The 2025 Explosive Weapons Monitor reveals a deeply troubling pattern of civilian harm in armed conflict. After three consecutive years of sustained civilian harm on a massive scale, what once would have been viewed as extraordinary increasingly appears routine.

Recent experience suggests that a purely military solution is unlikely to succeed. Nor can long-term stability be achieved simply by outsourcing security to external actors. Should the military government fall, Mali could face a new struggle for power among forces whose objectives are fundamentally incompatible.

Donald Trump has rejected Iran’s latest proposal, while insisting on zero domestic uranium enrichment. On this issue, Iran’s position has remained consistent. Tehran has repeatedly signaled its willingness to provide assurances against weaponization and accept extensive verification measures. But not to renounce domestic enrichment.

Sudan today represents one of the clearest examples of how prolonged violence, foreign interference, arms transfers, and geopolitical competition can converge to produce a catastrophic humanitarian crisis with little meaningful international response.