NATO

February 19, 2025 10:39 AM

US, Russia forge ahead on peace talks, without Ukraine

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration said on Tuesday it had agreed to hold more talks with Russia on ending the war in Ukraine after an initial meeting that excluded Kyiv, a departure from Washington's previous approach that rallied U.S. allies to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin. As the 4-1/2-hour meeting in the Saudi capital was underway, Russia hardened its demands, notably insisting it would not tolerate the granting membership to Ukraine. Later on Tuesday, Trump said he ...

February 14, 2025 5:31 PM

Hegseth tells Europe to spend on defence as US presence may not last forever

European countries need to invest now in defence because it is not possible to assume that the United States' presence on the continent will last forever, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday during a visit to Warsaw. Pointing to Poland, which plans to spend 4.7% of GDP on defence this year, as a model ally, Hegseth doubled down on Washington's demands that European NATO allies take on more of the financial burden for their own security. "What happens five or 10 or 15 years from ...

January 24, 2025 2:29 PM

Risk of clash between nuclear powers is growing, Russian security official says

Russian security official Sergei Shoigu warned in an interview published on Friday that the risk of an armed clash between nuclear powers was rising. Shoigu, the secretary of President Vladimir Putin’s Security Council, told TASS news agency: “Against the backdrop of increasing conflict and aggravation of geopolitical rivalry in the world, the risks of a violent clash between major states, including with the participation of nuclear powers, are growing.” The former defence minister said ...

January 24, 2025 10:29 AM

Trump says he is not sure US should be spending anything on NATO

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he was not sure the United States should be spending anything on NATO, telling reporters the U.S. was protecting NATO members, but they were "not protecting us." Trump repeated demands that other members of the transatlantic alliance spend 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense – a huge increase from the current 2% goal and a level that no NATO country, including the United States, currently reaches. "I'm not sure we should be spendin...

December 23, 2024 3:03 PM

NATO chief Rutte says Zelenskiy’s criticism of Germany’s Scholz is unfair

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he considered the sometimes harsh criticism of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to be unjustified, news wire DPA reported. Although Germany has been a vital ally of Ukraine, its hesitation in providing long-range Taurus cruise missiles has been a source of frustration in Kyiv, which is battling a foe armed with a powerful array of long-range weaponry. "I have often told Zelenskiy that he should stop criticising Olaf...

November 6, 2024 6:14 PM

Trump victory to reverberate through global economy

Donald Trump's victory in the race to become the next U.S. president will have economic consequences for the rest of the world that are likely to be deep and quite immediate. If Trump enacts just a fraction of his pledges - from higher trade tariffs to deregulation, more oil drilling and more demands on America's NATO partners - the strain on government finances, inflation, economic growth and interest rates will be felt in every corner of the world. Trump recaptured the White House on Wednesd...

October 30, 2024 3:43 PM

Trump and Harris seek votes in battleground North Carolina with six days to go

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will make some of their final election pitches to voters on Wednesday in North Carolina, a swing state with a Democratic governor that has backed Republican presidential hopefuls for over a decade. North Carolina has 16 Electoral College votes, making it one of the make-or-break battleground states that could decide who wins the Nov. 5 election. The contest between Harris and Trump is too close to call nationally, and last month's hurricane damage has made North ...

October 28, 2024 8:22 PM

“Spain is an important partner within European Union”: MEA

India on Monday emphasized its deepening partnership with Spain, particularly in trade, investment, and defense, describing Spain as a key partner within the European Union (EU). Tanmaya Lal, Secretary (West) of the Ministry of External Affairs, highlighted Spain’s strategic importance while addressing a special briefing during the official visit of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to India. "Spain is an important partner within the European Union. It held the EU presidency last year, is ...

October 25, 2024 4:17 PM

Putin says it is our affair if Russia uses North Korean troops

President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that it was Russia's business whether or not it decided to use North Korean troops and said that if Ukraine wanted to join NATO then Moscow could do what it wanted to ensure its own security. The United States said on Wednesday that it had seen evidence that North Korea has sent 3,000 troops to Russia for possible deployment in Ukraine, a move that the West is casting as a significant escalation of the Ukraine war. Ukraine's military intelligence service...

September 13, 2024 10:48 AM

Putin says West will be fighting directly with Russia if it lets Kyiv use long-range missiles

President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the West would be directly fighting with Russia if it allowed Ukraine to strike Russian territory with Western-made long-range missiles, a move he said would alter the nature and scope of the conflict. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been pleading with Kyiv's allies for months to let Ukraine fire Western missiles including long-range U.S. ATACMS and British Storm Shadows deep into Russian territory to limit Moscow's ability to launch at...