| Hi, everyone, and welcome back to the Daily Review. | Today at WPR, columnist Frida Ghitis looks at why voters across Latin America are putting security ahead of economic concerns. And Lam Duc Vu examines the disconnect between Australia’s talk and action when it comes to engagement with Southeast Asia. | Scroll down for more on those items. But first, here’s our take on today’s top story: |  | A plume of black smoke from a Ukrainian drone attack over the port of St. Petersburg, Russia, June 3, 2026 (AP photo) |
| Ukraine launched a drone attack on St. Petersburg this morning, hitting an oil facility and a Russian naval vessel in drydock, and shuttering the city’s airport for five hours. The attack comes on the opening day of Vladimir Putin’s flagship annual economic forum, which he has used since the invasion of Ukraine to demonstrate that Russia is not the isolated pariah the West makes it out to be. | In addition to targeting Russia’s oil sector, the attack is also an attempt to embarrass Putin and demonstrate to the Russian public that Ukraine can bring the war to their doorsteps. Kyiv used drone attacks on Moscow in the runup to last month’s annual Victory Day parade to similarly upstage Putin, while subsequently agreeing—with exaggerated magnanimity—to a one-day ceasefire to allow for the scaled-down event to proceed. | While the economic impact of the attacks is debatable, their symbolic effect is clearer. Drones have become emblematic of Ukraine’s resilience and plucky ingenuity, from its domestic development and production of new models to its innovative tactical approaches to deploying them in combat. Its proficiency in counter-drone defense in the face of Russian attacks using Iranian-designed models have also raised its profile among Gulf states targeted by Tehran in the ongoing Iran war. | Symbolic victories won’t win the war, of course, but … Purchase a subscription now to get the full top story in your Daily Review email every day. |
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| | In wealthy democracies, the mantra “It’s the economy, stupid,” popularized by Bill Clinton’s successful 1992 presidential campaign, cemented the notion that nothing matters more to voters than the state of the economy and their personal finances. Colombian voters, who went to the polls on May 31, showed that a different dynamic is at play in the region. In countries where rising violence is an inescapable fact of life, candidates’ vows to improve security compete with and increasingly overtake promises to boost the economy, Frida Ghitis writes. | | | Australia’s recently published National Defense Strategy describes Southeast Asia as “central to the Indo-Pacific’s strategic future and to Australia’s national interests,” and asserts that Australia has “broad, deep and long-standing defence partnerships across the region.” The document’s language is confident, Lam Duc Vu writes, but it also reflects a structural bias in Australian strategic planning that has persisted for decades: talking up engagement with Southeast Asia, only to underfund it in practice. | | | Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya: World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday that the response to the Ebola outbreak in Congo was finally … Purchase an all-access subscription now to get all On Our Radar items included in your Daily Review. | United States: The Trump administration is proposing new tariffs of at least 10 percent on 59 countries and … Purchase an all-access subscription now to get all On Our Radar items included in your Daily Review. | United Kingdom: A murder case in Southampton, in southern England, set off violent protests, including attacks against police officers, after right-wing influencers online seized on video evidence in the case to claim that the police were biased against white people. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage encouraged his followers to “respond with pure cold rage” after claiming the police had displayed “anti-white prejudice.” | The footage in question showed police briefly handcuffing Henry Nowak, 18, at the scene of the crime in December 2025, before realizing he had been gravely wounded. Nowak had been stabbed five times by Vickrum Digwa, 23, and later died of his injuries. Digwa initially claimed he was the victim of a racist attack, but police later determined that to be a lie. On Monday, he was sentenced to life in prison for Nowak’s murder. | For more on how far-right and anti-immigrant movements in the UK have used incidents of immigrant or migrant crime to mobilize violent riots, see this August 2024 WPR column by Alexander Clarkson. | | Solomon Islands, China: The Solomon Islands will review its security treaty with China, the country’s prime minister said on Wednesday. The details of the treaty … Purchase an all-access subscription now to get all On Our Radar items included in your Daily Review. | | Zimbabwe: “Zimbabwe’s government introduced a bill to parliament on Tuesday that would extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term by … Purchase an all-access subscription now to get all On Our Radar items included in your Daily Review. | | More from WPR | | Read all of our latest coverage here. |
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Welcome to my geopolitics blog site. This is a Hawaii Island news site focusing on geopolitical news, analysis, information, and commentary. I will cite a variety of sources, ranging from all sides of the political spectrum.