President Volodymyr Zelensky pledged on Thursday that Ukraine was ready to work quickly to produce a strong agreement on investments and security with the United States, saying a meeting with US envoy Keith Kellogg “restores hope” for success.
“General Kellogg, a meeting which restores hope. We need strong agreements that will really work. I gave instructions to work fast and in a very, very even-handed fashion,” Zelensky said in his nightly video address.
“The details of the agreement are important. The better the details are drafted, the better the result.”
The meeting with Kellogg took place a day after Zelensky and US President Donald Trump exchanged barbs as US-Russian talks got underway on ending the three-year-old war pitting Kyiv against Moscow. Ukraine was not invited to the talks.
After the meeting with Kellogg, Zelensky said on social media platform X that Ukraine had to “ensure that peace is strong and lasting — so that Russia can never return with war.”
“Ukraine is ready for a strong, effective investment and security agreement with the President of the United States. We have proposed the fastest and most constructive way to achieve results. Our team is ready to work 24/7.”
The talks with Kellogg also followed Ukraine’s rejection of an initial US proposal to develop rare earths in Ukraine.
In his comments on X, Zelensky also said his discussion with Kellogg focused on the battlefield situation, the security guarantees that Ukraine is seeking and the return of prisoners of war.
“It’s important for us — and for the entire free world — that American strength is felt,” he wrote.
Zelensky says talks with US envoy ‘restore hope’ for strong agreement
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Zelensky says talks with US envoy ‘restore hope’ for strong agreement
- “Ukraine is ready for a strong, effective investment and security agreement" with the US, Zelensky said in a post on X after meeting with Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia
Philippines looks to deepen trade, business ties with UAE
- Manila is anticipating the signing of a Philippine-UAE trade deal in June
- UAE is one of Philippines’ key trading partners in the Gulf region
MANILA: The Philippines is ready to deepen its economic partnership with the UAE, Manila’s special envoy has said, as the visit of a business delegation from Dubai concluded this week.
Dubai Chambers organized a business forum in Manila on Wednesday as part of its “New Horizons” initiative. With its delegation visiting the Philippine capital, the business body had organized at least 180 bilateral meetings.
The event also saw Dubai Chambers and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry sign a preliminary agreement aimed at strengthening trade and investment ties through various efforts, including sending trade missions and organizing business-matching missions.
“The Philippines is open, ready, and eager for stronger trade and business ties with the UAE,” Kathryna Yu-Pimentel, the Philippines’ special envoy to the UAE for trade and investment, said during the forum.
“Last year, we celebrated the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the UAE — a golden milestone. Today, we look ahead with even more optimism.”
The UAE is a key trading partner of the Philippines in the region. In 2023, non-oil bilateral trade between the Philippines and the UAE reached over $1 billion. The Gulf state also ranked as the Philippines’ top export market among the Gulf Cooperation Council nations, and its 17th largest trading partner globally.
It is also home to the second-largest Filipino diaspora after Saudi Arabia, with some 700,000 overseas Filipino workers living and working in the UAE. Many are employed in the construction, healthcare and hospitality sectors.
“This upward trend will only continue, especially with the anticipated signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the Philippines and the UAE next month,” Yu-Pimentel said.
“This will be historic in the sense that it will be our first free trade agreement with a Middle Eastern country.”
The expected development will follow President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s first trip to Abu Dhabi in November, during which he met UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.
The two leaders committed “to deepening cooperation in various areas, including economy, trade and sustainability” during their meeting, which included discussions on the bilateral trade agreement.
Negotiations on the free trade deal have been underway between Philippine and UAE officials since the beginning of 2024.
Centuries-old toymaking tradition lives on in southern India
- Origins of toymaking in Channapatna can be traced back to Muslim ruler Tipu Sultan
- Today, the city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka is popularly known as ‘toy town’
NEW DELHI: For as long as he can remember, the wooden toys of Channapatna have been a part of Suhel Parvez’s life.
As family members carefully tended the centuries-old art of toy making, Parvez grew up watching unique colors and intricate designs come to life.
“I have been brought up seeing these, because in our home (in) every place they worked on this,” Parvez told Arab News.
Today, the 35-year-old is one of a few thousand local artisans working to keep the craft alive.
“I am the fifth-generation artisan, and we are continuing the legacy of our ancestors who started this,” he said.
In the southern Indian state of Karnataka, thanks to a traditional form of toy-making that can be traced back to the 18th century, Channapatna is popularly known as the “toy town,” or “gombegala ooru.” According to local artisans, the craft started in the region after Tipu Sultan, the Muslim ruler of the kingdom of Mysore, asked artists from Persia to train the locals.
From dolls to spinning tops, Channapatna’s toys are carved from local ivory wood and dipped in bright colors made from natural ingredients, such as turmeric and indigo. While they were once all hand-carved, artisans have since begun to use some machines to keep the industry competitive.
In India, the craft is protected as a geographical indication, or GI, which is a form of intellectual property under the World Trade Organization.
The toys — popular for their long-lasting quality — have also made international headlines throughout the years. In 2010 they experienced a boom after former US First Lady Michelle Obama bought some during one of her visits to New Delhi.
In 2025, as wooden toys regain popularity across the world due to their eco-friendly qualities, craftsmen like Parvez are seeing new opportunities opening up.
“Many countries are boycotting plastic material, and for child safety people are moving slowly towards wooden toys. We have good opportunities in coming years,” Parvez said.
His Bharath Arts and Crafts unit produces traditional toys the region is known for, and also more modern versions of those often used for educational purposes.
“We don’t involve any chemical process in that … right from sourcing tools (to the) end, final product, this will be a 100 percent chemical-free process,” he added, referring to the Channapatna toys.
“Apart from that we have one more (type) known as modern toys or educational toys which are made out of synthetic colors which are non-toxic.”
While Parvez and his fellow craftsmen have exported their products to the US, UK and Australia, he says the Middle East and Africa are emerging markets for the wooden toys of southern India.
“We have very good markets (in the) Middle East and African countries — these are the emerging opportunities for us,” he said.
These days, Channapatna’s toy making industry mostly comprises seasoned artisans, those who have been in the field for decades, according to local craftsman Srinivasa Kariappa.
“Those who are working in the industry have at least 15 or 20 years of experience, new people are not joining,” he told Arab News.
The 37-year-old, who runs Harsha Industries, believes that there is still time to welcome new people to preserve the tradition.
“Handwork is important in Channapatna toys,” he said. “The government should open a training center where a new set of people can come and join the toy industry. We need new families and people to join the industry and expand (it).”
Driver charged with Liverpool football parade tragedy appears in court
- Prosecutors have charged him with dangerous driving and six serious offenses alleging grievous bodily harm
- The charges are related to two boys, two women and two men who were among the 79 people injured Monday during celebrations of Liverpool’s Premier League championship
LONDON: A driver charged with multiple counts of intentionally causing grievous bodily harm for ramming into a crowd of Liverpool football fans celebrating their team’s Premier League championship was ordered held in custody Friday at his first court appearance.
Paul Doyle, wearing a black suit, white shirt and gray tie, looked emotional as he spoke only to confirm his name, address and birth date in a hearing in Liverpool Magistrates’ Court. He did not enter a plea.
Doyle, 53, faces a charge of dangerous driving and six serious offenses alleging he caused or tried to cause grievous bodily harm. The charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison if he is convicted.
The father of three bowed his head as the charges were read. The counts are related to the injuries of two boys, two women and two men who were among the 79 people injured Monday. The victims ranged in age from 9 to 78, police said. Seven people remained hospitalized Thursday.
District Judge Paul Healey put an order in place restricting the publication of victims’ names.
Doyle was ordered to appear later in the day in Liverpool Crown Court.
The city had been celebrating Liverpool’s record-tying 20th title when Doyle turned down a street full of fans and joy quickly turned to tragedy. Police said they believed Doyle got past a road block by following an ambulance that was trying to reach a possible heart attack victim.
Videos showed the car hit and toss a person wrapped in a red Liverpool flag into the air and then swerve into a sea of people packed on the side of the road.
At least four people, including a child, had to be freed from beneath the vehicle when it came to a halt.
The driver was believed to have acted alone and terrorism was not suspected, Merseyside Police said. They have not disclosed an alleged motive for the act.
Kremlin expects Russia and Ukraine to discuss ceasefire conditions in Istanbul
MOSCOW: The Kremlin expects Russia and Ukraine to discuss the list of conditions for a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine next week in Istanbul, its spokesman said on Friday, praising the US role in mediating the talks.
Russia has proposed holding the second round of talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on June 2. However, Ukraine wants to see Russia’s proposals for a peace deal before it sends a delegation to Turkiye, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on Friday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian delegation would be traveling to Istanbul and would be ready for talks with Ukraine on Monday morning.
“At the moment, everyone is focused on the direct Russia-Ukraine negotiations. A list of conditions for a temporary truce is being developed,” Peskov told reporters. He said the details of the memorandum will not be published.
Reuters reported earlier this week that Putin’s conditions for ending the war in Ukraine include a demand that Western leaders pledge in writing to stop enlarging NATO eastwards.
US President Donald Trump’s envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, said earlier on Friday that Russia’s concern over the eastward enlargement of NATO was fair and the United States did not want to see Ukraine in the US-led military alliance.
Commenting on Kellogg’s statement, Peskov said that Putin has been consistently conveying Russia’s position on the inadmissibility of NATO’s eastward expansion.
“We are pleased that these explanations by the president are understood, including in Washington. And, of course, this is quite appealing to us in terms of the mediating role that Washington continues to play,” Peskov said.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 after eight years of fighting in eastern Ukraine between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian troops.
Rockfall at Indonesian limestone quarry kills eight
CIREBON: At least eight people were killed and a dozen injured Friday in a rockfall at a limestone quarry on Indonesia’s Java island, police said.
The company overseeing the mine was operating legally but safety standards were lacking, according to West Java governor Dedi Mulyadi, who said he has ordered its closure following the collapse.
Workers and heavy equipment were buried when rocks suddenly crumbled at the mining site in the city of Cirebon in West Java province at around 09:30 am local time (0230 GMT).
“We are now focusing on evacuating victims. Until now, eight people have been found dead, and 12 others were injured and have been taken to hospitals,” local police chief, Sumarni, who like many Indonesians has one name told AFP.
Rescuers were still scouring the site to find more victims who might still be trapped under the debris, deploying excavators for the search effort.
Friday’s incident was the second time the quarry collapsed. Parts of the mine collapsed in February but there were no casualties reported.
“I decided to shut down the pit permanently, not just this pit but also other pits nearby,” Dedi told Metro TV.
Mining accidents are common across the mineral-rich Southeast Asian archipelago, especially in unlicensed sites where safety protocols are often ignored.
In 2023, eight workers died after being trapped in an illegal gold mine in Central Java.
In July, last year, at least 23 people died and 35 others were missing when a landslide hit a remote village near an illegal gold mine on the central island of Sulawesi.
