Hungary delivered a double veto that blocked a proposed €90 billion emergency loan package for Ukraine covering critical 2026-2027 needs and halted the EU’s newest round of sanctions targeting Russia, actions taken just days before the fourth anniversary of the full-scale invasion. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán explicitly tied both decisions to damage sustained by the Druzhba oil pipeline, demanding full resumption of Russian shipments before any normalization, and escalated by suspending Hungarian diesel exports to Ukraine. The moves have triggered sharp EU criticism for violating principles of sincere cooperation and betraying Hungary’s own historical struggle for freedom from oppression. Orbán is undoubtedly an authoritarian strongman, but in this case his behavior is quite useful for those of us invested in bringing an end to this conflict as opposed to escalating it.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni met with Rapid Support Forces commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo at State House in Entebbe on February 20 to discuss inclusive African-led dialogue and possible political pathways toward ending Sudan’s devastating civil war and restoring regional stability. The Sudanese government harshly condemned the hosting as an “affront to humanity” that legitimizes a paramilitary group accused of widespread atrocities and minimizes the immense human suffering in the conflict. Museveni’s own son added fuel to the diplomatic fire by publicly comparing the RSF to followers of Hitler. This was a grave error by the president of Uganda and deserves serious condemnation. The RSF have not comported themselves in ways that should garner the ear of leaders of legitimate states and should only be met with threats of violence and demands of demilitarization when encountering African leadership.

India and Brazil signed a strategic mining and cooperation pact focused on rare earth elements and other critical minerals essential for renewable energy technologies, advanced manufacturing, and supply-chain resilience amid ongoing global shortages. The agreement includes joint exploration, processing initiatives, and technology sharing to reduce dependence on concentrated suppliers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the deal as a key step toward expanding bilateral trade to an ambitious $20 billion target within the next five years. This is a good sign that China will not be able to leverage its dominance regarding critical minerals to have undue influence over other major powers in BRICS like India and Brazil. Perhaps the new world order will be more consensual and cooperative amongst the major powers than it has been over the last 80 years.

President Trump raised tariffs on imports from around the world to a flat 15 percent under the Trade Act of 1974, citing persistent trade imbalances and the need to protect American workers and industry, with the sweeping measure scheduled to take effect February 24. The European Union immediately postponed its scheduled vote on ratifying a major US trade agreement while demanding full details on potential exemptions and the policy’s broader scope. Legal analysts are already questioning how the new tariffs will fare in expected court challenges following earlier judicial setbacks. This is the correct move by the president in my opinion. Not only are tariffs a legitimate and needed tool, this is the more sound way to go about implementing them. It will be interesting to see how Congress responds to this aggressive and somewhat shocking move.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth amid an intensive Pentagon review of the company’s AI partnership with the military over disagreements on the use of its Claude model in defense operations. The Trump administration has grown increasingly frustrated with the firm’s strict safety guardrails, particularly after reports of the AI being deployed in sensitive activities involving Venezuela and Maduro. Officials are now examining whether Anthropic’s ethical restrictions align with full lawful national-security requirements under a substantial existing contract. I think the answer is simply that this partnership won't work out due to Anthropic's insistence that they cannot change their protocol for military use cases. Trying to strong arm them into behavior they find unethical would be a mistake.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development proposed new rules that would end federal housing assistance for any household containing both eligible citizens or legal residents and undocumented immigrants, limiting aid strictly to verified eligible members after short-term checks only. Officials estimate the change would redirect more than $200 million annually away from mixed-status families nationwide by closing what they call longstanding loopholes. The proposal has sparked concerns among housing advocates about heightened instability for U.S. citizen children living in affected households. I see this as a policy misstep as it seems unclear to me why the person in the household who is a citizen wouldn't be able to still apply for housing assistance. It seems like the other vectors of pressure are significant enough but perhaps the administration is pursuing this policy as a matter of alignment.

Governor Kathy Hochul temporarily relaxed New York’s liquor laws to let select bars and restaurants outside New York City open early and serve alcohol specifically for the live broadcast of the U.S.-Canada men’s Olympic gold-medal hockey game. The one-time waiver applies only to certain licensed venues and excludes areas still under blizzard emergency declarations. The adjustment is designed to allow fans to gather safely and celebrate the high-stakes Winter Games matchup. A feel-good story! Go USA!

Hundreds of residents rallied at a Merrimack town hall to protest a proposed ICE detention center, raising alarms over local taxpayer costs, infrastructure strain, lack of required community approval, potential human-rights issues, and existing PFAS contamination in drinking water. In a separate northern New Hampshire incident, Border Patrol agents shot a person who reportedly fired first at an agent, with the FBI now conducting a full investigation. These events have intensified statewide debates on immigration enforcement and facility siting.

Pennsylvania enacted a sales-tax exemption on equipment, machinery, and construction materials for qualifying data centers to attract major investments, create thousands of high-paying jobs, and position the state as a leading tech-infrastructure hub. Supporters emphasize the strong economic boost and long-term growth potential. Critics, however, warn the incentives could cost the state billions in lost revenue over the next decade, even as some local regulators continue denying rezoning requests for new projects. The fights over data centers will perhaps be the hallmark of local politics in 2026. Where should they go? How much damage do they cause? Who's going to pay for the energy costs?

Mayor Zohran Mamdani proposed significant property-tax increases aimed primarily at wealthy owners and large corporations to raise additional city revenue, prompting strong backlash from landlords who warn of higher rents and sharply elevated energy bills for residents. Recent polls indicate the plan could damage his standing with parts of his progressive base, while City Council Speaker Adrienne Menin has pushed back against broad hikes. At the same time, the city expanded its protected paid time-off law by 32 additional hours annually for most workers, broadening coverage for family and caregiving needs with stronger enforcement. The situation for Mamdani seems to be quite precarious and by threatening to leverage unpopular policy choices like raising property taxes Mamdani might find himself in the predicament of being progressive but unpopular.