-year war that pitted the TPLF against Ethiopia’s federal army.

Today on WarFronts: A close look at the ongoing JNIM blockades in Mali, where, although a complete JNIM capture of the nation remains very unlikely, the chance of a government collapse is rising by the day. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad-4...

As repression takes hold in Tanzania, we're here to cover it. www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYMz...

WarFronts explains the horrific situation playing out in Sudan's El-Fasher: An ongoing genocide, perpetrated by the Rapid Support Forces, and enabled by the UAE and other foreign backers, in which the full scope of devastation is as-yet unknown. www.youtube.com/watch?v=j86D...

Today on WarFronts: We answer your questions about Chinese PMCs, the state of global democracies in a world veering toward autocracy, and more! Check it out: www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0qC...

In light of Washington's new interest in a military intervention in Nigeria, here's a 2025 summary of Nigeria's civil conflict(s). As the episode explains, there is a religious component to the violence, but it falls far short of explaining the conflict. www.youtube.com/watch?v=geJo...

What To Watch This Weekend: -Miami Herald reports imminent US strikes on Venezuela -Tanzania protests escalate despite internet blackout; opposition claims hundreds have been killed -Cameroon's Paul Biya still absent after claiming victory in disputed election, army reportedly protecting opponent

Growing indications that the collapse of Ukraine's defense in Pokrovsk may be imminent. Ukraine has built new defensive lines and fallback points behind the city, and can hold Russian forces there once Pokrovsk becomes untenable. (1/4)

Another one to watch in the coming days. Even if Islamabad and Kabul both intend to pursue a peace, each side deals with insurgent agitators that likely believe they have more to gain, by stoking a return to open violence.

While the crisis in El-Fasher plays out, without any hint of a desperately needed outside intervention...three other spots to watch across Africa. Cameroon, the Ivory Coast, & Tanzania each have either re-elected, or are about to re-elect, corrupt and well-entrenched leaders through... (1/2)

Days after the fall of the Sudanese military's final command post in El-Fasher, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are widely understood to be preparing, or carrying out, mass retributive violence against civilians. We'll cover the fall of El-Fasher in today's Tuesday brief.

On this week's WarFronts Q&A: -What would a US-Venezuela war look like? -How does Irish neutrality scale to the modern day? -How much value in drone-aircraft carriers? And more. www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbtO...

No attack yesterday, after all, but carrier strike group deployment incoming. Probing flights by bombers, reports that the US Army's Night Stalker helicopter pilots are in the area, recent operational expansion to strikes in the Pacific... all signs point to escalation.

Today on WarFronts: A recap and analysis of Russia's failed 2025 summertime offensive, and the subsequent, seemingly unsuccessful attempts by Moscow to reclaim its momentum. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu_J...

Lots of OSINT discussion right now about imminent US strikes on Venezuela. Maduro regime reportedly moving air-defense assets. Let's see if this is anything.

Major news after the US announced its sanctions against Lukoil and Rosneft. India likely to cut seaborne oil imports from Russia, too, although China's direct pipeline oil transfers may continue uninterrupted.

Yesterday on WarFronts: We explore the China-Philippines flashpoint in the Indo-Pacific, and explain that despite the justified international focus on Taiwan, the Philippines may soon become a target of large-scale Chinese military operations. www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Tsz...

From our sister channel PoliticalFronts: One that our WarFronts Weekly readers might appreciate. www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0Ps...

Today on WarFronts: We dig into the ceasefire in Gaza, and both the immediate, and the long-term factors that suggest a collapse is coming. www.youtube.com/watch?v=jblo...