9 h. ago EU hits Musk’s X with US$140 million fine, risking Trump’s ire

The European Union hit Elon Musk’s X with a €120 million (US$140 million) fine on Friday for breaking its digital rules, in a move that risks a fresh clash with US President Donald Trump’s administration. The high-profile probe into the social media platform was seen as a test of the EU’s resolve to police Big Tech. US Vice-President J.D. Vance fired a warning against “attacking” US firms through “censorship” before the penalty was even made public. Imposing the first fine under its powerful...

Events

14 h. ago ‘If Jesus were born in America now’: church’s nativity challenges ICE policy

Mother Mary wearing a respirator mask to protect herself from tear gas. Baby Jesus with zip-tied hands, wrapped in a thin blanket that looks like aluminium foil. Masked centurions with sunglasses and green vests labelled “ICE”. This is how the Lake Street Church of Evanston in suburban Chicago chose to assemble its nativity scene for the Christmas season. The church and its leaders have been vocal critics of the Trump administration’s Operation Midway Blitz and expressed a message with their...

Events

22 h. ago Aukus deal to move ‘full steam ahead’ after surviving Trump review

The Pentagon said on Thursday it has endorsed the tripartite Aukus security pact with the United Kingdom and Australia, which would involve Canberra’s acquisition of at least three Virginia-class nuclear submarines within 15 years. The administration of Donald Trump said earlier this year it was reviewing a 2021 deal for the nuclear-powered attack submarines signed under his presidential predecessor, Joe Biden. The Department of Defence completed its five-month review, which endorsed the Aukus...

Politics

53 h. ago Nvidia CEO meets Trump, says he’s not sure if China would accept H200 chips

Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang said he was unsure whether China would accept the company’s H200 artificial intelligence chips should the United States relax restrictions on sales of the processors, following a meeting Wednesday with US President Donald Trump. Addressing reporters at the US Capitol, Huang said he and Trump talked about export controls but declined to offer specifics. The Nvidia chief’s meeting with the president comes after Trump administration officials discussed...

Politics

54 h. ago Bessent calls Beijing an ‘ally’ after Trump signs bill on ties with Taiwan

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday described the United States as an ally to both mainland China and Taiwan, while at the same time asserting that its relationships have not shifted, hours after US President Donald Trump enacted legislation deepening US ties with the self-governed island. Asked about concerns among some in Washington about the Trump administration’s approach to the long-held policy of strategic ambiguity on the Taiwan issue at The New York Times DealBook Summit,...

Politics

56 h. ago Photos of Epstein’s notorious private island released by US Democrats

Democrats in the US Congress released photos and videos on Wednesday showing the luxury island home where convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein allegedly forced underage girls into sex with powerful men. The images of Epstein’s former Caribbean hideaway shed little new light on the complex scandal. However, they could add pressure on the Trump administration to comply with a requirement to release all the investigative files compiled during years of probes into Epstein’s activities – with...

Politics

2 d. ago IMF's Dan Katz makes first China visit after leaving Trump administration

IMF's Dan Katz makes first China visit after leaving Trump administration  MSN

Politics

2 d. ago IMF’s Dan Katz makes first China visit after leaving Trump administration By Reuters

IMF’s Dan Katz makes first China visit after leaving Trump administration By Reuters  Investing.com

Politics

3 d. ago Pope Leo urges Trump not to attempt military ousting of Venezuela’s Maduro

Pope Leo urged US President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday not to try to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro using military force. Leo, the first US pope, said it would be better to attempt dialogue or impose economic pressure on Venezuela if Washington wants to pursue change there. The Trump administration has been weighing options to combat what it has portrayed as Maduro’s role in supplying illegal drugs that have killed Americans. The socialist Venezuelan president has denied...

Events

5 d. ago Trump’s world view offers Beijing a window of opportunity on Taiwan

Since Donald Trump’s return to the White House, a growing chorus of Chinese officials and analysts have talked of an unprecedented window of opportunity for Beijing to recalibrate its domestic and international strategies. At its heart lies the Taiwan question, a perennial flashpoint in relations between Washington and Beijing. As the Trump administration ramps up its “America first” policies abroad, the US – the self-appointed world’s policeman for seven decades – has embarked on an...

Politics

6 d. ago Consider Venezuela airspace ‘closed in its entirety’, says Trump

US President Donald Trump warned on Saturday that the airspace above and near Venezuela should be considered closed, the latest escalation in a stand-off with leftist leader Nicolas Maduro. “To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social network, “please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY”. The president did not elaborate. Trump’s administration is piling pressure on Venezuela, with a major military...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump spoke with Venezuela’s Maduro, discussed meeting in US, report says

US President Donald Trump spoke by phone last week with leftist Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, with the two rivals discussing a possible meeting in the United States, The New York Times reported on Friday. The reported call comes as Trump’s administration piles pressure on Venezuela with a major military deployment in the Caribbean that includes the world’s largest aircraft carrier. Washington says the aim is curbing drug trafficking but Caracas insists regime change is the ultimate goal. The...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump vows to freeze migration from ‘Third World Countries’ after Washington attack

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday his administration will “permanently pause” migration from all “Third World Countries”, following an attack near the White House he attributed to Biden-era immigration vetting failures. Trump did not identify any countries by name or explain what he meant by third-world countries or “permanently pause”. He said the plan would include cases approved under former president Joe Biden’s administration. “I will permanently pause migration from all Third...

Politics

8 d. ago Trump orders review of immigrant visas after National Guard attack

The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it would review the immigration status of every permanent resident or “green card” holder from Afghanistan and 18 other countries following the attack on National Guard troops in Washington. The announcement came as US President Donald Trump said that one of the National Guard members, 20-year-old Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, had died of her wounds, while the other, Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24, was ‘fighting for his life’. US officials have...

Events

1 week ago Trump’s calls with Xi and Takaichi hint he won’t let Taiwan derail Beijing ties

US President Donald Trump’s phone calls with both his Chinese and Japanese counterparts this week suggest Washington is engaged in a delicate balancing act over the Taiwan issue. These high-level communications are also intended as a message to Japan, and other US allies, that Taiwan is not a top priority for the Trump administration and should not disrupt the stabilisation of Sino-American ties, according to diplomatic observers. On Tuesday morning, Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae...

Politics

1 week ago Venezuela rejects US ‘terrorist’ label for ‘nonexistent’ Cartel de los Soles

The Venezuelan government on Monday rejected what it called a “ridiculous” US plan to designate the “nonexistent” Cartel de los Soles a terrorist organisation, ahead of Washington’s expected designation later in the day. United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier this month his country would designate the Cartel de los Soles a foreign terrorist organisation for its alleged role in importing illegal drugs into the US. The Trump administration, which alleges the cartel is made up of...

Events

1 week ago Trump Administration Ponders Allowing Nvidia To Trade H200 AI Chips With China

Trump Administration Ponders Allowing Nvidia To Trade H200 AI Chips With China  Yahoo Finance

Politics

1 week ago US peace plan for Ukraine being refined under Trump’s deadline pressure

The United States and Ukraine said they had created an “updated and refined peace framework” to end the war with Russia that apparently modified an earlier plan drafted by the Trump administration which Kyiv and its allies saw as too sympathetic to Moscow. In a joint statement released after talks in Geneva between US and Ukrainian delegations, the two sides said their discussion was “highly productive” and said they would continue in coming days. They did not provide specifics about a host of...

Events

1 week ago US and Ukraine refine draft of peace plan under Trump deadline pressure

The United States and Ukraine said they had created an “updated and refined peace framework” to end the war with Russia that apparently modified an earlier plan drafted by the Trump administration which Kyiv and its allies saw as too sympathetic to Moscow. In a joint statement released after talks in Geneva between US and Ukrainian delegations, the two sides said their discussion was “highly productive” and said they would continue in coming days. They did not provide specifics about a host of...

Events

1 week ago Toppling Maduro among options as Trump set to expand Venezuela operations

The United States is poised to launch a new phase of Venezuela-related operations in the coming days, according to four US officials, as the Trump administration escalates pressure on President Nicolas Maduro’s government. Reuters was not able to establish the exact timing or scope of the new operations, nor whether US President Donald Trump had made a final decision to act. Reports of looming action have proliferated in recent weeks as the US military has deployed forces to the Caribbean amid...

Politics