President Donald Trump on Wednesday said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would visit the White House on Friday to sign “a very big agreement” under which Kyiv will hand revenue from its mineral resources to the US as payment for military aid.
Mr Trump, who is seeking to bring a quick end to Russia's war in Ukraine, made the announcement during his first cabinet meeting, which was also attended by Elon Musk. “Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is going to be coming on Friday, that's now confirmed, and we're going to be signing an agreement, which will be a very big agreement,” he said.
Mr Zelenskyy had originally baulked at the offer, under which Ukraine would give the US $500 billion in mineral wealth. He said Washington had supplied nowhere near that sum in aid, and that the agreement did not come with enough security guarantees.
“Well, I'm not going to make security guarantees,” Mr Trump said. “We're going to have Europe do that because it's in – you know – we're talking about Europe, it's their next-door neighbour, but we're going to make sure everything goes well.”
The US and Russia held talks in Saudi Arabia last week aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. The talks excluded Ukraine and European countries, in a stark reversal of US foreign policy three years after Russia began its full-scale invasion.
Mr Trump has faced criticism for calling Mr Zelenskyy a "dictator", while at the same time showering praise on "very smart" Russian President Vladimir Putin. But he said on Wednesday that he would be pushing for Russia to make concessions including relinquishing some of the Ukrainian territory it seized by force.
"We're going to do the best we can to make the best deal we can for both sides," Mr Trump said. "For Ukraine, we're going to try very hard to make a good deal so that they can get as much [land] back as possible."
He said Ukraine should "forget about” joining the Nato military alliance. “I think that’s probably the reason the whole thing started,” he said. Mr Trump said he hopes to speak with Mr Putin in person soon, in the hope of reaching an agreement to end the war.
Mr Trump, who took office last month, campaigned on a promise to quickly end the war and stop US military aid for Ukraine. He says the US has grossly overspent American taxpayers' money on the conflict and that European countries much closer to the war need to step up.
He said the deal is necessary to pay back the US aid disbursed under his predecessor, Joe Biden. The agreement would give the US access to rare earth deposits in Ukraine for years to come. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to meet Mr Trump in Washington on Thursday, and urge him to maintain US support for Ukraine.
Also on Wednesday, a planned meeting between EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was abruptly cancelled due to “scheduling issues", as political tension has increased between Europe and the US.
Officials from both sides blamed scheduling challenges for preventing the pair, who met at the Munich Security Conference in Germany last month, from meeting in Washington. However, European officials said they were caught off-guard, AP reported.
In wide-ranging comments at the start of his cabinet meeting, Mr Trump also said decisions regarding the future of the ceasefire and the hostage-release deal in Gaza should be made by the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who he referred to as "Bibi".
"That's a decision that has to be made by Israel, by Bibi, but Israel has to make that decision. We got a lot of hostages back," he said.
Hamas was set to hand over the bodies of four Israeli hostages late on Wednesday in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. The first phase of the ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel expires on Saturday.
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
INDIA%20SQUAD
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Company%C2%A0profile
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The biog:
Languages: Arabic, Farsi, Hindi, basic Russian
Favourite food: Pizza
Best food on the road: rice
Favourite colour: silver
Favourite bike: Gold Wing, Honda
Favourite biking destination: Canada
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
RESULTS
1.45pm: Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winners: Hyde Park, Royston Ffrench (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
2.15pm: Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Shamikh, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard
2.45pm: Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Hurry Up, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
3.15pm: Shadwell Jebel Ali Mile Group 3 (TB) Dh575,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Blown by Wind, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer
3.45pm: Handicap (TB) Dh72,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Mazagran, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
4.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh64,000 (D) 1,950m
Winner: Obeyaan, Adrie de Vries, Mujeeb Rehman
4.45pm: Handicap (TB) Dh84,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Shanaghai City, Fabrice Veron, Rashed Bouresly.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
Brief scoreline:
Tottenham 1
Son 78'
Manchester City 0
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
RESULT
Arsenal 0 Chelsea 3
Chelsea: Willian (40'), Batshuayi (42', 49')
Company%20profile
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Janet Yellen's Firsts
- In 2014, she became the first woman to lead the US Federal Reserve
- In 1999, she became the first female chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
