World

Emmanuel Macron has told Chinese leader Xi Jinping that the war in Ukraine has hit stability and ended decades of peace in the country. The French president is visiting Beijing alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in an attempt to use Xi’s influence over Russia to promote a peace settlement. Mr Macron said

From the start, Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s first official visit to Poland since Russia invaded Ukraine was a meeting of friends. It was a display of warmth and solidarity, as well as several public hugs. The Ukrainian president was treated to a hero’s welcome as he visited his closest neighbour. His counterpart, Andrzej Duda, gave him the

Donald Trump has claimed he is the victim of election interference, as he condemned New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him – speaking just hours after his arraignment. The former US president delivered an address to a crowd of some 500 people in his Mar-a-Lago estate ballroom in Florida after

Finland has officially become a member of NATO after concerns over Russia’s aggression. The Kremlin has said it could be forced to take “counter measures” to ensure its own border’s security in response. Finland applied to join NATO in May 2022, setting aside years of military nonalignment to seek protection under the organisation’s security umbrella

The attacker who shot dead six people at a Nashville school had been planning the massacre for months, police have said. Journals found in Audrey Hale’s car and bedroom outlined plans to “commit mass murder at The Covenant School”, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said. Three adults and three nine-year-old students were killed in the

Finland will officially become a member of NATO on Tuesday, the Finnish president’s office has announced. The Nordic nation, which shares a border with Russia, applied to join the military alliance in the wake of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine last year. It is the first enlargement of NATO since North Macedonia joined the alliance

Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin appears to have lost her bid for a second term in power – with her party destined for defeat by two conservative opponents in an intense three-way race for control of parliament. The centre-right National Coalition Party claimed victory on Sunday evening with around 97.7% of the votes counted, coming

In the vast windswept cemetery on the outskirts of Dnipro low clouds drift and mist drizzles over the graves of the fallen in this war. There is no noise apart from the flapping of hundreds of Ukraine flags – blue for the sky, yellow for the wheatfields of this farming country. Mounds of freshly dug

Japan has officially reopened part of a town evacuated 12 years ago in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. The area of Tomioka, southwest of the wrecked Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, was evacuated following the disaster in March 2011. Its reopening was celebrated on Saturday, in time for the popular cherry blossom season. Former

In the midst of a comeback, it is quite the comedown. The courthouse in New York’s Bowery district – aka ‘Skid Row’ before its gentrification – has seen its share of society’s sad cases through the years. A former president could hardly fall any further. And yet its to this setting that Donald Trump will

The King spoke about politics, history and “renewing the pledge of friendship” as he became the first British monarch to address the German parliament. The overwhelming message of the speech, parts of which were in German, was one of renewing the “special bond of friendship” between the two countries, which he said meant so much

The King took a trip to the German countryside today, where he helped make a special organic cheese to mark his historic visit, as he continued his state visit. “We heard that the King is a great lover of cheese,” said Katja von Maltzan, who with her husband runs the Brodowin farm 50 miles northeast

Elon Musk and a group of artificial intelligence experts are calling for a pause in the training of powerful AI systems due to the potential risks to society and humanity. The letter, issued by the non-profit Future of Life Institute and signed by more than 1,000 people, warned of potential risks to society and civilisation

Lebanon’s government has reversed a controversial decision to delay the start of daylight saving time by a month. Najib Mikati, the country’s caretaker prime minister, said the cabinet had voted to move the clocks one hour ahead on Wednesday night. Mr Mikati angered many Lebanese last week when he delayed the start of daylight saving

Strikes on Iranian-linked bases will be met with an “immediate counter-response” after the reported deaths of 19 people in US attacks on Syria, an Iranian security spokesperson has warned. Keyvan Khosravi made the remarks after the US carried out a series of strikes on the east of the country in one of the deadliest exchanges

French President Emmanuel Macron has been criticised after removing his expensive watch during a television interview about pension changes. Violent protests and strikes are taking place across France after Mr Macron pushed through a law raising the retirement age by two years to 64 without a vote in parliament. The clip of Mr Macron taking

In anticipation – perhaps fear – of Western support for Ukraine’s much anticipated “spring offensive”, Russia has spent the past few weeks throwing wave after wave of attacks against a heroic and determined Ukrainian frontline. Progress has been limited, and despite seven months of intense fighting, cities like Bakhmut have not fallen. Now, Russia appears

US President Joe Biden quipped that he is seeking a “back-to-back” term in the White House while honouring famous figures including Bruce Springsteen and Vera Wang. Rock star Springsteen was recognised at the National Medal of the Arts ceremony for “his extraordinary contributions to the American songbook”. When presenting novelist Colson Whitehead – who won

Data from the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic has provided crucial information on the outbreak’s origins, according to researchers. The virus was first identified in Wuhan in December 2019, with the Huanan live animal market widely suspected to be the source, before it rapidly spread around the world and killed nearly seven million people.

Vladimir Putin has welcomed his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to Moscow, just days after a warrant was issued for the Russian president’s arrest over alleged war crimes in Ukraine. The two leaders, who called each other “dear friend” and exchanged compliments during the meeting at the Kremlin, were locked in talks for more than four