Ukraine wants ‘constructive, friendly’ talks with the U.S. as they meet in Saudi Arabia
KYIV, Ukraine — Diplomatic teams from Ukraine and the United States are holding talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday in steps toward ending a full-scale war started by Russia in 2022.
It is the first meeting between Ukraine and the U.S. since President Trump and Vice President Vance berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a televised shouting match in the Oval Office late last month.
Soon after that heated exchange, the Trump administration froze military aid and intelligence to Ukraine. Since then, Zelenskyy has been cultivating European ties and sending conciliatory messages to the White House. He sent his chief-of-staff, Andriy Yermak, to Jeddah to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz.
“We’re very open, and we want to have very constructive, friendly, partner conversation with our American partners,” Yermak told reporters in Jeddah. He did, however, add that security guarantees are “very important because we never want this aggression repeated in the future.”
The Jeddah talks are taking place after Ukraine and Russia launched massive drone strikes on each other’s territory.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
Hate groups in the US decline but their influence grows, report shows
In its annual Year in Hate and Extremism report, released Thursday, the Southern Poverty Law Center said it counted 1,371 hate and extremist groups, a 5% decline. The nonprofit group attributes this to a lesser sense of urgency to organize because their beliefs have infiltrated politics, education and society in general.
The U.K. hands Chagos Islands over to Mauritius but says it will secure a U.S. base
The Chagos Islands are in the middle of the Indian Ocean and home to a strategic military base on Diego Garcia.
White House agrees to keep migrants in Djibouti for now, blasts federal judge’s ruling
The judge says the administration "unquestionably" violated his earlier order, which stated migrants cannot be deported to a country other than their own without having adequate notice and a chance to object.
Why did university police chase a student and his baby across a graduation stage?
Jean Paul Al Arab and his 6-month-old led police on a brief foot chase during a University at Buffalo ceremony. The school said the grad violated rules about who can participate in the commencement.
Supreme Court allows Trump to fire members of independent agency boards — for now
At issue is President Trump's firing of NLRB member Gwen Wilcox, who still has three years left on her term, and Cathy Harris, who still has four years left on her term as a member of the MSPB.
Vaccine advisers to the FDA recommended changes to COVID vaccines
Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration met Thursday to help decide which variant of the virus that causes COVID should be targeted by updated versions of the vaccines.