Our security now lies in a rearmed Europe
War commemorations are traditionally occasions at which we reprise twaddle about the special relationship, such as Churchill expounded publicly but never privately. Behind closed doors, he raged at the ruthlessness of American treatment of Britain, especially about money.
I have always believed his failure to attend Franklin Roosevelt's April 1945 funeral reflected not, as billed, responsibilities at home but rather
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The Independent
15 minutes ago
- The Independent
Ukraine-Russia war latest: Trump ‘open to' Zelensky attending Alaska summit with Putin
Donald Trump has said he will meet with Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday to discuss the war in Ukraine. The Russian president is expected to use the summit to set out his demands for a ceasefire deal, which includes Ukraine giving up two eastern regions and its sovereignty of Crimea. Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday, the US president admitted any peace deal may involve 'some swapping of territories'. Reacting to the announcement, Volodymyr Zelensky said "Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier', and warned that any negotiations must include Kyiv. According to reports, the White House is now considering inviting Mr Zelensky to Alaska. A senior White House official has said that Trump 'remains open to a trilateral summit with both leaders. Right now, the White House is focusing on planning the bilateral meeting requested by President Putin '. A joint statement from European leaders – representing the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Finland and the European Commission – backed a ceasefire but warned that 'international borders must not be changed by force'. Reactions in Kyiv to idea of Ukraine ceding territory range from scepticism to quiet resignation On the streets of Kyiv, reactions to the idea of Ukraine ceding territory to Russia ranged from scepticism to quiet resignation. "It may not be capitulation, but it would be a loss," said Ihor Usatenko, a 67-year-old pensioner, who said he would consider ceding territory "on condition for compensation and, possibly, some reparations." Anastasia Yemelianova, 31, said she was torn: "Honestly, I have two answers to that question. The first is as a person who loves her country. I don't want to compromise within myself," she told the AP. "But seeing all these deaths and knowing that my mother is now living in Nikopol under shelling and my father is fighting, I want all this to end as soon as possible." Others, like Svitlana Dobrynska, whose son died fighting, rejected outright concessions but supported halting combat to save lives. "We don't have the opportunity to launch an offensive to recapture our territories," the 57-year-old pensioner said, "But to prevent people from dying, we can simply stop military operations, sign some kind of agreement, but not give up our territories." Tara Cobham10 August 2025 07:00 Trump to meet Putin in Alaska for Ukraine peace talks 10 August 2025 06:45 Russian drone strike hits civilian bus near Kherson as Ukraine evacuates residents A Russian FPV (first-person-view) drone struck a civilian bus in the suburbs of Kherson on Saturday morning, killing two people and injuring 19 others, local authorities have said. The strike took place around 8am local time. Sixteen people were taken to hospital, with two in serious condition. The victims, aged between 23 and 83, suffered shrapnel and blast injuries. As police recovered the victims' bodies from the bus, a second Russian FPV drone hit the area, injuring three officers with concussions, according to Ukraine's National Police. The attack comes amid escalating Russian strikes across Kherson Oblast. Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said 36 settlements were hit in the past day, leaving one person dead and three injured, including a child. Ukrainian authorities have been evacuating hundreds of residents from the Korabel district of Kherson city, which has been cut off from the rest of the city after Russian forces heavily damaged the only bridge connecting the area last week. According to Politico, only 600 of the 1,800 residents remain in the island district, with at least 200 set to be evacuated on Friday. 'Russians continue to attack the bridge and the area during evacuation,' said Oleksandr Tolokonnikov, deputy head of the Kherson regional administration. Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 06:30 Zelensky warns he will not give up land as Trump to meet Putin in Alaska Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 06:15 Trump's efforts to pressure Russia to end war delivered no progress so far Before Donald Trump announced his summit with Vladimir Putin, his efforts to pressure Russia into stopping the fighting had delivered no progress. The Kremlin's bigger army is slowly advancing deeper into Ukraine at great cost in troops and armour while it relentlessly bombards Ukrainian cities. Exasperated that Putin did not heed his calls to stop bombing Ukrainian cities, Trump had moved up an ultimatum to impose additional sanctions on Russia and introduce secondary tariffs targeting countries that buy Russian oil if the Kremlin did not move toward a settlement. The deadline was Friday. But the White House did not answer questions that evening about possible sanctions after Trump announced the meeting with Putin. Tara Cobham10 August 2025 06:00 Drone attacks cause major flight delays at Russia's Sochi airport Dozens of flights were delayed at Sochi Airport on Saturday following reported drone attacks in southern Russia's Krasnodar Krai, according to a report by The Kyiv Independent. Russia's defence ministry said its air defences shot down 10 drones over the region. In response, airspace over Sochi was closed twice on Friday, with restrictions continuing into the next day. By Saturday morning, 57 flights had been delayed and one cancelled, according to independent outlet Meduza, citing data from a flight-tracking app. The disruption extended beyond Sochi, affecting airports in Krasnoyarsk, Tomsk, Novosibirsk, Novokuznetsk, and Norilsk. Around 1,000 passengers were left waiting, according to Russia's West Siberian Transport Prosecutor's Office. Ukraine has not commented on the reported drone strikes, but Russia regularly grounds flights or shuts airspace in response to Ukrainian drone activity. Last month, at least one Russian airport faced temporary closure nearly every day. Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 05:45 Vance and Lammy meet with senior Ukrainian officials in Kent Senior Ukrainian officials met with foreign secretary David Lammy and the US vice president JD Vance on Saturday for security talks at Chevening House in Kent, ahead of Donald Trump's upcoming summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Andriy Yermak, head of Volodymyr Zelensky's office, and Ukraine's national security and defence council secretary Rustem Umerov attended the meeting, along with European national security advisers. Lammy posted photos from the gathering, describing it as part of efforts to support a just peace for Ukraine. The hours-long talks focused on Trump's proposed peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. A US official said the meeting produced 'significant progress' towards Trump's goal of ending the war, though no concrete agreements were announced. In his evening address, Zelensky called the discussions 'constructive'. 'All our messages were conveyed. Our arguments are being heard. The risks are being taken into account. The path to peace for Ukraine must be determined together – and only together – with Ukraine. This is fundamental.' Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 05:30 Macron says Ukraine's future cannot be decided 'without the Ukrainians' French president Emmanuel Macron has said Ukraine's future must not be decided without the involvement of Ukrainians and Europeans, ahead of Donald Trump's planned summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday. Any deal between Trump and Putin is expected to involve potential land concessions, which Volodymyr Zelensky has firmly rejected. In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, Macron wrote: 'Ukraine's future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians, who have been fighting for their freedom and security for over three years now.' He added that Europe must also be part of any peace solution, as its own security is at stake. 'We remain determined to support Ukraine, working in a spirit of unity and building on the work undertaken within the framework of the Coalition of the Willing,' he said. Shahana Yasmin10 August 2025 05:15 Analysis: A Trump-Putin summit will be as useful to Ukraine and democracy as Agent Orange is for gardening Along-overdue summit between the presidents of the United States and the Russian Federation to discuss peace in Ukraine, where nuclear war has been threatened, must be seen as a historic moment for optimism. Except that from London to Langley, Berlin, Canberra and Tokyo, intelligence chiefs will be on tenterhooks wondering whether this is another occasion resembling the meeting between an agent and his handler. There's no evidence that Donald Trump works for Vladimir Putin. But there is ample evidence that the US president favours Putin's agenda. And that he has done all he can to hobble Ukraine while it attempts to defend itself against a Russian invasion of Europe's eastern flank. The Independent's world affairs editor Sam Kiley reports: Tara Cobham10 August 2025 05:00 Zelensky rejects Putin's land-for-ceasefire proposal, warns of repeat invasion Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has firmly rejected Vladimir Putin's proposal for Ukraine to cede territory in exchange for a ceasefire, warning it would only invite future Russian aggression. In his evening address on Saturday, Zelensky said Russia must face consequences for its invasion, pointing to the West's failure to punish Moscow after the 2014 annexation of Crimea as a mistake that led to wider war.' Putin was allowed to take Crimea, and this led to the occupation of Donetsk and Luhansk... Now Putin wants to be forgiven for seizing even more,' Zelensky said. 'We will not allow this second Russian attempt to divide Ukraine. Where there is a second, there will be a third.' His statement comes ahead of a planned 15 August summit in Alaska between Donald Trump and Putin, where the two are expected to discuss a possible ceasefire plan, which would reportedly see Russia halt hostilities in return for Ukraine handing over its eastern territories. Shahana Yasmin
Telegraph
15 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Here's proof that Labour's private school tax raid was never about money
As sure as night follows day, when a new tax is introduced, people will do their very best to avoid it. This is what has happened with Labour's imposition of VAT at 20pc on school fees in January. The Telegraph recently revealed that Britain's top 50 independent schools held £515m in advance fees last year, up from £121m in 2023. This potentially avoids more than £100m in VAT. There are over 2,600 independent schools in the UK, of which 1,423 are members of the Independent Schools Council (ISC). In January, 582,477 pupils attended independent schools in England. The Telegraph figures thus cover just 2pc of all fee-paying establishments.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Firebrand Trump ally Laura Loomer sparks backlash after attacking Medal of Honor recipient
Right-wing activist and Trump adviser Laura Loomer sparked a wave of backlash after slamming the US Army for honoring a war hero because he is not 'US born' and spoke at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Loomer penned a long post on X criticizing Army Secretary Dan Driscoll for recognizing the brave sacrifice of Florent Groberg, who tackled a suicide bomber in Afghanistan and saved the lives of his fellow soldiers. A Friday post from the US Army was sent out on the 13-year anniversary of Groberg's selfless act, which left him with catastrophic injuries and a Medal of Honor. 'There are probably so many people who the Army could honor who have received the Medal of Honor,' Loomer wrote in response. 'But who did the Army choose to honor instead on their social media page under the Trump admin?' They chose Groberg, she said, whom she characterized as 'an immigrant who voted for Hillary Clinton and spoke at the DNC as Obama's guest'. 'Are we supposed to believe the Army couldn't find a Republican and US born soldier?' she continued. 'Under the Army Secretary Dan Driscoll , there have been several instances of either him, or the Army promoting anti-Trump Leftists on their official social media channels.' An Army official spoke anonymously to The Washington Post and called Loomer's attack 'despicable'. The official also called French-born Groberg a 'national hero' who is among many soldiers the Army plans to spotlight this year as the institution turns 250 years old. 'The Army is not going to check the political affiliation of our soldiers before we recognize them,' the official said. 'A man or woman serving is not a Democrat or Republican, they are an American. Their political affiliation has nothing to do with their service.' Groberg was awarded the military's highest honor following his heroics on August 8, 2012, where a suicide bomber killed four men: Army Command Sgt. Maj. Kevin J. Griffin, 45; Army Maj. Thomas E. Kennedy, 35; Air Force Maj. Walter D. Gray, 38; and Foreign Service officer Ragaei Abdelfattah, 43. Had Groberg not sprinted toward the suicide bomber and pushed him further back, 'many more would have died,' according to the Army. 'Groberg sustained multiple injuries in the attack, including the loss of 50 percent of his lower calf, going deaf in his left ear, and a significant traumatic brain injury,' the Army said. After Loomer launched her social media rant on Saturday, Groberg publicly responded to the right-wing activist by bringing the focus back to the men he lost in the war. 'Thirteen years ago today is my Alive Day, the day I nearly lost my life, and four of my brothers, including three Army leaders, never came home,' he wrote. 'I've served under presidents from both parties and will always honor my oath to this country. Yes, I spoke for 60 seconds at the DNC when asked about service and sacrifice, not politics. For me, 8/8 isn't about parties. It's about the lives we lost.' During his brief speech at the DNC, Groberg said he wasn't speaking as Republican or Democrat but as a 'proud immigrant to this country, a proud veteran of the United States Army, and a proud recipient of our nation's highest military honor.' And in an interview with The Washington Post in 2016, he actually clarified that he is a Republican. 'I saw an opportunity for me to go in, not as a Republican, not as a Democrat, not as a political figure, but as a veteran. As an immigrant. As an American,' he said at the time. 'I made a choice,' he said. 'I stood up. I knew I would take the heat. But guess what? I still go to sleep at night like a baby. I'm okay with it.' Loomer told The Post that she stands by her posts criticizing Driscoll and Groberg, while also saying that no one from the White House told her to take them down. 'It is very important that the secretary of the Army does not push out Democratic propaganda,' she said. 'I just laid out the facts.' Loomer also said that this is the third time the Army, under Trump's second term, has highlighted people who oppose the administration. She cited Driscoll's show of gratitude for Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-Virginia) for attending the Army parade in Washington, D.C. as one example. Vindman testified against Trump in his first impeachment trial. The other instance Loomer mentioned was when the Army appointed retired officer and Biden official Jennifer Easterly as a faculty member at West Point Military Academy. In that case, Driscoll withdrew Easterly's appointment last month following severe backlash from Loomer and others. Former Trump officials have defended Groberg and have tried to point out that the military is a nonpartisan institution. 'One of the first things my drill sergeant told us at Army Basic Training in 1983 was, "You all bleed Army green now — no one cares about the color of your skin, where you came from, or what religion you are,"' Chris Miller, who served as acting defense secretary during the first Trump administration, wrote to The Post in a text message. 'He didn't have to add, "or your political affiliation" because it was taken for granted that our oath was to the Constitution and not any political party or person,' Miller said. Miller called Loomer an 'agent provocateur' whose decision to cast aspersions on Driscoll was 'an abomination and disreputable.' Robert Wilkie, the Veterans Affairs secretary during Trump's first term, said the Medal of Honor 'knows no political affiliation'. 'I am a Trump supporter and I am the son of a distinguished combat officer,' Wilkie said. 'My service was modest. I was raised to believe that that medal is sacred. No matter what the holder believes or where he came from, he is worthy of the respect and thanks of all Americans.'
