“I say openly to President Xi and all of my many friends in China that China will be hurt very badly if you don’t make a deal.” Thus spake President Donald Trump this week in the new medium of modern diplomacy – Twitter.

The trade war between the U.S. and China has entered a new phase, with tariffs raised from 10% to 25% on $200 billion of goods. The markets had not expected this news, with the tea leaves since the end of last year being widely seen to indicate that the US President was well on his way to winning a game of brinkmanship that would improve the terms on which the US trades with China.

As is often the case with the Trump administration, there is method behind the madness. It is certainly right that U.S. businesses face barriers not only to entry but to investment, development and competition in China that Chinese businesses do not face in the U.S. Likewise, issues around the protection of intellectual property are imbalanced and in need of revision. And while many have p..

In a move that has raised many eyebrows on social media, McDonald’s and the U.S. Embassy in Vienna, Austria, have partnered to help Americans stranded abroad.

Tourists can now go to any of the 194 McDonald’s in Austria and be given a round-the-clock number to contact the U.S. Embassy, as well as a phone to make the call, if necessary.

The partnership, announced on May 10, became active on Wednesday. But it received a mixed reaction online, where users were quick to pan the U.S. for partnership with the fast food brand, which has been associated with rising obesity levels.

“Can I have a McPassport please,” wrote one Facebook user.

This is the most American thing I’ve heard since leaving the US 9 months ago. US embassy and McDonalds collaborating

— dan dan yes he can (@dani_hasel) May 15, 2019

Americans in Austria can now seek consular assistance at McDonalds. This is actually a real thing. pic.twitter.com/QSZ8nS2nvU

— Megha Rajagopalan (@meghara) May 15, 2019

“Introducing the Mc..

The Trump Administration is turning up the heat on Iran, broadcasting a new plan to send as many as 120,000 U.S. forces to the Middle East to counter purported “identified, credible threats” from Iran.

But in the world of the Pentagon, there are plans you present to politicians, and then there are real plans. And three U.S. military officials involved in planning and overseeing military forces in the region tell TIME that no actual, executable plan, or anything like it, exists for a large-scale troop deployment to the Gulf.

“That requires knowing what contingency you’re addressing,” says one officer. “Is the target Iran’s own forces or is it a militia? Is the enemy in Iraq or Syria or someplace else? A car bomb or missiles or cyber? Is there credible evidence linking an attack to the Iranian government so that targets inside Iran are legitimate?” All three sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they had not been authorized to discuss the matter publicly, told TIME they ..