U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to hold another summit focused on ending the war in Ukraine, a surprise development that came as Moscow expressed alarm over potential new U.S. military aid to Kyiv.

Speaking to reporters at the White House after a more than two-hour phone call with Putin, Trump said the two leaders may meet within the next two weeks in Budapest, though no exact date was provided. The Kremlin confirmed plans for the summit.

“My whole life, I’ve made deals,” Trump said. “I think we’re going to have this one done, hopefully soon.”

The announcement came just ahead of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s visit to Washington on Friday, where he is expected to press for additional U.S. support, including long-range Tomahawk missiles capable of striking deep into Russian territory.

While the White House had recently signaled readiness to approve new military support for Ukraine, Trump’s conciliatory tone following his call with Putin cast doubt on the timing and scale of any such assistance.

The shift rekindled European fears that Washington could ease pressure on Moscow in pursuit of a peace deal.

Since taking office in January, Trump has alternated between threatening tough measures against Russia and pulling back after discussions with Putin.

A previous attempt to broker a ceasefire at an August summit in Alaska yielded no results. Analysts say Putin may again be seeking to buy time and weaken U.S. resolve.

“Putin is trying to derail the momentum toward greater pressure on Russia,” said Dan Fried, a former senior U.S. diplomat. “The chances of moving toward a ceasefire by pushing Russia to get serious seem to have diminished.”

According to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov, Putin cautioned Trump during their call that providing long-range missiles to Kyiv would harm peace efforts and damage U.S.-Russia relations.

Trump later quipped to reporters, “What do you think he’s going to say, ‘Please sell Tomahawks’? No, he doesn’t want them given to Ukraine. They’re a vicious weapon.”

Zelenskyy, already in Washington ahead of his meeting with Trump, said Moscow’s sudden openness to dialogue showed “it is on the defensive.” He wrote on X, “We can already see that Moscow is rushing to resume dialogue as soon as it hears about Tomahawks.”

The planned Budapest meeting has drawn scrutiny, given Putin’s limited travel options due to an international arrest warrant over alleged war crimes. The location also highlights Hungary’s growing distance from NATO allies and its warmer ties with Moscow.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a close Trump ally and one of Europe’s most Russia-friendly leaders, welcomed the upcoming summit. “The planned meeting between the American and Russian presidents is great news for the peace-loving people of the world,” Orban posted on X. “We are ready!”

Preparations for the summit will follow talks next week between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, though the venue has yet to be announced. Trump said he would brief Zelenskyy on the Russia talks during their Oval Office meeting on Friday.

Despite diplomatic overtures, the war shows no signs of abating. Ukraine reported massive overnight Russian attacks on Thursday involving more than 300 drones and 37 missiles targeting energy infrastructure.

Kyiv retaliated with strikes on Russian oil facilities, including one in the Saratov region.

Ukraine has repeatedly asked for long-range missiles that could put Moscow and other major Russian cities within range, arguing that expanded strike capability is key to forcing Russia into genuine negotiations.

Meanwhile, Trump said India had agreed to curb its purchases of Russian oil, claiming Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made the commitment in recent talks.

India has not confirmed such an agreement, and along with China remains one of Moscow’s largest trading partners.

As preparations advance for the Trump-Putin Budapest summit, analysts say the meeting could either mark a turning point in efforts to end the conflict,or a moment that tests U.S. credibility among its allies.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

A Polish court will decide on Friday whether to extradite a Ukrainian diver, identified as Volodymyr Z., to Germany, where he is wanted in connection with the 2022 Nord Stream gas pipeline explosions that severed key Russian gas links to Europe.

While Warsaw maintains that the decision rests solely with the judiciary, Prime Minister Donald Tusk has publicly voiced opposition to handing the suspect over, saying it would not be in Poland’s national interest.

Earlier this month, Tusk remarked that the problem was “not that the pipelines were blown up, but that they were built at all,” underscoring long-standing tensions between Warsaw and Berlin over Europe’s energy dependence on Russia.

The September 2022 explosions off the Danish island of Bornholm crippled the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which had carried Russian gas to Europe. The attacks marked a major escalation in the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and intensified the continent’s energy crisis.

According to Germany’s federal prosecutors, Volodymyr Z. is suspected of helping rent a sailing yacht and planting explosives on the pipelines as part of a group operation. He faces charges of conspiring to commit an explosives attack and “anti-constitutional sabotage.”

His Polish lawyer, Tymoteusz Paprocki, rejects the accusations, arguing that the case concerns “the destruction of Russian property by a Ukrainian at a time of war,” questioning whether it should even be considered a criminal act.

Polish regional prosecutor Piotr Skiba said that, from a legal standpoint, it would be difficult not to hand Volodymyr Z. over to Germany, though the final decision lies with the Warsaw court.

Under Polish law, extradition can be denied if it violates the suspect’s human rights or if proceedings for the same offence are already underway in Poland. Warsaw has opened its own investigation into the Nord Stream bombings, but Volodymyr Z. is being treated as a witness, not a suspect.

Diplomatic tensions have risen between Poland and Germany, two of Ukraine’s key allies, over the politically sensitive case.

One German diplomat told reporters that Tusk’s remarks risk straining bilateral cooperation, though another downplayed the prospect of open conflict, saying Berlin’s investigation would continue regardless of the court’s ruling.

In a related case, another Ukrainian suspect, Serhii K., won a temporary reprieve in Italy on Wednesday after the country’s top court upheld an appeal against his extradition to Germany on procedural grounds. That case will return to an Italian court for further consideration.

The Warsaw court’s decision on Volodymyr Z.’s fate could have broader implications for European cooperation on the investigation into one of the continent’s most consequential acts of sabotage in decades.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

Saudi Arabia is in advanced talks with the United States over a potential defence agreement that could be finalized during Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the White House next month, the Financial Times reported on Friday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

According to the report, the pact under discussion would resemble the recent U.S.-Qatar defence agreement, in which Washington pledged to treat any armed attack on Qatar as a threat to the United States.

That deal was reached after Israel attempted to assassinate Hamas leaders in Doha last month, escalating regional tensions.

A senior U.S. official from the Trump administration told the Financial Times there were “discussions about signing something when the crown prince comes, but the details are in flux.”

The official added that both sides are working to finalize the framework before the Saudi leader’s expected Washington visit.

The U.S. State Department described defence cooperation with Saudi Arabia as a “strong bedrock of our regional strategy,” but declined to comment on the specifics of the potential agreement.

The White House, State Department, and the Saudi government did not respond to requests for comment from Reuters.

For years, Riyadh has sought formal U.S. security guarantees as part of Washington’s broader push to normalize Saudi-Israeli relations.

The talks come amid heightened instability in the Middle East and as Saudi Arabia diversifies its strategic partnerships, last month it signed a mutual defence pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan.

If concluded, the U.S.-Saudi defence deal would mark a major milestone in bilateral ties, reinforcing America’s long-standing security role in the Gulf while strengthening the kingdom’s position amid shifting regional alliances.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

At least one person was killed and dozens of police officers injured as widespread protests erupted across Peru on Wednesday night against the new administration of President Jose Jeri, who took office just days ago following the ouster of Dina Boluarte.

The state ombudsman’s office confirmed on Thursday that 32-year-old Eduardo Mauricio Ruiz died during the demonstrations, which turned violent in parts of Lima.

Peru’s prosecutor’s office said Ruiz was shot, while Police Chief Oscar Arriola later told reporters that Luis Magallanes, a police officer, had carried out the shooting after being physically assaulted.

Magallanes has been hospitalized and suspended from duty pending investigations.

President Jeri expressed regret over Ruiz’s death in a post on X, pledging an “objective” investigation. He blamed the violence on “delinquents who infiltrated a peaceful demonstration to sow chaos,” adding that “the full force of the law will be on them.”

Thousands of protesters, including Gen Z youth groups, transport workers, and civil society organizations, took to the streets in Lima and other cities, denouncing corruption, rising crime, and political instability.

Demonstrators clashed with police outside Congress, where officers fired tear gas as protesters hurled fireworks, rocks, and burning debris while chanting, “Everyone must go!”

Prime Minister Ernesto Alvarez announced that the government would declare a state of emergency in Lima within hours and introduce new measures to combat insecurity.

Meanwhile, Interior Minister Vicente Tiburcio told Congress the government would pursue a comprehensive police reform, revealing that 89 police officers and 22 civilians were injured, and 11 people detained during the protests.

Jeri, 38, said he would ask Congress for authority to legislate on public safety issues, with a focus on prison reform, though details were not provided.

His fledgling presidency, which runs until July 2026, faces a major test as unrest spreads and public trust in institutions remains at historic lows.

Jeri’s rise followed the dramatic midnight impeachment of former President Dina Boluarte last Thursday amid corruption scandals and mounting public anger over insecurity.

Her presidency, which began in 2022, was marred by deadly protests and approval ratings as low as 2%.

With both the presidency and Congress deeply unpopular, the latest protests underscore Peru’s persistent political turmoil and public frustration with corruption, police abuses, and social inequality.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

Japan’s parliament will vote on Tuesday, October 21, to choose the country’s next prime minister, a senior member of the lower house scheduling committee told Reuters on Friday.

The decision comes after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), now led by Sanae Takaichi, proposed the date for the leadership vote. Opposition parties objected, arguing that coalition negotiations were still underway and that the schedule was being rushed.

Takaichi, who was elected LDP leader earlier this month following the resignation of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, is seeking to build a new governing majority.

The LDP is courting the right-leaning Japan Innovation Party (Nippon Ishin no Kai) to form a coalition that would ensure enough parliamentary votes to confirm her as Japan’s next premier.

If successful, Takaichi would become Japan’s first female prime minister, a historic milestone in a country where women have long been underrepresented in top political roles.

The new government will face an immediate diplomatic test, with several high-profile international engagements scheduled for later this month. These include regional summits in Malaysia and South Korea, as well as a visit to Tokyo by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Political analysts say Takaichi’s leadership could signal continuity in Japan’s foreign and security policies, particularly its close alliance with Washington, while also testing her ability to unify a divided parliament amid ongoing economic and demographic challenges.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

Venezuela has formally requested the United Nations Security Council to declare recent U.S. military strikes on vessels off its coast illegal and to issue a statement affirming Venezuela’s sovereignty, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Thursday.

The appeal, made by Venezuela’s U.N. ambassador Samuel Moncada in a letter dated Wednesday, accused the United States of killing at least 27 people in what he described as attacks on “civilian vessels transiting international waters.”

He urged the council to launch an investigation to “determine their illegal nature” and reaffirm the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity under international law.

The strikes are part of a broader U.S. military buildup in the southern Caribbean, ordered by President Donald Trump, who has deployed guided missile destroyers, fighter jets, and thousands of troops to the region.

Washington claims the operations target drug-trafficking networks allegedly linked to Venezuela, though it has not publicly presented supporting evidence.

In a televised address from Caracas, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accused the Trump administration of authorizing the Central Intelligence Agency to conduct operations aimed at destabilizing his government.

“The CIA has always been behind coups around the world, but never before has a government openly admitted it ordered the CIA to kill, overthrow, and destroy countries,” Maduro said.

He vowed that Venezuela’s people were “clear, united, and ready to defeat this open conspiracy against peace and stability.”

Diplomats said the Security Council is unlikely to take any binding action because the United States holds veto power. The 15-member body met last week to discuss the growing tensions at the joint request of Venezuela, Russia, and China.

During that meeting, Washington defended the strikes as legitimate acts of self-defense under Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, which allows member states to respond to armed attacks.

On Thursday, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz reiterated that stance, saying President Trump would continue to use “the intelligence community, the Defense Department, and diplomacy to defend U.S. sovereignty against actions that are actively killing Americans.”

“Venezuela can bring whatever they want to the U.N.,” Waltz said in an interview with Fox News. “What’s also part of the U.N. is Article 51, the right to self-defense. That’s what President Trump is doing and will keep doing.”

The escalating diplomatic confrontation underscores growing tensions between Washington and Caracas, as U.S. military operations intensify in the Caribbean and Venezuela seeks international backing against what it calls an “illegal act of aggression.”

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

The U.S. military conducted a strike on Thursday against a suspected drug-trafficking vessel in the Caribbean, and for the first time, survivors were found among the crew, a U.S. official told Reuters.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not provide further details about the number or condition of the survivors but said it was unclear whether the mission was intended to spare lives.

The incident, which has not been previously reported, raises new questions about whether the U.S. rendered medical aid to the survivors and whether they are now in U.S. custody, potentially as prisoners of war.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

It has consistently described targets of recent maritime strikes as “narcoterrorists,” arguing that the operations fall within the scope of the United States’ ongoing campaign against drug-linked militant groups operating out of Venezuela.

Prior to Thursday’s operation, U.S. military strikes on suspected narcotics boats off the Venezuelan coast had killed at least 27 people, sparking concern among legal experts and Democratic lawmakers over whether such actions comply with international law.

Videos previously released by the Trump administration showed boats being completely destroyed, with no evidence of survivors.

The strike comes amid a growing U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean, which now includes guided missile destroyers, F-35 fighter jets, a nuclear submarine, and about 6,500 troops.

President Donald Trump has described the campaign as part of a broader effort to “neutralize narcoterrorism” and pressure Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

On Wednesday, Trump confirmed he had authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela, fueling speculation in Caracas that Washington is pursuing regime change.

In a letter to the United Nations Security Council seen by Reuters, Venezuela’s U.N. ambassador Samuel Moncada urged the council to declare the U.S. strikes illegal and issue a statement reaffirming Venezuela’s sovereignty.

The latest operation also comes as the Pentagon reorganizes its command structure in the region.

Last week, the Department of Defense announced that future counter-narcotics missions in the Caribbean would be led not by U.S. Southern Command, based in Miami, but by the II Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF), a rapid-deployment unit headquartered at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

The shift surprised many defense analysts, since a combatant command like Southern Command would normally oversee such operations.

Earlier Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that Admiral Alvin Holsey, head of Southern Command, would step down two years ahead of schedule.

Senator Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, called Holsey’s resignation “deeply troubling,” citing fears of an unchecked escalation toward military confrontation with Venezuela.

“Admiral Holsey’s resignation only deepens my concern that this administration is ignoring the hard-earned lessons of previous U.S. campaigns and the advice of our most experienced commanders,” Reed said.

As questions mount over Thursday’s unprecedented strike and the fate of the survivors, the incident underscores the rising stakes, and growing controversy, surrounding the Trump administration’s military operations in the Caribbean.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

John Bolton, former U.S. national security adviser under President Donald Trump, was charged on Thursday in a sweeping federal indictment accusing him of unlawfully sharing classified information with his wife and daughter for possible inclusion in a book project.

The indictment, filed in federal court in Maryland, marks the third time in recent weeks that the Justice Department has brought criminal charges against one of Trump’s prominent critics.

It charges Bolton with eight counts of transmitting national defense information and 10 counts of retaining national defense information under the Espionage Act, offenses that each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. No court appearance date has yet been scheduled.

According to prosecutors, Bolton sent electronic messages to his relatives between April 2018 and August 2025, containing sensitive notes from high-level meetings, discussions with foreign leaders, and intelligence briefings.

The indictment said the three often discussed incorporating some of the material into a book, with Bolton referring to his relatives as his “editors.” In one exchange, he reportedly wrote, “Talking with [book publisher] because they have a right of first refusal!”

Two people familiar with the matter identified the unnamed relatives as Bolton’s wife and daughter.

In a statement, Bolton said he “look[s] forward to the fight to defend [his] lawful conduct and to expose this abuse of power.” His attorney, Abbe Lowell, insisted that Bolton “did not unlawfully share or store any classified information.”

Asked about the charges, President Trump told reporters at the White House, “He’s a bad guy.” The indictment follows Trump’s ongoing campaign to target perceived political enemies.

Since returning to office in January 2025, Trump has publicly pressured Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue investigations into his critics, including former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

Comey is currently facing charges of making false statements to Congress and obstruction, while James has been indicted on bank fraud-related charges, both cases widely viewed as politically motivated.

Prosecutors allege Bolton shared more than a thousand pages of notes from his tenure as national security adviser, including top-secret details of intelligence assessments and policy deliberations.

The indictment also revealed that after Bolton left government service, his personal email account, which contained classified materials, was hacked by a “cyber actor” linked to the Iranian government.

While Bolton’s representatives informed authorities of the breach, prosecutors said they failed to report that he had stored restricted information in the account.

Bolton, who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations before joining Trump’s White House, became one of Trump’s most outspoken critics after leaving his post.

In his 2024 memoir, he described the former president as “unfit for office” and accused him of endangering national security.

The indictment was signed by Maryland U.S. Attorney Kelly Hayes and several career prosecutors, including Thomas Sullivan, head of the office’s national security division.

Despite that, legal analysts warned that the case could deepen perceptions of politically selective justice.

Earlier this year, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faced scrutiny for sharing sensitive details about a planned military strike in Yemen with family members and a journalist via a Signal group chat, an act experts said could also fall under the Espionage Act.

The Justice Department quickly closed that case without charges.

Bolton’s indictment, one of the most serious under the Espionage Act in recent years, underscores the Trump administration’s increasingly aggressive stance toward political opponents, even as critics question whether the law is being applied evenly.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua

Israel and Hamas on Thursday traded blame over alleged violations of a U.S.-mediated ceasefire, as a dispute over the return of hostages’ bodies threatened to unravel the fragile truce and stall efforts to reopen Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt.

Israeli government spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian said Israel remained committed to the ceasefire agreement and accused Hamas of withholding the bodies of 19 hostages killed during the conflict.

Bedrosian confirmed that Hamas had handed over 10 bodies, but one was found not to be a hostage.

Hamas, meanwhile, said it was adhering to the truce and working to recover the remaining bodies, claiming some were buried under rubble or in tunnels destroyed by Israeli forces.

The group’s armed wing said recovering more remains would require heavy machinery and excavation equipment to be allowed into the blockaded enclave.

Tensions flared further after a senior Hamas official accused Israel of breaching the ceasefire by killing at least 24 Palestinians since Friday. He said a list of the alleged violations had been submitted to international mediators.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to the claims but has previously argued that its forces only fired at individuals who posed an “immediate threat.”

Local health authorities in Gaza said seven Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire on Thursday, including two in Khan Younis following what they described as an Israeli airstrike.

Witnesses reported drones and warplanes hovering over southern Gaza as sporadic gunfire echoed through the ruins.

The next phase of the 20-point ceasefire plan, drawn up under U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration, calls for Hamas to surrender its weapons and relinquish control of Gaza, conditions the Islamist faction has so far rejected.

Instead, Hamas has launched a crackdown on armed clans in areas vacated by Israeli forces, underscoring its continued dominance.

Trump, addressing reporters in Washington, warned that further violence by Hamas would invite retaliation “under U.S. auspices.” He stated, “If they behave, good. If they don’t behave, we’ll take care of it,” adding that no American troops would be directly involved.

Earlier this week, 20 Israeli hostages were freed in exchange for thousands of Palestinian prisoners. Gaza’s Health Ministry reported that Israel also returned 30 Palestinian bodies on Thursday, bringing the total number received since Monday to 120.

Israel’s military liaison agency, COGAT, said it was working with Egypt to set a date for reopening the Rafah crossing for civilian movement, though it emphasized that aid shipments would continue to enter only through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing after security checks.

With parts of Gaza facing famine-like conditions, U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher warned that “thousands of trucks per week” would be needed to avert a worsening crisis.

Despite aid convoys entering Gaza on Wednesday, health services remain crippled and most of the enclave’s 2.2 million residents displaced. Hamas official Ismail Al-Thawabta described the aid received so far as “a drop in the ocean.”

Nearly 68,000 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict, according to Gaza health authorities, while Israel’s campaign followed Hamas’ deadly October 7, 2023, assault on southern Israel that left about 1,200 people dead and 251 taken hostage.

As both sides trade accusations, the unresolved issues, hostage returns, disarmament, and Gaza’s future governance, continue to cast doubt over the durability of the U.S.-brokered truce and prospects for long-term peace.

Source: Reuters

Written By Rodney Mbua