Trump | Pakistan

Former US President Joe Biden on Saturday night criticised the policies of his successor, President Donald Trump, calling him corrupt, narcissistic, and incompetent. “It’s not just his vanity projects, tearing down the East Wing of the White House, making room for his ballroom, putting his name on the Kennedy Centre, building an arch in his own honour, even hiring his own pool guy to fix the reflecting pool. Woah! What a loser,” Biden said at a Maryland Democratic Party fundraiser event. In a 10-minute speech at a Maryland casino, Biden delivered one of his strongest criticisms of President Donald Trump since leaving office. “The reflecting pool reflects something even worse than the narcissism and incompetence at the core of this administration,” he said. “It’s the corruption, the corruption, the brazen, blatant corruption. Corruption on a scale never seen before in American history in any administration.” “What makes me angry is that Trump wants to give taxpayers’ money, your money, to the January 6th insur...

WASHINGTON: Presi­dent Donald Trump has unveiled a rendering of a new limited-edition US passport to mark the country’s 250th anniversary of independence — featuring his stern-faced likeness. “The USA’s New Pass­p­ort, which says, ‘Welcome, but be good!’” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform featuring the passport mock-up. The image features a glowering Trump leaning on his desk and his signature, with the text of the Declaration of Indepen­dence in the background. It appears to be based on a portrait taken by White House photographer Dan­iel Torok. The opposite page shows a painting depicting the declaration’s signing in 1776, with the words “Uni­t­­ed States of America 250.” White House calls it ‘Patriot Passport’ The White House pos­ted the same passport rendering, with the words “PATRIOT PASSPORT”. The State Department, which had previously an­­nounced that a commemorative passport with “custom artwork” would be available from July 6, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In A...

The US Supreme Court handed President Donald Trump a victory on Thursday by backing the federal government’s authority to turn away asylum seekers when officials deem US-Mexico border crossings too overburdened to handle additional claims. The court, in a 6-3 ruling powered ​by its conservative justices, overturned a lower court’s finding that the policy violated federal law. The Republican president’s administration has said it may seek to revive the policy, known as “metering,” after it ‌was dropped by Trump’s Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden. The ruling was one of two in immigration-related cases issued by the court on Thursday backing Trump. The metering policy allows US immigration officials to stop asylum seekers at the border and indefinitely decline to process their claims. It is separate from a sweeping policy to deny entry to asylum seekers at the border that Trump announced after returning to the presidency last year. That policy also faces an ongoing legal challenge. A demonstrator holds a sign a...

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday it may never be known who was at fault for a ​deadly strike on a girls’ school in Iran on February ‌28, the first day of the Iran war, that killed scores of children. Reuters reported in March that an initial internal US military investigation showed US forces were likely responsible ​for the fatal strike in Minab in southern Iran. The Pentagon ​has since elevated the probe but it has not acknowledged any ⁠preliminary findings. “I don’t know that they are ever going to solve ​that problem,” Trump told reporters. “I don’t know that they are ever going to ​solve that problem in terms of whose fault was it because there were missiles flying all over the place, and it’s horrible what happened but there were missiles flying ​all over the place,” he said. “Somebody said it was our missile, maybe ​it wasn’t our missile but I have seen nothing to lead me to believe ‌it ⁠was,” Trump remarked, adding: “I don’t think it was us.” The strike on February 28, when the US and Israe...

United States President Donald Trump faced pointed criticism over the Iran war in a closed-door meeting with fellow Republicans on Wednesday, shortly before his administration asked Congress for tens of billions of dollars to pay for the conflict. Several Republicans who attended said Trump engaged in a shouting match with Senator Bill Cassidy, who said the administration needed to explain a framework deal Trump signed last week that gives Iran financial incentives but falls short of the goals he laid out at the war’s beginning. “The American people need to know more than we are being told,” Cassidy told reporters. “It does not appear, although I don’t know for sure, that the course of this is going the way that we were told.” Later on Wednesday, the Senate’s Republican leaders scheduled a late-night vote to block a resolution calling for an end to hostilities with Iran in what appeared to be an effort to please the president. The Senate voted by 50 to 47, largely along party lines, to block a war powers reso...

A key road named after US President Donald Trump in India’s opposition-ruled tech hub of Hyderabad has drawn criticism from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party, which dismissed the move as “hypocrisy”. US-India ties have deteriorated during Trump’s second term, with Washington imposing high tariffs on Indian goods, punishing New Delhi for purchasing Russian oil, and engaging closely with India’s arch-rival Pakistan. The road in the capital of the southern state of Telangana, ruled by the main opposition Congress party, adjoins the US consulate and is near the offices of major American tech companies such as Microsoft, Google, and Amazon. The road received its new name, Donald Trump Avenue, on Tuesday, at a time when Congress has been accusing Modi of being “compromised” by not taking on Trump on issues from the tariffs to US attacks on Indian-crewed tankers during the Iran war. “Rahul Gandhi says President Trump [is] hurting Indian interests,” Shehzad Poonawalla, a spokesperson of Modi’s Bharatiya Jan...

WASHINGTON: The US Senate has passed a largely symbolic resolution on Tuesday, calling for an end to President Donald Trump’s war with Iran, delivering a fresh rebuke to the White House as it tries to negotiate a lasting settlement with Tehran. The House-passed measure, adopted by the Senate in a 50-48 vote, directs Trump to remove US forces from hostilities with Iran unless Congress explicitly authorises military action. Because the measure is a “concurrent resolution,” it does not go to Trump’s desk for signature and carries disputed legal force. But its passage still puts both chambers of Congress on record against a conflict that began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, rattled global energy markets and opened a broader regional war involving Lebanon and Gulf states. The vote came as the Trump administration pursued a 60-day diplomatic push to turn a preliminary memorandum of understanding with Iran into a final agreement covering Tehran’s nuclear program, sanctions relief and the Strai...

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni fired back at US President Donald Trump on Saturday, saying his “constant, unprovoked attacks are senseless” after he escalated a diplomatic row by accusing her of repeatedly seeking a photograph with him. The clash has opened an unusually personal rift between Trump and one of Europe’s most prominent right-wing leaders, who had sought to cast herself as a bridge between Washington and the continent during Trump’s return to power. Trump had initially told Italian broadcaster La7 that Meloni “begged” him for a picture at this week’s G7 summit in France, saying he agreed only because he “felt sorry for her.” Meloni angrily denied the claim, calling it “made up,” but Trump doubled down in a post on Truth Social, saying Meloni had asked “over and over” for a photograph during the summit. He also accused her of trying to repair relations with Washington for domestic political reasons after Italy failed to support US action against Iran. “Now, after the United States defeated I...

United States President Donald Trump has said that Pakistan “really helped” Washington with the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Iran. He made the remarks during an interview with American news outlet Axios. During the interview, the US president was asked about which global leaders he “liked”. In addition to Chinese President Xi Jinping, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump talked about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, before mentioning Pakistan’s leadership. “In Pakistan, you have the field marshal, who is great. Munir, he’s great. And you have the prime minister, and they just get along great … He totally respects the prime minister. It’s a beautiful thing to see,” he said, talking about Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir. “But they really helped us with this deal. They knew the Iranians, they knew the people and they were good,” he said. During the interview, Trump was also asked about the lessons he had learned about the “li...

US President Donald Trump unveiled on Friday a replacement Air Force One aircraft gifted by Qatar, which he dubbed a “flying White House”. “This is considered the world’s most luxurious plane,” Trump said at a speech inside the plane’s hangar, praising the gulf emirate for being “so nice and providing” it. Qatar’s gift of the aircraft — valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars — has raised ethical, constitutional and security concerns. Trump has previously said it would be “stupid” to reject the gift, while also stoking further concern by saying the plane would eventually be donated to his presidential library. At the unveiling on Friday at Joint Base Andrews, just outside Washington, Trump praised the workmanship that went into modifying the jet, saying “with the extraordinary devotion of many of you here today, this plane was transformed into a flying White House at a level of luxury that nobody’s ever seen before”. “When you see it, you won’t believe it, actually, the quality of woods, the quality of ...

Italy reacted angrily on Friday after reported comments by US President Donald Trump mocking Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with the foreign minister cancelling a planned US visit. Meloni said she was “frankly stunned” by Trump’s comments to Italian channel La7. According to a written transcript of the phone interview provided to AFP by the network, he said Meloni “begged me for a picture” at the G7 summit this week and he agreed only because he “felt sorry for her”. He also suggested that Meloni was probably “happy that I talked to her, I didn’t have to talk to her”. Meloni called what Trump said “made up”, adding: “Neither I nor Italy ever beg.” “I don’t know why the president of the United States behaves this way with his own allies,” the far-right leader wrote on X. “I can only say that it’s a pity he doesn’t show the same determination with enemies of the West, with enemies of the United States, with leaders with whom, instead, he is far more accommodating,” she said. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Taj...

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said there had been “significant progress” in long-running talks with Washington for a trade deal, according to a statement issued on Thursday after his meeting with United States President Donald Trump. The leaders met on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Evian in France on Wednesday, their first face-to-face talks since February 2025 in Washington. “The leaders noted with particular satisfaction the significant progress made in negotiations towards an interim bilateral trade agreement”, a readout of the meeting from India’s foreign ministry read. Asked if the US and India are close to a trade deal, Trump told reporters in Evian that they were “very close”. “He’s a very tough negotiator, one of the toughest, actually. So you look at this man, I’ll give you a lesson,” said the US president. “He’s the most beautiful looking man. He looks so nice. He’s like an angel, but actually he’s a killer.” The Indian statement said the leaders had ordered officials to work towards strik...

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday signalled his willingness to submit the recently negotiated Iran agreement to Congress for review, as lawmakers from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers demanded access to a deal whose full terms remain closely guarded. Speaking during a meeting with United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in France, Trump suggested he had no objection to congressional scrutiny of the accord, which was announced over the weekend and is expected to formally be signed in Geneva on Friday by Vice President JD Vance. “What I would like to do is send it to Congress and say, ‘You shouldn’t approve it.’ And they will approve it,” Trump said, appearing to joke about the review process. The agreement, signed electronically on Sunday by Trump and Vice President JD Vance, is designed to end four months of military confrontation between Washington and Tehran and reopen the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz. But the administration has yet to release the tex...

• Netanyahu not coming to Trump’s bilateral meetings • One-on-one session with Zelensky not planned WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump will meet Middle Eastern leaders and attend a working session with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during the G7 summit next week, senior US administration officials said on Saturday. The officials said Trump, who is scheduled to travel to Evian, France, for the G7 summit early on Monday, would meet separately with the leaders of Egypt, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, France and India, though no bilateral meeting with Zelensky is planned. A senior US administration official said that Israel’s Netanyahu is not coming to Trump’s bilateral meetings with Middle Eastern leaders at G7. Trump will participate in a working session on Tuesday with Zelensky and G7 leaders. The meeting comes at a time when Russian advances in Ukraine have slowed and Ukraine seeks more military funding from its allies. One of the senior US officials, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity ...

WASHINGTON: The US and global media on Thursday reacted with a mix of alarm, scepticism, and market-watch caution after President Donald Trump escalated tensions by threatening to seize Kharg Island, Iran’s critical offshore oil export hub. Across Washington, the dominant theme in reporting is the gap between rhetoric and military feasibility. Jonathan Swan, a White House correspondent for The New York Times, framed the administration’s posture as one defined by repeated escalation and limited strategic clarity. “Trump has repeatedly said he would attack Kharg during the war, as he has ramped up his threats to try to compel Iran to agree to his demands to shutter its nuclear programme. Iran has consistently called his bluff,“ he wrote. Swan’s assessment also highlights internal constraints shaping the discussion in Washington. “Trump has few easy options,” he wrote, pointing to depleted long-range weapons stockpiles and the operational complexity of any attempt to physically seize the island. “The US is dange...

WASHINGTON: A United States federal judge has blocked a controversial Trump administration rule that would have required a $100,000 fee for each new H-1B visa application, it emerged on Tuesday. US President Donald Trump had ordered the annual fee be added to H-1B skilled worker visas in September 2025. H-1B visas allow companies to sponsor foreign workers with specialised skills — such as scientists, engineers, and computer programmers — to work in the US, initially for three years, but extendable to six years. Judge Leo Sorokin ruled that the charge was effectively a tax, and therefore illegal because only the US Congress has the authority to create new taxes. The decision came after 20 state attorneys general, all Democrats, filed a legal challenge. They argued that the fee would make it harder for public universities, schools, and hospitals to hire qualified international staff. The Trump administration had defended the policy, saying the president had the power to impose the fee as part of immigration en...

United States President Donald Trump lasted through probing questions about his Iran war strategy and repeated weather disruptions during an interview with US broadcaster NBC — but angrily stormed out when confronted over his unfounded claims of election fraud. “You’re a one-sided, crooked network. Sorry. Let’s call it quits because I’ve had enough. Thank you, darling. Have a good time,” Trump told ‘Meet the Press’ host Kristen Welker before standing up and walking out of the interview that aired on Sunday. The interview, filmed on Friday, was conducted on a farm in Wisconsin, where Trump was addressing farmers. A tractor and hay bales served as a backdrop. The interview was interrupted several times by weather and audio issues as torrential rain pounded the roof, making it difficult to continue the conversation. “Is that wind or what?” Trump asked at one point according to a transcript. “Hear that sound?” he said later. “That sound of thunder, lightning, rain” Welker asked her technical crew if they should s...

US President Donald Trump’s legal team has refused to hand over financial information sought by BBC lawyers in his $10 billion defamation case against the broadcaster, the Financial Times (FT) said on Friday, citing court filings. Trump has accused the publicly funded broadcaster of defaming him by splicing together parts of a January 6, 2021, speech to make it appear that he directed supporters to storm the US Capitol. The impetus for Trump’s request to delay “appears to be the flat refusal by the Donald J Trump Revocable Trust … to provide any financial information under subpoena”, the newspaper cited the BBC as saying in a court filing. That action came despite Trump’s claims that the BBC injured “the value of his brand, properties, and businesses” and the president’s “own refusal to date to provide any financial information in discovery”, the paper added. Trump’s lawsuit, filed in Florida in December, says the BBC violated a state law that bars deceptive and unfair trade practices. He is seeking damages o...

• Backs resolution seeking to halt military action in Iran • Trump hits back at four 'bad' Republicans, calls vote

The Republican-led US House of Representatives approved a resolution on Wednesday to block President Donald Trump from continuing the war against Iran, reflecting growing concern among members of his party about the three-month-old conflict. The House voted 215 to 208, as four Republicans voted with Democrats in favor of the war powers resolution, which directs Trump to withdraw US troops from Iran unless Congress declares war or authorises the use of military force. The move marked the first time the Republican-controlled House had approved a measure seeking to force Trump to wind down military operations against Tehran since the war began three months ago. It was the latest setback for Trump in Congress despite his party’s slim majorities in both the House and Senate. For now, the vote is largely symbolic, as legislation must pass the Senate as well as the House to become effective, and there is debate over whether war powers resolutions would be constitutional even if they are approved by Congress. The vot...