Sombre day of reflection as Australians mark 80 years since Victory in the Pacific
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The Star
28 minutes ago
- The Star
Leo XIV calls for worldwide peace on his 100th day as pope
ROME (dpa): On his 100th day as pope, Leo XIV made an urgent appeal for peace on Friday. "We must not resign ourselves to the logic of conflict and armed violence prevailing," the head of the Catholic Church said after leading the Angelus prayer in Castel Gandolfo, his summer residence near Rome. He said that hope must not be abandoned. "God is greater than the sin of man," Leo said. The 69-year-old recalled his wartime predecessor, Pius XII, who expressed the wish after World War II that the unleashing of combat and war would never again claim so many lives. "How relevant these words are today!" said Leo. "Even today, we unfortunately feel powerless in the face of the spread of violence in the world, which is becoming increasingly callous and insensitive to any sign of humanity," he said. Robert Francis Prevost was elected the first US pope in May. Since taking office, he has repeatedly called for peace in places such as Gaza and Ukraine. The Angelus, which is Latin for angel, is a prayer that relates the story of the annunciation by the Angel Gabriel to Mary that she would conceive a son, Jesus Christ. This Friday marks the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, when Catholics commemorate their belief that Mary was taken into Heaven. - dpa
The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
Trump takes off for high-stakes Putin meeting in Alaska
US President Donald Trump has departed Washington aboard Air Force One to head to a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska for discussions about a possible ceasefire deal for Ukraine. Trump was accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, as well as other top aides, the White House said on Friday. "HIGH STAKES!!!" Trump wrote on his social media platform before leaving the White House for a trip the US sees as a possible way to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War II. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was not invited to the talks, and his European allies fear Trump might sell out Ukraine by essentially freezing the conflict and recognising - if only informally - Russian control over one-fifth of Ukraine. Both Trump and Putin are seeking wins from their first face-to-face talks since Trump returned to the White House. Trump, who casts the war as a "bloodbath" fraught with escalatory risk, is pressing for a truce in the three-and-a-half-year-old war that would bolster his credentials as worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. For Putin, the summit is already a big win as he can use it to say that years of Western attempts to isolate Russia have unravelled and that Moscow has retaken its rightful place at the top table of international diplomacy. The summit, the first between a US and Russian leader since 2021, will begin at 11am on Friday (5am on Saturday AEST) at a Cold War-era air force base. Trump, who once said he would end Russia's war in Ukraine within 24 hours, conceded on Thursday it had proven a tougher nut to crack than he had thought. He said if Friday's talks went well, quickly setting up a subsequent three-way summit with Zelenskiy would be even more important than his encounter with Putin. A source acquainted with Kremlin thinking said there were signs Moscow could be ready to strike a compromise on Ukraine given Putin understood Russia's economic vulnerability and costs of continuing the war. Ukraine and its European allies were heartened by a call on Wednesday in which they said Trump had agreed Ukraine must be involved in any talks about ceding land. Zelenskiy said Trump had also supported the idea of security guarantees for Kyiv. Russia, whose war economy is showing signs of strain, is vulnerable to additional US sanctions - and Trump has threatened tariffs on buyers of Russian crude, primarily China and India. The day before the summit, Putin held out the prospect of something else he knows Trump wants - a new nuclear arms control agreement to replace the last surviving one, which is due to expire in February 2026. Trump said on the eve of the summit that he thought Putin would do a deal on Ukraine, but he has blown hot and cold on the chances of a breakthrough. Putin has so far voiced stringent conditions for a full ceasefire, but one compromise could be a truce in the air war. Putin has said he is open to a ceasefire but has repeatedly said the issues of verification need to be sorted out first. Zelenskiy has accused Putin of playing for time to avoid US secondary sanctions and has ruled out formally handing Moscow any territory. Trump has said land transfers could be a possible way of breaking the logjam. Beyond territory, Ukraine has been clear in talks with Western allies that it needs a security guarantee backed by Washington. Putin in 2024 stated his demands for stopping the war - the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the parts of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions that they still control, an area now of about 21,000 sq km. Putin also said Kyiv would have to officially notify Moscow that it was abandoning its plans to join NATO, and it intended to remain neutral and non-aligned. Ukraine says these terms are tantamount to asking it to capitulate. US President Donald Trump has departed Washington aboard Air Force One to head to a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska for discussions about a possible ceasefire deal for Ukraine. Trump was accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, as well as other top aides, the White House said on Friday. "HIGH STAKES!!!" Trump wrote on his social media platform before leaving the White House for a trip the US sees as a possible way to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War II. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was not invited to the talks, and his European allies fear Trump might sell out Ukraine by essentially freezing the conflict and recognising - if only informally - Russian control over one-fifth of Ukraine. Both Trump and Putin are seeking wins from their first face-to-face talks since Trump returned to the White House. Trump, who casts the war as a "bloodbath" fraught with escalatory risk, is pressing for a truce in the three-and-a-half-year-old war that would bolster his credentials as worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. For Putin, the summit is already a big win as he can use it to say that years of Western attempts to isolate Russia have unravelled and that Moscow has retaken its rightful place at the top table of international diplomacy. The summit, the first between a US and Russian leader since 2021, will begin at 11am on Friday (5am on Saturday AEST) at a Cold War-era air force base. Trump, who once said he would end Russia's war in Ukraine within 24 hours, conceded on Thursday it had proven a tougher nut to crack than he had thought. He said if Friday's talks went well, quickly setting up a subsequent three-way summit with Zelenskiy would be even more important than his encounter with Putin. A source acquainted with Kremlin thinking said there were signs Moscow could be ready to strike a compromise on Ukraine given Putin understood Russia's economic vulnerability and costs of continuing the war. Ukraine and its European allies were heartened by a call on Wednesday in which they said Trump had agreed Ukraine must be involved in any talks about ceding land. Zelenskiy said Trump had also supported the idea of security guarantees for Kyiv. Russia, whose war economy is showing signs of strain, is vulnerable to additional US sanctions - and Trump has threatened tariffs on buyers of Russian crude, primarily China and India. The day before the summit, Putin held out the prospect of something else he knows Trump wants - a new nuclear arms control agreement to replace the last surviving one, which is due to expire in February 2026. Trump said on the eve of the summit that he thought Putin would do a deal on Ukraine, but he has blown hot and cold on the chances of a breakthrough. Putin has so far voiced stringent conditions for a full ceasefire, but one compromise could be a truce in the air war. Putin has said he is open to a ceasefire but has repeatedly said the issues of verification need to be sorted out first. Zelenskiy has accused Putin of playing for time to avoid US secondary sanctions and has ruled out formally handing Moscow any territory. Trump has said land transfers could be a possible way of breaking the logjam. Beyond territory, Ukraine has been clear in talks with Western allies that it needs a security guarantee backed by Washington. Putin in 2024 stated his demands for stopping the war - the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the parts of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions that they still control, an area now of about 21,000 sq km. Putin also said Kyiv would have to officially notify Moscow that it was abandoning its plans to join NATO, and it intended to remain neutral and non-aligned. Ukraine says these terms are tantamount to asking it to capitulate. US President Donald Trump has departed Washington aboard Air Force One to head to a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska for discussions about a possible ceasefire deal for Ukraine. Trump was accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, as well as other top aides, the White House said on Friday. "HIGH STAKES!!!" Trump wrote on his social media platform before leaving the White House for a trip the US sees as a possible way to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War II. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was not invited to the talks, and his European allies fear Trump might sell out Ukraine by essentially freezing the conflict and recognising - if only informally - Russian control over one-fifth of Ukraine. Both Trump and Putin are seeking wins from their first face-to-face talks since Trump returned to the White House. Trump, who casts the war as a "bloodbath" fraught with escalatory risk, is pressing for a truce in the three-and-a-half-year-old war that would bolster his credentials as worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. For Putin, the summit is already a big win as he can use it to say that years of Western attempts to isolate Russia have unravelled and that Moscow has retaken its rightful place at the top table of international diplomacy. The summit, the first between a US and Russian leader since 2021, will begin at 11am on Friday (5am on Saturday AEST) at a Cold War-era air force base. Trump, who once said he would end Russia's war in Ukraine within 24 hours, conceded on Thursday it had proven a tougher nut to crack than he had thought. He said if Friday's talks went well, quickly setting up a subsequent three-way summit with Zelenskiy would be even more important than his encounter with Putin. A source acquainted with Kremlin thinking said there were signs Moscow could be ready to strike a compromise on Ukraine given Putin understood Russia's economic vulnerability and costs of continuing the war. Ukraine and its European allies were heartened by a call on Wednesday in which they said Trump had agreed Ukraine must be involved in any talks about ceding land. Zelenskiy said Trump had also supported the idea of security guarantees for Kyiv. Russia, whose war economy is showing signs of strain, is vulnerable to additional US sanctions - and Trump has threatened tariffs on buyers of Russian crude, primarily China and India. The day before the summit, Putin held out the prospect of something else he knows Trump wants - a new nuclear arms control agreement to replace the last surviving one, which is due to expire in February 2026. Trump said on the eve of the summit that he thought Putin would do a deal on Ukraine, but he has blown hot and cold on the chances of a breakthrough. Putin has so far voiced stringent conditions for a full ceasefire, but one compromise could be a truce in the air war. Putin has said he is open to a ceasefire but has repeatedly said the issues of verification need to be sorted out first. Zelenskiy has accused Putin of playing for time to avoid US secondary sanctions and has ruled out formally handing Moscow any territory. Trump has said land transfers could be a possible way of breaking the logjam. Beyond territory, Ukraine has been clear in talks with Western allies that it needs a security guarantee backed by Washington. Putin in 2024 stated his demands for stopping the war - the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the parts of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions that they still control, an area now of about 21,000 sq km. Putin also said Kyiv would have to officially notify Moscow that it was abandoning its plans to join NATO, and it intended to remain neutral and non-aligned. Ukraine says these terms are tantamount to asking it to capitulate. US President Donald Trump has departed Washington aboard Air Force One to head to a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska for discussions about a possible ceasefire deal for Ukraine. Trump was accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, as well as other top aides, the White House said on Friday. "HIGH STAKES!!!" Trump wrote on his social media platform before leaving the White House for a trip the US sees as a possible way to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War II. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was not invited to the talks, and his European allies fear Trump might sell out Ukraine by essentially freezing the conflict and recognising - if only informally - Russian control over one-fifth of Ukraine. Both Trump and Putin are seeking wins from their first face-to-face talks since Trump returned to the White House. Trump, who casts the war as a "bloodbath" fraught with escalatory risk, is pressing for a truce in the three-and-a-half-year-old war that would bolster his credentials as worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. For Putin, the summit is already a big win as he can use it to say that years of Western attempts to isolate Russia have unravelled and that Moscow has retaken its rightful place at the top table of international diplomacy. The summit, the first between a US and Russian leader since 2021, will begin at 11am on Friday (5am on Saturday AEST) at a Cold War-era air force base. Trump, who once said he would end Russia's war in Ukraine within 24 hours, conceded on Thursday it had proven a tougher nut to crack than he had thought. He said if Friday's talks went well, quickly setting up a subsequent three-way summit with Zelenskiy would be even more important than his encounter with Putin. A source acquainted with Kremlin thinking said there were signs Moscow could be ready to strike a compromise on Ukraine given Putin understood Russia's economic vulnerability and costs of continuing the war. Ukraine and its European allies were heartened by a call on Wednesday in which they said Trump had agreed Ukraine must be involved in any talks about ceding land. Zelenskiy said Trump had also supported the idea of security guarantees for Kyiv. Russia, whose war economy is showing signs of strain, is vulnerable to additional US sanctions - and Trump has threatened tariffs on buyers of Russian crude, primarily China and India. The day before the summit, Putin held out the prospect of something else he knows Trump wants - a new nuclear arms control agreement to replace the last surviving one, which is due to expire in February 2026. Trump said on the eve of the summit that he thought Putin would do a deal on Ukraine, but he has blown hot and cold on the chances of a breakthrough. Putin has so far voiced stringent conditions for a full ceasefire, but one compromise could be a truce in the air war. Putin has said he is open to a ceasefire but has repeatedly said the issues of verification need to be sorted out first. Zelenskiy has accused Putin of playing for time to avoid US secondary sanctions and has ruled out formally handing Moscow any territory. Trump has said land transfers could be a possible way of breaking the logjam. Beyond territory, Ukraine has been clear in talks with Western allies that it needs a security guarantee backed by Washington. Putin in 2024 stated his demands for stopping the war - the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the parts of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions that they still control, an area now of about 21,000 sq km. Putin also said Kyiv would have to officially notify Moscow that it was abandoning its plans to join NATO, and it intended to remain neutral and non-aligned. Ukraine says these terms are tantamount to asking it to capitulate.
Los Angeles Times
an hour ago
- Los Angeles Times
Japan marks 80th anniversary of WWII surrender as concern grows about fading memory
TOKYO — Japan paid tribute Friday to more than 3 million war dead as the country marked its surrender that ended World War II 80 years ago, as concern grows about the rapidly fading memories of the tragedy of war and the bitter lessons from the era of Japanese militarism. On Friday, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba expressed 'remorse' over the war — the first time a Japanese leader has used the word in an address — since former premier Shinzo Abe shunned it in 2013. Ishiba called the war a mistake, but did not mention Japan's aggression across Asia or apologize. 'We will never repeat the tragedy of the war. We will never go the wrong way,' Ishiba said. 'Once again, we must deeply keep to our hearts the remorse and lesson from that war.' He vowed to pass his peace pledge to next generations. In a national ceremony Friday at Tokyo's Budokan hall, about 4,500 officials and bereaved families and their descendants from around the country observed a moment of silence at noon, the time when Emperor Hirohito's surrender speech began on Aug. 15, 1945. Participants later offered chrysanthemum flowers for the war dead. Just a block away at the Yasukuni Shrine, dozens of Japanese rightwing politicians and their supporters gathered to pray. The shrine honors Japan's 2.5 million war dead, including convicted war criminals. Victims of Japanese aggression, especially China and the Koreas, see visits to the shrine as a lack of remorse about Japan's wartime past. Ishiba stayed away from Yasukuni and sent a religious ornament as a personal gesture instead of praying at the controversial shrine. But Shinjiro Koizumi, the agriculture minister considered as a top candidate to replace the beleaguered prime minister, prayed at the shrine. He told reporters that he made the no-war pledge to the spirits. 'It is important to not forget those who sacrificed their lives for their country,' he said. Koizumi is the son of popular former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who outraged China when he visited Yasukuni as a serving leader in 2001. Rightwing lawmakers, including former economic security ministers Sanae Takaichi and Takayuki Kobayashi, as well as governing Liberal Democratic Party heavyweight Koichi Hagiuda, also visited the shrine Friday. A non-partisan group of 87 parliamentarians led by Liberal Democrat Ichiro Aisawa also prayed at Yasukuni, pledging 'to uphold peace' in Japan and in the Indo-Pacific region. Separately, Sohei Kamiya, head of the populist far-right Sanseito, prayed with 17 parliamentarians and 70 local assembly members from his party. He told reporters that the prime minister should visit Yasukuni. China and South Korea reminded Japan of its wartime atrocities in their countries and elsewhere in Asia. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticized attempts in Japan to 'whitewash and deny aggression, distort and falsify history and even seek to rehabilitate the accusations of war criminals.' 'Only by facing history squarely can we gain respect, only by learning from history can we forge ahead into the future,' he added. In Seoul, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, ahead of an upcoming trip to Japan for a summit with Ishiba, called for the two U.S. allies to overcome grievances from Japan's brutal colonial rule. He said some historical issues remain unresolved, urging Tokyo to face up to 'our painful history and strive to maintain trust between our two countries.' Japanese emperors have stopped visiting the Yasukuni site since the enshrinement of top war criminals there in 1978. Emperor Naruhito, in his address at the Budokan memorial Friday, expressed his hope that the ravages of war will never be repeated while 'reflecting on our past and bearing in mind the feelings of deep remorse.' Naruhito reiterated the importance of telling the war's tragic history to younger generations as 'we continue to seek the peace and happiness of the people in the future.' As part of the 80th anniversary, he has traveled to Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Hiroshima, and is expected to visit Nagasaki with his daughter, Princess Aiko, in September. Hajime Eda, whose father died on his way home from Korea when his ship was hit by a mine, said he will never forget his father and others who never made it home. In a speech representing bereaved families, Eda said it is Japan's responsibility to share lessons about the emptiness of the conflict, the difficulty of reconstruction and the preciousness of peace. Several teenagers took part in the ceremony after learning about their great-grandfathers who died in the battlefields. Ami Tashiro, a 15-year-old high school student from Hiroshima, said she joined a memorial marking the end of the battle on Iwo Jima last year after reading a letter her great-grandfather sent from the island. She also hopes to join in the search for his remains. As the population of wartime generations rapidly decline, Japan faces serious questions on how it should pass its history to the next generation. The country has faced revisionist pushbacks since the 2010s under Abe, who pushed to correct a 'self-deprecating view' of Japan's wartime history and regain national pride. Since 2013, Japanese prime ministers have stopped apologizing to Asian victims, under the precedent set by Abe. Some lawmakers' denial of Japan's military role in massive civilian deaths on Okinawa or the Nanking Massacre have stirred controversy. Naoya Endo, 64, came to Yasukuni in place of his late father who was among a few out of his unit's 50 members who returned from Taiwan. He said he worries about the growing global tension and hopes there will be no war in his lifetime. He lamented that many Japanese have lost pride and a love of their homeland. In an editorial Friday, the Mainichi newspaper called on Japan to work together with Asian neighbors as equal partners. 'It's time to show a vision toward 'a world without war' based on the lesson from its own history,' the Mainichi said. Yamaguchi writes for the Associated Press. AP journalists Mayuko Ono, Ayaka McGill and Reeno Hashimoto in Tokyo; Huizhong Wu in Bangkok and Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul, South Korea contributed to this report.
