Backroom deals, embassy contacts and brown liquor built a booming export trade. Now, the lobbyist who saw it all says the U.S. president’s dalliances with Vladimir Putin are an incoming “asteroid” for the industry. Alliances sometimes begin by accident. Sometimes they end that way, too. Especially when Donald Trump is involved....
Trump on tariff blitz ahead of August deadline
Trump accused of ‘attack on Brazilian democracy’ for sanctioning Bolsonaro judge while slapping a 50% levy on the country – key US politics stories from Wednesday 30 July. Donald Trump’s administration has imposed sanctions against the judge overseeing the prosecution of his far-right ally Jair Bolsonaro and hit Brazil with...
UK Banks warn higher taxes could hurt Growth as profits slide
UK banks already face some of the heaviest profit taxes of any sector and pay more than lenders in most other countries. Executives warned that further pressure could harm the wider economy. “Additional taxation on banks risks undermining our ability to keep investing in the business, support customers and ultimately...
Rising UK food prices turn cash-strapped shoppers away from high street
BRC says food prices rose by 4% in July from 2024, while CBI blames economic uncertainty for people not spending. Britain’s largest retailers struggled to entice shoppers back to the high street in July as the rising cost of meat and butter drove up food prices, adding to the pressure...
Starmer. A Defender of Justice at the Helm of Britain
The international human rights system – the rules, principles and practices intended to ensure that states do not abuse people – is under greater threat now than at any other point since 1945. Fortunately, we in the UK couldn’t wish for a better-qualified prime minister to face this challenge. Keir...
Trump cuts deadline for Putin to reach Ukraine peace deal to ‘10 or 12 days’
US president expresses frustration with Putin after meeting with UK PM amid pressure on Russia for ceasefire. Donald Trump’s timeline for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine has sped up, the president said while visiting Nato ally Great Britain on Monday. “I’m going to make a new deadline of...
US Officially approves $4 Billion loan guarantee for Poland’s Military modernization
The United States has officially approved a new $4 billion defense loan guarantee for Poland, aimed at helping the country modernize its armed forces. The loan will be used to purchase American-made weapons. With this latest guarantee, the total value of U.S. defense loans and guarantees to Poland now exceeds...
The US and the EU announce a framework Trade Agreement
European capitals have commented on the newly reached framework trade agreement between the European Union and the United States, which sets the tariff level on European imports to the US at 15%. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz gave a positive assessment of the agreement, emphasizing that it helped avoid a large-scale...
Could the Kremlin put 10,000 troops in the separatist-run statelet of Transnistria?
Moldova is all but landlocked, and the only port on its 400m-long coastline, Giurgiulești, works in close cooperation with Ukraine. Even if the Kremlin succeeds in toppling Moldova’s pro-Western government in parliamentary elections in September, it is hard to imagine the authorities in Kyiv tolerating a Russian military reinforcement of a neighbouring...
European Council President António Costa urges China to pressure Russia to end war in Ukraine
European Council President António Costa has called on China to use its influence over Russia to compel it to respect the UN Charter and end its full-scale war against Ukraine. His remarks come amid growing Western concerns about China’s ongoing exports of dual-use goods that could be employed in Russia’s...