Dutch prime minister steps down after populist leader Geert Wilders pulls plug on coalition
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RTÉ News
15-07-2025
- RTÉ News
Trump gives Russia 50 days to resolve Ukraine war or face sanctions
US President Donald Trump has told Russia to resolve its Ukraine war within 50 days or face massive new economic sanctions as he laid out plans for new infusions of weaponry for Kyiv. "We're very, very unhappy" with Russia, Mr Trump told reporters as he met with NATO chief Mark Rutte in the White House. "We're going to be doing very severe tariffs if we don't have a deal in 50 days, tariffs at about 100%," said Mr Trump, adding that they would be "secondary tariffs" that target Russia's remaining trade partners - thereby seeking to cripple Moscow's ability to survive already sweeping Western sanctions. Mr Trump and Mr Rutte also unveiled a deal under which the NATO military alliance would buy arms from the United States - including Patriot anti-missile batteries - and then distribute them to Ukraine to help it battle Russia's invasion. "This is billions of dollars worth of military equipment ... is going to be purchased from the United States, going to NATO ... and that's going to be quickly distributed to the battlefield," Mr Trump said. Mr Rutte, a former Dutch prime minister, said Ukraine would get "massive numbers" of weapons under the deal. Mr Trump launched a bid at rapprochement with Mr Putin shortly after starting his second term in January, as he sought to honour his election campaign promise to end the Ukraine war within 24 hours. His pivot towards Mr Putin sparked fears in Kyiv that he was about to sell out Ukraine, especially after Mr Trump and his team berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office in February. Trump expresses growing anger with Putin But Mr Trump has shown growing anger and frustration with Mr Putin in recent weeks as the Russian leader, instead of halting his three-year invasion, instead stepped up attacks. Mr Trump said of Mr Putin: "I don't want to say he's an assassin, but he's a tough guy." Last week, Mr Trump had teased an announcement on Russia. He then announced at the weekend that he would send vital Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine to help it fend off escalating barrages of Russian attacks. Washington has also U-turned from an announcement earlier this month that it would pause some arms deliveries to Kyiv. Mr Rutte's visit to the White House is the first since the former Dutch prime minister described Mr Trump as "daddy" at a NATO summit in The Hague last month. Moscow has unleashed record waves of drone and missile strikes over the past few weeks, with the number of Ukrainian civilians killed or wounded in June hitting a three-year high, according to UN figures. Mr Trump's announcement came as his special envoy Keith Kellogg arrived in Kyiv to meet Mr Zelensky. Mr Zelensky hailed the "productive meeting", saying they had discussed "strengthening Ukraine's air defence, joint production, and procurement of defence weapons in collaboration with Europe". The Ukrainian leader also said he was "grateful to President Trump for the important signals of support and the positive decisions for both our countries". Meanwhile, Russian forces said they had captured new territory in eastern Ukraine with the seizure of two villages, one in the Donetsk region and another in the Zaporizhzhia region. Its forces also killed at least three civilians in the eastern Kharkiv and Sumy regions, regional Ukrainian officials announced. In Kyiv, Mr Zelensky also proposed a major political shake-up, recommending economy minister Yulia Svyrydenko take over as the country's new prime minister.
Irish Examiner
11-07-2025
- Irish Examiner
Thousands gather to mark 30th anniversary of Srebrenica genocide
Thousands of people from Bosnia and around the world have gathered in Srebrenica to mark the 30th anniversary of a massacre there of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim boys and men. Seven newly identified victims of the 1995 massacre, including two 19-year-old men, were laid to rest in a collective funeral at a vast cemetery near Srebrenica on Friday, next to more than 6,000 victims already buried there. Such funerals are held annually for the victims who are still being unearthed from dozens of mass graves around the town. Relatives of the victims often can bury only partial remains of their loved ones as they are typically found in several different mass graves, sometimes kmiles apart. Such was the case of Mirzeta Karic, who was waiting to bury her father. A flower is seen on a monument with the names of those killed in the Srebrenica genocide,(Armin Durgut/AP) 'Thirty years of search and we are burying a bone,' she said, crying by her father's coffin which was wrapped in green cloth in accordance with Islamic tradition. 'I think it would be easier if I could bury all of him. What can I tell you, my father is one of the 50 (killed) from my entire family,' she added. July 11 1995 is the day when the killings started after Bosnian Serb fighters overran the eastern Bosnian enclave in the final months of the inter-ethnic war in the Balkan country. After taking control of the town that was a protected UN safe zone during the war, Bosnian Serb fighters separated Bosniak Muslim men and boys from their families and brutally executed them in several days. The bodies were then dumped in mass graves around Srebrenica which they later dug up with bulldozers, scattering the remains among other burial sites to hide the evidence of their war crimes. The UN General Assembly last year adopted a resolution to commemorate the Srebrenica genocide on the July 11 anniversary. Scores of international officials and dignitaries attended the commemoration ceremonies and the funeral. Among them were European Council President Antonio Costa and Britain's Duchess of Edinburgh, Sophie, who said that 'our duty must be to remember all those lost so tragically and to never let these things happen again'. Dutch foreign minister Caspar Veldkamp said he felt 'humbled' because UN troops from the Netherlands were based in Srebrenica when Bosnian Serbs stormed the town. People mourn during the funerals in Srebrenica (Armin Durgut/AP) 'I see to what extent commemorating Srebrenica genocide is important,' he said. In an emotional speech, Munira Subasic, who heads the Mothers of Srebrenica association, urged Europe and the world to 'help us fight against hatred, against injustice and against killings'. Ms Subasic, who lost her husband and youngest son in Srebrenica along with more than 20 relatives, told Europe to 'wake up.' 'As I stand here many mothers in Ukraine and Palestine are going through what we went through in 1995,' Ms Subasic said, referring to ongoing conflicts. 'It's the 21st century but instead of justice, fascism has woken up.' On the eve of the anniversary, an exhibition was inaugurated displaying personal items belonging to the victims that were found in the mass graves over the years. The conflict in Bosnia erupted in 1992, when Bosnian Serbs took up arms in a rebellion against the country's independence from the former Yugoslavia and with an aim to create their own state and eventually unite with neighbouring Serbia. More than 100,000 people were killed and millions displaced before a US-brokered peace agreement was reached in 1995.
Irish Independent
11-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Ireland backs Dutch bid for EU flexibility on manure as Derogation deadline looms
The Dutch government will seek backing from EU countries next week to loosen manure limits, as it faces mounting pressure from Brussels over nitrate pollution.
