Philippines Domestic Politics: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. defended his Middle East fallout response in his 5th State of the Nation Address, citing rapid action and a UPLIFT package, while also pushing energy expansion (including major power and storage projects), disaster response after Tropical Storm Kiyapo, and housing scale-up under the 4PH program. Social Policy & Governance: Religious leaders urged Marcos to prioritize the poor, transparency, and accountability, as the government also moved on housing delivery and job fairs tied to economic pressures. Caribbean Social Security: Curaçao advanced a mandatory basic pension proposal toward parliamentary review, while also approving 2020–2022 annual accounts and setting positions for Kingdom-level treaty talks. International Justice: Chad joined a growing list of states seeking to withdraw from the ICC, arguing the court’s effectiveness is limited and uneven, amid broader scrutiny of international accountability. Security & Defense: Austria plans to extend military service to nine months to adapt to the Ukraine-driven security shift. Europe Public Safety: Berlin’s Pride attack suspect had red flags tied to ISIS, raising questions about deradicalization screening and prevention. Climate & Energy Inequality: A new report warns extreme heat will drive hundreds of thousands of additional deaths by 2050, with many affected countries lacking power for lifesaving cooling. Tech, Identity & Payments: Nepal made National ID verification mandatory for digital wallet onboarding, tightening the link between payments and national identity systems. U.S. Education Politics: The Trump administration escalated enforcement on “parental rights” in classrooms, targeting districts accused of hiding student gender transition information.