“Hours after U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth upbraided his NATO allies and announced a Pentagon review of their performance, the leaders of many European nations were assessing a check list of progress made on security priorities,” Associated Press reports.

“In essence, Hegseth was telling the Europeans things they already know.”

“The list included their hike in defense spending, investment in industry to boost the production of military equipment, best use of lessons learned from the war in Ukraine, and the need to buy or develop drones, air defense systems and long-range weapons.”

CNBC: Hegseth warns NATO allies that some nations will ‘fail’ U.S. defense review.

New York Times: “In this respect, the administration’s contradictions and obfuscations about the status, cost, rationale and resolution of the war reveal something different than officials intend. It’s not just that they appear to be in denial about what the conflict means. It has enabled the rest of the world to clearly see what the White House cannot acknowledge: The United States is no longer the world’s unquestioned hegemon, and the promise of its protection is not absolute. The war in Iran marks the end of any lingering illusions of American omnipotence.”

“Almost every end of empire has been accompanied by a particular kind of wishful thinking — call it self-deception, call it willful misdirection — to process the new reality.”

The Guardian: A president’s wishful thinking gives way to uncomfortable realities.

Italy’s Prime Minister Georgia Meloni said Friday she was left “stunned” by President Trump reportedly telling an Italian network that she had “wanted a picture with me so badly” at the G7 summit earlier in the week, and that he only said yes because he “felt sorry for her,” CBS News reports.

Said Trump: “She’s probably happy I talked to her. I didn’t have to talk to her.”

He added: “She begged me to take a picture with her. She wanted a picture with me so badly. I wouldn’t have taken it, but I felt sorry for ‌her.”

CNN: Italian foreign minister cancels trip to US over Trump’s comments about Meloni.

“Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has set up secretive new cells in Iraq to carry out attacks on Gulf countries that host American forces, bypassing established militia networks to avoid detection,” Reuters reports.

“Iran said ships that cross the Strait of Hormuz need its permission to pass the vital waterway, in a document that sets the stage for future tolling arrangements by requiring them to buy insurance from Tehran,” Bloomberg reports.

“Vessels that cross the Strait of Hormuz will need a mandatory insurance policy that is currently free but could have a cost in the future, the country’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority said in a document on its website.”

CNBC: “Ukrainian forces conducted a large-scale attack against Moscow on Wednesday evening and Thursday, heavily targeting a major oil refinery located on the south-eastern outskirts of the city.”

“Nearly 200 drones were reportedly used in the attack, marking Ukraine’s biggest-ever air raid on Russia’s capital.”

“News that the U.S. and Iran had reached an interim deal may have brought some initial relief to markets, but fresh uncertainty emerged on Friday after planned follow-up talks in Switzerland were called off, underscoring the challenges of turning the agreement into a lasting peace settlement,” CNBC reports.

“Switzerland’s foreign ministry said U.S.-Iran talks scheduled to take place at Bürgenstock on Friday would not proceed as planned.”

NewsNation: What happens now that the US-Iran peace deal has been called off?

“As another round of negotiations to review a North American free-trade deal wraps up in Washington this week, lawmakers are growing more vocal in defense of the deal, and anxious about its future,” the New York Times reports.

“President Trump has said he’s not sure whether he will renew the six-year-old United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. While many view the president’s threats as a negotiating tactic, they are still causing concern among members of Congress whose districts depend on the agreement.”