Pacific Waves for 15 July 2025
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NZ Herald
14 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Trump meets Zelenskyy, eyes trilateral summit with Putin to end war
US President Donald Trump has said that if his meeting with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy went well he expected to hold a trilateral meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin with the objective of ending the Ukraine-Russia war. 'We're going to have a meeting. I think if everything works out well today we'll have a trilat and I think there will be a reasonable chance of ending the war when we do that,' said Trump, sitting alongside Zelenskyy at the White House. Zelenskyy thanked Trump for hosting the talks, which will be expanded to include European leaders later in the day. 'Thank you for [the] invitation and thank you very much for your efforts, personal efforts to stop killings and stop this war,' he said. Earlier, European leaders arrived at the White House before high-stakes talks with Trump and Zelenskyy aimed at bridging big differences over a peace deal with Russia. The leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Finland, as well as Nato chief Mark Rutte and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, are demonstrating support for Ukraine as Trump presses Kyiv to make concessions. Air raid sirens sounded over Kyiv on Monday (local time), AFP journalists heard, at the same time as the Europeans were arriving. Russian strikes overnight killed at least seven people. Following his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week, Trump said Ukraine must give up Crimea and abandon its Nato ambitions – two of Moscow's top demands. Trump will later meet separately with the European leaders. Trump, 79, said it was a 'big day at the White House' but appeared to be in a combative mood, churning out a string of social media posts. 'I know exactly what I'm doing,' the Republican said on his Truth Social network. 'And I don't need the advice of people who have been working on all of these conflicts for years, and were never able to do a thing to stop them.' 'Peace through strength' The European leaders held a preparatory meeting with the Ukrainian President in Washington on Monday morning, while Zelenskyy also met Trump's Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg. Zelenskyy described the talks at the White House as 'very serious' – and sought to flatter Trump before the meeting, by echoing his trademark 'peace through strength' language. 'President Trump has that strength. We have to do everything right to make peace happen,' he said. Zelenskyy later called on social media for a 'reliable and lasting peace for Ukraine and for the whole of Europe' and said they would discuss Western security guarantees for Ukraine. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters on the plane to Washington: 'We've got to make sure there is peace, that it is lasting peace, and that it is fair and that it is just.' Reports had said Putin would be open to Western security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of any peace deal – but had ruled out Kyiv's long-term ambition to join Nato. Russia kept up its attacks on Ukraine before the new talks, killing at least seven people, including two children, in dozens of drone and ballistic missile strikes overnight, Ukrainian officials said. The Trump-Putin summit in Alaska failed to produce a ceasefire in the nearly three-and-a-half-year war that began with Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. After, Trump dropped his previous insistence on a ceasefire in favour of seeking a complete peace deal, meaning negotiations could proceed while the war goes on. He also alarmed Kyiv and European capitals by repeating a number of Russian talking points. Trump said Sunday that Zelenskyy could end the war 'almost immediately, if he wants to' but that, for Ukraine, there was 'no getting back' Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and 'NO GOING INTO NATO'. 'Some concessions' US media reports have said Putin would consider freezing much of the current frontline in Ukraine if Kyiv agreed to completely give up the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine. Trump envoy Steve Witkoff said Moscow had made 'some concessions' on territory. But such a move is widely viewed as unacceptable for Ukraine, which still holds much of the resource-rich area. Yevgeniy Sosnovsky, a photographer from the captured Ukrainian city of Mariupol, said he 'cannot understand' how Ukraine would cede land already under its control. 'Ukraine cannot give up any territories, not even those occupied by Russia,' he told AFP. Kyiv and European leaders have warned against making political and territorial concessions to Russia, whose assault on Ukraine has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths. – Agence France-Presse
RNZ News
21 hours ago
- RNZ News
Australia cancels far-right Israeli politician's visa ahead of speaking tour
By Jake Evans , ABC Simcha Rothman, a member of the Religious Zionist Party. Photo: LENIN NOLLY / NurPhoto via AFP The Australian federal government has cancelled the visa of Israeli politician Simcha Rothman, a member of Israel's far right Mafdal-Religious Zionism party, just days before he was due to arrive in the country for a speaking event. Rothman, whose party is part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition, has previously advocated for the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza, and denied claims of starvation in the territory. In May Rothman told the UK's Channel 4 that Britain should let Palestinians "run away" from Gaza, and if it did not, "you are aiding and abetting a terrorist organisation using them as human shields". He added those refugees should not be accepted into Israel, however, because "they are our enemies". "And according to international law, treaties about refugees in a time of war, you don't let them conquer your country with refugees," he said. The Israeli politician was due to speak at events in Australia in a matter of days, including a Sydney event next Thursday hosted by the Australian Jewish Association. But his visa has been cancelled, and Rothman has been banned from travel to Australia for three years - a condition that is sometimes applied to a cancellation depending on the grounds it was cancelled on. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said Australia would not accept people travelling to cause division . "Our government takes a hard line on people who seek to come to our country and spread division," Burke said. "If you are coming to Australia to spread a message of hate and division, we don't want you here. "Under our government, Australia will be a country where everyone can be safe, and feel safe." Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said Australia would not welcome visitors seeking to create division. Photo: BAY ISMOYO / AFP In a post on social media, Rothman responded to the visa cancellation. "In the decision to deny the visa, the Australian Home Affairs Minister claims that my presence and my words will have a serious impact on peace and the rule of law in Australia, meaning that the Islamist mob calling for the destruction of Israel on the streets of Sydney and Melbourne will not be happy about my presence," he wrote. "I was invited by the community in Australia due to anti-Semitic attacks on synagogues and a strong sense of alienation and hostility within the community. "The Australian government's decision to deny me the opportunity to come and speak to my people, due to expressing simple and clear positions, is clear and blatant anti-Semitism that gives a boost to terrorism." Rothman's visa cancellation is the first major action against a member of Israel's Knesset since the federal government's announcement last week that it would recognise a Palestinian state at next month's United Nations meeting. Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, one of two government members sanctioned by Australia , accused the federal government on social media of aiding Hamas. "The Australian government's active support for Hamas and terrorists, and the entry ban against MK Simcha Rothman, are a historical stain and a shame for the Australian government," Ben-Gvir said in a post in Hebrew, translated to English. "The cheers of joy by Israeli left-wing activists, Hamas collaborators, and Israel slanderers around the world, are a disgrace that will never be erased from their minds." In June, Australia joined several other nations - including New Zealand - to impose sanctions on Ben-Gvir and another minister, Bezalel Smotrich, accusing the men of inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. Smotrich is the leader of the Mafdal-Religious Zionism party, of which Rothman is a member. Liberal senator Dave Sharma, who was previously an ambassador to Israel, said he was not aware of Rothman during his time in Israel but that elected representatives should as a principle be granted entry to Australia. "I would say that elected representatives from democratic nations, liberal democracies with friendly relations with Australia, the presumption should always be they are granted a visa, they are entitled to visit Australia, even if we don't always agree with their views," Senator Sharma told Sky News. "I would like to know the basis on which Tony Burke has cancelled this visa because it seems as though it was issued. And what are the comments in particular that he finds so troubling that he think would incite social unrest here in Australia?" - ABC
NZ Herald
a day ago
- NZ Herald
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says Government will ‘get to the bottom' of Airways outage
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says his two ministers in charge of transport will 'get to the bottom' of what caused an air traffic control outage that disrupted operations for an hour over the weekend. The Airways software glitch closed oceanic airspace on Saturday and forced five Australia-bound flights to circle
