Chip export rules. The Trump administration withdrew a Joe Biden-era rule due to take effect today that would have divided countries into three tiers for access to U.S. artificial intelligence chips. Certain countries would have faced stricter controls. The move came after the Trump administration issued guidelines earlier this week that said using Chinese tech company Huawei’s most advanced chip anywhere in the world without a U.S. license would violate U.S. export controls.
Qatar’s airplane order. The country will order up to 210 Boeing aircraft, and Trump secured deals worth more than $243.5 billion during his trip to Qatar, the White House said yesterday. Those include deals regarding drones and quantum technologies. Meanwhile, Trump’s potential plan to accept a Qatari-donated plane for Air Force One prompted concern that Qatar could bug it, Bloomberg reported.
WHO cutbacks. The World Health Organization (WHO) has cut its management team by half and will further reduce operations due to a funding shortfall, its director said yesterday. The U.S. exit from the organization is due to be finalized by next January. The WHO’s proposed 2026–2027 budget includes a 21 percent reduction; it will ask members to increase dues at a meeting next week.
Trump says Iran deal is close. Washington and Tehran are “getting close” to making a nuclear deal, Trump said today in Qatar. He added that Iran had “sort of” agreed to terms. Yesterday, a top adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei told NBC that Iran would commit to never making nuclear weapons, eliminate highly enriched uranium stockpiles, and agree to inspections in exchange for sanctions relief.
Peru cabinet shakeup. President Dina Boluarte fired her finance minister and saw her prime minister resign yesterday, which triggered the dissolution of the entire cabinet. The former prime minister had faced a censure vote amid anger about insecurity and the recent killings of a group of miners. Newly-named Prime Minister Eduardo Arana and the reinstated cabinet now face a congressional confirmation vote.
German probe into parcel plot. Authorities in Germany and Switzerland arrested three Ukrainian men in a probe of an alleged plot to send incendiary and explosive parcels to Ukraine to benefit Russia, German prosecutors said. Prosecutors in Lithuania and Poland also accused Russia of backing arson and parcel attacks last year. Moscow has previously denied accusations of hybrid warfare.
Reported U.S. G20 ban. The U.S. National Security Council told government departments to suspend their work related to this year’s Group of Twenty (G20) conference in South Africa, two unnamed sources told the Washington Post. Trump has previously threatened to boycott the summit over claims regarding the treatment of white South Africans. Some officials inside the administration reportedly disagree on a boycott over concerns it cedes diplomatic space to China.
Apple in India. Trump said he told Apple CEO Tim Cook yesterday that he disapproves of the company’s scale-up in India and wants the firm to produce inside the United States. Apple had been relocating some iPhone production activities to India in response to U.S.-China geopolitical tensions. Trump said that Apple would be increasing its U.S. production; representatives for the company in India did not comment.
