Author: Daily Sabah With Reuters
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that some European leaders had privately set out new plans on defence spending during a meeting in London, but he declined to give details, saying it was for individual leaders to set them out. Rutte was speaking to reporters outside the meeting on Sunday.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday said he did not accept that the United States under President Donald Trump was an unreliable ally. On Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky clashed with Trump and cut his Washington visit short. Asked during a press conference whether the U.S. was now an unreliable ally, Starmer said: “Nobody wanted to see what happened last Friday, but I do not accept that the U.S. is an unreliable ally. “The U.S. has been a reliable ally to the UK for many, many decades, and continues to be. There are no two countries as closely aligned…
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Friday for Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky to apologize for an earlier clash with President Donald Trump. Zelensky should “apologize for wasting our time for a meeting that was going to end the way it did,” Rubio said on CNN after Oval Office talks devolved into argument and raised voices. Rubio also questioned whether Zelensky — the president of a country that has endured more than three years of war following Russia’s February 2022 invasion — wanted it to end. “You start to perceive that maybe Zelensky doesn’t want a peace deal. He says…
Russia’s Defence Ministry said on Saturday that its forces had taken control of the settlements of Burlatske and Skudne in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, state-run news agency TASS reported.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Saturday that European leaders meeting next week must take decisions on a comprehensive financial package for Ukraine. She also called on Germany to release an additional 3 billion euros ($3.1 billion) in aid for Ukraine.
NATO chief Mark Rutte said on Saturday he told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that he needs to find a way to restore his relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump after Friday’s clash during a White House meeting. “It is important that President Zelensky finds a way to restore his relationship with the American President and with the senior American leadership team,” Rutte told the BBC, commenting on a call he had with Zelensky on Friday. He described the meeting at the White House as “unfortunate”.
Atalanta were held to a 0-0 draw at home by second-from-bottom Venezia in Serie A on Saturday as Gian Piero Gasperini’s side missed a chance to provisionally move level with leaders Inter Milan. Atalanta’s Davide Zappacosta and Juan Cuadrado both hit the woodwork from tight angles before the break. Their team mate Mateo Retegui, the league’s leading scorer, misfired in the second half when he blasted a close chance over in the 50th minute after missing the target with two headers in the first half. Atalanta remained in third on 55 points, one point behind second-placed Napoli and two off…
A blackout struck parts of Honduras on Saturday in a regional power disruption that also affected other Latin American countries, according to the Honduran power company. The blackout affected the capital Tegucigalpa that was left with no electricity, Reuters witnesses reported. “There is a regional power failure affecting several areas of Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua,” Hondura’s national electric power company said on the Telegram messaging app. The company added that it is working to restore the power service.
Ukraine’s air defences destroyed 103 of 154 drones launched by Russia in its latest overnight strike, Kyiv’s air force said on Saturday. The other 51 drones were “locationally lost”, it said, likely as a result of electronic jamming.
French President Emmanuel Macron has said he is ready to start discussions on nuclear deterrence for Europe, hinting France could help to protect other EU countries, given the security threats posed by Russia. European leaders will meet in London on Sunday to discuss a peace plan for Ukraine and they will attend a European Union summit on Thursday. The bloc is grappling with U.S. President Donald Trump’s willingness to embrace Russian diplomacy and the implications of an extraordinary clash between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Trump at the White House on Friday. Macron told Portuguese TV RTP in an interview…