Today's Top 3 News: Trump Threatens to Bomb Iran Desalination Plants If Talks Fail

9 hours ago 20

March 31, 2026 | 05:18 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Tempo English compiled the top 3 news on Tuesday, March 31, 2026. Here are the highlights: Trump Threatens to Bomb Iran Desalination Plants If Talks Fail; Prabowo Witnesses 10 Indonesia-Japan MoU Signing Worth $22.6bn; and US Reopens Embassy in Venezuela After Seizing Nicolas Maduro.

The following is the list of the top 3 news on Tempo English today:

1. Trump Threatens to Bomb Iran Desalination Plants If Talks Fail

US President Donald Trump again threatened to "blow up" various civilian infrastructure in Iran, including all of the country's desalination plants, on Monday. If carried out, this would threaten the water supply for millions of people and constitute a war crime, experts say.

The US president regularly warns Iran about possible US attacks on energy and power facilities, but on Monday, he added water stations to the target list.

"The United States of America is in serious discussions with A NEW, AND MORE REASONABLE, REGIME to end our Military Operations in Iran," Trump wrote in a social media post, as reported by Al Jazeera.

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2. Prabowo Witnesses 10 Indonesia-Japan MoU Signing Worth $22.6bn

Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto witnessed the announcement of 10 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and strategic cooperation agreements between Indonesian and Japanese businesses worth US$22.6 billion (around Rp384.2 trillion) during the Indonesia-Japan Business Forum in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday, March 30, 2026.

Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya, when contacted by Antara on Monday, said representatives of companies from both countries took turns presenting and showcasing the agreed partnerships before President Prabowo during the forum.

The announced cooperation spans a range of sectors, including the development of downstream projects based on clean energy, such as methanol production from carbon emissions, oil and gas exploration and development, geothermal energy development, as well as the strengthening of inclusive financial ecosystems and strategic investment.

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3. US Reopens Embassy in Venezuela After Seizing Nicolas Maduro

The US State Department on Monday said it had formally reopened its embassy in Caracas for the first time since March 2019.

The US shuttered its embassy in Venezuela during President Donald Trump's first term, in the aftermath of former President Nicolas Maduro's disputed election win earlier in 2018.

But since the military operation that seized Maduro and took him to the US on drugs trafficking charges in January, the second Trump administration has reopened diplomatic ties with Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez.

"Today, we are formally resuming operations at the US Embassy in Caracas, marking a new chapter in our diplomatic presence in Venezuela," the State Department wrote.

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Today's Top 3 News: Rupiah Could Weaken to 20,000 per Dollar, Countries Allowed to Pass Through Strait of Hormuz

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