Welcome back to World Brief, where we\u2019re looking at Iran\u2019s efforts to postpone nuclear talks, North Korea reaffirming its close ties to Russia, and King Charles III\u2019s big trip to the United States.<\/p>\n
Delaying Nuclear Talks<\/p>\n
Tehran has offered to end its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz if the United States lifts its blockade of Iranian ports. However, the proposal\u2014first reported<\/a> on Monday\u2014demands that discussions on Iran\u2019s nuclear program be postponed until after these two conditions are met.<\/p>\n U.S. President Donald Trump is unlikely to accept this offer, having previously vowed not to lift the U.S. naval blockade until a deal with Iran is \u201c100% COMPLETE<\/a>.\u201d Such an agreement will almost certainly demand limits on Tehran\u2019s uranium enrichment capabilities<\/a>, as restricting Iran\u2019s ability to develop nuclear weapons<\/a> was a primary reason for why the U.S. military first launched strikes at Iran on Feb. 28. \u201cEverything will be peanuts compared to that, if they ever were given a nuclear weapon,\u201d Trump told reporters on Saturday.<\/p>\n Iran insists that its nuclear program is for civilian use only and that it has no intention of developing nuclear weapons.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Pakistani-led efforts<\/a> to bring U.S. and Iranian officials back in the same room are looking increasingly futile. The two sides were scheduled to meet is Islamabad over the weekend for a second round of peace talks\u2014only for Trump to call off the meeting and instead demand that dialogue be held over the phone.<\/p>\n \u201cToo much time wasted on traveling, too much work!\u201d Trump wrote<\/a> on Truth Social on Saturday. \u201cBesides which, there is tremendous infighting and confusion within their [Iran\u2019s] \u2018leadership.\u2019 Nobody knows who is in charge, including them. Also, we have all the cards, they have none! If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!\u201d<\/p>\n The U.S. no-show didn\u2019t stop Iran from pursuing its own diplomatic agenda, though. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi made two stops<\/a> in Pakistan over the weekend as well as visited Oman. Tehran hopes to persuade Muscat to support a mechanism that would enable Iran to collect tolls<\/a> from vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz; it was not immediately clear how Oman responded to the idea.<\/p>\n Araghchi also spoke with his counterparts in Qatar and Saudi Arabia over the weekend before traveling to St. Petersburg on Monday to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. During that visit, Putin praised<\/a> the Iranian people for \u201cbravely and heroically fighting for their sovereignty,\u201d and he vowed to do \u201ceverything\u201d possible to bring peace to the Middle East.<\/p>\n Last week, Trump agreed to extend the U.S.-Iran cease-fire indefinitely. And on Monday, the U.S. president convened his top national security advisors to discuss the Iran war. Yet the White House remains opposed<\/a> to any deal that excludes limits on Iran\u2019s nuclear program.<\/p>\n \u201cAs the president has said, the United States holds the cards and will only make a deal that puts the American people first, never allowing Iran to have a nuclear weapon,\u201d White House spokesperson Olivia Wales told Axios<\/a>.<\/p>\n Today\u2019s Most Read<\/p>\n The World This Week<\/p>\n Tuesday, April 28: The deadline for Kosovo\u2019s parliament to elect a new president or face snap elections is set to expire.<\/p>\n Brunei hosts a ministerial meeting between the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.<\/p>\n French President Emmanuel Macron visits Andorra.<\/p>\n Wednesday, April 29: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hosts Hungarian Prime Minister-elect Peter Magyar.<\/p>\n France hosts a two-day meeting of G-7 development ministers.<\/p>\n Thursday, April 30: Antigua and Barbuda hold early parliamentary elections.<\/p>\n Friday, May 1: The EU-Mercosur trade deal takes effect.<\/p>\n Saturday, May 2: The island of Niue holds a general election.<\/p>\n Monday, May 4: Ukraine\u2019s latest extension of martial law is set to expire.<\/p>\n Brussels hosts eurozone finance ministers.<\/p>\n What We\u2019re Following<\/p>\n \u201cWritten in blood.\u201d North Korea unveiled<\/a> a memorial museum on Sunday to honor its soldiers killed fighting for Russia in the Ukraine war. \u201cWe have inscribed in this memorial hall a new history of friendship with Russia written in blood and a new history of justice won with blood,\u201d North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said, adding that Pyongyang will continue to support Moscow in the years to come. Russia said the museum\u2019s opening coincided<\/a> with the first anniversary of joint Russian-North Korean efforts to recapture parts of the Ukrainian-held Kursk region<\/a>.<\/p>\n Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Pyongyang has supplied Moscow with large shipments of artillery shells and missiles. That level of participation expanded in October 2024, when North Korea deployed<\/a> thousands of troops to Russia. South Korean intelligence estimates<\/a> that at least 2,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed in the fighting thus far.<\/p>\n The sacrifice of North Korean troops \u201cwill forever remain in the hearts of all Russian citizens,\u201d Putin reportedly wrote to Kim, according to North Korean state media. The two countries have also pledged<\/a> to sign a five-year plan to bolster bilateral military cooperation.<\/p>\n The royal treatment. King Charles III and Queen Camilla arrived<\/a> in Washington on Monday for the British royal family\u2019s first state visit to the United States since 2007. It was initially unclear if the couple would attend, after a shooting at the White House Correspondents\u2019 Association dinner on Saturday reportedly targeted Trump and his top officials. On Sunday, though, Buckingham Palace confirmed that the visit would go ahead as planned.<\/p>\n Charles and Camilla have a packed itinerary<\/a> during their four-day stay, starting with a private tea at the White House. But Charles\u2019s most anticipated event will be on Tuesday, when the king will address a joint session of Congress, becoming the second British monarch in history to do so.<\/p>\n Charles\u2019s visit comes at a precarious time for U.S.-U.K. relations. Buckingham Palace has stated that the trip\u2019s official purpose<\/a> is to \u201crecognize the shared history of our two nations\u201d just a few months before the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary of independence. However, Trump could use this opportunity to express his frustration<\/a> with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer\u2014particularly, London\u2019s hesitance to aid U.S. forces in the Iran war. As Charles is largely a symbolic figurehead, though, he is expected to try to avoid engaging in the White House\u2019s political entanglements.<\/p>\n Also of note, the king will not be meeting<\/a> with victims of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during his visit despite calls by Democratic lawmakers for him to do so. The Crown has sought to distance itself<\/a> from the scandal after it was revealed that Charles\u2019s brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (formerly known as Prince Andrew<\/a>) had close ties to Epstein and was accused<\/a> by one of Epstein\u2019s victims of sexual assault when she was underage. The former prince has not been charged with a crime related to that accusation and continues to deny<\/a> any wrongdoing in his relations with Epstein.<\/p>\n Jihadi offensive. Al Qaeda-linked militants killed<\/a> Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara during a series of coordinated attacks over the weekend. According to Malian government spokesperson Issa Ousmane Coulibaly, a vehicle \u201claden with explosives and driven by a suicide attacker\u201d targeted Camara\u2019s residence outside the capital of Bamako on Saturday. Simultaneously, militants used armed drones and car bombs to target several other cities across Mali.<\/p>\n The killing of Camara and the overall breadth of these attacks mark a major blow for the Malian military, which has struggled to quell jihadi groups<\/a> vying for control. Among the most powerful of these groups is Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), which seeks to impose its version of Islamic law across much of West Africa. On Sunday, JNIM claimed<\/a> responsibility for the attack on Camara, declared \u201ccomplete control\u201d of the central Malian city of Mopti, and said it had also captured the town of Kidal.<\/p>\n Maj. Gen. Oumar Diarra, the Malian military\u2019s chief of general staff, said on Sunday that more than 200 terrorists had been \u201cneutralized<\/a>,\u201d adding that \u201csearch and sweep operations are continuing in practically all areas and we are searching for them, pursuing them, and destroying them wherever they are found.\u201d A two-day period of national mourning for Camara\u2019s killing began on Monday.<\/p>\n Odds and Ends<\/p>\n