Free Republic

The Iran war exposed a long-simmering feud within the world’s most powerful oil cartel, boiling over this spring when it contended with the biggest oil supply shock in history. Now OPEC faces a fight for its existence. The Strait of Hormuz has started to reopen, and some OPEC nations are clamoring to ramp up oil production The ultimate decider will be Saudi Arabia Unlike Iraq and Kuwait, the Saudis don’t need production to ramp up . The country was able to keep its oil business afloat by bypassing the strait with pipelines that shipped oil to a port in Yanbu...

U.S. Army Air Forces 1st Lt. Franklin H. McKinney - Credit: Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency A pilot who went missing in 1944 during World War II has been found The remains of 1st Lt. Franklin H. McKinney were accounted for on May 15, 2026 The Rhode Island resident was 21 years old when his airplane went down in Southeast Asia, and was recovered more than 80 years later The remains of a U.S. pilot who went missing during a World War II mission have been found, more than 80 years after his plane went down in Southeast Asia. U.S. Army...

An underground church pastor has been released from prison in China and has arrived in the United States, less than two months after President Donald Trump publicly raised his case with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Ezra Jin Mingri, who founded Beijing’s fast-growing Zion Church, was detained in October last year along with 17 other church leaders in what was one of China’s largest crackdowns on a single religious congregation in decades. The U.S.-based advocacy group ChinaAid, which monitors religious persecution in China, said Saturday that Jin had arrived in Los Angeles following his release. Jin’s detention drew international attention in...

China’s leader draws from autocrats’ playbook to expand power, oust potential rivals and lay groundwork to rule indefinitely Chinese leader Xi Jinping is employing the sort of autocratic tactics once wielded by Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong to stamp out opposition and stack the leadership with acolytes as he prepares to extend his reign. In a throwback to the most powerful Communist leaders of the 20th century, Xi has purged dozens of senior officials—even his own protégés—overseen the growth of a cult of personality and demanded absolute loyalty. His goal: dictate China’s destiny for years to come in order to...

The next time an ambitious adventurer gets trapped in a flooded cave, the person coming to their rescue might not be a human at all. It might be a mind-controlled, diving-suit-wearing cockroach. Sorry, entomophobes. These cyborgs are already being used in search-and-rescue operations and pipeline inspections, but so far those efforts have been limited to dry land. That’s changing. Researchers at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore 3D-printed a flexible diving suit that roaches wear like a backpack. A chemical oxygen generator inside of it creates oxygen when the bug swims underwater and pumps it through tubes connected to the spiracles...

Collector Xiao Neng says he has spent at least US$1 million (S$1.3 million) on Ralph Lauren clothing over the past four to five years, building a wardrobe so large that he now sells pieces of it in two vintage stores that he opened in downtown Shanghai. The 23-year-old is part of a growing group of Chinese superfans helping fuel a resurgence for the American brand, which reported a 50 per cent sales jump in the country last quarter, even as the broader luxury market remains subdued by weak consumer confidence, a prolonged property downturn and concerns about jobs and income...

Former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao flew to Beijing on June 17, 2026, for a cozy meeting with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, just three days after her husband, Senator Mitch McConnell, was rushed to the hospital following a reported cardiac arrest at their Washington, D.C. home. Emergency dispatch audio obtained by multiple outlets captured the chaos on June 14: paramedics responded to a “cardiac arrest” call at McConnell’s Capitol Hill residence, with reports of CPR in progress and the 84-year-old senator found unconscious. McConnell was hospitalized that same morning. His office has offered only vague updates, claiming his condition “continues...

Chinese planners are once again taking aim at the dollar. On June 17, the governor of the People’s Bank of China unveiled a fresh blueprint to pull the world’s financial streams into the Chinese yuan, including pilot schemes for offshore yuan trading and new swap lines for central banks. Expect the usual chatter about de-dollarization to hit fever pitch ahead of the annual BRICS summit in September in New Delhi, where China and Russia are likely to push for their de-dollarization cause. Over the past decade, Beijing has made genuine progress in building alternative financial channels across three fronts: trade...

Europeans are divided over whether the EU should move closer to the United States or to China, according to new polling shared exclusively with POLITICO that highlights how Donald Trump’s second presidency has upended long-standing geopolitical loyalties. In a survey conducted in June by pollster Public First across 24 EU countries, respondents in eight countries leaned toward stronger relations with China, nine favored the U.S. and seven were effectively split between the two. In 14 countries, the single most common response was “I don’t know” — with more people giving that answer than backing either Washington or Beijing. The responses...

The Danish have caved and will allow US bases in their territory. When US President Donald J. Trump expressed his desire to gain control of the island of Greenland, it took most by surprise, and generated a panic in the kingdom of Denmark. While the former colony and present semi-autonomous territory has belonged to the Danish for centuries, the geopolitical situation may cause a historical shift. Greenland is located between North America and Europe, making it vital for monitoring Russian military activities, particularly ballistic missile threats and naval movements through the Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom (GIUK) gap. The U.S. already operates Pituffik...

A Tibetan man protesting China’s occupation fatally set himself on fire outside the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan on Thursday evening, capturing the horrifying scene on livestreamed footage. The protester, identified by a friend as Lobga Rangzen, was dressed in full monastic garb when he planted a Tibetan flag on the sidewalk and then self-immolated along the busy street during the evening rush, according to the video. He scattered pieces of paper as he burned to death. Rangzen, who has lived in the US for about 20 years and worked as an Uber driver, crumbled to the ground less than...

Hundreds of tone-deaf lefty radicals flocked into Havana this weekend to meet with Communist Party officials — staying in luxury hotels and traveling in air-conditioned buses — as the rest of the island grapples with a worsening economic crisis that’s starved it of electricity, food, water and medicine. The “Nuestra America Convoy” sent socialists from North America and Europe to Cuba by air, sea, and land, under the guise of handing out 20 tons of humanitarian aid to protest the United States oil blockade on Cuba. The convoy includes Mayor Zohran Mamdani ally and influential streamer Hasan Piker – who...

On Monday, Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui was sentenced by a federal judge to 30 years in prison for defrauding his supporters of over $1 billion dollars. Bob Fu of ChinaAid, a pastor and victim of Guo’s harassment in fall 2020, called the decision “a victory for justice.” While Guo solicited donations for his Rule of Law Society and supposed “anti-communism” cause, Deputy U.S. Attorney Sean Buckley stated that “Guo exploited the trust that thousands had placed in him for his own greed,” according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York. Over several months,...

Russia’s top banker has called on Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine, warning that the four-year-old conflict is dragging the country into economic collapse. German Gref, head of the state-controlled Sberbank, said ordinary Russians are increasingly feeling the economic effects of the war, which are being worsened by Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia’s oil refineries. “I think we are all worried about the same thing. I don’t believe there is anyone in this country whose primary concern is anything other than an end to military hostilities as soon as possible,” Gref told state TV on Tuesday, as reported...

Zhang Yadi, 23, also known as Tara, is supposed to be studying at a prestigious university in the UK.Instead she is believed to be in detention in China.In one of her last posts on the social media platform "X", she wished the Dalai Lama a happy 90th birthday. She had also helped edit an online Chinese language platform promoting Tibetan rights while studying in France.Her words of support for Tibetans, posted while abroad, are believed to have put her in prison. Beijing views the exiled spiritual leader as a separatist and what it calls the Tibet Autonomous Region, which it...

SNIP China wants the fighting in Eastern Europe to stop right now. Beijing is issuing a clear, uncompromising command to both Russia and Ukraine. The message came directly from the United Nations floor. Sun Lei serves as China’s deputy representative, and he delivered his remarks during a recent Security Council gathering. The Moscow Times reported that China is firmly demanding an immediate return to the negotiating table. Beijing claims it wants to guide the political process. Lei held nothing back when addressing the packed room. “We strongly urge you to end the conflict as soon as possible. We also strongly...

n his many articles for Tablet and other outlets, Jacob Siegel, a journalist and war veteran, has focused on how rulers and elites use digital tools to calibrate information and control people. His new book, The Information State: Politics in the Age of Total Control, traces the evolution—from 9/11 to the advent of AI—of a mammoth alliance between government and Big Tech that subverts our constitutional republic and enslaves Americans. According to Siegel, the foundation of the information state is a “whole-of-society” approach to governance that aligns “the most powerful institutions behind the dictates of the state.” Tech platforms, NGOs,...

On June 30, 2026, a ransomware group has reportedly compromised Tata Electronics, Apple's manufacturing partner in India, leaking sensitive data including supplier lists and unreleased iPhone 18 Pro images on the dark web. This incident poses a significant threat to Apple's carefully constructed global supply chain, which relies on numerous suppliers for its components. The leaked information could potentially damage Apple's relationship with Tata and provide competitors and counterfeiters with critical insights into Apple's manufacturing processes...The leaked documents, which include over 200,000 files detailing exclusive suppliers for key components, underscore both the strengths and vulnerabilities of Apple's supply chain. This...

Super Micro Computer shares dropped over 8% Monday after Taiwanese prosecutors raided its local offices as part of an expanding investigation into the alleged smuggling of NVIDIA AI chip-equipped servers to China. The operation searched 12 locations including the offices of Chief Telecom and distributor Albatron Technology, and summoned six individuals for questioning. The raids widen a case that began in May with arrests over falsified export documents. The actions follow US indictments alleging a $2.5 billion smuggling scheme involving Super Micro’s co-founder. Taiwan currently lacks specific criminal statutes for AI chip re-exports but is considering legislation to close that...

Democratic Socialists of America members, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s political organization, have been cultivating connections with Chinese Communist Party officials and agreeing to take pro-China positions, according to extensive minutes of internal meetings seen by Newsweek. The minutes of the DSA meetings show participants discussing contacts with officials from China’s ruling party in the name of “anti-imperialism,” with some members saying the organization should avoid topics that are sensitive for Beijing, such as China’s threats to invade Taiwan, its security crackdown in Hong Kong and abuses of the Uyghur Muslim minority. They also discuss visits to China. Chinese...