Oct. 24 (UPI) — Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that diplomats will help American military officers monitor the cease-fire in Israel and Gaza.
Rubio is visiting Israel as part of a series of visits by American officials that have been in Israel this week.
While touring the new Civil-Military Coordination Center in Kiryat Gat Friday, Rubio made the comments.
“There’s going to be ups and downs and twists and turns, but I think we have a lot of reason for healthy optimism about the progress that’s being made,” The New York Times reported that Rubio said.
Steven Fagin, ambassador to Yemen, will lead the effort at the center, the State Department said.
A reporter asked on Friday if Israel would need to apply for permission from the United States to resume fighting. “I wouldn’t phrase it that way,” Rubio responded, The Washington Post reported. “The bottom line is that there’s no nation on Earth that’s contributed more to help Israel and its security.”
Israelis have been increasingly alarmed at the United States’ presence in the cease-fire, wondering how much control America will have over Israel.
The United States is also committed to Israel’s long-term security, including ensuring that Hamas is demilitarized, Rubio said.
There is “no plan B,” he said. “It’s not just the United States. … Over two dozen countries signed onto this, including regional Arab countries … that there would be a demilitarized Gaza and that there would not be a Hamas with the capability to threaten Israel.”
On Thursday, a far-right faction in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, voted to annex the West Bank, drawing rebuke from President Donald Trump, Rubio and Vice President JD Vance.
Trump, in an interview with Time Magazine, said that he would not allow it.
“We don’t think it’s going to happen,” Trump said. “Because I gave my word to the Arab countries. Israel would lose all of its support from the United States if that happened.”
Earlier this week, Vance arrived in Israel with Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and investor Jared Kushner. They opened the CMCC in Israel, and Vance said the peace plan is “durable.”
Rubio said he plans to join Trump in Qatar to fly to Asia this weekend to attend leadership summits in Malaysia and South Korea, the Post reported. He said he also plans to visit Japan.
Canadian PM Mark Carney says Ottawa “can’t control” US trade policy but will “stand ready” to resume talks “when the Americans are ready.” His remarks came after President Donald Trump halted negotiations and accused Canada of “cheating” over ads opposing US tariffs.
United States President Donald Trump has begun construction of a $300m ballroom on the site of what was the White House’s East Wing.
The construction, which began on Monday, is the first major structural change to the complex since 1948. It involves tearing down the existing East Wing, which had housed the first lady’s offices and was used for ceremonies.
The work is being funded via private donations from individuals, corporations and tech companies, including Google and Amazon, raising uncomfortable questions about the level of access this might give donors to the most powerful man in the country.
A pledge form seen by CBS News indicated that donors may qualify for “recognition” of their contributions. Further details of this have not emerged, however.
How much will the new ballroom cost?
The estimated cost of building Trump’s ornate, 8,360sq-metre (90,0000sq-ft) ballroom, which he says will accommodate 999 people, has varied since plans were announced earlier this year.
In a statement made in August, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt indicated the cost would be about $200m. However, this week, Trump raised that to $300m.
Construction began during a US government shutdown and, therefore, without the approval of the National Capital Planning Commission, the federal agency responsible for overseeing these operations, which is closed.
US President Donald Trump holds up a rendering of the planned ballroom in the Oval Office of the White House on October 22, 2025 [Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images]
Who is funding the ballroom?
On Monday, Trump wrote on Truth Social: “For more than 150 years, every President has dreamt about having a Ballroom at the White House to accommodate people for grand parties, State Visits, etc. I am honored to be the first President to finally get this much-needed project underway – with zero cost to the American Taxpayer!”
He added that he himself will also be contributing to the bill: “The White House Ballroom is being privately funded by many generous Patriots, Great American Companies, and, yours truly.”
However, it seems that at least some of the donations are being made as part of deals struck with Trump over other issues.
YouTube will pay $22m towards the ballroom construction as part of a legal settlement with Trump pertaining to a lawsuit he brought in 2021 over the suspension of his account after the Capitol riot that year when his supporters stormed the seat of Congress on January 6 in a bid to prevent the transfer of the presidency to Joe Biden. YouTube and Google have the same parent company, Alphabet.
The White House did not disclose how much donors would contribute. Other prominent donors – some of which have had recent legal wrangles in the US – were on a list the White House provided to the media. They include:
Amazon
Last month, the Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement with Amazon over allegations that the multinational tech company founded by Jeff Bezos had enrolled millions of consumers to its streaming platform, Prime, without their consent and made it difficult to cancel the subscriptions.
Under the settlement, Amazon will pay $2.5bn in penalties and refunds, fix its subscription process and undergo compliance monitoring.
Apple
US-based multinational Apple – which produces the iPhone, iPad and MacBook – is headed by CEO Tim Cook.
On Tuesday, Apple asked a US appeals court to overturn a federal judge’s ruling in April that prevents it from collecting commissions on certain app purchases.
Coinbase
Coinbase is the largest US cryptocurrency exchange. It is led by CEO Brian Armstrong.
On September 30, a US federal judge ruled that shareholders could pursue a narrowed lawsuit accusing the company of hiding key business risks, including the risk of a lawsuit by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the risk of losing assets in bankruptcy.
Google
Last month, the US Department of Justice won a major antitrust case against Google. A federal court ruled that the tech giant illegally monopolised online search and search advertising.
Lockheed Martin
Aerospace and defence manufacturer Lockheed Martin is headed by President and CEO Jim Taiclet.
In February, Lockheed Martin agreed to pay $29.74m to resolve federal allegations that the company had overcharged the US government by submitting inflated cost data for contracts of F-35 fighter jets from 2013 to 2015.
Microsoft
The CEO of the tech group is Satya Nadella, who earned a record $96.5m in fiscal year 2025.
Lutnick family
The Lutnick family is associated with businessman Howard Lutnick, who is also Trump’s commerce secretary.
Lutnick is the CEO of the investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald. His company Cantor Gaming has previously been accused of repeatedly violating state and federal laws, Politico reported in February.
Winklevoss twins
Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss are listed as separate donors.
The brothers are US investors and entrepreneurs, known for cofounding the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini and Winklevoss Capital.
Last month, the SEC agreed to settle a lawsuit over Gemini’s unregistered cryptocurrency-lending programme offered to retail investors.
Who else is on the list?
Other companies, conglomerates and individuals on the list include:
Altria Group
Booz Allen Hamilton
Caterpillar
Comcast
J Pepe and Emilia Fanjul
Hard Rock International
HP
Meta Platforms
Micron Technology
NextEra Energy
Palantir Technologies
Ripple
Reynolds American
T-Mobile
Tether America
Union Pacific
Adelson Family Foundation
Stefan E Brodie
Betty Wold Johnson Foundation
Charles and Marissa Cascarilla
Edward and Shari Glazer
Harold Hamm
Benjamin Leon Jr
Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Foundation
Stephen A Schwarzman
Konstantin Sokolov
Kelly Loeffler and Jeff Sprecher
Paolo Tiramani
Is the private funding of Trump’s ballroom ethical?
Constitutional lawyer Bruce Fein told Al Jazeera that the private funding violates the Anti-Deficiency Act.
The Anti-Deficiency Act is a US federal law that decrees the executive branch of government cannot accept goods or services from private parties to conduct official government functions unless Congress has specifically signed off on the funds.
The act protects the “congressional power of the purse”, Fein said.
“Think of this analogy: Congress refuses to fund a wall with Mexico. Could Trump go ahead and build the wall Congress refused to fund with money provided by Elon Musk or other billionaire pals of Trump?”
Fein added: “Trump is completely transactional. Funders of the ballroom will be rewarded with regulatory favours or appointments or given pardons for federal crimes.”
Oct. 24 (UPI) — New York Attorney General Letitia James will be arraigned Friday for her charges of lying on a mortgage application, a prosecution pushed by President Donald Trump.
James’ arraignment will be in Norfolk, Va., in the first court appearance since her indictment on Oct. 9. A grand jury in the U.S.District Court of Eastern Virginia indicted James on the criminal charges after the Justice Department alleged she falsely claimed a Norfolk, Va., property that she bought in 2020 would be her primary residence to get better mortgage terms.
James is expected to plead not guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of making a false statement to a financial institution.
James is accused of lying about the purpose of a house purchase in Norfolk in 2020. She said on the mortgage application that it would be her primary home, but instead made it a rental. She allegedly rented it to a family of three. But her great-niece has lived in the home since 2020 and testified to a grand jury that she has never paid rent. James has only reported $1,350 in rent on her taxes.
Career federal prosecutors decided against prosecuting James, but Trump forced out Erik Siebert, the U.S. attorney overseeing the office, and replaced him with Lindsey Halligan, a White House aide. Halligan brought the case against James and got the indictment.
Trump dislikes James because she filed a civil fraud lawsuit in 2022, accusing Trump of giving false property valuations and estimates of Trump’s net worth in order to get beneficial loan rates and insurance deals he wouldn’t otherwise have gotten. Trump lost the case and was ordered to pay $364 million. A judge later overturned the fine for being excessive.
Halligan made headlines on Tuesday for her messages to a reporter who wrote an article about the case in the New York Times. Halligan allegedly harassed reporter Anna Bower on Signal for 33 hours.
James’ attorney, Abbe Lowell, asked the court to intervene and warn Halligan about making extra-judicial comments about the case.
“These extrajudicial statements and prejudicial disclosures by any prosecutor, let alone one purporting to be the U.S. attorney, run afoul of and violate the federal rules of criminal procedure, the code of federal regulations, this court’s local rules, various rules of ethical and professional responsibility and [Department of Justice’s] justice manual,” Lowell wrote in a filing, The Times reported. He wanted the judge to warn Halligan “to prevent any further disclosures by government attorneys and agents of investigative and case materials, and statements to the media and public.”
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said that the North’s military alliance with Russia would “advance non-stop,” state-run media reported Friday. Kim, seen here in a September photo, made the remarks at a groundbreaking ceremony for a memorial museum dedicated to North Korean soldiers dispatched to Russia. File Photo by KCNA/EPA
SEOUL, Oct. 24 (UPI) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed that his country’s alliance with Russia would “advance non-stop” and had reached a “historic peak,” as Pyongyang marked the first anniversary of its troops’ deployment to the Ukraine war, state-run media reported Friday.
Kim made the remarks Thursday at a groundbreaking ceremony in Pyongyang for a new memorial museum honoring North Korean soldiers who fought alongside Russian forces, the official Korean Central News Agency reported.
“Just one year ago from today the last group of the combatants of our expeditionary forces left for Russia,” Kim said, according to KCNA. “The sacred journey marked the beginning of a new history of militant solidarity between the DPRK and Russia.”
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.
According to Seoul’s National Intelligence Service, North Korea has sent weapons and some 15,000 troops to Russia since 2024, primarily to help recapture lost territory in Kursk Province from Ukrainian forces. The agency said in September that around 2,000 of the dispatched soldiers have been killed.
Kim hailed the combatants as “defenders of justice” who have elevated the North Korea-Russia relationship to a “historic peak.”
“The years of militant fraternity, in which a guarantee has been provided for the long-term development of the bilateral friendship at the cost of precious blood, will advance non-stop,” he said.
Kim shoveled the first spadeful of earth to mark the start of construction, KCNA said. Senior Korean People’s Army officials and Russian diplomats, including Ambassador to North Korea Alexandr Matsegora, attended the ceremony.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Byung-sam said Friday that the memorial and Kim’s remarks were aimed at maintaining public support for the deployment.
“Overall, I believe this is intended to promote regime stability and showcase the North Korea-Russia alliance by glorifying veterans and providing commensurate benefits,” Kim said.
Moscow and Pyongyang have grown closer since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The two signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty in June of last year, which includes a defense clause that calls for mutual military assistance in the event either country is attacked. In return, North Korea is believed to be receiving financial aid and advanced military technology to bolster its illicit weapons programs.
On Wednesday, North Korea tested a “new cutting-edge weapons system” involving hypersonic missiles, KCNA reported. It was the country’s first launch in five months and came just days before U.S. President Donald Trump‘s visit to South Korea for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju next week.
The show of solidarity with Moscow comes as attention shifts toward the possibility of renewed diplomacy with Washington. Speculation has swirled about a potential Trump-Kim meeting during the visit, with the DMZ truce village of Panmunjom touted as a possible site.
Trump, who held two summits and a third brief meeting at Panmunjom with Kim during his first term, has said repeatedly that he would meet with the North Korean leader again. In September, Kim said he has “fond memories” of Trump but warned that denuclearization would be off the table in any future talks.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has expressed support for a Trump-Kim summit, urging Trump to play “peacemaker” during his White House visit in August.
On Friday, Unification Ministry spokesman Kim said that the likelihood of a meeting next week appeared low but added that it would be “meaningful.”
“I expect both North Korea and the United States will consider this an important opportunity and carefully consider the timing,” he said.
Oct. 24 (UPI) — A district attorney in Southern California has filed manslaughter and DUI charges against a 21-year-old man in connection with a highway crash that killed three people and injured several others.
Jashanpreet Singh, 21, of Yuba City, was arrested Tuesday after the semi-truck he was driving at a high rate of speed crashed into stopped traffic on the 10 Freeway West near Ontario, Calif.
San Bernardino County District Attorney Jason Anderson filed a four-count complaint Thursday charging Singh with three counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and one count of driving while under the influence of a drug causing injury, with great bodily injury and multiple victims enhancements.
Three people were killed and at least three others were injured, at least two seriously, according to the complaint.
One of the deceased victims has been identified in court documents as Jamie Flores Garcia. The other two were identified as Jane Doe and John Doe.
Federal immigration authorities have identified Singh as an Indian citizen and an undocumented immigrant.
Anderson rebuked law enforcement over the crash, which he said “was easily avoidable if the defendant was not driving in a grossly negligent manner and impaired.”
“Had the rule of law been followed by state and federal officials, the defendant should have never been in California at all,” he said in a statement.
The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday said it has lodged an immigration detainer for the suspect. It said Singh entered the United States in 2022 through the southern border and was then released into the country.
It blamed the Biden administration for the crash.
“It’s a terrible tragedy three innocent people lost their lives due to the reckless open border policies that allowed an illegal alien to be released into the U.S. and drive an 18-wheeler on America’s highways,” Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
The crash comes amid a political immigration fight, with the Trump administration seeking to carry out mass deportations of undocumented immigrants.
The Trump administration and Republicans frequently blame the previous Biden administration and Democrats.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy rebuked Democrat-run California for failing to “enforce my new rules for obtaining licenses to operate trucks.”
The office of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat feuding with President Donald Trump, responded that Duffy was manipulating facts “to score cheap political points” as the state does not determine commercial driver’s license eligibility.
“The FEDERAL government approved and renewed this individual’s FEDERAl employment authorization multiple times — which allowed him to obtain a commercial driver’s license in accordance with FEDERAL law,” it said on X.
“State rules and regulations for commercial driver’s licenses must be CONSISTENT with the standards set by FEDERaL law.”
Singh is to be arraigned Friday at the Rancho Cucamonga Superior Courthouse. No bail was set and the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office said it will request the suspect not be granted bail due to the seriousness of the offense and his potential to be a flight risk.
US president says fraudulent advertisement featuring the late President Ronald Reagan to blame for termination of talks.
Published On 24 Oct 202524 Oct 2025
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United States President Donald Trump said all trade talks with Canada have been terminated following what he called a fraudulent television advertisement in which the late President Ronald Reagan spoke negatively about tariffs.
“The Ronald Reagan Foundation has just announced that Canada has fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform late on Thursday.
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“The ad was for $75,000. They only did this to interfere with the decision of the US Supreme Court, and other courts,” Trump wrote.
“Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED,” Trump added.
Earlier on Thursday, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute said on social media that a TV advertisement created by the government of Ontario in Canada “misrepresents the ‘Presidential Radio Address to the Nation on Free and Fair Trade’ dated April 25, 1987.”
The foundation also said that Ontario had not received its permission “to use and edit the remarks” of the late US president.
The foundation added that it was “reviewing legal options in this matter” and invited the public to watch the unedited video of Reagan’s address.
Ontario’s Premier Doug Ford said earlier this week that the advertisement in question – featuring President Reagan criticising tariffs on foreign goods while saying they caused job losses and trade wars – had caught Trump’s attention.
“I heard that the president heard our ad. I’m sure he wasn’t too happy,” Ford said on Tuesday.
In an earlier post on social media, Ford posted a link to the advertisement and the message: “Using every tool we have, we’ll never stop making the case against American tariffs on Canada. The way to prosperity is by working together,” he said.
It’s official: Ontario’s new advertising campaign in the U.S. has launched.
Using every tool we have, we’ll never stop making the case against American tariffs on Canada. The way to prosperity is by working together.
Trump’s announcement on the end of trade talks also followed after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he aimed to double his country’s exports to countries outside the US because of the threat posed by the Trump administration’s tariffs.
Carney also told reporters that Canada would not allow unfair US access to its markets if talks on various trade deals with Washington fail.
Canada and the US have been in talks for weeks on a potential deal after Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminium and autos earlier this year, prompting Canada to respond in kind.
The Canadian prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s announcement that all talks had ended because of the advertisement.
More than three-quarters of Canadian exports go to the US, and nearly 3.6 billion Canadian dollars ($2.7bn) worth of goods and services cross the border daily.
Oct. 23 (UPI) — U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are to meet and discuss trade and other matters during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Busan, South Korea.
Trump is scheduled to leave the United States on Friday, with stops planned in Malaysia and Japan ahead of the APEC conference that has a leaders meeting scheduled for Oct. 31 and Nov.1.
He and Xi agreed to meet on Oct. 30, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced on Thursday.
The planned meeting comes after Trump announced he would impose 100% tariffs on top of existing tariffs on all Chinese-made goods in retaliation for China’s earlier announcement of global restrictions on the use of rare earth minerals.
China dominates the world’s rare earth minerals market and intends to restrict their export and require companies to sign licensing agreements to use them, no matter where those firms might be headquartered.
“We’ll make a deal on everything,” Trump told media while at the Oval Office on Wednesday.
The in-person meeting would be the first between the two since 2019 and could include discussions regarding the war in Ukraine.
The president also anticipates discussing a variety of issues with the Chinese leader, including nuclear power, China’s reliance on Russian oil and trade.
The bilateral summit will be a “pretty long meeting” to enable the two world leaders to “work out a lot of our questions and our doubts,” Trump said, as reported by the South China Morning Post.
Trump will depart the United States late Friday night and arrive in Malaysia on Sunday morning, local time.
“President Trump will participate in a bilateral meeting with the prime minister of Malaysia in the afternoon, and then we will attend the [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] leaders’ working dinner that evening,” Leavitt said.
The president will depart Malaysia on Monday morning and arrive in Tokyo to meet with new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who is the first woman to be elected to the position.
Following his meeting with Takaichi, Trump will continue to Busan, South Korea, to hold a bilateral meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung ahead of his meeting with Xi.
The president will return to the United States after meeting with the Chinese president, Leavitt said.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – When US President Donald Trump lands in Malaysia for Southeast Asia’s headline summit this weekend, he will be delivering Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim a diplomatic coup.
US presidents rarely visit Malaysia, a multiracial nation of 35 million people sandwiched between Thailand and Singapore, which for decades has maintained a policy of not picking sides in rivalries between great powers.
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Trump is just the third US leader to travel to the Southeast Asian country, which is hosting a Sunday-to-Tuesday summit for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), following visits by former US Presidents Barack Obama and Lyndon B Johnson.
After skipping ASEAN summits in 2018, 2019 and 2020, Trump, whose disdain for multilateralism is renowned, will be attending the gathering of Southeast Asian nations for just the second time.
The US president will be joined by a host of high-profile leaders from non-ASEAN countries, including Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Opting not to attend are Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who Trump is expected to meet in South Korea at next week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
Trump’s visit, in many ways, is emblematic of the delicate balancing act that Anwar’s government has sought to maintain as Malaysia navigates the headwinds of the heated rivalry between the US and China.
Malaysia is deeply entwined with both the US and Chinese economies.
The US, which has a large footprint in Malaysia’s tech and oil and gas industries, was the Southeast Asian country’s top foreign investor and third-biggest trading partner in 2024.
China, a major purchaser of Malaysian electronics and palm oil, the same year took the top spot in trade and was third for investment.
But Malaysia’s efforts to walk a fine line between Washington and Beijing have become increasingly fraught as the superpowers roll out tit-for-tat tariffs and export controls while butting heads over regional flashpoints such as Taiwan and the South China Sea.
The ASEAN logo is displayed with Kuala Lumpur’s skyline in the background ahead of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on May 23, 2025 [Hasnoor Hussain/Reuters]
“Optimally, Malaysia wants to productively engage both China and the US on a variety of issues,” said Thomas Daniel, an analyst at the Institute of Strategic & International Studies in Kuala Lumpur.
“It is in our interest,” Daniel told Al Jazeera.
Anwar has cast Trump’s visit as a chance to bolster economic ties, champion regional peace and stability, and elevate ASEAN’s standing on the international stage.
Anwar has also pledged to use the rare opportunity for face time with Trump to constructively raise points of difference between Washington and Kuala Lumpur, particularly the Palestinian cause.
“The through-line is autonomy: avoid entanglement, maximise options, and extract benefits from both poles without becoming anyone’s proxy,” Awang Azman Awang Pawi, a professor at the University of Malaya, told Al Jazeera.
During Trump’s visit, US tariffs on Malaysia, currently set at 19 percent, and China’s mooted export controls on rare earths are expected to be high on the agenda.
For Malaysia, the priority is preserving “rules-based” trade that allows for countries to deepen economic ties despite their political differences, said Mohd Ramlan Mohd Arshad, a senior lecturer at the MARA University of Technology in Shah Alam, near Kuala Lumpur.
A prolonged economic cold war between the US and China is the “worst thing” that could happen to Malaysia, Arshad told Al Jazeera.
Trump, who has made no secret of his ambitions for the Nobel Peace Prize, is also expected to witness the signing of a peace accord between Thailand and Cambodia, which engaged in a brief border conflict in July that left at least 38 people dead.
For Anwar, who has led a multiracial coalition of parties with diverse and competing interests since 2022, the balancing act also involves political considerations at home.
A man steps on the US flag during a pro-Palestinian protest outside the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on October 2, 2025 [File: Mukhriz Hazim/AFP]
US support for Israel’s war in Gaza has been a bone of contention in Muslim-majority Malaysia, where the plight of Palestinians has inspired frequent public protests.
In the run-up to the summit, critics have demanded that Anwar rescind Trump’s invitation over his role in supporting the war, which a United Nations commission of inquiry last month determined to constitute genocide.
“A person like Trump, no matter how powerful, should not be welcomed in Malaysia,” former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Anwar’s former mentor-turned-nemesis, said in a video message last month.
Defending the invitation, Anwar has stressed his view of diplomacy as “practical work” for advancing his country’s interests “in an imperfect world”.
“It demands balance, discipline, and the courage to stay the course even when the ground shifts beneath us,” he told a conference in Kuala Lumpur earlier this month.
US President Donald Trump gestures to the media after attending the ASEAN Summit in Manila, the Philippines, on November 14, 2017 [Bullit Marquez/ pool via AFP]
As a small power, Malaysia has always put pragmatism at the centre of its foreign policy, said Sharifah Munirah Alatas, an international relations lecturer at the National University of Malaysia.
“Anwar and Malaysia cannot afford to do otherwise,” Alatas told Al Jazeera.
“And given the current highly unpredictable Sino-American tension induced by the Trump 2.0 era, ASEAN will remain actively non-aligned, without taking sides.”
Awang Azman, the University of Malaya professor, said that while Trump’s visit will elevate Malaysia and ASEAN’s profile by itself, the true test of the summit’s success will be tangible outcomes on issues such as the Thailand-Cambodia conflict and trade.
“It’s not just a photo op if a ceasefire accord and concrete trade language land on paper,” Awang Azman said.
“If either track stalls, the visit is still symbolically significant – given the rarity of US presidential trips to Malaysia – but the narrative will revert to optics over outcomes.”
Oct. 23 (UPI) — The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions has scheduled a virtual confirmation hearing for surgeon general nominee Dr. Casey Means five months after she was nominated.
The hearing is scheduled on Oct. 30, and Means, 38, who is pregnant, will be in Kilauea, Hawaii, when she testifies remotely, ABC News reported.
If the committee votes in favor of her recommendation, she then would be subject to a confirmation vote before the full Senate.
President Donald Trump cited her “impeccable” credentials as an advocate for the Make America Healthy Again movement begun by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Means also is an advocate for wearable health devices and co-founded health tech firm Levels, which promotes the use of technology to track individuals’ health information, according to The Hill.
Kennedy, likewise, favors the use of wearable health-tracking devices and wants to make it possible for everyone in the United States to wear one within four years.
Means also is the sister of Kennedy adviser Calley Means.
Trump nominated Means in May after withdrawing his prior surgeon general nomination for Janette Nesheiwat when her qualifications were questioned.
Means obtained her medical training at Stanford University but exited her residency program when she was disillusioned by the financial incentives for and practice of surgical care.
She since has become known for her advocacy for wellness and the roles of diet and nutrition in people’s health.
Means says diet is the root cause of much of the chronic illnesses that people experience.
Her HELP committee confirmation hearing was delayed due to Means not submitting financial and ethics records until recently, according to The New York Times.
Her financial records show Means has turned her support for diet as a root cause of illnesses into a moneymaker by accepting payments from companies that sell dietary supplements, deliver home meals and other revenue sources.
She also receives sponsorship money for her newsletter, which generated about $116,000 in income over a recent 18-month period, according to The New York Times.
Her financial disclosures also show Swiss firm Amazentis contributed another $79,000 in newsletter sponsorship funding and paid $55,000 for Means’ book tour fees.
She also reported earning less than $1 million but more than $100,000 on the sales of her book, “Good Energy: The Surprising Connection Between Metabolism and Limitless Health.”
Petro, however, did acknowledge that a disruption in the two countries’ military cooperation could have serious consequences.
Published On 23 Oct 202523 Oct 2025
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Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro has indicated that a suspension of aid from the United States would mean little to his country, but that changes to military funding could have an effect.
“What happens if they take away aid? In my opinion, nothing,” Petro told journalists on Thursday, adding that aid funding often moved through US agencies and employed Americans.
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But a cut to military cooperation would matter, he added.
“Now, in military aid, we would have some problems,” Petro said, adding that the loss of US helicopters would have the gravest impact.
US President Donald Trump had threatened over the weekend to raise tariffs on Colombia and said on Wednesday that all funding to the country has been halted.
Colombia was once among the largest recipients of US aid in the Western Hemisphere, but the flow of money was suddenly curtailed this year by the shuttering of USAID, the government’s humanitarian assistance arm. Military cooperation has continued.
The Trump administration has already “decertified” Colombia’s efforts to fight drug trafficking, paving the way for potential further cuts, but some US military personnel remain in Colombia, and the two countries continue to share intelligence.
Petro has objected to the US military’s strikes against vessels in the Caribbean, which have killed dozens of people and inflamed tensions in the region. Many legal experts and human rights activists have also condemned the actions.
Trump has responded by calling Petro an “illegal drug leader” and a “bad guy” – language Petro’s government says is offensive.
Petro has recalled his government’s ambassador from Washington, DC, but he nevertheless met with the US’s charge d’affaires in Bogota late on Sunday.
Although Trump has not announced any additional tariffs on top of the 10-percent rate already assessed on Colombian goods, he said on Wednesday he may take serious action against the country.
Petro said Trump is unlikely to put tariffs on oil and coal exports, which represent 60 percent of Colombia’s exports to the US, while the effect of tariffs on other industries could be mitigated by seeking alternative markets.
An increase in tariffs would flip a long-established US policy stance that free trade can make legitimate exports more attractive than drug trafficking, and analysts say more duties could eventually bolster drug trafficking.
Although his government has struggled to take control of major hubs for rebel and criminal activity, Petro said it has made record seizures of 2,800 metric tonnes of cocaine in three years, partly through increased efforts at Pacific ports where container ships are used for smuggling.
He also repeated an accusation that Trump’s actions are intended to boost the far right in Colombia in next year’s legislative and presidential elections.
United States President Donald Trump sanctions Russia’s two biggest oil companies – after scrapping a summit with President Vladimir Putin on the Ukraine war.
The European Union has also announced new measures targeting Russian oil and assets.
Will they bring an end to the war any closer?
Presenter: Bernard Smith
Guests:
Anatol Lieven – Director of the Eurasia programme at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
Steven Erlanger – Chief Diplomatic Correspondent for Europe at The New York Times
Chris Weafer – CEO of Macro-Advisory, a strategic consultancy focused on Russia and Eurasia
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reiterated the importance of the fragile Gaza ceasefire agreement while meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in West Jerusalem Thursday.
President Donald Trump on Thursday pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (pictured in 2022), who pleaded guilty to money laundering charges in 2023 and spent four months in prison. File Photo by Miguel A. Lopes/EPA
Oct. 23 (UPI) — President Donald Trump has pardoned Binance cryptocurrency exchange founder Changpeng Zhao, who had pleaded guilty to money laundering charges in 2023.
The guilty plea was part of a $4.3 billion settlement between Binance and the Justice Department to end the investigation into the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, CBS News reported.
The settlement required Zhao to resign from his position as Binance’s chief executive officer and serve four months in prison.
The Binance settlement also caused the Philippines to order Google and Apple to remove the Binance app from their respective app offerings.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Zhao’s plea deal and the investigation against Binance arose from what she called the Biden administration’s “war on cryptocurrency,” as reported by The Hill.
“In their desire to punish the cryptocurrency industry, the Biden administration pursued Mr. Zhao despite no allegations of fraud or identifiable victims,” Leavitt said in a prepared statement.
“The Biden administration sought to imprison Mr. Zhao for three years, a sentence so outside sentencing guidelines that even the judge said he had never heard of this in his 30-year career,” Leavitt added.
“These actions by the Biden administration severely damaged the United States’ reputation as a global leader in technology and innovation.”
The president issued the pardon in accordance with his constitutional authority, she said, adding that “the Biden administration’s war on crypto is over.”
In a social media post in which he identified himself as “CZ,” Zhao thanked the president “for upholding America’s commitment to fairness, innovation and justice” by pardoning him.
He said he will “help make America the capital of crypto” and help make decentralized web3 Internet technology available globally.
Zhao’s pardon came after a news report indicated that Binance assists the Trump family with its cryptocurrency endeavor.
The Wall Street Journal two months ago reported that a cryptocurrency venture created by the Trump family has accrued $4.5 billion with the help of Binance since the president won the Nov. 5 election, according to CNBC.
A group of graduate students from the Harvard University Kennedy School celebrate during the 368th Harvard University Commencement in May 2019 at the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. Harvard College stated in new data its 2029 class makeup showed Black students comprised 11.5% with Hispanics at 11% and Asian-American students at 41%. File Photo by Matthew Healey/UPI | License Photo
Oct. 23 (UPI) — New data released by Harvard University’s undergraduate school showed a decline for the class of 2029 in both Hispanic and Black students, with a spike in its Asian student population.
Massachusetts-based Harvard College stated its 2029 class makeup showed Black students comprised 11.5%, with Hispanics at 11% and Asian-American students at 41%, according to newly released data.
However, the university did not release demographics and data on its White student population.
Prior to the high court’s decision, the Harvard student population had been made up of about 18% of Black students.
But Harvard’s total number of Hispanic students went up following the Supreme Court’s ruling.
According to data, roughly 21% of Harvards 2029 graduating class were eligible for federal Pell Grants. It added 45% were tuition free and 26% on an entirely free program.
Earlier this year, President Donald Trump instructed the Department of Education to inform U.S. educational institutions on the receiving end of federal funds to officially end affirmative action policies in a number of school-related practices.
Meanwhile, a Yale professor and expert on affirmative action history called the decline an example how the high court’s “disastrous decision from 2023 continues to cause Black enrollment rates to decline at many of the nation’s premier universities.”
“I fear that Harvard’s plummeting trend lines over the last two years offers an unattractive preview of the future in American higher education,” Justin Driver, a professor at Yale Law School, told The New York Times.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum says she does not agree with US strikes on boats off the coast of South America, when asked about the recent deadly attacks on what the US has claimed are drug traffickers.
Washington has announced new sanctions against Russia’s two largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, in an effort to pressure Moscow to agree to a peace deal in Ukraine. This marks the first time the current Trump administration has imposed direct sanctions on Russia.
Speaking alongside Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said he hoped the sanctions would not need to be in place for long, but expressed growing frustration with stalled truce negotiations.
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“Every time I speak to Vladimir [Putin], I have good conversations and then they don’t go anywhere. They just don’t go anywhere,” Trump said, shortly after a planned in-person meeting with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Budapest was cancelled.
Trump’s move is designed to cut off vital oil revenues, which help fund Russia’s ongoing war efforts. Earlier on Wednesday, Russia unleashed a new bombardment on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, killing at least seven people, including children.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the new sanctions were necessary because of “Putin’s refusal to end this senseless war”. He said that Rosneft and Lukoil fund the Kremlin’s “war machine”.
A Lukoil petrol station in Sofia, Bulgaria, on October 23, 2025 [Stoyan Nenov/Reuters]
How have Rosneft and Lukoil been sanctioned?
The new measures will freeze assets owned by Rosneft and Lukoil in the US, and bar US entities from engaging in business with them. Thirty subsidiaries owned by Rosneft and Lukoil have also been sanctioned.
Rosneft, which is controlled by the Kremlin, is Russia’s second-largest company in terms of revenue, behind natural gas giant Gazprom. Lukoil is Russia’s third-largest company and its biggest non-state enterprise.
Between them, the two groups export 3.1 million barrels of oil per day, or 70 percent of Russia’s overseas crude oil sales. Rosneft alone is responsible for nearly half of Russia’s oil production, which in all makes up 6 percent of global output.
In recent years, both companies have been hit by rolling European sanctions and reduced oil prices. In September, Rosneft reported a 68 percent year-on-year drop in net income for the first half of 2025. Lukoil posted an almost 27 percent fall in profits for 2024.
Meanwhile, last week, the United Kingdom unveiled sanctions on the two oil majors. Elsewhere, the European Union looks set to announce its 19th package of penalties on Moscow later today, including a ban on imports of Russian liquefied natural gas.
How much impact will these sanctions have?
In 2022, Russian oil groups (including Rosneft and Lukoil) were able to offset some of the effects of sanctions by pivoting exports from Europe to Asia, and also using a “shadow fleet” of hard-to-detect tankers with no ties to Western financial or insurance groups.
China and India quickly replaced the EU as Russia’s biggest oil consumers. Last year, China imported a record 109 million tonnes of Russian crude, representing almost 20 percent of its total energy imports. India imported 88 million tonnes of Russian oil in 2024.
In both cases, these are orders of magnitude higher than before 2022, when Western countries started to tighten their sanctions regime on Russia. At the end of 2021, China imported roughly 79.6 million tonnes of Russian crude. India imported just 0.42 million tonnes.
Trump has repeatedly urged Beijing and New Delhi to halt Russian energy purchases. In August, he levied an additional 25 percent trade tariff on India because of its continued purchase of discounted Russian oil. He has so far demurred from a similar move against China.
However, Trump’s new sanctions are likely to place pressure on foreign financial groups which do business with Rosneft and Lukoil, including the banking intermediaries which facilitate sales of Russian oil in China and India.
“Engaging in certain transactions involving the persons designated today may risk the imposition of secondary sanctions on participating foreign financial institutions,” the US Treasury Department’s press release on Wednesday’s sanctions says.
As a result, the new restrictions may force buyers to shift to alternative suppliers or pay higher prices. Though India and China may not be the direct targets of these latest restrictions, their oil supply chains and trading costs are likely to come under increased pressure.
“The big thing here is the secondary sanctions,” Felipe Pohlmann Gonzaga, a Switzerland-based commodity trader, told Al Jazeera. “Any bank that facilitates Russian oil sales and with exposure to the US financial system could be subject.”
However, he added, “I don’t think this will be the driver in ending the war, as Russia will continue selling oil. There are always people out there willing to take the risk to beat sanctions.
“These latest restrictions will make Chinese and Indian players more reluctant to buy Russian oil – many won’t want to lose access to the American financial system. [But] it won’t stop it completely.”
According to Bloomberg, several senior refinery executives in India – who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue – said the restrictions would make it impossible for oil purchases to continue.
On Wednesday, Trump said that he would raise concerns about China’s continued purchases of Russian oil during his talk with President Xi Jinping at the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea next week.
Rosneft’s Russian-flagged crude oil tanker Vladimir Monomakh transits the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkiye, on July 6, 2023 [Yoruk Isik/Reuters]
Have oil prices been affected?
Oil prices rallied after Trump announced US sanctions. Brent – the international crude oil benchmark – rose nearly 4 percent to $65 a barrel on Thursday. The US Benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, jumped more than 5 percent to nearly $60 per barrel.
Pohlmann Gonzaga, however, predicted that the “market will correct from this 5 percent over-jump. You have to recall that sentiment in energy markets is still negative due to the gloomy [global] economic backdrop.”
Tesla posted sharply lower profit for the July to September quarter despite a signifcant jump in revenue. The firm’s performance was hit by tough competition in the EV market, U.S. duties on imports of parts and materials to make its cars, higher capital expenditure costs and a sales slump in Europe. File photo by Divyakant Solanki/EPA
Oct. 23 (UPI) — Tesla reported profits were down 37% in the third quarter despite a jump in revenue to $28.1 billion on frontloading of sales driven by buyers racing to beat the deadline for a federal tax credit before it expired Sept. 30.
The tax credit, worth up to $7,500 on EV purchases, helped the firm buck a run of declining quarterly sales along with a new six-seat version of its popular Model Y midsize SUV that performed well in the Chinese market.
While sales of competitors, including Ford and Hyundai, still outpaced Tesla’s it also lured in buyers with interest-free finance and insurance contributions.
That helped overall income rise by just under $3 billion, compared with the same period last year, and $1.73 billion more than predicted by analysts, with the largest contribution still coming from vehicle sales.
Revenue from Tesla’s energy generation and storage division surged 44% to $3.42 billion.
However, net profit slumped from $2.17 billion in the third quarter of 2024, to just $1.37 billion this year, with the results sending the stock price lower.
Tesla’s shares were down more than 3% at $424.60 in out-of-hours trade on the NASDAQ before Thursday’s market open — but remained well above the 30-day low of $413.49 they hit Oct. 10. The stock is up 9% year-to-date.
The firm’s performance was dragged down by an ongoing slump in its European market, partly due to a public backlash against Musk and tough competition from rivals from the continent and beyond, such as Volkswagen and China’s BYD.
Tariffs on car parts and raw materials imposed by President Donald Trump and higher research and development costs were also factors as the company embarks on CEO Elon Musk‘s efforts for an increased focus on AI and robotics.
Chief Accounting Officer Vaibhav Taneja told investors on a conference call Wednesday that the hit to Tesla from import duties in the July to September period was in excess of $400 million.
Tesla said it aimed to meet its target to begin “volume production” of Cybercab, heavy-duty electric semi trucks and its new Megapack 3 battery energy storage system in 2026, with Musk saying he expected Cybercab to begin rolling off the production line in the second quarter.
“First generation production lines” for Tesla’s humanoid Optimus robot were currently under construction. Musk said the firm expected to unveil Optimus V3 in the first quarter.
Tesla posted its latest results as shareholders were preparing for a November vote to approve a new remuneration package for Musk of as much as $1 trillion, all in shares.
The deal would be conditioned on his delivering an ambitious turnaround program involving boosting market capitalization from around $1.38 trillion to an unprecedented $8.5 trillion by pivoting Tesla to concentrate on autonomous driving, AI and robotics.
Apple, Microsoft and NVIDIA, the current behemoths of the U.S. tech sector, have market caps in the $2.6 to $3.2 trillion range.
North Korea successfully tested a “new cutting-edge weapons system” involving hypersonic missiles, state-run media reported Thursday. The launch, which took place on Wednesday, was detected by the South’s military. Photo by Jeon Heon-kyun/EPA
SEOUL, Oct. 23 (UPI) —North Korea successfully tested a “new cutting-edge weapons system” involving hypersonic missiles, state-run media reported Thursday, amid heightened regional tensions ahead of the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea.
Two hypersonic projectiles were launched in a northeast direction from the Pyongyang area and hit targets on a plateau of Kwesang Peak in Orang County, North Kamgyong Province, the official Korean Central News Agency reported.
“The new weapon system was tested as part of the defense capability development program to enhance the sustainability and effectiveness of strategic deterrence against potential enemies,” KCNA said.
The test, held Wednesday, was overseen by a delegation of officials led by Pak Jong Chon, secretary of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was not present at the test.
“The new cutting-edge weapon system is a clear proof of steadily upgrading self-defensive technical capabilities of the DPRK,” Pak said, according to KCNA.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.
Seoul’s military on Wednesday said that it detected the launch of several short-range ballistic missiles, which flew for roughly 217 miles before falling on land.
U.S. Forces Korea denounced the North’s launches and its “relentless pursuit of long-range missile capabilities,” acts that are prohibited by U.N. Security Council resolutions.
“The United States condemns these unlawful and destabilizing actions, and we call on the DPRK to refrain from further acts in violation of the UNSCR,” USFK said in a statement.
The launch was North Korea’s fifth of the year, and the first since South Korean President Lee Jae Myung took office in June. Lee has made efforts to improve relations between the two Koreas, with conciliatory gestures such as removing propaganda loudspeakers from border areas.
The missile test comes ahead of South Korea’s hosting of the APEC summit in Gyeongju on Oct. 30-Nov. 1. U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to visit Gyeongju before the official summit for bilateral meetings with leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping and South Korea’s Lee.
Analysts had speculated that the North may conduct a provocation ahead of the event as Pyongyang continues its push to be recognized as a nuclear-armed state.
The regime unveiled its latest intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-20, at a massive military parade earlier this month. The ICBM, which North Korean state media called the regime’s “most powerful nuclear strategic weapon,” is a solid-fuel missile believed capable of reaching the continental United States.
Hypersonic weapons, meanwhile, travel at least five times the speed of sound and are maneuverable mid-flight, making them a challenge for missile detection and interception systems.
