6 d. ago The Guardian view on Trump’s Board of Peace: an international body in service to one man’s ego | Editorial

It was supposed to give Gaza a future, but the US president is using it to attack the UN, international law and multilateralismOne glance at the logo of the Board of Peace tells you all you need to know. It is the globe and laurels of the UN – only gold, because this is Donald Trump’s initiative, and showing little of the world beyond North America.The charter of the board, formally launched in Davos on Thursday, suggests that this is less America First than Trump Always. It is not “the US president” but Mr Trump himself who is named as chair, for as long as he wishes. He can pick his successor, decide the agenda and axe whomever he chooses – even if they have coughed up the $1bn demanded for permanent membership. It is the institutional expression of his belief that he is bound not by law but “my own morality, my own mind”.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publica...

Politics

1 week ago John Swinney does not expect Sir Keir Starmer to still be in office at Christmas

Mr Swinney suggested forthcoming elections in Scotland and Wales and local elections in England could put pressure on Labour.

Politics

1 week ago Venezuela? Iran? Greenland? We’re doing our best, says extreme tour operator

The Man Who Pays His Way: When the industry of human happiness turns sour, Lupine Travel soldiers on

Politics

1 week ago Americans disapprove of Trump’s foreign policy. His escapades are likely to cost him | Sid Blumenthal

History tells us what happens when American presidents focus on foreign policy and neglect domestic economic policyDonald Trump’s blitzkrieg since his 3 January seizure of the Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro has been guided by his triumph of the will, as he told the New York Times. “Yeah, there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me I don’t need international law.”Trump treats the spectacle as a reality TV show in which he is both the executive producer and the host who ultimately declares himself the winner. At his 3 January press conference on the day of Maduro’s seizure, Trump mentioned “oil” 27 times, “money” 13 times and “democracy” not once. He trashed the democratic opposition as lacking “respect” and “support”. The capture of Maduro was a decapitation, not regime change. Indeed, Trump served as a convenient agent of an internal coup of the existing powers, whom he declared “an ally”. “We have to fix the country first,” he said. “You...

Politics

1 week ago Guterres warns of ‘powerful forces’ undermining ‘global cooperation’

In historic speech to mark UN’s 80th anniversary, secretary general makes impassioned plea for multilateralism and international law amid drastic US funding cutsThe United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, will warn on Saturday of the peril posed by “powerful forces lining up to undermine global cooperation” in an address to mark the 80th anniversary of the UN’s first major meeting.Speaking in London’s Methodist Central Hall – the site where eight decades earlier delegates from 51 countries came together for the inaugural session of the general assembly – the UN head will make an impassioned plea for the virtues of multilateralism and international law to prevail during a period of deepening global uncertainty. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago UK urged to ratify high seas treaty to avoid being shut out of Ocean Cop summit

As international treaty comes into force, bill to make it law in Britain is moving at ‘glacial pace’ through parliamentThe UK risks being shut out of a historic oceans summit because parliament has failed to ratify the UN’s high seas treaty, environmental charities and campaigners have warned.The high seas treaty, formally known as the Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, comes into force on Saturday, after two decades of talks. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Kremlin calls Trump's pursuit of Greenland 'extraordinary' and says the Arctic island is Danish territory

Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said: 'The situation is unusual, I would even say extraordinary from the standpoint of international law,'

Politics

2 w. ago US releases legal memo citing justifications for Maduro’s capture

The document offers new insight into how the administration proceeded with the operation on January 3

Politics

2 w. ago Trump administration lawyers blessed US operation to remove Maduro from power, memo shows

A legal memo that came out days before the U.S. military operation against Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro said such a move would “not rise to the level of a war in the constitutional sense” and would serve “important national interests

Politics

2 w. ago DoJ deemed it ‘unnecessary’ to conclude whether seizing Maduro violated law, memo reveals

Memo on US military raid to capture Venezuela’s president effectively argued that presidents can blow through UN charterUS politics live – latest updatesThe Trump administration received approval from the justice department to use the military to seize Nicolás Maduro even as it declined to address whether the operation would violate international law, according to its legal memo released on Tuesday.The dark-of-night raid to capture Venezuela’s president has raised a host of legal issues concerning the president’s power to start an armed conflict without congressional approval and possible breaches of international law. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago DoJ deemed it ‘unnecessary’ to conclude whether seizing Maduro violated international law, memo reveals

Memo on US military raid to capture Venezuela’s president effectively argued that presidents can blow through UN charterUS politics live – latest updatesThe Trump administration received approval from the justice department to use the military to seize Nicolás Maduro even as it declined to address whether the operation would violate international law, according to its legal memo released on Tuesday.The dark-of-night raid to capture Venezuela’s president has raised a host of legal issues concerning the US president’s power to start an armed conflict without congressional approval and possible breaches of international law. Continue reading...

Society

2 w. ago Trump says his power is only limited by ‘very high grade of morality’

Donald Trump asserted that his authority over international operations is limited not by law, but by his personal "morality” in an exclusive interview with CBS News on Tuesday, 13 January.

Politics

2 w. ago Voices: ‘Once bitten, twice shy’: Why readers say EU is right to futureproof any Brexit reset deal

Our community rejected Nigel Farage’s claim that he could simply ‘break’ any EU reset deal, arguing that the so-called Farage clause reflects standard international law and the EU’s justified attempt to protect itself from Britain’s ongoing Brexit volatility

Economics

2 w. ago Iran crisis live: foreign minister says country ready for negotiations but also ‘fully prepared for war’

Abbas Araghchi warns adversaries against ‘miscalculation’ as Trump mulls military response to protest crackdown‘The streets are full of blood’: Iranian protests gather momentum as regime cracks downIranian student killed during protests was shot in head ‘from close range’Analysis: Unpredictable Trump weighs up Iranian pleas for help against calls for restraintIran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, has said communication lines with the US remain open, as the Trump administration continues to weigh the option of military strikes.“This channel of communication between our foreign minister (Abbas Araghchi) and the special envoy of the president of the United States is open,” Baghaei said, in apparent reference to Steve Witkoff.Always opposes interference in other countries’ internal affairs, maintains that the sovereignty and security of all countries should be fully protected under international law, and opposes the use or threat of use of force in international relatio...

Politics

2 w. ago Trump is ready to grab Greenland. The EU should move first – and offer it membership | Robert Habeck and Andreas Raspotnik

The US president’s threats to the territory show Europe needs a new strategy for its far north: one based on cooperation, not dominationThe new year is still young, yet Donald Trump’s fixation on expanding his homeland signals a troubling geopolitical shift. From Venezuela to Greenland, the world is unmistakably moving away from the relative stability of the post-cold war era – not least also because of Russia’s war against Ukraine.This erosion of long-established norms has severe implications for Europe, a continent whose core political philosophy is built on limiting (national) power. A rules-based order, international law and negotiated solutions lie at the core of Europe’s self-image. Yet in today’s world, Europe can uphold this vision only if it evolves into a more muscular geopolitical actor itself – and nowhere is this more evident than in the Arctic.Robert Habeck served as German vice-chancellor and minister for economy and climate action from 2021 to 2025, and is now workin...

Politics

2 w. ago Trump’s ‘morality’ raises nightmare of ghosts past in Colombia

As Trump threatens more attacks on south America and is not bound by international law, he is causing real fear in the region, reports world affairs editor Sam Kiley from Bogota, Colombia

Politics

2 w. ago FIFA urged to expel USA from World Cup over Donald Trump actions

A cross-party group of 21 MPs have urged FIFA to consider expelling the United States from the World Cup following allegations that President Trump has breached international law

Politics

2 w. ago Trump says he 'doesn't need international law' as he's guided by his 'own morality'

US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly stated his intention to take Greenland, claimed he is immune to 'international law' but insisted he was not 'looking to hurt people'

Politics

2 w. ago Trump 'destroying world order' with recent actions European leaders warn

The German President said the US has gone 'far beyond' what is acceptable as critics accuse Trump of breaking international law

Events

2 w. ago Former CIA director William Burns: ‘Imitating autocrats is not a winning formula’

The ex-spy chief on the risks of Trump’s operation in Venezuela, what the US gets wrong about regime change — and why Putin badly misjudged Ukraine

Politics