The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has announced that Artemis II, the first manned lunar mission by the United States since Apollo 17 in 1972 which was set to launch as soon as February 8, will be delayed until at least early March, after a wet dress rehearsal Monday revealed several problems, including a hydrogen leak while filling up Artemis II’s Space Launch System (SLS). “With more than three years between SLS launches, we fully anticipated encountering challenges,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said in a post Tuesday on X. “That is precisely why we conduct a wet dress rehearsal. These tests are designed to surface issues before flight and set up launch day with the highest probability of success.”

Member of NASA’s Emergency Response Team (ERT) stands guard at night in front of the Artemis II Space Launch System (SLS) on the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida.

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Despite claims earlier today that planned negotiations later this week between Iran and the United States had “collapsed” due to disagreements on the location and topics, both the White House and Iran’s Foreign Ministry have now stated that nuclear talks Friday afternoon will go ahead, expected to take place in the Omani capital of Muscat.

Speaking during an exclusive interview Wednesday with NBC News, President Donald J. Trump stated that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei should be “very worried,” though he makes it clear that negotiations are ongoing between Iran and the United States.

Naval Forces under Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have boarded and seized two vessels in the Persian Gulf accused of transporting upwards of one million liters of alleged “smuggled fuel,” with fifteen foreign crewmembers detained during the operation, according to reports by Iran’s state-run Tasnim News Agency.

The United States and Russia have agreed to reestablish high level military-to-military dialogue between the two countries which was halted in 2021, preceding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Today’s announcement comes amid trilateral peace negotiations Wednesday and Thursday in Abu Dhabi between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by the United States, which included talks between senior Russian and Ukrainian military officials alongside the Commander of U.S. European Command (EUCOM), Gen. Alexus Grynkewich.

President Donald J. Trump mentioned Iran and Venezuela while joking about the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan “Raizin” Caine, during this morning’s 74th Annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington:

“He’s brutal. Just ask Venezuela. Ask Iran. They're negotiating. Now, they don't want to have - they don’t want us to hit them. You know, we have a big fleet going over to Iran. But so Raizin was there at the bottom of the plane. What's your name? Raizin. What's your last name? Caine. I said, so your name is - let's get this straight - your name is Raizin Caine, right?”

President Donald J. Trump: “You can go and sleep. We have quarters prepared for you. I said: ‘No no, I don't have to sleep. I've been on a plane sleeping for twenty… I mean, I sleep on the plane.’ I don't sleep on planes. I don't like sleeping on planes. You know, I like looking out the window watching for missiles and enemies, actually.”

On Thursday at 12:00am, New START, the last and final nuclear arms reduction treaty between Russia and the United States, signed in April 2010 with the formal name Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms, expired with no currents plan for a future agreement, despite interest and almost begging by the Russian Government under President Vladimir Putin.

Under New START, both Russia and the United States were required to limit their number of deployed nuclear warheads to no more than 1,550, while both parties were limited to a maximum of 800 deployed and non-deployed Intercontinental and Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missiles (ICBM/ICBM). In 2021, both countries extended their participation in the New START Treaty until 2026, however, in January 2023 the United States determined that Russia was in violation of the treaty and on February 21, 2023 Russia’s President Vladimir Putin declared that Russia was “suspending” its participation in New START.

President Donald J. Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner negotiated on extending New START, the last nuclear arms reduction treaty between Russia and the United States, with Russian officials on the sidelines of Ukraine peace talks in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday and Thursday, according to Axios.

The U.S. Virtual Embassy for Iran has published an updated travel alert reiterating previous calls for Americans to immediately depart Iran, via both commercial flights and land crossings with Armenia and Türkiye. The alert calls on Americans to “Leave Iran now,” and to have plans that do not rely on help from the United States.

President Donald J. Trump has called for the creation of a new, improved, and modernized nuclear arms treaty between Russia and the United States, instead of an extension of New START, the final nuclear arms reduction treaty between the two countries which expired on Thursday.

F/A-18E Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers assigned to Carrier Air Wing Nine (CVW-9), along with F-35C Lightning lls with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314 (VMFA-314), carry out daytime flight operations onboard the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) in the Arabian Sea, amid ongoing tensions in the region between Iran and the United States.

U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) has announced that on Thursday, February 5, at the direction of Gen. Francis L. Donovan, the Commanding General of SOUTHCOM, forces under Joint Task Force-Southern Spear (JTF-SS) conducted a strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization in the Eastern Pacific. According to intelligence, the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes and engaged in cartel operations, with two narco-terrorists killed during this action, the first strike to be conducted since January 23, 2026.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and other senior officials arriving in Oman earlier tonight ahead of Friday’s talks in Muscat between Iran and the United States.

“It is instructive that the Iranians wanted to change the format and location of the talks, the U.S. initially said take-it-or-leave-it, but now apparently accepted the change of venue,” Michael Ratney, the U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia under President Joe Biden told Politico. “Trump doesn’t seem to want war with Iran - and he may be listening to his friends in the Gulf.” Some Arab officials believe that that is the case, specifically those who have been in recent close contact with the White House.

According to four Arab officials from two countries, the President and top aides have listened to their concerns about a potential attack on Iran leading to counter-attacks on neighboring countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, that could spark a protracted large-scale regional conflict with Iran. Officials have also warned about what they view as likely retaliatory efforts by Iran aimed at choking off oil exports from the region and driving up energy costs enough to cause a global economic crisis, possibly via attempts to block the Strait of Hormuz.

Some of the Gulf officials also warn that a bombing campaign, even one more intense than last June’s strikes by Israel and the United States against military and nuclear facilities in Iran, would likely not be enough to bring about regime change in the Islamic Republic. “This is a lot more complex than Venezuela,” one of the Arab officials said, referring to last month’s operation to capture the President Nicolás Maduro, in favor of his second-in-command who has shown a willingness to work with the Trump Administration.

President Trump’s “massive armada” of warships moving into the Middle East in preparation for a possible attack on Iran are still more than a week away from being in position, according to a person familiar with the plans who spoke to Politico.

According to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), talks between the American and Iranian delegations in Oman are advancing, with it possible that talks will last into the weekend and next week as Iran appears defiant on several issues, particularly a total ban on the enrichment of uranium, instead pushing for the deluding of only its highly-enriched uranium and/or the transfer of it to a friendly nation like Russia.