US President-elect Donald Trump has announced his envoys for NATO and Canada, following his nominations for ambassador to Israel and Special Envoy to the Middle East. Trump said on Wednesday that Acting Attorney General Matthew G Whitaker will be the US Ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), while former Congressman Pete Hoekstra has been nominated as Ambassador to Canada. Hoekstra represented Michigan's 2nd District in Congress for nearly 20 years, during which he was also Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. I overhauled the disastrous NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), the worst Trade Deal in the History of the United States, which was switched to the USMCA (Mexico/Canada), which no one thought could be done. We brought Trade with Mexico and Canada to a level playing field for our wonderful farmers and working families, Trump said. In my second term, Pete will help me once again put AMERICA FIRST. He did an outstanding job as United State
Donald Trump says he has chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as US ambassador to NATO, the bedrock Western alliance that the president-elect has repeatedly expressed skepticism about. Trump, in a statement, said Whitaker was a strong warrior and loyal Patriot" who "will ensure the United States' interests are advanced and defended and strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability. The choice of Whitaker as the nation's representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation is an unusual one, given his background is as a lawyer and not in foreign policy.
This has been a source of huge frustration to Ukraine, particularly as it could not use them against bases inside Russia that have launched ceaseless missile and drone assaults on Ukrainian cities
The Biden Administration in the last four years has expanded America's relationship with India, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. "We strengthened NATO. We've pulled NATO together. We've kept 50 countries focused on providing security assistance to Ukraine. The things that we've done in the Indo-Pacific. Quite amazing," Austin told reporters in Florida. "We walked in the door, and we were about to get kicked out of the Philippines. We are 180 degrees out from that now. We have a great relationship with the Philippines, and we continue to work together in the ways that we should be working together. You look at AUKUS, which is a generational capability that is really going to make a significant difference going forward, he said. Austin said that America's relationship with India has improved under the Biden administration. "We walked in the door and Japan has doubled its investment in defense and the list goes on and on and on. So, despite supporting and managing security ...
Donald Trump's return to the presidency introduces a shift in US foreign policy, favouring Israel's military objectives and proposing negotiation-focused approaches to the Ukraine conflict
This development comes after a significant incursion by the Ukrainian military in the Kursk area in August
NATO on Monday confirmed that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia to aid in its war against Ukraine and that some have already been deployed in Russia's Kursk region, where Russia is fighting a Ukrainian incursion. Today, I can confirm that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia, and that North Korean military units have been deployed to the Kursk region, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told reporters. Rutte said that the move represents a significant escalation in North Korea's involvement in the conflict and marks a dangerous expansion of Russia's war. His remarks came after a high-level South Korean delegation including top intelligence and military officials as well as senior diplomats briefed the alliance's 32 national ambassadors at NATO headquarters in Brussels.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to leverage India's influence to foster peace while adding that New Delhi can host Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will seek support from European Union leaders on Thursday for what he is calling his victory plan to end the devastating war with Russia. Zelenskyy will address EU leaders at their summit in Brussels before shuttling across town to meet with NATO defence ministers. The EU is a key supporter of Ukraine a candidate member of the 27-nation bloc as it fights Russia's invasion that began more than 2 1/2 years ago. Zelenskyy outlined the five-point plan to Ukraine's parliament on Wednesday without disclosing confidential elements that have been presented in private to key allies, including the United States. Reaction was muted at NATO, where Secretary-General Mark Rutte said only that he and the allies take note of it. He did not discuss when Ukraine might join the world's biggest military alliance, beyond insisting that it would eventually become a member. The plan has many aspects and many political and military issues we really need to hammer
NATO on Wednesday showed no sign it would be willing to invite Ukraine to join its ranks anytime soon as allies sought more information from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about his victory plan for ending the war with Russia. The plan centres on a request for NATO to move forward on the accelerated membership application that Zelenskyy made two years ago to seek protection under the military alliance's security umbrella after Russia launched its full-scale invasion. NATO's credibility is based on its collective security guarantee, Article 5 of its founding treaty. It's a political commitment by all 32 member countries to come to the aid of any member whose sovereignty or territory might be under attack. However, it does not apply to a partner country like Ukraine. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte declined to welcome the victory plan, saying only that he and the allies take note of it. He did not discuss when Ukraine might join the world's biggest military alliance, beyond insistin
Meetings in Europe, along with one in Berlin on Friday, were aimed at presenting Ukraine's position and possibly outlining its requirements for accepting future peace talks
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at 10 Downing St in London on Thursday for talks with the leaders of Britain and NATO on his victory plan for the war against Russia. Zelenskyy is meeting Prime Minister Keir Starmer and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, before traveling to Paris for talks with President Emmanuel Macron. Zelenskyy says he will also meet the leaders of Germany and Italy this week to discuss the plan. He had been due to present his blueprint at a weekend meeting of Western leaders and defense ministers in Germany, but it has been postponed because U.S. President Joe Biden said he had to stay home to respond to Hurricane Milton' s landfall in Florida. Zelenskyy said Wednesday he hoped the meeting could be rescheduled soon. The details of Zelenskyy's plan have been kept quiet but contours have emerged, including the need for fast action on decisions Western allies have been mulling since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. Zelenskyy said Wednesday at
Biden administration has so far said such an invitation would be a longer-term proposition that would require Ukraine to shore up its defense capabilities
Shigeru Ishiba made the proposal ahead of his victory in the ruling party leadership election on Friday, arguing that it would bolster security in Asia
Rutte will also have to handle pressure from some members to devote more attention to counter-terrorism and reinforce Nato's southern flank
The current doctrine states that Russia would be prepared to use nuclear weapons in response to a nuclear attack by another country or a conventional attack that threatened the existence of the state
Two NATO members said on Sunday that Russian drones violated their airspace, as one reportedly flew into Romania during nighttime attacks on neighbouring Ukraine while another crashed in eastern Latvia the previous day. A drone entered Romanian territory early Sunday as Moscow struck civilian targets and port infrastructure across the Danube in Ukraine, Romania's Ministry of National Defence reported. It added that Bucharest had deployed F-16 warplanes to monitor its airspace and issued text alerts to residents of two eastern regions. It also said investigations were underway of a potential impact zone in an uninhabited area along the Romanian-Ukrainian border. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage. Later on Sunday, Latvia's Defence Minister Andris Spruds said a Russian drone fell the day before near the town of Rezekne, and had likely strayed into Latvia from neighbouring Belarus. Rezekne, home to over 25,000 people, lies some 55 kilometers (34 miles) west of Ru
Expressing his heartfelt condolences, Zelenskyy said, "People were trapped under the rubble
Ukraine says it has a new long-range weapon to strike deep into Russia without asking permission from allies a homegrown combination of missile and drone that the defense minister vowed Monday would provide answers to a wave of Russian bombings. The Palianytsia was created due to urgent necessity, Ukrainian officials said, as Russia has dominated the skies since the outbreak of the war in February 2022 and Ukraine's Western allies have placed conditions on use of their long-range missiles in Russia. On Monday, a wave of Russian missiles and drones targeted Ukraine's electrical infrastructure in the largest such attack in weeks. Defenders of life should have no restrictions on weapons, as long as Russia uses all kinds of its own weapons, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a Telegram message following the attacks. Zelenskyy confirmed on Saturday the existence of the Palianytsia, named after a type of Ukrainian bread and a word so notoriously difficult to pronounce correctly that i
The United States and Western powers, eager to avoid direct confrontation with Russia, said Ukraine had not given advance notice and that Washington was not involved, though weaponry provided by Brit