White House | News

US President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday banned reporters from accessing a core part of the White House press office without an appointment, citing the need to protect “sensitive material”. Journalists are now barred if they do not have prior approval to access the area in the West Wing known as Upper Press — which is where Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt’s office is located. White House Communications Director Steven Cheung defended the move, saying without providing evidence that reporters had been “ambushing” cabinet secretaries in the area and secretly recording video and audio. “This memorandum directs the prohibition of press passholders from accessing … ‘Upper Press,’ which is situated adjacent to the Oval Office, without an appointment,” said a memo from the White House National Security Council (NSC). The memo, addressed to Leavitt and Cheung, said the aim was “protecting sensitive material from unauthorized disclosure in Upper Press”. The policy comes amid wider restrictions on journali...

US President Donald Trump has pardoned convicted Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, a White House official said on Thursday. In a statement, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump had “exercised his constitutional authority by issuing a pardon for Mr. Zhao, who was prosecuted by the Biden Administration in their war on cryptocurrency.“ Binance did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Zhao, one of the most powerful people in the crypto world, had to step down as chief of Binance when the company agreed to a $4.3 billion settlement with the US government to end a years-long probe into misconduct at the world’s largest crypto exchange. Trump’s pardon of Zhao paves the way for the crypto mogul to return to the business he helped found in 2017. He has already served his time in prison after a judge sentenced him to four months. Zhao’s pardon is the latest in a series Trump has doled out to executives convicted of white collar crimes. Earlier in April, he was appointed as a strategic advi...

During negotiations at the White House, Steve Witkoff, the U.S. Ambassador at Large and Special Envoy to the Middle East, pressured Ukraine to cede the Donetsk region to the Russian Federation.

Presidents Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine and Donald Trump of the United States, together with their delegations, have begun bilateral talks at the White House, taking place in the format of an official working lunch.

The White House lashed out at the Norwegian Nobel Committee on Friday after it awarded the peace prize to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado and overlooked US President Donald Trump. “The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace,” White House Director of Communications Steven Cheung said on X. “President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will.” Since returning to the White House for his second term in January, Trump had repeatedly insisted that he deserved the Nobel for his role in resolving numerous conflicts — a claim observers say is broadly exaggerated. Trump restated his claim on the eve of the peace prize announcement, saying that his brokering of the first phase of a ceasefire in Gaza this week was the eighth war he had ended. But he added on Thursday: “Whatever they do is fine. I know this: I didn’t do it for tha...

The United States will regard “any armed attack” on Qatari territory as a threat to Washington and will provide the Gulf Arab state with security guarantees, the White House said, after an Israeli strike on the country last month. “In light of the continuing threats to the State of Qatar posed by foreign aggression, it is the policy of the United States to guarantee the security and territorial integrity of the State of Qatar against external attack,” said an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump on Monday. In the event of an attack on Qatar, the United States will “take all lawful and appropriate measures — including diplomatic, economic, and, if necessary, military — to defend the interests of the United States and of the State of Qatar and to restore peace and stability,” the order said. The agreement comes after an Israeli strike on the key US regional ally on September 9, targeting officials from Hamas who were discussing a US peace proposal to end the conflict in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minist...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and US President Donald Trump discussed regional security and cooperation along the lines of counter-terrorism, among other matters, as the two met for the first time at the Oval Office in Washington in the early hours of Friday morning, according to a press release from the PM Office. The premier was accompanied by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir, while the US President was joined by US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as per an earlier statement from the PM office. PM Shehbaz thanked Trump for “his public endorsement of Pakistan’s role in counterterrorism and stressed the need to further enhance cooperation in security and intelligence,” as the two discussed matters of regional security. The premier described Trump as a “man of peace”, lauding his “sincere” efforts in ending conflicts around the world. PM Shehbaz branded Trump’s style of leadership “bold, courageous and decisive,” and thanked the US president for his role in me...

Tech giant Oracle is set to provide security for a US version of TikTok’s algorithm, the White House said on Monday, under a deal for the sale of the Chinese-owned app’s American operations. The proposal moves TikTok’s US operations into a new joint venture based in the United States, a senior White House official told reporters, adding that the entity would involve a “majority-American board of directors.” Oracle, in turn, is expected to serve as a security provider. The agreement provides that a copy of TikTok’s content recommendation algorithm be brought into the US joint venture system, the official said. “It’s going to be fully inspected and retrained by the security provider on US user data, and then it’s going to be operated by that US entity,” the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity. Washington has forcefully sought to take TikTok’s US operations from the hands of the Chinese parent company ByteDance over national security reasons. Under President Donald Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden, C...

A deal for the Chinese parent company of popular video-sharing app TikTok to sell its US operations would see the creation of a board dominated by Americans, the White House said on Saturday. “There will be seven seats on the board that controls the app in the United States, and six of those seats will be Americans,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News. She said a deal could be signed “in the coming days.” The United States has forcefully sought to take TikTok’s US operations out of the hands of Chinese parent company ByteDance for national security reasons. Under President Donald Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden, the US Congress passed a law to force ByteDance to sell its US operations or face a ban on the app. US policymakers, including in Trump’s first term, have warned that China could use TikTok to mine data from Americans or exert influence on what they see on social media. But Trump turned to the platform, which is hugely popular with young Americans, to garner support during his ul...

Democratic lawmakers pressed David Sacks, President Donald Trump’s “crypto and AI czar,” on Sept. 17 to disclose whether he has exceeded the time limits of his temporary White House appointment, raising questions about possible ethics violations. In a letter signed by Senator Elizabeth Warren and seven other members of Congress, the lawmakers said Sacks may […] The post Elizabeth Warren raises ethics concerns over White House crypto czar David Sacks’ tenure appeared first on CryptoSlate.

After hours of mixed signals from both Israeli and U.S. officials, the White House distanced itself from Israel's strike in Doha. One thing is clear: The strike will have significant ramifications for the hostages, U.S. standing in the Mideast, and most matters of Trump in the region

An expanded meeting has begun at the White House, bringing together the presidents of the United States and Ukraine along with top European leaders who have arrived in Washington to discuss ways to end the war in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Donald Trump have begun bilateral talks in the Oval Office of the White House to discuss Russia's war against Ukraine and possible ways to end it.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived at the White House for a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, where possible ways to end Russia's war against Ukraine are expected to be discussed.

European leaders who traveled to Washington for expanded negotiations with U.S. President Donald Trump on ending the war in Ukraine have begun arriving at the White House.

WASHINGTON: Azerbaijan and Armenia signed an initial US-brokered peace agreement during a meeting with President Donald Trump on Friday, a deal aimed at boosting economic ties between the two countries after decades of conflict, the White House said. White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told reporters that Trump signed separate deals with both Armenia and Azerbaijan on energy, technology, economic cooperation, border security, infrastructure and trade. No further details were provided. The agreement includes exclusive US development rights to a strategic transit corridor through the South Caucasus, dubbed the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity.” US officials said the agreement was hammered out during repeated visits to the region and would provide a basis for working toward a full normalisation between the countries. Neither the joint declaration due to be signed nor the separate bilateral agreements with the US were released. It was not immediately clear how the deal being signed on Friday wou...

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned down an invitation from United States President Donald Trump to visit the White House over concern that he would setup a meeting with Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, Bloomberg reported on Friday. Trump on Wednesday imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods, citing New Delhi’s continued imports of Russian oil in a move that sharply escalated tensions between the two nations after trade talks reached a deadlock. The new import tax, set to come into place in three weeks, will raise duties on some Indian exports to as high as 50pc — among the highest levied on any US trading partner. While the rupture in US-India ties was abrupt, there have been strains in the relationship. Delhi has repeatedly rebutted Trump’s repeated statements that the US brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after four days of fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbours in May. Trump also hosted Pakistan’s army chief at the White House in the weeks following ...

A White House official said that a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin is tentatively scheduled for the end of next week.

The White House Press Office confirmed to Cointelegraph that President Trump will sign an executive order allowing crypto exposure in US 401(k) retirement plans. US President Donald Trump will sign an executive order opening the door for cryptocurrencies to be included in 401(k) retirement plans, potentially reshaping how Americans invest their savings. The White House Press Office confirmed to Cointelegraph on Thursday that the order directs the US Labor Department to reevaluate restrictions around alternative assets in defined-contribution plans, including digital assets, private equity and real estate.  A senior White House official said the order instructs the labor secretary to clarify the department’s stance on alternative assets and provide guidance on fiduciary processes for offering these types of investments in retirement portfolios. Read more

Carving out clear jurisdictions for the SEC and CFTC may ease investor concerns over ambiguous securities laws. The long-awaited White House report on cryptocurrency policy recommendations may bring an end to years of regulatory uncertainty for digital asset companies, many of which have struggled with unclear guidance regarding securities laws. US President Donald Trump’s Working Group on Digital Assets released its crypto policy report on Wednesday, outlining recommendations on market structure, banking regulations and methods to bolster the US dollar’s dominance through stablecoins and crypto tax laws. One of the report’s key proposals is a division of responsibilities between the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The CFTC will gain authority over spot crypto markets, addressing longstanding concerns about overlapping or conflicting enforcement. Read more