Iran Reopens Strait of Hormuz Amid Fragile Ceasefire and Ongoing Nuclear Tensions 
China Navigates Diplomatic Tightrope Between Iran Peace Efforts and Trump Summit 
Trump's Iran Claims Spark Market Confusion Over Strait of Hormuz 
Australia Extends Fuel Sulphur Relaxation Amid Iran War Supply Disruptions 
Trump Nominates Dr. Erica Schwartz as New CDC Director 
Iran Closes Strait of Hormuz Again After Brief Reopening, Rattling Global Energy Markets 
France and Britain Lead 40-Nation Talks to Reopen Strait of Hormuz 
Brazil, Spain, and Mexico Unite to Support Cuba Amid U.S. Blockade 
U.S. and Philippines to Build 4,000-Acre Tech Hub Under Pax Silica Initiative 
UNICEF Condemns Killing of Aid Workers Delivering Water in Gaza 
Myanmar Grants Amnesty to Over 4,000 Prisoners Under New President Min Aung Hlaing 
House Republicans Near Deal on FISA Extension with Limited Reforms 
U.S. Weapons Delays to Europe Amid Ongoing Iran Conflict 
South Korea Denies U.S. Intelligence Restrictions Over North Korean Nuclear Site Disclosure 
IMF and World Bank Resume Ties with Venezuela, Opening Door to Billions in Funding 
ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons to Exit Federal Government at End of May 
The United States Senate Commerce Committee said this week that it will be voting on President Joe Biden's nominee to lead the Federal Aviation Administration. The committee is set to vote on the nominee as the FAA is facing concerns after several incidents.
The Democrat-led Senate committee is set to vote on Biden's nominee to lead the FAA, Denver International Airport Chief Executive Officer Phil Washington, setting the date of the vote to March 22. This comes as Republicans have criticized Washington, questioning his aviation experience on whether he is fit for the post. The Transportation Department defended Washington, saying that he is qualified for the role.
This follows the Republican-controlled House of Representatives' move in January to pass legislation that would establish an FAA task force to improve a key pilot messaging database. The Senate committee will also be voting on the measure next week. The passage of the measure follows an incident that also took place in January, where the FAA halted all departing passenger airline flights for almost two hours due to an outage in pilot messaging.
The FAA has since come under scrutiny for a series of close-call incidents and is facing questions regarding its oversight of Boeing after two fatal 737 MAX crashes.
The Senate committee's ranking Republican member, Ted Cruz, and other congressional Republicans said Washington must have a waiver from the rules that require civilian leadership to head the FAA and that Washington was not able to answer basic questions about the agency. Washington retired from the US army in July 2000.
The Senate Commerce committee chair, Maria Cantwell, said Washington is the right candidate to change the culture n the FAA and ensure accountability.
On Wednesday, the Senate confirmed Biden's nominee, former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, as the US ambassador to India after being nominated in 2021, with the delay due to allegations over Garcetti's handling of workplace harassment complaints. Garcetti was confirmed on a vote of 52-42, with seven Republicans voting to confirm and three Democrats opposed.
"The United States-India relationship is extremely important and it's a very good thing we now have an ambassador," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer following Garcetti's confirmation.
