Author: Daily Sabah With DPA

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer backed Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone call on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump claimed the Ukrainian president was “a dictator withoutelections.” In the call, the UK prime minister gave Zelensky his support “as Ukraine’s democratically elected leader” and said it was “perfectly reasonable to suspend elections during war time as the UK did during World War Two,” according to a Downing Street spokesperson. The call followed a war of words between Trump and Zelensky, with the US president criticising his Ukrainian counterpart for postponing elections and incorrectly claiming Ukraine started the war with Russia.…

The foreign ministers of the Group of 20 (G20) major economies will meet in Johannesburg in South Africa on Thursday. The Middle East conflict and Russia’s war in Ukraine are at the top of the agenda. However, emerging markets such as South Africa, Brazil and India want to talk primarily about topics such as the restructuring of global institutions, adaptation to climate change and fairer economic development. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has confirmed that Russia will be represented at the two-day meeting, while Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected from China. The United States will be represented by a diplomat…

After a bumpy year in 2024, the world’s largest aircraft manufacturer Airbus wants to deliver more jets this year, as its US rival Boeing continues to struggle with internal crises. Airbus on Thursday announced the target of delivering around 820 passenger jets in 2025, more than 50 more than in the previous year. Last year, the European manufacturer increased its revenues by 6% to €69 billion ($72 billion). However, the adjusted operating profit fell by 8% to €5.4 billion. In addition to deliveries, Airbus is also aiming to improve this key figure this year. The company forecast operating profit before…

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his deputy Alexander Grushko have rejected the use of Western soldiers in Ukraine, which is being discussed in Europe. “Under whatever guise they would appear, it would be a step towards escalation, not de-escalation,” Grushko told the Russian news agency Interfax. He also does not want to see any Europeans at the possible negotiations to resolve the Ukraine conflict. At a press conference following a meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Tuesday, Lavrov also described the presence of NATO peacekeepers as unacceptable. The Kremlin had pointed…

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday met with the US special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg, in Brussels to reiterate the European Union’s support for Kiev. Their meeting came as the top diplomats of the United States and Russia held talks in Riyadh on mending ties and ending the war in Ukraine – without representatives from Kiev or the EU present. Von der Leyen “reiterated that any resolution must respect Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, backed by strong security guarantees,” a commission readout of the meeting said. She also “expressed the EU’s willingness to…

Pope Francis will have to stay in hospital longer according to a new diagnosis released by the Vatican on Monday, after the pontiff fell ill with bronchitis last week. The 88-year-old head of the Catholic Church suffers from a “polymicrobial respiratory infection,” which has required his doctors to change his treatment for a second time since he was hospitalized on Friday, the Vatican said on Monday evening. “His condition is stable,” the Holy See’s press office said, adding that the pontiff had spent the day working and reading. Polymicrobial infections are caused by combinations of viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites…

Pope Francis will have to stay in hospital longer according to a new diagnosis released by the Vatican on Monday, after the pontiff fell ill with bronchitis last week. The 88-year-old head of the Catholic Church suffers from a “polymicrobial respiratory infection,” which has required his doctors to change his treatment for a second time since he was hospitalized on Friday, the Vatican said on Monday evening. “His condition is stable,” the Holy See’s press office said, adding that the pontiff had spent the day working and reading. Polymicrobial infections are caused by combinations of viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites…

Munich has cancelled two main events celebrating Carnival following the car ramming attack last week which killed a mother and her young daughter as well as injuring dozens. The mother, who was killed when a 24-year-old Afghan man drove a car into a crowd of trade union marchers on Thursday, worked for the city administration. “As a city family, in light of the attack and in particular the violent death of our colleague from the city administration and her young daughter, it seems inconceivable to us to celebrate carnival at the Viktualienmarkt without a care in the world,” a city…

British actor and campaigner Adam Pearson, who stars in the dark comedy “A Different Man,” has urged the movie industry to stop seeing disability as a “risk”. Pearson, who stars in the film, which follows an actor with neurofibromatosis who undergoes an experimental procedure to change his face, said the industry can be very risk-averse when exploring disability. “Nowadays, for some reason, disability is seen as a risk. I don’t know where that comes from,” the 40-year-old actor, who has neurofibromatosis, told the PA news agency on the red carpet of the Bafta Film Awards. “Maybe people struggle to separate…

A demonstration for democracy and against right-wing extremism brought 30,000 onto the streets of Berlin in chilly winter weather on Sunday, precisely a week before parliamentary elections, police reported. The organizers of the “Brave. Human. Together” protest held on Bebelplatz in the heart of the German capital, put the number at 38.000. The square and the Unter den Linden promenade were crowded, with many bringing their children to hear performances at the event. Looking ahead to next Sunday’s elections, a demonstrator said: “I see great danger that democracy will be the loser and that parties will gain power that undermine…