Trump falls short on foreign policy

Reuters Weekend Briefing <dailybriefing@thomsonreuters.com>
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2026-08-22 13:00

Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Robert MacMillan, Reuters.com Weekend Editor

Welcome to the Weekend Briefing. Our analysis on Donald Trump’s foreign policy makes for engrossing reading, as does our report on his failure to secure a trade deal with Canada. (Note: Those tariffs are dampening the ardor for a separate Québec.) The U.S. plans to pay $725 million of the more than $4 billion it owes to the United Nations. On a completely different note, how many jerseys in soccer is too many?

Trump falls short on foreign policy

REUTERS/Kylie Cooper

Stalled: He promised to bring peace to multiple conflicts and made that pledge a centerpiece of his second-term agenda. His failure to resolve the Iran conflict and end the Ukraine-Russia war could cost Republicans dearly in November’s midterm elections. Then there is Gaza, where Trump’s peace plan remains deadlocked.
Ground reports: An Israeli man guarding Jewish settlers who were occupying land in a Palestinian village killed a 17-year-old boy. Israel’s military acknowledged that its troops fired shots at a car in Gaza in 2024, killing 5-year-old Hind Rajab.

Migrant women report sexual harassment and assault in Ceuta

‘They follow you’: Women sleeping outdoors after crossing into the Spanish enclave have reported sex crimes to local authorities, including a minor who allegedly was penetrated and forced to sell drugs. “A lot of guys are trying to attack the girls every night, sometimes just when you go to the toilet.” Another said police told the women there was little they could do.
Hunger in Somalia: UNICEF expects nearly 1.9 million children to face malnourishment this year and forecasts a 32% jump in the number of children to facilities with severe acute malnutrition and complications. More than 200 health and nutrition facilities have closed because of Western aid cuts.

A miscalculation in Ukraine

Fedorov’s gamble: Ukraine’s ousted defense minister tried to broaden a political fight with Volodymyr Zelenskiy by calling for wartime elections. It didn’t work, so Mykhailo Fedorov is off to the United States to try his hand at investment funds and Ukrainian startups, a source said.
Denial: Kim Jong Un’s sister denied Zelenskiy’s claim that North Korea plans to send up to 50,000 more troops to Russia.

Some hate it hot

Sicily: The town of Floridia recorded Europe’s hottest temperature, 48.8C/119.8F, in August 2021. Residents thought it would be an isolated event, but now it’s a way of life, one that some compare to the pandemic lockdowns.
The bill: The bulk of the losses from wildfires and floods throughout Europe over the past few years are uninsured. That means the public will pay unless countries come up with another solution.

It’s mosquito season

Disease: The Michigan health department confirmed a rare locally acquired case of eastern equine encephalitis. Four people in North Macedonia died of West Nile fever and 38 have tested positive this year. The Netherlands detected its own case for the first time since 2020. Global warming is increasing the spread of the chikungunya virus and tick-borne encephalitis, Bavarian Nordic’s CEO said.
Trend: U.S. kindergarten vaccination coverage fell during the 2025-2026 school year. The decline has persisted every year except one since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the CDC reported.

Keep your seatbelt on at Sydney airport

Close calls: Australia’s transport safety regulator is investigating a fourth incident at the airport in less than a month after air traffic control directed two planes toward the same intersection on the ground.
Australia roundup: A court began hearing the appeal of Erin Patterson, who was convicted of murdering three of her estranged husband’s relatives by feeding them toxic death-cap mushrooms. And police recovered the body of a missing teenage hiker near Sydney. New South Wales’ premier apologized for initially reporting that 18-year-old Lily Hooper had been found alive.

Before I forget…

An 18-year-old man armed with a sword attacked students at a Swedish high school, killing one person and injuring three.
Harvard University will pay $53 million to resolve lawsuits from families after the former manager of its morgue sold their relatives’ body parts on the black market.
Authorities warned that there are tens of thousands of potentially unsafe condoms floating around France’s shops and pharmacies.
Bolivian police detained Argentine consultant Fernando Cerimedo, an adviser to President Rodrigo Paz, as a suspect in the shooting of political commentator Nadia Beller.
The Milky Way may be our home and all, but make sure you keep your hands and feet away from its mouth.
The editor of this newsletter for nearly four years left us to run the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s newsroom. Good luck, Simon.

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