Putin, Xi Attend Russia's WW2 Parade Amid Ukraine War
Russia's Phoenix armoured fighting vehicles and Linza medical armoured vehicles drive in Red Square during a military parade on Victory Day, marking the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Red Square in central Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2025. REUTERSpix
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The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Populist Wilders breaks Dutch coalition to push immigration agenda in elections
FILE PHOTO: Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders speaks to media in The Hague, Netherlands after polls closed in an EU election on June 6, 2024. REUTERS/Lewis Macdonald/File Photo AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders toppled the ruling coalition on Tuesday, gambling that a snap election focused on immigration will bring victory at the polls and secure his decades-old ambition of holding the highest political office. "We had agreed that the Netherlands would become the strictest (on immigration) in Europe, but we're trailing somewhere near the bottom," he told journalists, speaking after his Freedom Party (PVV) ditched Prime Minister Dick Schoof's coalition, just weeks before a major NATO summit in The Hague. "I intend to become the next prime minister. I am going to make the PVV bigger than ever." Some analysts said that despite a European shift to the right as seen in Poland with the election on Sunday of a conservative nationalist as president, his plan could still backfire. Polls indicate declining popularity for the PVV since it joined the government. Even if it remains the largest party, fashioning a coalition will be difficult in a deeply polarised nation. Opposition parties rule out working with Wilders and his sudden move on Tuesday angered and baffled political partners. Wilders, the longest serving Dutch lawmaker, gradually climbed to power after entering parliament in 1998, running on an anti-Islam platform that called for zero immigration and expelling asylum seekers. He tapped concerns of voters disillusioned with established politics and concerns about housing costs and healthcare that he has associated with immigration. His euroseceptic Freedom Party joined a power-sharing, right-wing coalition in 2024 after a record win in general elections, but Wilders said the government failed to make good on promises to clamp down on immigration. Immigration has slowed significantly since a peak in 2022. The Netherlands received almost two first-time asylum applications per 1,000 inhabitants in 2024, slightly below the European Union average, according to Eurostat data. Ten EU countries had a higher relative number of asylum seekers last year, including neighbouring Germany and Belgium. Junior coalition government members, including the conservative VVD party of ex-prime minister Mark Rutte, were reluctant to embrace some of Wilders' harshest ideas, including closing the borders to asylum seekers, returning Syrian refugees and closing asylum shelters. Those proposals also flew in the face of European Union obligations and a Dutch humanitarian tradition since World War Two of taking in people fleeing conflict. Focusing attention on immigration is a critical electoral strategy for the PVV, said SimonOtjes, assistant professor for Dutch politics at Leiden University. "Wilders is trying to return the focus back to immigration in the hopes that that will be the main theme in the coming elections," Otjes said. "A lot can happen in the next six months and it will be very unpredictable." Political ambition has not been enough to secure Wilders the top job, even after winning multiple elections. He had to give up his claim to the top job last year to strike a coalition deal with three other conservative parties. Wilders' anti-Islam rhetoric has prompted death threats and travel bans to Muslim nations that trade with the Netherlands. His 17-minute film "Fitna" enraged the Muslim world in 2008 for linking Koranic verses with footage of terrorist attacks. He was convicted of discrimination after he insulted Moroccans at a campaign rally in 2014. Wilders also called the prophet Mohammad a "paedophile", Islam a "fascist ideology" and "backward religion", and suggested banning of mosques, headscarves and the Koran. The central question now will be whether Wilders can turn a future election into a referendum on immigration policy that effectively undercuts his opponents, said Joepvan Lit, political researcher atRadboud University in Nijmegen. "But it's hard to tell how voters will react." (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch, Stephanie van den Berg and Bart Meijer; writing by Anthony Deutsch; editing by Mark Heinrich)
The Star
9 hours ago
- The Star
Zelenskiy aides visit US as Ukraine strikes Russian-held territory
Emergency service members work at the site where Russian drones damaged several private houses, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, June 1, 2025. REUTERS/Thomas Peter KYIV (Reuters) -Senior Ukrainian officials visited Washington on Tuesday seeking U.S. support against Russia, as Kyiv showed its ability to fight on by setting off an explosive device under a bridge that has become a symbol of the Kremlin's claims on Ukrainian territory. A day after talks in Istanbul that made little progress towards ending Russia's war in Ukraine, Kyiv launched what appeared to be one of its biggest waves of coordinated attacks of the conflict. Ukraine's SBU security service said it had hit a road and rail bridge that links Russia and Crimea below the water level with explosives. The extent of any damage was not clear but there were no immediate signs of traffic disruption. The bridge is a flagship project for Russian President Vladimir Putin, built after he annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, in a precursor to the latest conflict. Meanwhile, Ukrainian drones and shelling targeting the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region and the Kherson region in the south damaged electricity substations, leaving at least 700,000 people without power, Russia-installed officials said. Underlining the gulf between the two sides after more than three years of war, the Kremlin said work on trying to reach a peace settlement was extraordinarily complex and that it would be wrong to expect any imminent decisions. Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, arrived in the United States along with Deputy Prime Minister Yuliia Svrydenko. Ukraine says Moscow is stalling the peace talks and Yermak signalled that he would press Ukrainian demands for tougher sanctions on Russia. "We will actively promote issues that are important for Ukraine. Our agenda is rather comprehensive," Yermak said on the Telegram app after arriving in Washington. "We plan to talk about defence support and the situation on the battlefield, strengthening sanctions against Russia." Yermak said the officials would also discuss a deal that gives the U.S. preferential access to new Ukrainian mineral projects and sets up an investment fund that could be used for the reconstruction of Ukraine. DRONE ATTACKS Kyiv appears determined to show U.S. President Donald Trump that it can still fight on, despite the rising death toll and destruction in the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two. Ukraine's attack on Russian-occupied territory in the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions followed multiple Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure that have at times left millions of Ukrainians without power during the war. "There is no electricity throughout the region," Yevgeny Balitsky, the Russian-installed governor of Zaporizhzhia, said. "The Ministry of Energy ... has been instructed to develop reserve sources of electricity as soon as possible. Healthcare facilities have been transferred to back up power supply sources." The attack followed drone strikes at the weekend on Russian military airfields, some of which housed long-range nuclear-capable bombers. Ukraine's success in striking deep into Russia has prompted calls by some Russian military bloggers for a harsh response. A Russian artillery strike on the northeast Ukrainian city of Sumy on Tuesday killed three people and wounded 25, local officials said. "That's all one needs to know about the Russian wish to end this war," Zelenskiy said on Telegram. Moscow has responded to such accusations by saying Ukraine is not making a genuine effort to seek peace. At Monday's talks in Istanbul, Russia told Ukraine it would agree to end the war only if Kyiv gives up big new chunks of territory and accepts limits on the size of its army. Ukraine rejects the Russian conditions as tantamount to surrender. "The (peace) settlement theme is extremely complex, it consists of a large number of nuances...," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, adding that "it would be wrong to expect any immediate solutions and breakthroughs here". (Writing by Timothy HeritageEditing by Gareth Jones)
The Sun
2 days ago
- The Sun
China says ‘firmly rejects' US claim of violating tariff deal
BEIJING: China said Monday it 'firmly rejects' claims by the United States that it had violated a deal to lower crippling tariffs between the world's two largest economies. Beijing and Washington last month agreed to temporarily slash staggeringly high levies on each other for 90 days after talks between top officials in Geneva. But US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Beijing was 'slow-rolling the deal', in comments to 'Fox News Sunday'. Beijing hit back Monday, saying Washington 'has made bogus charges and unreasonably accused China of violating the consensus, which is seriously contrary to the facts'. 'China firmly rejects these unreasonable accusations,' its commerce ministry said in a statement. US President Donald Trump said last week that China had 'totally violated' the deal, without providing details. But Beijing's commerce ministry said it 'has been firm in safeguarding its rights and interests, and sincere in implementing the consensus'. Washington 'has successively introduced a number of discriminatory restrictive measures against China', it said, citing export controls on artificial intelligence chips and revoking Chinese student visas in the United States. 'We urge the US to meet China halfway, immediately correct its wrongful actions, and jointly uphold the consensus from the Geneva trade talks,' the ministry said. If not, 'China will continue to resolutely take strong measures to uphold its legitimate rights and interests,' it added. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick - REUTERSPIX
