Aug 13, 2026 · 17 min
Three-way pact could widen Iran war
PDB Afternoon Bulletin | August 13th, 2026: The Alliance That Could Turn the Iran War Into World War III & U.S. Considers Joint Strikes In Colombia
The episode connects a new Turkey-Saudi Arabia-Pakistan military partnership to the risk that the Iran war could expand beyond the region, while U.S. action in Colombia opens another front.
- 1Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan are developing a NATO-style military partnership with implications for the Iran war.
- 2The episode warns that overlapping alliances could turn regional escalation into a broader global conflict.
- 3The Trump administration is considering joint strikes against armed groups in Colombia, extending the U.S. campaign against cartels.
Don't miss
The episode’s standout warning is that the Turkey-Saudi Arabia-Pakistan partnership could connect the Iran war to a wider global conflict.
The brief
The bulletin opens on a developing NATO-style military partnership among Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, and asks what its alignment with the Iran war could mean.
The central warning is that a regional conflict can widen through alliances: the partnership could create a pathway from escalation around Iran to a broader global war.
The episode then shifts to Colombia, where the Trump administration is considering joint strikes against armed groups as part of its campaign against cartels.
Taken together, the stories point to two forms of expansion: a military alignment that could internationalize the Iran war and a U.S. campaign entering a new theater.
Featuring
PDB
Turkey
United StatesBooks & mentions
Listen to the full episode and explore every guest, topic, and moment on PodLume.