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WASHINGTON — Former special counsel Jack Smith on Wednesday defended his now-abandoned prosecutions of President Donald Trump, telling the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee that his team developed proof “beyond a reasonable doubt” that Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the 2020 election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. “Rather than accept his defeat in the 2020 presidential election, President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results and prevent the lawful transfer of power,” Smith said in…

LONDON — The British government has approved plans for a new Chinese embassy in London, concluding that security risks can be managed even as lawmakers, campaigners and some former officials warn the site could become a hub for intelligence-gathering and transnational repression. Communities Secretary Steve Reed approved the proposal for a large embassy complex at Royal Mint Court, adjacent to the Tower of London. Security Minister Dan Jarvis told Parliament he was “assured that the UK national security is protected” and…

COPENHAGEN — President Donald Trump said he may impose trade tariffs on countries that do not support his push to acquire Greenland, escalating a dispute as a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation arrived in Denmark to signal backing for Copenhagen and the island’s self-rule. “I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security,” Trump told reporters at the White House. The comments landed as senators and representatives from both parties began a two-day…

U.S. signals no retreat on Trump’s Greenland push as Europe, Canada rally behind Denmark U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he will meet Danish leaders next week and signaled no retreat from President Donald Trump’s aim to take control of Greenland, even as alarmed allies scramble to coordinate a response and lawmakers in Washington push back. A weekend U.S. military operation that seized the leader of Venezuela rekindled concerns about intentions toward Greenland, and U.S. officials have done little to allay fears.…

Ireland’s prime minister, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, said Monday that Greenland “is part of Denmark” and that the European Union stands “rock-solid” behind Copenhagen after U.S. President Donald Trump renewed talk of acquiring the Arctic territory and the White House said all options — including military action — remain on the table. Speaking during an official visit to Shanghai, Martin urged “common sense,” adding that territorial integrity is a matter for the Kingdom of Denmark and the people of Greenland. He called a U.S.…

Myanmar’s ruling junta said it will free more than 6,000 prisoners in an Independence Day amnesty, a rare concession amid a sweeping post-coup crackdown and a tightly managed election widely dismissed by critics as a sham. The National Defence and Security Council said junta chief Min Aung Hlaing pardoned 6,134 imprisoned Myanmar nationals. In a separate statement, authorities said 52 foreign prisoners would also be released and deported. The military has arrested thousands of protesters, activists and political figures…

Somalia’s 2026/2027 elections: a state-saving blueprint, not a power struggle Somalia is approaching a constitutional cliff with the 2026/2027 electoral cycle. There is no agreed framework, no final roadmap and little time before current mandates reach their limits. The risk is not only delay, but paralysis: a vacuum that invites fragmentation, corrodes institutions and erodes public trust. The imperative now is to treat the coming vote as a state-saving exercise — designed to preserve legitimacy, not simply to deliver…

Putin briefed on Trump envoys’ Ukraine peace proposals as Zelensky outlines concessions Russia is evaluating a U.S.-led draft framework to end the war in Ukraine after President Vladimir Putin was briefed on contacts between Kremlin representatives and envoys for U.S. President Donald Trump, the Kremlin said. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Kirill Dmitriev, a Kremlin envoy, updated Putin following a trip to Miami for talks with Trump’s team. Peskov declined to detail the proposals or Russia’s response,…

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said a new 20-point plan aimed at ending Russia’s invasion would freeze the current front line and open the way to possible troop withdrawals and demilitarized zones, while dropping a requirement that Kyiv legally renounce its NATO aspirations. Zelensky said the latest draft, agreed by U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators, is now being reviewed by Russia. He acknowledged some provisions are unpalatable to him and warned that the Kremlin is unlikely to abandon its hardline territorial demands.…

Sudan’s prime minister urges U.N. Security Council to back monitored cease-fire plan NEW YORK — Sudan’s prime minister called on the U.N. Security Council to stand “on the right side of history” by endorsing a peace plan for his war-torn country that would impose a nationwide cease-fire and bring international monitoring to the conflict. Since April 2023, Sudan’s army has been locked in a brutal fight with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, which controls the west and parts of the south. The war has killed tens of…