56 h. ago Russia is brazenly provoking the west. Putin must be left in no doubt of the consequences | Paul Taylor

Germany and Italy may have legitimate fears of escalation but this was no accident – it was a violation of Nato territoryBy sending a barrage of drones into Polish airspace, Russia is testing Nato’s military response and Europe’s political resolve to stand behind Ukraine with arms and security guarantees in the event of escalation.The timing can hardly have been a coincidence. Less than a week ago, a 26-nation “coalition of the willing” led by France and the UK announced an agreement on a “reassurance force”, intended to help guarantee Ukraine’s security after any ceasefire in Russia’s relentless war of aggression. Vladimir Putin has stepped up the nightly bombardment of Ukraine in defiance of Donald Trump’s efforts to broker a peace deal, and rejected any presence of European forces on the ground.Paul Taylor is a senior visiting fellow at the European Policy CentreDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words ...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump’s radical agenda will ultimately reach a supreme court stacked in favor of conservatives

Court has already dramatically limited ability of lower courts to issue injunctions to pause administration policies across the USUS politics live – latest updatesThis week’s dramatic court ruling that Donald Trump’s sweeping trade tariffs, which he has used to upend global trade, were in fact illegal is the latest in a series of losses for the president’s radical agenda that are ultimately heading for a final showdown in the US supreme court.Trump has already asked the supreme court to overturn the lower court ruling in the tariffs case. Almost certain to follow are Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans, his hostile conflict with Harvard University and his deployment of the national guard and marines to Los Angeles. All have been deemed unlawful in lower courts. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Putin says western troops in Ukraine would be ‘legitimate targets’ as European countries pledge security support – Europe live

Macron says 26 nations have offered security guarantees for Ukraine as Zelenskyy meets Slovakia’s Fico amid tension over Russian energy suppliesMacron says 26 countries ready to supply postwar military backing for UkraineHere is the full quote from the Kremlin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, via Reuters.“I have no doubt that if the presidents consider it necessary, their meeting can be organised very quickly. Just as the meeting in Alaska was quickly organised,” Peskov told the Russian news outlet Argumenty i Fakty, referring to last month’s Trump-Putin summit. Continue reading...

Events

8 d. ago Macron says 26 nations ready to provide postwar military backing to Ukraine

French president says allies would either deploy ‘reassurance force’ troops to Ukraine, or be present in the area on land, sea or in the airTwenty-six nations have pledged to provide postwar security guarantees to Ukraine, including an international force on land and sea and in the air, Emmanuel Macron said after a summit at which European leaders sought to pin down Donald Trump on the level of support he is willing to give Kyiv.“The day the conflict stops, the security guarantees will be deployed,” the French president told a press conference at the Élysée Palace in Paris, standing alongside Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Continue reading...

Events

8 d. ago European leaders press Trump over peacekeeper plan for Ukraine

Leaders ask president on call to detail security guarantees US could give to European force in event of ceasefireEuropean leaders have made fresh efforts to pin down Donald Trump on the level of support he is willing to give Ukraine to push back a Russian advance, and asked him to detail the security guarantees he would provide to any European peacekeeping force inside Ukraine in the event of a lasting ceasefire.European leaders spoke with Trump by video call on Thursday after first holding a meeting of the so-called “coalition of the willing” in Paris, co-chaired by Emmanuel Macron and Keir Starmer. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago Macron says Trump to outline Ukraine security guarantees in days

26 countries at Paris summit of ‘coalition of the willing’ committed to potential contributions after a ceasefire

Politics

8 d. ago U.S. envoy Witkoff meets European leaders on Ukraine security

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met with European leaders in Paris on Thursday to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine

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8 d. ago Macron says ‘Coalition of the Willing’ will finalise ‘robust’ Ukrainian security guarantees – Europe live

Leaders who are gathered in Paris are expected to speak to Donald Trump this afternoonThe Dutch prime minister Dick Schoof is next.Belgium’s Bart de Wever, Finland’s Alexander Stubb, and the EU’s Ursula von der Leyen and António Costa are the first leaders arriving at the Élysée Palace, welcomed by Macron on the doorstep. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago Leaders gather for ‘Coalition of the Willing’ talks on Ukraine security guarantees – Europe live

Emmanuel Macron says Europe ready to provide such guarantees at meeting in Paris todayRutte gets also asked about his views on Russia’s opposition to the deployment of any Nato troops to Ukraine as part of security guarantees.He says:“But why are we interested in what Russia thinks about troops in Ukraine? It’s a sovereign country. It’s not for them to decide. Russia has nothing to do with this. Ukraine is a sovereign nation. If Ukraine wants to have security guarantee forces in Ukraine to support the peace deal, it’s up to them. Nobody else can decide about it. “Do you really think if he would not have been elected president united states, that Italy, Canada, Spain, Slovenia, Belgium and Luxembourg would have committed to do 2% this year? Do you really think that the whole of Nato would have committed to 5% committed to 5% including 3.5% core defence spending at the Nato Summit in The Hague?”“He took that leadership role, and it is not easy to solve this, but he is absolutely commi...

Politics

9 d. ago Trump unlawfully cancelled $2.2bn in Harvard research grants, judge rules

Decision marks major victory for school after White House accused it of not addressing harassment of Jewish studentsA federal judge on Wednesday ruled Donald Trump’s administration unlawfully terminated about $2.2bn in grants awarded to Harvard University and can no longer cut off research funding to the Ivy League school.The decision by US district judge Allison Burroughs in Boston marked a major legal victory for Harvard as it seeks to cut a deal that could bring an end to the White House’s multi-front conflict with the country’s oldest and richest university. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Trump cannot use Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan gang members, appeals court rules – US politics live

2-1 decision from fifth circuit is the first federal appeals court ruling on presidential proclamation invoking 1798 lawHello and welcome to the US politics live blog for today. I am Tom Ambrose and I’ll be bringing you the latest news lines over the next few hours.We start with the news that a federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that president Donald Trump unlawfully invoked the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans he alleged were part of a criminal gang.A judge has found the Trump administration’s use of national guard troops during southern California immigration enforcement protests was illegal. Judge Charles Breyer ruled on Tuesday that the administration violated federal law by sending troops to accompany federal agents on immigration raids. The judge did not require the remaining troops withdrawn, however.The US House of Representatives oversight committee released thousands of pages of records related to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein from the justice departme...

Politics

9 d. ago Sánchez: Europe’s response to war in Gaza has been a ‘failure’

Spanish prime minister says double standards over Gaza and Ukraine threaten to undermine the west’s global standing‘You need solidarity and consistency’: Pedro Sánchez on the EU, Trump and fighting the far right Europe and the west’s double standards over the wars in Ukraine and Gaza threaten to undermine its global standing, the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has warned, describing the response to Israel’s assault on the Palestinian territory as one of the darkest episodes of international relations in the 21st century.In an interview with the Guardian before talks with UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, in London on Wednesday, the socialist leader also said the US under Donald Trump was trying to end the post-second world war, rules-based global order it had originally created. Continue reading...

Events

9 d. ago Pedro Sánchez: Europe’s response to war in Gaza has been a failure

Spanish prime minister says double standards over Gaza and Ukraine threaten to undermine west’s global standing‘You need solidarity and consistency’: Pedro Sánchez on the EU, Trump and fighting the far right Europe and the west’s double standards over the wars in Ukraine and Gaza threaten to undermine its global standing, the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has warned, describing the response to Israel’s assault on the Palestinian territory as one of the darkest episodes of international relations in the 21st century.In an interview with the Guardian before talks with UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, in London on Wednesday, the socialist leader also said the US under Donald Trump was trying to end the post-second world war, rules-based global order it had originally created. Continue reading...

Events

9 d. ago Appeals court rules Trump cannot use Alien Enemies Act to deport members of Venezuelan gang

A federal appeals court has ruled President Donald Trump cannot use an 18th century wartime law to speed the deportations of people his administration accuses of membership in a Venezuelan gang

Events

1 week ago ‘Coalition of the willing’ to meet on Thursday, Élysée confirms – Europe live

Meeting, co-chaired by France’s Emmanuel Macron and UK’s Keir Starmer, will focus on security guarantees for Ukraine and response to Russia’s refusal to end warEU transport spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen also offered a bit more detail on the issue of GPS jamming and its impact on operations.She said:“Generally, we have been seeing a quite a lot of such jamming and spoofing activities, notably in the eastern flank of Europe.Europe is the most concerned region in the or most affected region globally, on this.“We are, of course, aware and used to somehow to the threats and intimidations that are [a] regular component of Russia’s hostile behaviour.Of course, this will only reinforce even further our unshakable commitment to ramp up defence capabilities and support for Ukraine.”“This incident actually underlines the urgency of the mission that the President is carrying out in the frontline member states.” Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago South Park creators depict Trump with tiny penis but US President won't be able to sue

The creators of popular cartoon South Park are said to be relying on a legal concept known as the 'small-penis rule' as a defence against potential litigation from Donald Trump

Politics

2 w. ago Denmark summons US charge d’affaires over alleged attempts to interfere with Greenland’s status – Europe live

Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen says any attempt to interfere in kingdom’s internal affairs is unacceptableWe are getting big news just in from Denmark, which has summoned the US charge d’affaires in the country over alleged attempts to interfere with the status of Greenland, a long-term point of interest for the new US administration of Donald Trump.In a comment to public broadcaster DR, foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said that “any attempt to interfere in the Kingdom’s internal affairs will obviously be unacceptable.” Continue reading...

Society

2 w. ago Postal services around the world suspend deliveries to US: how will it affect you?

Suspensions from Australia to Europe come after Donald Trump removed a rule exempting parcels worth less than US$800 from his tariffsPostal services around the world have stopped sending some mail to the United States as they ready for expanded tariffs, after Donald Trump removed an exemption on packages worth under US$800.Carriers have been temporarily suspending services since Friday to avoid delivering packages after 29 August, when they will start to be charged full tariff rates for most parcels. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago ‘Doesn’t feel like peace to me’: Ukrainians in the UK fear war will never end after Trump

‘Unless Ukraine is given real security guarantees, the war will resume,’ warn citizens who fled the country when Russia invaded

Politics

3 w. ago Trump’s presidential philosophy is government by shakedown | Steven Greenhouse

The president’s strategy is straight out of the authoritarian playbook. Congress and the courts must put a stop to itAmericans have long glorified their constitution and the rule of law. But Donald Trump’s volatile and vindictive presidency has increasingly replaced that philosophy with something very different – call it “governing by shakedown.”Trump has often violated federal law, and sometimes the constitution, as he has sought to throttle his targets – whether universities, law firms or America’s trading partners – in the hope that they will cry uncle and agree to his demands. This style of governance would make any caudillo proud. But it should make anyone who cares about the rule of law – and avoiding authoritarian rule – very worried.Steven Greenhouse is a journalist and author, focusing on labor and the workplace, as well as economic and legal issues Continue reading...

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