WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said on Friday an unprecedented nuclear arms summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that the United States pulled out of will now go ahead as scheduled on June 12 in Singapore, adding another twist to a high-stakes diplomatic dance.
“I think it’s probably going to be a very successful, ultimately a successful process,” Trump told reporters on the White House lawn after meeting with a senior North Korean official in the Oval Office.
Kim Yong Chol, a close aide to the North Korean leader, delivered a letter from Kim Jong Un to Trump. The envoy was the highest level figure from the secretive state to hold talks at the White House since a senior envoy visited former President Bill Clinton in 2000.
Trump first told reporters the letter from Kim was “a very nice letter ... a very interesting letter” but then said he had not opened it.
Trump appeared to significantly lower expectations for the outcome of the historic summit, frequently describing it as the start of a process and not the place where the two leaders were likely to sign any agreement. He said a number of summits might be required.
“Frankly, I said, ‘Take your time,’” Trump said.
It was a extraordinary softening of tone toward North Korea from a president who last year threatened to rain “fire and fury” on the country because of the threat its nuclear weapons and long-range missiles pose to the United States.
After exchanging threats and insults since Trump became president last year, the United States and North Korea have been trying to set up the summit between their leaders. Trump wants to use the meeting to pressure Pyongyang into giving up its nuclear weapons.
Wall Street took word from Trump that the summit was back on in stride. The S&P 500 added slightly to what were already healthy gains, then slipped back a few points to remain up 0.9 percent in afternoon trade. The US dollar index added modestly to a gain.
North Korea, whose nuclear ambitions have been a source of tension for decades, has made advances in missile technology in recent years but Trump has sworn not to allow it to develop nuclear missiles that could hit the United States.
He wants North Korea to “denuclearize,” meaning to get rid of its nuclear arms, in return for relief from economic sanctions but the leadership in Pyongyang is believed to regard nuclear weapons as crucial to its survival and has rejected unilaterally disarming.
“I look forward to the day when I can take the sanctions off of North Korea,” Trump said.
Trump had called off the summit late last month, citing North Korea’s “tremendous anger and open hostility.”
Trump confirms June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore
Trump confirms June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore
- Kim Yong Chol, a close aide to the North Korean leader, delivered a letter from Kim Jong Un to Trump.
- Trump first told reporters the letter from Kim was “a very nice letter ... a very interesting letter” but then said he had not opened it.
UN seeks nearly $1 billion in aid for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh
- UN and its more than 100 partners launching a 2025-26 Joint Response Plan for the Rohingya crisis
- Around a million members of the persecuted and mostly Muslim minority live in squalid relief camps in Bangladesh
The United Nations said that it and more than 100 partners were launching a 2025-26 Joint Response Plan for the Rohingya crisis, amid “dwindling financial resources and competing global crises.”
The appeal, it said in a statement, “seeks $934.5 million in its first year to reach some 1.48 million people including Rohingya refugees and host communities.”
Around a million members of the persecuted and mostly Muslim minority live in squalid relief camps in Bangladesh, most of whom arrived after fleeing the 2017 military crackdown in neighboring Myanmar.
“In its eighth year, the Rohingya humanitarian crisis remains largely out of the international spotlight, but needs remain urgent,” Monday’s statement said.
It stressed that “any funding shortfalls in critical areas, including reductions to food assistance, cooking fuel or basic shelter, will have dire consequences for this highly vulnerable population.”
It could, it added, “force many to resort to desperate measures, such as embarking on dangerous boat journeys to seek safety.”
The UN said that more than half of the refugee population in the camps are women and girls, “who face a higher risk of gender-based violence and exploitation.”
And it highlighted that a third of the refugees are aged between 10 and 24, warning that “without access to formal education, adequate skills building and self- reliance opportunities, their futures remain on hold.”
“Until the situation in Myanmar’s Rakhine State is peaceful and conducive to returning safely and voluntarily, the international community must continue to fund life-saving assistance to refugees in the camps.”
China says it has not received any asylum application from Philippines’ Duterte
- Philippines’ former President Rodrigo Duterte’s trip to Hong Kong was for his personal holidays
BEIJING: China has not received any application for asylum from Philippines’ former President Rodrigo Duterte and his family, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday.
Duterte’s trip to Hong Kong was for his personal holidays, ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a regular press conference.
The former president was arrested on March 11 at Manila’s main airport on his arrival from Hong Kong at the request of the International Criminal Court (ICC) as part of its probe into a “war on drugs” that defined his presidency.
UK’s Heathrow defends decision to shut airport amid blame game
- Airport’s 18-hour closure cost airlines tens of millions of pounds and stranded thousands of passengers
- Both National Grid and Heathrow agreed that the failure of the transformer was an unprecedented event
LONDON: Britain’s Heathrow defended its decision to shut down operations at Europe’s busiest airport last Friday as the blame game intensified over an 18-hour closure which cost airlines tens of millions of pounds and stranded thousands of passengers.
As questions mounted over how such a critical part of Britain’s infrastructure could fail and whether all Heathrow’s four terminals needed to shut, both National Grid and Heathrow agreed that the failure of the transformer was an unprecedented event.
But the airport was forced to defend its closure after the boss of National Grid told the Financial Times that the electricity transmission network remained capable of providing power to the airport throughout the crisis.
Heathrow said the fire at a nearby substation late on Thursday interrupted its operations, forcing it to shut while it reconfigured systems and switched to power from an alternative substation.
“Hundreds of critical systems across the airport were required to be safely powered down and then safely and systematically rebooted,” a Heathrow spokesperson said.
“Given Heathrow’s size and operational complexity, safely restarting operations after a disruption of this magnitude was a significant challenge.”
John Pettigrew, the CEO of National Grid, said there were two other substations able to provide power to Heathrow, showing that the grid was resilient.
“Two substations were always available for the distribution network companies and Heathrow to take power,” he told the FT.
While airlines such as British Airways, the worse affected, add up the bill for the closure, the government and Heathrow have both commissioned reviews into what happened.
“It’s really important that we do learn the lessons from this, and that’s why I think those two reviews...are going to be really critical,” Transport Minister Heidi Alexander told Sky News on Monday.
Asked on LBC Radio about whether she had confidence in Heathrow’s CEO Thomas Woldbye, Alexander said she wanted to see the results of the reviews.
Greenland leaders lambast US delegation trip as Trump talks of takeover
- The delegation will visit an American military base and watch a dogsled race
- Delegation will be led by Usha Vance, wife of Vice President JD Vance
COPENHAGEN/WASHINGTON: Greenlandic leaders criticized an upcoming trip by a high-profile American delegation to the semi-autonomous Danish territory that President Donald Trump has suggested the US should annex.
The delegation, which will visit an American military base and watch a dogsled race, will be led by Usha Vance, wife of Vice President JD Vance, and include White House national security adviser Mike Waltz and Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
Greenland’s outgoing prime minister Mute Egede called this week’s visit a “provocation” and said his caretaker government would not meet with the delegation.
“Until recently, we could trust the Americans, who were our allies and friends, and with whom we enjoyed working closely,” Egede told local newspaper Sermitsiaq. “But that time is over.”
The Greenlandic government, Naalakkersuisut, is currently in a caretaker period after a March 11 general election won by the Democrats, a pro-business party that favors a slow approach to independence from Denmark.
Jens-Frederik Nielsen, leader of the Democrats, called for political unity and said the visit by the US delegation during coalition talks and with municipal elections due next week, “once again shows a lack of respect for the Greenlandic people.”
Waltz and Wright plan to visit the Pituffik space base, the US military base in Greenland. The White House said they will get briefings from US service members there.
They will then join Vance to visit historical sites and attend the national dogsled race.
Brian Hughes, spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said the US team is “confident that this visit presents an opportunity to build on partnerships that respects Greenland’s self-determination and advances economic cooperation.”
“This is a visit to learn about Greenland, its culture, history, and people and to attend a dogsled race the United States is proud to sponsor, plain and simple,” Hughes said.
Trump has made US annexation of Greenland a major talking point since taking office for a second time on January 20. Greenland’s strategic location and rich mineral resources could benefit the US It lies along the shortest route from Europe to North America, vital for the US ballistic missile warning system.
The governments of both Greenland and Denmark have voiced opposition to such a move.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a written comment reacting to news of the visit that “this is something we take seriously.” She said Denmark wants to cooperate with the US, but it should be cooperation based on “the fundamental rules of sovereignty.”
She added that dialogue with the US regarding Greenland would take place in close coordination with the Danish government and the future Greenlandic government.
WHO calls for immediate action as report shows 10% rise in child TB infections in European region
- WHO’s European region reported more than 7,500 cases among children under 15 years of age in 2023
- Children under 15 years of age made up 4.3 percent of all TB cases in the European Union
Tuberculosis (TB) infections among children in the European region rose 10 percent in 2023, indicating ongoing transmission and the need for immediate public health measures to control the spread, the World Health Organization said on Monday.
WHO’s European region, which comprises 53 countries in Europe and Central Asia, reported more than 7,500 cases among children under 15 years of age in 2023, an increase of over 650 cases compared to 2022.
“The worrying rise in children with TB serves as a reminder that progress against this preventable and curable disease remains fragile,” said Hans Henri Kluge, WHO’s Regional Director for Europe.
Askar Yedilbayev, regional TB adviser for WHO’s European region, said in an interview that a rise in overall cases might indicate improved diagnoses. However, it could also result from increased cross-border movement due to the Russia-Ukraine war, the two countries with the highest disease burden in the region.
Children under 15 years of age made up 4.3 percent of all TB cases in the European Union, a joint report by the WHO and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control showed.
This shows an increase in cases in this age group for the third consecutive year, which Yedilbayev said was a “worrisome scenario.”
WHO has previously warned that funding cuts from global donors will undo progress in controlling TB infections across low- and middle-income countries. These cuts can hurt TB programs in non-EU countries, fueling a rise of hard-to-treat strains, the agency said.
Several local, on-ground workforces have been hurt from the funding cuts, and the supply of diagnostics and treatments remains at risk, said Yedilbayev.
TB, among the top 10 causes of death worldwide, is a potentially fatal bacterial infection that mainly affects the lungs and spreads through coughing or sneezing.
