Authored by Joseph Lord via The Epoch Times,

President Donald Trump’s administration is considering substantially expanding travel restrictions to include nationals from 36 countries, adding to existing travel bans on 12 countries.

“The [State] Department has identified 36 countries of concern that might be recommended for full or partial suspension of entry if they do not meet established benchmarks and requirements within 60 days,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an internal memo to American diplomats. A source familiar confirmed the memo, and said that discussions were ongoing.

Those 36 countries being considered, many of which are located in Africa, have been given until June 18 to respond before facing travel sanctions, the source said. These sanctions could include total bans, such as those already instituted on a dozen other countries, or they could include lesser restrictions.

The reasoning, according to the diplomatic memo, was that the countries being considered for a ban have demonstrated “a lack of a competent or cooperative government,” including failing to produce reliable and authentic identity documents and records. Rubio specifically listed “questionable security” around passports from targeted countries.

Some of the countries being considered have also reportedly been uncooperative in working with the federal government to facilitate the return of their nationals in the United States illegally.

The full list of countries being considered for restrictions include Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cote D’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, South Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

The news drew some pushback from critics, who alleged that the list was targeting African countries unfairly.

Tammy Bruce, spokesperson for the State Department, rejected that this was the motive in comments during a June 17 press conference, saying that the primary motive of instituting new restrictions would be “protecting our nation’s citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process.”

“The geo-position, the actual location of the country, is not a factor, or what continent that country is on,” Bruce said. “It’s about very specific aspects about whether or not the United States feels it can trust the information we rely on those countries, for to determine whether or not they’ll get a visa.”

Bruce said the administration wants to ensure that the visa adjudication process protects U.S. national security and public safety.

“That is, I think, a very low bar, and is a bar that every nation should be able to adopt to protect the national security and national interests of the United States and its people,” she said.

The government is assessing “other countries’ security capabilities, information sharing and identity management practices, exploitation of the U.S. visa system, such as overstay rates and failure to facilitate the repatriation of their removable nationals.”

The planned restrictions come as other nationals from 19 nations have already been restricted or banned from entering the United States under a June 4 presidential proclamation signed by Trump. That proclamation went into effect on June 9.

Countries currently facing total bans under Trump’s proclamation include Afghanistan, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Burma (also known as Myanmar), the Republic of the Congo, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.

Seven other countries have partial travel sanctions, including Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

Trump suspended the entry of individuals from those seven countries “as immigrants, and as nonimmigrants,” on B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2, F, M, and J visas, according to the directive. Additional countries will likely face similar restrictions under the administration’s current plans.

The travel ban results from a Jan. 20 executive order that Trump issued requiring the departments of State and Homeland Security and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to compile a report on “hostile attitudes” toward the United States and whether entry from certain countries represented a national security risk.

The African Union Commission expressed concerns at the time about the “potential negative impact” of the move.

“The African Union Commission respectfully calls upon the U.S. administration to consider adopting a more consultative approach and to engage in constructive dialogue with the countries concerned,” the commission said in a statement.

Just hours before the Fed is expected to keep rates unchanged and, worse, telegraph a hawkish bias by indicating just one rate cut for the rest of 2025 (down from two) in its latest dot plot, the first since Liberation Day, President Trump leveled his latest broadside at Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

With markets and economists widely expecting the Fed to stand pat on rates, Trump acknowledged that, saying: “I don’t expect anything” but in his brief remarks at the White House, Trump also wondered aloud if he was “allowed to appoint myself” at the Fed, claiming he’d do a “much better job” than Powell, whom the president appointed in 2018, and whom he slammed as a numbskull in his most recent public comments.

“Am I allowed to appointment myself at the Fed,” he continued. “I’d do a much better job than these people.”

“He just refuses to lower rates. I don’t even think he’s political, I think he hates me. He probably should, I call him every name in the book to try and get him to cut” Trump lamented.

President Trump on Fed Chair Powell: “We have a stupid person, frankly, at the Fed. He probably won’t cut today…Maybe I should go to the Fed. Am I allowed to appoint myself at the Fed?” pic.twitter.com/AXA9maxJou

— CSPAN (@cspan) June 18, 2025

Trump has frequently targeted Powell’s decisions and repeated that he wants the Fed to cut rates, with today going so far as to demand a 2.5% rate cut from Powell (which in typical Trump fashion is more of a negotiating position than an actual ask.)

Responding to a question on Iran, Trump said that it’s not too late to strike a ceasefire deal, adding that caveat that “nothing is too late. The only thing too late is Powell. Powell is too late. Too late Powell.” 

“I would have never reappointed him. Biden reappointed him. I don’t know why that is. But I guess maybe he was a Democrat,” Trump said Wednesday of Powell, who counts himself a Republican even if his wife is reportedly suffering from a raging case of TDS. 

“You know, I got great advice from Mnuchin on this one,” he said of former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who was the driving force behind Powell’s nomination.

Meanwhile, markets are abuzz with chatter that Trump will announce a replacement for Powell soon, in what would amount to a “shadow” Fed chair. Powell’s term runs until May 15, 2026. 

The next Fed chair is widely expected to make an extra effort to bring down interest rates, given how Trump has pushed for that repeatedly. But analysts warn that announcing the pick this summer – an unusually early rollout – could hurt the economy and markets. According to Polymarket, Kevin Hassett has a slight lead on Kevin Warsh in odds for the nomination for next Fed chair.

U.S. stocks were heading higher mid-morning as Wall Street awaited the Fed and monitored the conflict between Iran and Israel.

Update(1302ET): Things are quickly going from bad to worse for Iran, amid ongoing Israeli airstrikes, and given Iran’s air defenses in its western portion of the country appear completely destroyed and disabled.

Iran is now in a ‘near-total national internet blackout’ – according to monitoring from a UK-based watchdog:

⚠️ Confirmed: Live network data show #Iran is now in the midst of a near-total national internet blackout; the incident follows a series of earlier partial disruptions and comes amid escalating military tensions with Israel after days of back-and-forth missile strikes 📉 pic.twitter.com/Iu598aIMRJ

— NetBlocks (@netblocks) June 18, 2025

Vital civic infrastructure in Tehran, including some sewage system and water networks, have also been hit.

* * * 

President Donald Trump on Wednesday fielded reporters’ questions on the Iran crisis, but refused to answer whether the US military will directly enter the war, amid Israeli requests that the Pentagon assist in striking Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“There’s a big difference between now and a week ago,“ Trump told reporters outside the White House, and added curiously: “Nobody knows what I’m going to do.“

He indicated that the Iranians had reached out but he feels “it’s very late to be talking.“ But he also threw out the possibility: “We may meet. It’s, I don’t know, there’s a big difference between now and a week ago,” he said on the White House lawn.

“I can tell you this, that Iran’s got a lot of trouble and they want to negotiate. And I say, ‘Why didn’t you negotiate with me before all this death and destruction?’” And more:

“For 40 years they’ve been saying death to America, death to Israel, death to anybody else that they didn’t like,” he said. “They were bullies. They were schoolyard bullies. And now they’re not bullies anymore. But we’ll see what happens.

“I wouldn’t say that we won anything yet. I would say that we sure as hell made a lot of progress.”

He further described Iran as “totally defenseless” at this moment of Israeli warplanes having full dominance of skies in Western Iran. According to a recent Bloomberg headline:

Iran’s Missile Attacks Wane, Allowing Israel to Start Reopening

Amid all of this, CNN is reporting that a third US aircraft carrier is being moved, though not all the way to Middle East waters. This could be as ‘back-up’ to the two carriers currently deploying to the CENTCOM region of responsibility:

USS FORD CARRIER STRIKE GROUP EXPECTED TO DEPLOY TO EUROPE: CNN

CNN details of this latest new deployment:

The USS Ford Carrier Strike Group is expected to be deployed to Europe next week, near the Middle East, putting a third aircraft carrier in close proximity to the conflict between Israel and Iran, a US official and two other people familiar with the matter said.

The Ford’s scheduled deployment to the European Command theater has been in the books since late last year. But it will likely move into the eastern Mediterranean Sea, near Israel, given the ongoing conflict with Iran. At the same time, another aircraft carrier is en route to the Middle East, where it will either join or replace the USS Carl Vinson, CNN has reported.

Meanwhile the hawks are circling, as GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham said he spoke with President Donald Trump last night about Iran, and that he argued there is one facility that “it would be hard to Israel to get without our help.”

“We’ll see what the president does. But I never felt better about the end of the Iran nuclear program is very close, and the world will be better off for it,” Graham said.

Fu Cong, China’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, says Israel crossed a ‘red line’ by striking Iran’s nuclear facilities.
🇨🇳🇮🇷🇮🇱#China #Iran #IIsrael pic.twitter.com/wm1cfgY41n

— ShanghaiPanda (@thinking_panda) June 14, 2025

“Either you want them to have a nuclear weapon, or you don’t, and if you don’t, if diplomacy fails, you use force,” he continued, according to CNN. “If you don’t understand that Iran with a nuclear weapon is the biggest danger in the world, you’re missing a lot. If you don’t understand this is a religious Nazi regime, you’re not listening to what they say.”

This of course course contradicts everything Trump presented on the campaign trail, and even last month while in the Gulf – that his administration would seek pace, stability, and a non-interventionist stance which breaks from the Mideast military adventurism of the past.

More waves of missiles and strikes were exchanged between Israel and Iran overnight, with Israeli’s military announcing that 1,100 Iranian targets were hit since Friday.

The Israeli Air Force affirmed Wednesday that it is currently striking “military targets belonging to the Iranian regime in Tehran.” The war shows no signs of abating, and as yet there are no announcements that Iranian and US negotiators plan to meet.

Despite more waves of Iranian missiles having pummeled Israel in the overnight and early morning hours, Israeli leaders are trying to present normalcy and are telling the population not to panic.

“Alongside intensified combat against Iran to remove threats — we will reopen the economy, gradually release the public, and return Israel to a path of activity and security,” Defense Minister Katz said, given schools and public venues have been closed, and airspace shut for days.

On the other side, Iranians say they are living through “a nightmare” after Israel’s latest attacks, which involved more than 50 aircraft on Iranian centrifuge and missile production sites overnight.

Hebrew social media accounts are now widely claiming that Israeli jets are going after locations where they believe Ayatollah Khamenei could be hiding. Though is bunker is likely only known to his closest aides…

התקיפות האחרונות בטהרן הן באזור שבו נמצא הבונקר של חמינאי pic.twitter.com/AK48MQR24C

— ישראל היום (@IsraelHayomHeb) June 18, 2025

The Israelis continue going for command and control, nuclear, and vital infrastructure sites. Defense Minister Israel Katz has lately announced Israeli Air Force fighter jets just “destroyed the headquarters of the Iranian regime’s internal security, the main arm of the Iranian dictator’s oppression.”

“As we promised, we will continue to target symbols of [Iran’s] rule and strike the Ayatollah regime wherever it may be,” he said.

But Israeli casualties are mounting, amid immense damage on the ground. According to Israel’s Channel 12, “Since the start of the battle last week, Iran has launched approximately 400 ballistic missiles toward Israel, killing 24 people and wounding 840.”

In an astounding statement, given the world stands at the brink of a WW3-style broader Mideast conflagration which could burn for weeks or months more, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has praised Israel for doing the “dirty work for all of us” – in reference to the Western allies.

* * *

Below are some of the latest developments in the conflict via Newsquawk:

Geopolitics: Latest

• Iranian Supreme leader to speak shortly, according to ISNA.
• Iranian ambassador to the UN, says, if we come to the conclusion that the US is directly involved in attacks on Iran, we will start responding to the US

US Involvement?

• US officials signalled that the next 24 to 48 hours would be critical in determining whether a diplomatic solution with Iran is possible – or if the president might resort to military action instead, according to ABC.
• “Western sources: We have indications that the US will attack Iran soon”, according to Kann News.
• US embassy in Jerusalem will be closed Wednesday through Friday, according to the US State Department.
• US President Trump is considering a range of options when it comes to Iran, including a possible US strike on the country, according to multiple officials cited by NBC.
• Israel Channel 12 journalists report US could join the war against Iran Tuesday night, via Faytuks News citing a telegram post.

Strikes Headlines

• Iranian Revolutionary Guards said Iran’s Fattah missiles broke through Israeli defences, giving it ‘complete domination’ over Israeli airspace.
• “Israel’s Channel 12: Army attacks Tehran’s refineries”, according to Al Arabiya.
• Israeli military said it attacked a centrifuge production site and several weapons production sites of the Iranian regime last night.
• IDF Spokesman said the Iranian regime still has great capabilities that allow it to harm them, Al Jazeera reports. They attacked the IRGC headquarters and killed Iran’s Chief of Staff. “When we finish our mission, we will announce it and will not allow the existential threat against us to continue”.
• Iran has reportedly prepared for strikes on US bases if the US joins the war, according to NYT; Officials suggest that in the event of an attack, Iran could begin to plant mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
• Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei said The battle has begun, via Al Hadath.
• Iranian state media claimed that tonight (Tuesday night) will “hold a surprise the world will remember for centuries”, according to multiple reports.
• “IRGC: Attacks on Israel will continue continuously and gradually”, according to Sky News Arabia.

Diplomacy Headlines

• “Source familiar says there are no plans for a meeting this week between Witkoff and Araghchi”, according to an Al-Monitor journalist.

By Michael Every of Rabobank

So, no, President Trump didn’t leave the G7 to discuss a Middle-East ceasefire. From the Situation Room, he instead declared: “we” now have total control over Iranian airspace; “we” know where Supreme Leader Khamenei is bunkering down but are not going to kill him (yet); and that Iran must offer its “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!”

So, is the US going to enter the war despite the risk of possible attacks on its bases? Anonymous claim a false flag attack on US soil perpetrated by what’s clearly implied as Israel looms to drag it into the war: but isn’t the war part obvious(?) Khamanei tweeted from his bunker –presumably not on a new gold Trump phone– “The Battle begins”, referring to Khaybar, Shia Islam’s conquest of a Saudi Jewish town in 628CE. The unofficial Shah of Iran, abroad, called for an uprising with unsubstantiated claims some of Iran’s military may defect to him, as parts of Tehran were evacuated, Israel hit more military facilities, and some ATM machines stopped functioning. Regime change really can’t be ruled out, it seems: but what then? And who will have control of the nuclear material scattered round the country?

France’s Macron is warning that a violent Iran regime change would trigger ‘chaos’; so would leaving a violent Iran regime in place with a nuclear programme; and so is trying to remove that programme with violence. It’s easy to be a purist and say ‘Non’ to things which one isn’t capable of doing about threats one chooses not to see. It’s not so easy to say, ‘Oui, *quelque chose* doit être fait’ (Yes, *something* must be done.) But what and how?

It’s all desperately confusing and extremely worrying. Indeed, it can feel like we are watching ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and ‘Hot Shots’ on twin screens, and ‘V for Vendetta’ and ‘The Dictator’, while humming The Scorpions’ ‘Wind of Change’. As such, some in markets are unconditionally surrendering to the appeal of ignoring this as much as possible; or of ‘maverick’ geopolitical Top Hot Takes that the USA V Iran will see asset prices heat up even further once the Big Gun enters the arena. Both are possible in the short term but overlook that this isn’t a regional but a global issue.

As Bloomberg puts it, ‘Russia Fears for Ally Iran With Few Tools to Influence Crisis’, with memes of Khamenei sitting sadly in a Moscow flat with former Syrian President Assad flowing. Russia loves the thought of higher oil prices and hates the idea of losing an ally in Iran. Even with its resources tied up with Ukraine, agreeing to allow the regime to flee to Moscow would have to be part of a larger geopolitical deal. And if you don’t know what that might mean, it might mean you’re part of it.

In geoeconomics, the Wall Street Journal says, ‘If Iran’s Oil Is Cut Off, China Will Pay the Price’ as “Chinese refineries have become hooked on cheap imports of sanctioned Iranian crude.” China also may want to have a say: what’s in it for them if Iran sees regime change and the Middle East, and its oil, ends up as a US satrapy?

Or the EU, which just released its latest proposals to wean itself off Russian gas – but not oil. However, that’s just as Qatar –whom it will have to rely on instead– warned that LNG carriers sailing to it should wait outside the Strait of Hormuz as GPS tracking being jammed has already seen two tankers collide, and its foreign ministry noted everyone is concerned about “uncalculated targeting” of the South Pars gas field.

The EU is also spurning economic dialogue with China due to the latter’s neo-mercantilism: a planned summit in July is now off. Moreover, European Commission President Von der Leyen said at the G7, “On this point, Donald is right – there is a serious problem… [China’s] undercutting intellectual property protections, massive subsidies with the aim to dominate global manufacturing and supply chains. This is not market competition – it is distortion with intent,” and threatens “a new China shock.” So, is the EU going to line up with the US vs. China as the larger threat? If not, what?

That’s as ECB President Lagarde spoke of a “global euro moment.” No, not more countries watching their camp Song Contest –where Israel was also a story this year– but EUR gaining ground on the USD as a global reserve asset. Yet that’s at a time when European powerlessness vis-à-vis the US could not be more amply demonstrated across multiple realpolitik dimensions from military to energy to tech to banking. (And as UK PM Starmer is reportedly going to meet NATO defence spending targets by counting rural broadband as such. “We” feel safer already.)

Indeed, while Bloomberg notes ‘Trump Is Driving Off Investors and Imperilling the Dollar’s Reign’ it’s others’ physical reigns in question due to US hard power. If markets are too blind to see that truth, “because markets”, and think somehow, they sit above that dynamic, not below it, then I’m not sure what function they play anymore – with emphasis on the word ‘play’.

The same can be said about fudging defense spending figures to please markets who think pure economic policy targets actually still matter. Go ahead: just don’t be surprised if you turn out to be more of an Iran and less of an Israel if/when push ever comes to shove.

Notably, Lagarde’s call also implies Europe must produce more financial assets and less physical stuff – as if that helps it in the present geopolitical circumstances. On cue(?), the EU is to resurrect securitisation banking practices that helped cause the 2008 global financial crisis. Then again, ‘US Plans to Ease Capital Rule Limiting Banks’ Treasury Trades’, where Bloomberg notes: “The revisions aim to bolster banks’ roles as intermediaries in the market, but some experts argue that easing the leverage ratio may not encourage banks to buy more Treasuries and could make the financial system more fragile.” But if this all goes wrong, who will need whose swap lines as part of a bailout? I’m asking for a friend who may or may not be in a bunker.

True, Bloomberg also ran a story saying some exporters to the US don’t want to receive dollars: so, don’t sell to the US then, which is how the current and capital accounts link up; or get the dollars and sell them to someone else. There is no sign of an unconditional dollar surrender here really.

In politics, the US Supreme Court will also get to look at Trump tariffs at some point later this year – who doesn’t, it seems? Moreover, the White House may ban pharma firms from TV advertising, with a huge impact on both, and the FBI is alluding to attempted Chinese election interference in 2020. Not a dull moment.

But it’s the Fed today, where their usual whisperer Nick Timiraos is tweeting that they would be thinking about cutting already if not for their concern over the known unknowns of tariffs, which have not shown any real impact on CPI so far. Yet what about the unknown unknowns of geopolitics? Will the Fed today mark an unconditional surrender to that hard exogenous reality or continue to fight and die on the hill that it has nothing to do with them at all… and that they have nothing to do with it, when actually they ?

I would wager most of the money will be on the latter, who coincidentally think the same way – for now. After all it’s not until 2026 that they must face up to that ugly reality, unless we get a Shadow Fed Chair appointed earlier. Plenty of time to go risk on and ignore the world around them and their now subordinate position within it.

Crude prices are down modestly this morning despite ongoing attacks between Iran and Israel and API reporting a major crude draw overnight as President Trump said Iran has reached out and wants to negotiate.

When asked about possible Iran strikes, Trump said: “I may do it. I may not do it. Nobody knows what I’m going to do.”

Meantime, Trump also said he told Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “keep going.”

So geopolitical risk premia are far from over.

Additionally, Russian flows rose only very marginally in the last four weeks, limiting downward price pressures.

API

• Crude -10.133mm  (-600k exp)

• Cushing -800k

• Gasoline -202k

• Distillates +318k

DOE

• Crude -11.47mm (-600k exp, -2.8mm Whisper) – biggest build since June 2024

• Cushing -995k

• Gasoline +209k

• Distillates +514k

The offoicial data confirmed API’s with a huge crude drawdown (the biggest since June 2024). We also saw a third straight week of product builds…

Source: Bloomberg

Despite the plungng rig count, US crude production remains near record highs (for now)…

Source: Bloomberg

WTI tumbled ahead of the official data on Trump’s comments on Iran seeking peace.. bounced very briefly on the huge crude draw…

Source: Bloomberg

…but the main driver for prices right now continues to be the potential for Israel-Iran war escalations. 

In a rare and important nationally televised wartime speech by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, he warned against American military intervention on behalf of Israel. 

He set out three clear messages: first that Israel’s aggression happened when Tehran was engaged in indirect nuclear talks with the US and that there was no sign whatsoever that harsh military action was coming. This is confirmation he and the Islamic Republic were caught completely off-guard.

Axios had claimed that Washington knew about it, and that the talks were a smokescreen to allow Israel the element of total surprise when its warplanes began hitting Iranian nuclear sites.

Second, he asserted that the Americans should know that Iran is not going to surrender and that US entry into the war would bring irreversible destruction. 

A third main point Khamenei maid in the speech, even as bombs are still falling on Tehran and elsewhere, is that the American military’s entry into the conflict would be clear sign of weakness for Israel.

“The US President threatens us. With his absurd rhetoric, he demands that the Iranian people surrender to him. They should make threats against those who are afraid of being threatened. The Iranian nation isn’t frightened by such threats,” the Ayatollah said according to state translation.

“It isn’t wise to tell the Iranian nation to surrender. What should the Iranian nation surrender to? We will never surrender in response to the attacks of anyone. This is the logic of the Iranian nation. This is the spirit of the Iranian nation.”

He continued: “The US entering in this matter [war] is 100% to its own detriment. The damage it will suffer will be far greater than any harm that Iran may encounter.” And more:

The harm the US will suffer will definitely be irreparable if they enter this conflict militarily.

The Zionist regime’s malicious attack on our country took place at a time when Iranian officials were indirectly engaged in negotiations with the US side. There was no indication on the part of Iran that signaled a military move.

Speaking on the question of potential direct US involvement already, Khamenei said, “It was already suspected that the US was involved in the malicious move carried out by the Zionist regime, but considering their recent remarks, this suspicion is growing stronger day by day.”

Is the US military involved already? One hawkish US Senator from Texas suggests so…

Ted Cruz on Iran. Full interview tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/hJNwAHAnxZ

— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) June 18, 2025

Meanwhile, 

• Israel says it has struck 40 sites in Iran today, including centrifuge production and weapons facilities, while Iran launched a swarm of drones at Israel. –AJ

• Both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have raised the idea of assassinating Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with Trump saying yesterday that he was “an easy target.” –NBC

However, he’s probably deep in an underground bunker at a secret location which is known only to his closest military aides at this point. Likely lran had long prepared such a location from which he could direct a massive war with Israel.

Currently, there are reports pointing to possible rapid depletion of Israel’s Iron Dome defense system, and that many more ballistic and hypersonic missiles are getting through than expected. This reality could force either a direct American response or else a stalemated situation where Israel is at risk of failing in its key objectives. 

And just like that, the X ticker is available for Elon Musk to purchase and take his social media company public. 

Nippon Steel completed its $14.1 billion acquisition of iconic American peer, US Steel, bringing to a close protracted negotiations which lasted for 18 months amid US political wrangling.

As the Nikkei reported, the Japanese company will acquire 100% of U.S. Steel’s ordinary shares, while handing a “golden share” to the U.S. government under a National Security Agreement both companies signed with Washington. 

“Nippon Steel is excited about opening a new chapter of U. S. Steel’s storied history. Building on our investment, the transfer of our advanced technologies, and the unwavering efforts of management and the employees of both companies, Eiji Hashimoto, Nippon Steel’s CEO said in a press release, announcing the completion of the deal late Wednesday night local time.

The deal consolidates Nippon Steel’s position as the world’s fourth largest steel maker, and comes just a matter of days after U.S. president Donald Trump cancelled the decision by former President Joe Biden to block the Japanese company’s acquisition of its American peer.

A golden share typically hands the holder a right to veto certain changes to the company. The golden share in U.S. Steel “prevents” actions like relocating the American company’s headquarters from Pittsburgh, changing the name of the company, and closing plants “before certain timeframes” according to the U.S. commerce secretary Howard Lutnick.

The NSA agreement signed by the two companies also stipulates approximately $11 billion in new investments by 2028, including in a greenfield project, and commitments related to production in the U.S. and “trade matters,” according to both companies.

Nippon Steel first announced the acquisition back in December 2023 but it quickly became mired in steelworker union opposition and U.S. election-year politics. President Joe Biden issued an order in January this year blocking the purchase, prompting Nippon Steel to respond with a lawsuit against the former leader.

The Japanese company sees the deal as a top priority for its medium- to long-term growth. Steel demand is expected to grow in the U.S. due to factors like the growth of electric vehicles and infrastructure renewal. That contrasts with Japan, where demand is expected to fall due to a shrinking population.

Trump’s 50% tariff on all steel imports, an increase from the previous 25%, has made exporting to the U.S. harder, making the acquisition even more pertinent.

The deal will see Nippon Steel’s crude production rise to 57.82 million tons from 43.64 million tons, taking the Japanese company closer to the third largest producer, Ansteel Group of China, which produced 59.55 million tons in 2024. However, analysts have raised concerns over the financial burden of the takeover, as well as the promised additional investments.

“We expect an increase in investment costs in the near term owing to funding for the U.S. Steel acquisition, additional investments post-acquisition, and investments in electric furnaces in Japan,” said Yuji Matsumoto, analyst at Nomura, in a recent note. “We still think the stock looks undervalued but will lower our target price to reflect the aforementioned financial burden and weak demand in Japan,” he added.

Aside from the investment costs, analysts at Jefferies raised concerns over the Japanese company’s post-merger integration. “We think that Nippon Steel has a limited track record operating a business of this scope,” it said in a note.

Its “success stories” of overseas ventures in the U.S. state of Alabama and in India have “been done with the help of ArcelorMittal,” but its “unassisted acquisition of G/GJ Steel in Thailand almost immediately went loss-making after the deal closed,” the analysts said.

Via VigilantFox.com,

For once, “Screw your freedom” Arnold Schwarzenegger got it exactly right.

It started with a question about the LA riots. But what followed was not the response anyone expected. He demanded RESPECT for America.

And what happened next went beyond politics. He told foreigners point blank: if they want to come to America and use our resources, they need to be on their best behavior and “give something back.”

The hosts were stunned, and the audience erupted in applause. This is a winning moment you have to see to believe.

Arnold Schwarzenegger isn’t exactly a conservative hero these days.

From backing lockdowns during COVID to telling Americans to “screw your freedom,” the former California governor has taken positions that pushed him far from the political base that once celebrated him.

So when he appeared on The View, many expected more of the same—virtue signals, Trump bashing, and applause lines tailored to the studio audience.

But that’s not at all what happened.

Joy Behar opened with a question about immigration enforcement and ICE.

“As an immigrant yourself,” she asked, “did you have a visceral reaction to what they’re doing? What ICE is doing? When you see the videos of it?”

Behar clearly hoped for a condemnation of Trump and Republican immigration policy.

What she got was something far less predictable—and far more patriotic.

“Well, I’ll tell you,” Schwarzenegger replied.

“You said immigrant—I’m so proud and happy that I was embraced by the American people like that.”

He reflected on his journey to the U.S. with nothing but hope and a dream.

“Imagine—I came over here at the age of 21, with absolutely nothing. And then to create a career like that. I mean, in no other country in the world could you do that.”

Every part of his success, he said, was thanks to the opportunities America gave him.

“Every single thing—if it’s my bodybuilding career, if it’s my acting career, becoming governor, the beautiful family that I’ve created—all of this is because of America.”

“This is why I’m so, so happy to see firsthand that this is the greatest country in the world. This is the land of opportunity.”

It was heartfelt. And it was just the beginning.

Arnold Schwarzenegger isn’t exactly a conservative hero these days.

From backing lockdowns during COVID to telling Americans to “screw your freedom,” the former California governor has taken positions that pushed him far from the political base that once celebrated him.

So when… pic.twitter.com/XZm0xzM3mn

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) June 17, 2025

That’s when Schwarzenegger dropped the script—and shattered the immigration narrative the hosts were trying to build.

Without hesitation, he turned his focus to the violent riots erupting in Los Angeles.

He spoke as someone who had done things the right way—legally, deliberately, and with gratitude.

“The key thing at the same time,” he said, “we got to do things legal. That is the most important thing.”

“You got to do things legal, and those people that are doing illegal things in America and they’re the foreigners, they are not smart, because, when you come to America, you’re a guest and you have to behave like a guest.”

There was no ambiguity. Schwarzenegger compared illegal entry to disrespecting a host’s home.

“Like when I go to someone’s house and I’m a guest, then I will do everything I can to keep things clean and to make my bed and to do everything that is the right thing to do—rather than committing a crime or being abusive or something like that. That doesn’t really work in this country.”

Sunny Hostin visibly panicked. She tried to cut in, even placed a hand on his arm to stop him.

But Arnold kept going, undeterred.

“When you become an immigrant,” he said, “you think about—okay, I go to America because I’m going to use America for the great opportunities America has. In education. In jobs. Creating a family. All of those kinds of things.”

“Then you have to think about—okay, if I get all of those things from America, then I have to give something back.”

And that was the heart of his message: responsibility.

“You have a responsibility as an immigrant to give back to America. To pay back to America. And go and do something for your community—for no money whatsoever.”

“Give something back to after-school programs. Special Olympics. Or whatever it is—make this country a better place.”

The audience erupted in applause. But on stage, there was silence. The hosts had no idea how to respond.

For once, Schwarzenegger wasn’t echoing the left’s talking points—he was challenging them.

And you could feel their discomfort through the screen.

That’s when Schwarzenegger dropped the script—and shattered the immigration narrative the hosts were trying to build.

Without hesitation, he turned his focus to the violent riots erupting in Los Angeles.

He spoke as someone who had done things the right way—legally,… pic.twitter.com/ofU3pHMzdi

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) June 17, 2025

What followed was a despicable display of narrative spinning, attempting to whitewash Arnold’s so called “True Lies”.

Whoopi jumped in to steer the conversation back to safer territory: “Don’t forget, 90% of the people who come here are trying to do the right thing.”

Sunny quickly added: “They’re less likely to commit crimes.”

Whoopi continued: “A lot of what’s happening right now is people are getting snatched who shouldn’t be snatched—people who have visas, people who have all those things. So we want all the right people. We don’t want people who are doing bad stuff.”

Again, Sunny repeated her point:

“Immigrants are much less likely to commit crimes than actually American-born citizens.”

Schwarzenegger didn’t engage. He let them yap.

He sipped from his mug and stayed quiet.

What followed was a despicable display of narrative spinning, attempting to whitewash Arnold’s so called “True Lies”.

Whoopi jumped in to steer the conversation back to safer territory: “Don’t forget, 90% of the people who come here are trying to do the right thing.”

Sunny… pic.twitter.com/FKCRJRhC5A

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) June 17, 2025

But the cleanup continued. They were scrambling at this point.

Sunny tried to defend California Governor Gavin Newsom, claiming he never asked the federal government for National Guard assistance.

“There are 9,000 local law enforcement officers in California,” she said.

“Did he really—everybody has to send them?”

She seemed to forget that Arnold had once been governor himself.

He answered with a calm reminder: “Remember, the National Guard is under the governor’s supervision.”

Hostin jumped in: “That’s right!”

But Schwarzenegger had more to say.

“For instance, when the National Guard was sent to Iraq during the Iraqi war, I was not the one that said, ‘Oh yeah, go to Iraq.’ The Bush administration came and said, ‘We need those people. We need the resources. We need the equipment. We need the weapons. We need the vehicles to ship to Iraq.’”

It was a subtle nod to federal authority—and possibly a quiet defense of Trump’s right to use similar powers under certain conditions.

He ended the segment with a clear message: “It is very important that we work together. It doesn’t matter who is asking whom. The bottom line is, we work together in order to solve the problem.”

He wasn’t loud. He wasn’t combative. But he said what few are willing to say on daytime television—and the studio didn’t quite know how to handle it.

This wasn’t the version of Arnold Schwarzenegger anyone expected.

But for a few minutes on The View, the truth took center stage—and no amount of spin could make it disappear.

But the cleanup continued. They were scrambling at this point.

Sunny tried to defend California Governor Gavin Newsom, claiming he never asked the federal government for National Guard assistance.

“There are 9,000 local law enforcement officers in California,” she said.

“Did… pic.twitter.com/LlvGt1OnpH

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) June 17, 2025

JPMorgan’s forecast of triple-digit Brent crude prices could soon be a reality as conflict risk in and around the Strait of Hormuz intensifies. The waterway, which handles roughly 20% of global oil trade, remains one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints. Any disruption, particularly amid growing military escalation between Iran and Israel, could impact energy flows worldwide and send prices soaring. 

The most concerning sign of potential maritime disruption in the Strait of Hormuz emerged in the overnight hours via a statement on X by former Iranian Economy Minister Ehsan Khandouzi. While unofficial, the timing and seniority of the comment may reflect broader regime sentiment—or serve as a warning of what’s to come.

“Starting tomorrow, for 100 days, no oil tankers or LNG cargoes will be able to pass through the strait without Iran’s approval,” Khandouzi said. 

He stated, “This policy is decisive if it is implemented “in a timely manner.” Any delay in its implementation means enduring more war inside the country. Trump’s battle must be ended with a combination of economy and security.” 

Such messaging, especially when paired with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) naval activity in the region, raises the increasing probability of IRGC actions targeting commercial shipping lanes in the strait. This escalation could serve as the catalyst that turns JPMorgan’s $120–$130 per barrel Brent crude forecast from a scenario into a market reality.

Some more excerpts from the full JPM note: 

A blockade of the Strait of Hormuz—the world’s busiest oil-shipping channel—would shut down the region’s oil trade, supercharging oil prices.

The skinny waterway—at its narrowest point it is only 21 miles (33 km) wide— separating the UAE, Oman and Iran, connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean, and facilitates the movement of some 30% of the world’s seaborne oil trade and 20% of the world’s LNG supply (Table 1).

Widespread GPS jamming has been reported across the strait for the last several days:

• Chokepoint Watch: GPS Jamming Impacts Tankers Across Strait Of Hormuz

Which unfolded into a maritime disaster early Tuesday when crude oil tanker Front Eagle slammed into the port quarter of the tanker Adalynn, sparking a massive fire on Adalynn, and concerns about a potential ecological disaster have surged. 

• First View: Oil Tanker Erupts In Flames After Collision Near Strait Of Hormuz

⚠️ Harrowing images of dark fleet tanker ADALYNN (IMO #9231767) post collision. pic.twitter.com/Y1FUBNNtis

— Ed Finley–Richardson (@ed_fin) June 17, 2025

All in all, the world’s most critical maritime chokepoint appears to be in the crosshairs of the Iranian regime. On Tuesday, President Trump met with his national security team for over an hour to discuss the Middle East and later held a call with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu.

The key question now is whether the U.S. will enter the conflict. If it does, a shipping disruption in the Strait of Hormuz is almost guaranteed—setting the stage for global energy markets to be thrown into turmoil.