Rush of diplomatic calls follow Trump’s offer to join potential Russia-Ukraine talks

Ukraine’s military said on Monday that fighting along parts of the frontline in the country’s east was at the same intensity it would be if there were no ceasefire. (AFP)

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Updated 13 May 2025

Reuters

May 13, 2025 06:00

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Rush of diplomatic calls follow Trump’s offer to join potential Russia-Ukraine talks

US, European, Russia key diplomats hold separate calls
Trump offers to join potential Russia-Ukraine talks on Thursday

Updated 13 May 2025

Reuters

May 13, 2025 06:00

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US and European diplomats went on a flurry of calls in the hours after US President Donald Trump offered on Monday to join prospective Ukraine-Russia talks later this week, trying to find a path that would bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
Trump’s surprise offer to join the talks on Thursday in Istanbul came a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in a fresh twist to the stop-start peace talks process, said he would travel to Turkiye and wait to meet President Vladimir Putin there.
After Trump’s announcement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the “way forward for a ceasefire” in Ukraine with European counterparts, including the foreign ministers of Britain and France, and the EU’s foreign policy chief, the State Department said on Monday.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and his German and Polish counterparts were also on the call, according to the readout.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks late on Monday with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan to discuss Moscow’s direct talks with Kyiv — a proposal that came from Putin at the weekend, the Russian foreign ministry said.
It remained unclear who would travel from Moscow to Istanbul to take part in the direct talks, which would be the first between the two sides since the early days of the war that Russia launched with its invasion on Ukraine in February 2022.
There has been no response from the Kremlin to Zelensky’s offer to meet Putin in Istanbul and Moscow was yet to comment on Trump’s offer to join the talks.
If Zelensky and Putin, who make no secret of their contempt for each other, were to meet on Thursday it would be their first face-to-face meeting since December 2019.
“Don’t underestimate Thursday in Turkiye,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday.
Trump’s current schedule has him visiting Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar this week.
Ukraine and its European allies have been seeking to put pressure on Moscow to accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire from Monday, with the leaders of four major European powers traveling to Kyiv on Saturday to show unity with Zelensky.
Earlier on Monday, the German government said Europe would start preparing new sanctions against Russia unless the Kremlin by the end of the day started abiding by the ceasefire.
Ukraine’s military said on Monday that fighting along parts of the frontline in the country’s east was at the same intensity it would be if there were no ceasefire.
Putin called the Western European and Ukrainian demands for a ceasefire “ultimatums” that the Kremlin said on Monday are for Russia an unacceptable language.
Konstantin Kosachev, chairman of the international affairs committee of the Federation Council, the upper house of Russia’s parliament, told the Izvestia media outlet in remarks published on Tuesday that the talks between Moscow and Kyiv can move further than they did in the 2022.
“If the Ukrainian delegation shows up at these talks with a mandate to abandon any ultimatums and look for common ground, I am sure that we could move forward even further than we did,” Izvestia cited Kosachev as saying.

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India regulator says no ‘major safety concerns’ on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet

Updated 12 sec ago

Reuters

June 18, 2025 04:52

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India regulator says no ‘major safety concerns’ on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet

24 of Air India’s 33 Boeing 787 aircraft had completed an ‘enhanced safety inspection’ it had ordered the airline to carry out
The regulator raised concerns about recent maintenance-related issues reported by the airline

Updated 12 sec ago

Reuters

June 18, 2025 04:52

India’s aviation safety watchdog said on Tuesday surveillance conducted on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet did not reveal any major safety concerns, days after one of its jets crashed, killing at least 271 people.
“The aircraft and associated maintenance systems were found to be compliant with existing safety standards,” the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said in a statement. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London with 242 people on board crashed seconds after take-off in Ahmedabad on Thursday hitting nearby buildings. All but one passenger on board was killed, along with about 30 people on the ground.
The DGCA also said 24 of Air India’s 33 Boeing 787 aircraft had completed an “enhanced safety inspection” it had ordered the airline to carry out.
The regulator, in a meeting with senior officials of Air India, raised concerns about recent maintenance-related issues reported by the airline.
It advised the carrier to “strictly adhere to regulations,” strengthen coordination across its businesses and ensure availability of adequate spares to mitigate passenger delays, it added.
The DGCA had met senior officials of Air India and Air India Express to review their operations amid increasing flight volumes.

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G7 leaders try to salvage their summit after Trump’s early exit effectively makes it the ‘G6’

Updated 18 June 2025

AP

June 18, 2025 01:54

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G7 leaders try to salvage their summit after Trump’s early exit effectively makes it the ‘G6’

Trump again offered his often-repeated claims on Monday that there would have been no war if G7 members hadn’t expelled Putin from the organization in 2014 for annexing Crimea
Before leaving, Trump joined the other leaders in issuing a statement saying Iran “can never have a nuclear weapon” and calling for a “de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza”

Updated 18 June 2025

AP

June 18, 2025 01:54

KANANASKIS, Alberta: Six of the Group of Seven leaders were wrapping up their summit on Tuesday, attempting to prove that the wealthy nations’ club still has the clout to shape world events despite the early departure of US President Donald Trump.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and his counterparts from the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Japan were joined by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO chief Mark Rutte and discussed Russia’s relentless war on its neighbor at what has essentially become just the G6.
Zelensky said of overnight Russian attacks that killed 15 people and injured 150-plus in his country “our families had a very difficult night, one of the biggest attacks from the very beginning of this war.”
“We need support from allies and I’m here,” Zelensky said. He added, “We are ready for the peace negotiations, unconditional ceasefire. I think it’s very important. But for this, we need pressure.”
Carney said the attack “underscores the importance of standing in total solidarity with Ukraine, with the Ukrainian people” and pledged $2 billion in new aid that would fund drones and other military items.
Numerous meetings continued, and the remaining leaders agreed to jointly attempt to combat what they called non-market policies that could jeopardize global access to critical minerals.
They similarly pledged to limit the potential downsides of artificial intelligence on jobs and the environment while still embracing the potential of the “technological revolution.”
But, notably, the leaders did not release any joint statements on Russia’s war in Ukraine. Zelensky had been set to meet with Trump while world leaders were gathering in the Canadian Rocky Mountain resort of Kananaskis, but that was scrapped.
The US previously signed an agreement granting American access to Ukraine’s vast mineral resources amid Russia’s ongoing war in Zelensky’s country.
The summit opened with the specific goal of helping to defuse a series of pressure points, only to be disrupted by a showdown over Iran’s nuclear program that could escalate. Israel launched an aerial bombardment campaign against Iran and Iran has hit back with missiles and drones.
Trump departed before the final day began. As conflict between Israel and Iran intensified, he declared that Tehran should be evacuated “immediately” and has demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender.”
Before leaving, Trump joined the other leaders in issuing a statement saying Iran “can never have a nuclear weapon” and calling for a “de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza.” Getting unanimity — even on a short and broadly worded statement — was a modest measure of success for the group.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that he sat next to Trump at Monday night’s summit dinner. “I’ve no doubt, in my mind, the level of agreement there was in relation to the words that were then issued immediately after that,” he said.
Still, Trump’s departure only heightened the drama of a world on the verge of several firestorms — and of a summit now without its most-watched world leader.
“We did everything I had to do at the G7,” Trump said while flying back to Washington.
Things were getting awkward even before he left.
After the famous photo from the G7 in 2018 featured Trump and then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel displaying less-than-friendly body language, this year’s edition included a dramatic eye-roll by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as French President Emmanuel Macron whispered something in her ear during a Monday roundtable.
That, and concerns about the Russia-Ukraine war, little progress on the conflict in Gaza and now the situation in Iran have made things all the more geopolitically tense — especially after Trump imposed severe tariffs on multiple nations that risk a global economic slowdown.
Members of Trump’s trade team nonetheless remained in Canada, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council. Bessent sat at the table as other world leaders met Tuesday with Zelensky, representing the US
Trump’s stance on Ukraine puts him fundamentally at odds with the other G7 leaders, who are clear that Russia is the aggressor in the war. Trump again offered his often-repeated claims on Monday that there would have been no war if G7 members hadn’t expelled Putin from the organization in 2014 for annexing Crimea.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the G7 now looks “very pale and quite useless” compared to “for example, such formats as the G20.”
With talks on ending the war in Ukraine at an impasse, Britain, Canada and other G7 members slapped new tariffs on Russia in a bid to get it to the ceasefire negotiating table. Trump, though, declined to join in those sanctions, saying he would wait until Europe did so first.
“When I sanction a country, that costs the US a lot of money, a tremendous amount of money,” he said.
Trump also seemed to put a greater priority on addressing his grievances with other nations’ trade policies than on collaboration with G7 allies. He has imposed 50 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum, as well as 25 percent tariffs on autos. Trump is also charging a 10 percent tax on imports from most countries, though he could raise rates on July 9, after the 90-day negotiating period set by him would expire.
Trump announced with Starmer that they had signed a trade framework Monday that was previously announced in May, with Trump saying that British trade was “very well protected’ because “I like them, that’s why. That’s their ultimate protection.”
But word of that agreement was somewhat overshadowed when Trump dropped the papers of the newly signed deal on the ground. Starmer stooped to pick them up, explaining Tuesday that he was compelled to ditch diplomatic decorum, since anyone else trying to help risked being shot by the president’s security team.
“There were quite strict rules about who can get close to the president,” Starmer told reporters on Tuesday. “If any of you had stepped forward other than me … I was just deeply conscious that in a situation like that it would not have been good for anybody else to have stepped forward.”

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Topics: G7 2025

China’s Xi in Kazakhstan to cement ‘eternal’ Central Asia ties

Updated 18 June 2025

AFP

June 17, 2025 23:55

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China’s Xi in Kazakhstan to cement ‘eternal’ Central Asia ties

Astana summit brings Xi together with Central Asian leaders

Updated 18 June 2025

AFP

June 17, 2025 23:55

ASTANA, Kazakhstan: Xi Jinping celebrated China’s “eternal friendship” with Central Asia at a summit in Kazakhstan on Tuesday, as the Chinese leader blasted tariffs and sought to assert Beijing’s influence in a region historically dominated by Russia.

The summit in Astana brought together Xi with the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

Under Russia’s orbit until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the five Central Asian states have courted interest from major powers including China, the European Union and the United States since becoming independent.

At the summit, the group signed a pact of “eternal” friendship as Xi called for closer ties with the resource-rich region.

“We should... strengthen cooperation with a more enterprising attitude and more practical measures,” said Xi in comments carried by state news agency Xinhua.

Central Asia is also seen as a key logistics hub, given its strategic location between China, Russia, the Middle East and Europe.

Speaking as Western leaders gathered on the other side of the world for the G7 in Canada, Xi refreshed his criticism of US President Donald Trump’s trade policies.

“Tariff wars and trade wars have no winners,” Xinhua quoted him as saying.

While Central Asian leaders continue to view Russia as a strategic partner, ties with Moscow have loosened since the war in Ukraine.

China has also shown willingness to invest in massive infrastructure projects in the region, part of its Belt and Road initiative that uses such financing as a political and diplomatic lever.

In a meeting with Kyrgyzstan’s president, Xi called for moves to “advance high-quality construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway and foster new drivers of growth in clean energy, green minerals and artificial intelligence.”

The five Central Asian nations are trying to take advantage of the growing interest in their region and are coordinating their foreign policies accordingly.

They regularly hold summits with China and Russia to present the region as a unified bloc and attract investment.

High-level “5+1” format talks have also been organized with the European Union, the United States, Turkiye and other Western countries.

“The countries of the region are balancing between different centers of power, wanting to protect themselves from excessive dependence on one partner,” Kyrgyz political scientist Nargiza Muratalieva told AFP.

Russia says China’s growing influence in the region does not pose a threat.

“There is no reason for such fears. China is our privileged strategic partner, and the countries of Central Asia, naturally, are our natural historical partners,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday.

But China has now established itself as Central Asia’s leading trading partner, far outstripping the EU and Russia.

Construction of the Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan-China railway and the China-Tajikistan highway, which runs through the Pamir Mountains to Afghanistan, are among its planned investments.

New border crossings and “dry ports” have already been built to process trade, such as Khorgos in Kazakhstan, one of the largest logistics hubs in the world.

“Neither Russia nor Western institutions are capable of allocating financial resources for infrastructure so quickly and on such a large scale, sometimes bypassing transparent procedures,” said Muratalieva.

Kazakhstan said last week that Russia would lead the construction of its first nuclear power plant but that it wanted China to build the second.

“Central Asia is rich in natural resources such as oil, gas, uranium, gold and other minerals that the rapidly developing Chinese economy needs,” Muratalieva said.

“Ensuring uninterrupted supplies of these resources, bypassing unstable sea routes, is an important goal of Beijing,” the analyst added.

China also positions itself as a supporter of the predominantly authoritarian Central Asian leaderships.

At the last Central Asia-China summit, Xi called for “resisting external interference” that might provoke “color revolutions” that could overthrow the current leaders in the region.

“Beijing sees the stability of the Central Asian states as a guarantee of the security of its western borders,” Muratalieva said.

Central Asia border’s China’s northwestern Xinjiang region, where Beijing is accused of having detained more than a million Uyghurs and other Muslims, part of a campaign the UN has said could constitute crimes against humanity.

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Topics: Xi Jinping Kazakhstan central Asia

Belgium seeks to try former diplomatic official over 1961 killing of Congo leader

Updated 17 June 2025

AFP

June 17, 2025 23:49

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Belgium seeks to try former diplomatic official over 1961 killing of Congo leader

If he goes on trial, Davignon would be the first Belgian official to face justice in the more than six decades since Lumumba was murdered

Updated 17 June 2025

AFP

June 17, 2025 23:49

BRUSSELS: Belgian prosecutors said Tuesday that they were seeking to put a 92-year-old former diplomat on trial over the 1961 killing of Congolese leader Patrice Lumumba.

Etienne Davignon is the only one still alive among 10 Belgians who were accused of complicity in the murder of the independence icon in a 2011 lawsuit filed by Lumumba’s children.

If he goes on trial, Davignon would be the first Belgian official to face justice in the more than six decades since Lumumba was murdered.

A fiery critic of Belgium’s colonial rule, Lumumba became his country’s first prime minister after it gained independence in 1960.

But he fell out with the former colonial power and with the US and was ousted in a coup a few months after taking office.

He was executed on Jan. 17, 1961, aged just 35, in the southern region of Katanga, with the support of Belgian mercenaries.

His body was dissolved in acid and never recovered.

Davignon, who went on to be a vice president of the European Commission in the 1980s, was a trainee diplomat at the time of the assassination.

He is accused of involvement in the “unlawful detention and transfer” of Lumumba at the time he was taken prisoner and his “humiliating and degrading treatment,” the prosecutor’s office said.

But prosecutors added that a charge of intent to kill should be dropped.

It is now up to a magistrate to decide if the trial should proceed, following a hearing on the case set for January 2026.

“We’re moving in the right direction. What we’re seeking is, first and foremost, the truth,” Juliana Lumumba, the daughter of the former Congolese premier, told Belgian broadcaster RTBF.

The prosecutor’s decision is the latest step in Belgium’s decades-long reckoning with the role it played in Lumumba’s killing.

In 2022, Belgium returned a tooth — the last remains of Lumumba — to his family in a bid to turn a page on the grim chapter of its colonial past.

The tooth was seized by Belgian authorities in 2016 from the daughter of a policeman, Gerard Soete.

A Belgian parliamentary commission of enquiry concluded in 2001 that Belgium had “moral responsibility” for the assassination, and the government presented the country’s “apologies” a year later.

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Topics: Belgium Patrice Lumumba Congo

Japan’s foreign minister avoids sanctioning Israel, criticizes Iran’s nuclear ‘ambitions’

Updated 18 min 22 sec ago

Khaldon Azhari

June 17, 2025 22:46

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Japan’s foreign minister avoids sanctioning Israel, criticizes Iran’s nuclear ‘ambitions’

“We do not permit Iran’s nuclear development, and we believe that solving this through discussion is crucial,” Takeshi stated
“Moving forward, we will continue to exert all necessary diplomatic efforts”

Updated 18 min 22 sec ago

Khaldon Azhari

June 17, 2025 22:46

TOKYO: Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi avoided condemning or approving sanctioning Israel in a press conference on Tuesday, shifting the emphasis onto Iran’s alleged pursuit of a nuclear weapon.

“We do not permit Iran’s nuclear development, and we believe that solving this through discussion is crucial,” he stated, emphasizing the potential for peaceful resolutions. “Moving forward, we will continue to exert all necessary diplomatic efforts to prevent further deterioration of the situation (between Iran and Israel.)”

When asked by Arab News Japan about the possibility of Israel using nuclear weapons in its conflict with Iran, as well as potentially targeting other countries like Pakistan and Egypt, as suggested by some reports, Iwaya opted not to answer directly. Instead, he stated, “Our country believes that the current tense situation in the Middle East is detrimental to the international community as a whole. We strongly urge all parties involved, including Israel, to exercise maximum restraint and to de-escalate the situation,” highlighting the urgency of the situation.

The Japanese Foreign Minister also said he strongly urged de-escalation when he spoke with Iran’s Foreign Minister on Monday, adding that Japan has “also been making efforts with Israel,” without specifying what those efforts entail or outlining how Japan might influence the situation. Rather, he emphasized Japan’s closeness to Israel.

“Israel is, of course, a friendly nation to our country, and we have had long-standing diplomatic relations with Iran, so we believe it is essential for Japan to work toward resolving issues through dialogue and consultation,” he stated.

“The peace and stability of the Middle East are extremely important to our country. The situation is becoming increasingly tense, particularly in Iran. We plan to raise the danger level further and issue evacuation adviseries for the Japanese for the entire country of Iran soon.”

Minister Iwaya was confronted about why Japan agreed with its G-7 partners to support so-called Israel’s self-defense and condemn Iran after Tokyo initially condemned Israel immediately when it launched a preemptive attack on Iran.

The Japanese Foreign Minister justified the change in the position, saying: “Initially, there were attacks from Israel that we condemned, but Iran retaliated, and this back-and-forth continues to this day. We believe that both Israel and Iran should ensure that they are engaged in dialogue and consultation to resolve issues.”

This situation is a source of significant concern for us, Iwaya continued. Regarding the G7 leaders’ statement, it is a consensus that reflects the discussions among the leaders considering the current situation. It reiterates the G7’s commitment to peace and stability in the Middle East.

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Topics: Iran-Israel Conflict Japan Iwaya Takeshi

Rush of diplomatic calls follow Trump’s offer to join potential Russia-Ukraine talks

Rush of diplomatic calls follow Trump’s offer to join potential Russia-Ukraine talks

Putin’s proposed Ukraine talks ‘not enough’: Macron

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India regulator says no ‘major safety concerns’ on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet

India regulator says no ‘major safety concerns’ on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet

G7 leaders try to salvage their summit after Trump’s early exit effectively makes it the ‘G6’

G7 leaders try to salvage their summit after Trump’s early exit effectively makes it the ‘G6’

US official says Trump not signing G7 statement on Israel-Iran de-escalation

G7 urges Iran de-escalation as Trump makes hasty summit exit

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China’s Xi in Kazakhstan to cement ‘eternal’ Central Asia ties

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Belgium seeks to try former diplomatic official over 1961 killing of Congo leader

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Rush of diplomatic calls follow Trump’s offer to join potential Russia-Ukraine talks

Rush of diplomatic calls follow Trump’s offer to join potential Russia-Ukraine talks

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India regulator says no ‘major safety concerns’ on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet

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