Politics

US President Donald Trump has announced the selection of a design for the new "Golden Dome" missile defense system, stating it will be operational before his term ends. Trump revealed plans for the system shortly after his January return to the White House. The system aims to counter "next-generation" aerial threats including ballistic and cruise missiles. An initial $25bn (£18.7bn) has been allocated in a new budget bill, though government estimates suggest total costs could reach $500bn over decades. Questions remain about the feasibility of developing a comprehensive defense system for the country's vast territory. Officials note that current systems have failed to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated weapons developed by potential adversaries. The Defense Intelligence Agency recently warned that missile threats "will expand in scale and sophistication," with China and Russia designing systems "to exploit gaps" in US defenses. […]

Former President Joe Biden had not been diagnosed with prostate cancer before last week and received his "last known" prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test more than a decade ago, according to a statement from his office on Tuesday. This clarification comes amid skepticism about the timing of the diagnosis, with President Donald Trump and others questioning whether Biden concealed health issues during his presidency. "President Biden's last known PSA was in 2014," the statement said. "Prior to Friday, President Biden had never been diagnosed with prostate cancer." On Monday, Trump expressed surprise about the late notification. "Why did it take so long? This takes a long time. It can take years to get this level of danger," Trump told reporters, referring to the advanced nature of Biden's cancer. "Somebody is not telling the facts, and that's a big problem." Biden's office […]

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has dismissed American demands to stop uranium enrichment as ongoing negotiations between the two nations remain uncertain. "Saying things like 'We will not allow Iran to enrich uranium' is nonsense. No one [in Iran] is waiting for others' permission," Khamenei stated in a speech reported by the country's semi-official Mehr News Agency on Tuesday. He expressed doubt about whether the talks would "bring results." Since mid-April, Washington and Tehran have engaged in four rounds of Omani-mediated discussions aimed at restricting Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief. However, continuing disputes have cast doubt on the next negotiation round, which Reuters reported was scheduled for Rome this weekend. During his previous term, US President Donald Trump abandoned the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action that Iran had signed with world powers. Since returning to […]

Billionaire Elon Musk has indicated plans to reduce his political donations, marking a significant shift for the major contributor to President Donald Trump's successful 2024 campaign. Speaking at an economic conference in Qatar, Musk, who invested over $250 million supporting Trump, stated he intended to do "a lot less" political spending moving forward. He also affirmed his commitment to remain at Tesla's helm for another five years. These statements follow his recent decision to step back from leading the controversial White House federal spending reduction initiative, commonly known as Doge. When questioned about continuing large-scale political contributions, Musk told conference attendees he felt he had "done enough." "If I see a reason to do political spending in the future, I will do it," he said. "I do not currently see a reason." Musk largely avoided politics until last year, and […]

President Donald Trump has signed legislation criminalizing "revenge porn" at the federal level, including artificially generated images. The Take It Down Act, which received nearly unanimous congressional support, makes publishing intimate images without consent a federal crime and requires social media platforms to remove such content within 48 hours when victims request removal. The law covers both authentic photos and AI-created "deepfakes." "With the rise of AI image generation, countless women have been harassed with deepfakes and other explicit images distributed against their will. This is … wrong … just so horribly wrong," Trump stated during the White House signing ceremony. "It's a very abusive situation … And today we're making it totally illegal." First Lady Melania Trump, who advocated for the legislation following her husband's return to office, described it as a "powerful step forward in our efforts to […]

The US Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the Trump administration's bid to end deportation protections for approximately 350,000 Venezuelans living in the United States. The ruling removes a hold placed by a California judge that had preserved Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans whose status would have expired last month. TPS allows individuals to legally live and work in the US when their home countries are considered unsafe due to wars, natural disasters, or other "extraordinary and temporary" conditions. This decision represents a victory for President Trump, who has frequently turned to the Supreme Court to implement immigration policy changes. The administration sought to terminate protections and work permits for migrants with TPS in April 2025, significantly earlier than their originally scheduled expiration in October 2026. US government lawyers argued that the California federal court (US District Court […]

United States President Donald Trump announced that Russia and Ukraine "will immediately start negotiations" toward a ceasefire and ending the war following a more than two-hour call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin indicated that peace efforts appeared "on the right track" and confirmed Russia's readiness to work with Ukraine on a memorandum about a future peace accord. The Russian leader thanked Trump for supporting direct talks between the warring nations and acknowledged Trump's recognition of Russia's desire for peace. "We have agreed with the president of the United States that Russia will propose and is ready to work with the Ukrainian side on a memorandum on a possible future peace accord, defining a number of positions, such as, for example, the principles of settlement, the timing of a possible peace agreement," Putin told reporters near Sochi. He suggested appropriate […]

The United Nations has refused to participate in a US-backed humanitarian operation in Gaza, stating the plan fails to meet fundamental humanitarian principles of impartiality, neutrality and independence. "This particular distribution plan does not accord with our basic principles, including those of impartiality, neutrality, and independence, and we will not be participating in this," deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters on Thursday. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, backed by the United States, is scheduled to begin operations in Gaza by late May. However, the initiative has faced significant criticism, with UN aid chief Tom Fletcher describing it as a "fig leaf for further violence and displacement" of Palestinians. During a press conference in Turkey, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged these concerns while defending the initiative's intent. "We're not immune or in any way insensitive to the suffering of […]