Sep 22, 2026
WASHINGTON — More than two dozen Democratic lawmakers on Friday urged President Donald Trump to keep in place a ban on Chinese automakers out of the U.S. market, ahead of his meeting with China's President Xi Jinping this week. "We urge you to maintain strong protections against Chinese automobiles and connected vehicle technologies and ensure that China does not gain access to our market through direct imports, local production, and other avenues of circumvention," said the 27 lawmakers led by Representative Debbie Dingell. Earlier this month, Trump told Fox News he would accept Chinese car companies building cars in the United States.
LONDON — Diesel prices have rallied in Europe and the United States to record highs as wars in Iran and Ukraine sharply cut exports from some of the biggest producers such as Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, with little options to prevent further gains. Diesel futures in Europe closed at an all-time high last week having more than double their level at the beginning of 2026, after supply disruptions spread to the Red Sea, where Saudi Arabia loads most of its diesel. The wars in the Middle East and Ukraine have damaged oil refineries in the region, and refineries elsewhere are working hard to make fuels. In the United States for example, refineries operated at the highest level in eight years in late August, according to the International Energy Agency. "A key issue is that many refineries around the world are already stretched to capacity," the International Energy Agency said in a newsletter on Monday. "This leaves few available options to prevent a further tightening of supplies and higher prices in the coming months." Middle East diesel exports halved from March to
LOS ANGELES — Presley Gerber, the son of supermodel Cindy Crawford and businessperson Rande Gerber, died Sunday at age 27, a family representative said. Gerber died at a rehabilitation facility, according to online records of the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner. The medical examiner did not provide a cause of death Sunday. An autopsy was performed, but more testing is required before investigators can give a cause, according to the medical examiner’s website. The death was confirmed by Allie Jenkins, a representative for Crawford and Rande Gerber, who were married in 1998. “The family is asking for privacy during this very difficult and painful time,” Jenkins said in an email Sunday night. Gerber was a model in his own right Gerber was a model and the older brother of model and actor Kaia Gerber. He had been open about his struggles with mental health and substance abuse, documenting his journey on Instagram. He even started a “Mental Health Mondays” series on the platform to raise awareness and share wellness tips. Across multiple episodes, he related his own experiences
LOS ANGELES — Paramount has reached a settlement with a group of U.S. states that clears the way for its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, officials announced Monday, creating a Hollywood empire spanning television, news and cinema. Paramount, which is run by David Ellison, whose ultra-wealthy family has ties to U.S. President Donald Trump, won a bidding war against Netflix in February for control of a stable of assets that includes Warner Bros. Pictures, CNN and the HBO Max streaming service. The Trump administration approved the deal, one of the largest media mergers in years, in June without demanding a change to its business, before 12 U.S. states sued to block the transaction. Financing for the deal reportedly includes about $24 billion in equity from the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. David Ellison's father, billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison, also provided funding and a guarantee. Opponents in the movie industry said the combined company would slash jobs in a Hollywood already under pressure and reduce the number of films produced every year
COPENHAGEN — The United States, Denmark and Greenland will on Tuesday sign the announced U.S. security deal for Greenland on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, Denmark's government said. U.S. President Donald Trump said last Friday that the arrangement will give America "permanent control" over security for Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory in the Arctic that he has long coveted. The office of Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said that she, Trump and Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen would sign the deal at 1430 GMT in the UN building in New York. Frederiksen said Monday that the agreement, which has not been published, "recognises" the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark, as well as the right of the Greenlandic people to self-determination. "It is a good agreement from a Danish point of view," she told Danish radio DR from New York. "And when it benefits the Nordic countries and security in the Arctic region, it also benefits NATO and Europe." Since returning to the White House in January 2025, Trump has repeate
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's approval rating fell to 32 percent — the lowest of his political career — as his fellow Republicans soured on his handling of the cost of living amid the unpopular Iran war, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found. The four-day poll, which closed on Sunday, showed 73 percent of Republicans approved of Trump's job performance, down from 82 percent in a Reuters/Ipsos poll a week earlier. His overall approval stood at 35 percent that week. Trump returned to the White House in January 2025 on promises to tame inflation and end foreign wars. In a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in the hours after he was first sworn in, he enjoyed a 47 percent approval rate. Just 17 percent of respondents in the new poll approved of his handling of the cost of living — the top issue Americans say will determine how they vote in the November 3 midterm elections, when Trump's Republicans are defending narrow congressional majorities. Dissatisfaction among Republicans on the subject has been growing since Trump launched the war on Iran in February that has pushed gasoline and die
WASHINGTON/SEOUL —The top diplomats of South Korea, the United States and Japan reiterated their "resolute" commitment to the "complete" denuclearization of North Korea and called on the recalcitrant regime to resume dialogue in a joint statement issued after their trilateral talks in New York on Monday. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi met on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly High-Level Week, also stressing the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. "The Secretary and the Foreign Ministers reaffirmed their resolute commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the prohibition on support for revenue generation for the DPRK's nuclear and ballistic missile programs in accordance with the relevant U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolutions," the three governments said in the statement, referring to North Korea by its official name. "They also reaffirmed that the path to dialogue remains open and called on
When Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi meets U.S. President Donald Trump in New York on Tuesday, the leader casting the longest shadow over the meeting will not even be in the building. Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington on Thursday — two days after Takaichi meets the U.S. leader on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. It will be Xi’s first state visit to the U.S. in over 10 years. Faced with an unpredictable American president eager for tangible results ahead of what could be a tough November midterm election, Japan is working to ensure its vital interests are not traded away at the Xi-Trump summit. The Takaichi-Trump talks will unfold amid frosty ties between Tokyo and Beijing. Takaichi’s remarks last November that an attack on Taiwan could constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan infuriated Beijing and sparked months of diplomatic freeze. Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the United States, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washin
U.S. first lady Melania Trump is set to lead key cultural diplomacy events during the coming official state visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, marking their first visit to the White House since 2015. According to an official itinerary released by the first lady’s office, the three-day visit, scheduled from September 23 to 25, will feature extensive ceremonial honours alongside dedicated cultural exchanges highlighting Sino-American relations. Melania will join U.S. President Donald Trump to officially welcome Peng and President Xi to the White House on Thursday following their scheduled arrival at Joint Base Andrews the previous evening. The SCMP reported on September 17 that Trump would greet Xi at Joint Base Andrews, not only at the White House, a rare presidential airport welcome. The official reception will take place across the South Lawn, State Floor and Rose Garden of the White House. It will begin with military pageantry along the White House grounds, where an Armed Forces honour guard will line the South Drive alongside displayed U.S. and Chinese
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi touched down in New York, even as Trump stepped up his rhetoric against Tehran by warning that "very big things" will happen
UN General Assembly begins in New York, focusing on AI, conflicts, and leadership transition. Trump to meet Gulf leaders, Zelensky, and sign Greenland deal.
The BBC’s Sarah Smith outlines which world leaders Trump is set to meet and the key topics expected on the agenda.
