logo
Trump says Diddy pardon is "more difficult" after past criticism

Trump says Diddy pardon is "more difficult" after past criticism

Express Tribune02-08-2025
Former President Donald Trump addressed growing speculation about a potential pardon for music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs, stating in a recent video interview that it's 'more difficult to do' due to Combs having been 'very hostile' toward him.
Speaking candidly, Trump acknowledged he had not been following Combs's legal case closely but indicated he had heard about the situation.
'He was very hostile to me,' Trump said, adding, 'It makes it much more difficult to do.'
Donald Trump gets asked if he would pardon Diddy.
pic.twitter.com/SbswBalmuu — Pop Base (@PopBase) August 2, 2025
His remarks come amid reports that Combs, convicted in July under the Mann Act, faces sentencing later this year.
While some sources had suggested Trump might consider clemency, the former president's comments suggest personal history may factor into any decision.
No formal pardon request has been submitted, and the White House has not issued a statement on the matter.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Azerbaijan president appreciates Pakistan for consistent support on Karabakh issue
Azerbaijan president appreciates Pakistan for consistent support on Karabakh issue

Business Recorder

timean hour ago

  • Business Recorder

Azerbaijan president appreciates Pakistan for consistent support on Karabakh issue

During a conversation with Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on Sunday expressed deep appreciation for Pakistan's longstanding and consistent support to Azerbaijan on the Karabakh issue. PM Shehbaz received a telephone call from President Aliyev Sunday evening. The prime minister offered his warm felicitations to the president and people of Azerbaijan on the historic peace agreement that was recently concluded between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the PM Office said. The premier reaffirmed that it has always been a matter of duty for the people of Pakistan to extend their support to their Azerbaijani brothers and sisters on the core issue of Karabakh and it was heartening to note that, under President Aliyev's bold leadership and statesmanship, peace had finally been established in this region. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a US-brokered peace agreement on Friday during a meeting with Trump that would boost bilateral economic ties after decades of conflict and move them toward a full normalisation of their relations. PM Shehbaz welcomes US-brokered peace agreement between Azerbaijan, Armenia The deal between the South Caucasus rivals would be a significant accomplishment for the Trump administration. 'It's a long time — 35 years — they fought and now they're friends, and they're going to be friends for a long time,' Trump said at a signing ceremony at the White House, where he was flanked by Azerbaijani President Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Armenia and Azerbaijan have been at odds since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous Azerbaijani region mostly populated by ethnic Armenians, broke away from Azerbaijan with support from Armenia. Azerbaijan took back full control of the region in 2023, prompting almost all of the territory's 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee to Armenia. Pakistan had welcomed the historic peace agreement signed between Azerbaijan and Armenia, which was finalised at a White House Summit under the auspices of US President Trump. While thanking Shehbaz, Aliyev said that peaceful development in the region would create new opportunities for enhanced connectivity between Pakistan and Central Asia. During their cordial conversation, the two leaders also expressed their satisfaction on the positive trajectory of their bilateral cooperation. The prime minister lauded the visionary role of President Aliyev in bringing the three decades-old conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia to a peaceful and mutually beneficial end especially as it would usher in a new era of prosperity for the Caucuses. He particularly appreciated the role played by US President Donald Trump in facilitating this historic deal that, he said, would now bring peace and prosperity to the region. Lauding Trump as a peace maker across the globe, the prime minister mentioned that the US president played a positive role in ending the recent Indo-Pak war as well. While recalling their recent interactions in Lachin and Khankendi, PM Shehbaz reiterated his invitation to President Aliyev to undertake an official visit to Pakistan soon. Both leaders are also expected to meet in Tianjin on the margins of the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit.

Europe stresses need to protect Ukrainian interests ahead of Trump-Putin talks
Europe stresses need to protect Ukrainian interests ahead of Trump-Putin talks

Business Recorder

time11 hours ago

  • Business Recorder

Europe stresses need to protect Ukrainian interests ahead of Trump-Putin talks

KYIV/LONDON: European leaders on Saturday welcomed US President Donald Trump's plans to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on ending the war in Ukraine, while stressing the need to keep pressure on Moscow and protect Ukrainian and European security interests. Trump plans to meet Putin in Alaska on Friday, saying the parties, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, were close to a deal that could resolve the three-and-a-half-year-old conflict. The US president is open to a trilateral summit with Putin and Zelenskiy, but for now the White House is planning a bilateral meeting as requested by Putin, a White House official said. Russian and Ukrainian officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the prospects of a trilateral meeting. Details of a potential deal have not been announced, but Trump said it would involve 'some swapping of territories to the betterment of both'. It could require Ukraine to surrender significant parts of its territory, an outcome Zelenskiy and his European allies say would only encourage Russian aggression. US Vice President JD Vance met British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and representatives of Ukraine and European allies on Saturday at Chevening House, a country mansion southeast of London, to discuss Trump's push for peace. A joint statement from the French, Italian, German, Polish, British and Finnish leaders and the president of the European Commission welcomed Trump's efforts, while stressing the need to maintain support for Ukraine and pressure on Russia. 'We share the conviction that a diplomatic solution must protect Ukraine's and Europe's vital security interests,' they said. 'We agree that these vital interests include the need for robust and credible security guarantees that enable Ukraine to effectively defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity,' the statement said, adding: 'The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine.' The leaders said 'they remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force', andadded: 'The current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations.' They said negotiations could only take place in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities. 'Front line not a border' Zelenskiy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, who took part in the talks with European leaders and U.S. officials, said Ukraine was grateful for their constructive approach. 'A ceasefire is necessary - but the front line is not a border,' Yermak said on X, reiterating Kyiv's position that it will reject any territorial concessions to Russia. Yermak also thanked Vance for 'respecting all points of view' and his efforts toward a 'reliable peace'. European representatives put forward a counterproposal, a European official said, declining to provide details. The Wall Street Journal said the counterproposal included demands that a ceasefire must take place before any other steps are taken and that any territorial exchange must be reciprocal, with firm security guarantees. 'You can't start a process by ceding territory in the middle of fighting,' the newspaper quoted a European negotiator as saying. A U.S. official said hours-long meetings at Chevening 'produced significant progress toward President Trump's goal of bringing an end to the war in Ukraine, ahead of President Trump and President Putin's upcoming meeting in Alaska.' The White House did not immediately respond when asked about the European counterproposals. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke and pledged to find a 'just and lasting peace' in Ukraine and 'unwavering support' for Zelenskiy while welcoming Trump's efforts to end the fighting, a Downing Street spokesperson said. Flurry of calls It was not clear what, if anything, had been agreed at Chevening, but Zelenskiy called the meeting constructive. 'The path to peace for Ukraine should be determined together and only together with Ukraine, this is the key principle,' he said in his evening address to Ukrainians. Macron stressed the need for Ukraine to play a role in any negotiations. 'Ukraine's future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians, who have been fighting for their freedom and security for over three years now,' he wrote on X after what he said were calls with Zelenskiy, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Starmer. 'Europeans will also necessarily be part of the solution, as their own security is at stake.' Zelenskiy has made a flurry of calls with Ukraine's allies since Trump envoy Steve Witkoff visited Moscow on Wednesday, where, Trump said, he achieved 'great progress'. Ukraine and the EU have pushed back on proposals that they view as ceding too much to Putin, whose troops invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Russia justifies the war on the grounds of what it calls threats to its security from a Ukrainian pivot towards the West. Kyiv and its Western allies say the invasion is an imperial-style land grab. Moscow has claimed four Ukrainian regions – Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson – as well as the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed in 2014. Scepticism on implementing deal Russian forces do not fully control all the territory in the four regions, and Russia has demanded that Ukraine pull out its troops from the parts that they still control. Ukraine says its troops still have a small foothold in Russia's Kursk region a year after they crossed the border to try to gain leverage in any negotiations. Russia said it had expelled Ukrainian troops from Kursk in April. Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said the current peace push was the first 'more or less realistic' attempt to stop the war but she remained sceptical about the agreements being implemented. 'There is virtually no doubt that the new commitments could be devastating for Ukraine,' she said. Fierce fighting is raging along the more than 1,000-km (620-mile) front line in eastern and southern Ukraine, where Russian forces hold around a fifth of the country's territory. Russian troops are slowly advancing in Ukraine's east, but their summer offensive has so far failed to achieve a major breakthrough, Ukrainian military analysts say. Ukrainians remain defiant. 'Not a single serviceman will agree to cede territory, to pull out troops from Ukrainian territories,' Olesia Petritska, 51, told Reuters as she gestured to hundreds of small Ukrainian flags in the Kyiv central square commemorating fallen soldiers.

Field Marshal Munir attends CENTCOM change of command ceremony in US
Field Marshal Munir attends CENTCOM change of command ceremony in US

Business Recorder

time11 hours ago

  • Business Recorder

Field Marshal Munir attends CENTCOM change of command ceremony in US

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir is on an official visit to the United States, where he has engaged in high-level meetings with senior political and military leadership as well as members of the Pakistani diaspora, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Sunday. In Tampa, the COAS attended the retirement ceremony of outgoing Commander US Central Command (CENTCOM) General Michael E. Kurilla and the change of command ceremony marking the assumption of command by Admiral Brad Cooper. According to ISPR, the army chief lauded Gen Kurilla's leadership and his role in strengthening bilateral military cooperation. He also conveyed best wishes to Admiral Cooper, expressing confidence in continued collaboration to address shared security challenges. During the visit, COAS met with Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine to discuss matters of mutual professional interest and invited him to visit Pakistan. On the sidelines, he also interacted with chiefs of defence from friendly nations. In an interactive session with the Pakistani diaspora, the army chief urged expatriates to remain confident in the country's future and to contribute towards attracting investments. The diaspora, in turn, reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Pakistan's progress and development. This marks army chief's second official visit to the US in two months since the May standoff with India. The visit comes amid rising tensions between the US and India, which culminated this week when Trump said he'd impose a 50% tariff on Indian exports to the US — half of which includes a penalty for purchases of Russian oil. Even though Trump left some wiggle room to strike a deal, his vitriolic comments about India are upending a decades-long push by the US to court the world's most populous country as a counterweight to China. Trump this month slammed India as a 'dead' economy with 'obnoxious' trade barriers and little concern for Ukrainians killed in battles with Russia. While Modi and Trump haven't chatted since that June call, the Indian leader on Friday spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin and invited him to visit later this year.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store