snub

SHE’S been an integral part of the Kardashian family’s success for the last decade. 

But recently it seems things between businesswoman and Dragon’s Den star Emma Grede and the KarJenners – especially Khloe, 42 – have cooled off dramatically. 

Emma, 43, and KoKo partnered to launch denim brand Good American back in October 2016, which made a staggering $1million in its first day.

But fast forward ten years, and while Khloe remains an owner of the fashion line today, she’s since expressed she no longer feels the need to be as involved.

“Good American is doing so well, and Good American is strong enough and stable enough to sustain on its own,” she explained during a recent episode of her podcast Khloe in Wonderland.

With Khloe and Emma now spending less time working together their friendship has essentially dissolved, The Sun understands.

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A well-placed insider tells us: “Over time, Khloe just wasn’t as involved – she started cancelling events and not promoting the brand.

“She has a lot on in her personal life, as fans know, but Emma is a businesswoman first and foremost and that just didn’t wash with her. 

“Khloe has so much going on and it just wasn’t a priority in her life. In theory, Khloe is still the founder of Good American but it’s Emma who does the hard work behind the scenes. I don’t think Khloe & Emma are on speaking terms now.”

Earlier this year, Khloe dropped the biggest hint yet she was ‘consciously uncoupling’ from her friendship with Emma when she unfollowed her on Instagram. 

Our source adds: “They are both smart women who realised it was time to part ways professionally, and they had to navigate it carefully so the brand wasn’t damaged as they are both heavily involved.”

After setting up Good American with Khloe, Emma later teamed up with Kim, 45, to work on her shapewear line SKIMS which debuted in 2019. 

And she also joined forces with Kylie Jenner, 29, in 2023 to launch her fashion brand KHY.

But in recent years Emma’s own star has been on the rise. She joined Dragon’s Den in 2024 and she’s been a recurring guest investor on the American version Shark Tank since 2021. 

She launched her podcast Aspire in 2025 and earlier this year released her book Start With Yourself: A New Vision for Work & Life. 

The Sun understands that, while she was initially happy to fade into the background on projects with the Kardashians, Emma is keen for her hard work to be seen these days. 

“As her profile has grown over the last few years, Emma wants her own hard work recognised,” an insider said. “Good American was Emma’s brain child, but it was Khloe’s investment and her profile that made it happen.

“The fall out with Khloe didn’t affect Emma’s relationship with Kim or the rest of the family, they’ve compartmentalised that off, but it’s very much a business-only relationship. 

“Emma is still very involved with Skims, and despite Kim being a mum of four, she’s still extremely hands on and promotes the brand all the time.”

Fans were left convinced that Emma was taking a swipe at Khloe during an interview with Cardi B on her podcast earlier this year. 

Rapper Cardi, 33, said: “Oh my God, please y’all – if you ever want to build something, please choose good partners.

“Not everybody with money [is a] good partner. I’m telling you.”

Sparking speculation that she was taking aim at Khloe, Emma was quick to quip loudly: “Oh yeah, say that again…”

Our source added: “Going their separate ways professionally has not been easy and it has affected Emma and Khloe’s friendship, because it’s hard to move past ending a working partnership and there are grievances on both sides.”

The Sun has reached out to representatives for Khloe and Emma for comment. 

For Root, the innings victory sealed inside three days against Pakistan was the ideal start to his second spell as captain.

It also extended England’s run of wins at Headingley, which began in 2018. Their longest winning streak at another ground is six at Chester-le-Street.

The decision for Headingley and Old Trafford to miss out on the 2027 Ashes roster was announced in 2023.

But the match allocation has once again come into focus after the schedule for next year’s series was confirmed in July.

Nottingham’s Trent Bridge will be the most northerly ground to host a men’s Ashes Test, with Southampton given an England-Australia Test for the first time. Headingley will instead play host to a women’s Ashes Test.

Headingley staged a men’s Ashes Test in 2019 and 2023, both matches England won. The 2019 win, inspired by Ben Stokes, was one of the most legendary contests in Ashes history, ranking alongside Ian Botham’s heroics of 1981 on the same ground.

Overall, England’s record of nine home Ashes wins in Leeds is bettered only by their 17 at The Oval, and The Oval has hosted 36 Ashes Tests compared to Headingley’s 26.

“I would love to play as many games as possible here,” said Root. “It’s a great Test-match venue, a surface that provides brilliant Test cricket, and one we’ve had quite a lot of success on recently.

“It’s a shame we don’t get to play here next year, but I’m sure we will see many, many more brilliant Test matches here.”

Headingley will next host a men’s Ashes Test in 2031, from when the England and Wales Cricket has said it will keep at least one Test in Leeds or Manchester in the allocation for every home Ashes series. Southampton will get a Test in alternate men’s home Ashes.

President Donald Trump doubled down on Monday about one of his reasons for ordering the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” joint military training exercises with South Korea. Trump said he is upset Seoul would not assist his war against Iran after years of U.S. protection from North Korea. This all started a day earlier in a Truth Social post where he said his close relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un and concerns about the cost of military exercises were motivating factors for his decision.

“South Korea has been protected by us for many, many years, and during my first term, they agreed to pay close to $3 billion a year for protection because they essentially weren’t paying,” Trump explained at an afternoon press conference. “And I asked them to do that at my request. They weren’t happy about it, but they agreed. I asked for $10 billion and they were very unhappy, but we agreed for a short term that it would be $3 billion, and next year would go up, and the next year would go up. So they start paying for their protection.”

That stopped when Joe Biden became president, Trump complained.

“When I called recently, the president of South Korea, who I like, I think he’s very nice actually. But I called him. I said, ‘Would you like to give us a little hand? We don’t need help with Iran, but if you’d like, give us a hand with Iran.’ He said, ‘No thanks.’ And I said, ‘Wait a minute. We have 39,000 soldiers over there guarding you from Kim Jong Un, your next-door neighbor, and you’re not going to help us on a very easy military operation in Iran. That’s strange.’”

Trump claimed South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung said, “No, no, we’d rather not get involved.”

“I said, ‘well, why are we involved in helping you?’” the American leader proclaimed.

Monday afternoon, the Pentagon said it “is actively working on executing the Commander-in-Chief’s directive” regarding the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield military exercise in South Korea. It already began on Monday as scheduled. When asked by TWZ for details about the timeline or how much U.S. support for the exercise will be reduced, the Pentagon declined comment.

South Korea’s presidential Blue House said it was reviewing Trump’s comments, adding that it would continue working with the U.S. on details related to the drills and the “maintenance of firm combined defense posture,” CNN noted.

There are about 28,500 U.S. troops on the peninsula and many have already begun preparation for the exercise, according to U.S. Forces Korea (USFK). While the U.S. has typically provided few details about how many of its troops take part in Ulchi Freedom Shield, there will be about 18,000 South Korean forces involved, which mirrors last year’s levels.

Scheduled to run through Aug. 27, Ulchi Freedom Shield is “a defense-oriented exercise featuring live-fire, constructive, and field training exercises that engage alliance forces and governmental agencies,” according to U.S. Forces Korea. This year’s drills were designed to reflect evolving threats from North Korea including drones, GPS disruption and cyberattack.

The goal is to “build understanding between Combined Forces Command, United States Forces Korea, the United Nations Command, and ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), ROK government agencies.”

The exercise traditionally integrates ground, air, naval, space, cyber and information elements. It focuses on a wide range of training for urban warfare, counter Weapons of Mass Destruction, wet-gap crossing, air defense mobilization, tactical aviation dogfighting, contested logistics and combat search and rescue among many other aspects. 

“This combined exercise program highlights the ironclad commitment between the two nations to maintain a robust combined defense posture and to defend the people of the ROK from any threat,” USFK said about last year’s exercise. 

As noted earlier in this story, Trump said he ordered the rollback in U.S. participation in joint exercises on the peninsula as a result of his bonds with North Korea’s leader and concerns about cost involved. He also said South Korea’s decision not to provide more support for the war against Iran was a factor.

“Based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong Un, of North Korea, I am not happy with the fact that the United States has, long ago, agreed to participate in Joint Military Exercises with South Korea,” Trump stated on Truth Social. “These exercises are not only costly, with much of these costs paid for by the United States of America (as usual!), but send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile, to a Country that, as long as Donald J. Trump has been President, has been unthreatening and respectful. Therefore, and based on the fact that it is too late to cancel, I have instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to substantially reduce the Joint Military Exercises!”

In addition, Trump proclaimed that: “While somewhat unrelated (?), I recently asked the President of South Korea if they would like to join us in the Denuclearization of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and they said, ‘No thanks!’”

Trump’s Truth Social post came days after North Korea fired a ​ballistic missile toward the sea off the Korean peninsula’s east coast as a message of protest against the looming training exercise. As we have noted in the past, joint exercises like these are typically met by missile tests and other saber-rattling from north of the border, although Ulchi Freedom Shield is a regular summer occurrence, albeit one that focuses closely on North Korean threats.

Last week, the South Korean military “fired warning shots after a group of North Korean soldiers crossed the inter-Korean land boundary, prompting them to return to their side,” the Yonhap News Agency reported on Sunday. “It marked the South Korean military’s first warning shots this year in response to North Korean troops crossing the boundary. No prior MDL violations by the North Korean military had been reported this year.”

Trump’s Truth Social post hit just as South Koreans – 13 hours ahead of Eastern Time – were starting their work week. In-Bum Chun, a retired South Korean lieutenant general who ran that nation’s special operations forces and is now a military analyst, told TWZ that Ulchi Freedom Shield is a “very” important event for South Korea. He suggested there will be mixed reactions to Trump’s move in the country, with people on the left favoring the move, people on the right seeing it as “a good reason for nuclear weapons” and moderates not taking a stand either way.

With plans to build its own nuclear-powered submarines with ballistic missile capabilities, Seoul is at least keeping its nuclear options open, which you can read more about here.

Meanwhile, South Korea’s president has proposed officially ending the conflict with the North. The Korean War, which erupted in 1950, has been effectively frozen since an armistice was signed in 1953.

The president’s move toward a détente with the North is a repeat of previous actions toward Pyongyang. During his first term in 2018, Trump promised Kim that he would halt U.S.-South Korea military exercises, saying they are “provocative” and “tremendously expensive.”

In addition, he has also previously suggested reducing troop levels in South Korea. While his Truth Social post didn’t raise that issue, earlier this year, the Pentagon moved air defense assets from South Korea to the Middle East to help defend against Iranian missile and drone barrages. It is unclear if those systems have been returned.

Given the ongoing presence in the Middle East, the U.S. military is under strain, which is likely an unspoken motivating factor as well for the move to curtail training with South Korea.

There is growing concern among Asian allies about Trump’s commitment to the region. In January, the National Defense Strategy was unveiled and no longer focused primarily on countering China — a dramatic shift from even the first Trump administration. Last week, Trump ordered the USS George Washington, the only aircraft left in the western Pacific, to head toward the Middle East to relieve the beleaguered USS Abraham Lincoln. The Lincoln is at the center of a controversy over the mental and physical health conditions of those aboard after a long deployment.

USS George Washington (CVN 73) Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, USS Robert Smalls (CG 62) Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser and USS Shoup (DDG 86) Arleigh Burke-class Flight IIA guided missile destroyer westbound in the Singapore Strait – August 13, 2026 SRC: INST- dc_ah pic.twitter.com/kZWHc9QISt

— WarshipCam (@WarshipCam) August 13, 2026

America’s strongest ally in the region, Japan, is forging closer relations with South Korea over growing anxieties about U.S. reliability.

The two countries’ “exposure to a nuclear-armed North Korea, adds urgency to moving the relationship beyond its current surface-level fence-mending,” the East Asia Forum recently noted. 

Faced with concerns about the future of U.S. commitments, as well as growing tensions with China, Tokyo is undergoing its largest military buildup since World War II.

Meanwhile, in an issue that has spanned several U.S. administrations, there is a large backlog in the amount of U.S. military aid promised to Taiwan. Under the Trump administration, however, there is growing distrust in Taiwan about whether America will come to its aid should China invade. 

It is unclear why Trump is once again making overtures to Kim. Today at the White House, he said that the North Korean leader has responded to his request for a conversation, though he offered no further details.

How a reduction in U.S. participation in training exercises Kim sees as a direct threat will affect the North Korean leader’s actions remains unknown. As we have frequently reported, he is building up his military, including his nuclear arsenal and ballistic missiles and has sent his troops to Russia, gaining experience fighting Ukraine.

During his first term, Trump sent three aircraft carriers to patrol the waters off the peninsula after a 2017 Pyongyang ballistic missile test and promised to unleash “the fire and fury” of America’s nuclear arsenal on North Korea. While that eventually spurred three face-to-face meetings between Trump and Kim, there was no change in the North Korean leader’s ambitions and his nuclear program only grew.

Contact the author: howard@twz.com

Emmy nominations arrived Wednesday and if you made the cut, it was a magical morning, like you were invited to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding and danced to “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and ate your fill of lobster, sushi and Krispy Kreme donuts, a combination that I’m sure goes well together provided you’ve fortified yourself with a steady stream of the couple’s signature tequila cocktails throughout the day.

And if you didn’t hear your name called, well, you’re feeling like you’re out there on the street behind the police barricade, hot and sweaty, wondering what happened to your dragons and how in this underwhelming Emmy season things could go so wrong.

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With Emmy submissions still down this year, there aren’t as many slots available to salute all the worthy work, leading to some sad omissions — which, for the sake of alliteration and search engine optimization, we’ll call “snubs.” There were also some surprises, some worthy, some about as welcome as the aftermath of a hot dog-eating contest on the Fourth of July.

Now that I’ve whetted your appetite, grab a donut (or a footlong) while I run down the morning’s notables.

SURPRISE: “The Bear” (comedy series)

OK, not that huge a surprise when a series nominated for its first three seasons, and winning for its first, snags another nod. But given the number of people complaining about the show’s pokey plotting, it was fair to wonder if “The Bear” would again make the cut for Season 4. The show dropped its final season three days after nominations voting ended and because things actually happened during this crowd-pleasing conclusion, it’s possible we might be seeing it again here next year too.

SNUB: Jeremy Allen White, “The Bear” (comedy lead actor)

While “The Bear” made the cut for series, the only cast member to join the party was Ayo Edebiri. Past winners White, Liza Colon-Zayas and Ebon Moss-Bacharach were left out, though all will have a shot at returning next year. Whether they will is open to question. Voters seem to have had their fill of the show.

Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri in “The Bear.”

(FX)

SURPRISE: “Your Friends and Neighbors” (drama series)

The Jon Hamm-led Apple crime drama failed to land any nominations for its first season outside a nod for main title music. Now moved from limited series to drama, it inexplicably landed a single nomination for its enjoyable-enough follow-up season — for the big prize, drama series. No other noms. Nothing for Emmy favorite Hamm. It’s almost as confusing as some of the plotting in the show.

SNUB: “Half Man” (limited series)

Richard Gadd’s limited series was provocative with its brutally violent look at male rage and unresolved trauma. But some voters I talked with found it so off-putting that they never made it past the first episode. Could be we’ve had our fill of toxic male behavior in the news without having to endure it on our down time too.

SURPRISE: Riz Ahmed, “Bait” (limited series / TV movie lead actor)

Ahmed created, wrote and produced this limited series about a struggling actor whose life is upended when rumors circulate he might be the next James Bond. His sharp comic timing and affecting vulnerability landed with voters.

SNUB: Cailee Spaeny, “Beef” (limited series / TV movie supporting actress)

OK, you didn’t like her character and you’re still afraid to drink orange juice after watching the show. But to nominate everyone else from the series and omit Spaeny? That feels like a case of Millennials and Boomers taking out their grievances on Gen Z.

Cailee Spaeny, left, with Carey Mulligan and Charles Melton in “Beef.”

(Netflix)

SURPRISE: Richard Jenkins and Joy Sunday (limited series / TV movie supporting actor and actress)

The weird and unpredictable “DTF St. Louis” had one last surprise for us, as voters indicated their enthusiasm for it by nominating not just David Harbour, Jason Bateman and Linda Cardellini, but also Richard Jenkins and Joy Sunday, who were terrific as the mismatched law enforcement partners. “DTF,” not “Beef,” might now be the limited series to beat at the Emmys.

SNUB: “Stranger Things” (drama series)

Nostalgia, it would seem, has its limits.

SURPRISE: Rufus Sewell, “The Diplomat” (drama lead actor)

He’s overly involved on the show, so why not at the Emmys, too?

SNUB: Kathy Bates, “Matlock” (drama lead actress)

Dirty birdies.

Chase Infiniti in “The Testaments.”

(Disney)

SURPRISE: Chase Infiniti, “The Testaments” (drama lead actress)

Infiniti was overlooked at the Oscars for her lead turn in “One Battle After Another,” but Emmy voters did right by her, nominating her formidable work in the sequel to “The Handmaid’s Tale.”

SNUB: Adam Brody and Kristen Bell, “Nobody Wants This” (comedy lead actor and actress)

Though Netflix’s rom-com nabbed a comedy series nomination, voters took the title to heart regarding its two leads, both of whom were nominated for its first season.

SURPRISE: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, “Wonder Man” (comedy lead actor)

A show about a struggling actor navigating the indignities of auditions? No doubt voters found it relatable and Abdul-Mateen II made his anxieties and aspirations vivid.

SNUB: Jenna Ortega, “Wednesday” (comedy lead actress)

Wednesday’s child is full of woe.

Megan Stalter, left, with Robby Hoffman and Paul W. Downs in “Hacks.”

(HBO Max)

SURPRISE: Megan Stalter, “Hacks” (comedy supporting actress)

Stalter’s loud, boundary-pushing nepo baby Kayla on “Hacks” was divisive, but she coasted to her first nomination on the wave of goodwill surrounding the show’s final season. Cringe comedy enthusiasts are celebrating. Now we await a reprise of her jeans and white T-shirt red carpet look from last year.

SNUB: “Saturday Night Live” cast members (comedy supporting actor and actress)

Admittedly it’s a low bar, but “Saturday Night Live” was better this year, not that voters seem to have noticed. Bowen Yang failed to earn a nomination for his farewell season, ending a four-year streak. And breakout cast member Ashley Padilla was overlooked too, her comic timing apparently too absurd for voters’ tastes.

SURPRISE: Dale Dickey, “Widow’s Bay” (comedy supporting actress)

Hopes were high for “Widow’s Bay,” television’s best new comedy, which arrived late in the Emmy season — so late that its last three episodes weren’t eligible for consideration. But that didn’t stop voters from embracing it, giving the show 19 nominations, including one for Dickey’s turn as the gruff town hall worker who is the Spielberg of overhead projector presentations.

SURPRISE: Connor Storrie (comedy series guest actor)

HBO Max’s hockey romance drama “Heated Rivalry” wasn’t eligible for the Emmys because it’s a production of the Canadian TV network Crave, and the television academy requires the U.S.A. be part of a show’s funding to make the ballot. But star Storrie still received an Emmy invite thanks to his impressive comic turn hosting “Saturday Night Live” in February. The guest actor trophies are handed out during the Creative Arts Emmys, a week before the primetime show, but we’ll likely see Storrie and “Heated Rivalry” co-star Hudson Williams show up to present something during the main telecast. They do want people to watch, right?

Poland won’t transfer additional MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters to Ukraine because Kyiv won’t provide drone production technology information, the country’s defense minister and deputy prime minister said. The move represents a pivot from policies of the previous Polish government and comes amid worsening relations between Kyiv and Warsaw.

As we have previously reported, under former President Andrzej Duda, Poland donated 14 of its MiG-29s to Ukraine, becoming the first country to commit to supplying combat jets to Kyiv. However, under new Polish President Karol Nawrocki, who was elected last August, the country is now seeking something tangible in return for the Fulcrums.

“I proposed what I believe was a very partnership-based approach. MiGs in exchange for drones,” Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, who serves as defense minister and deputy prime minister, told the Polish Polsat News outlet. “The Ukrainians initially agreed, but they did not honor this arrangement, so there will be no MiGs for Ukraine because Poland does not have drones or the capability to use them.”

TWZ cannot independently confirm the Polish defense minister’s claims.

The Polish defense minister lauded Ukraine’s defense technology.

“Ukraine has such significant capabilities in the field of drones that, in return for the military equipment it has received, it could have shared its know-how with Poland and provided partial access to its technologies,” he said.

Kosiniak-Kamysz added that he was not criticizing the previous administration’s policies toward Ukraine.

“I’m not going to bash them over this issue; that’s far from my intention,” he told Polsat. “They did the right thing—in fact, I’d go further: I would have done the same. They acted correctly, and Ukraine was in a much more difficult situation back then.”

The Polish move echoes U.S. President Donald Trump’s stance on Ukraine and the NATO alliance writ large. The American leader has frequently criticized the Biden administration for giving Ukraine military aid with no compensation and NATO for not doing enough to pay for its own defense.

Kosiniak-Kamysz’s pronouncement about halting the Fulcrum transfer follows Nawrocki’s confirmation last December that Poland would transfer the additional MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine in exchange for counter-drone systems.

“After the unnecessary and unclear public uproar surrounding this issue—unfortunately, public opinion has been somewhat misinformed about this matter—we are seeking a symmetrical strategic partnership,” Nawrocki said during a press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “This exchange of MiGs for anti-drone systems does not contradict our policy.”

It is unclear exactly what drone technology Poland was seeking or what Ukraine refused to provide. Ukraine has yet to comment on the matter. However, Kosiniak-Kamysz’s comments come as Polish-Ukrainian relations are spiraling downward.

Earlier this month, Nawrocki stripped Zelensky of the Order of the White Eagle, Warsaw’s top award, escalating a row between the allies over the memory of WWII.

“Zelensky had infuriated Warsaw this month by naming a military unit after an insurgent army that took part in massacres against Poles in WWII,” AFP reported.

For much of this conflict, Poland has been one of Ukraine’s staunchest allies, serving as a logistics hub and providing military assistance. As we noted earlier in this story, Poland’s initial donation of MiG-29s opened the door for the transfer of dozens of others from several NATO nations. That was followed by the eventual provision of F-16 Vipers and later French Mirage 2000 fighters.

Despite receiving more modern fighters: “Zelensky has noted that Ukraine requires MiG-29 aircraft because its pilots are already trained to operate them,” according to the Ukrainian United24 media outlet. “He added that transitioning to F-16 fighters requires lengthy retraining, temporarily reducing combat readiness, whereas MiG-29s would allow Ukraine to maintain operational air capabilities more immediately.”

“Already what I did last year was amazing and to be a champion here, I thought I deserved a wildcard and to get a little bit of respect.”

In further comments to reporters, Maria added: “I did it last year. It was not five years ago.

“I was surprised when I got the message of [tournament director] Laura Robson saying all the wildcards would go to the British players, which I understand. But as a champion, it’s tough for me.

“It is something that should be normal. If you are champion of an event and you don’t get in the year after, I think automatically this should be considered.”

Maria, watched by her two daughters, beat four top-20 players en route to the title, becoming the oldest winner of a WTA 500 tournament.

She is ranked 52nd in the world – too low to earn direct entry for the 28-strong main draw but higher than each of the four British players awarded wildcards.

This year’s recipients were Katie Boulter (world number 73), Fran Jones (98), Harriet Dart (160), and Mika Stojsavljevic (261).

A spokesperson for the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) said: “The LTA owns and invests in staging these events for the benefit of the British game as a whole – so fans can see world class international players from around the world, and support our British players, but also so British players are afforded the playing opportunities to progress their careers and climb the rankings.

“We have seen British success at these events, and breakthrough wins, so there is clear value in giving British players these development opportunities.”