NATIONAL HARBOR, United States: US President Donald Trump on Saturday said he was trying to get money back for the billions of dollars sent to support Ukraine’s war against Russia.
His comments came as Washington and Kyiv negotiate a mineral resources deal Trump wants as compensation for the wartime aid his predecessor Joe Biden gave Ukraine.
It was the latest twist in a whirlwind first month since he took office, during which he has upended US foreign policy by making diplomatic overtures toward the Kremlin over the heads of Ukraine and Europe.
Trump told delegates at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) near Washington: “I’m trying to get the money back, or secured.
“I want them to give us something for all of the money that we put up. We’re asking for rare earth and oil, anything we can get.
“We’re going to get our money back because it’s just not fair. And we will see, but I think we’re pretty close to a deal, and we better be close because that has been a horrible situation.”
Hours earlier, a source told AFP that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was “not ready” to sign such a deal, despite growing US pressure.
Trump’s special envoy Keith Kellogg, who met Zelensky earlier this week, said the Ukrainian president understood signing a deal with the US was “critical.”
But the Ukrainian source told AFP that Kyiv needed assurances first.
“In the form in which the draft is now, the president is not ready to accept, we are still trying to make changes and add constructiveness,” the source close to the matter said.
Ukraine wants any agreement signed with the US to include security guarantees as it battles Russia’s nearly three-year invasion.
The negotiations between the two countries come amid a deepening war of words between Trump and Zelensky that has raised alarm in Kyiv and Europe.
On Wednesday, Trump branded his Ukrainian counterpart a “dictator” and called for him to “move fast” to end the war, a day after Russian and US officials held talks in Saudi Arabia without Kyiv.
The US has proposed a United Nations resolution on the Ukraine conflict that omitted any mention of Kyiv’s territory occupied by Russia, diplomatic sources told AFP.
Trump has asked for “$500 billion worth” of rare earth minerals to make up for aid given to Kyiv — a price tag Ukraine has balked at and which is much higher than published US aid figures.
“There are no American obligations in the agreement regarding guarantees or investments, everything about them is very vague, and they want to extract $500 billion from us,” the Ukrainian source told AFP of the proposed deal.
“What kind of partnership is this? And why do we have to give $500 billion, there is no answer,” the source said, adding that Ukraine had proposed amendments to the draft.
The United States has given Ukraine more than $60 billion in military aid since Russia’s invasion, according to official figures — the largest such contribution among Kyiv’s allies but substantially lower than Trump’s figures.
The Kiel Institute, a German economic research body, said that from 2022 until the end of 2024, the United States gave a total of 114.2 billion euros ($119.8 billion) in financial, humanitarian and military aid.
A senior Ukrainian official told AFP Friday that despite the tensions, talks on a possible agreement were “ongoing.” Kellogg praised Zelensky as “courageous” after his visit to Kyiv earlier this week.
The row comes at a critical moment in the conflict. Ukraine marks the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion on Monday and Kyiv’s forces are slowly ceding ground on the frontline.
Moscow’s defense ministry earlier on Saturday claimed the capture of Novolyubivka in the eastern Lugansk region, which is now largely under Russian control.
In a call with Zelensky on Saturday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged the “UK’s ironclad support for Ukraine.”
Zelensky, in response, praised the United Kingdom for showing “leadership” on the war with Russia.
In London, thousands of people marched in support of Ukraine on Saturday, and polls in the UK suggest strong support for Kyiv.
Trump says US wants return on Ukraine aid money
https://arab.news/578vz
Trump says US wants return on Ukraine aid money
- Trump told delegates at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) near Washington: “I’m trying to get the money back, or secured
Thousands of innovators gather in New Delhi for India’s largest startup event
- With 160,000 startups, India is world’s third-largest startup ecosystem after US, China
- Startup Mahakumbh 2025 focuses on AI, cybersecurity, health, energy, gaming, space tech
NEW DELHI: India’s largest startup event began in New Delhi on Thursday, bringing together thousands of entrepreneurs, investors, and industry leaders from across the country and abroad.
Dubbed Startup Mahakumbh, the expo is organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India, and the Indian government’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade.
Around 3,000 startups are participating in the three-day event at Bharat Mandapam — the venue of the 2023 G20 summit — where they are presenting their innovations across sectors including artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, health, biotechnology, energy, gaming, finance, mobility, defense, agri tech and space tech.
Jitin Prasada, the minister of state for commerce, industry, electronics and IT, opened the expo, saying that India had strong policies in place to support the development of the startup ecosystem.
“India is ready for the challenge. We have the talent, we have the skills. We have an agile government,” he told the participants.
“We’re going to showcase to the world what India is about. Together with the government, the stakeholders, and you above all in front of me, together we will collaborate, work for a better, stronger, creative, and more vibrant India.”
The number of companies participating in Startup Mahakumbh has doubled from its inaugural edition last year. It will also feature exhibitors and delegates from 50 countries, compared with about a dozen in 2024.
Sanjiv Singh, joint secretary at the DPIIT, told reporters: “At one end we will have a flying taxi made in India on display; at the other we have countries like Korea setting up a pavilion of 11 startups, and Nepal putting up the largest pavilion with one of its startups showcasing a two-stage rocket powered by sustainable hybrid propulsion rocket engines.
“The event will be a great opportunity to connect and collaborate.”
India has about 160,000 registered startups, according to DPIIT data. Among these, more than 100 have achieved unicorn status, which means they are valued at $1 billion or more.
With the rapid growth in the sector over the past few years — from 500 DPIIT-recognized startups in 2016 and fewer than 10 unicorns — India has emerged as the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem, after the US and China.
Rajesh Nambiar, president of the National Association of Software and Service Companies, said: “We also witnessed tech startup IPOs triple in 2024 compared to 2023, so that’s a lot of momentum. It’s not just about the rising momentum. It is compounding year on year, which gives us the confidence that this is going to be something which will be a huge differentiator for us as a nation.
“Last year we added the second highest number of unicorns globally, which is a huge testimony for India as a country. Also in 2024, the tech sector contributed a staggering $283 billion in terms of the broader contribution, and this accounts roughly for about 7.3 percent of GDP.”
The development of tech-based startups, Nambiar told the Startup Mahakumbh audience, will drive India’s technological sovereignty.
“For India to be truly emerging as a developed nation, we must achieve this tech sovereignty; a future where we are not just users of technology, but we are actually creators and builders of technology or transformative technology as we move forward,” he said.
“This also means that we are leading in patents, not just platforms; we would be shaping standards, not just following them. We are going to be owning IP (intellectual property) that drives global progress, and the deep tech ecosystem will be the fulcrum of this transformation.”
Tesla sales fall again in Germany amid Musk backlash
- Tesla’s sales have been slowing worldwide as Musk faces anger over his role overseeing cuts to the federal workforce
- Musk has faced particular hostility in Germany after he vocally backed the far-right Alternative for Germany
FRANKFURT: Tesla sales plunged again in Germany last month even as the broader electric car market rebounded, data showed Thursday, the latest sign of a growing backlash against billionaire owner Elon Musk.
Just 2,229 of Tesla’s electric vehicles (EVs) were registered in March, about 43 percent fewer compared with the same period last year, the KBA federal transport authority said.
Overall electric vehicle registrations rose 35.5 percent in Germany year-on-year as sales continue to rebound from very low levels seen in early 2024.
Like elsewhere in Europe, EV sales slowed in Germany last year against a weak economic backdrop, with the situation worsened in the region’s biggest auto market by the withdrawal of government subsidies.
Tesla’s sales have been slowing worldwide as Musk faces anger over his role overseeing cuts to the federal workforce in US President Donald Trump’s administration, and due to factory upgrades.
But he has faced particular hostility in Germany after he vocally backed the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) — which is shunned by mainstream parties — ahead of February elections.
Some German Tesla drivers have put “I bought this before Elon Went crazy” stickers on their vehicles, Teslas have been targeted in suspected arson attacks in Berlin and Dresden, and protesters have staged demonstrations against the carmaker.
Over the first three months of the year Tesla registrations fell a whopping 62.2 percent compared to the same period in 2024, the KBA said.
Overall in March, the number of new vehicle registrations in Germany fell to 253,497, down 3.9 percent from a year earlier, the latest sign of weakness in the market.
German auto manufacturers are now facing another headache after Trump slapped 25-percent tariffs on car imports into the United States.
Eid break brings Indonesian capital respite from notoriously polluted air
- Millions of people traveled to their hometowns for Eid, leaving streets of the capital empty
- Jakarta regularly records above 100 air quality index and ‘unhealthy’ levels of PM 2.5
JAKARTA: The long Eid Al-Fitr break in commercial activities has cleared the skies over Indonesia’s notoriously polluted capital, offering a respite for residents who throughout the year are regularly exposed to some of the world’s most toxic air.
The Jakarta metropolitan area — home to about 31 million people — recorded “good” and “moderate” air on Thursday afternoon, with an air quality index reading between 22 and 76, according to data released by the Ministry of Environment.
The numbers showed a marked improvement for a city that regularly records above 100 AQI and “unhealthy” levels of PM 2.5, a measurement of particulate matter — solid and liquid particles suspended in the air that can be inhaled and cause respiratory diseases.
“These ‘good’ and ‘moderate’ levels of air quality are possibly due to a drop in public activities during Eid holidays, as there has been a marked decrease in transportation and industrial activities in the city,” Edward Nixon Pakpahan, air quality protection and management director at the ministry, told Arab News.
“We are working to keep the air quality index for Jakarta metropolitan area below 100.”
Jakarta residents have long complained about the health risks posed by persistent air pollution from heavy traffic, industrial emissions and coal-fired power plants, which have consistently placed Jakarta among the 10 most polluted cities globally.
The streets of Jakarta and its satellite cities have been mostly empty since last weekend, after millions of people traveled back to their hometowns for Eid holidays.
Across the city, those who did not travel for Eid have been making the most of the rare good weather and clear skies.
“I love it. The sky is blue and the weather isn’t miserable or scorching hot,” Jodi Baskoro, a 40-year-old office worker based in Jakarta, told Arab News.
“It’s such great weather for those who are making their way around Jakarta to visit their families for Eid.”
Amnesty International urges Belgium to end violations of asylum-seekers’ rights
- ‘Belgium is actively manufacturing a homelessness crisis. Without urgent intervention, this crisis will deepen’
- Organization interviewed people, including Palestinians, navigating country’s asylum system
LONDON: Amnesty International on Thursday condemned Belgium for denying asylum applications from thousands of people, “forcing them into homelessness.”
Amnesty accused the EU member of “discrimination against racialized single men,” which has “impacted the lives, dignity and human rights of people seeking asylum.”
It added: “To date, national and international courts have ordered the authorities in Belgium to provide reception more than 12,000 times.
“Belgium has consistently refused to fully comply with the judgments, despite these being final and legally binding.”
Amnesty interviewed people who have experienced homelessness while navigating Belgium’s asylum system since 2021. Many said as well as being denied accommodation, access to healthcare is a major problem.
Sayed, who traveled from Afghanistan, spent time in a squat in Brussels with other homeless migrants from October 2022 to 2023.
“In the beginning it was good enough, there were toilets and showers, and some people brought food in the afternoon,” he told Amnesty.
“But slowly it was turned completely into a graveyard. Showers and toilets were broken, with the passage of time … Pee was coming up to the place where you were sleeping.”
He said ordinary Belgians and local charities had been welcoming, but the state had not been. “People were feeling our pain, but not the authorities,” he added.
Palestinian refugees Ahmet and Baraa, who fled the war Gaza last year, were also forced to live in a squat.
“It was cold … You can be starving, and no one will know about it. No one will help you,” Ahmet said. “I lost a lot of relatives and friends (in Gaza). My mother is severely wounded, my brothers and sister as well. I was thinking in their shoes: I just need to survive.”
Baraa said he just wants a “simple life, basic rights, a job, food in (my) stomach and just to live like a normal person. We had a life back in Gaza, but we just lacked the security and the safety there and that is why we left. That is why we came here: to find a safe place.”
Amnesty said it fears that Belgium will continue to exacerbate the problem after its new government pledged to adopt “the strictest migration policy possible.”
Amnesty urged the government “to immediately provide sufficient reception places and ensure that all people seeking asylum are given adequate housing.
“They must ensure people have access to adequate healthcare services, including specialized psychological support, regardless of their housing situation.”
It also called on the EU to “ensure that Belgium restores compliance” with its legal obligations to asylum-seekers, “including by launching infringement procedures if necessary.”
Eva Davidova, spokeswoman for Amnesty International Belgium, said the country’s “failure to provide reception is not due to a lack of resources but a lack of political will.”
She added: “The previous government had ample time to resolve the homelessness situation and failed to do so.
“The current government is more concerned with reducing the number of people who receive asylum rather than addressing the very real harm inflicted on people seeking asylum currently in the country.
“The scale and duration of Belgium’s persistent disregard for court orders raises questions as to how rights holders can have any hope of holding the Belgian government accountable, especially marginalized and racialized persons like those affected by this situation.”
Davidova continued: “Belgium is actively manufacturing a homelessness crisis which is bound to have a lasting adverse impact on people’s lives and dignity, while civil society is left to pick up the pieces.
“Without urgent intervention, this crisis will deepen, further violating asylum-seekers’ rights and eroding both the country’s and the EU’s commitment to human rights.”
Family of British aid worker killed by Israel slam UK govt ‘silence’
- James Kirby, 47, was killed last year alongside 6 other aid staff in Gaza
- ‘The government’s response has been nothing but empty apologies, which are, and will never be, sufficient’
London: The UK government has given “nothing but empty apologies” over Israel’s killing of a British aid worker in Gaza, the BBC reported his family as saying.
James Kirby, 47, was killed last April along with six other World Central Kitchen aid workers in an Israeli drone attack.
They were traveling in a convoy of marked vehicles, with the Israeli military having prior knowledge of their planned route. Three Britons, including Kirby, were killed in the attack.
The matter was raised in Parliament on Tuesday as MP Hamish Falconer told colleagues that he had met the victims’ families in November last year together with the foreign secretary.
Israel must “quickly and thoroughly conclude” its investigation into the attack, Falconer said, describing it as an “appalling tragedy,” and adding that the victims’ families “are determined to see justice.”
Yet the “lack of justice and accountability” has been as “equally devastating” as Kirby’s death, his cousin Louise Kirby said.
His family have been “met with silence” from the government “despite repeated calls for answers” over the killings, she added.
“It is disheartening to note that after all this time, we still have no concrete proof of accountability from any responsible party,” she said.
“The government’s response has been nothing but empty apologies, which are, and will never be, sufficient.”
The family thanked the Muslim community in Bristol for their “ongoing solidarity” and supporting them in “our quest for justice.” They also received letters of condolence from the king and queen, who they thanked.
A lack of British investigation into the drone attack has left the family “deeply concerned that breach of policy or laws” might have taken place, Louise Kirby said.
“We want justice for James and the truth to be known, no matter how difficult or uncomfortable that may be.”
Israel’s attack also killed Britons John Chapman, 57, and James Henderson, 33. Four others were killed: Australian Lalzawmi Frankcom, 43, American-Canadian Jacob Flickinger, 33, Polish national Damian Sobol, 35, and Palestinian Saifeddin Issam Ayad Abutaha, 25.
The Israeli Embassy in the UK last year attributed the attack to a “serious failure” that was “made due to mistaken identification.”
The Israel Defense Forces dismissed two officers and reprimanded three others over the attack.
