Trump hints at an announcement in the ‘next two days' on Iran nuclear talks
President Donald Trump on Sunday indicated there was progress with Iran on its nuclear programme and hinted that an announcement could come in the 'next two days'.
He was notably more upbeat than the Omani mediator of the talks between the United States and Iran, who said on Friday that the two nations made 'some but not conclusive' progress in the fifth round of negotiations in Rome.
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'We've had some very, very good talks with Iran,' Mr Trump told reporters in northern New Jersey after leaving his golf club, where he spent most of the weekend.
'And I don't know if I'll be telling you anything good or bad over the next two days, but I have a feeling I might be telling you something good.'
He emphasised that 'we've had some real progress, serious progress' in talks that took place on Saturday and Sunday.
'Let's see what happens, but I think we could have some good news on the Iran front,' Mr Trump said.
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Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and Michael Anton, the State Department's policy planning director, represented the US at the talks at the Omani Embassy in Rome.
The two countries are discussing how to curb Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for lifting some economic sanctions that the US has imposed on the Islamic Republic.
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Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Trump's inks order on US drones after Ukraine's shock attack on Russia while encouraging flying cars
President Donald Trump inked a new executive order on drone use in the U.S. following Ukraine 's stunning attack on Russian air bases – and last year's drone sightings in New Jersey. The new order is intended to boost U.S. national security – but it also encompasses Jetson's-style transport of the future, such as flying cars that could function as air taxes or deliver packages for companies like Jeff Bezos-owned Amazon. The orders are designed to remove regulatory barriers to their development. 'Flying cars are not just for `The Jetsons.´' 'They´re also for the American people,' said Michael Kratsios, assistant to the president and director of the White House office of Science and Technology Policy. More than 20 years after the Concord stopped flying, Americans also could sometime hitch a ride on a cross-country supersonic flight. Trump issued the order because he wants to counter the threats drones pose to national security under new rules released Friday. He did so on a day he was feuding with Elon Musk, finally breaking his silence Friday evening. The orders are also aimed at making it easier for Americans to fly faster than the speed of sound and expedite the development of the flying cars of the future. The three executive orders will encourage the Federal Aviation Administration to expedite rules to allow companies to use drones beyond their operators' line of sight, while also imposing restrictions meant to help protect against terrorism, espionage and public safety threats. Drones are already used in a variety of ways, including bolstering search and rescue operations, applying fertilizer, inspecting power lines and railroad bridges, and even delivering packages. But the war in Ukraine has highlighted how drones could be used in a military or terrorist attack - a concern as the World Cup and Olympics approach in the U.S. There also have been espionage cases where drones have been used to surveil sensitive sites. And White House officials said drones are being used to smuggle drugs over the border, and there are concerns about the potential for a disastrous collision between a drone and an airliner around an airport. 'These orders also address the growing threat of criminal, terrorist and foreign misuse of drones in U.S. airspace. We have a responsibility to protect and restore airspace sovereignty,' said Kratsois. With major events like the World Cup scheduled in the U.S. next year, Sebastian Gorka, senior director for counterterrorism on the National Security Council, said it´s crucial to protect the airspace above large public events. A federal task force will be created to review drone threats and existing terrorism task forces will look at drones. 'Drones are a disruptive technology. They have an amazing potential for both good and ill,' Gorka said. 'We will increase the enforcement of current laws to deter two types of individuals: evildoers and idiots - the clueless and the careless.' The orders direct the FAA to expedite a new rule restricting drone flights over sensitive sites and work with the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security to better enforce laws on illegal drone use. The FAA has been testing systems to detect and counter drones that the White House would like to expand to deal with threats to public safety and national security. Among the methods being examined: Using radio signals to jam drones or force them to land. Authorities are weighing whether to deploy high-powered microwaves or laser beams to disable the devices. The order will allow state and local authorities to be trained to respond to unauthorized drones and expand the government´s ability to counter them. Law enforcement agencies also may receive additional training on how to use drones themselves to ensure safety around major events. One of Trump's orders directs the FAA to eliminate the 1973 speed restriction that prohibits flights over Mach 1 and replace it with a noise standard. 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Reuters
7 hours ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: US mulls giving millions to controversial Gaza aid foundation, sources say
WASHINGTON, June 6 (Reuters) - The State Department is weighing giving $500 million to the new foundation providing aid to war-shattered Gaza, according to two knowledgeable sources and two former U.S. officials, a move that would involve the U.S. more deeply in a controversial aid effort that has been beset by violence and chaos. The sources and former U.S. officials, all of whom requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said that money for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) would come from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which is being folded into the U.S. State Department. The plan has met resistance from some U.S. officials concerned with the deadly shootings of Palestinians near aid distribution sites and the competence of the GHF, the two sources said. The GHF, which has been fiercely criticized by humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations, for an alleged lack of neutrality, began distributing aid last week amid warnings that most of Gaza's 2.3 million population is at risk of famine after an 11-week Israeli aid blockade, which was lifted on May 19 when limited deliveries were allowed to resume. The foundation has seen senior personnel quit and had to pause handouts twice this week after crowds overwhelmed its distribution hubs. The State Department and GHF did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Reuters has been unable to establish who is currently funding the GHF operations, which began in Gaza last week. The GHF uses private U.S. security and logistics companies to transport aid into Gaza for distribution at so-called secure distribution sites. On Thursday, Reuters reported that a Chicago-based private equity firm, McNally Capital, has an "economic interest" in the for-profit U.S. contractor overseeing the logistics and security of GHF's aid distribution hubs in the enclave. While U.S. President Donald Trump's administration and Israel say they don't finance the GHF operation, both have been pressing the United Nations and international aid groups to work with it. The U.S. and Israel argue that aid distributed by a long-established U.N. aid network was diverted to Hamas. Hamas has denied that. USAID has been all but dismantled. Some 80 percent of its programs have been canceled and its staff face termination as part of President Donald Trump's drive to align U.S. foreign policy with his "America First" agenda. One source with knowledge of the matter and one former senior official said the proposal to give the $500 million to GHF has been championed by acting deputy USAID Administrator Ken Jackson, who has helped oversee the agency's dismemberment. The source said that Israel requested the funds to underwrite GHF's operations for 180 days. The Israeli government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The two sources said that some U.S. officials have concerns with the plan because of the overcrowding that has affected the aid distribution hubs run by GHF's contractor, and violence nearby. Those officials also want well-established non-governmental organizations experienced in running aid operations in Gaza and elsewhere to be involved in the operation if the State Department approves the funds for GHF, a position that Israel likely will oppose, the sources said. Gaza hospital officials have said more than 80 people had been shot dead and hundreds wounded near GHF's distribution points between June 1-3. Since launching its operation, the GHF has opened three hubs, but over the past two days, only two of them have been functioning. Witnesses blamed Israeli soldiers for the killings. The Israeli military said it fired warning shots on two days, while on Tuesday it said soldiers had fired at Palestinian "suspects" advancing towards their positions.
The Independent
8 hours ago
- The Independent
State Dept says current US visas from travel ban countries will not be revoked
The State Department instructed U.S. embassies and consulates on Friday not to revoke visas previously issued to people from 12 mainly African and Middle Eastern countries now under President Donald Trump's new travel ban, which goes into effect next week. In a cable sent to all U.S. diplomatic missions, the department said 'no action should be taken for issued visas which have already left the consular section' and that 'no visas issued prior to the effective date should be revoked pursuant to this proclamation.' However, visa applicants from affected countries whose applications have been approved but have not yet received their visas will be denied, according to the cable, which was signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. And, unless an applicant meets narrow criteria for an exemption to the ban, his or her application will be rejected starting on Monday. Still, the cable, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, suggests there should be no issue for current visa holders from the affected countries entering the United States after the restrictions take effect on June 9 at midnight ET. During Trump's first term, a hastily written executive order ordering the denial of entry to citizens of mainly Muslim countries created chaos at numerous airports and other ports of entry, prompting successful legal challenges and major revisions to the policy. The new proclamation, which Trump signed on Wednesday, appears designed to beat any court challenge by focusing on the visa application process. Rubio's cable says the only people who should be denied entry into the U.S. are those currently outside the United States who do not have a valid visa on the effective date. Despite Rubio's cable, physically entering the United States at a port of entry is not controlled by the State Department. It is up to the Department of Homeland Security and the discretion of individual Customs and Border Patrol agents to determine if a visa holder is admitted or turned away. The visa ban applies to people from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Other visa restrictions will apply to people from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Some exceptions apply only for specific countries, like Afghanistan. Others are for most of the countries on the list, or are more general and unclear, like the policies for foreign visitors planning to come to the U.S. for the 2026 Word Cup and 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, two of the events Trump has said he is excited to host. Rubio's cable said criteria for the exemptions under a national security waiver would be issued soon.
