The briefing for Sunday, July 26.

Two separate lawsuits filed Friday challenge President Trump's new tariffs on 60 trading partners, announced Thursday, that impose double-digit levies covering 99% of U.S. imports. The tariffs were implemented under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, with the administration citing countries' failure to prevent imports produced by forced labor. Critics say the move is designed to replace worldwide tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court in February.

Educational toy company Learning Resources, which won a previous Supreme Court case against Trump tariffs, filed suit in the Court of International Trade along with several other small businesses. A second lawsuit was filed by spice company Burlap and Barrel and watch retailer Collective Horology, represented by the Liberty Justice Center. Both suits argue the government failed to adequately establish its case against each specific economy or explain how the tariffs will eliminate forced labor practices, as required by Section 301.

Legal experts say these tariffs may be harder to challenge than previous rounds. Trump successfully used Section 301 to impose tariffs on China during his first term, and those survived court challenges. Even if countries enact desired policies, they'll need to prove enforcement to Washington's satisfaction before tariffs are removed, suggesting "no short-term path for country-wide relief," according to trade lawyer Patrick Childress of Holland & Knight.

For the first time in two weeks, the US military did not conduct overnight strikes on Iran, as diplomatic efforts appeared to gain momentum Saturday. An Omani delegation arrived in Tehran for talks on the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iran's state-run IRNA news agency. President Trump told reporters Friday that negotiations were continuing and Iran was "being by far the most serious that we've seen them," though he cautioned "that doesn't mean we get there."

The diplomatic pause comes as Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis launched missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia early Saturday, targeting oil facilities in Yanbu and Jizan. The strikes followed Saudi airstrikes Friday on Houthi targets in the Yemeni port city of Hodeida. The Houthis have threatened to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to Saudi-linked shipping in retaliation, threatening a second critical shipping route in the Red Sea beyond the contested Strait of Hormuz.

The situation in the Strait of Hormuz remains tense. On Friday, US forces disabled a second commercial tanker attempting to evade the American blockade on Iranian ports. The US and UK are set to hold a conference in London next week to discuss the strait, while Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is scheduled to meet with Trump on Tuesday. Oil prices have fluctuated dramatically, briefly topping $100 per barrel this week before dropping Friday to around $96.

India's Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned Saturday, handing a major victory to the youth-led "Cockroach Janta Party" movement that has protested for five weeks over exam paper leaks and education system failures. Pradhan announced his resignation on X, saying he "respected the aspirations, dreams, and expectations of the youth" and was "pained by the events" of recent days. The resignation marks the first significant concession by Prime Minister Modi's government to sustained public dissent in recent years, comparable only to the 2021 farm law withdrawal.

The CJP, an online satirical campaign with an AI-generated cockroach mascot, began after India's chief justice described some unemployed youth turning to activism as "cockroaches." Led by 30-year-old political strategist Abhijeet Dipke, the movement gained 26 million Instagram followers and called for education reforms, accountability over exam leaks, and Pradhan's resignation. Protests swelled after activist Sonam Wangchuk joined with an indefinite hunger strike on June 28, with crowds growing larger after Monday's police crackdown left dozens injured.

Following Pradhan's resignation announcement, jubilant supporters celebrated at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, the main protest venue. Movement organizers said the government had accepted all their demands, including broader education reforms, compensation for families of students who died by suicide following exam leaks, and commitments that protesters face no legal action. The movement called off its demonstrations, though celebrations continued into Saturday night.

Belgian authorities arrested a Canadian woman Friday on espionage charges while she worked as an intern at NATO's Strategic Headquarters of the Allied Powers (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium. Belgium's Federal Prosecutor's Office said it launched an investigation after NATO security services tipped off Belgian military intelligence. Authorities raided the suspect's home and workplace Thursday before making the arrest. The woman, described as "a Canadian citizen of Chinese origin," is suspected of spying on behalf of an unnamed third country and being a member of a criminal organization.

SHAPE, located in southern Belgium near the French border, is NATO's operational headquarters where military officials plan and command joint strategy, tactics and operations. The facility also houses NATO's Cyber Security Centre. The arrest comes at a sensitive time for the 32-nation alliance, which in 2021 labeled China a "security challenge" alongside Russia and Middle East threats. NATO leaders have accused Beijing of undermining global order, developing its military opaquely, and running destabilizing disinformation campaigns.

The timing is particularly delicate as NATO weathers criticism from President Trump, who has drawn down the US security role in Europe while pressing allies to spend more on defense and join the Iran conflict. Trump has also threatened to seize Greenland from NATO member Denmark by force, rattling Europeans and the alliance. Last year, following Trump's pressure, all 32 NATO nations agreed to invest 5% of GDP on defense, split between weapons systems and infrastructure including cybersecurity.

Chinese AI startups are making significant inroads in the US market with models that perform near frontier-level capabilities at dramatically lower costs. San Francisco-based Mozilla CTO Raffi Krikorian switched to Chinese startup Moonshot's Kimi K3 within days of its launch, calling it "snappier" than the acclaimed but more expensive Claude Fable from Anthropic. Companies like cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase are also switching to Chinese models to trim costs, while independent developers increasingly prefer them for routine tasks.

The latest models from Chinese startups Z.ai and Moonshot, launched in June and July respectively, are nearly as intelligent as frontier models from OpenAI and Anthropic, according to experts. Based on OpenRouter data, the top five most popular AI models over the past month were Chinese. The cost difference is substantial: Chinese models charge a handful of cents per million output tokens compared to $30-50 for US alternatives, making them especially attractive as "agentic" AI usage requiring complex multistep tasks drives up costs.

The Trump administration accused Moonshot on Wednesday of using "covert" methods to build K3 off Anthropic's Fable, though not necessarily illegally. Some US politicians and AI companies have accused Chinese startups of illicit "distillation" to extract technologies, claims Beijing rejects as "groundless." Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned more sanctions could be coming to protect American intellectual property. Despite US-led restrictions blocking China from accessing advanced AI chips, Chinese models show the AI race has evolved significantly since DeepSeek shook up the industry early last year.

Former Maine Senate president and fifth-generation logger Troy Jackson secured the Democratic nomination for US Senate on Saturday, replacing Graham Platner who withdrew earlier this month following a sexual assault allegation. Maine Democrats convened a special nominating convention to choose a new candidate to face five-term Republican incumbent Susan Collins in November. Jackson, from rural northern Maine, was a favorite among progressives and previously campaigned alongside Platner in a failed gubernatorial bid.

Democrats view Maine as their best opportunity to flip a Senate seat this year, as it's a competitive race in a state President Trump lost in 2024. However, defeating Collins won't be easy—the longtime incumbent holds a substantial fundraising advantage, while Jackson has less than four months to introduce himself to voters. Republicans immediately launched attack ads linking Jackson to Platner and accusing him of having a volatile temper.

The Senate Leadership Fund, Republicans' super PAC, committed to spending over $42 million against Jackson. "Mainers value steady leadership that yields real results for the Pine Tree State, making Susan Collins the clear choice once again this November," said the group's communications director. During his acceptance speech Saturday, Jackson emphasized grassroots organizing: "When the people in power refuse to listen, you have to organize, you have to stand in solidarity, together. And you have to make them listen."