As chances increase of a Joe Biden-Donald Trump rematch in the US presidential election, America's allies are bracing for a bumpy ride.
Many worry that a second term for Mr Trump would be an earthquake, but tremors already abound – and concerns are rising that the US could grow less dependable regardless of who wins.
With a divided electorate and gridlock in Congress, the next US president could easily become consumed by challenges at home, before even starting to address flashpoints around the world, from Ukraine to the Middle East.
French President Emmanuel Macron's recent verdict was blunt: America's “first priority is itself".
The first Trump administration tested the bonds between the US and its allies, particularly in Europe.
Mr Trump derided the leaders of some friendly nations, including Germany’s Angela Merkel and Britain’s Theresa May, while praising authoritarians such as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
He has called China’s Xi Jinping “brilliant” and Hungary’s Viktor Orban “a great leader.”
In campaign speeches, Mr Trump remains sceptical of organisations such as Nato, often lamenting the billions the US spends on the military alliance whose support has been critical to Ukraine's fight against Russia's invasion.
He said at a rally on Saturday that, as president, he would warned Nato allies that he would encourage Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to countries that did not pay their way in the alliance.
Mr Trump also wrote on his social media network that in future the US should end all foreign aid donations and replace them with loans.
Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned that Mr Trump could be endangering US troops and their allies.
“Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk,” Mr Stoltenberg said in a statement on Sunday.
Mr Biden, meanwhile, has made support for Ukraine a key priority and moral imperative.
But his assertion after his election in 2020 that “America is back” on the global stage has not been entirely borne out.
Congressional Republicans have stalled more military aid for Ukraine, while US influence has been unable to contain conflict in the Middle East.
Thomas Gift, director of the Centre on US Politics at University College London, said that whoever wins the presidential race, the direction will be the same – towards a multipolar planet in which the US is no longer “the indisputable world superpower".
Most allied leaders refrain from commenting directly on the US election, saying it is for Americans to pick their leader.
They are conscious that they will have to work with the eventual winner, and behind the scenes, governments will be doing the “backroom work” of quietly establishing links with the contenders’ political teams, said Richard Dalton, a former senior British diplomat.
But many of America's European Nato allies are worried that with or without Mr Trump, the US is becoming less reliable.
Some have started to talk openly about the need for members to increase military spending, and to plan for an alliance without the US.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he was “currently on the phone a lot with my colleagues and asking them to do more” to support Ukraine.
Germany is the second-largest donor of military aid to Kyiv, behind the US, but Mr Scholz recently told German weekly Die Zeit that the country could not fill any gap on its own if “the US ceased to be a supporter".
Mr Trump's comments on Saturday about Nato rang alarm bells in Poland, which shares a border with Ukraine.
“We have a hot war at our border,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Sunday.
“We must realise that the EU cannot be an economic and civilisational giant and a dwarf when it comes to defence, because the world has changed.”
Russia, meanwhile, is busy bolstering ties with China, Iran and North Korea, and trying to erode Ukraine’s international support.
Mr Macron also said American attention was focused far from Europe. If Washington's top priority is the US, he said its second is China.
“This is also why I want a stronger Europe that knows how to protect itself and isn’t dependent on others,” he said in January.
Mr Trump has supporters in Europe, notably pro-Russian populists such as Mr Orban.
But former British prime minister Boris Johnson raised eyebrows when he recently said “a Trump presidency could be just what the world needs".
Mr Johnson is a strong supporter of Ukraine in its struggle against Russian invasion, whereas Mr Trump has frequently praised Mr Putin.
Mr Johnson said in a Daily Mail column that he did not believe Mr Trump would “ditch the Ukrainians", but instead help Ukraine win the war, leaving the West stronger “and the world more stable".
Bronwen Maddox, director of UK-based think tank Chatham House, said such arguments underestimate “how destabilising” Mr Trump has been, and would probably continue to be if elected.
“For those who say his first term did not do much damage to international order, one answer is that he took the US out of the JCPOA, the deal to curb Iran's nuclear programme," Ms Maddox said recently.
"Iran's acceleration of its work since then has left it a threshold nuclear weapon state."
Mr Biden was a critic of Mr Trump's Iran policy but has not managed to rebuild bridges with Tehran, which continues to threaten across the region.
Mr Dalton, a former UK ambassador to Iran, said prospects for the Middle East would be “slightly worse” under Mr Trump than Mr Biden.
But he said divergence on the region’s main tensions – the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and Iran's ambitions – would be limited.
“No US administration is going to make a serious effort to resolve differences with Iran through diplomacy,” Mr Dalton told AP. “That ship sailed quite some time ago.”
Palestinians and their supporters implore Mr Biden to temper US support for Israel as the civilian death toll from the war in Gaza climbs.
But hardliners in Israel say the US is already restraining the offensive against Hamas too much.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's far-right National Security Minister, recently said Mr Biden was not giving Israel his “full backing” and that “if Trump was in power, the US conduct would be completely different".
Mr Trump developed a strong rapport with Turkey’s Mr Erdogan, calling them “very good friends” during a 2019 meeting at the White House.
Yet Turkey-US relations were fraught during his tenure. The Trump administration removed Turkey from its F-35 fighter jet project over Ankara’s decision to buy Russian-made missile defence systems.
Mr Trump threatened to ruin Turkey’s economy.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in January that he does not “believe there will be any difference” between a Trump and a Biden presidency.
He said Russia-US relations have been going downhill since George W Bush's administration.
With China, where leaders’ initial warmth towards Mr Trump soured into retaliatory tariffs and rising tensions, little changed under Mr Biden, who continued the tough stance towards the US's strategic rival.
Zhao Minghao, a professor of international relations at Fudan University in Shanghai, said that for China, the two candidates were like “two bowls of poison".
Naga
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Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Favourite hobby: taking his rescue dog, Sally, for long walks.
Favourite book: anything by Stephen King, although he said the films rarely match the quality of the books
Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption stands out as his favourite movie, a classic King novella
Favourite music: “I have a wide and varied music taste, so it would be unfair to pick a single song from blues to rock as a favourite"
The%20specs
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
The years Ramadan fell in May
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
The five pillars of Islam
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The years Ramadan fell in May
UFC%20FIGHT%20NIGHT%3A%20SAUDI%20ARABIA%20RESULTS
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Results
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
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Profile
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Founders: Ines Mena, Claudia Ribas, Simona Agolini, Nourhan Hassan and Therese Hundt
Date started: January 2017, app launched November 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Private/Retail/Leisure
Number of Employees: 18 employees, including full-time and flexible workers
Funding stage and size: Seed round completed Q4 2019 - $1m raised
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, 500 Startups, Vision Ventures, Seedstars, Mindshift Capital, Delta Partners Ventures, with support from the OQAL Angel Investor Network and UAE Business Angels
Company%20Profile
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The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler
Price, base / as tested Dh57,000
Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm
Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Results
2-15pm: Commercial Bank Of Dubai – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Al Habash, Patrick Cosgrave (jockey), Bhupat Seemar (trainer)
2.45pm: Al Shafar Investment – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Day Approach, Ray Dawson, Ahmad bin Harmash
3.15pm: Dubai Real estate Centre – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Celtic Prince, Richard Mullen, Rashed Bouresly
3.45pm: Jebel Ali Sprint by ARM Holding – Listed (TB) Dh500,000 (D) 1,000m; Winner: Khuzaam, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
4.15pm: Shadwell – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Tenbury Wells, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
4.45pm: Jebel Ali Stakes by ARM Holding – Listed (TB) Dh500,000 (D) 1,950m; Winner: Lost Eden, Andrea Atzeni, Doug Watson
5.15pm: Jebel Ali Racecourse – Handicap (TB) Dh76,000 (D) 1,950m; Winner: Rougher, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 2
(Martial 30', McTominay 90 6')
Manchester City 0
MATCH INFO
Confederations Cup Group B
Germany v Chile
Kick-off: Thursday, 10pm (UAE)
Where: Kazan Arena, Kazan
Watch live: Abu Dhabi Sports HD
'THE WORST THING YOU CAN EAT'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
