The World This Week | Trump holds off on military action in Iran, European troops in Greenland and the first Taliban-appointed diplomat in India

Iranian regime holds on to power, for now

The unprecedented anti-government protests in Iran have spread to over 180 cities across all 31 provinces, even as the regime used brutal force to crush the uprising. According to human rights groups, anywhere between 2,500 and 12,000 protesters have been killed in the three weeks of protests. The protests, which began on December 28, 2025, by a group of traders in Tehran, have since grown into the largest anti-government uprising in Iran after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Over 18,000 people have been detained for taking part in the protests.

Iranians attend an anti-government protest in Tehran, Iran, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo)

Longest internet shutdown in Iran

Most information coming out of Iran, including the current state of the protests, the death toll, and the number of those detained, cannot be independently verified as the country has been walled off from the rest of the world. Iranian authorities shut down the internet and other communication lines across the country on January 8, ahead of the launch of the crackdown on the protests. While telephone communication has been restored, internet services are still down. The ongoing internet shutdown is the longest and most extensive in the history of Iran. Some activists have used Starlink terminals to bypass the shutdown and share footage of the violence, but the authorities are also cracking down on them.

Trump threatens, then holds off military action in Iran

Just days after the protests broke out, Donald Trump warned of a US military intervention in Iran if protesters were killed. Trump doubled down on his threat in the following days, only to be met with similar rhetoric from Iran, to hurt US allies in the Middle East. On Thursday, Trump indicated that the US may not strike immediately, while refusing to rule it out entirely. Trump cited information that “the killing had stopped in Iran” to hold off a potential military intervention. Since then, various US media outlets have reported that US allies in the Middle East, including Israel and Arab countries, may have convinced Trump to hold off the strike, citing the risks they face from an Iranian retaliation.

Reza Pahlavi – from exile to future ruler of Iran

Nearly five decades ago, his father, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran, was the most hated man in the country, but in 2026, Iranians on the streets are holding up photos of Reza Pahlavi and calling for his return. Reza Pahlavi, 65, who fled Iran with his family in 1979 following the Islamic Revolution, has lived in exile in the US ever since. In the past couple of weeks, the ‘crown prince’ of Iran has become the figurehead of the anti-government protests across Iran.

A member of the Iranian community holds a photograph of Iran’s exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi during a rally in support of anti-government protests in Iran, outside the U.S. embassy in Bucharest, Romania, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (Photo: AP)

Reza Pahlavi, who, through his social media posts, managed to galvanise thousands of protesters to take to the streets have also indicated that he is willing to return to Iran and lead the country during its transition into a secular democracy if the Islamic Republic is toppled.

US holds first formal talks on Greenland acquisition

On Wednesday (January 14), representatives from the US, Denmark and Greenland met in Washington, DC, for the first-ever formal talks on the acquisition of the world’s largest island. The US was represented by Vice President J D Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, while Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen took part in the talks on behalf of Denmark. Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, was represented by Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt.

Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt speak at a news conference at the Embassy of Denmark, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

The representatives of Greenland and Denmark maintained that “Greenland is not for sale,” but expressed willingness to accommodate some US demands. Danish and Greenlandic ministers said that the talks ended in a “fundamental disagreement” regarding the island’s future.

Europe sends troops to Greenland

President Trump reiterated after the talks that anything less than US control is “unacceptable” for national security reasons. Trump has also said that the US would take Greenland “one way or the other”. The unprecedented threat by the US, which also poses an existential threat to NATO, has European countries rallying around Denmark and Greenland. This week saw several European countries sending troops to Greenland, in a symbolic gesture of solidarity.

Number of troops sent by European countries to Greenland

• France (15)
• Germany (13)
• Sweden (3)
• Norway (2)
• Finland (2)
• Netherlands (1)
• United Kingdom (1)

The White House responded to the arrival of European troops to Greenland, saying it will not affect President Trump’s goal of acquiring the island.

US completes first Venezuelan oil sales

The US this week completed the first sale of Venezuelan crude oil, marking a new chapter in the ties between the two countries. The sale to Vitol, the world’s largest independent oil trader, is the first cargo of Venezuelan crude sold since the removal of President Nicolás Maduro earlier this month.

Flames rise from flare stacks at the Amuay refinery in Los Taques, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

US-Venezuela oil deal

The sale is part of a broader plan to market 30 to 50 million barrels of sanctioned crude, worth approximately $2 billion to $2.8 billion at current market rates. The initial sale was valued at approximately $500 million, and the revenue is being held in a Qatar bank account controlled by the US government. Following the US capture of Maduro, Trump had announced that Washington would control Venezuelan oil sales indefinitely.

Oil tankers are docked at the Cardon refinery at sunset in Punta Cardon, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Trump has called for US oil companies, including ExxonMobil, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips, to invest at least $100 billion to rebuild Venezuela’s oil infrastructure.

Taliban diplomat takes charge of Afghan Embassy in India

The Taliban, which took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, secured a major diplomatic victory this week, after a diplomat appointed by the hardline Islamist group took charge as the Chargé d’Affaires of the Afghan Embassy in New Delhi.

Who is Mufti Noor Ahmad Noor

The diplomat, Mufti Noor Ahmad Noor, is a senior official from the Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and previously served as the First Political Director. Though Noor has been appointed as the in-charge of the Afghan Mission, the Embassy will continue to fly the black, red, and green flag of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and not the white flag of the Taliban.

Mufti Noor Ahmad Noor, the Chargé d’Affaires of the Afghan Embassy in New Delhi.

Taliban on the path to international recognition

Despite being in control of Afghanistan since August 2021, only Russia has formally recognised the Taliban as the legitimate government of the country. Others, including India, China, Iran, Pakistan, Qatar, Turkey, Japan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan, have established diplomatic ties with the Taliban, giving them some legitimacy.

India-Afghan ties under Taliban

In October 2025, Amir Khan Muttaqi, the foreign minister in the Taliban administration, visited India after he was granted a travel waiver from the UN Security Council. In October, India had also upgraded its diplomatic presence in Kabul from a “technical mission” to a full-fledged embassy.

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