Briefing Room 20.12.2025

Welcome back to the briefing room where this week we're bringing an end of year update that pairs the bizarre and inexplicably horrific tone of the Star Wars holiday special with a series of absolute crimes against humanity on par with 2014's Saving Christmas starring Kurt Cameron.

I'm Simon and unfortunately I've got the usual slate of generally bad news to share with you. This week we'll be discussing upheaval and conquest in the Congo, Latin American power plays by Beijing and the subtle messaging war playing out between Russia and Turkey with Ukraine and the Black Sea stuck in the middle.

As always, thank you for supporting us here at frontstock.co and for one of the final times in 2025. Let's get into it. M23 captures Vira If you ask the respective governments of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and even the United States of America, they tell you that a state of peace in the DRC has finally been restored.