Axios

The Department of Defense released guidelines on Tuesday explaining the process of identifying the remains of soldiers returned from the Korean War.

The big picture: Of the 36,940 Americans killed or injured in the war, around 7,699 are listed as missing, according to the Pentagon. While the 55 boxes of remains brought back to the U.S. are "presumed to be American," it's possible they could include remains of soldiers from other nations who also fought in the war.

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort is set to begin his trial today in Alexandria, Va., where he faces charges of tax and bank fraud related to the laundering of $30 million worth of income.

Why it matters: This is the first trial of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into the Trump campaign and its possible ties to Russian interference in the 2016 election. Mueller's team is not expected to make any reference to the words "Russians" or "collusion," per ABC News, but will instead focus on Manafort's alleged financial crimes, including those related to his political work as a lobbyist in Ukraine.

Senior U.S. officials reassured Israel today that regardless of President Trump's public call for direct and unconditional talks with Iran, there is no change in the administration's tough policy against the Iranian regime, Israeli officials tell me.

Why it matters: Trump's statement on talks with Iran blindsided the Israeli government, which has been totally aligned with Trump when it comes to Iran and pushed hard for U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. After the statement, Israeli officials asked whether there had been a change in policy, an official said.

An Iranian offical said Tuesday that it "would be a humiliation" to negotiate with President Trump since he trashed the Iran nuclear deal, Reuters reports.

The big picture: The tension between Trump and the Iranian regime has only increased since Trump pulled out of the deal earlier this year, and additional sanctions are approaching on August 6.

North Korea is working on one or two intercontinental ballistic missiles, according to satellite imagery and U.S. intelligence agencies, The Washington Post’s Ellen Nakashima and Joby Warrick report.

The big picture: This is not surprising. The North Koreans did not agree to any details of denuclearization and it’s to be expected that they will continue work on fissile materials while no official orders have come from Pyongyang to halt that work.

Be smart: “The new intelligence does not suggest an expansion of North Korea’s capabilities but shows that work on advanced weapons is continuing,” the Post says, but it certainly isn’t a sign of goodwill that they are indeed moving towards denuclearization.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman reportedly made clear he would not pressure the Palestinian leadership to accept the long-anticipated, not yet unveiled U.S. peace plan. Although the plan is under wraps, the bulk of available information suggests it likely will cross several Arab redlines: a lack of Palestinian sovereignty in Jerusalem’s Old City or holy sites, an open-ended Israeli security presence in the West Bank, and no evacuation of Israeli settlements.

The big picture: American officials hoped — and Palestinian leaders feared — that Riyadh would back the proposal and twist Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ arm to accept it. That’s because some Saudi leaders had told U.S. counterparts that they viewed the Israeli–Palestinian conflict as an obstacle to working with Israel toward the priority goal of countering Iran. But Riyadh typically displays greater flexibility when speaking to Americans in private, and King Salman’s predictable decision to reassure the Palestinian leadership thus came as comfort to Abbas and a disappointment to the U.S. team.

In a speech on Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo rolled out the Trump administration’s long-awaited Indo-Pacific economic strategy, outlining the Trump administration’s alternative to China’s Belt and Road initiative.

The big picture: The Trump administration has made the region a centerpiece of its approach to Asia, speaking frequently about the importance of a “free and open Indo-Pacific.” Pompeo highlighted the importance of deeper U.S. engagement with this large and fast-growing economic area, but the proposed strategy falls short of the scale needed to provide credible alternatives to China’s efforts, which include increasingly prominent cases of “debt-trap” diplomacy.

President Trump said Monday that he is willing to meet Iranian President Hassan Rouhani without preconditions.

"I believe in meeting...I had a great meeting with President Putin of Russia. ... I would certainly meet with Iran if they’re ready to meet."

Why it matters: The Trump administration has employed destabilization and delegitimization versus the Iranian regime, encouraging its citizens to pile pressure on their government and showing tacit support for regime change. Rouhani has reportedly rejected meeting in the past. Now, Trump’s willingness to meet is a stated U.S. position.

The share of Chinese students who return home after studying abroad has spiked in the last decade, Quartz reports, citing Chinese government data.

By the numbers: In the early 2000s, only one or two of every 10 Chinese students studying abroad returned to China after graduation. In 2017, around eight in 10 students chose to go back home.