Vice President Vance sent a letter to Iran's national security chief stressing that any negotiations to head off U.S. military strikes "require discussions on the nuclear issue," a U.S. official said.
Why it matters: The letter to Mohsen Rezaei, which focused on the possibility of restarting negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, is the most senior-level outreach by the U.S. to Iran in several months. It comes as President Trump considers resuming major combat operations in Iran after the midterm elections.
Regional mediators led by Qatar are trying to reach a diplomatic deal to restart negotiations between the U.S. and Iran and prevent the resumption of war after the midterm elections, three U.S., Israeli and regional sources say.
The Qataris are working to convince Iran to allow UN inspectors to visit its bombed nuclear sites in return for some sanctions relief from the U.S.
Israel's election left Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his political rival Gadi Eisenkot scrambling to form a government.
Why it matters: With votes still being counted, neither bloc has secured a 61-seat majority, setting up potentially weeks of negotiations over who will govern Israel.
Dolores Huerta, the pioneering labor organizer who co-founded the United Farm Workers and coined the rallying cry "Sí, se puede," died Wednesday at 96, her family announced on her Instagram account.
Why it matters: The civil rights legend helped lead strikes and boycotts, fought to expand rights for Hispanic Americans and became a powerful kingmaker in politics.
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's electoral coalition opened a sizable lead over Gadi Eisenkot's opposition bloc with 85 percent of the vote counted.
But while Netanyahu outperformed exit polls, which had Eisenkot's opposition coalition ahead, neither bloc will clear a 61-seat majority. That sets the stage for weeks of wrangling over the country's next government.
Why it matters: Netanyahu will emerge from the election down but not out. His bloc is on pace to secure 53 seats — 11 fewer than he currently commands. But Eisenkot's bloc trails with 48 seats, leaving both men without a clear mandate to lead a government.
Rival satellite companies are jockeying to loosen Elon Musk's grip on battlefield communications after his company's restrictions on Ukraine's Starlink service shook officials in Europe and the U.S.
Why it matters: The episode, which temporarily disrupted Ukraine's drone usage, shows how vulnerable a military can be to the whims of a single company or market dominator.
The U.S. government is granting visas to Flávio Bolsonaro and his family following his defeat in Brazil's presidential election, a senior Trump administration official tells Axios.
Why it matters: The move comes days after Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, in a closely watched election.
TEL AVIV, Israel — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right coalition is running nearly even with Gadi Eisenkot's opposition bloc in Tuesday's historic election — but both are short of a 61-seat majority, according to Israeli exit polls.
Why it matters: Political stalemate is the most likely outcome of the election, with Netanyahu weakened but neither side having a clear path to forming a coalition government.
President Trump applauded Quebec's new separatist premier Tuesday, continuing to jab at Ottawa despite fragile trade talks that seemed to be gaining momentum.
The big picture: Even as Trump's top economic adviser suggested a deal to ease the ongoing trade war is possible, the president has continue to antagonize Canada.
TEL AVIV, Israel — More than three-quarters of Israeli voters cast ballots in Tuesday's historic referendum on Benjamin Netanyahu — the highest level since 1999.
Why it matters: This looks like bad news for the incumbent prime minister.
Higher voter turnout will likely push several of the parties in his bloc below the electoral threshold — making it harder for the prime minister to reach a 61-seat majority in parliament.
Jeremy Lewin, one of Secretary of State Marco Rubio's key advisers, is exiting the Trump administration ahead of the midterms.
Why it matters: Lewin played crucial roles in shaping the administration's foreign policy, particularly in normalizing relations between the U.S. and Venezuela after the Jan. 3 ouster of Nicolas Maduro.
North Korean troops are "bringing experience back" from the Russia-Ukraine war, where drones and robotics are reshaping warfare, according to the commander of the U.S. Eighth Army.
Why it matters: Frontline lessons are invaluable — especially for such a sealed-off regime.
Continued exposure could spell trouble for South Korea and the U.S.
President Trump is hinting atan overseas "denuclearization" summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping — but don't expect major arms control breakthroughs at the sit-down, if it even happens, national security experts told Axios.
The big picture: Such a meeting would be unprecedented and requires significant amounts of behind-the-scenes hustle to secure consensus that could later be touted.
It would also come as Washington overhauls its triad, as Moscow rattles its saber over Ukraine, as Beijing undertakes a historic buildout in pursuit of some sort of arsenal parity, and as all three jockey for geopolitical prominence.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is looking to keep his grip on power in Israel's elections on Tuesday, but keeping challengers at bay won't be easy.
The big picture: Unlike in the U.S., where voters choose their president in a separate election, Israelis vote for political parties, which then negotiate over who will lead the country.
A fight over Israel is fracturing the socialist movement just as it stands within reach of capturing the Los Angeles mayor's office.
Why it matters: The same socialist movement celebrating its ascendancy through New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is now debating whether to disown Nithya Raman before Los Angeles voters can even weigh in.
Israelis head to the polls today for one of the most consequential elections in the country's history — with rival camps warning that victory for the other would put Israel's future in jeopardy.
Why it matters: The elections are yet another referendum on Benjamin Netanyahu's leadership and the path he's taken the country down over the past four years.
A day after Venezuela's exiled opposition leader returned to Caracas with great fanfare, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a veiled warning against interfering with the country's fragile democratic transition pushed by the Trump administration.
"You're not going to street-protest your way into a democracy," Rubio told reporters Monday without explicitly mentioning María Corina Machado.
Why it matters: Machado's demands for elections next year — and her criticism of a massive U.S. oil deal struck with the current Caracas regime — have put administration officials on edge after her surprise return.
