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Former Greater Manchester Mayor and newly elected Makerfield MP Andy Burnham addresses members and supporters of the Labour Party after he won the Makerfield by-election, at…
Former US President Barack Obama speaks during the dedication ceremony for the opening of the Barack Obama Presidential Center in John Lewis Plaza Thursday in Chicago.…
Switzerland has announced the postponement of talks that were scheduled to take place today between the United States and Iran at the Burgenstock mountain resort, without setting a new date.Swiss Foreign Ministry spokesman Nicolas Bidault said that his country remains fully committed to its efforts to promote dialogue, emphasizing that Switzerland stands ready to facilitate any future meetings.The announcement came after US Vice President JD Vance delayed a planned visit to Switzerland today, as part of talks related to implementing the memorandum of understanding signed between Washington and Tehran.The United States and Iran signed the memorandum of understanding electronically on Wednesday, aiming to end the military escalation that began on February 28. Source link
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, in two separate phone calls, with his counterparts from Iran and Pakistan Abbas Araghchi and Mohammad Ishaq Dar, discussed regional developments following the signing of the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran.In a statement released on Friday, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said that Abdelatty emphasized to his Iranian counterpart the crucial importance of this step in reducing tensions and preventing further escalation and instability in the region, hoping that the MoU would become a significant turning point in supporting security and stability in the region.For his part, the Iranian Foreign Minister expressed his country’s appreciation for the role Egypt played over the past months in helping to bring viewpoints closer and overcome challenges that hindered the negotiation process, thus contributing to creating the favorable conditions for reaching the MoU.In the other call, the Egyptian Foreign Minister and his Pakistani counterpart stressed the significance of continued coordination and consultation in the coming period to ensure the implementation of the MoU and to reach a final and sustainable agreement that takes into account the interests and concerns of all parties and strengthens diplomatic solutions, thereby achieving security and stability in the region. Source link
Talks that had been planned for today between the United States and Iran at the Burgenstock mountaintop resort in Switzerland will not take place, according to a Swiss foreign ministry statement. The announcement came after a White House spokesperson said overnight that U.S. Vice President JD Vance had pulled out of a planned trip to meet Iranian negotiators in Switzerland on Friday to begin talks on implementing an agreement struck Source link
Thick plumes of smoke with flames rise from an oil refinery following what the authorities say is a Ukrainian drone strike, in Moscow, Thursday. (Reuters) Ukraine Thursday launched its largest drone attack on Moscow in years, sparking fires, hitting a major oil refinery and forcing evacuations at the country’s largest airport.Russia vowed to retaliate for the attack as AFP reporters saw dramatic scenes of black smoke billowing over the capital’s southern skyline and drops of black rain mixed with soot falling from the sky.At least 17 people were wounded in the strikes, which also set a shopping centre and apartment building ablaze, authorities said.The attack came as Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted Southeast Asian leaders at a summit in the central city of Kazan, about 700 kilometres (435 miles) east of Moscow.The Russian leader was yet to comment on the strikes, despite issuing delivering press statements through the day, though his Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov vowed Moscow would retaliate with its own “massive” strikes on Ukraine.Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky said the attack was an “absolutely justified response” to deadly strikes on Kyiv — including one earlier this week on a landmark cathedral and a Unesco-protected 11th-century monastery.He said he wanted Russians to put pressure on Putin for the consequences of Europe’s worst conflict since World War II.”The main thing is that the people of Russia begin to feel that it is one man, Putin, who is waging this war, while ordinary people pay the price for everything,” Zelensky told reporters, including AFP.”If Ukraine is going to burn, your Moscow will burn too,” he added.Moscow has hit Ukraine with daily barrages of missiles and drones.Airport closures It was the second time this month that Kyiv launched a major attack during an international summit, after striking Saint Petersburg at the start of a landmark economic forum near the city.Moscow’s airports were shut for hours, leading to hundreds of flight delays.The country’s busiest — Sheremetyevo — announced it had evacuated passengers to “safe locations” during the barrage, before it re-opened at around 11:00am (0800 GMT).Konstantin, walking near the refinery in the southeastern Kapotnya district, told AFP he had “never seen anything like it”.Valentina, a 29-year-old manager said she was woken up by the noise.”It’s really scary,” she told AFP, walking in the park with her daughter, the huge column of smoke behind them.Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said that “several drones” had reached the Moscow oil refinery, without specifying damage to the facility.Authorities announced they had closed traffic on streets nearby.Another drone crashed into an apartment building, while drone debris sparked a fire at a shopping centre near the capital’s suburbs.One social media video showed smoke pouring from the upper floors of an apartment block, while a woman behind the camera could be heard weeping in distress.’Long-range sanctions’ Russian air defences shot down around 180 drones on approach to Moscow, Sobyanin said, while the defence ministry reported it had intercepted more than 500 Ukrainian drones across the entire country overnight.Kyiv has stepped up its drone strikes on Russia in recent months — calling them “long-range sanctions” and hitting oil refineries that fund Moscow’s war chest.It was the second Ukrainian strike on the Moscow refinery this week.Diplomatic talks on ending the more than four-year conflict remain stalled.”It is time the war ended, and Russia must take the necessary steps in diplomacy,” Zelensky said after the strike.Russia also launched more than 200 drones and multiple ballistic missiles at Ukraine between late Wednesday and early Thursday, according to the Ukrainian air force.AFP reporters in Kyiv saw people rushing to shelters in the early hours after air defence blasts rocked over the Ukrainian capital.Putin in Kazan In the hours following the attack, Putin posed for a photo with leaders at a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in Kazan and made no mention of the strike in his opening remarks to the forum.Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia and Singapore sent their prime ministers to Kazan, while the Philippines sent President Ferdinand Marcos.Putin has long sought to project stability in Russia, despite the economic and social effects of his four-year offensive on Ukraine.But a recent spate of attacks has forced the Kremlin to respond.After Kyiv launched similar attacks on Saint Petersburg earlier this month, the Russian leader promised to bolster air defences.US leader Donald Trump this week said Moscow should “make a deal” to end the Ukraine war. …
US President Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, revealed that Iran will invite the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to inspect its nuclear facilities and begin work on identifying and disclosing the locations of enriched materials possessed by Tehran.This came during a special briefing by Witkoff to congressional leaders and members of the committees concerned with national security.Witkopf explained that a side letter from Tehran to IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, extending this invitation and allowing him to bring US nuclear inspectors to Tehran, has been drafted.It is worth noting that the head of the UN’s IAEA agency welcomed the signing of the memorandum of understanding between Iran and the United States earlier today.Referring to the published text of the memorandum, he said that recognizing the indispensable role of the IAEA is a sound starting point, stressing that the time has come to sit down with the Americans and Iranians to begin formulating the concrete steps that need to be taken, as well as to begin the technical work. Related Story Source link
The United Kingdom says it is no longer advising against non-essential travel to some Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait. In late February and early March, it had issued warnings against non-essential travel to the region after the start of the war. In its updated travel advice, the British Foreign Office noted the signing of the interim agreement, but added that the situation remained unpredictable and that “attacks could resume at short notice”. Related Story Source link
The United States and Iran have signed a memorandum of understanding to end the war between the two sides, which began on February 28.Sources from both sides confirmed that the US and Iran signed the MoU electronically on Wednesday, indicating that the agreement has already entered into force.In Tehran, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson stated that the meeting scheduled for Friday in Switzerland is not intended for signing the agreement, explaining that both sides agreed that the text of the agreement would be in electronic format.The signing of the MoU comes after months of confrontations and tensions between the US and Iran, in a move seen as paving the way for a new phase of de-escalation and containment of tensions in the region. Related Story Source link
US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as he arrives at Orly Airport Wednesday. (AFP) US President Donald Trump said Wednesday the United States will leave its military in the Gulf “for a while” after Washington struck a deal with Tehran to end its nearly four-month conflict in the region.While speaking to reporters in Paris, Trump added it would be unfair for Iran not to have ballistic missiles if other countries have them.”I’m saying that if other countries have them, it’s a little bit unfair for them not to have some,” Trump told reporters in Paris.”If Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and they all have some, I would say in relative proportion, I think it’s okay.”Earlier Wednesday, he also said his new ceasefire agreement with Iran was not final and he could resume the war if he is unsatisfied, even as Israel launched fresh airstrikes in Lebanon where fighting threatens the wider truce.”It’s a memorandum of understanding. And if I don’t like it, we’ll go back to shooting at them, dropping bombs on their head,” Trump said at a G7 summit in France of the agreement, reached three days ago.”If I don’t like it, if they don’t behave, we’ll go right back to dropping bombs right smack in the middle of their head, OK?”Leaders hailed the agreement at the summit, held in the French town of Evian-les-Bains, an hour’s drive along the shore of Lake Geneva from where the Iran ceasefire memorandum is due to be signed at a ceremony across the Swiss border tomorrow.Tehran’s foreign ministry Wednesday said it was considering a plan for the presidents of the US and Iran to sign the deal ending the Middle East war, ahead of an expected ceremony in Switzerland.”So far, our plans for the Geneva meeting have not changed,” ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said.”Regarding the signing of the memorandum of understanding, one idea is that it be done by the presidents of the two countries, which is currently under review.”If the presidents were to sign the document, he added, “in principle it would be done remotely.”Tehran has previously said the United States and Iran would be represented at the meeting in Switzerland by Vice President JD Vance and parliament speaker and top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, respectively.US President Donald Trump said at a G7 summit in France on Wednesday that he expected the accord with Iran to “be signed shortly, tomorrow, maybe the next day”.Trump added that he “might” stay in Europe for the signing but added that as a memorandum of understanding “it might not be the kind of a document I should be signing”. Related Story Source link