Trump pauses US military aid to Ukraine while pressuring Zelenskyy to move toward quick end to war
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday directed a “pause” to U.S. assistance to Ukraine as he seeks to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to engage in negotiations to end the war with Russia.
The move comes just days after a disastrous Oval Office meeting in which Trump and Vice President JD Vance laced into Zelenskyy for what they perceived as insufficient gratitude for the more than $180 billion in military aid the U.S. has sent to Kyiv since Russia invaded three years ago.
A White House official said Trump is focused on reaching a peace deal and wants Zelenskyy “committed” to that goal. The official added that the U.S. was “pausing and reviewing” its aid to "ensure that it is contributing to a solution.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the assistance.
The order will remain in effect until Trump determines that Ukraine has demonstrated a commitment to peace negotiations with Russia, the official said.
The halting of military aid comes some five years after Trump held up congressionally authorized assistance to Ukraine as he sought to pressure Zelenskyy to launch an investigation into Joe Biden, then a Democratic presidential candidate. The moment led to Trump’s first impeachment.
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Without US help, Zelenskyy has few options except to repair his relationship with the White House
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s president has few options after last week’s astonishing Oval Office row with U.S. President Donald Trump, who berated the wartime leader. Now Ukraine's future could depend on whether Volodymyr Zelenskyy can repair his relationship with the White House.
The heated conversation that played out live on television looms over all American support for Ukraine and could shape the country's war against the Russian invasion. The scene will almost certainly stick with Zelenskyy for the rest of his presidency, if not his life.
American officials have said that they want an apology from Zelenskyy, who has maintained his cool in public appearances since the episode and leaned into European support while also rebuffing calls from U.S. officials to resign. He has even expressed optimism about continued U.S. support.
As European partners rally around Zelenskyy, Western officials in Kyiv acknowledge that the durability of any peace plan will depend on U.S. military backing.
Zelenskyy has said he is still ready to sign a lucrative minerals deal with Trump that could be the first step toward a ceasefire. Since Friday's confrontation, there has been communication between Ukraine and the administration but not between the two presidents.
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Trump says 25% tariffs on Mexican and Canadian imports will start Tuesday, with 'no room' for delay
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Monday that 25% taxes on imports from Mexico and Canada would start Tuesday, sparking renewed fears of a North American trade war that already showed signs of pushing up inflation and hindering growth.
“Tomorrow — tariffs 25% on Canada and 25% on Mexico. And that’ll start,” Trump told reporters in the Roosevelt Room. “They’re going to have to have a tariff.”
Trump has said the tariffs are to force the two U.S. neighbors to step up their fight against fentanyl trafficking and stop illegal immigration. But Trump has also indicated that he wants to eliminate the Americas' trade imbalances as well and push more factories to relocate in the United States.
His comments quickly rattled the U.S. stock market, with the S&P 500 index down 2% in Monday afternoon trading. It's a sign of the political and economic risks that Trump feels compelled to take, given the possibility of higher inflation and the possible demise of a decades-long trade partnership with Mexico and Canada as the tariffs would go into effect at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
Yet the Trump administration remains confident that tariffs are the best choice to boost U.S. manufacturing and attract foreign investment. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Monday that the computer chipmaker TSMC had expanded its investment in the United States because of the possibility of separate 25% tariffs.
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India's steel industry contemplates potential fallout from Trump administration tariffs
BENGALURU, India (AP) — Rows of small factories line the streets of a dusty suburb in Bengaluru, where workers weld and cast Indian-made steel into everything from car parts to kitchen sinks. Here, U.S. President Trump’s announcement to impose high trade tariffs on steel imports has some unexpected supporters.
Many industry workers and experts expect that the result of tariffs will be that cheap steel gets dumped in places like India. That's because the announced 25% tariff will make it too expensive for many companies in countries like China and South Korea to keep exporting to the U.S.
For B. Praveen of Sun Techpro Engineering, which makes products from steel metal sheets, it means his “wafer-thin” profit margins will probably grow as the steel he buys gets cheaper.
“For thousands of companies like mine, this can be a good thing,” he said. Businesses such as Praveen's employ over 200 million Indians and are key drivers of India's economy.
But cheaper steel in India isn't good for everyone. In February Naveen Jindal, the president of the Indian Steel Association, which represents all India’s steelmakers, said that he was “deeply concerned,” especially since “India is one of the few major markets without any trade restrictions,” making it a target for potential steel dumping. And the increased competition could impact efforts by India to produce its own steel more cleanly. The current production of most Indian steel releases high levels of greenhouse gas emissions, which cause climate change. Reduction efforts could be cut in the interest of keeping profits up.
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Hegseth orders suspension of Pentagon's offensive cyberoperations against Russia
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has paused offensive cyberoperations against Russia by U.S. Cyber Command, rolling back some efforts to contend with a key adversary even as national security experts call for the U.S. to expand those capabilities.
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operations, on Monday confirmed the pause.
Hegseth’s decision does not affect cyberoperations conducted by other agencies, including the CIA and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. But the Trump administration also has rolled back other efforts at the FBI and other agencies related to countering digital and cyber threats.
The Pentagon decision, which was first reported by The Record, comes as many national security and cybersecurity experts have urged greater investments in cyber defense and offense, particularly as China and Russia have sought to interfere with the nation's economy, elections and security.
Republican lawmakers and national security experts have all called for a greater offensive posture. During his Senate confirmation hearing this year, CIA Director John Ratcliffe said America’s rivals have shown that they believe cyberespionage — retrieving sensitive information and disrupting American business and infrastructure — to be an essential weapon of the modern arsenal.
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Senate confirms McMahon to lead Education Department as Trump pushes to shut it down
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate voted Monday to confirm former wrestling executive Linda McMahon as the nation’s education chief, a role that places her atop a department that President Donald Trump has vilified and vowed to dismantle.
McMahon will face the competing tasks of winding down the Education Department while also escalating efforts to achieve Trump’s agenda. Already the Republican president has signed sweeping orders to rid America’s schools of diversity programs and accommodations for transgender students while also calling for expanded school choice programs.
At the same time, Trump has promised to shut down the department and said he wants McMahon “to put herself out of a job.”
The Senate voted to confirm McMahon 51-45.
A billionaire and former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, McMahon, 76, is an unconventional pick for the role. She spent a year on Connecticut’s state board of education and is a longtime trustee at Sacred Heart University but otherwise has little traditional education leadership.
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Pope Francis suffers new breathing crises, is back on noninvasive ventilation, Vatican says
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis suffered two new acute respiratory crises Monday and was put back on noninvasive mechanical ventilation, in another setback to his battle to fight pneumonia, the Vatican said.
Doctors extracted “copious” amounts of mucus from his lungs during two bronchoscopies, in which a camera-tipped tube was sent down into his airways with a sucker at the tip to suction out fluid. The Vatican said the mucus was his body's reaction to the original pneumonia infection and not a new infection, given laboratory tests don't indicate any new bacteria.
Francis remained alert, oriented and cooperated with medical personnel. The prognosis remained guarded. Doctors didn’t say if he remained in stable condition, though they referred to the crises in the past tense, suggesting they were over.
The crises were a new setback in what has become a more than two-week battle by the 88-year-old pope, who has chronic lung disease and had part of one lung removed, to overcome a complex respiratory infection.
Dr. John Coleman, a pulmonary critical care doctor at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, said the episodes were more concerning than the last one on Friday, in which Francis had a coughing fit, inhaled some vomit that needed to be extracted and then was put on the noninvasive mechanical ventilation for a day and then didn't need it anymore.
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Storms, possible twisters to threaten the South just as New Orleans celebrates Mardi Gras
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Powerful storms with a threat of tornadoes are expected to punch through Louisiana and other parts of the South on Tuesday just as costumed revelers celebrate Mardi Gras with huge parades and partying in the streets of New Orleans and other cities in the region.
New Orleans moved up its two biggest Mardi Gras Day parades and cut down their routes to try to avoid the potentially destructive weather. Police are also expected to keep the hundreds of participants and dozens of floats moving quickly so they finish before winds are expected to pick up, according to New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick.
The alarming forecast will be one of the first big tests for the National Weather Service after hundreds of forecasters were fired last week under President Donald Trump's moves to slash the size of the federal government. Former employees say the firing of meteorologists who make crucial local forecasts across the U.S. could put lives at risk.
Multiple weather threats loom this week for the U.S., starting with dust storms that brought near-zero visibility to parts of New Mexico and west Texas, prompting the National Weather Service to issue Dust Storm Warnings. “Widespread blowing dust,” was expected Tuesday, said the weather service office covering Midland and Odessa, Texas.
The week's strong weather system will bring “a threat of blizzard conditions, high winds, flash flooding, severe weather, dust storms, and critical to extreme fire weather conditions to the nation’s heartland,” according to a weather service update Monday.
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With the Gaza ceasefire in limbo, Israel tries to impose an alternative plan on Hamas
Israel this week introduced what it said was a new U.S. ceasefire plan — different from the one it agreed to in January — and is trying to force Hamas to accept it by imposing a siege on the Gaza Strip.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to it as the “Witkoff proposal,” saying it came from U.S. President Donald Trump's Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff. But the White House has yet to confirm that, saying only that it supports whatever action Israel takes.
Netanyahu's remarks came a day after the first phase of the negotiated ceasefire ended, with no clarity on what would come next since the agreement's second phase has not yet been hammered out.
The new plan would require Hamas to release half its remaining hostages — the militant group's main bargaining chip — in exchange for a ceasefire extension and a promise to negotiate a lasting truce. Israel made no mention of releasing more Palestinian prisoners — a key component of the first phase.
Hamas has accused Israel of trying to sabotage the existing agreement, which called for the two sides to negotiate the return of the remaining hostages in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a lasting ceasefire. But no substantive negotiations have been held.
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How springing forward to daylight saving time could affect your health — and how to prepare
WASHINGTON (AP) — Most of America “springs forward” Sunday for daylight saving time and losing that hour of sleep can do more than leave you tired and cranky the next day. It also could harm your health.
Darker mornings and more evening light together knock your body clock out of whack — which means daylight saving time can usher in sleep trouble for weeks or longer. Studies have even found an uptick in heart attacks and strokes right after the March time change.
There are ways to ease the adjustment, including getting more sunshine to help reset your circadian rhythm for healthful sleep.
Daylight saving time begins Sunday at 2 a.m., an hour of sleep vanishing in most of the U.S. The ritual will reverse on Nov. 2 when clocks “fall back” as daylight saving time ends.
Hawaii and most of Arizona don’t make the spring switch, sticking to standard time year-round along with Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Worldwide, dozens of countries also observe daylight saving time, starting and ending at different dates.
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