Latest news with #conflict
Russia Today
42 minutes ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
The West waging ‘centuries-old war' against Moscow – Russia's top UN diplomat
Western nations are using Ukraine as their proxy in a longstanding confrontation with Russia that is deeply rooted in history, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia told RT's Rick Sanchez. In an interview on The Sanchez Effect aired on Friday, the diplomat argued that the conflict 'should be seen in a larger context.' 'They do not care about Ukraine. This is not a war between Russia and Ukraine,' Nebenzia said. 'Ukraine is a proxy in this war. This is a centuries-old war of the West against Russia, starting with the Polish invasion in the 17th century,' he added. As examples of earlier confrontations, Nebenzia cited Napoleon's invasion of Russia, the 1854–1856 Crimean War, Western military intervention during the Russian Civil War, and the invasion by Nazi Germany and its allies during World War II. He emphasized that Hitler's army included not only Germans, but also units drawn from allied countries and occupied territories. The Ukrainians and 'their sponsors' in the West sabotaged the 2014–2015 Minsk accords, which were aimed at ending the conflict between Kiev and the breakaway Donbass republics, the Russian diplomat said. Former French President Francois Hollande and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel later admitted the agreement was used by Kiev to buy time and rearm, Nebenzia stated. 'We are not going [to fall] into the same trap once again,' he said. He added that politicians like former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson similarly helped derail the 2022 peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine's European backers were forced to adjust their position, Nebenzia argued, after US President Donald Trump launched efforts to broker peace and Ukrainian troops began losing more ground. 'They changed their rhetoric from 'We should inflict strategic defeat on Russia' to 'Russia should not win in this war.' Now they are advocating for a full, immediate, and unconditional ceasefire, which is testimony that they want to shield and protect their proxy, as they are obviously losing on the battlefield,' he said. At the same time, Nebenzia noted that the resumption of direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations earlier this year provides hope that the conflict could be resolved soon.
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Trump saved Khamenei? ‘Disrespectful and unacceptable' claims, Iran says
Iran's foreign minister has condemned the 'disrespectful and unacceptable' comments from Donald Trump , after the US president claimed to have saved Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei from an 'ugly and ignominious death'. Advertisement 'If President Trump is genuine about wanting a deal, he should put aside the disrespectful and unacceptable tone towards Iran 's Supreme Leader, Grand Ayatollah Khamenei, and stop hurting his millions of heartfelt supporters,' Abbas Araghchi posted on his social media account on Saturday. 'The Great and Powerful Iranian People, who showed the world that the Israeli regime had NO CHOICE but to RUN to 'Daddy' to avoid being flattened by our Missiles, do not take kindly to Threats and Insults,' the foreign minister said. The United States carried out strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites last weekend, with no consensus as to how effective they were. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Photo: EPA-EFE With those strikes, Washington joined Israel 's bombardments of Iran's nuclear programme in the 12-day conflict launched on June 13.
The Independent
4 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Trump says Gaza ceasefire is possible within a week
President Donald Trump has suggested that a ceasefire in the Gaza could be reached within a week. The US president told reporters on Friday that he believed a ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed Hamas was close. Mr Trump's administration has been working on a deal after Israel shattered a two-month truce with Hamas by launching strikes in April. Weeks later, he voiced optimism a deal would be reached to stop the conflict and secure the release of more hostages. Interest in resolving the conflict has picked up steam this month after the US and Israeli bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities. A ceasefire to the 12-day Israel-Iran conflict went i nto effect early this week. On Friday, at an Oval Office event celebrating a Congo-Rwanda accord, Mr Trump said he had been just been talking to some of the people involved in trying to reach a cessation of hostilities in the Palestinian enclave. "I think it's close. I just spoke to some of the people involved," he said. "We think within the next week we're going to get a ceasefire." Hamas has said it is willing to free remaining hostages in Gaza under any deal to end the war, while Israel says it can only end if Hamas is disarmed and dismantled. Hamas refuses to lay down its arms. The war in Gaza was triggered when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Gaza's health ministry says Israel's post-October 7 military assault has killed over 56,000 Palestinians. Mr Trump's surprise prediction of a possible ceasefire deal in the coming days comes at a time when there have been few signs that the warring parties were ready to restart serious negotiations or budge from entrenched positions. A spokesperson for US special envoy Steve Witkoff's office said they had no information to share beyond Mr Trump's comments. Mr Witkoff helped former President Joe Biden's aides broker a ceasefire and hostage release agreement shortly before Mr Trump took office in January but the deal soon unravelled. The Israeli embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer plans to visit Washington starting on Monday for talks with Trump administration officials about Gaza, Iran and a possible White House visit by Israeli president Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a source familiar with the matter. Mr Netanyahu said on Thursday the outcome of Israel's war with Iran presented opportunities for peace that his country must not waste. "This victory presents an opportunity for a dramatic widening of peace agreements. We are working on this with enthusiasm," Netanyahu said in a statement.
CBS News
5 hours ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Trump says ceasefire in Gaza possible "within the next week"
President Trump said Friday he believes a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas is possible "within the next week." "I think it's close," Mr. Trump told reporters when asked about the prospect of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. "We think within the next week, we're going to get a ceasefire." The Trump administration has pushed for a pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas for weeks, but a deal has proven elusive so far. Israel and Hamas have not publicly commented on whether a deal is possible soon. Late last month, Mr. Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff proposed a 60-day ceasefire. Under that proposal, Hamas would release 10 living hostages and the remains of 18 dead hostages who were taken to Gaza during Hamas' 2023 attack on Israel, according to a copy obtained by CBS News. Israel would release 125 "life sentence" prisoners, 1,111 Palestinian detainees and 180 deceased Palestinians as part of the deal. Israel supported that proposal, but Hamas said it responded with "some notes and amendments." Witkoff called Hamas' response "totally unacceptable" in a May 31 post on X. The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas launched an attack on southern Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people and abducting about 250 hostages, many of whom have since been released. Israel responded with an invasion and intense aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip, killing over 56,000 people, according to figures from the territory's Hamas-run Health Ministry. Residents gather after the Israeli army targets a house belonging to the al-Sus family in the Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on June 27, 2025. Hassan Jedi/Anadolu via Getty Images Israel and Hamas have struck two ceasefire and hostage release deals since October 2023, the most recent of which — a 60-day pause in hostilities — ended in mid-March. Since then, the fighting has resumed. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced pressure from the families of some hostages to cut a deal to secure their release, but the Israeli leader said last month there is "no way" the war will end until Hamas is defeated, though he left open the possibility of a temporary truce to secure the release of more hostages. Separately, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.- and Israel-backed private aid group, began distributing food in the Gaza Strip earlier this month. But the group has been mired in controversy, with frequent reports of people shot by Israeli troops near distribution sites, leading the head of the United Nations' Palestinian refugee agency to call it a "death trap." The group has defended its efforts. Mr. Trump promoted the aid efforts Friday, saying, "we have a pretty good system now." Meanwhile, an unrelated ceasefire between Israel and Iran that began Tuesday appears to be holding, ending more than a week of fighting between the two archrivals.
BBC News
7 hours ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Trump says he would 'absolutely' consider bombing Iran again
US President Donald Trump has said he would "absolutely" consider bombing Iran to a question from the BBC's Nomia Iqbal at a White House press briefing, he said he would "without question" attack the country if intelligence concluded Iran could enrich uranium to concerning US became directly involved in the conflict between Israel and Iran last weekend, striking key nuclear sites with "bunker buster" bombs before Trump rapidly sought a ceasefire. In a speech on Thursday, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the strikes had achieved nothing significant, but on Friday Trump repeated his claim that the country's nuclear sites had been "obliterated". Iranian foreign minister admits serious damage to nuclear sitesHow a volatile 24 hours edged Iran and Israel to a ceasefireUS gained nothing from strikes, Iran's supreme leader says Posting on his social media platform Truth Social later on Friday, Trump said he knew "EXACTLY" where the ayatollah had been sheltering and that he had personally stopped Israeli and US armed forces from targeting is understood the Iranian leader was forced into hiding during his country's two-week war with Israel. All parties in the conflict have claimed victory, with the ayatollah telling Iranians that Israel and Iran had failed to disrupt the country's nuclear the country's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi later admitted "excessive and serious" damage was done to the country's nuclear sites by the recent US and Israeli bombings. Reacting to the ayatollah's comments, Trump repeated his assertions that Iran was "decimated"."Why would the so-called 'Supreme Leader' Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, of the war-torn country of Iran, say so blatantly and foolishly that he won the war with Israel, when he knows his statement is a lie," Trump added. Trump claimed he had been "working on the possible removal of sanctions" against Iran, but had decided to "immediately" drop all work on sanction relief after the ayatollah released his statement of "anger, hatred and disgust". Iran has always insisted its nuclear programme is only intended for civilian latest conflict between Israel and Iran started when Israel launched attacks on Iranian nuclear sites and military infrastructure, with a number of nuclear scientists and military commanders killed. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that "if not stopped, Iran could produce a nuclear weapon in a very short time".CBS News, the BBC's US partner, reported the White House had been considering a range of options to entice Iran back to the negotiating table, including facilitating funding for a civilian, non-enrichment, nuclear Iran has denied it is set to resume nuclear talks with the US, after Trump said at a Nato summit in the Hague on Wednesday that negotiations were set to begin again next health ministry said 610 people were killed during the 12 days of air attacks, while Israeli authorities said 28 were killed in Israel.
