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US and Israel tactics diverge over Trump's 'fuzzy' goals
Analysis: Earlier this month, the United States voiced unease after Israel bombed fuel depots around Tehran, smothering the city of 10 million people with toxic black smoke.
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What strikes on the world's largest natural gas sites could do to the global economy
Analysis: A wave of attacks on energy production sites across the Middle East has turned the spotlight on another crucial fossil fuel: liquefied natural gas.
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Prime Minister retreats to safe law and order ground in Pacific
Analysis: When stuck in a bind, Christopher Luxon can always rely on talking about law and order.
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Takeaways from US intelligence officials' testimony amid war with Iran
Analysis - Officials, including Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, repeatedly either contradicted Trump and the administration's claims about the…
Comment & Analysis headlines with summaries.
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Sophie Devine will earn $470,000 this season - she's the exception
18 Mar 2026Analysis - For most elite women athletes, professional sport still doesn't pay enough to make a living. But strategic investment will grow their visibility and earning power.
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Resignations and refusals: Trump increasingly isolated in Iran war
Analysis: US President Donald Trump has already lost friends abroad; now he's starting to lose them at home.
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If Trump has already won in Iran, why is he now asking for help?
17 Mar 2026Analysis - A week ago, the US President told Britain not to bother sending ships, because he'd already won the war. Audio
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Trump needs China's help in oil crisis - and is unlikely to get it
17 Mar 2026Analysis - Two weeks before the US president is scheduled to hash out critical US-China disputes, he's set a new condition for negotiations. Audio
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'The day will come': Halasima provides 80-minute performance in Warriors win
14 Mar 2026Analysis: Seven days earlier, coach Andrew Webster forecast what came to pass against Canberra Raiders.
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Trump may be unable to end the war, even if he wants to
Analysis: The US President is now caught in the oldest trap of modern warfare.
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How Trump and Vance are 'philosophically a little bit different' on Iran
How does launching Operation Epic Fury square with the principles of a man who stated Trump's best foreign policy was not starting any wars?
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'Boom Boom' US propaganda vs the reality in Iran
Analysis: The US government doesn't simply want Americans to support the war; it wants to pump people up.
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Iran war threatens to undermine Trump's favourite bragging point
The war with Iran is threatening to disrupt Trump's economic agenda, sending stocks lower and pushing yields and the dollar higher.
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Britain and the US had a special bond. This war might have changed that
12 Mar 2026Analysis: When British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer declared in parliament this month that his government "does not believe in regime change from the skies", he did two things.
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Does Donald Trump even know what’s happening in Iran?
Analysis: There are no signs that the US President's decisions on the war will be grounded in reality any time soon.
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Commercial space technology is shaping the Iran war – the law can’t keep up
A combination of advanced battlefield tactics and the rapid commercialisation of space technology means international law is now falling well behind.
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Luxon doubles down as more worrying polling emerges
9 Mar 2026Analysis: It's a bold prime minister who assumes the support of his entire caucus after one of his worst weeks in the job. Audio
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Meet 'Tous', an entirely new kind of mammal
9 Mar 2026A plantation worker photographed the animal thought to have been dead for 6000 years.
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Iran defies Trump and names new Supreme Leader
Analysis: Iran's clerical leadership chose confrontation over compromise.
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Insolvencies have spiked - would a law change help?
Analysis: New Zealand has been experiencing a striking rise in company failures, focusing attention on the role of directors when facing financial trouble.
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What would it take for Luxon to quit?
6 Mar 2026Analysis - One of Luxon's weaknesses has been his inability to take feedback. Another is his complete lack of self-doubt, writes Jo Moir.
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In Trump's precarious world, NZ will need all the middle‑sized friends it can get
6 Mar 2026Analysis: The hard part remains: how can middle and smaller powers effectively work together when still mostly reliant on great powers for security, trade and technology?
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Why Dave Rennie's Wallabies struggles could help the All Blacks
5 Mar 2026Analysis - His toughest chapters - not just his title-winning highs - may shape a smarter, stronger All Blacks era, writes Tony Johnson. Audio
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Trump's awkwardness about US deaths in Iran
Analysis: Speaking about dead and wounded service members is a blind spot for the US President.
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The debate NZ should really be having about language policy
5 Mar 2026Analysis: Without a clearly articulated framework with a strong evidence base, New Zealand is missing out on the potential opportunities offered by its growing linguistic diversity.
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NZ wants to double foreign student revenue by 2034 – but does it have capacity?
5 Mar 2026On the face of it, New Zealand's push to expand international education looks like an easy win for economic growth.
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The US just took out two China-friendly leaders in two months
5 Mar 2026Analysis - Why has Beijing done very little about it?
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Dog attacks keep happening in NZ. Why hasn’t the law kept up?
Analysis: If the government is serious about reducing dog attacks, it would need to engage with expert advice and consider major reform.
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- Christchurch City Council issued a please-explain over sewage discharge
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- Analysis: PM Christopher Luxon takes the reins and risk on looming economic crisis
- New aerial images reveal scale of Northland landslide damage
- 'The silence is deafening': Mariameno Kapa-Kingi yet to speak with Te Pāti Māori leaders
