UK - For years, British farmers have warned the nation's food system is broken. The Government insists there is no need for a fuss... Currently, according to Professor Tim Lang, the UK's leading expert on food security, Britain's food system is over-reliant on foreign imports and highly vulnerable to shocks and crises, such as disease outbreaks or geopolitical instability. When the First World War broke out, Britain only had six weeks of food reserves and the government was terrified. Now, that is down to about six days. People blithely assume that we have food stores somewhere for a moment of crisis, but we don't. At the rate we're going, the situation will only worsen. Earlier this month, a report from the All Party Group on Science and Technology warned that if the UK continues to prioritise housing, Net Zero, tree planting and nature restoration, it could lose around a quarter of its productive farmland by 2050. Meanwhile, once-reliable exporting nations are now erecting trade barriers because of Trump-like protectionism.

GERMANY - This year, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz pledged to build Europe’s strongest army – a tall order for a country whose military has undergone years of neglect. The coalition government is hoping a new bill agreed upon last week will help make this a reality, bolstering Germany’s forces in the face of the perceived threat from Russia and a significant shift in US foreign policy. The sweeping new reforms will see Germany attempt to boost its numbers to 260,000 soldiers, up from around 180,000 currently, in addition to an extra 200,000 reservists, by 2035. In the first instance, the drive will focus on voluntary enlistment, with greater incentives for those who sign up, including a monthly starting salary of €2,600 ($3,000) – an increase of €450 from the current level. If the new quotas are not met, the government will have the option of mandatory call-ups, where necessary.

USA - Those of us paying attention noticed that among the illegals flowing over our borders during Biden’s term were thousands — perhaps tens of thousands — of military aged, fit Chinese men. We also took note that no one enters or leaves China without their consent, and the people showing up at our borders didn’t walk across the Pacific. The Biden DHS was eventually forced to grudgingly admit that at least some of those guys just might be members of the Chinese military. They didn’t inform us what they did with them, so we can reasonably believe most, if not all, remain in America and we have no idea of their locations or identities.

RUSSIA - The Russian media is still stoking alarmism about the war, and ready to exploit differences between America and its Nato allies. After months of stagnant progress, President Donald Trump and European leaders seem to be seriously discussing a pathway to peace in Ukraine. Despite disagreements over caps on the size of the Ukrainian military, post-war security guarantees and the status of Donbas, Trump declared “something good just may be happening” after the US-Ukraine summit in Geneva. The potential meeting between Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky later this week will aim to settle these differences; Russia is hoping they won’t. in stark contrast to Trump’s outward optimism, Russia is trying to pour cold water on the prospects for an imminent peace breakthrough. Putin’s aide Yuri Ushakov expressed satisfaction with the “state of affairs on the front” and provided only a vague commitment to considering diplomatic solutions. More pointedly, he dismissed Europe’s counter proposal to Trump’s plan, a new 19-point peace plan, as “not constructive at all.”

CHINA - China’s military has warned the world that it is ready for war, releasing a fiery propaganda video, as tensions with Japan continue to rise. The video, titled “If war breaks out today, this is my response”, was made by the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force, the military branch responsible for all missiles, and includes dramatic clips of fighter jets and warships. The provocative footage was published just two weeks after Japan’s prime minister Sanae Takaichi said that a Chinese attack against Taiwan could trigger a military response from Japan.

ETHIOPIA - A massive volcano has erupted in northeastern Ethiopia, releasing a large ash plume that is heading towards the Middle East, including Yemen and Oman. No eruptions have been recorded at the volcano in 10,000 years, according to officials and experts. It has been described as one of the most extraordinary volcanic awakenings in the region’s recorded history.

NIGERIA - Extremist violence and mass kidnappings push hunger to starvation levels, the World Food Programme warns. Famine conditions are re-emerging in parts of northern Nigeria for the first time in a decade amid a surge in extremist violence, the World Food Programme (WFP) has warned. Around 15,000 people in Borno State will face “catastrophic hunger” during the 2026 lean season when the harvest is exhausted, according to a new report from Cadre Harmonisé, the West African food security monitor backed by the UN. It is the most severe classification of hunger on the five-phase scale used by the organisation to monitor food insecurity and equates to famine conditions.

MIDDLE EAST - Amid Hamas attempts to breach Gaza’s Yellow Line and subsequent IDF activities to thwart the terrorists, Hamas warned US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff that it could end the ceasefire in Gaza, Saudi state-owned Al Arabiya reported on Saturday. “The agreement is over and [Hamas] is ready to fight,” sources told the Saudi outlet, adding that the ceasefire must be mutual and that “Gaza will not become another Lebanon.” An American source told Walla that “Hamas has not given up yet, but has made it clear that it will not be able to accept any more Israeli attacks. Gaza will not be Lebanon for them, and I hope we can contain the situation.” Another source told the Israeli outlet, “The US is aware of the Israeli attacks and certainly understands Israel’s need to protect its soldiers in Gaza after they were attacked,” adding, “Hamas told us, ‘It is better for us to fight and let a thousand be killed by fire under Israeli attacks than by inaction.'”

ISRAEL - The Israeli Ministry of Defense (IMOD) announced on Wednesday that it has received the 1,000th aircraft as part of an airlift operation delivering US military equipment to Israel that began following the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel and the start of Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza. “To date, over 120,000 tons of military equipment, munitions, weapons systems, and protective gear have been transferred to Israel via 1,000 aircraft and approximately 150 maritime vessels,” the IMOD said in a press release. The ministry said it and the IDF have been “conducting a cross-continental logistics airlift operation on a scale unprecedented since the establishment of the state.” The IDF said that its missions in the US and Berlin have been involved in the operation, suggesting the flights could include German-supplied military equipment. Germany is the second-largest arms supplier to Israel after the US, and recently announced it was lifting a partial suspension of arms exports to Israel.

USA - Vice President JD Vance told Breitbart News Washington bureau chief Matthew Boyle that Pope Leo XIV’s recent remarks about how every nation has the right to determine who enters its land is, at its core, the Catholic Church’s position on borders. During a sit-down with Breitbart News for a wide-ranging discussion of Trump administration policies on Thursday, Boyle noted that Pope Leo XIV recently said, “I think every country has a right to determine who and how and when people enter,” and that “no one has said that the United States should have open borders.” Vance revealed that as “a devout Catholic,” he had “followed those comments closely. It’s interesting, because, you may not know it — judging purely from the comments of some people on social media — but the Catholic Church’s views on this are actually quite clear. And it’s that, yes, you must treat immigrants humanely. On the other hand, every nation has the right to control its borders,” Vance said.