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    Donald Trump confirms call with Keir Starmer to plan ‘friendly meeting next week’

    US President Donald Trump has confirmed he received a call from UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to plan a “friendly meeting”.Mr Trump said he is expecting to meet with Sir Keir next week, adding the pair get along “very well”.The pair are expected to discuss tariffs implemented by the US president.Speaking at a signing of executive orders on Friday (14 February), Mr Trump told reporters: “I think he wants to come next week or the weekend.”Mr Trump told reporters it was Sir Keir’s request to meet, stating: “I met himtwice already. We get along very well. He’s a very nice guy.” More

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    Keir Starmer responds to Donald Trump’s steel tariff blow

    Sir Keir Starmer insisted he would “always put our national interest first” in response to Donald Trump’s steel tariffs.The prime minister told MPs the UK would not “abandon” steelworkers amid warnings that the UK steel industry faces a devasting blow when Mr Trump’s 25 per cent tax on imports to the US comes into effect next month.Speaking at PMQs on Wednesday (12 February), Sir Keir said: “British steel is an essential part of our heartlands, and we will not abandon our skilled workforce, and it needs a level-headed assessment of the implications, which is what we’re going through at the moment.” More

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    Boris Johnson says Mar-a-Lago is a great place for people of Gaza to settle

    Boris Johnson says Mar-a-Lago is a great place for the displaced people of Gaza to settle.The former prime minister was quizzed on Donald Trump’s plans for the Middle East, at the World Governments Summit in Dubai on Wednesday (12 February).The former Conservative leader said his recent work trip to Mar-a-Lago made him realise what a great place it was.He said: “It’s an absolutely fantastic place if you want to resettle millions of people there.”His comments come after Trump said he would “own” the Gaza Strip, declaring it would be a “real estate development for the future” in an interview with Fox News. More

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    UK can ‘cuddle’ EU and US at the same time amid Trump tariff threats, minister says

    Britain can cuddle Europe and the US at the same time, a minister has said, as Donald Trump’s steel tariffs threaten to spark a global trade war.Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds denied that the UK would have to choose between aligning itself more closely with the EU or the US with tensions between the two mounting.And he said: “I think it is perfectly possible to cuddle more than one person at the same time.”It comes after Mr Trump announced a worldwide 25 per cent tariff on steel on Monday, triggering panic over the future of Britain’s fragile industry. More

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    Trump says Ukraine Russia war is going to end after phone call with Putin

    Donald Trump said the Russia and Ukraine war will end after confirming he has had calls with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.Trump was quizzed about his disucssions with Putin while aboard Air Force One on his way to the Super Bowl on Sunday (9 February).He told reporters: “We’re trying to end that war. It’s a war that would have never happened if I were president, it would have never happened, but we’re making progress.”Asked to clarify whether his conversations with Putin took place before he took office or after, Trump said: “I’ve had it. Let’s just say I’ve had it. And I expect to have many more conversations. We have to get that war ended. It’s going to end.” More

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    Watch moment Syrian rebels shoot down statue of former President Assad

    This is the moment Syrian rebels shoot down the statue of former President Hafez al-Assad.It comes as the Syrian government of Hafez’s son Bashar has fallen, bringing a stunning end to his family’s 50-year reign following a lightning offensive by Islamist rebels.Social media footage shows protesters bringing down the statue of the president’s late father in a main square in a suburb a few miles from the centre of the capital on Saturday (7 December).A plane carrying Assad left Damascus on Sunday morning as rebel fighters entered the capital, and two officials told Reuters he had fled the country. More

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    Trump says world gone crazy as he meets Macron ahead of Notre Dame Cathedral re-opening

    Donald Trump said the world has gone “crazy” as he met with French President Emmanuel Macron ahead of the historic re-opening of the Notre Dame Cathedral.The President-elect arrived in France on Saturday (7 December) to meet with Mr Macron ahead of the Cathedral’s grand reopening.Mr Trump praised the “great relationship” between the US and France and said: “It’s a great honour to be here and we’ve had a good time together and a lot of really great success working together. “It seems like the world has gone crazy right now and we will be talking about that.” More

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    Watch live: French prime minister Michael Barnier arrives at Elysee to tender resignation

    Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreWatch live as French Prime Minister Michael Barnier arrives at the Elysee on Thursday (5 December) to tender his resignation.Barnier has become the shortest-serving French prime minister in modern history as opposition parties have ousted his government in a historic no-confidence vote – which hands President Emmanuel Macron a fresh political crisis.Mr Barnier’s government is the first to be forced out by such a vote in more than 60 years, with the trigger being a clash over the country’s budget for next year. A majority of 331 voted in support of the motion to remove him; a minimum of 288 was needed.Opposition parties tabled the motion after Mr Barnier controversially used special constitutional powers to force through a budget without a vote. The former Brexit negotiator was only appointed by Mr Macron in September. More