Date of next Russia-Ukraine talks will be agreed when the sides are ready: Kremlin
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that the date of the next round of direct peace talks with Ukraine would be agreed on when the two sides were ready.
"Obviously, it will take some time to review the draft memoranda that have been exchanged," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "When the parties are ready, they will agree on the dates for the next round."
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The National
24 minutes ago
- The National
Lebanon's new government wins praise for first 100 days but there is a long road ahead
It is vital to look both ways now when crossing Riad Al Solh, a street in downtown Beirut between the parliament and the Grand Serail. In a highly secured zone, for years the only vehicles allowed through were those belonging to Lebanon 's military forces, MPs and the convoy of parliament speaker Nabih Berri racing to attend sessions. Now Riad Al Solh resembles a busy street again, as cars and motorbikes jostle for space. The area was closed off in 2019 amid a wave of anti-government protests, and concrete barriers were erected. While the wall was pulled down in 2022, restrictions still applied in the once-vibrant area that in recent years resembled a closed off fortress. The decision to reopen the area in a bid to restore life 'in the heart of the capital' was taken by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and his new government, which came in following the election of President Joseph Aoun in January. It may seem like an almost inconsequential move in a country that already had such deep-seated problems even before Israel's war last year reduced vast swathes of Lebanon to rubble. But it was a step by the country's new leaders seeking a break from the past and trying to rebuild trust with a population reeling from economic crises, deep divisions, corruption and weak governance. Elected to fanfare, and led by the mild-mannered former ICJ head judge Mr Salam, how is the government performing 100 days after the cabinet gained parliament's confidence? 'It's not about being flashy' Diplomats and humanitarian officials have praised the government's practical steps in the face of the mighty tasks ahead. Multiple western diplomatic sources said they were optimistic about the Lebanon's new government and its genuine effort to make reforms, despite the pressure on it. 'It's not about being flashy,' said a senior humanitarian official in the country. 'It's about good realistic governance.' The source spoke of an increased climate of trust when dealing with the new government compared to its predecessor. 'It does have accomplishments it can be proud of,' Karim Bitar, a professor of international relations at Beirut's Saint Joseph University, said. He cited breakthroughs in the Beirut blast investigation, new appointments to the judiciary, the successful holding of municipal elections, including in areas where Israel continued to bomb, as well as the passing of a banking secrecy law and progress on reforms demanded by the International Monetary Fund to secure a $3 billion loan. The investigation into the 2020 Beirut port blast had been stalled by repeated legal impediments. Now it has not only resumed but the lead investigator has had his powers, which had been stripped by his own boss, fully restored. 'It seems the prosecutor is satisfied with the conditions under which he can act,' a senior government official told The National last month, noting that the investigation had resumed weeks after the arrival of a new government. The Lebanese Army has increased its deployment in south Lebanon as required by the Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire deal last year. Despite that, Israeli attacks on the south continue and they remain entrenched in five points of Lebanese soil. The humanitarian source gave the example of education as a sector that has long been underfunded and reliant on foreign aid. New operating procedures allow the monitoring of teacher and student attendance and the financial management of schools. Small steps admittedly, but this helps to improve confidence in institutions and allows for a stronger argument for investment in a sector long reliant on donors. The basic salaries of teachers have also been increased. While still less than before the economic crisis hit, the current pay level is more sustainable and not fuelled by ad hoc short-term measures, the source said. Daunting task ahead But while there is optimism and some progress, the task ahead is daunting. Hezbollah remains very much armed and a potent threat, despite the push to constrain it. Israel continues to bomb south Lebanon daily and occupy five points. On Thursday night, Israel sent thousands celebrating Eid Al Adha in Beirut's southern suburbs fleeing when it carried out multiple air strikes on the area. And there is no reconstruction plan for a country which needs at least $11 billion to rebuild. The reality is that 100 days are not long enough to undo so many years of damage, especially for a country whose economic crisis in 2019 was blamed on decades of financial mismanagement and corruption by the ruling elite. Gone are the heady days of 2018 when annual GDP was around $55 billion. Now it is less than half that. The billions of dollars of depositors' savings are still stuck in banks with no real plan to recover them. In the autumn, a major investor conference will take place in Beirut, where its hoped that international players will be shown that 'Lebanon is back in business'. But in a country where the effects of disastrous financial mismanagement, corruption and deep rotted instability are constantly felt, how can those from the largest institutions to the smallest business owner be convinced? 'There is no easy answer,' Economy and Trade Minister Amer Bisat told The National. He left his job in New York as the global head of emerging markets at the world's largest asset manager BlackRock to take up his cabinet role this year. 'We have to be realistic, there is no button we can push to go back. It's thorny and complicated.' Observers are also cautious. While progress is promising, it has been slow in some areas or non-existent in others. Crucially, with parliamentary elections only a year away, the cabinet has only around 12 months of its mandate left. 'Definitely the government is trying to do its job, it's arguably one of the best governments [in recent years],' said Prof Bitar. 'However, this government has a life expectancy that is relatively short.' While the senior humanitarian source was full of praise for the new ministers, they conceded that the deep-rooted state bureaucracy is still a nightmare. Bold, almost vague, promises by Mr Salam to finally implement the 1989 Taif Accord and respect the constitution have not happened. So while the government could be remembered as one that made important changes, it is one that has only so much time left. There are no guarantees Mr Salam will be Prime Minister after next year's elections. However, it is likely the traditional ruling parties will still be represented in parliament, and there are no guarantees that the well-intentioned steps this government has taken will be continued. 'I don't think that small and quick steps will bring back the confidence of investors,' said Mr Bisat. 'What will bring it back will be that investors know we are fixing these issues. 'I am certain of that, I am certain that if we do our jobs and [meet our] obligations, we will be able to bring the economy back. But we need to convince investors we are doing our homework. 'The good news is we've started, especially through the working plan that the Prime Minister, President and government has put forward of how we will address these files.'
Middle East Eye
4 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
British Palestinians demand UK action as Gaza relatives face starvation
Basem Farajallah speaks with his sister in Gaza every day. She is diabetic and surviving on scraps of bread. He has 80 family members still alive in Gaza - but 40 others have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 2023, including 25 who were wiped out in a single strike. Farajallah emphasised that he is not alone. He is the co-founder of the UK Gaza Community, a group of some 350 British Palestinians with relatives in Gaza. For the last 18 months, they have been forced to watch them disappear under the rubble of their homes under relentless Israeli bombardment. Now, they are watching them starve amid Israel's ongoing blockade on the territory. Since Israel's war on Gaza began in October 2023, the group has been fruitlessly pushing to bring their families to the UK, launching a petition that garnered over 100,000 signatures demanding the government create a Ukraine-style visa scheme to reunite them. While UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has pronounced Israel's blockade on Gaza 'intolerable', Farajallah said they have been 'neglected' by the government, which has rejected their calls for the creation of the scheme. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters 'For us, its like torture,' Farajallah told Middle East Eye. 'We are not talking about huge numbers, when we created our list of the family members we wanted to bring to the UK, it was less than 2000 people'. Farajallah spoke alongside a panel of British Palestinians and their families, patched in from Gaza via Zoom calls, at a conference on Thursday calling on the UK government to impose sanctions and a total arms embargo on Israel. 'Nearly every member of the community here in the UK has close family members in Gaza, mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters' Farajallah said. 'For the last 600 days, we have lived in constant fear, checking with our families every day, not a single day passed without fear.' 'Today, after 600 days of uncertainty, we know one thing for sure, if this starvation continues, our families will not survive, not for weeks, but days'. 'I'm losing myself' Ali Mousa, a 30-year-old British Palestinian who lives in Manchester, struggles to stay in contact with his sister Hend, a teacher at an Unrwa school in Gaza. Internet and power outages mean calls are sporadic. In the periods of silence, he fears she could have been killed in a strike or have collapsed from hunger. Hend, a 29-year-old mother of three who addressed the conference via a patchy Zoom call, said she was at her home near Mawasi, west of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, expecting imminent forced expulsion orders. 'If this happens, where will my family and I go?' she said. She described how her three-year-old asks her every morning if they will have breakfast. 'Unfortunately, my answer is always no,' Hend said. Gaza: US-backed aid group suspends food distribution for a second day Read More » As a school teacher, Hend said she is also confronted with her students' suffering on a daily basis. She conducts her classes with students sat on the floor, which she also uses as a blackboard. In one of her classes, a student lost consciousness because he hadn't eaten for two days. When another student didn't complete an online test, Hend contacted the boy's mother to ask what had happened. The mother replied that he had been killed. 'I feel like I'm losing myself,' she said. Wafaa Shamallakh, 38, an Arabic interpreter who works for Kingston Council and whose siblings are in southern Gaza, described how her husband-in-law and her 15-year-old nephew were forced to walk over an hour just to reach an aid distribution point. 'Hundreds of thousands of people had come there from the north and south of Gaza, desperate to find a bag of flour, a little sugar, maybe some pasta,' Shamallakh said. Drones flew overhead, firing at them. 'They came back empty handed; no food, no flour, nothing. They had to run for their lives'. 'This is what it means to survive in Gaza,' Shamallakh said. 'Beyond anything I've seen' Dr Rossel Mohrij, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon who volunteered at Gaza's Nasser Hospital in December 2024, described amputating limbs with blunt instruments and without sterile dressing. 'We used cling film to dress wounds, vinegar for infection,' she told the conference. The doctor recalled being inundated with casualties following an air strike targeting a nearby school where displaced families were sheltering. 'It was beyond anything I've seen, I will carry it with me forever,' Mohrij told the conference. 'A flood of the dead, dying, the dismembered. Children too stunned to cry, staring at their missing body parts'. She described standing at the bed of a child, who had been stuck under the rubble and presented late with severe burns to his legs. 'They were so severe, the blood supply to his legs was restricted'. 'Me, some other visiting surgeons, some local surgeons, stood at his feet, debating how to make his death less excruciating,' she said. "A flood of the dead, dying, the dismembered. Children too stunned to cry, staring at their missing body parts," - Dr Rossel Mohrij, plastic and reconstructive surgeon 'He did not understand our words but I guess he felt our despair. He quietly covered his face with a white cloth to block the world out. He died the next morning'. For Farajallah, and many other British Palestinians, Starmer's pledges to ensure the flow of aid to Gaza and to secure a ceasefire are no more than a 'political show'. Despite Starmer's condemnation of Israel's attacks on Palestinian aid seekers over the past week, the government is so far resisting calls for a total arms embargo and recognition of Palestine. At the conference, the voices from Gaza were shaking with grief, but were also defiant. They were not asking for pity, but for action. 'Let this be not another press conference where we beg for basic humanity. Let this be a turning point where Britain stops whispering about international law and starts upholding it. Because the people of Gaza are not waiting for your sympathy,' Shamallakh said. Mousa turned to his sister, Hend, saying, 'I want to speak directly to you. We are here for you, and we will never leave you, even if your whole world does'.
The National
8 hours ago
- The National
'Trumped' again: Taking stock of Tesla's market ups and downs
Tesla Motors' stock price is taking a beating again, this time because of the very high-profile squabble between chief executive Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump. Its 15 per cent decline on Thursday reflects the volatility that shadows the company's shares, which remain vulnerable to everything from market trends to short tweets, especially from Mr Musk. Now, with his increasingly bitter fight with Mr Trump, Mr Musk might find himself on the short end of the stick: once a trusted adviser, he has now fallen out of favour with his blitz of criticism over Mr Trump's "big, beautiful" budget bill. Mr Musk derided it as a "disgusting abomination". His gripes won't surely sit well with a "very disappointed" Mr Trump, who is notorious for getting back at his critics. Mr Musk curried favours during his time in the US administration, securing contracts and deals for his companies. Those favours are now likely up in the air. Mr Trump had already suggested that one way to save "billions and billions" is to "terminate" Mr Musk's government subsidies and contracts. It's a spectacular U-turn for the once allies; Mr Trump said he even bought a Tesla to show his support for Mr Musk. Losing the White House's support would be "terrible for Tesla, which is being eaten alive in Europe and Asia by Chinese competition, and Elon Musk's irritating involvement in politics", said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a senior analyst at Swissquote Bank. She pointed out that Mr Musk would need the President's support, especially for Tesla's self-driving cars and Robotaxis, which "need friendly legislation to thrive". "Legislation is Trump. The hype around Tesla is not looking good," she added. Tesla's shares were up nearly 5 per cent in premarket trading on Friday amid reports of a scheduled call between Mr Trump and Mr Musk to end the spat. While Tesla's stock still remains slightly above its level when Mr Trump won his second presidency in November – Mr Musk splashed $250 million to help ensure that – it's now uncertain how the Musk-Trump clash will affect its share price moving forward. Here are some of the biggest movements in Tesla's stock history. July 24, 2024: Competition heat Tesla's stock dove 12 per cent to $215.99 after its second-quarter financials disappointed, with revenue sliding 7 per cent. The EV maker began feeling the heat from intense competition, most notably from China, as BYD famously overtook it as the world's biggest EV maker in the fourth quarter of 2023 and, subsequently, for the entirety of 2024. October 24, 2024: 22% blitz After solid third quarter financials that saw Mr Musk boldly projecting up to 30 per cent more sales in 2025, Tesla's stock rocketed nearly 22 per cent, putting investors at ease. This was the biggest single-day gain in more than a decade, which also added $150 billion to the company's market value. November 11, 2024: Tesla gets 'Trumped' Tesla gained nearly 9 per cent to $350 as investors expected the alliance between Mr Musk and the then president-elect Mr Trump to further boost its stock. The world's wealthiest person threw in about $250 million into Mr Trump's campaign to help the latter recapture the White House earlier that month. January 2, 2025: New Year's peeve After a series of highs, Tesla came back down, starting the new year with a more than 6 per cent drop to $379.28 after deliveries posted their first decline in a decade. This was also the first time the stock went below the $400 level in nearly a month. February 11, 2025: BYD strikes again After the previous coups, BYD once again hit Tesla, this time as it partnered with fellow Chinese company DeepSeek – famous for putting a dent into the auras of OpenAI and Nvidia – to utilise artificial intelligence in autonomous vehicles. That caused Tesla's stock to shed 6.3 per cent to $328.50. March 10 to April 9, 2025: Tariff see-saw The beginning of the Trump tariff effect: on March 10, Tesla's stock slid more than 15 per cent to $222.15, amid concerns and uncertainty around Mr Trump's planned tariffs. It didn't last long, as the company's share price worked its way back up, peaking – for this period – at $288.14 on March 25, as Mr Trump signalled he might scale back some of the levies. Mr Trump unveiled his Liberation Day tariffs on April 2. By April 8, investors were now raising concerns on how the company would cope with them: that combination pulled down Tesla's shares nearly 5 per cent to $221.86, its lowest since the March 10 slide. This time, it seemed like a blip: the following day, April 9, Tesla shares soared more than 22 per cent after Benchmark Company analyst Mickey Legg dismissed the sell-off as 'overblown'. April 21, 2025: Dogged by Doge Tesla shares gave up almost 6 per cent analyst fears that there was an 'continuing brand erosion' stemming from Mr Musk's role in the Trump administration. Mr Musk and Tesla had already been feeling the backlash: consumers and the general public, particularly those incensed by his federal job and budget cutting, have protested outside Tesla stores and vandalised its EVs, in addition to Tesla owners "rebranding" their cars out of protest. May 14, 2025: Tariff reprieve Tesla gained more than 9 per cent to $347.68 from the close on May 12 – the day the US and China agreed to temporarily halt their tit-for-tat tariffs. The company's stock would then remain largely steady, until Mr Musk departed from his role in the US government – leading to the public squabble with Mr Trump.
