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Kremlin says open to peace with Ukraine; but insists on achieving its goals
Peskov and other Russian officials have repeatedly rejected accusations from Kyiv and its Western partners of stalling peace talks. Meanwhile, Moscow continues to intensify its long-range attacks on Ukrainian cities, launching more drones in a single night than it did during some entire months in 2024, and analysts say the barrages are likely to escalate.
President Putin has repeatedly spoken of his desire to bring the Ukrainian settlement to a peaceful conclusion as soon as possible. This is a long process, it requires effort, and it is not easy, Peskov told state TV reporter Pavel Zarubin.
The main thing for us is to achieve our goals. Our goals are clear, he added.
The Kremlin has insisted that any peace deal should see Ukraine withdraw from the four regions that Russia illegally annexed in September 2022 but never fully captured. It also wants Ukraine to renounce its bid to join NATO and accept strict limits on its armed forces demands Kyiv and its Western allies have rejected.
US President Donald Trump threatened Russia on July 14 with steep tariffs and announced a rejuvenated pipeline for American weapons to reach Ukraine, hardening his stance toward Moscow after months of frustration following unsuccessful negotiations aimed at ending the war. The direct Russia-Ukraine negotiations in Istanbul resulted in several rounds of prisoner exchanges but little else.
Trump said he would implement severe tariffs unless a peace deal is reached within 50 days. He provided few details on how they would be implemented, but suggested they would target Russia's trading partners in an effort to isolate Moscow in the global economy.
In addition, Trump said European allies would buy billions and billions of dollars of US military equipment to be transferred to Ukraine, replenishing the besieged country's supplies of weapons. Included in the plan are Patriot air defense systems, a top priority for Ukraine as it fends off Russian drones and missiles.
Doubts were recently raised about Trump's commitment to supply Ukraine when the Pentagon paused shipments over concerns that US stockpiles were running low.
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Business Standard
24 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Trump says US, Israel to run more Gaza food centres, offers few details
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the US will partner with Israel to run new food centres in Gaza to address the worsening humanitarian crisis there, but he and US officials offered few additional details about the plan or how it would differ from existing food distribution centres. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he returned from a trip to Scotland that Israel would preside over the new food centres to make sure the distribution is proper. We're going to be dealing with Israel, and we think they can do a good job of it," Trump said. The opaque details come as the Trump administration is facing calls at home and abroad to do more to address the hunger crisis in Gaza. The U.S.'s close ally, Israel, is at the center of an international outcry as more images of emaciated children continue to emerge. That pressure comes after the U.S. pulled out of talks last week to try to broker a ceasefire in the 21-month Israel-Hamas war, accusing Hamas of acting in bad faith. But Trump this week broke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, disagreeing publicly with him about starvation in Gaza and citing the pictures of hungry people. The White House described it as a new aid plan to help people in Gaza obtain access to food and promised that details would emerge. It did not elaborate. State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said Tuesday that she didn't know "the framework of how the new aid distribution would work. I'm waiting for the president to return. I don't want to get ahead of him, Bruce said. Democrats in Congress have implored the Trump administration to step up its role in addressing the suffering and starvation in Gaza. More than 40 senators signed a letter Tuesday urging the Trump administration to resume ceasefire talks and sharply criticizing the Israeli-backed American organization that had already been created to distribute food aid. Sen. Tim Kaine, a Virginia Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, questioned why the U.S. was not allowing long-standing aid groups to run food centers. I'm glad that the president is saying that this is a problem. But if we want to solve the problem, turn to the folks who have been doing this for decades," Kaine said. The few details Trump provided about the new food centers appeared similar to a program that was already rolled out in May, after Israel had blocked all food, medicine and other imports for 2 months. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israeli-backed American contractor, opened four food distribution sites that month. Israel and GHF said that system was needed to prevent Hamas from siphoning off aid. The United Nations, which has been distributing food in Gaza throughout the war when allowed, denies any significant diversion of aid by Hamas. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces while heading to the GHF sites, according to witnesses, health officials and the U.N. human rights office. Israel says its forces have only fired warning shots at people who approach its forces, and GHF says its armed contractors have only used pepper spray and fired occasional shots in the air to prevent dangerous crowding. The aid sites are in Israeli military zones, which is off limits to independent media. The U.N. refuses to cooperate with GHF, saying its model violates humanitarian principles by forcing Palestinians to travel long distances and risk their lives for food and because it allows Israel to control aid and use it to further mass displacement. Trump said Tuesday that he last spoke to Netanyahu two days earlier and that the Israeli leader wants to distribute food in a proper manner. I think Israel wants to do it, Trump said. And they'll be good at doing it. The president, for the second day in a row, remarked on the images of starving people and kids in Gaza, which seemed to prompt him this week to announce the new plan and his break with Netanyahu. Trump said Tuesday that everyone who saw the images coming out of Gaza would declare it terrible unless they're pretty cold-hearted or, worse than that, nuts. Those are kids that are starving. They are starving, Trump said. They've got to get them food. And we're going to get them food. The shift brings Trump closer to some in his MAGA base, who have rejected the Republican Party's long-standing, unequivocal support for Israel and see aid money flowing to the country as yet another misguided foreign intervention. They include Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a staunch Trump ally, who has echoed the rhetoric of progressive Democrats in recent days. I can unequivocally say that what happened to innocent people in Israel on Oct. 7th was horrific. Just as I can unequivocally say that what has been happening to innocent people and children in Gaza is horrific. This war and humanitarian crisis must end! she wrote on Sunday on X. On Monday night, she went further, calling what is happening in Gaza genocide. But Greene's comments do not represent MAGA as a whole. On Monday, podcaster Charlie Kirk, who leads the powerful Turning Point network, railed against what he deemed a propaganda campaign trying to make it seem as if Israel is intentionally starving the people of Gaza.
Mint
24 minutes ago
- Mint
Gold prices today in your city: Check prices in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, New Delhi and Kolkata on July 30
Gold and silver prices in your city on July 30: Gold prices were subdued in the domestic futures market on July 30, while silver rates dropped as pundits await the United States Federal Reserve's (US Fed) monetary policy decision later in the day. MCX Gold October futures contracts traded 0.02 per cent up at ₹ 99,140 per 10 grams, while MCX Silver September contracts were 0.09 per cent down at ₹ 1,13,653 per kg around 9.05 am. Further, the US Dollar index fell about 0.20 per cent from its more than one-month high and benchmark 10-year Treasury yields traded near a one-month low today. Meanwhile, the Fed wants to wait for the next two months to see how US President Donald Trump's tariffs impact inflation trends. Overall, however, experts bet on gold and silver as safe haven investments to safeguard your portfolio amid volatile markets. Over the past 20 years, gold prices have skyrocketed by an impressive 1,200 per cent from ₹ 7,638 in 2005 to over ₹ 1,00,000 in 2025 (till June), and delivered positive returns in 16 of these years. Year-to-date (YTD), gold prices have risen 31 per cent, with consistent RECord highs solidifying its position among 2025's top-performing asset classes and a reliable hedge. Further, silver has also proved resilient. Prices have held above the ₹ 1 lakh/kg mark for the past three week. Over the past 20 years (2005-2025), the metal has gained a solid 668.84 per cent. The MCX gold index was at ₹ 98,440/10 gm at 12.29 pm on July 30, the official website showed. Meanwhile, MCX silver prices were at ₹ 1,13,576/kg, it showed. Further, 24-carat gold was priced at ₹ 98,950/10 gm, according to data on the Indian Bullion Association (IBA) at 12 pm on July 30. Further, 22-carat gold was priced at ₹ 90,704/10 gms. Silver prices today are at ₹ 1,13,910/kg (Silver 999 Fine), as per the IBA website. So, check here gold and silver prices in your city today on July 30 — Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Chennai. Notably, for retail customers, jewellers may add making charges, taxes and GST to the bill, which could hike the final price for you. • Gold bullion rates in Mumbai— ₹ 98,810/10 gm. • MCX Gold ratein Mumbai — ₹ 98,440/10 gm. • Silver bullion rate in Mumbai— ₹ 1,13,710/kg. • MCX Silver 999 rate in Mumbai — ₹ 1,13,576/kg. • Gold bullion rates in New Delhi— ₹ 98,640/10 gm. • MCX Gold rate in New Delhi — ₹ 98,440/10 gm. • Silver bullion rate in New Delhi— ₹ 1,13,510/kg. • MCX Silver 999 rate in New Delhi — ₹ 1,13,576/kg. • Gold bullion rates in Kolkata— ₹ 98,680/10 gm. • MCX Gold rate in Kolkata — ₹ 98,440/10 gm. • Silver bullion rate in Kolkata— ₹ 1,13,560/kg. • MCX Silver 999 rate in Kolkata — ₹ 1,13,576/kg. • Gold bullion rates in Bengaluru— ₹ 98,890/10 gm. • MCX Gold rate in Bengaluru — ₹ 98,440/10 gm. • Silver bullion rate in Bengaluru— ₹ 1,13,800/kg. • MCX Silver 999 rate in Bengaluru — ₹ 1,13,576/kg. • Gold bullion rates in Hyderabad— ₹ 98,960/10 gm. • MCX Gold rate in Hyderabad — ₹ 98,440/10 gm. • Silver bullion rate in Hyderabad— ₹ 1,13,890/kg. • MCX Silver 999 rate in Hyderabad — ₹ 1,13,576/kg. • Gold bullion rates in Chennai— ₹ 99,100/10 gm. • MCX Gold rate in Chennai — ₹ 98,440/10 gm. • Silver bullion rate in Chennai— ₹ 1,14,040/kg. • MCX Silver 999 rate in Chennai — ₹ 1,13,576/kg. Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
Indian Express
24 minutes ago
- Indian Express
UCLA reaches $6 million settlement with Jewish students and professor over campus protests
The University of California, Los Angeles, reached a $6 million settlement with three Jewish students and a Jewish professor whose lawsuit against the university argued it violated their civil rights by allowing pro-Palestinian protesters in 2024 to block their access to classes and other areas on campus. The settlement comes nearly a year after a preliminary injunction was issued, marking the first time a US judge had ruled against a university over their handling of on-campus demonstrations against Israel's war in Gaza. UCLA initially had argued that it had no legal responsibility over the issue because protesters, not the university, blocked Jewish students' access to areas. The university also worked with law enforcement to thwart attempts to set up new protest camps. But U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi disagreed and ordered UCLA to create a plan to protect Jewish students on campus. The University of California, one of the nation's largest public university systems, has since created systemwide campus guidelines on protests. How the university handled dispersing the encampment in the spring drew widespread criticism. One night, counterprotesters attacked the pro-Palestinian encampment, throwing traffic cones and firing pepper spray, with fighting that continued for hours, injuring more than a dozen people, before police stepped in. The next day, after hundreds defied orders to leave, more than 200 people were arrested. In March, the Trump administration joined the lawsuit filed by the Jewish students and Jewish professor as it opened new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at Columbia University; the University of California, Berkeley; the University of Minnesota; Northwestern University and Portland State University. Last week, Columbia agreed to pay $200 million as part of a settlement to resolve investigations into alleged violations of federal antidiscrimination laws and restore more than $400 million in research grants. The Trump administration plans to use its deal with Columbia as a template for other universities, with financial penalties that are now seen as an expectation for future agreements. On Tuesday, the Trump administration announced the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division found UCLA violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 'by acting with deliberate indifference in creating a hostile educational environment for Jewish and Israeli students.' 'UCLA failed to take timely and appropriate action in response to credible claims of harm and hostility on its campus,' said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. The university has said that it's committed to campus safety and will continue to implement recommendations. 'Today's settlement reflects a critically important goal that we share with the plaintiffs: to foster a safe, secure and inclusive environment for all members of our community and ensure that there is no room for antisemitism anywhere on campus,' University of California Board of Regents Chair Janet Reilly said in a statement. As part of the settlement agreement, UCLA must ensure Jewish students, faculty and staff are not excluded from anything on-campus. The $6.13 million settlement will pay the plaintiffs' damages and legal fees. About $2.3 million will go to eight organizations that combat antisemitism, the university said. A group of 35 pro-Palestinian students, faculty members, legal observers, journalists and activists also has filed a lawsuit against UCLA, alleging the university failed to protect those who participated in the demonstrations. Some Jewish students have also taken part in protests on campuses around the country against Israel's war in Gaza. During the 2014 protests at UCLA, at least 15 pro-Palestinian protesters were injured and the tepid response by authorities drew criticism from political leaders as well as Muslim students and advocacy groups.
