Trump | Pakistan

Iran was largely cut off from the outside world on Friday after authorities blacked out the internet to curb expanding protests, with phone calls not reaching the country, flights cancelled and online Iranian news sites only intermittently updating. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused protesters of acting on behalf of US President Donald Trump, saying rioters were attacking public properties and warning that Tehran would not tolerate people acting as “mercenaries for foreigners”. He also told Trump to focus on the problems in his own country. The protests, which began on December 28 over an inflationary spiral, have not approached the scale of unrest three years ago but have spread across Iran with dozens reported dead and the authorities looking more vulnerable because of a dire economy and the aftermath of last year’s war with Israel and the United States. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency has reported at least 34 protesters and four security personnel killed, and 2,200 arrested duri...

US President Donald Trump on Thursday said that land strikes against drug cartels were on the way following maritime attacks in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, without providing further details. “We are going to start now hitting land with regard to the cartels. The cartels are running Mexico,” Trump told broadcaster Sean Hannity in an interview on Fox News that aired on Thursday night. Trump’s comments come after the brazen abduction of Venezuelan leader Nicholas Maduro last weekend, the culmination of months of mounting US military and economic pressure on the leftist leader. As part of that campaign, the United States has killed more than 100 people in strikes on alleged drug boats since September, and Trump has also said that the US forces conducted a land strike on a docking area for such vessels in Venezuela. But strikes on cartels in Mexico would mark a significant US military escalation. The left-wing interim government in Caracas has condemned US strikes on Venezuela as a threat to regio...

US President Donald Trump said “it’s up to” Chinese President Xi Jinping what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be “very unhappy” with a change in the status quo, according to an interview the New York Times published on Thursday. “He (Xi) considers it to be a part of China, and that‘s up to him what he’s going to be doing,” Trump told the newspaper on Wednesday. “But I‘ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he‘ll do that. I hope he doesn’t do that.” Trump made the comments in the context of an exchange about what lessons Xi might take away from Trump‘s audacious military operation in Venezuela and the abduction of the country’s president, Nicolas Maduro. The Republican president said he did not view the situations as analogous because Taiwan did not pose the same type of threat to China that he has said the government of Maduro posed to the United States. He also repeated his belief that Xi would not make a move against Taiwan during his presidency, which end...

The United States could oversee Venezuela and control its oil revenue for years, President Donald Trump said in an interview published on Thursday. During what the New York Times described as a wide-ranging, two-hour interview, the paper said Trump also appeared to lift a threat to take military action against Venezuela’s neighbour Colombia. Trump invited Colombia’s leftist leader, whom he had previously called a “sick man”, to visit Washington. “Only time will tell” how long the United States will oversee Venezuela, Trump said. When asked by the newspaper if it would be three months, six months, a year or longer, Trump said: “I would say much longer.” “We will rebuild it in a very profitable way,” Trump said of Venezuela, where he sent troops to seize President Nicolas Maduro in a night raid on January 3. “We’re going to be using oil, and we’re going to be taking oil. We’re getting oil prices down, and we’re going to be giving money to Venezuela, which they desperately need.” Trump added that the US was “get...

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he wanted to increase the US defence budget by half next year to a giant $1.5 trillion to deal with “troubled and dangerous times”. Trump has frequently employed the US military — which is currently funded at record spending levels — since returning to office, including strikes on Yemeni rebels, Iranian nuclear sites and alleged drug-smuggling boats, as well as a brazen special forces raid to abduct Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. “I have determined that, for the Good of our Country, especially in these very troubled and dangerous times, our Military Budget for the year 2027 should not be $1 Trillion Dollars, but rather $1.5 Trillion Dollars,” Trump said on Truth Social. “This will allow us to build the ‘Dream Military’ that we have long been entitled to and, more importantly, that will keep us SAFE and SECURE, regardless of foe,” the US president said. Trump said the increase is possible due to revenue from the sweeping tariffs he has imposed on friend and foe al...

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday jibed at Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi while recounting a meeting between the two, where the Indian PM had asked to meet the US president. While addressing the House GOP (Grand Old Party) Members’ Retreat, Trump recounted a meeting with Modi, stating that Modi had ordered 68 Apache attack helicopters from the US and had waited five years. “Prime Minister Modi came to see me. [He said] ‘Sir, may I see you, please?’ Yes,” Trump recalled. “I have a very good relationship with him. He’s not that happy with me because, you know, they’re paying a lot of tariffs now, because they’re not doing the oil,” he added, referring to India halting imports of Russian oil. Trump also noted that the US is “getting rich because of tariffs”. Meanwhile, India’s opposition Congress party took to X and uploaded a caricature of the scene, showing a timid Modi. In a separate post in Hindi, Congress claimed that Modi went to the US uninvited to meet Trump after he took office last January, q...

• The Hindu report says lobbying firm headed by former Trump aide Jason Miller led engagement with US officials on New Delhi’s behalf • Former diplomats say use of lobbyists is normal, but important meetings are usually set up directly by diplomats NEW DELHI: Although the government of Narendra Modi has persistently denied that the US played any role in mediating an end to the four-day India-Pakistan conflict following the Pahalgam incident, a report in The Hindu details how a lobbying firm engaged by New Delhi made hectic calls to approach US officials on May 10, and beyond. Although a filing with the Department of Justice under the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA) — including 60 entries made in December 2025 — did not divulge whether the calls on May 10 were made before or after the ceasefire, “they indicate close interaction on the day”, The Hindu wrote. It said the embassy approached White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, and Ricky Gill at the National Securit...

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Venezuela’s interim government will deliver up to 50 million barrels of oil to the United States, and that the proceeds “will be controlled by me” as president. The development is a strong sign that the Venezuelan government is responding to Trump’s demand that they open up to US oil companies or risk more military intervention. Trump has said he wants interim President Delcy Rodriguez to give the US and private companies “total access” to Venezuela’s oil industry. Venezuela has millions of barrels of oil loaded on tankers and in storage tanks that it has been unable to ship due to a blockade on exports imposed by Trump since mid-December. The blockade was part of rising US pressure on the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro that culminated in US forces launching a “large-scale strike” in the country and kidnapping him this weekend. Top Venezuelan officials have accused the US of trying to steal the country’s vast oil reserves. Venezuela will be “tu...

The White House said on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump is discussing options for acquiring Greenland, including potential use of the military, in a revival of his ambition to control the strategic island despite European objections. Trump sees acquiring Greenland as a US national security priority necessary to “deter our adversaries in the Arctic region”, the White House said in a statement. “The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilising the US military is always an option at the commander-in-chief’s disposal,” the White House said. Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States. Leaders from major European powers and Canada rallied behind the Arctic territory on Tuesday, saying it belongs to its people. A US military seizure of Greenland from a longtime ally, Denmark, would send shock waves through the Nato alliance and deepen the divide between Trump and European leaders. The strong ...

A group of European leaders on Tuesday underlined their support for Denmark after US President Donald Trump again voiced designs on its autonomous Arctic territory of Greenland. The leaders of France, Britain, Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain as well as Denmark said that sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders were “universal principles, and we will not stop defending them”. Washington’s military intervention in Venezuela has reignited fears about Trump’s designs on Greenland, which has untapped rare earth deposits and could be a vital player as polar ice melts, opening up new shipping routes. Greenland is on the shortest route for missiles between Russia and the United States, and Washington already has a military base there. With the situation in Venezuela more pressing, Trump quipped on Sunday that “we’ll worry about Greenland in about two months”. The European leaders’ joint statement said: “Arctic security remains a key priority for Europe and it is critical for international ...

The administration of US President Donald Trump is planning to meet with executives from US oil companies later this week to discuss boosting Venezuelan oil production after US forces ousted its leader Nicolas Maduro, according to a source familiar with the matter. The meetings are crucial to the administration’s hopes of getting top US oil companies back into the South American nation after its government, nearly two decades ago, took control of US-led energy operations there. The three biggest US oil companies — Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron — have not yet had any conversations with the administration about Maduro’s ouster, according to four oil industry executives familiar with the matter, contradicting Trump’s statements over the weekend that he had already held meetings with “all” the US oil companies, both before and since Maduro was seized. “Nobody in those three companies has had conversations with the White House about operating in Venezuela, pre-removal or post-removal to this point,” one...

Greenland’s leader declared “enough is enough”, and Denmark’s allies in Europe affirmed that the Arctic island’s future must be determined by its people, rebuffing renewed remarks by US President Donald Trump about acquiring the vast territory. Trump spoke a day after the US special forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a stunning raid, with Trump stating that Washington intended to oversee governance of the oil-rich Latin American country. The US operation rekindled concerns in Denmark that Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, might face a similar scenario. Trump has repeatedly said he wants to take over Greenland, an ambition first voiced in 2019 during his first presidency. On Sunday, he told The Atlantic magazine in an interview: “We do need Greenland, absolutely. We need it for defence.” Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One early on Monday, Trump said he would revisit the topic in a few weeks. “Threats, pressure, and talk of annexation have no place between friends,” Greenlan...

The United States could raise tariffs on India if New Delhi does not meet Washington’s demand to curb purchases of Russian oil, US President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “Modi is a good guy. He knew I was not happy, and it was important to make me happy,” Trump said on Sunday. “They do trade, and we can raise tariffs on them very quickly,” Trump said in response to a question on India’s Russian oil purchases. India’s commerce ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The US doubled import tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent last year as punishment for its heavy buying of Russian oil. Despite the hefty tariffs, India’s exports to the US leapt in November. Encouraged by the improved trade data, Indian officials have maintained a firm stance against US trade demands, signalling limited flexibility in areas such as agricultural imports, while data shows India’s oil purchases from Russia have declined. India is asking refiners for weekly disclosures of Russian and US oi...

United States President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the US might launch a second military strike on Venezuela following the capture of President Nicolas Maduro if remaining members of the administration do not cooperate with his efforts to get the country “fixed”. His comments to reporters aboard Air Force One raised the possibility of further US military interventions in Latin America, and suggested Colombia and Mexico could also face military action if they do not reduce the flow of illicit drugs to the United States. “Operation Colombia sounds good to me,” Trump said. He also said that Cuba, a close ally of Venezuela, “looks like it’s ready to fall” on its own without US military action. He also insisted the US was “in charge” of Venezuela after the seizure of Maduro, but was also dealing with the new leadership in Caracas. Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodriguez said at the same time that she was ready to work together with the Trump administration, asking the US leader for a balanced, respectful ...

TEHRAN: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed on Saturday Tehran “will not yield” following US President Donald Trump’s threat to aid protesters, while warning that domestic “rioters” must be “put in their place” amid swelling unrest over soaring inflation. Speaking in a recorded television appearance marking a holiday, Ayatollah Khamenei addressed the mounting crisis facing Iran’s leadership. He adopted a dual approach to the demonstrations that have flared across more than two dozen cities since Sunday, acknowledging legitimate economic grievances while drawing a hard line against political dissent. “We will speak with the protesters, but talking to rioters is useless,” Khamenei said. “Rioters should be put in their place.” Khamenei’s defiance came just one day after Trump warned that the US was “locked and loaded and ready to go” regarding the situation in Iran. Although Trump did not specify what action he might take, the threat adds to the pressure on Tehran following US and Israeli airstrik...

Key Developments Trump says US forces have captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro after launching a “large-scale strike”; hails “brilliant” operation US president says Washington will govern Venezuela until transition takes place Maduro and his wife indicted on weapon and drug charges, US attorney general says Venezuelan defence minister calls for united front of resistance in the face of “the worst aggression” ever US State Dept deputy chief declares ‘new dawn’ for Venezuela Venezuela calls for emergency UN Security Council meeting following strikes US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Washington would govern Venezuela until a “safe, proper and judicious transition takes place” after the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in a military operation on Saturday morning. American forces had captured Maduro and his wife early on Saturday morning after launching a “large-scale strike” on the South American country. Addressing a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, Trump said,...

Back in 2020, she said she was not going to support Trump but now, five years later, she's singing the praises

After US President Donald Trump warned Iran on Friday of intervention if authorities in the Middle Eastern country “violently kill” peaceful protesters, a top official of the Islamic Republic said any interference by Washington would mean “destabilising the entire region and destroying America’s interests”. “If Iran shots [sic] and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue. We are locked and loaded and ready to go,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. Reacting to his statement, Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, posted on X: “With the statements by Israeli officials and Donald Trump, what has been going on behind the scenes is now clear. “We distinguish between the stance of the protesting shopkeepers and the actions of disruptive actors, and Trump should know that US interference in this internal matter would mean destabilising the entire region and destroying America’s interests.” He added, “The Ame...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived at US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence on Monday to hold crucial talks on Gaza and Iran. The US president will push the Israeli leader to move to the next stage of his fragile Gaza truce plan. Netanyahu is also expected to try to shift some focus onto Iran, amid reports he will call for more US strikes on the Islamic republic’s nuclear program. The meeting, the fifth between the two leaders to be held in the United States this year, comes as some White House officials fear both Israel and Hamas are slow-walking the second phase of their ceasefire. Trump, who said Netanyahu had asked for the talks, is reportedly keen to announce as soon as January a Palestinian technocratic government for Gaza, and the deployment of an international stabilisation force. Netanyahu’s office said he met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Florida ahead of his talks with Trump, which are scheduled for 1pm (1800 GMT). Israeli governme...

United States President Donald Trump said on Sunday he had “a good and very productive” phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida later today. He did not provide details about what was discussed. Meanwhile, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported that the pair had spoken, citing Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov. Taking to Truth Social, Trump wrote that the meeting would take place in the main dining room of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida’s Palm Beach at 1pm (11pm PKT). “Press is invited,” the US president wrote. Zelensky and Trump intend to hammer out a plan to end the war in Ukraine, but face major differences on crucial issues and provocations from Russian air attacks. Russia struck Kyiv and other parts of war-torn Ukraine with hundreds of missiles and drones on Saturday, knocking out power and heat in parts of the capital. Zelensky called it Russia’s response to the ongoing US-brokered peace efforts. Zelensky has told jou...