Buckingham Palace on Tuesday said that King Charles III and Queen Camilla have postponed a planned state visit to the Vatican in early April following medical advice from Pope Francis’ doctors. “Medical advice has now suggested that Pope Francis would benefit from an extended period of rest and recuperation. Their Majesties send the pope their best wishes for his convalescence and look forward to visiting him in The Holy See,…

US and Russian officials have begun talks in Saudi Arabia as Donald Trump pushes to broker a limited ceasefire that Washington hopes will mark the first step toward lasting peace in Ukraine. Ukraine and Russia have agreed in principle to a one-month halt on strikes on energy infrastructure after Trump spoke with the countries’ leaders last week. But uncertainty remains over how and when the partial ceasefire would take effect…

President claims Sarah Boardman ‘must have lost her talent as she got older’, despite previous artwork of Barack Obama and George W. Bush Donald Trump has called for a portrait of himself to be taken down from the Colorado State capitol, lashing out at the artist for “truly the worst” attempt to capture his features. “Nobody likes a bad picture or painting of themselves,” the president wrote, but the Colorado…

The White House has confirmed that a journalist inadvertently was added to a group chat in which US national security officials planned a strike against the Houthi rebel group. Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, reported on Monday that he was added to a Signal message group that included accounts labelled as White House National Security Adviser Michael Waltz and Vice-President JD Vance. “At this time, the message thread that…

The first US black Republican congresswoman, Mia Love, has died aged 49 in Utah. Announcing the death, her family stated, “She passed away peacefully” on Sunday, surrounded by family at her home in the town of Saratoga Springs.” Love, a daughter of Haitian immigrants, had represented the state of Utah in the House of Representatives. Her daughter, Abigale said earlier this month that Love had no longer been responding to…

Greenlandic leaders have sharply criticised the planned visit of a high-profile U.S. delegation to the semi-autonomous Danish territory, which President Donald Trump has previously suggested the U.S. should annex. The delegation, set to visit later this week, includes Usha Vance, wife of Vice President JD Vance, White House national security adviser Mike Waltz, and Energy Secretary Chris Wright. The visit is scheduled to include a trip to the U.S. military…

Sir Keir Starmer’s proposal for a “coalition of the willing” to keep the peace in Ukraine has been dismissed by military sources and critics as “political theatre” and “posturing” with little substance. The UK Prime Minister introduced the peacekeeping initiative earlier this month, suggesting that several countries were prepared to enforce any peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. However, his plan has faced significant criticism due to the lack of…

M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, have announced they will withdraw their forces from the town of Walikale in eastern Congo, a move they say supports ongoing peace initiatives. The group, which has been advancing through the region, previously indicated their intention to leave troops in Walikale as they moved towards the capital, Kinshasa. The Congolese government has expressed hope that this announcement will be followed by concrete action, particularly after…

Oil prices saw a modest increase on Monday as investors weighed the potential impacts of new U.S. sanctions on Iranian exports against ongoing ceasefire talks aimed at resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which could boost Russian oil supplies to global markets. By 0735 GMT, Brent crude futures had risen by 4 cents to $72.20 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 8 cents, or 0.1%, reaching $68.36. Earlier…

Sweden has urged the European Commission to provide clear proposals on advancing Ukraine’s EU accession process, following Hungary’s threat to veto Ukraine’s membership, according to reports from Ukraine’s embassy in Sweden. Hungary’s Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, recently reaffirmed his country’s opposition to Ukraine’s EU accession, citing concerns over the rights of ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine’s Transcarpathia region. Despite Budapest’s previous support for starting negotiations, Hungary now insists that Ukraine has…

The US is working towards an Easter ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine despite another night of intense drone strikes that have killed civilians in Kyiv. The White House wants to secure a truce by Easter Sunday, which falls on April 20 in both the Western and Orthodox churches, officials told Bloomberg. US officials will meet separately with Russian and Ukrainian representatives in Saudi Arabia this week for talks on a…

At least seven people are dead, including a 5-year-old girl, after Russia launched nearly 150 drones across Ukraine overnight — just a day before cease-fire talks are set to resume, officials said. The Kremlin fired 147 explosive drones early Sunday across the Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Odesa and Donetsk regions, with the Ukrainian military able to shoot down or deflect 122 of the UAVs. One of the drones that made it…