World

The European Union signalled fresh financial backing for Ukraine, with foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas saying she expects "positive decisions" tomorrow on a €90 billion loan package. "We expect some positive decisions tomorrow on the €90bn loan," she said ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, where ministers are also set to hear a renewed call to suspend trade relations with Israel. "Ukraine really needs this loan and it's also a sign that Russia cannot outlast Ukraine," Ms Kallas said. Her remarks came…

With the clock ticking down on a fragile pause in fighting, Iran said it has yet to dispatch a delegation for fresh peace talks with the United States, even as the temporary ceasefire that halted the Middle East war edged toward expiry. Tehran and Washington have traded blame over alleged violations of the two-week truce, which is due to end by tomorrow, deepening doubts over whether diplomacy can prevent the conflict from flaring again. At the first round of talks in Pakistan earlier this month — the most senior contacts…

Lori Chavez-DeRemer is set to step down as US secretary of labour, the White House said, ending a turbulent tenure overshadowed by scandal and complaints about how young female staff members were treated. Her departure follows weeks of mounting questions over her future and comes on the heels of the exits of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi. Taken together, the departures have underscored the rapid turnover among women in Mr Trump's cabinet in recent weeks. "Labor Secretary…

Rebuilding Gaza will cost an estimated $71bn, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said, underscoring the scale of the destruction as European leaders weigh both aid and pressure on Israel. Speaking in Brussels during a series of meetings focused on the Palestinian issue, Ms Kallas said the estimate had been developed after months of talks with the World Bank and the United Nations. The EU is bringing together countries that have committed to backing a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict, alongside a donor…

Japan warned of a heightened threat of a magnitude 8.0 earthquake or stronger after a powerful offshore jolt struck the country’s north, sending authorities scrambling to issue a tsunami alert. In a statement, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said that "the likelihood of a new, huge earthquake occurring is relatively higher than during normal times". The advisory for the northern region was issued hours after a 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit the area, shaking high-rise buildings in Tokyo, hundreds of kilometres from the…

With a fragile ceasefire nearing its deadline, Washington and Tehran traded fresh warnings of war, casting doubt over whether negotiations that US President Donald Trump said would resume in Pakistan will go ahead at all. The White House said Vice President JD Vance stood ready to return to Islamabad, where Pakistani authorities were preparing for a second round of talks aimed at halting a conflict that has engulfed the Middle East and rattled global markets. Tehran, however, stopped short of confirming its participation.…

Under mounting pressure, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer admitted he made the wrong call in appointing Labour grandee Peter Mandelson as Britain’s envoy to Washington, as he tried to contain a crisis tied to Jeffrey Epstein’s long-time associate. Already deeply unpopular with voters and facing discontent among Labour MPs, Mr Starmer is battling a controversy that has cast a long shadow over his leadership and raised fresh doubts about his judgment. Speaking in parliament as the row intensified, Mr Starmer said: "At the heart…

Slovenia’s post-election deadlock deepened today after Prime Minister Robert Golob said he had been unable to assemble a governing coalition, despite his party’s razor-thin victory in last month’s parliamentary vote. The setback now gives an opening to runner-up Janez Jansa, a supporter of US President Donald Trump, to try to build a coalition in the EU member state of two million people. "We are looking forward to our work in the opposition," the liberal Mr Golob, 59, told reporters after meeting the president, saying he…

A burst of domestic violence in Shreveport, Louisiana, turned catastrophic when a man killed eight children — seven of them his own — across a rampage that unfolded at three locations, police said. The early-morning attack at a home in the city marked the deadliest mass shooting in the United States in more than two years, according to figures compiled by the Gun Violence Archive. Two women were also shot and critically wounded, among them the mother of several of the children who were killed. Investigators said initial…

Ukraine struck Russia’s Tuapse oil refinery for the second time in less than a week, according to Robert Brovdi, commander of Kyiv’s drone forces, who announced the attack in a social media post. Russian officials said a Ukrainian drone assault on the Black Sea port city of Tuapse triggered a fire and killed at least one person, coming only hours after authorities had put out a blaze caused by a similar strike on 16 April. Rosneft’s Tuapse refinery, which is geared toward exports, can process about 240,000 barrels of crude a…