The world this week | Tarique Rahman returns to Bangladesh, Trump appoints Special Envoy to Greenland, US hits IS targets in Nigeria
From Japan approving a record defence budget amid rising tensions with China to the US targeting an Islamic State affiliate in Nigeria. Here is a look at some of the major events this week.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Acting Chairman, Tarique Rahman, waves to supporters at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka after returning from London, ending more than 17 years of self-imposed exile, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu)
2025 is almost coming to an end, and 2026 is shaping up to be another year of conflicts, both political and armed ones, around the world. On the political front, Bangladesh and Nepal, two countries that overthrew their governments in their respective Gen-Z uprisings, are heading to their first elections in the first quarter of 2026. When it comes to armed conflicts, the uneasy truce between Thailand and Cambodia is on the verge of collapse again, and in the Western hemisphere, the US is inching towards a military operation in Venezuela to oust Nicolas Maduro. Over in Europe, the deadliest war on the continent since World War II, between Russia and Ukraine, is likely to be dragged into its fifth year.
Tarique Rahman returns to Bangladesh after 17 years
The protests and violence also became a diplomatic tussle between India and Bangladesh this week, with the two countries summoning the High Commissioners of the other multiple times, over attacks on minorities and the safety of diplomatic missions. Both India and Bangladesh have also suspended or scaled down visa services due to the ongoing protests on both sides.
Members of Bangiya Hindu Jagaran take part in a rally to Bangladesh Deputy High Commission to protest against the killing of Dipu Chandra Das in Bangladesh, in Kolkata on Tuesday. (ANI Photo)
Return of Tarique Rahman
However, the most significant development in Bangladesh domestically was the return of Tarique Rahman. The 60-year-old son of former PM Khaleda Zia returned to Bangladesh after 17 years in exile in the UK. Rahman, the acting chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), is expected to lead the party in the upcoming elections in February 2026.
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Supporters of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman shout slogans following his arrival at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka after more than 17 years of self-imposed exile in London, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025. (Photo: AP)
Tarique Rahman’s exile
Tarique Rahman, the only surviving son of Khaleda Zia and her late husband Ziaur Rahman, has been living in a self-imposed exile in the UK since September 2008 due to legal and medical reasons. Rahman was the prime accused in the 2004 Dhaka grenade attack in which 24 people, including senior Awami League leaders, were killed. Rahman was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment in 2018. The conviction was overturned in December 2024 by the High Court of Bangladesh.
Rahman was allowed to travel abroad in 2008 after an understanding with the military-backed caretaker government to stay away from politics. However, in 2009, he was appointed the senior vice-chairman of BNP and became the acting chairman of the party in February 2018 after his mother, Khaleda Zia, was imprisoned in a corruption case.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman waves to supporters from a bus in Dhaka after returning from London, ending more than 17 years of self-imposed exile, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025.(AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu)
Tarique Rahman and the Bangladesh elections
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Rahman returned to Bangladesh ahead of February’s general elections, the first in the country since the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina government in 2024. The BNP, which has been away from power since 2006, is widely expected to win the general elections in February, in which Hasina’s Awami League has been banned from contesting.
Donald Trump on Sunday announced he is appointing Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as the special envoy to Greenland. (Photo: X/@LAGovJeffLandry)
Trump, who first proposed to purchase Greenland from Denmark, has repeated the idea of the island becoming part of the US since his 2024 election win, citing its strategic importance and mineral resources.
How Greenland and Denmark reacted
The appointment of Landry as special envoy was immediately condemned by Danish and Greenlandic leadership. In a joint statement, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said, “You cannot annex another country… Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders, and the US shall not take over Greenland.”
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Trump has been obsessed with acquiring Greenland, which is an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark. (Photo: Reuters)
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen also summoned the US Ambassador, Ken Howery, describing the appointment as “completely unacceptable” and “deeply upsetting”.
European reaction
The European Union expressed “full solidarity” with Denmark and said that territorial integrity is a fundamental principle of international law.
Status of Greenland
Greenland, a former Danish colony with a population of about 57,000, has the right to declare independence under a 2009 agreement but remains heavily reliant on fishing and Danish subsidies. Its strategic position between Europe and North America makes it a key site for the US ballistic missile defence system, while its mineral wealth has heightened the interest in reducing reliance on Chinese exports.
Japan’s record defence budget amid tensions with China
The Japanese cabinet on Friday approved a draft budget of $780 billion, out of which a record $58 billion is allocated for defence. The allocation, which is nearly 10 per cent more than what was provided in the previous budget, is aimed at increasing Japan’s strike back capability and improving coastal defences with surface-to-ship missiles and unmanned arsenals.
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Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a press conference at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo. (AP)
Japan’s SHIELD system
Japan aims to build a ‘Synchronised, Hybrid, Integrated and Enhanced Littoral Defence’ (SHIELD) system, which utilises a “massive” fleet of unmanned air, sea-surface, and underwater drones.
Japan vs China
The build-up is largely driven by escalating tensions with China, particularly regarding the potential for conflict over Taiwan and disputed southwestern islands.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who assumed office in October 2025, had angered China in November by claiming that the use of force by China against Taiwan could amount to a “survival-threatening situation” for her country.
How Japan’s Pacifist Constitution has changed
Since its defeat in World War II, Japan has adopted a ‘Pacifist Constitution’ in which the nation renounces war as a sovereign right and pledges not to maintain land, sea, or air forces.
However, in 2014, under the then-prime minister Shinzo Abe, Japan reinterpreted its approach, allowing the Japan Self-Defence Forces (JSDF) to defend allies under attack if Tokyo’s survival was at stake.
US strikes IS in Nigeria over killing of Christians
President Donald Trump said Thursday that the US launched a “powerful and deadly” strike against the Islamic State (IS) in Nigeria. On Friday, Nigeria confirmed the strikes and said they were carried out jointly. Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the cooperation included exchange of intelligence and strategic coordination in ways “consistent with international law, mutual respect for sovereignty and shared commitments to regional and global security.”
People stand behind crime scene tape at the site of a U.S. airstrike in Northwest, Jabo, Nigeria, Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/ Tunde Omolehin)
Who did US strike
The strikes in Sokoto State were targeted at the Lakurawa group of IS-Sahel, an affiliate of the Islamic State group.
In recent years, the Lakurawa group, which is prominent in the northwestern states like Sokoto, has increasingly been targeting remote communities and security forces.
Trump’s threat to Nigeria
Since November, Trump has been threatening military action in Nigeria over the killing of Christians in the country. The Trump administration also designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” for religious freedom violations and imposed a travel ban on its citizens.
Are Christians being killed in Nigeria?
Nigeria’s population of 220 million is split almost equally between Christians and Muslims. Responding to the US allegations, the Nigerian government said people of many faiths, not just Christians, have suffered attacks from extremist groups, including Boko Haram and other Islamic State-affiliated groups.
A police officer stands guard as freed students and teachers of St. Mary’s Catholic School in the Papiri community arrive at the government house, in Minna, Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)
Experts have also pointed out that conflicts in Nigeria often have varying motives. There are religiously motivated ones targeting both Christians and Muslims, clashes between farmers and herders over dwindling resources, communal rivalries, secessionist groups and ethnic clashes.
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Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Acting Chairman, Tarique Rahman, waves to supporters at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka after returning from London, ending more than 17 years of self-imposed exile, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) 
