Latest news with #Trump-brokered
The Herald Scotland
17 hours ago
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Ukraine-Russia war: Who's winning now and what could happen next
In the past month, Russian military units concentrated in Ukraine's Sumy region, which borders Russia in the northeast, the eastern cities of Pokrovsk and Kostyantynivka, and Zaporizhzhia in the south, have gained about 200 square miles, according to data from the war study institute. That's an area a little larger than the size of Atlanta. Does that mean Russia is prevailing? Not really. It's not that simple. Here's the latest on Russia's war in Ukraine. Why is Russia gaining ground in Ukraine? Ukraine has liberated about 7% of the territory Russia occupied before and after Moscow's full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to Ukrainian estimates and DeepState. That leaves about 19% still in Russian hands. Moscow still controls Crimea, which it annexed in 2014, and about two-thirds of Ukraine's Donetsk region, a vast and heavily industrialized region which remains the center of the ground war. Russia has long had the upper hand in the war in terms of military manpower, but analysts say Moscow has suffered more casualties, and its loss of equipment - vehicles, artillery, tanks - also has been at a higher rate than Ukraine's. Though Russia has been advancing in recent months, those gains have been relatively slow and small, amounting to less than 0.1% of Ukraine's territory in July, according to a manual calculation. Still, one reason Russia may have been able to make progress, according to the war study institute, is that Russia has substantially increased its use of drone attacks, and missiles and shells, on Ukraine. These grew at an average monthly rate of 31% in June and July. Russia has been using drones to pin down Ukrainian troops. No, then yes, to more American weapons for Ukraine. Why? President Donald Trump began his second term promising to end the war in Ukraine in his first 24 hours in office. He quickly halted the flow of military aid to Kyiv and temporarily stopped sharing some intelligence. He also cast blame on Ukraine for the war, giving President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a public dressing down in the Oval Office when he tried to push back on that assertion and counter Trump by saying Putin was not a reliable negotiator. Since then, the leaders have revised their stances and welcomed more nuance in their discussions. The war is still raging. Trump has appeared to change his tune on Ukraine and Putin as the Russian leader has pushed forward with drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities and repeatedly rebuffed Trump's attempts to broker a ceasefire. In early July, Trump said he would resume shipping arms to Ukraine. He also announced a new arrangement with NATO that will see the military alliance transfer advanced U.S.-made air defense systems to Kyiv. He also altered his attitude about the Russian leader. "He's very nice to us all the time," Trump said July 9. "But it turns out to be meaningless." What about the diplomacy? Two rounds of Trump-brokered ceasefire talks between Ukraine and Russia have come to nothing. As the relationship between Putin and Trump has soured, a broad coalition of U.S. lawmakers has lined up ready to place new aggressive sanctions on Russia. Trump also has threatened "severe" economic penalties on Moscow if it does not commit to a ceasefire by early September. The Kremlin has dismissed this as "bluster." The Russian government has suggested that Trump and Putin could meet in Beijing in September when Russia's leader is there for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. Moscow said it had not heard whether Trump plans to attend. The White House has not commented. But there's little doubt Moscow, for now, is on the back foot geopolitically, and perhaps even militarily. Zelenskyy and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot announced in Kyiv a series of manufacturing deals with French companies on July 21 that will launch drone production in Ukraine. Overnight, Russia launched its latest barrage of drones and missiles at Kyiv. But Ukraine is also fighting back in ways increasingly difficult for Moscow to ignore. Videos published by Russian media showed people sleeping on the floor of Sheremetyevo, Russia's busiest airport, amid long lines and canceled flights after Ukraine bombarded it with drones.
New York Post
09-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Trump says he's ‘not too big into' sunbathing as he shrugs off Iranian threat of poolside assassination
WASHINGTON — President Trump brushed off an Iranian official's threat to assassinate him using a drone as he tans at Mar-a-Lago — saying he hasn't sunbathed in years. 'It's been a long time. I don't know, maybe I was around seven or so. I'm not too big into it,' the president told reporters at the White House Wednesday. 'I guess it's a threat. I'm not sure it's a threat, actually, but perhaps it is.' Advertisement Javad Larijani, a senior adviser to Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamanei, told Iranian state TV that Trump, 79, could face retribution for bombing three key nuclear sites last month in support of an Israeli mission to prevent the Islamic republic from developing nuclear weapons. President Trump said he's unlikely to be caught sunbathing after an Iranian official threatened a drone attack. REUTERS 'Trump has done something so that he can no longer sunbathe in Mar-a-Lago,' Larijani said. Advertisement 'As he lies there with his stomach to the sun, a small drone might hit him in the navel. It's very simple.' Trump, who frequently soaks up the sun while golfing on weekends, is reputed to favor spray-tanning. Tehran agreed to a Trump-brokered cease-fire with Israel nearly 48 hours after the US strikes and has not meaningfully retaliated, other than by firing a symbolic volley of missiles at a US airbase in Qatar, for which it provided advance notice allowing for evacuation and interception. Iran allegedly tried to assassinate Trump previously as payback for the US leader's 2020 assassination of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani with an airstrike in Iraq. Advertisement Iran's political leaders have not meaningfully retaliated for US airstrikes last month. REUTERS The Justice Department in November charged Farhad Shakeri, who remains at large, for allegedly working with Iran to monitor and murder Trump. Two alleged conspirators, Carlisle Rivera of Brooklyn and Jonathan Loadholt of Staten Island, were arrested. An Iranian-made video from 2022 depicted Trump being assassinated on a golf course, with the film reportedly winning Khamanei's animation contest for work 'on the topic of revenge on Trump [and other] murderers of Gen. #Soleimani.'
News18
07-07-2025
- Politics
- News18
Israeli Officials Think Trump Could Give Nod To Another Military Strike In Iran: Report
Donald Trump is all set to host Benjamin Netanyahu for closed-door meeting, during which path forward on the Iranian nuclear crisis will be a primary topic, according to a report. US President Donald Trump could give a nod to Israel to carry out renewed attacks on Iran if Tehran attempts to revive its nuclear programme, which took a severe hit in the 12-day war with the Jewish country, according to a report. Though the Trump-brokered ceasefire was reached on June 24, Israel is preparing for the possibility of further military strikes if Iran tries to get its nuclear programme back on track, Axios reported citing two sources. This comes as Trump is all set to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday evening in a closed-door meeting, in which the path forward on the Iranian nuclear crisis will be a primary topic. During the meeting, Netanyahu aims to reach an understanding with Trump about future plans of the United States regarding its negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme, and on possible scenarios that would justify renewed military action in its enemy country, Axios reported, citing Israeli officials. Netanyahu's top adviser, Ron Dermer, told officials in private meetings he got a sense during his recent trip to Washington that the Trump administration would support new Israeli attacks on Iran, but only in certain situations, the report said, citing sources. The report cited three scenarios for the same to happen: One scenario would be if Iran attempts to remove the highly enriched uranium inside the nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan, which were heavily damaged in the US strikes on June 22, sources told Axios. Another would be if Iran start reviving its nuclear programme, mainly its enrichment facilities. Israeli officials say that Dermer met last week with Vice President Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and White House envoy Steve Witkoff. Since the end of the 12-day war, Trump has said it twice that the US may strike Iran again if the latter restores uranium enrichment. However, he has also mentioned that he wants a peaceful agreement through talks in order to avoid any future conflict. One important topic in Dermer's meetings was Iran's supply of highly enriched uranium. This includes 400 kg of uranium enriched to 60%, while uranium needs to be enriched to about 90% to be used for making nuclear weapons. top videos View All According to Israeli and US officials, Iran's uranium is currently 'sealed off" inside its three nuclear facilities that were damaged in the US strikes with bunker-buster bombs. Both nations believe that the sites were badly damaged in the attacks, but not all of the nuclear material or equipment was destroyed, the report said. About the Author Ashesh Mallick Location : Israel First Published:
Business Insider
26-06-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Steve Hanke tells BI investors are shrugging off serious risks — and Trump is causing historic uncertainty
Investors are brushing off the Iran-Israel conflict as another brief distraction on the road to fresh highs. Steve Hanke thinks their complacency could prove costly. The professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University told Business Insider that Israel has been directly or indirectly tied to seven of the 19 major geopolitical events since 1950. Only one of those incidents — the Arab-Israeli War in 1973 — caused "lasting damage" that still weighed on stocks a year later, he said. "So, what's happening now suggests that investors believe that history is a guide," Hanke said. "They see signs of danger, but somehow think that they will escape, as they have in the past. I'm not so sure that they are right." The flagship US stock index, the S&P 500, has rallied almost 2% since June 13, the day that Israel attacked Iranian nuclear and military sites. It closed at nearly 6,100 points on Wednesday, putting it within touching distance of a record high. The rebound came despite the US bombing three Iranian nuclear facilities on Sunday, and Israel and Iran accusing each other of breaking a Trump-brokered ceasefire this week. Hanke, a former economic advisor to President Ronald Reagan, was the president of Toronto Trust Argentina when it was the world's best-performing market mutual fund in 1995. He co-authored a book published in May titled "Making Money Work: How to Rewrite the Rules of our Financial System." The veteran economist and commodity trader flagged several risks that investors appear to be shrugging off. Middle Eastern conflicts and the Russia-Ukraine war were still "up in the air," and neo-conservatives "have their sights aimed at China," he said. "If that wasn't bad enough, the Trump administration is engaged not only in a tariff war but in a multitude of dramatic policy changes that have created what I termed ' regime uncertainty,'" Hanke said. Hanke was describing a situation where individuals, investors, businesses, and other entities are so unsure of regulations, future government policies, and how the economy will fare that they delay long-term planning or investment. "We have not witnessed regime uncertainty since Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the New Dealers in the 1930s," Hanke said. "So, the current context is quite different than the other 19 geopolitical crisis episodes." Put differently, investors should be wary of assuming the stock market will swiftly rebound from this geopolitical shock as it has from many others, given just how uncertain the world is right now.
Indian Express
25-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Israel-Iran ceasefire: A fragile pause
Notwithstanding its fragility, the ceasefire between Israel and Iran is a promising development. When the US bombed Iran's nuclear facilities on June 22, a big concern was the absence of an off-ramp — a face-saver for Iran, after which de-escalation could become a serious possibility. Yet, US President Donald Trump's declaration of a ceasefire came just hours after Iran announced a missile attack on a US base in Qatar. Remarkably, the US President thanked Iran on social media for giving advance notice — a move he claimed helped avoid the loss of any Qatari or American lives. While tensions between Washington and Tehran appear to be easing, the actual signatories of the Trump-brokered deal have continued to exchange fire. Each belligerent, however, may now have a victory story to sell to its domestic audience: The US has said it has 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear programme, Israel can say it has weakened a major regional adversary, and Iran can say it pushed back against stronger countries. Even though both Iran and Israel have confirmed it, the future of the ceasefire remains uncertain. Both Tel Aviv and Tehran would do well to consider the high costs of failing to contain the conflict. Iran, in particular, has suffered extensive losses — its air force and air defences have been severely damaged, oil depots burned, and key military leadership eliminated. Though Tehran refrained from closing the Strait of Hormuz, the global economy remains hostage to the stability of the region. With Gaza still under siege, a failure to de-escalate risks the conflict spilling into neighbouring countries like Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq, potentially fuelling a rise in militancy and extremism. A surge in displacement and refugee flows would deepen instability in a world strained by wars in Africa and Eastern Europe. The case for peace could hardly be stronger. In the long term, Iran should prioritise transparency and diplomacy over clandestine activities with respect to its nuclear programme. In light of how easily its air defences were overwhelmed, the worst scenario is that Iran — like North Korea — may now conclude that the best way to protect itself is a nuclear deterrent. Israel, on its part, should resort to diplomacy, and not military adventurism, to have its security concerns addressed in any lasting way.
