Welcome again to World Transient, the place we’re taking a look at oblique nuclear talks between the United States and Iran, new Canadian and French consulates in Greenland, and a brazen assault on a deputy chief of Russia’s army intelligence company.
Distrust on Each Sides
U.S. and Iranian officers held oblique talks in Muscat, Oman, on Friday—signaling the potential restart of nuclear negotiations amid rising tensions between the adversaries. The assembly marked the 2 sides’ first formal diplomatic discussions since U.S. President Donald Trump ordered strikes on Iranian nuclear websites in June 2025 through the 12-day Israel-Iran warfare.
The assembly was initially deliberate to be held in Turkey, with international ministers from Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia additionally set to attend. However Iran efficiently pushed to maneuver the venue to Muscat and to exclude representatives from these different nations. Axios reported that, in keeping with two unnamed sources, U.S. and Iranian officers met immediately through the talks. The White Home and State Division didn’t instantly reply to Overseas Coverage’s requests for remark.
Talks are off to a “good begin,” Iranian Overseas Minister Abbas Araghchi mentioned on Friday, including that consultations relating to subsequent steps should now be held in Washington and Tehran. Nevertheless, Araghchi additionally warned that “distrust” between the 2 nations is posing a “critical problem” to negotiations.
“We did notice that nuclear talks and the decision of the primary points should happen in a peaceful ambiance, with out pressure and with out threats,” he mentioned. “The prerequisite for any dialogue is refraining from threats and stress.”
Restraint could also be troublesome to return by. For the primary time, the US introduced its prime army commander within the Center East to the negotiating desk. The participation of U.S. Navy Adm. Brad Cooper, the top of the U.S. Central Command, served as a stark reminder of Washington’s army presence within the area.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to make use of drive to compel Tehran to succeed in a nuclear deal. Late final month, the U.S. president deployed the USS Abraham Lincoln and different warships to the Arabian Sea in response to Iran’s weekslong bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters; estimates place the variety of demonstrators killed between roughly 6,000 individuals and greater than 33,000 individuals. On Tuesday, a U.S. Navy fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone close to the Abraham Lincoln, the identical day that Iranian forces tried to cease a U.S.-flagged oil tanker within the Strait of Hormuz.
“Dangerous issues” will possible occur if Washington and Tehran are unable to succeed in a deal, Trump has warned, including on Wednesday that Iranian Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ought to be “very frightened.” Iran is reportedly involved {that a} U.S. assault may reignite the nation’s protest motion and threaten the regime’s survival. And neighboring Arab nations within the Gulf stay fearful that such an assault may spark all-out regional warfare.
To keep away from this, consultants are hoping that U.S. and Iranian negotiators can attain a nuclear deal; nevertheless, a restricted agenda could present important obstacles. Tehran maintains that dialogue should solely heart on its nuclear program, stressing that discussions on ending its uranium enrichment program or delivery its uranium overseas are nonstarters. But, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio mentioned on Wednesday that Washington desires to increase the dialog to incorporate Iran’s ballistic missile program, its help for armed teams within the area, and the Iranians’ “therapy of their very own individuals.”
Friday’s talks have been “helpful to make clear each Iranian and American pondering and establish areas for potential progress,” Omani Overseas Minister Badr al-Busaidi mentioned.
The White Home has not but issued an announcement on the talks in Muscat. Nevertheless, additionally on Friday, the U.S. State Division introduced new sanctions on Iranian entities, vessels, and people allegedly tied to Tehran’s so-called shadow fleet, which Washington accuses of serving to Iran evade sanctions on its oil trade.
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What We’re Following
Present of solidarity. Canada and France opened consulates in Nuuk, Greenland, on Friday to sign a united entrance with the semi-autonomous Danish territory. Ottawa had already pledged to open a consulate in Greenland in 2024 however was postponed from formally inaugurating it in November 2025 on account of unhealthy climate. Nevertheless, Paris solely lately agreed to take action following French President Emmanuel Macron’s go to to the island in June; France is the primary European Union member to determine a consulate common in Greenland.
The opening of latest consulates is a thinly veiled response to Trump’s Greenland ambitions. Since taking workplace in January 2025, Trump has threatened to accumulate the island, arguing that it’s important to U.S. nationwide safety regardless of the Danish territory being a part of NATO. Final month, Trump claimed to have reached a deal with NATO chief Mark Rutte to present the US complete and everlasting entry to Greenland, though Washington already had intensive entry to the island.
Nonetheless, Trump’s actions have frightened Greenlanders, of whom greater than 75 p.c don’t want to grow to be a part of the US. “It’s actually vital for us to know that we aren’t alone on this, that we even have individuals from different nations who care about us,” mentioned Avaaraq Olsen, the mayor of the district that features the capital, Nuuk.
Attainable assassination try. An unidentified assailant shot and severely wounded a deputy chief of Russia’s army intelligence company on Friday. In response to Russian Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko, Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev has been hospitalized after being shot a number of occasions at an residence constructing in Moscow.
Russian authorities instantly blamed Ukraine, with out citing proof. Kyiv is believed to have beforehand carried out assassinations on high-level Russian officers. Nevertheless, some Russian commentators have advised that Alekseyev had enemies inside Russia. Ukraine has not but issued a remark.
The assault comes simply sooner or later after a second spherical of U.S.-brokered Russia-Ukraine peace talks wrapped in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates. Though the conferences ended with the U.S. European Command agreeing to reopen military-to-military communications with Moscow, no breakthroughs emerged to finish the practically four-year battle.
“This terrorist act as soon as once more confirmed the Zelensky regime’s dedication to fixed provocations aimed toward disrupting the negotiating course of,” Russian Overseas Minister Sergey Lavrov mentioned, referring to the Alekseyev taking pictures. The Kremlin has positioned the onus of progress on Kyiv, demanding that Ukraine relinquish massive swaths of territory to Russia.
Takaichi’s litmus check. Trump formally endorsed Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday forward of snap parliamentary elections this weekend. Takaichi “has already confirmed to be a powerful, highly effective, and sensible Chief, and one that really loves her Nation,” Trump wrote on Fact Social, providing his “Full and Complete Endorsement.” Trump is predicted to host Takaichi on the White Home on March 19.
Opinion polls predict huge wins on Sunday for Takaichi and her ruling coalition, which seeks to extend protection spending to counter Chinese language threats within the Indo-Pacific; only one month after taking workplace in October 2025, Takaichi characterised a potential future Chinese language assault on Taiwan as a “survival-threatening state of affairs” that would allow Japan to take army motion—sparking a slew of retaliatory measures from Beijing. Takaichi has not backed down, regardless of Trump reportedly telling her throughout a non-public cellphone name in November to not additional worsen Beijing.
If Takaichi’s conservative Liberal Democratic Occasion secures a majority in parliament, then she could start to obtain help from international buyers, who’ve remained largely spooked by her fiscal insurance policies up so far.
What within the World?
The USA on Tuesday confirmed that it had dispatched troops to Nigeria, following a December 2025 airstrike on the nation that Washington mentioned focused members of which jihadi group?
A. Ansar al-Dine
B. Islamic State
C. Boko Haram
D. Al-Shabab
Odds and Ends
The 2026 Winter Olympics kicked off in Milan and Cortina, Italy, on Friday. However earlier than (most of) the competitions can start, the Olympic torch should first be lit. Passing of the flame started on Nov. 26, 2025, from the Video games’ birthplace (Olympia, Greece) earlier than touring by means of all 110 Italian provinces and touchdown in San Siro Stadium in Milan. Notable carriers included Heated Rivalry actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, Ok-pop star Sunghoon, Italian director Giuseppe Tornatore, and U.S. chef Nick DiGiovanni.
And the Reply Is…
B. Islamic State
Regardless of descriptions by U.S. officers of Africa being “peripheral” to American pursuits, officers from African nations, together with Nigeria, attended a crucial minerals summit in Washington this week as a part of the White Home’s effort to dismantle China’s dominance of the trade, FP’s Nosmot Gbadamosi writes in Africa Transient.
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