Connect with us

Published

on

Donald Trump says there has been agreement to begin negotiations about ending the war in Ukraine, after holding phone calls with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

It is the US president’s first big step towards diplomacy over a conflict which he promised to end within 24 hours of being inaugurated.

“We both agreed, we want to stop the millions of deaths taking place in the War with Russia/Ukraine,” Mr Trump posted on Truth Social following discussions with Russia’s president.

He said the pair would “work together, very closely” towards winding down the conflict and “agreed to have our respective teams start negotiations immediately”.

FILE ... Then-U.S. President Donald Trump, right, meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany, Friday, July 7, 2017. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
Image:
Donald Trump has triggered the start of peace talks with Vladimir Putin. File pic: AP

A Kremlin spokesperson said Mr Putin and Mr Trump had agreed to meet, with the Russian president inviting the US leader to visit Moscow.

Ukraine latest: Trump’s plan to end war

“President Putin, for his part, mentioned the need to eliminate the root causes of the conflict and agreed with Trump that a long-term settlement can be achieved through peaceful negotiations,” said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks with U.S. President Donald Trump via a phone line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 12, 2025. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY.
Image:
Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaking on the phone with Donald Trump on Wednesday. Pic: Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Reuters

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s president wrote on X that he had a “meaningful conversation” by phone with Mr Trump to discuss “opportunities to achieve peace” and the preparation of a document governing security and economic cooperation.

“No one wants peace more than Ukraine. Together with the US, we are charting our next steps to stop Russian aggression and ensure a lasting, reliable peace,” he said.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Trump-Putin call: What do we know?

Mr Trump added that his phone conversation with Mr Zelenskyy “went very well”, suggesting that “he [Mr Zelenskyy], like President Putin, wants to make PEACE”.

On social media, the US president said: “It is time to stop this ridiculous War, where there has been massive, and totally unnecessary, DEATH and DESTRUCTION. God bless the people of Russia and Ukraine!”

Trump’s bombshell phone call


Dominic Waghorn - Diplomatic editor

Dominic Waghorn

International affairs editor

@DominicWaghorn

Trump’s bombshell phone call leaves questions unanswered.

He says there have been NATO efforts all day to stop the damage to unity done by defence secretary Pete Hegseth, who said it’s unrealistic that Ukraine will get all of its land back in a peace deal or join NATO.

That impression of unity is crumbling.

Trump’s call with Putin is a break from three years of firm determination by NATO members to be united behind the principle of not talking about Ukraine without Ukraine.

The president’s announcement that Russian and US teams will start negotiations does not make clear whether they are bilateral talks or involve Kyiv.

Donald Trump seems to have made commitments in that phone call with Putin that the Russians expect him to hold himself to – what are those commitments?

On Wednesday, the US defence secretary delivered a blunt statement on the new US administration’s approach to the nearly three-year-old war.

Read more from Sky News:
Europe must get serious about defence
Hegseth: Big shift in American military policy
Trump welcomes home teacher jailed in Russia

Speaking at a NATO meeting in Brussels, Pete Hegseth said a return to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders was unrealistic and the US did not see NATO membership for Kyiv as part of a solution to the war.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Pete Hegseth: Ukraine getting all land back in peace deal ‘not realistic’

“Chasing this illusionary goal will only prolong the war and cause more suffering,” he said.

Separately the US and Russia agreed to a prisoner swap. America freed a Russian cybercrime boss in return for Moscow’s release of schoolteacher Marc Fogel, a US official said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile at a White House news conference on Wednesday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said she was “not aware of” Mr Trump putting any preconditions on his meeting with Mr Putin.

Mr Trump said the peace negotiations will be led by secretary of state Marco Rubio, director of the CIA John Ratcliffe, national security advisor Michael Waltz, and ambassador Steve Witkoff.

Continue Reading

US

Mexican navy training vessel hits New York’s Brooklyn Bridge – as reports say three injured

Published

on

By

Mexican navy training vessel hits New York's Brooklyn Bridge - as reports say three injured

A Mexican navy ship has hit the Brooklyn Bridge during a promotional tour in New York City.

The New York Fire Department said authorities were responding to injuries but had no details about how many people might have been hurt or whether they were on the vessel or on the bridge.

Sky’s US partner network NBC News reports that at least three people were seriously injured in the incident.

The Mexican navy said in a post on X that the Cuauhtemoc, an academy training vessel, was damaged in the accident, which has prevented it from continuing its voyage.

Eyewitness video of the collision posted online showed the mast of the ship, which was flying a large Mexican flag, scraping the underneath of the bridge.

Pic: AP
Image:
Pic: AP

The vessel then drifted toward the edge of the river as onlookers scrambled away from shore.

The Mexican navy said the status of personnel and material was under review by naval and local authorities, which were providing assistance.

More on New York City

The Cuauhtemoc is about 297ft long and 40ft wide, according to the Mexican navy. It sailed for the first time in 1982.

A New York Police Department harbour unit prepares to board the Cuauhtemoc. Pic: AP
Image:
Pic: AP

Each year, it sets out at the end of classes at the naval military school to finish cadets’ training.

It left the Mexican port of Acapulco, on the Pacific coast, on 6 April with 277 people onboard, the navy said at the time.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.

Continue Reading

US

One person dead after explosion outside fertility clinic in California

Published

on

By

One person dead after explosion outside fertility clinic in California

One person has died in a bomb explosion near a reproductive health clinic in California, authorities have said.

The incident took place in Palm Springs, a city two hours east of Los Angeles, and is being investigated as a possible car explosion.

The city’s mayor Ron DeHarte said one person died in the blast, adding that the bomb was “either in or near” a vehicle. The deceased’s identity is not known, Palm Springs police said.

Dr Maher Abdallah, who runs the American Reproductive Centers clinic, told the Associated Press his facility was damaged but all staff were safe and accounted for.

The explosion damaged the office space where the practice conducts patient consultations, but the IVF lab and stored embryos were unharmed, he added.

“I really have no clue what happened,” he said. “Thank God today happened to be a day that we have no patients.”

Debris covers the ground after an explosion on Saturday, May 17, 2025 in Palm Springs, Calif.  (ABC7 Los Angeles via AP)
Image:
Debris covers the ground after the explosion. Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP

In a statement posted on Facebook the clinic said it was “heartbroken” to learn someone died in the explosion and added: “Our deepest condolences go out to the individuals and families affected.”

It continued: “Our mission has always been to help build families, and in times like these, we are reminded of just how fragile and precious life is.

“In the face of this tragedy, we remain committed to creating hope – because we believe that healing begins with community, compassion, and care.

The clinic will be fully operational on Monday, it added.

“This moment has shaken us – but it has not stopped us. We will continue to serve with strength, love, and the hope that brings new life into the world,” the statement concluded.

Debris covers the ground after an explosion on Saturday, May 17, 2025 in Palm Springs, Calif.  (ABC7 Los Angeles via AP)
Image:
Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP

The Palm Springs city government said in a post on Facebook that the explosion happened on North Indian Canyon Drive, near East Tachevah Drive, before 11am local time (6pm GMT).

A burned-out car can be seen in a parking lot behind the building in aerial footage.

The blast caved in the clinic’s roof and blew debris across four lanes of the road.

Another person said he was inside a cannabis dispensary nearby when he felt a massive explosion.

Nima Tabrizi said: “The building just shook, and we go outside and there’s massive cloud smoke.”

Investigators from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are travelling to the scene to help assess what happened.

California governor Gavin Newsom has been briefed on the explosion, his press office said.

Continue Reading

US

James Comey: Trump says ex-FBI director’s seashells post ‘meant assassination’

Published

on

By

James Comey: Trump says ex-FBI director's seashells post 'meant assassination'

A former FBI director has been interviewed by the US Secret Service over a social media post that Republicans say was a call for violence against President Donald Trump.

James Comey, who led the FBI from 2013 until he was fired in 2017 by Mr Trump during his first term in office, shared a photo of seashells appearing to form the numbers “86 47”.

James Comey, then the FBI Director, in July  2016. File pic: AP/J. Scott Applewhite
Image:
James Comey later removed the Instagram post. File pic: AP

He captioned the Instagram post: “Cool shell formation on my beach walk.”

Some have interpreted the post as a threat, alleging that 86 47 means to violently remove Mr Trump from office, including by assassination.

What does ’86 47′ mean?

The number 86 can be used as a verb in the US. It commonly means “to throw somebody out of a bar for being drunk or disorderly”.

One recent meaning of the term is “to kill”, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, which said it had not adopted this meaning of 86 “due to its relative recency and sparseness of use”.

The number has previously been used in a political context by Matt Gaetz, who was President Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general but withdrew from consideration following a series of sexual misconduct allegations.

Mr Gaetz wrote: “We’ve now 86’d…” and listed political opponents he had sparred with who ended up stepping down.

Meanwhile, 47 is supposedly representing Mr Trump, who is the 47th US president.

Mr Comey later removed the post, saying he thought the numbers “were a political message” and that he was not aware that the numeric arrangement could be associated with violence.

“I didn’t realise some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me, but I oppose violence of any kind, so I took the post down,” Mr Comey said.

Mr Trump rejected the former FBI director’s explanation, telling Fox News: “He knew exactly what that meant. A child knows what that meant… that meant assassination.”

Donald Trump Jr accused Mr Comey of “casually calling for my dad to be murdered”.

US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed in a post on X that Mr Comey had been interviewed as part of “an ongoing investigation” but gave no indication of whether he might face further action.

The Secret Service is part of the Department of Homeland Security.

White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich said Mr Comey had put out “what can clearly be interpreted as a hit on the sitting president of the United States”.

“This is deeply concerning to all of us and is being taken seriously,” Mr Budowich wrote on X.

Another White House official James Blair said the post was a “Clarion Call (…) to terrorists & hostile regimes to kill the President of the United States as he travels in the Middle East”.

Read more US news:
Smokey Robinson under criminal investigation
Cassie challenged over Diddy ‘freak off’ allegations

Mr Trump fired Mr Comey in May 2017 for botching an investigation into 2016 democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, the White House said at the time.

While Mr Comey was the director of the FBI, the agency opened an investigation into possible collusion between the Trump 2016 presidential campaign and Russia to help get Mr Trump elected.

Continue Reading

Trending