{"id":42956,"date":"2026-08-08T03:40:36","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T01:40:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kaizen-blog.org\/?p=42956"},"modified":"2026-08-08T03:55:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T01:55:46","slug":"08-august-2026-kurznachrichten","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kaizen-blog.org\/en\/08-august-2026-kurznachrichten\/","title":{"rendered":"August 8, 2026 \u2013 Short News"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Trump Needs a Deal With Iran - and That Would Mean Actually Giving Ground<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Donald Trump keeps claiming that the U.S. holds all the cards in the war with Iran, but the reality in the Strait of Hormuz looks very different. More than five months after the war began, Iran can still threaten shipping with missiles, drones, and mines, while roughly 20 percent of the world's oil normally passes through the strait. Washington and Tehran now say an agreement to reopen it is close, but that's exactly where Trump's problem begins. The U.S. government rejects any arrangement that would permanently give Iran control over part of the waterway or the right to charge fees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tehran, meanwhile, refuses to go back to the way things were before the war, when Hormuz was used as an open international waterway. That's why a temporary solution is now being discussed under which ships would enter the Persian Gulf through an Iranian-controlled route and leave through an Omani-controlled route. Washington has so far insisted that there be no fees or other charges. Trump says the strait is currently \"sort of open,\" but the numbers contradict any impression that things are back to normal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were 84 transits last week, up from 45 the week before. Before the war, there were regularly more than 700 a week. At least two ships were hit in the past week alone, while others reported near misses or warnings from entities claiming to represent Iran's Revolutionary Guard. At the same time, Trump is now acknowledging that certain U.S. ammunition stockpiles have gotten \"a little bit tighter,\" while experts are warning in particular about declining stocks of advanced missile interceptors. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is already asking Congress for billions more for the Pentagon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than 14,000 targets have now been struck, according to Washington, without taking away Iran's ability to threaten shipping through Hormuz. Senator Mark Kelly therefore calls the ammunition shortage a self-inflicted problem from a war without a clearly defined objective. The political price at home is getting uncomfortable too: Roughly two-thirds of Americans now say the Iran war has not been worth it, gas prices remain high, and the midterms are getting closer. Former administration official David Schenker therefore considers it entirely possible that Trump will give ground on Hormuz. Eliot Cohen sees that as a particular problem for a president who divides politics into winners and losers. After thousands of strikes, the way out of the war could end up requiring a compromise with the very Iran whose control over the Strait of Hormuz Washington went to war to break.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Russia Wants the \"Merry Milkman\u2019s\" Family Gone - Now It\u2019s Hitting a Man Who Defended the Country for Years<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Justus Walker became known in Russia as the \"Merry Milkman.\" Now his family faces expulsion from the country the American made his home for decades. On August 7, Walker released a five-minute video titled \"Our Family Tragedy,\" saying that Russian migration authorities had revoked his family's residence permits and ordered them to leave the country. He did not say exactly which members of his family were affected. Walker says he has lived in Russia since 1994, married there, had his children there, and has operated a farm in the Altai region for the past ten years. He says the family invested practically all the money it had available this year into further expanding its project. Now he is asking his followers to pray for his family. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walker became famous in 2014 when Russian state television reported on Putin's food embargo in response to Western sanctions following the annexation of Crimea and the beginning of the war in Donbas. Walker was explaining why Russian producers would now have better chances against European competitors when he burst into loud laughter at the thought of Italian cheese no longer being available. State television turned him into the \"Merry Milkman,\" and Walker became one of the best-known American expats in Russia. His enthusiasm for Russia, however, did not stop him from later going after the authorities. In March 2026, following the mass slaughter of livestock, he accused the Agriculture Ministry of \"threats, bans, and bureaucratic pressure\" and charged it with trying to destroy small and medium-sized farms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in 2024, he had already joined a protest in the Altai region against gold mining. And as early as 2019, the very man who became famous because of Putin's food boycott was calling for it to be lifted, arguing that protectionism brings short-term growth but long-term stagnation. His residency status remains strange. Media outlets reported as far back as 2021 that his residence permit had been revoked, while Walker later said himself that he was a Russian citizen and therefore could not be deported at all. The family even traveled to the U.S. together in the meantime. What any of that means legally today may become clear on Monday, when Walker is due to meet with authorities and receive specific documents. The man whose laughter once fit perfectly into the state's story about the benefits of turning away from the West is now waiting to find out whether Russia still wants his family in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Trump Administration Revokes Former Air Force Secretary's Access to Classified Information<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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The Trump administration has revoked former U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall's eligibility to access classified information. The Pentagon accuses the Biden administration official of disclosing classified information about Air Force One's capabilities to a media outlet without authorization. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said Kendall would also no longer be allowed to hold any position giving him access to sensitive information. Parnell did not say what specific information Kendall allegedly disclosed or which media outlet received it. The move follows a dispute that has been consuming Washington for weeks. Several news organizations, including The New York Times, had reported on security concerns surrounding the new presidential aircraft gifted to the United States by Qatar. The reports dealt in part with what modifications and security measures would be necessary before Donald Trump could use the aircraft as Air Force One. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Justice Department responded with an unusually aggressive move against the press, subpoenaing New York Times reporters in an attempt to force them to reveal their sources. A judge sharply questioned the move, after which the department eventually withdrew the subpoenas. Now the administration is going after a former senior official it apparently believes was a source for the reporting. Parnell said safeguarding classified information is a duty that is not negotiable. But the Pentagon provided no public evidence in its statement showing that Kendall actually disclosed classified information. Kendall himself did not respond to a phone call seeking comment. For now, that leaves unanswered exactly what information the allegation concerns and how the administration concluded that Kendall was responsible for disclosing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan Sign Joint Defense Pact<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n