US

The public articulation by Donald Trump of a new desired target for NATO allies to spend 5% of national income on defence will surely plunge governments across Europe into crisis mode – not least here in the UK. Britain presents itself to the world and in particular to the United States as the biggest defence

Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on 20 January. The ceremony will take place in Washington DC and marks the peaceful transition of power from Joe Biden to Mr Trump – who is returning to the White House for a non-consecutive second term. Here is your guide

US president-elect Donald Trump has refused to rule out military or economic action to seize the Panama Canal and Greenland – as he said he believes NATO spending should be increased to 5% per member state. Speaking at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, Mr Trump made a series of sweeping claims on what his policies could look like

President-elect Donald Trump has asked a New York court to throw out his hush money conviction before Friday’s scheduled sentencing. It has been set for 10 January, just 10 days before the presidential inauguration. Trump was found guilty in May of 34 counts of falsifying business records, relating to an alleged scheme to hide a

President Joe Biden has banned future offshore oil and gas drilling along much of the US coastline – weeks before Donald Trump takes office. The action will not have any impact on large parts of the Gulf of Mexico – where most US offshore drilling occurs – but will still protect coastlines along California, Florida

There’s no doubt that Elon Musk, the richest man in the world and live-in best friend of the US president-elect, must be a busy man – even before a Tesla truck exploded at the entrance to the Trump hotel in Las Vegas on 1 January. Musk was up late dad-dancing at Donald Trump’s glitzy New

A Tesla cybertruck explosion outside one of Donald Trump’s US hotels is being investigated as a potential terror attack. The driver, who was inside the vehicle when it caught fire, died in the incident and seven other people were injured. The blast happened as the truck was just outside the president-elect’s hotel in Las Vegas,

Fellow politicians and family members have paid tribute to former US president Jimmy Carter, who died on Sunday afternoon in Georgia, aged 100. The centenarian and Nobel Peace Prize winner died at his home in Plains, Georgia, surrounded by his family, the Carter Center said. Joe and Jill Biden The current US president and first

World chess number one Magnus Carlsen has quit a major tournament after being told he couldn’t wear jeans. The chess grandmaster was defending his titles at the Fide World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in New York when the incident occurred. Officials said Carlsen had broken the dress code regulations by wearing jeans and asked

The US attorney general tried to block Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams from fundraising in the country in 1995 over a belief the IRA was still trying to source weapons, newly released records show. Janet Reno, the attorney general at the time, had previously opposed then-US president Bill Clinton‘s decision to grant visas for Mr

Elon Musk is facing censorship accusations after prominent right-wing accounts claimed they lost access to premium features on X when they criticised his views on immigration. On Friday night, Musk called some anti-immigration Republicans “contemptible fools”, adding they were “hateful, unrepentant racists” who would “absolutely be the downfall of the Republican Party if they are

Denmark has announced plans to boost its defence spending for Greenland with a “stronger presence in the Arctic” – a few hours after Donald Trump repeated his call for the US to buy the vast island. Danish defence minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the package would amount to a “double-digit billion amount” in krone, or

US basketball player Caitlin Clark has been named Female Athlete of the Year for her impact on and off the court by the Associated Press (AP). AP, a US-based news agency, said she has raised the profile of women’s basketball to unprecedented levels in both the college ranks and the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA).

American Airlines was forced to ground all flights in the US on Christmas Eve due to an unspecified technical issue. The airline did not immediately say why it was stopping all flights, but social media was quickly abuzz with travellers worrying about getting to their loved ones for the holiday. A groundstop notice was lifted

Joe Biden has announced he is changing the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on death row in America to life imprisonment. The US president made the announcement weeks before Donald Trump takes office after his victory in November’s presidential election. President Biden‘s announcement spares the lives of people convicted of killings and those

Donald Trump has threatened to retake control of the Panama Canal – accusing Panama of charging excessive rates to use the crucial trade passage and warning of potential Chinese influence. The outburst from the president-elect has sparked a row with the leader of the Central American country, who defended the canal’s independence. Speaking to a

US president-elect Donald Trump says he has appointed British TV producer Mark Burnett as his special envoy to the UK. Mr Burnett, 64, created and worked alongside Mr Trump on the US series, The Apprentice, which made the president-elect internationally famous for firing a succession of contestants vying for roles in his businesses. The London-born

Tesla has recalled almost 700,000 of its electric vehicles because of an issue with the warning light on the tyre pressure monitoring system. Its warning light may not remain illuminated between drive cycles, failing to warn the driver of low tyre pressure and increasing the risk of a crash, the manufacturer said. The issue affects

President Joe Biden has set fresh climate targets for the United States before climate sceptic Donald Trump takes office in January. Today the outgoing president has unveiled a new goal to slash US emissions of greenhouse gases by 61% from 2005 levels by 2035. The 10-year plan should generate “more good-paying jobs, more affordable energy,

Donald Trump’s attempt to throw out his conviction in the Stormy Daniels hush money case has been denied. His lawyers argued a historic ruling on presidential immunity, passed shortly after the verdict in May, meant his 34 convictions for falsifying business records should be overturned. However, a Manhattan judge said the Supreme Court ruling did