Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy shakes up government with Svyrydenko as PM
Svyrydenko posted that she would pursue deregulation, cut back bureaucracy, protect business and reduce non-critical expenditure to achieve the 'full concentration of state resources' for defence and post-war recovery. 'The state apparatus has no right to waste the resources and potential of our country,' she said. 'Ukraine deserves to be among the strongest economies in Europe.' The nominations require parliamentary approval.
It comes as Donald Trump confirms he will authorise billions of dollars' worth of US military supplies to Ukraine including defensive Patriot missiles and the launcher systems, known as batteries, that fire them. The US president and the Nato secretary general, Mark Rutte, met and announced Ukraine's European allies would pay for the equipment, with some drawn immediately from their existing stockpiles and then replaced.
Trump had promised a major announcement on Russia on Monday, but apart from the weapons announcement he gave Vladimir Putin another 50 days to make a peace deal. After that, 'we're going to be doing very severe tariffs', the president said, referring to 'secondary tariffs' that would target Russia's remaining trade partners. The US senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal praised Trump's 'powerful' move. However, they have a sanctions bill ready to go through the US Congress in short order, whereas Trump's announcement represents a further prevarication on taking tough action against Putin and his trade partners, among whom the senators singled out 'China, India and Brazil, that prop up Putin's war machine'.
A retired US army officer who worked as a civilian for the air force has pleaded guilty to conspiring to transmit classified information about Russia's war with Ukraine on a foreign online dating platform. David Slater, 64, who had top secret clearance, pleaded guilty to a single count in exchange for two other counts being dropped. He is due to be sentenced on 8 October with prosecutors and his lawyers agreeing he should serve between five years and 10 months and seven years and three months in prison, with the government recommending the low end of that range.
Russian drones killed two people on Monday in Ukraine's southern Kherson region. The governor, Oleksander Prokudin, said a woman was killed in the region's main town, also known as Kherson, and a man died in an area north of the city along the Dnipro River.
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Reuters
10 minutes ago
- Reuters
Tariff 'doom loop' hangs over global equities
ORLANDO, Florida, July 15 (Reuters) - The astonishing rebound in stocks since early April largely reflects investors' bet that U.S. President Donald Trump won't follow through on his tariff threats. But the market's very resilience may encourage the president to push forward, which could be bad news for equities in both the U.S. and Europe. Investors appear to believe that the April 2 "reciprocal" tariffs were mostly a tactic to bring countries to the negotiating table, and Washington's levies will end up being much lower than advertised. Tariffs may end up much higher than they were before Trump's second term began, but the situation will still be better than the worst-case scenarios initially priced in after Trump's so-called "Liberation Day". Monday's equity moves were a case in point. Trump's threat on Saturday to impose 30% levies on imports from the European Union and Mexico - two of America's largest trading partners - was met with a collective market shrug. European and Mexican stocks dipped a bit, but Wall Street closed in the green and the Nasdaq hit a new high. This follows threats in recent days to place a 50% tariff rate on goods imported from Brazil and a 35% levy on goods from Canada not covered under the USMCA agreement. Brazilian stocks have slipped 5%, but Canadian stocks have hit new peaks. The question now is whether the line between complacency and the "TACO" trade - the bet that "Trump always chickens out" - is getting blurred. The scale of the recovery since April 7 is truly eye-popping. It took the S&P 500 less than three months to move from the April bear market lows to a new all-time high, as Charlie Bilello, chief market strategist at Creative Planning, recently noted on X. This was the second-fastest recovery in the last 75 years, only bested by the bear market recovery in 1982 that took less than two months. On a 12-month forward earnings basis, the S&P 500 index is now near its highest level in years and well above its long-term average. The tech sector, which has propelled the rally, has rarely been more expensive in the last quarter century either. None of that means further gains cannot materialize, and one could argue that the valuations are justified if AI truly delivers the promised world-changing productivity gains. Regardless, it is hard to argue that the rally since April is not rooted in the belief that tariffs will be significantly lower than the levels announced on Liberation Day. If many countries' levies do end up around 10% like Britain's and the aggregate rate settles around 15%, then equity pricing might very well be reasonable. But if that's not the case, growth forecasts will likely have to be revised a lot lower. "We stay overweight U.S. stocks, but don't rule out more sharp near-term market moves. Uncertainty on who will bear tariff costs means yet more dispersion in returns – and more opportunity to earn alpha, or above-benchmark returns," BlackRock Investment Institute analysts wrote on Monday. One concern is that a loop is potentially being created, whereby Wall Street's resilience and strength in the face of heightened trade uncertainty actually emboldens Trump to double down on tariffs. Most analysts still believe cooler heads will prevail, however. Trump's tolerance for equity and bond market stress, and therefore U.S. economic pain, appears "limited", according to Barclays. But if markets have gotten too complacent and Trump does increase tariffs on EU goods to 30%, potential retaliation would risk a repeat of something similar to the post-Liberation Day selloff, sending European equities down by double digits, Barclays warns. It may also be that when it comes to tariffs, investors are focusing so intently on China that not much else moves the dial. This may be short-sighted though. China accounted for 13.4% of U.S. goods imports last year, the lowest in 20 years. In contrast, the U.S. imported $605.7 billion of goods from the European Union, or 18.6% of all imports and the most from any single jurisdiction. As Trump sees it, Europe is "ripping off" America almost as much as China. Bilateral U.S.-China trade last year totaled $582 billion, compared with bilateral U.S.-EU trade flows of $975 billion, U.S. Census data shows. America's $235.9 billion goods deficit with the EU was smaller than its $295.5 billion gaps with China, but that's still comfortably America's second-biggest trade deficit. If Trump doesn't back down in his standoff with Europe, Wall Street might have to. (The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters)
Telegraph
10 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Those demanding a ceasefire know nothing about the evil of Hamas
Despite predictions, a ceasefire in Gaza was not agreed while Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, was in Washington. The reason is clear: Hamas is making demands that Israel cannot possibly accept. This from a terrorist organisation that has been ripped apart in 20 months of fighting, having recently witnessed its primary sponsor, Iran, humbled to the point of impotence. Yet Hamas still thinks it is Israel that must surrender. It's like the Nazis calling on Eisenhower to pull back as the Allies crossed the Rhine in 1945. So what does Hamas want? The complete withdrawal of the IDF from Gaza and a guarantee that the war will permanently end, terms that have remained throughout the war. Despite the extent to which Israel has written it down, Hamas still remains a dangerous terrorist organisation with thousands of armed killers on the books. Of course the IDF can't withdraw in the face of that. As for a complete end to the war, Netanyahu has said he is willing to begin negotiations for a permanent cessation immediately any ceasefire begins. His terms are that Hamas must disarm, Gaza must be demilitarised and Hamas can no longer maintain any governing or military capability. One option might be for the remaining Hamas terrorists to leave, even with their weapons, and I am sure arrangements for that have already been made should they agree to it. If Netanyhu's conditions are not achieved through negotiation – and what are the chances of that? – Israel will have to go straight back to the fight after any ceasefire. Some have suggested Trump would not allow that. But we heard the same thing during the last two Gaza ceasefires. Remember how the experts thought Trump would never permit Israel to attack Iran and certainly would not join in? The reality was that Netanyahu and Trump were in complete lockstep and I suspect the same is true now over Gaza. Another of Hamas's truculent demands is ending aid delivery by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US and Israel-backed organisation that has been distributing food directly to Gazans. They want all aid to be brought in by the UN and its affiliates. Of course they do: they can sway and exploit the UN. They can't control the GHF, which currently delivers the lion's share of all aid, bypassing the terrorists. It is telling that the GHF is such a major issue for Hamas. That's because it's work has been helping to break their stranglehold over the population. So what makes Hamas think it still has the muscle to dictate terms to the side that is so obviously winning the fight? It knows it is no longer popular among the citizens of Gaza. There have been some protests that were brutally smashed down. During a recent visit to the Strip I met around 100 Gazan civilians. Many of them openly told me how much they hate Hamas and want rid of them. So strong was their feeling, cheered by those around them, that I believe it's likely they are representative. The dreadful truth is that Hamas gets greater encouragement to continue fighting from widespread support in the West and the misguided and unjust condemnation of Israel from many political leaders and international institutions. How often do we hear people such as Keir Starmer demanding Israel stops fighting yet never making any demand on Hamas? The same is true of attitudes to the GHF. Starmer has also condemned them, as has the UN Secretary General, both speaking in unison with Hamas. And of course it is received wisdom in the West that the population must in no circumstances leave Gaza. Yet that would be the most humane option and should have happened long ago. The majority of Gazans I spoke to said they want to leave as soon as possible. That's hardly surprising given the misery, bloodshed and destruction brought on them by Hamas's war. Acquiescing with their wishes is obvious. But many in the international community apparently would rather civilians be further endangered than voluntarily and temporarily evacuated. Again, they and Hamas almost speak with one voice. Our leaders have helped to prolong the war and increase the killing. Instead of looking to reward terrorism by recognising a putative Palestinian state, Macron, Starmer and the rest should be helping to make Hamas give up hope and demand a ceasefire followed by a negotiated end to hostilities on Israel's terms.
Edinburgh Reporter
11 minutes ago
- Edinburgh Reporter
Shops across Edinburgh still selling single use vapes despite ban
Shops across the Capital are still selling single use vapes – over a month after they were banned across the country. The Local Democracy Reporting Service was able to buy seven at sites around the city, with many shops still carrying them in public view. Many shop workers acknowledged they were illegal to sell when asked by an undercover reporter, with one saying customers sought them out because they 'liked the taste'. Others said they were working on clearing out stock, while a handful pled ignorance, saying they did not know the vapes were illegal. The ban was brought in on 1 June of this year by the Scottish Government over public health and environmental well-being grounds. We bought seven vapes at shops across Edinburgh | Image via Joe Sullivan, Disposable vapes come in a range of flavours | Image via Joe Sullivan, Similar bans came into effect in England, Wales and Northern Ireland on the same day, with the Scottish ban delayed by two months to line up the start date nationwide. It had been announced in Scotland in early 2024, giving manufacturers and retailers time to adapt to the change. To be legal, vapes need to be rechargeable, and have the ability for the vape liquid and heating elements inside to be replaced. Vape manufacturers have responded by creating new lines of products that visibly resemble their old disposable ones, but which feature charging ports and disposable pods that contain liquid and new heating elements. Local authorities have been tasked with enforcing the ban – though a council report in May said the city's trading standards team would need more resources to investigate disposable vapes without reducing their other services. Having seen several stores appearing to stock disposable vapes weeks after the ban came into effect we carried out test purchasing at sites across the city. At one popular city centre retailer, we asked if the store had any disposable vapes on hand. A cashier obliged, and took out ten disposable vapes, laying them out on the counter for us to take our pick. He acknowledged that they were illegal, but said that customers seemed to prefer the taste of the old disposable units over the refillable equivalents many companies have released. He said: 'The only difference is the battery. But people still want these, they like the taste I think.' The vape we bought there, a Higo Crystal bar, lacks a charging port or a way to replace the liquid inside, making it illegal under the new law. Returning a couple days later, the same shopkeeper denied he sold us the vape, and said the shop did not stock or carry ones not compliant with the ban. At a Southside convenience store, we were able to ask for a cola-flavoured Elf Bar right off the shelf without issue. When asked if the vape was illegal, the cashier there confirmed it was. He said the store was working on clearing out its stock, and that refills for the newer vapes were hard to obtain. He continued on to say: 'People don't care [whether the vape is disposable], they're the same. The law is pointless without having the refills.' The story was the same at another two city centre newsagents, where we were able to buy a disposable peach ice SKE bar and a disposable cherry cola Elf Bar. One shopkeeper there told us: 'The [refill] pods are hard to get. Our supplier doesn't stock them, we can't buy them.' The issue of what is legal and illegal was one which seemed to be causing some shopkeepers trouble. At another city centre newsagent we were able to purchase a pineapple peach mango Elf Bar – and when asked if it was compliant with the ban, the shopkeeper seemed to believe it was, telling us, 'you can change the pods'. He was confused when we removed the vape from its packaging, and pointed out that it had no charger or removable refill pods. When we went back to the shop, a different shop worker also thought the vape was legal, saying they had received the non-compliant Elf Bars as part of a shipment two weeks ago. We were also able to buy non-compliant vapes at two more shops in the city, with both stocking them quite openly. All seven stores were asked for comment, however none had responded by time of publication. At each store we asked for a receipt, however most declined to provide them, with some saying they were out of receipt paper and others providing no explanation as to why one could not be given. The Local Democracy Reporting Service has now passed its dossier of evidence on to Edinburgh Council's trading standards team, who are investigating. We also checked some chain supermarkets for vapes – and managed to find one, the Sainsbury's on Shandwick Place – stocking disposable ones. However, when a cashier tried to ring up the vape, his terminal would not allow him to scan the product. He then cleared the remaining disposable vapes from the shelf behind him. A spokesperson for Sainsbury's said the firm took its 'role as a responsible retailer very seriously', and that it ensures all its stores are compliant with the ban. A spokesperson for the Scottish Government said: 'Local authorities are responsible for enforcement of the single use vape ban. Day to day enforcement activities are carried out by Trading standards officers employed by each Local Authority. 'The Scottish Government remains in contact with regulators and the other UK nations regarding any compliance and enforcement issues.' Alexandra Connell, chair of the Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland, said that trading standards teams need more support in order to tackle the ban. She said: 'We are a small profession. We [already] have an awful lot of other work that's equally important that we have to get out and do. 'The Scottish Government have identified some monies to help us with enforcement of it. But the mechanisms for how that money gets to us isn't particularly clear [yet]. 'And it's a small pot. Divided between 32 local authorities, it means everybody gets a very small pot of money. 'What we really need is to be properly resourced. We need to recognise that we actually have a huge remit. 'And our remit seems to be getting bigger, we have new burdens, but as I say, we are a small profession.' Ms Connell said that trading standards officers often had to prioritise investigating products with the most harm, such as counterfeit or defective children's toys, over enforcement of other products. She also said stopping disposable vapes at the border might be a more cost-effective solution than having council trading standards officers remove them from individual stores. According to her, investigating vapes that aren't compliant with the ban is an expensive and time consuming process. She says trading standards officers need extensive training to identify illegal vapes. And, they sometimes need to take vapes apart, as some will appear to feature charging ports but lack a rechargeable battery. The process of getting rid of disposable vapes is also challenging – due to their lithium batteries, they need to be appropriately recycled, which does not always come cheap. A spokesperson for Edinburgh Council said: 'Single use disposable vaping devices became illegal on 1 June, and any business still offering these for sale is committing a criminal offence. 'Trading Standards Officers may seize the items, issue Fixed Penalty notices or submit reports to the Procurator Fiscal. 'The Trading Standards team will respond to any complaints or reports of non-compliance, which can be sent to [email protected] or reported via Advice Direct Scotland.' By Joseph Sullivan Local Democracy Reporter Like this: Like Related
