The world’s most powerful passports for 2026.

When it comes to travelling from country to country without restrictions and enjoying shorter lines at border control, there’s an elite tier of passports with more clout than others.

The top three passports, says the latest report by the Henley Passport Index, are Asian countries: Singapore at No. 1 and Japan and South Korea tied at No. 2.

Singaporeans enjoy visa-free access to 192 of the 227 countries and territories tracked by the index, which was created by the London-based global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners, and uses exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association.

Japan and South Korea are just behind with visa-free access to 188 destinations.

Henley counts multiple countries with the same score as a single spot in its standings, so five European countries share the No. 3 slot: Denmark, Luxembourg, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. All have visa-free access to 186 countries and territories.

It’s an all-European placement at No. 4 also, with the following countries all having a score of 185: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands and Norway.

Fifth place, with a score of 184, is held by Hungary, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and the United Arab Emirates.
UAE climbs the ranks

The UAE is the country with the strongest performance in the 20-year history of the Henley Passport Index, adding 149 visa-free destinations since 2006 and climbing 57 places up the rankings. This, says the report, has been driven by the UAE’s “sustained diplomatic engagement and visa liberalization.”

At No. 6 are Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Malta, New Zealand and Poland. Australia has held onto its position at No. 7 in this quarterly update, alongside Latvia, Liechtenstein and the United Kingdom.

The U.K. is the country with the steepest year-on-year losses on the index, now having visa-free access to 182 destinations, eight fewer than it had 12 months ago.

Canada, Iceland and Lithuania are at No. 8, with visa-free access to 181 destinations, while Malaysia is at No. 9, with a score of 180.

The United States is back in the No. 10 spot, with a score of 179, after briefly dropping out for the first time in late 2025. However, this is not the recovery it might sound like. As multiple countries can occupy a single spot in the standings, there are actually 37 countries that outrank the US on the list, one more than there were in late 2025.

The U.S. is just behind the UK when it comes to year-on-year decline, having lost visa-free access to seven destinations in the past 12 months.

It’s also endured the third-largest ranking decline over the past two decades — after Venezuela and Vanuatu — falling six places from fourth to 10th.
Stability and credibility

“Passport power ultimately reflects political stability, diplomatic credibility, and the ability to shape international rules,” Misha Glenny, journalist and rector of the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna, says in Henley & Partners’ report.

“As transatlantic relations strain and domestic politics grow more volatile, the erosion of mobility rights for countries like the U.S. and U.K. is less a technical anomaly than a signal of deeper geopolitical recalibration.”

At the opposite end of the index, at No. 101, Afghanistan remains locked in bottom place, with visa-free access to just 24 destinations. Syria is at No. 100 (with 26 destinations) and Iraq is at No. 99 (with 29 destinations).

That’s a yawning mobility gap of 168 destinations between the top- and bottom-ranked passports.

“Over the past 20 years, global mobility has expanded significantly, but the benefits have been distributed unevenly,” says Christian H. Kaelin, chairman at Henley & Partners and creator of the Henley Passport Index.

“Today, passport privilege plays a decisive role in shaping opportunity, security and economic participation, with rising average access masking a reality in which mobility advantages are increasingly concentrated among the world’s most economically powerful and politically stable nations.”

Dual citizenship

Henley & Partners is one of a number of companies that assists high-net-worth individuals in attaining dual citizenship around the globe. This month it told CNN that in 2025 it had assisted clients of 91 nationalities, but Americans were top of the list, accounting for 30 per cent of the firm’s business.

However, several European countries have recently tightened requirements for citizenship by descent and also for “golden passport” programs, which grant citizenship in exchange for financial and/or property investment. In the U.S., Ohio’s Republican senator Bernie Moreno has proposed an “Exclusive Citizenship Act” that would ban Americans from holding any other citizenship.

The Henley list is one of several indexes created by financial firms to rank global passports according to the access they provide to their citizens.

Arton Capital’s Passport Index takes into consideration the passports of 193 United Nations member countries and six territories — Taiwan, Macao, Hong Kong, Kosovo, the Palestinian territories and the Vatican. Territories annexed to other countries are excluded.

It’s also updated in real-time throughout the year and its data is gathered by close monitoring of individual governments’ portals.

Arton’s Global Passport Power Rank 2026 puts the United Arab Emirates in the top spot, with a visa-free/visa-on-arrival score of 179. Second place is held by Singapore and Spain, each with a score of 175.
The world’s most powerful passports for 2026

Singapore (192 destinations)
Japan, South Korea (188)
Denmark, Luxembourg, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland (186)
Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway (185)
Hungary, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, United Arab Emirates (184)
Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Malta, New Zealand, Poland (183)
Australia, Latvia, Liechtenstein, United Kingdom (182)
Canada, Iceland, Lithuania (181)
Malaysia (180)
United States (179)

By Maureen O’Hare, CNN

#Trump says U.S. is taking control of Venezuela’s oil reserves. Here’s what it means.


President Donald Trump on Saturday said the U.S. would take control of Venezuela’s massive oil reserves and recruit American companies to invest billions of dollars to refurbish the country’s gutted oil industry.

Venezuela is sitting on a massive 303 billion barrels worth of crude — about a fifth of the world’s global reserves, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). That trove of crude will play a central role in the country’s future.

Oil futures don’t trade on the weekend, so the near-term impact on the price of oil is a bit of a guessing game, but Trump said the U.S. would operate the Venezuelan government for the time being.

“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies — the biggest anywhere in the world — go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure,” Trump said at a news conference at Mar-a-Lago.

A U.S.-led revamp could eventually make Venezuela a much bigger supplier of oil and could create opportunities for Western oil companies and could serve as a new source of production. It could also keep broader prices in check, although lower prices might disincentivize some U.S. companies from producing oil.

Even if international access were fully restored tomorrow, it could take years and incredible expense to bring Venezuelan oil production fully back online. Venezuelan state-owned oil and natural gas company PDVSA says its pipelines haven’t been updated in 50 years, and the cost to update the infrastructure to return to peak production levels would cost $58 billion.

“For oil, this has the potential for a historic event,” said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at the Price Futures Group. “The Maduro regime and (former Venezuelan President) Hugo Chavez basically ransacked the Venezuelan oil industry.”
Control of Venezuela’s oil trove

Venezuela is home to the largest proven oil reserve on Earth, but its potential far outweighs its actual output: Venezuela produces only about 1 million barrels of oil per day — about 0.8% of global crude production.

That’s less than half of what it produced before Maduro took control of the country in 2013 and less than a third of the 3.5 million barrels it was pumping before the Socialist regime took over.

International sanctions on the Venezuelan government and a deep economic crisis contributed to the decline of the country’s oil industry — but so did a lack of investment and maintenance, according to the EIA. Venezuela’s energy infrastructure is deteriorating, and its capacity to produce oil has been greatly diminished over the years.

Venezuela simply doesn’t produce enough oil to make that big a difference.

Oil prices have been in check this year because of oversupply fears. OPEC has ramped up production, but demand has fallen off a bit as the global economy continues to struggle with inflation and affordability after the post-pandemic price shock.

U.S. oil briefly rose above $60 a barrel when the Trump administration began seizing oil from Venezuelan vessels, but it has since fallen to $57 a barrel again. So the market’s reaction — if investors believe the strike is bad news for oil supply — will almost certainly be muted.

“Psychologically it might give it a bit of a boost, but Venezuela has oil that can be easily replaced by a combination of global producers,” Flynn said.
Venezuela’s oil potential

The kind of oil Venezuela is sitting on — heavy, sour crude — requires special equipment and a high level of technical prowess to produce. International oil companies have the capability to extract and refine it, but they’ve been restricted from doing business in the country.

The United States, the world’s largest oil producer, has light, sweet crude, which is good for making gasoline but not much else. Heavy, sour crude like the oil from Venezuela is crucial for certain products made in the refining process, including diesel, asphalt and fuels for factories and other heavy equipment. Diesel is in tight supply around the world — in large part because of sanctions on Venezuelan oil.

Unlocking Venezuelan oil could be particularly beneficial to the United States: Venezuela is nearby and its oil is relatively cheap — a result of its sticky, sludgy texture that requires significant refining. Most U.S. refineries were constructed to process Venezuela’s heavy oil, and they’re significantly more efficient when they’re using Venezuelan oil compared to American oil, according to Flynn.

“If indeed this continues to go smoothly — and it looks like a masterful operation so far — and U.S. companies are allowed to go back and rebuild the Venezuelan oil industry, it could be a game-changer for the global oil market,” Flynn said.

Trump called Venezuela’s oil business “a total bust.”

“They were pumping almost nothing by comparison to what they could have been pumping and what could have taken place,” Trump said.

“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies — the biggest anywhere in the world — go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country,” he added.
What’s next for oil prices

It is unclear how energy prices will be impacted by the U.S. intervention in Venezuela.

Bob McNally, president of Washington, DC-based consulting firm Rapidan Energy Group, told CNN that he thinks the impact on prices would be “modest,” but he doesn’t expect much of an impact “unless we see signs of widespread social unrest and things look messy. More likely if this looks ‘stable.’”

“The prospect is then how quickly could a Venezuela that is pro-U.S. increase its production. That will be the parlor game. Perception may race ahead of reality. People will assume Venezuela can add oil faster than they actually can,” he said.

“Venezuela can be a huge deal but not for 5 to 10 years,” McNally said.

Oil markets open on Sunday night. Prices will depend on whether Trump “can manifest the turnaround” of Venezuela’s oil sector, according to Helima Croft, head of global commodity strategy at RBC Capital Markets.

“It all hinges on whether Venezuela defies the recent history of U.S.-led regime change efforts,” Croft told CNN. “President Trump signaled the U.S. is back in ‘nation-building mode,’ and that U.S. companies will make the requisite investments to ensure the revival of the oil sector. I think we need far more details before we declare ‘Mission Accomplished.’”

By David Goldman, CNN

CNN’s Matt Egan contributed to this report.

A knife attack outside Suriname’s capital Paramaribo kills at least 9 people, police say.

PARAMARIBO, Suriname — A knife attack outside Suriname’s capital of Paramaribo killed at least nine people, including children, police said Sunday.

Officials said the victims, which included five minors, were the children and neighbors of the #attacker.

In a statement issued Sunday, Suriname’s Police Corps said the suspect, a male, attempted to attack police officers who arrived on the scene and was injured during his arrest. He is now recovering in a hospital.

#URGENT #M23 Rebels backed by #Rwanada Still in Uvira Despite Pledge to Withdraw Local told #Reuters , M23’s “retreat” was a false promise, say locals

Two suspected shooters opened fire at Bondi Beach in Australia on Sunday, killing nine people and wounding 11 others, who were taken to the hospital.

There will be no lasting peace in the #DRC until genuine democracy is restored in Rwanda. President #PaulKagame continues to claim electoral victories approaching 99 percent. Results that defy credibility and underscore the absence of meaningful democratic choice.

To Rwanda’s opposition leaders and pro-democracy activists: we seek to dialogue with you and support you. Freedom must return to Rwanda, and it begins with replacing Kagame’s dictatorship with a truly democratic government—of the people, by the people, and for the people.

#Burkina Faso plans to restore death penalty for treason, terrorism, espionage.

“The adoption of this bill is part of reforms ... to have a justice that responds to the deep aspirations of our people,” Minister of Justice Edasso Rodrigue Bayala said in a Facebook post late Thursday.

The death penalty was abolished in the country in 2018.

The bill has to be adopted by parliament and reviewed by the courts before becoming law.

Since taking power in a 2022 coup, the West African country’s military leaders have launched sweeping reforms, including postponing elections that were expected to restore civilian rule and dissolving the country’s independent electoral commission.

Burkina Faso has increasingly silenced critical media outlets in recent years. It suspended the BBC and Voice of America radio stations for their coverage of a mass killing of civilians carried out by the country’s armed forces as well as arresting three prominent journalists earlier this year.

The country is one of several West African nations where the military has taken over in recent years, capitalizing on widespread discontent with previous democratically elected governments over security issues. The military government has been accused of human rights abuses and the detention of journalists critical of the government.

The landlocked nation of 23 million people is among countries struggling with a security crisis in the arid Sahel region south of the Sahara in recent years. It has been shaken by violence from extremist groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.

Wilson Mcmakin, The Associated Press

#Egyptians vote in second phase of parliamentary elections.

The two-stage vote comes as the most populous Arab country grapples with dire economy despite government efforts to push through sweeping reforms and austerity measures.

International financial institutions have welcomed the reforms, which included floating the currency and slashing key subsidies, but they also resulted in higher prices of electricity, drinking water and essential goods, squeezing the poor and middle class.

The first stage of voting took place Nov. 10-11 in 14 provinces, including Giza and the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria. There were widespread reports of violations, prompting President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to order a review of the incidents. The National Elections Authority scheduled a rerun in 19 constituencies across seven provinces for Dec. 3-4.

Sherif Toubar, a Cairo resident, said the decision to annul some results showed that “the people’s votes are valuable and the representative who will enter the parliament must be the one the people chose.”

A total of 568 seats in the lower chamber are up for grabs, with over 2,500 candidates running as independents for half the seats. The other half is reserved for political parties, while el-Sissi will name 28 members, bringing the total number to 596.

More than 34 million people are eligible to vote in the second phase. The new parliament will be sworn in before the current chamber’s term expires in January.

Power in Egypt is concentrated with the president, who has ruled with an unquestioned grip for the past 11 years.

The Associated Press

What to expect from trade talks between Mexico and #Canada next week.

Three key issues will likely dominate trade talks between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in Mexico next Thursday, according to one expert.

International trade lawyer John Boscar told CTV News in an interview Saturday that the two leaders will likely compare notes on what each country is going through with the Trump administration.

“Both Mexico and Canada have taken different approaches to dealing with the U.S. tariffs,” he said. “Canada is the only country to have retaliated against the U.S., other than China. Mexico chose not to retaliate against the U.S.”

Canada recently repealed many of those retaliatory duties, though some are still in place, including those regarding aluminum, steel and automotive products, amongst other products.

Mexico has indicated that it’s going to be increasing duties on automotive products from other countries in the coming weeks, particularly China and other Asian countries.

Meanwhile, Canada is considering removing its 100 per cent duties on electric vehicles from China.

Boscar said the second thing to expect from the trade talks are ways of taking a united front on certain issues around the renegotiation of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) in 2026.

CUSMA is intended to reinforce Canada’s economic ties with the United States and Mexico. The U.S. will start its review of the agreement and will report to Congress in January.

Boscar said he expects there will be some issues that Canada and the U.S. can align on, including Trump’s attempt to strengthen the rules of origin, particularly on automotive goods.

The last item he says will likely dominate talks between Carney and Sheinbaum is improving trade investments between their two countries.

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), CUSMA’s predecessor, was signed in 1994, and established a structure to allow free trade between Canada and Mexico, improving investments. However, Boscar thinks there’s still a lot of room for more improvement in that area and that both Canada and Mexico are focused on the issues now because they’re obligated to.

Before this year, it was very easy for Canadian exporters and investors to deal with the U.S., due to its proximity, shared language and the high percentage of goods being traded across the border.

“I do think Canadian companies have not really been forced to look at other markets until the Trump tariff threat of this year,” he said. “And now, they’re really being forced to look at that.”

Boscar added that if the Canadian and Mexican governments recognize that, they can think of ways to facilitate trade investments in both directions.

You can watch the full interview with international trade lawyer John Boscar in the video player at the top of this article.

#news: Charlie Kirk’s social media accounts have gained millions of followers since his murder.


Charlie Kirk’s widow and many of his fans have predicted that Wednesday’s assassination will make his voice even more powerful posthumously.

Social media statistics indicate that they’re right.

Kirk’s accounts across the internet have gained millions of followers in the three days since his death, according to data compiled by CNN.

Videos of Kirk’s political arguments, promoting President Trump and conservative priorities, have also seen a surge in viewership, with many clips being traded back and forth by fans.

As Kirk’s widow Erika said Friday evening, “My husband’s voice will remain, and it will ring out louder and more clearly than ever, and his wisdom will endure.” So will his organization Turning Point USA’s overall digital presence, as the uptick in follower interest signals.

Kirk’s main Instagram account has added 3.5 million followers since the assassination; his podcast’s TikTok account has gained more than 1.5 million followers; and his main Facebook page has added more than 2.3 million followers.

On YouTube, Kirk’s primary channel now has 4.5 million subscribers, up from 3.8 million before he was killed.

The YouTube audience for his organization Turning Point USA has also grown, with 3.6 million subscribers now, up from 3.3 million.

Kirk’s social media accounts, which were operated with the help of his staff, have been mostly dormant since the assassination. Data from SocialBlade, an analytics service, shows a big spike in video views and likes of the preexisting content since Wednesday.

Erika’s address was livestreamed on his main YouTube channel, and it has been viewed upwards of 3.1 million times on YouTube since.

“Charlie, I promise I will never let your legacy die, baby,” she said. “I promise I’ll make Turning Point USA the biggest thing that this nation has ever seen.”

She also said his planned tour of college campuses this semester will still take place.

YouTube videos of Kirk’s past interactions on campuses have drawn millions of new viewers in recent days.

The most recent video posted by his account, “Charlie Kirk Hands Out Huge L’s at University of California San Diego,” now has 4 million views, up from 300,000 before the shooting.

Another campus debate video, “Charlie Kirk Crushes Woke Lies at Michigan State,” has now topped 1 million views, up from 250,000.

The vast majority of the most-liked comments below the video are mournful — not full of rage or fomenting calls for revenge, like some far-right influencers have expressed in other forums.

Kirk’s website has also introduced a new product to its online store: A T-shirt that says “I AM #CHARLIE #KIRK.”

Those four words have become a rallying cry among Kirk fans on social media platforms since his death.