The Week That Shaped the World 11 – 18 July 2025
1. Trump’s Ultimatum to Putin: 50 Days or the Guns Return.Washington threatens weapons, Moscow hears a countdown.
1. Trump’s Ultimatum to Putin: 50 Days or the Guns Return.Washington threatens weapons, Moscow hears a countdown.
1. Netanyahu’s Nobel Nomination for TrumpOn 8 July, amid chandeliers and calculated smiles at the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu handed Donald Trump something no PR firm could forge: a letter to the Nobel Committee nominating him for the Peace Prize.
1. Moscow Recognises the TalibanOn 3 July, something quietly monumental happened. Russia became the first major power to officially recognise the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. Not as a bargaining chip. Not with caveats. But as a fact.
1. When Rockets Fall Silent, Markets YawnIt’s a curious feature of modern capitalism: the more missiles fly, the more indifferent the markets become.
1. The Oil That Burns the Map. It began with rockets over Hormozgan and ended with forecasts of $300-a-barrel crude. The new war — this time between Israel and Iran — isn’t just a regional flare-up. It’s a match lit beneath the global energy market.
1. Borderline Chaos: California's Migrant Crisis Turns ViolentIt started with a raid. It escalated with a tweet. And it exploded when the rubber bullets came out. California — land of sun, startups, and stubborn governors — found itself this week in the grip of something darker.
1. Operation Spiderweb: Ukraine Deals Major Blow to Russia’s Strategic Bomber FleetThere’s blowing things up, and then there’s blowing up 30% of your enemy’s nuclear-capable bombers on the eve of peace talks.
1. A Monarchy in a Maple FrameKing Charles III took the podium in Ottawa this week, addressing the Canadian Parliament for the first time in half a century. The room was respectful, curious, slightly skeptical—exactly the way Canada treats anything from Buckingham Palace.
1. Trump’s Exit: The Art of the SurrenderThere are moments in history when a man stops pretending. Donald J. Trump, that seasoned performer of bravado, finally laid down his poker face this week and showed his hand.
1.The Throne Shifts West: A New Pope, A New World ChurchIt wasn’t supposed to happen this way. Not yet, and certainly not like this. When Robert Francis Prevost emerged from behind the curtain as Pope Leo XIV, many in the European press called it a footnote.
1. India and Pakistan: The Return of the Line of FireThere was no press briefing. No red alerts. Just a sudden murmur among military analysts — and then the headlines caught up.
1. Zelensky’s May 9 Warning: The Message Beneath the MissileIt was a short remark, delivered without theatrics. But it didn’t take long for it to echo.