Donald Trump

Rubio Says Trump Meant Only Temporary Gaza Move for Rebuilding

US President Donald Trump only wants Palestinians to leave Gaza temporarily while the territory is reconstructed, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday. Trump stunned the world and drew condemnation when he proposed Tuesday at a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the United States could take over war-battered ...

Lebanon: A State of Insecurity? Where Exactly?

The ostrich policy: look away and pretend that security is under control. For the past few weeks, in a scattered yet synchronized manner, acts of delinquency have been multiplying in certain neighborhoods of Beirut. Of course, there’s no proof that these incidents are coordinated. However, in Lebanon, there’s always a “but!” The profile ...

Kremlin Calls Zelensky Comment on Direct Talks with Putin 'Empty Words'

The Kremlin on Wednesday dismissed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's statement that he was ready for direct talks with Russian counterpart Vladmir Putin to end fighting as "empty words". "So far this cannot be seen as anything but empty words," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists, after Zelensky said in an interview that he ...

Tariff Crisis: Trump Redefines Global Trade

The Trump administration has disrupted the global economy with a series of dramatic announcements and last-minute negotiations, imposing new tariffs on key trading partners – Canada, Mexico and China. While Canada and Mexico secured temporary reprieves through emergency agreements, China remains entrenched in a fierce tariff standoff. Amid ...

Trump says to reinstate 'maximum pressure' on Iran, Tehran promises “failure”

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he was planning to reinstate what he called the "maximum pressure" policy against Iran over allegations that it is trying to develop nuclear weapons. However, Trump also said he hoped the policy will "hardly have to be used." Trump made the comment as he signed a memorandum reimposing the tough policy of ...

Saudi Arabia Says no Israel Normalization Without Palestinian State

Saudi Arabia said Wednesday it will not formalize ties with Israel unless a Palestinian state is established, after Israel's prime minister remarked that he thought normalisation with the Gulf kingdom was "going to happen". "Saudi Arabia will continue its relentless efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its ...

USAID, a Soft Power Tool That Does Not Serve Trump’s Policy

Insubordination, waste of taxpayers’ money and promotion of agendas that run counter to US national interests are some of the reasons spelled out by US President Donald Trump’s administration for freezing foreign aid and targeting the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in particular. Trump, a long-term critic of overseas ...

Trump Wants to Jail American Citizens in Salvador

President Donald Trump on Tuesday backed an offer by El Salvador to take in prisoners -- including US citizens -- despite clear legal problems with such an outsourcing under American law. "If we had the legal right to do it, I would do it in a heartbeat," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "It's no different than our prison system, except ...

Trump Signs Order Withdrawing US from UN Human Rights Council

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order withdrawing his country from a number of United Nations bodies, including its Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and setting up a broader review of US funding for the multilateral organization. The executive order said it withdrew Washington from UNHRC and the main UN relief agency for ...

Who Is Morgan Ortagus, Trump's Envoy Expected in Beirut on Thursday?

On January 3, 2025, US President Donald Trump appointed Morgan Ortagus as Deputy Special Envoy for Peace in the Middle East. Ortagus, who served as spokesperson for the US State Department during Trump’s first term (2017-2021), will be part of the team headed by Steve Witkoff, a close friend and trusted confidant of Trump. Morgan Ortagus, ...