Iran war fallout spreads outside of Middle East

In the five days since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran, which has retaliated against Israel and US assets in the Gulf, the conflict has rapidly reverberated around the rest of the globe. Yesterday, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) entered the conflict for the first time, shooting down a missile headed toward Turkey from Iran.

The target of the missile was unknown, but a US Navy destroyer intercepted the projectile after it entered Turkish airspace, and debris fell about 60 miles from an air base that Turkey shares with US military forces:

• NATO condemned the attempted strike, but Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the incident did not trigger NATO’s collective defense agreement, under which an attack on one member is considered an attack against all its members.
• The Turkish defense ministry said that despite there being no casualties, “We reserve the right to respond to any hostile act directed at our country.”
• Iranian state media said this morning, “The Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran respect the sovereignty of the neighboring and friendly country, Turkey, and deny any missile launch toward that country’s territory.”

Other NATO allies are also on alert: France and the UK said this weekend they would send warships and helicopters to Cyprus after an Iranian drone attacked a British air base on the island.

Tensions rise thousands of miles away

To the east. South Korean stocks took a nosedive yesterday, recording the market’s worst single-day drop, amid fears of higher energy and oil prices spurred by the war. The country’s Kospi index dropped over 12% as panic triggered a 20-minute trading halt. But today, the Kospi index has rebounded by 10% as of 4am ET and is on track to have its best day since 2008.

To the west. On Tuesday, President Trump threatened to cut off trade with Spain after the country’s leaders said it wouldn’t allow the US to use its jointly operated military bases in attacks on Iran. In response, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez amped up criticism of the war.

In further escalation of the actual conflict, Hegseth said yesterday that a US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka in international waters. This marks the first time a US sub has attacked a surface vessel since World War II. Here are the latest updates.