The briefing for Saturday, January 31.

President Trump announced Friday that he will nominate Kevin Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor, to replace Jerome Powell as Fed chairman when Powell's term expires in May. Warsh, 55, served on the Fed's board from 2006 to 2011 and is currently a fellow at the Hoover Institution. Trump praised Warsh as potentially "one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best," signaling a major shift at the central bank.

The appointment faces Senate confirmation and has already drawn mixed reactions. Republican Senator Thom Tillis said he will oppose the nomination until a Justice Department investigation into Powell is resolved, potentially complicating the confirmation process. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren called it "the latest step in Trump's attempt to seize control of the Fed." Financial markets reacted cautiously, with gold dropping more than 5% and the 10-year Treasury yield rising to 4.26%.

Warsh brings a traditionally hawkish reputation, having historically favored higher interest rates to control inflation, though he has recently advocated for lower rates. This puts him in a complex position given Trump's stated preference for rates as low as 1%. Warsh has also criticized the Fed for "mission creep" and wants to reduce its role in areas like climate change research and bank regulation, aligning him with the White House's broader deregulatory agenda.

Syria's government announced a landmark agreement Friday with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that would gradually integrate Kurdish forces and institutions into the state. The deal follows weeks of clashes that saw Syrian troops reclaim large swathes of territory in the northeast that had been under SDF control for over a decade. US envoy Tom Barrack called it "a profound and historic milestone in Syria's journey toward national reconciliation."

Under the agreement, SDF fighters will join the Syrian army in newly formed brigades, while the group's administrative and civil bodies will merge into state institutions. The deal also includes the transfer of prisons, oil fields, and gas facilities—including the Omar oilfield, Syria's largest—to Damascus. Syrian troops have already seized control of strategic assets including the Tabqa dam on the Euphrates river. Kurdish civil and educational rights were also addressed, with guarantees for displaced people to return home.

The agreement represents the first formal recognition of Kurdish national rights since Syria's independence in 1946. President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led the rebel offensive that toppled Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, has made reunifying the divided country a priority. The Kurds previously controlled nearly a third of Syria's territory with US support after helping defeat the Islamic State group, making this the biggest territorial shift since Assad's fall.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned Friday that the United Nations faces "imminent financial collapse" unless member nations pay their dues or the organization fundamentally overhauls its financial rules. In a letter to all 193 member nations, Guterres said cash for the UN's regular operating budget could run out by July, which would dramatically affect operations.

The crisis centers on the United States, traditionally the largest donor, which now owes $2.196 billion to the UN's regular budget, including $767 million for this year. The US also owes $1.8 billion for peacekeeping operations. The Trump administration has not paid any dues since taking office, and has withdrawn from UN organizations including the World Health Organization and UNESCO while pulling funding from dozens of others. Venezuela is second on the non-payment list, owing $38 million.

Guterres said the UN ended 2025 with a record $1.568 billion in outstanding dues, more than double the previous year. He highlighted a structural problem where UN rules require returning unspent budget money to member states even if those funds were never received. "We cannot execute budgets with uncollected funds, nor return funds we never received," Guterres wrote, calling the situation "categorically different" from past financial crises.

The Justice Department opened a federal civil rights investigation Friday into the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis ICU nurse killed last Saturday by Border Patrol officers. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the probe during a news conference, saying investigators are "looking at everything that would shed light on what happened that day and in the days and weeks leading up to what happened."

The FBI will now lead the federal investigation into Pretti's death, taking over from the Department of Homeland Security's investigative branch. The 37-year-old US citizen was shot during a confrontation with federal immigration officers, with initial official accounts claiming he brandished a gun. However, multiple videos contradicted this claim, showing Pretti had only his mobile phone in hand as officers tackled him, with one removing a handgun from his waistband as another officer fired shots into his back.

Blanche declined to explain why DOJ opened an investigation into Pretti's killing but said a similar probe was not warranted for Renee Good, who was shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis on January 7. It remains unclear whether the FBI will share information with Minnesota state investigators, who have been frozen out of the federal probe. The deaths of both Pretti and Good have sparked protests and criticism from lawmakers in both parties.

US allies including Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Finland are resetting relations with China following clashes with President Trump over tariffs and his demands regarding Greenland. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney struck a trade deal slashing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and Canadian canola oil, while UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer visited Beijing this week to repair strained ties. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is expected in China next month.

The shift marks a major change in global alignments as America's closest partners explore opportunities with the world's second-largest economy despite long-standing concerns about China as an adversary. When asked about Starmer's Beijing visit, Trump called it "very dangerous" and said it was "even more dangerous" for Canada to do business with China. He added that Canada "is not doing well" and "can't look at China as the answer."

The realignment reflects a strategic calculation by US allies seeking to protect their economic interests while navigating tensions with both Washington and Beijing. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas acknowledged China poses long-term challenges due to "economic coercive practices" but emphasized the need to "reach out to different partnerships." Financial analysts suggest the pivot reflects Europe's desire to "fend for Europe as a bloc" rather than a wholesale shift toward China, though Trump is expected to visit Beijing himself in April.

Panama's Supreme Court annulled contracts Friday allowing Hong Kong-based firm Panama Ports Company to operate container ports on the Panama Canal, finding the underlying laws "unconstitutional." The ruling affects the strategically important ports of Balboa and Cristóbal, which PPC has operated since 1997. Danish shipping company Maersk's subsidiary APM Terminals Panama will temporarily manage the sites.

The decision comes amid heightened tensions over China's influence in the Western Hemisphere, with President Trump repeatedly claiming China is "operating the Panama Canal." In his inaugural speech last January, Trump said the US was "taking it back." Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also demanded Panama make "immediate changes" to what he called China's "influence and control" over the canal. Panama has consistently rejected these claims, with President José Raúl Mulino insisting the canal "is and will remain" in Panamanian hands.

The ruling could disrupt plans by CK Hutchison to sell its global port interests to a consortium led by BlackRock and MSC under a $22.8 billion deal. Financial markets reacted swiftly, with CK Hutchison's shares falling 4.6% in Hong Kong trading. The Panama Canal handles up to 14,000 ships annually as a crucial shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. PPC said the ruling "lacks legal basis" and jeopardizes thousands of Panamanian families who depend on port operations.