The risk of nuclear confrontation was said to have diminished in the post-Cold War period. But today, the logic of nuclear deterrence seems to be making a comeback. This is why Al Majalla chose the topic for last week’s cover story, where our writers Samer Elias, Khattar Abu Diab, and Kaswar Klara give their unique perspectives on the phenomenon.

Switching gears, Con Coughlin asks the question: Has Trump’s patience with Netanyahu worn out? “The Israeli leader's intransigence, particularly regarding the war on Iran, is proving deeply problematic for the White House, so much so that Trump swore at him on a recent phone call," he writes. Meanwhile, in his piece, The Victory That Wasn't: Netanyahu and the Iran War, Michael Horowitz asserts that “With Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas still standing, it appears that Netanyahu oversold the possibility of total victory,” adding that “His damaged credibility leaves him with far less wiggle room in his next move.”

In other Middle East news, Khairuldeen Al Makhzoomi gives his take on prominent Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr’s decision to once again dismantle his armed militia, while Ibrahim Hamidi explains why Idlib is not the ‘New Qardaha’ as some in Syria allege. For his part,  Amr Emam asserts that Türkiye’s proposed maritime bill risks reigniting old rivalries.

Zooming eastward to Asia, Shirley Ze Yu explains How Pakistan became China’s indispensable intermediary, while Stefanie Butendieck Hijerra takes readers back west in her piece titled Cuba, lawfare, and Trump’s Venezuela temptation. In it, she explains the similarities and differences between the US president’s approaches to the two Latin American countries.

Meanwhile, Marco Mossad looks at SpaceX’s upcoming IPO as it braces for a potentially record-breaking offering in which investors are being asked to buy into more than just a company. And for his part, Abdel-Rahman Ayas explains Why people flock to the dollar when local currencies collapse, asserting that, at the end of the day, it all boils down to trust.

And our Culture section continues to shine with Leila Amr interviewing Yemeni-Scottish Oscar-nominated director Sara Ishaq on her film The Station. Selected for Critics’ Week at the Cannes Film Festival, it dives into gripping human stories in which women hold the line in war-torn Yemen. And last but not least, Mansour Al-Souaim reviews Haha... Cough Cough... I Miraculously Survived, Sudanese novelist Mustafa Khalid’s latest award-winning novel, where six narrators give different yet intersecting accounts of Sudan's nightmarish conflict.