15 h. ago Putin says he would only meet Zelenskyy in ‘final phase’ of talks – Europe live

Putin’s comments come as fighting continues and Ukraine says Russia avoiding peace talksFor what it’s worth, Russia’s Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he was ready to meet with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy but only during a “final phase” of negotiations “so as not to sit there and divide things up endlessly, but to put an end to it”.But his broader comments were not really conciliatory, and will do little to raise hopes of a negotiated settlement.“The strikes were carried out against military industries, not residential quarters.” Continue reading...

Politics

22 h. ago Ukraine war briefing: Russia can defend itself, says Putin, as North Korea sends more soldiers

Death toll rises to 28 after Russian attack on Kyiv apartments; Zelenskyy planning to attend Nato summit in The Hague. What we know on day 1,212Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he was ready to meet with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy but only during a “final phase” of negotiations “so as not to sit there and divide things up endlessly, but to put an end to it”. Putin made his customary false accusation that Zelenskyy is not Ukraine’s legitimate president.In a round-table interview in St Petersburg with international news agencies, Putin said on Nato: “We do not consider any Nato rearmament to be a threat to the Russian Federation, because we are self-sufficient in terms of ensuring our security.” Russia has brought in thousands of North Korean soldiers to help defend Kursk; and has relied on a flood of arms and ammunition from North Korea as well as Iranian drones and missiles to wage war on Ukraine; while also receiving suspected help from China to continue arming a “spec...

Events

25 h. ago British, German and French foreign ministers plan meeting with Iranian counterpart

The meeting in Geneva would be the first face-to-face diplomatic communication with Iran since Israel’s attackThe foreign ministers of the UK, France and Germany are planning to meet the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, in what could represent a potential diplomatic breakthrough after five days of Israeli bombing.The meeting is due to take place in Geneva on Friday but final confirmation from Tehran is still pending; if confirmed it would represent the first face-to-face diplomatic meeting since Benjamin Netanyahu launched Israel’s attack on Iran’s military and nuclear sites. Continue reading...

Politics

47 h. ago Driver who killed baby in pram during 'lapse of concentration' has sentence cut

Bridget Curtis pressed down on the accelerator of her automatic BMW 520d car after stopping outside Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, causing it to mount a kerb

Events

51 h. ago Husband who stabbed wife to death in the street as she pushed their baby in a pram told doctor 'he felt like he would kill her' more than a year before attack, court hears

Kulsuma Akter, 27, was killed by her husband Habibur Masum, 26, after he confronted her in the street while she was pushing their seven-month-old son in a pram on April 6 last year.

Events

56 h. ago Woman abandoned in pram as a baby with a heartbreaking note from her impoverished mother finally meets her real siblings after 55 years

ITV'S Long Lost Family: Born Without a Trace follows Lisa Dyke, 55, who now lives in France, on her journey to discover information about her past.

Politics

2 d. ago Trump and Starmer finally finalise the ‘big and beautiful’ UK

The UK and US president had a bilateral meeting at the G7 summit in Alberta, Canada, where they finalised the implementation of the trade deal they shook on last month

Politics

3 d. ago Trump and Starmer finally finalise the ‘big and beautiful’ UK/ US trade deal

The UK and US president had a bilateral meeting at the G7 summit in Alberta, Canada where they finalised the implementation of the trade deal they shook on last month

Politics

6 d. ago Husband who stabbed wife to death as she pushed their baby in a pram made threats to 'kill her if she ever left him', court hears

Kulsuma Akter, 27, suffered more than 25 knife injuries during the attack by Habibur Masum, 26, when he confronted her while she pushed the infant in a pram.

Events

6 d. ago Still sport of the King: Windsor interest keeps Royal Ascot alive and kicking

As attendances at other meetings decline, the monarch’s presence makes Ascot a soft power asset for BritainAscot will mark the 200th anniversary of the first Royal procession at its showpiece race meeting next week. The intermittent noise of jets on the final approach to Heathrow will be one of the few deviations from the sights and sounds when George IV first trundled his way up the course in 1825. The king and queen will ride in the first of the horse-drawn carriages, their liveried attendants will be upright in the saddle and, as they pass the Royal enclosure, the gentlemen’s top hats will be doffed in the familiar mark of respect.There is little else, in sport or the wider world beyond, that remains just as it was in the immediate aftermath of the Napoleonic wars. Demand for the Royal Ascot experience also remains strong. Following a post-Covid surge, attendances are in decline at both the Derby and Cheltenham’s festival meeting in March. At Royal Ascot 2024, though, the year-on...

Politics

7 d. ago Michael Johnson cancels Los Angeles Grand Slam Track meeting

Emergency meeting held with athletes over decisionDecision leaves LA without major meeting this summerMichael Johnson cancelled the final leg of the new Grand Slam Track series in Los Angeles before an emergency meeting with athletes on Thursday night, leaving the host of the 2028 Olympics and the country’s second-largest city without a major track meeting this summer.Johnson raised around $30m to launch Grand Slam Track this spring, promising a new way of doing track – involving a group of runners under contract racing twice over a weekend and focusing more on where they finished than actual times. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson seen in first awkward exchange on the Soccer Aid training pitch months after singer started dating TV star's ex Zara McDermott

Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson have finally come face to face for the first time at Soccer Aid training on Thursday. 

Events

7 d. ago BREAKING: Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson finally meet as they smile through awkward meeting

Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson have come face to face for the first time at training for Soccer Aid after the Made In Chelsea star was left 'furious' at the singer's relationship with his ex Zara McDermott

Events

7 d. ago Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson finally meet as they smile through awkward meeting

Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson have come face to face for the first time at training for Soccer Aid after the Made In Chelsea star was left 'furious' at the singer's relationship with his ex Zara McDermott

Events

7 d. ago Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson FINALLY meet at Soccer Aid training

Louis Tomlinson and Sam Thompson have finally come face to face for the first time at Soccer Aid training on Thursday. 

Sport

8 d. ago 'Jealous' man knifed wife more than 25 times as she pushed baby in pram, court told

Kulsuma Akter was knifed more than 25 in a 'ferocious attack' in front of her seven-month-old baby while she was pushing the tot in a pram, a court heard

Events

8 d. ago Man tracked down his wife after she fled home and stabbed her 26 times as she pushed their baby in pram, murder trial told

Kulsuma Akter was 27 and from Oldham

Events

8 d. ago Woman stabbed more than 25 times in attack by husband while pushing baby in pram

Habibur Masum has denied murdering his wife Kulsuma Akter in Bradford.

Events

8 d. ago Meet BBC's Race Across The World finalists as they battle for £20,000 prize

After travelling thousands of miles through China, Nepal and India, the latest series of the thrilling BBC show Race Across The World comes to and end on Wednesday evening

Economics

9 d. ago Woman tortured and raped by evil ex for 13 years finally escaped after meeting kind stranger

Michael Christie terrorised Emma Louise Goddard after meeting her when she was just 15-years-old.

Events