EU Imposes New Sanctions on Russia and Its Oil Trade
The deal was initially blocked by Slovakia, until the country last night accepted guarantees from the European Commission that would limit the fallout from a planned cut off of Russian gas.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Modi joins Maldives independence day celebrations, signals easing tensions amid China rivalry
Maldives India COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday participated Saturday in the 60th Independence Day celebrations of the Maldives, concluding a two-day visit to the island nation. During the trip, Modi also announced financial assistance and formally launched talks on a proposed free trade agreement. The two-day visit was seen as crucial to India's ambition to control the seas and shipping routes of the Indian Ocean in a race with its regional rival China. It signaled a thaw in diplomatic tensions that followed the election of pro-China Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu in 2023. Modi joined a distinguished gathering at Republic Square in the capital, Malé, where a military parade and cultural performances marked the anniversary of the Maldives gaining independence from British rule in 1965. On Friday, following talks with Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, Modi announced a credit line of $565 million to support development projects in the Maldives. The visit coincided with the anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two nations in 1965. It also saw the start of talks on a free trade agreement. The two leaders oversaw the exchange of signed agreements to cooperate in sectors such as fisheries, health, tourism and digital development. Modi also handed over dozens of heavy vehicles donated by India to strengthen the Maldives' defense forces. The Maldives — an archipelago nation strategically located in the Indian Ocean — is a focal point in the growing geopolitical rivalry between India and China. Tensions grew when Muizzu, who favored closer ties with China, was elected in 2023 after defeating the India-friendly incumbent Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. Leading up to the election, Muizzu had promised to expel Indian soldiers deployed in the Maldives to help with humanitarian assistance. Last year New Delhi replaced dozens of its soldiers in the Maldives with civilian experts. Measures by Modi to promote tourism in India's Lakshadweep archipelago, off the southwestern coast of the Indian mainland, also sparked anger from Maldivians, who saw it as a move to lure Indian tourists away from their country. Indian celebrities then called for a tourism boycott of the Maldives. Tensions escalated last year when President Muizzu visited China before India, a move widely interpreted in New Delhi as a diplomatic snub. On his return, Muizzu outlined plans to reduce the Maldives' reliance on India for medical services, pharmaceuticals, and essential imports such as food staples. Relations started to improve after Muizzu attended Modi's swearing-in ceremony for a third five-year term last year. Muizzu has since toned down his anti-Indian rhetoric, and official contacts with New Delhi have intensified amid growing concern about the Maldives' economy. During a visit by Muizzu to India last October, India pledged financial support to the Maldives, which has been struggling with debt. This included $100 million in short-term government loans and agreeing to a $400 million currency swap to help stabilize the Maldivian economy. India has long been a key development partner for the Maldives. However, the island nation has also deepened ties with China, joining its Belt and Road Initiative in 2013 to build infrastructure and expand trade — part of Beijing's broader effort to increase its global influence. Solve the daily Crossword
Washington Post
2 hours ago
- Washington Post
Trump bill adds $250 fee for some foreign travelers. Here's how it works.
For many foreign nationals, a new visa fee will increase the cost of traveling to the United States by $250. The 'visa integrity fee,' included in the sweeping policy legislation that President Donald Trump signed into law this month, will require visitors traveling on a nonimmigrant visa to pay an additional $250. This group includes leisure and business travelers as well as international students from a wide range of countries such as India, China, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa and the Philippines. Applicants must pay this amount on top of other visa fees that often total nearly $200.
Fox News
2 hours ago
- Fox News
WATCH: Gabbard's Obama bombshell has GOP demanding accountability while Dems question timing as 'distraction'
After reports that top officials from the Obama administration allegedly orchestrated a coordinated attempt to sabotage President Donald Trump's 2016 election victory, GOP lawmakers are calling for transparency and accountability, while their Democratic colleagues are questioning the timing and credibility of the new claims. Trump's director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, released a trove of intelligence documents beginning last week that Gabbard has said show former President Barack Obama and some of his closest advisors promoted a "contrived narrative" that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to sabotage Trump. However, Democrats have insisted that congressional investigations already prove that Russia did help Trump in the 2016 election, while also questioning the timing of the allegations due to pressure on Trump to release more Epstein files. "It is profoundly dishonest, and it's dangerous," Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz told Fox News Digital, in reference to the allegations from Gabbard. "What I have urged the administration to do is engage in radical transparency, make it all public and expose just how much the Obama administration knew what they were doing – that they knew they were lying. I think anybody that violated the law needs to be held accountable." But Democratic California Sen. Adam Schiff told Fox News Digital he thinks the allegations are moot, pointing to former FBI Director Robert Mueller's 2019 report, which he said "documented Russia's efforts to help denigrate Hillary Clinton, which gave a boost to the Trump campaign. "I think what Gabbard and her staff are doing is dishonest," he added. However, Republican Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford argued it has "long been established" that the Steele dossier was "clearly a Clinton plant" and that the Clinton campaign was actually "cooperating with the Russians to be able to actually use the Russians to be able to interfere with President Trump's campaign." "What Tulsi Gabbard is pulling out is to say, 'How deep did this go into the White House that they knew about the Steele Dossier, they knew it was a Clinton document. When did they start pushing this out, and what official resources were they using to try to add validity to this to be able to undercut the election?'" Lankford said. "We got a long way to go still, but it's good to be able to get all information out, to be able to pull it out there and to say, 'Let's let everybody look at it and let the chips fall where they may.'" Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said he believed Gabbard was doing the right thing, also expressing hope for extreme transparency amid the alarming allegations. "Part of what this election was about, it was about transparency and government accountability. And that's exactly what [Gabbard] is trying to do, and that's exactly what the Trump administration is trying to do," Scott said. "Let's get the people the facts. Let's follow where the facts are. If somebody's done anything, we'll hold them accountable. So, i think the right process is what's happening." Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., a former CIA analyst, questioned the timing of Gabbard's release of the information, saying even her 10-year-old nephew understood the move as "a dodge and a distraction" to get eyes off the ongoing Epstein controversy. Amid Gabbard's document release at the beginning of last week, Trump has been facing calls from within the GOP for the release of more documents and information pertaining to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. "President Trump had four years in his first term, and all the time since then, to go after this issue, and he picks the same day that his name appears in the Epstein files to talk about Barack Obama," Slotkin told Fox News Digital. "American people are not dumb. Like, we get it. Trump wanted to talk about something different. I have to see these reports, and see how they're sourced. … I like to read and make my own assessment. But the timing can't be missed. The president is trying to dodge and distract you." While partisan affiliation may play a part in how lawmakers and the broader public view the Obama allegations released by Gabbard, Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., said he thinks the issue "transcends" party affiliation. "Republican, Democrat, I mean, you know, this is something that transcends all that. This is really important," Boozman told Fox News Digital. "Hopefully we'll have open transparency so people will understand what's going on. And whatever it is, I'm sure Congress will be involved, and certainly the Justice Department is involved. So, I think these are all good things."
