Russia's Lavrov meets North Korea's Kim, praises ties as ‘invincible brotherhood'
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Al Arabiya
2 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Bitcoin tops $120,000 for first time
Bitcoin crossed the $120,000 level for the first time on Monday, marking a milestone for the world's largest cryptocurrency as investors bet on long-sought policy wins for the industry this week. Bitcoin scaled a record high of $121,207.55 in the Asian session on Monday, before pulling back slightly to last trade 1.6 percent higher at $121,015.42. Starting on Monday, the US House of Representatives will debate a series of bills to provide the digital asset industry with the nation's regulatory framework it has long demanded. Those demands have resonated with US President Donald Trump, who has called himself the 'crypto president' and urged policymakers to revamp rules in favor of the industry. 'It's riding a number of tailwinds at the moment,' said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore, citing strong institutional demand, expectations of further gains and support from Trump as reasons for the bullishness. 'It's been a very, very, strong move over the past six or seven days and it's hard to see where it stops now; it looks like it can easily have a look at the $125,000 level,' he said. The surge in bitcoin, which is up 29 percent for the year so far, has sparked a broader rally across other cryptocurrencies over the past few sessions even in the face of Trump's chaotic tariffs. Ether, the second-largest token, scaled a more than five-month top of $3,050.90, while XRP and Solana gained about 3 percent each. The sector's total market value has swelled to about $3.78 trillion, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Earlier this month, Washington declared the week of July 14 as 'crypto week', where members of Congress are set to vote on the Genius Act, the Clarity Act, and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act. The most significant bill is the Genius Act, which would create federal rules for stablecoins. Elsewhere, prices of crypto-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in Hong Kong similarly surged. Spot bitcoin ETFs launched by China AMC, Harvest and Bosera all scaled record highs, while the three ether ETFs managed by the asset managers were up roughly 2 percent each.
Arab News
3 hours ago
- Arab News
South Korea medical students end 17-month class boycott
SEOUL: Thousands of South Korean medical students are set to return to classrooms after a 17-month boycott, an industry body said Monday, ending part of a standoff which also saw junior doctors strike. South Korean health care was plunged into chaos early last year when then-president Yoon Suk Yeol moved to sharply increase medical school admissions, citing an urgent need to boost doctor numbers to meet growing demand in a rapidly aging society. The initiative met fierce protest, prompting junior doctors to walk away from hospitals and medical students to boycott their classrooms, with operations canceled and service provision disrupted nationwide. The measure was later watered down, and the government eventually offered to scrap it in March 2025, after Yoon was impeached over his disastrous declaration of martial law. 'Students have agreed to return to school,' a spokesperson for the Korean Medical Association said Monday, adding that it was up to each medical school to decide the schedule for student returns. The Korean Medical Students' Association said in an earlier statement that the students had reached this decision because a continued boycott 'could cause the collapse of the fundamentals of medical systems.' Some 8,300 students are expected to return to school, but no specific timeline has been provided. Prime Minister Kim Min-seok welcomed the decision, calling it a 'big step forward' in a Facebook post Sunday, adding President Lee Jae Myung was deliberating ways to solve the issue. In addition to the student boycott, some 12,000 junior doctors went on strike last year – with the vast majority of them still declining to return to work. Lee – who took office in June after winning snap elections following Yoon's removal from office – had said on the campaign trail he would seek to resolve the medical strike. The increase in medical school admissions led to a record number of students re-taking the college entrance exam in November in a bid to capitalize on reforms that made it easier to get into coveted majors.
Al Arabiya
3 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Trump says US will send Patriot systems to Ukraine, hints at new Russia sanctions
President Donald Trump on Sunday said Washington would send Patriot air defense systems to Kyiv and hinted at new sanctions on Russia, once again voicing displeasure with Russian leader Vladimir Putin over Moscow's war in Ukraine. The US president's announcement of the much-needed weapons for Ukraine came after he earlier said he would make a 'major statement... on Russia' on Monday. The announcement could come amid a diplomatic flurry set for Monday, with the US special envoy starting his latest trip to Ukraine and Trump set to meet with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Washington. Moscow's offensive on Ukraine has lasted for more than three years, with attacks intensifying this summer and US-led negotiations so far yielding no results to end the fighting. 'We will send them Patriots, which they desperately need,' Trump said Sunday, without specifying how many weapons he would send to Ukraine. 'I haven't agreed on the number yet, but they're going to have some because they do need protection,' he told reporters at Joint Base Andrews, as he returned from watching the FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey. The White House has U-turned from an announcement earlier this month that it would pause some arms deliveries to Kyiv, instead announcing a new deal which would involve NATO paying the United States for some of the weapons it sends to Ukraine. 'We basically are going to send them various pieces of very sophisticated military and they're going to pay us 100 percent for them,' Trump said. 'It'll be business for us,' he added. Rutte's 10:00 am (1400 GMT) Oval Office meeting will be closed to media, and he is slated to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio as well. Earlier this week, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine was 'close to reaching a multi-level agreement on new Patriot systems and missiles for them.' Trump also repeated that he was 'disappointed' in Putin, as he grows increasingly exasperated with the Russian leader. 'Putin really surprised a lot of people. He talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening,' said the disgruntled Trump on Sunday. Last week, Trump accused Putin throwing 'bullshit' at Washington on Ukraine -- openly frustrated with the seeming impasse. When he first returned to the White House in January, Trump insisted he could work with the Russian leader to end the war, holding off on hiking sanctions unlike European allies. But Russia has for months refused a ceasefire proposed by the United States and Kyiv. Trump has repeatedly voiced displeasure with Putin in recent days, and on Sunday hinted he might finally be ready to toughen sanctions as momentum grows for a deterrent package in Congress. When asked about whether he would announce any sanctions against Russia, Trump responded: 'We're going to see what we will see tomorrow, OK?' and repeated plans to meet with Rutte. 'Sledgehammer' Earlier on Sunday, US senators touted a bipartisan bill that would arm Trump with 'sledgehammer' sanctions to use against Russia. The sanctions bill would allow Trump 'to go after Putin's economy, and all those countries who prop up the Putin war machine,' Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told broadcaster CBS news. It 'would give President Trump the ability to impose 500 percent tariffs on any country that helps Russia,' said Graham, adding that those could include economies that purchase Russian goods like China, India or Brazil. 'This is truly a sledgehammer available to President Trump to end this war,' said Graham. 'Without a doubt, this is exactly the kind of leverage that can bring peace closer and make sure diplomacy is not empty,' Zelensky said about the proposed bill in an X post. Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal were also due to meet NATO's Rutte on Monday night. Blumenthal told CBS news they would also discuss the legally thorny issue of unlocking frozen Russian assets in Europe and the United States for access by Ukraine. 'The $5 billion that the United States has also could be accessed, and I think it's time to do it,' said Blumenthal.
