NATO is shortening its summit to accommodate Trump, facing challenges in satisfying him while addressing military spending and leadership issues.

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NATO’s recent adjustments to its leaders’ summit reflect growing tensions and the need to accommodate diverse political landscapes, particularly with Donald Trump’s influence looming large. As the summit approaches on 2025-06-19 15:27:00, NATO is prioritizing brevity to keep discussions focused and effective.

5 Key Takeaways NATO summit shortened to accommodate Trump

NATO faces challenges in satisfying Trump

Proposal for European leadership in NATO

US Senate urges increased military spending

Summit designed for Trump’s attention span

This strategic shift aims to prevent potential walkouts and ensure that key issues are addressed without losing the attention of pivotal leaders. The alliance faces challenges in balancing military spending and political expectations, especially from the U.S.

Fast Answer: NATO is shortening its leaders’ summit to maintain focus and accommodate Donald Trump, reflecting broader tensions within the alliance regarding military spending and leadership dynamics.

How can NATO effectively navigate these complexities while maintaining unity? The alliance’s ability to adapt is crucial for its future. Key considerations include:

Increased military spending demands from the U.S.

Political pressures from member states

Strategies to enhance European leadership roles

Maintaining cohesion amidst diverse national interests

NATO’s evolving strategies highlight its importance in global security and the need for cooperation among member nations.

As NATO prepares for this pivotal summit, it is essential for member nations to engage in open dialogue and collaborate on shared goals for a secure future.

Listen to live updates through the day on Times Radio

America will begin discussions with Nato leaders over reducing the number of US troops stationed in Europe

The prime minister said Putin “ must come to the table ” for an unconditional ceasefire

Both sides have agreed to swap 1,000 prisoners , the largest number since the war started

The Turkish foreign minister said: “It is critical that a ceasefire be implemented as soon as possible”

Soaring thousands of feet above Nato’s Baltic border with Russia, British fighter pilots are acutely aware that one false move could trigger a global conflict.

“It would be very easy, if I waved, to fold up my hand into this [a middle finger], and then that goes out on the news and suddenly it’s an international incident,” a plucky Royal Air Force pilot said as he described intercepting a Kremlin spyplane in his Typhoon jet.

The flight lieutenant, 32, is among a handful of aviators from II (AC) Squadron who have been given the task of tracking down and deterring aircraft that encroach on alliance airspace.

• Read in full: Typhoon pilots face down threats on Nato border

Starmer: Russia not serious about peace

The prime minister said: “Ukraine has shown itself to be the party of peace”

Russia could invade Nato ‘as early as 2027’

A British soldier on exercise in Estonia, on Nato’s eastern flank bordering Russia JEFF J MITCHELL/GETTY IMAGES

Russia could rebuild its military to invade other European nations as early as 2027 if a ceasefire is agreed in Ukraine later this year, according to a report by a security think tank.

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The International Institute for Strategic Studies said President Putin has put Russia on a “war footing” and could test Nato’s commitment to Article 5 — the cornerstone of mutual defence — by attacking a Baltic state in just two years.

The IISS, which is headquartered in London, laid out the stark choices facing European leaders over defence spending after President Trump threatened to withdraw US support from Nato.

• Read in full: Will Russia attack Nato?

Talks won’t progress if Putin still demands Ukraine’s surrender

EVAN VUCCI/AP

President Trump admitted recently that his failure to bring peace to Ukraine has been keeping him up at night. President Putin’s response to calls by European leaders for an immediate 30-day ceasefire suggest that the US president should steel himself for many sleepless nights ahead.

After summoning journalists for a press conference in Moscow that began at about 2am, Putin’s remarks were, in essence, a very familiar demand for Ukraine’s capitulation. Although he proposed direct talks with Ukraine, Putin ruled out an immediate ceasefire and repeated the Kremlin’s insistence that any negotiations should address the “root causes” of the war.

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In translation from Kremlinese to English, this is a reference, at the very least, to the removal of President Zelensky’s pro-western government in Kyiv and a legally-binding agreement from Nato that Ukraine will never be allowed to join.

• Read in full: Putin’s words change, but not his demands

Missing weapons cost Ukraine millions

Ukraine has lost about $770 million paying foreign arms dealers for weapons and ammunition it has not received, according to the Financial Times.

The newspaper, citing leaked government documents and interviews with officials, said the money was spent on advance fees for supplies which were either not delivered as promised or turned out to be unusable.

It cited the example of a small ammunition business in Arizona, which was paid a $19 million advance as part of a $55 million contract for artillery shells that never arrived. The company denies any wrongdoing.

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Ukraine was attempting to recoup more than $300 million in lost fees by pursuing cases in international arbitration courts, while seeking to recover the rest in negotiations with suppliers, the FT reported. Ukrainian law enforcement agencies were also investigating potential corruption involving senior defence ministry officials, it was claimed.

Macron: Putin buying time by avoiding ceasefire

The French president met Sir Keir Starmer at a summit in Albania LEON NEAL/POOL/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

President Macron has poured cold water on the negotiations, saying it shows Russia is “merely trying to buy time by continuing the war”.

After speaking with President Trump on the phone, along with Sir Keir Starmer, President Zelensky and the leaders of Germany and Poland, Macron posed on X: “Once again, President Putin refuses to respond to the unconditional ceasefire proposal put forward by the Americans and supported by Ukraine and the Europeans.

“By rejecting the ceasefire and dialogue with Ukraine, Russia shows it does not want peace and is merely trying to buy time by continuing the war.”

Trump’s acceptance of Kremlin painting doesn’t bode well

President Trump accepted a gift from President Putin ALTAF QADRI/AP

By William Hague

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It was the portrait that said it all. Inspiring and flattering as Putin intended, President Trump received in March a painting of himself as a gift from the Russian leader.

It was a “beautiful portrait”, said Steve Witkoff, Trump’s envoy, who dutifully brought it back from Moscow. The president was “clearly touched by it”.

In commissioning and sending such a gift, Putin showed he appreciated both the opportunity and the delicacy of the moment. Ever the KGB operative, he has been trained to find the weakness of an interlocutor and play on it.

The agents he used to run in East Germany would each have had a weakness, which he would exploit in developing his hold over them. Some would need cash, some cigarettes, or perhaps human company. In the mix would be those who need flattery.

• Read in full: Trump still buys Putin’s picture of innocence

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US to cut troops in Europe

Matthew Whitaker met officials at a meeting in Estonia RASIT AYDOGAN/ANADOLU/GETTY IMAGES

America will begin discussions with European allies this year to reduce the number of troops stationed on the continent, the US ambassador to Nato said.

“It will be certainly after the [Hague Nato] summit, sometime later in the year, we are going to start those conversations”, Matthew Whitaker said at a conference in Estonia.

“Nothing has been determined but as soon as we do, we are going to have these conversations in the structure of Nato”, he added.

Talks went ‘better than expected’

While little in the way of concrete progress was achieved during the talks, many analysts have pointed out that the negotiations could have gone a lot worse.

“The largest single PoW exchange and an agreement to keep talking about ceasefire modalities — I would consider that ‘better than expected’ as an outcome for the first direct talks in three years,” Samuel Charap, a senior political scientist at the US think tank Rand, said.

“Also the sides demonstrated that they can talk without indirect mediation,” Charap added in a post on X, appearing to reference the fact that direct talks continued for almost two hours.

It was also notable that a member of the Ukrainian delegation pointed out the “tentative success” of the peace talks in this afternoon’s press conference.

Moscow’s team pushed the boundaries, says Ukraine

There were a “number of unacceptable things” Russia’s delegation said during the talks, a Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman said.

While he refused to give more details, he said he felt that Russian demands “went beyond” what Moscow had previously asked for.

While discussions on a ceasefire would continue, there needed to be “more pressure on Moscow to make them more willing to [take] more steps”, the spokesman added.

Ukraine should ‘consolidate achievement’, says delegation

The prisoner exchange agreed in Istanbul represented an “important achievement”, the Ukrainian delegation leader said.

Rustem Umerov, the defence minister, spoke to reporters in an upbeat tone, adding that the two sides would now work on “exchanging details” of a ceasefire.

“High-level discussions” between President Putin and President Zelensky should be the “next step” Umerov stressed.

Another member of the Ukrainian team said there had been “tentative success” but that Kyiv should “not relax at this point” and should”consolidate” this success.

Nato chief: Junior delegation was Putin’s ‘big mistake’

Mark Rutte met President Zelensky and other European leaders LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Earlier in the day, the secretary general of Nato said that President Putin had made a “big mistake” by sending a junior delegation to Istanbul, instead of high-level officials.

“He knows extremely well that the ball is in his court, that he is in trouble, that he made a big mistake by sending this low-level delegation,” Mark Rutte told reporters in Albania at a meeting of European leaders who were expected to close ranks around Zelensky.

“I think all the pressure is now on Putin,” said Rutte said. “The ball is clearly in his part of the field now, in his court. He has to play ball, he has to be serious about wanting peace.”

Zelensky was to address the gathering’s opening session.

Russia ‘prepared to fight forever’

The head of Russia’s delegation in Istanbul is reported to have said that “Russia is prepared to fight forever” during negotiations.

Vladimir Medinsky told the Ukrainian team that “Russia is prepared to fight forever”, according to the Economist’s correspondent Oliver Carroll, who cited a “well-placed source” in negotiations.

“We fought Sweden for 21 years. How long are you ready to fight?” Medinsky was said to have asked Ukrainian negotiators. “And [the Russian emperor] Peter the Great … You know who financed him? England and France. Sweden would still be a great power today if not for that.”

Russia ‘unlikely’ to resume talks today

Russia and Ukraine have agreed “in principle” to meet again, the Turkish foreign minister has said.

Hakan Fidan said that Ankara would “continue to make efforts to end the war”.

Meanwhile, Moscow’s delegation has travelled to the Russian embassy, the Times understands, where they are expected to address the press.

The Russian team will then leave Istanbul for Moscow, according to the Tass news agency, making a resumption of talks later today unlikely.

Former ambassador quit over rift with Trump

By Antonia Langford

A former US ambassador to Ukraine has spoken out for the first time since resigning from her post in April amid rumours of a rift with the Trump administration.

Bridget Brink wrote in the Detroit Free Press that she felt she could “no longer in good faith carry out the administration’s policy” to “put pressure on the victim, Ukraine, rather than on the aggressor, Russia”.

“I cannot stand by while a country is invaded, a democracy bombarded, and children killed with impunity. I believe that the only way to secure US interests is to stand up for democracies and to stand against autocrats,” she added.

Talks between Presidents ‘taken into account’

An exchange of 1,000 prisoners from each side of the Ukrainian-Russian war appears to be the only concrete result from today’s talks.

While this would represent the largest of such swaps since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, it is unlikely to satisfy those seeking an end to the conflict.

Rustem Umerov, the Ukrainian defence minister, who has been heading Kyiv’s delegation in Istanbul, said that a high-level meeting between President Putin and President Zelensky was discussed.

Russian media, however, noted only that this request was “taken into account” by Moscow’s delegation lead, Vladimir Medinsky.

Ukraine’s main aim, to secure a 30-day ceasefire, also seems a long way off, with Medinsky saying Russia will only “present their vision of a possible future ceasefire”.

It is yet to be seen how President Trump has reacted to the progress, or lack thereof, made in Istanbul today.

Zelensky: Allies should stand strong with sanctions

President Zelensky has said “tough sanctions” should be imposed if Russia rejects “a full and unconditional ceasefire”.

As talks in Istanbul wound down and after speaking to President Trump over the phone, Zelensky wrote on X: “Ukraine is ready to take the fastest possible steps to bring real peace and it is important that the world holds a strong stance.

“Our position: if the Russians reject a full and unconditional ceasefire and an end to killings, tough sanctions must follow. Pressure on Russia must be maintained until Russia is ready to end the war.”

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Negotiators to consider details of ceasefire

Russia was “generally satisfied” with the talks, the head of the Russian delegation said.

Vladimir Medinsky told reporters: “We are generally satisfied with the results we achieved in the negotiations and are ready to continue contacts.

“Russia and Ukraine will present their views on a possible ceasefire in detail, after which negotiations will continue.”

He also confirmed an exchange of 1,000 prisoners from both sides was agreed.

Starmer: Russia’s position ‘clearly unacceptable’

The prime minister met Polish, French and German counterparts at the European Political Community summit in Tirana, Albania LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Sir Keir Starmer has spoken to President Trump, President Zelensky and other European leaders to discuss the talks in Istanbul.

“We just had a meeting with President Zelensky and then a phone call with President Trump to discuss the developments in the negotiations today,” the prime minister told reporters at a summit in Albania.

“And the Russian position is clearly unacceptable, and not for the first time.

“So as a result of that meeting with President Zelensky and that call with President Trump, we are now closely aligning our responses and will continue to do so.”

Prisoner swap could take place

A future meeting between President Putin and President Zelensky was discussed during the talks, the Ukrainian delegation leader said.

Rustem Umerov, the defence minister, told reporters in Istanbul that a prisoner exchange of 1,000 soldiers from each side could soon take place.

Potentially fresh negotiations would be announced shortly, Umerov said.

No progress made in talks

Talks in Istanbul yielded “no progress”, a Ukrainian diplomatic source told Axios.

Their comments reflect earlier reports, with another source claiming Moscow’s demands were “non-starters” and “detached from reality”.

At about 4pm UK time, Rustem Umerov, the Ukrainian minister of defence who has headed Kyiv’s delegation in Istanbul, is expected to give a statement to the press.

Kremlin wants Ukraine to withdraw from 4 regions

During the talks, Russia demanded Ukraine withdraw its troops from the four regions that Moscow unilaterally declared it would annex in 2022, Ukrainian media reports.

This maximalist demand has been frequently voiced by the Kremlin and President Putin — despite Russia not controlling the totality of any one of the four regions of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia.

Wounded Ukrainian soldiers being treated last month at a medical station point near the front line in Pokrovsk, Donetsk JOSE COLON/ANADOLU/GETTY IMAGES

Russia’s delegation was preparing press statements after the talks, according to the Russian news agency Tass.

Russia accused of demands ‘detached from reality’

Before the talks concluded, a Ukrainian diplomatic source accused Russia of putting forward unrealistic demands.

“Russian demands are detached from reality and go far beyond anything that was previously discussed. They include ultimatums for Ukraine to withdraw from its territory for a ceasefire and other non-starters and non-constructive conditions,” the source told Reuters.

“Ukraine is ready for a real ceasefire and further genuine peace process without any preconditions.”

Negotiations end after nearly two hours

Talks between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators in Istanbul have finished, a Turkish Foreign Ministry and Ukrainian diplomatic source told Reuters.

There are some reports the talks may resume later in the day, with a Ukrainian official telling AFP further discussions were “possible” but “not planned”.

Negotiations lasted for just under two hours, according to Russian news agency Ria.

Trump ‘may’ call Putin to ‘solve’ war

WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES

President Trump has said he “may” call President Putin.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One as he wrapped up his Middle East tour, Trump said: “We have to meet. He and I will meet”.

“I think we’ll solve it [the war], or maybe not, but at least we’ll know. And if we don’t solve it, it will be very interesting.”

‘Until the leaders meet, nothing will happen’

In Istanbul’s central Beyoğlu district, staff at Russian-language bookshop, In a Room and a Half, expressed little excitement for today’s talks.

Founded in late 2022 by a Russian Tatar and a Ukrainian, the shop aims to provide a space for “people who speak Russian and are against what is happening”, said Bogdan, a Ukrainian worker, who is from Crimea.

“We have no hope that today will mean we can go home,” said Bogdan told the Times. “We have been watching this a long time and we know how it goes.”

“Until the leaders meet, nothing will happen, ” he said, echoing President Trump’s earlier remarks. “We live in a really unpredictable world now, but we leave a small hope for something good.”

Bogdan’s family still lives in Crimea, but the dual-national had been living in Moscow until the full-scale war broke out — he fled to Turkey in the summer of 2022, before Russia’s mobilisation drive. “I can’t go to both countries now as both could send me to the war,” he said.

Negotiations continue

Talks between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul are still ongoing, a Turkish Foreign Ministry source told Russian news agency TASS.

Negotiations have been underway for more than an hour now, with neither side appearing to have left the room.

Ceasefire is Ukraine’s first priority

President Zelensky told the European summit in Albania that Ukraine’s “number one priority is a full, unconditional and honest ceasefire”.

“And if the Russian representatives in Istanbul today cannot even agree to that, to a ceasefire … then it will be 100 per cent clear that [President] Putin continues to undermine diplomacy,” he added.

France’s President Macron, however, said that Russia “doesn’t want a ceasefire”, and urged leaders to put more pressure on Moscow.

The talks in Turkey are the first direct negotiations between the countries since the war began in February 2022 JOSE COLON/ANADOLU/GETTY IMAGES

Zelensky says Russia staging ‘empty process’

Speaking at the European summit in Albania, President Zelensky accused Russia of staging an “empty process” in Istanbul.

LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

He said that if President Putin’s “theatrical” delegation “can’t deliver any results today, the world must respond”.

Putin must give his team in Istanbul a proper mandate to negotiate peace, Zelensky said, as he has done with his Ukrainian delegation. He added that Russia was following a playbook of making “many statements and many threats, but [are] solving nothing”.

“They are doing everything to turn this Istanbul meeting into a staged process,” he continued.

EU piles on more pressure to Putin

As President Zelensky meets with Sir Keir Starmer and EU leaders in Albania, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, vowed to “increase the pressure” on President Putin until he is “ready for peace”.

The EU this week agreed on fresh sanctions clamping down on Russia’s estimated 200 tankers used in its “shadow” oil fleet used to circumvent curbs on Moscow’s oil exports.

Von der Leyen said the EU was already “working on a new package of sanctions” that would target the controversial Baltic Sea gas pipelines Nord Stream 1 and 2, to pre-empt any attempt to bring them back online.

President Macron and President Zelensky in Albania TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL

The new sanctions would also seek to list more shadow fleet vessels, lower the price cap set on Russian oil, and slap additional measures on Russia’s financial sector, von der Leyen said.

Some EU leaders though have admitted this round of sanctions is relatively limited compared to previous packages.

Pope offers up Vatican for further talks

Pope Leo has offered the Vatican up as a venue for future peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, after the summit in Istanbul failed to bring together President Zelensky and President Putin.

Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, announced this morning that the Pope “plans to make the Vatican, the Holy See, available for a direct meeting between the two sides”.

Pope Leo on the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican GREGORIO BORGIA/AP

He called Putin‘s absence — and the general lack of progress so far — “tragic”, adding: “We hoped that it would be a, maybe slow, process, but with a peaceful solution to the conflict, and instead we are back at the beginning. Now we will see what to do, but the situation is difficult.”

The pontiff spoke to Zelensky on Sunday and appealed to the sides “with all his heart” to negotiate during an event on Wednesday. He said: “The Holy See is always ready to help bring enemies together face-to-face … Let us meet, let us talk, let us negotiate.”

Bodies of Ukrainian soldiers repatriated

Kyiv has repatriated the bodies of 909 soldiers who died fighting against Moscow’s troops, it has emerged.

The bodies were recovered from the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, and Kharkiv and from Russian morgues, according to Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

The public body, set up shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, posted on Telegram: “Law enforcement officials together with expert institutions of the Interior Ministry will identify the victims as soon as possible.”

In September, a leaked report from a Ukrainian intelligence agency suggested that at least 70,000-80,000 Ukrainian soldiers had died in the conflict so far. Conservative estimates put Russia’s death toll well above 100,000.

‘Our world is changing’

In Turkey, pro-government media has made much of the country’s increasing role as a global mediator, even going as far as to say the focus of global power is shifting towards Turkey and the Middle East region.

Correspondents for state TV channel TRT World said that a focus on “win-win” foreign policy mediation goes back to Ottoman times, with Trump’s meetings in the Gulf, developments in Syria (where Turkey is now a key player) and Gaza also dominating coverage. They claimed that Turkey’s President Erdogan is helping to “change the world order”.

President Zelensky with President Erdogan on Thursday TURKISH MFA//ALAMY

The remarks echoed those made by Erdogan on Thursday, when he spoke at an unrelated event after his meeting with Zelensky.

“Our world is changing, the old order is crumbling, a brand-new equation is being established in our geography with Turkey at its centre,” he said.

• Read in full: How Erdogan went from pariah to peacemaker

Rubio joined meeting of security advisers

Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, met with the UK’s national security adviser Jonathan Powell, along with national security advisers from France and Germany to discuss Ukraine and Iran.

President Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, was also in the hotel room, the BBC reports.

Earlier today, Rubio said he was “reiterating the US position that the killing needs to stop” in his talks with officials.

Marco Rubio, second left, before talks with Turkey and Ukraine ARDA KUCUKKAYA/ANADOLU/GETTY IMAGES

Analysis: Claims Russia is trying to slow peace process

By Tom Parfitt

As the talks finally begin, there are growing allegations that the Russian negotiating team in Turkey has been sent to obfuscate and slow down the peace process rather than advance it.

That appears to be accompanied by jockeying over the status of delegates on either side.

Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation, met senior state department official Michael Anton before planned talks with the Ukrainian team today. That came as a source in Moscow told Interfax that the Russians were insisting there should be no Americans in the room once direct negotiations began. This showed Moscow was “undermining the peace effort”, a Ukranian source told Reuters.

Anton had earlier been expected to attend the Turkey-hosted Ukraine-Russia talks, the BBC reported, but would no longer do so.

Direct talks at a low-level offer the chance to draw Ukraine into thorny behind-doors discussions, while stalling western arms supplies to Kyiv and keeping up advances on the battlefield.

‘I wish this meeting has a successful end’

Hakan Fidan, the Turkish foreign minister, opened the meeting, flanked by the Ukrainian and Russian delegations on his left and right.

Fidan said it was “critical” for the two warring sides to achieve a ceasefire. He said Turkey was “prepared to provide you with all we can … in these peace negotiations”.

“I wish this meeting has a successful end for peace for both countries concerned,” he added.

Hakan Fidan, the Turkish foreign minister, with the head of Russian delegation Vladimir Medinsky on Friday ARDA KUCUKKAYA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY/REUTERS

Direct talks between Ukraine and Russia begin

The meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Istanbul is now under way, Reuters reports.

Footage has shown the two sides meeting for the first direct talks since 2022.

Conflicting reports over start of Ukraine-Russia negotiations

There are differing reports over whether direct talks between Russia and Ukraine have now begun, with Sky News reporting they are under way.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry, however, has said they would begin “shortly”, according to Reuters.

Putin being fed ‘constant’ updates

With the head of Russia’s delegation expected to join talks with Ukraine shortly, the Kremlin has said President Putin is being fed “constant” information about the negotiations in Istanbul.

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin’s spokesman, also said a meeting between President Trump and Putin was “undoubtedly necessary” after the US president said nothing would be resolved until the two leaders met.

President Trump and President Putin in 2018 BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Peskov added that Putin may hold an “international telephone conversation” this evening, without giving any further details.

Russian demands ‘undermining peace effort’

Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Russia’s delegation, has left talks with US representatives at a hotel in Istanbul, according to Reuters.

A Ukrainian diplomatic source told the news agency that Russian demands to exclude the US from direct talks are “undermining the peace effort”.

“We came to have a serious conversation, while (the) Russians are putting forward demands, conditions. This makes us doubt whether Putin sent them to solve issues or just stall the process,” the source said.

“There is only one reason for the Russians to be afraid of having the US in the room — they came to stall the process, not solve issues, and they want to hide this from the United States.”

Kyiv ‘wants face-to-face meeting with Putin’

Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Russia’s delegation, has now arrived for talks with the US, Reuters has confirmed.

Meanwhile, details of what might be discussed during the meeting between Ukraine and Russia are beginning to emerge, with Kyiv wanting to raise plans for a face-to-face meeting between President Zelensky and President Putin, a diplomatic source has told the news agency.

President Zelensky YAVUZ OZDEN/GETTY IMAGES

“There also needs to be humanitarian confidence-building measures — such as the return of Ukrainian children, detained civilians (and the) exchange of prisoners of war on the all-for-all basis,” the source added.

As expected, however, the priority for the Ukrainians will be to try and secure a ceasefire — something Russia has frequently pushed back on, suggesting it would focus instead on the “root causes” of the war in Ukraine.

Kremlin delegation to speak with US before talks

Russia’s delegation, which is now on its way to the Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul to meet with Ukrainian delegates, will first speak with US representatives, Russian news agency Tass reports.

Delegates representing the US are not expected to join the direct talks between Russia however, with reports suggesting Moscow insisted they not be present.

Meeting to ‘co-ordinate positions’ before peace talks

Andriy Yermak, the head of President Zelensky’s office, has held a meeting with Jonathan Powell, the UK’s national security adviser, and senior officials from the US, Germany and France before the Russia-Ukraine talks.

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Keith Kellogg, Trump’s envoy, was the US representative at the meeting in Turkey, which Yermak said in a post on Telegram was to “co-ordinate positions” before direct negotiations began.

Powell, a former chief of staff to Sir Tony Blair, is a veteran negotiator who took part in the Northern Ireland peace talks which led to the 1998 Good Friday agreement. He is seen as one of the key architects of a 30-day ceasefire proposal for Ukraine, so far rejected by Moscow.

The meeting was also attended by Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s foreign minister, and Rustem Umerov, the defence minister who is leading Kyiv’s delegation. France was represented by Emmanuel Bonne, an adviser to President Macron, and Germany by Günther Sauter, a senior diplomat. Yermak said Ukraine’s priority was an unconditional ceasefire.

Russian delegation yet to arrive for talks

Ukraine’s delegation has already arrived for its meeting with Russia’s team at Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul, with Moscow’s delegation yet to arrive, according to Russian media.

Michael Anton, the representative who was expected to represent the US in the Ukraine-Russia talks instead of Marco Rubio, will now no longer attend the direct talks, it is thought.

We previously reported that Moscow insisted US representatives stay out of the negotiation with Kyiv.

First meeting over

A meeting between US, Turkish and Ukrainian officials has now ended, a Turkish foreign ministry source has told AFP.

Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, fourth from the left, at the meeting this morning TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER PRESS OFFICE HANDOUT/EPA

The next meeting we can expect, at about 10.30am UK time, will be with Ukrainian and Russian officials.

This will be the first direct talks between the two sides since the early days of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Those talks, also held in Istanbul, collapsed after Moscow reportedly refused to budge on highly maximalist demands.

Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Russia’s delegation, has said today’s talks are a “continuation” of 2022’s negotiations.

More sanctions could come for Russia

European leaders gearing up for a meeting in Albania today are reportedly preparing to dramatically scale up sanctions on Russia.

Sir Keir Starmer will join President Zelensky, President Macron and Germany’s new chancellor Friedrich Merz, who are thought to be looking to discuss a total trade embargo on Russia — something that the EU has so far held back from doing.

Sir Keir Starmer OLSI SHEHU/ANADOLU/GETTY IMAGES

An EU official told Politico that the fresh sanctions drive had been inspired by Lindsey Graham, a US Republican senator who enjoys a good relationship with both Zelensky and President Trump. Graham had suggested hitting Moscow with 500 per cent tariffs if it did not stop attacking Ukraine.

Key mediator taking part in talks

Hakan Fidan, the Turkish foreign minister and one of the main architects of Turkey’s security policy over the last 15 years, has emerged as a key mediator between Russia and Ukraine.

Formerly the head of Turkey’s national intelligence agency between 2010-23, he presided over attempts to head off Syria’s civil war, helped manage the fallout from a failed coup attempt in Turkey in 2016 and was one of the chief architects of counter-PKK operations.

Since becoming foreign minister, he has taken a lead role in efforts to stabilise post-Assad Syria and help secure the exchange of the Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who spent 500 days in Russian detention accused of espionage.

With his profile rising, some have even touted him as a potential successor to President Erdoğan.

He met with the Russian delegation, led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, last night and is expected to engage with the Ukrainian team headed by defence minister Rustem Umerov.

Kremlin ‘wanted US delegates out of direct talks’

Moscow insisted that US representatives stay out of the direct negotiations between Ukrainian and Russian delegates, according to the Russian news agency Interfax. It is unclear if its demand has been agreed to.

The meeting is due to begin in Istanbul at about 10.30 BST. Turkish representatives will leave the room after making brief introductions, Interfax added.

‘We must work together for peace’

President Zelensky has called on Russia to make “real steps to end the war, not their imitation”.

He made the comment in a social media post thanking Fifa for its support of Ukraine, after speaking with the organisation’s president Gianni Infantino by video link.

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“We must work together for peace and the earliest possible ceasefire and a dignified and just end to the war,” Zelensky wrote. “Diplomacy matters.”

Infantino had joined President Trump’s tour of the Gulf, including meetings with the political leaders of Saudi Arabia and Qatar. As a result he was late arriving at Fifa’s annual congress in Paraguay, prompting a walkout of European members.

• Read in full: Gianni Infantino humiliated by Fifa walkout over Trump visit

Russian media ‘told how to cover talks’

The Kremlin has reportedly sent Russian outlets instructions on how to cover the negotiations.

Russian opposition outlet Meduza said that it acquired a manual from the Kremlin, which reportedly advises media to pre-emptively talk about a “new package of sanctions” coming from the west and how Russia “successfully copes with the challenges of any sanctions”.

Russian media should also say “negotiations are taking place on worse terms for Ukraine” compared to three years ago, it is believed, while not explaining how current battlefield realities — where Russia controls much less of Ukraine — are “worse terms.”

“[The instructions] indicate that the Kremlin is preparing the Russian population for a longer war in Ukraine and is not interested in engaging in good-faith negotiations that require compromises from both sides,” said the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a Washington DC-based think tank.

ISW added: “Russia expects Ukraine to refuse the terms the Russian delegation will present in Istanbul as Ukraine would not accept terms tantamount to its surrender.”

Trump to meet Putin ‘as soon as we set it up’

President Trump has said he will meet with President Putin “as soon as we can set it up”.

Speaking at a business round table in Abu Dhabi, he said: “As soon as we can set it up I would actually leave here and go.”

President Trump at a meeting in Abu Dhabi on Friday ALEX BRANDON/AP

Asked if he was disappointed President Zelensky refused to participate in today’s direct talks with Russia, Trump said: “No. He [Zelensky] didn’t show up because he heard Putin isn’t going.”

“The world is a much safer place right now and I think in a few two or three weeks we can have it be a much much safer place,” he added.

Trump will return to Washington DC after concluding his Middle East tour today, Reuters reports.

First meeting starts

The first meeting of the day has begun, according to the Turkish foreign ministry.

As expected, this is between US, Ukrainian and Turkish officials at the Dolmabahce Palace.

The Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan, centre, and Ibrahim Kalin, the director of Turkish National Intelligence Organization meeting with members of the Ukrainian delegation TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER PRESS OFFICE HANDOUT/EPA

Kyiv ‘hit by Russian drones’ hours before talks

Hours before peace talks were due to begin in Turkey, Russian drones targeted Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

Vitali Klitschko, the mayor, said there were “explosions in the capital” at about 5am as air defences attempted to repel the attacks.

The city’s military administration said it was working to clarify information about potential victims. Firefighters tackled a blaze in the Svyatoshynskyi district, where damage was caused in the area of a boiler house as well as to windows and cars in a nearby residential area.

Meanwhile, Russia claimed to have seized two more settlements — Novooleksandrivka and Torske — in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. Kyiv did not comment on this claim and it has not been independently verified.

On Thursday, Oleksandr Syrskyi, the head of Ukraine’s armed forces, said Russia that was waging a “war of attrition” along the 700-mile front line using a combined force of up to 640,000 troops.

Turkish, US and Ukrainian delegates arrive

Delegations from Turkey, the US and Ukraine have arrived at the Turkish presidency’s working office at the Dolmabahce Palace where talks are due to begin at 8.45am BST, according to Turkish media.

A separate meeting, including Andrii Sybiha‎, Ukraine’s foreign secretary; Keith Kellog, President Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine; and national security advisers from the UK, Germany and France, has wrapped up, Ukrainian broadcaster Suspline reports.

Who is the man leading Ukraine’s delegation?

Heading Ukraine’s delegation at the talks in Istanbul is Rustem Umerov, the defence minister.

Umerov, 43, was appointed as defence minister in 2023. As a Crimean Tatar — the indigenous group which strongly opposed Russia’s annexation of the peninsula in 2014 — his promotion in 2023 was seen as a strong signal that Kyiv was still serious about retaining Crimea.

He was born in Samarkand region in Uzbekistan, to which the Crimean Tatars were deported by Stalin in 1944. His family did not return home until 1989. He became a businessman and then a Ukrainian MP, and was on Kyiv’s negotiating team during talks with Russia in 2022.

President Zelensky has said that Umerov’s team and the Russian delegation must “attempt at least the first steps toward de-escalation, the first steps toward ending the war — namely, a ceasefire”.

The aftermath of a strike on Pavlograd in the Dnipropetrovsk region of Ukraine last month STATE EMERGENCY SERVICE OF UKRAINE/ANADOLU/GETTY IMAGES

US ‘reacts to Putin’s absence’

With Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, no longer participating in the direct talks, the Trump administration will be represented by Michael Anton, the director for policy planning, in working-level talks with Moscow’s delegation.

Michael Anton

The change in personnel seems to be a reaction to President Putin having moved the goalposts in the face of US demands and sending a low-level delegation to Turkey, despite hopes that Putin himself would attend.

Rubio has still flown to Istanbul, and has said he would meet Andriy Sybigha, the Ukrainian foreign minister, and the Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan.

His Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, is also absent from the talks.

• Read in full: Russia not serious about peace in Ukraine, says Zelensky

Ukraine fighter jet ‘lost during air attack’

Ukraine lost an F-16 fighter jet in “unusual” circumstances on Friday morning while repelling an enemy air attack, the country’s air force said.

“According to preliminary data … an unusual situation arose on board. The pilot moved the aircraft away from the settlement and successfully ejected,” the air force said on the Telegram messenger. The pilot ejected from the aircraft after an “emergency situation” at about 3.30am.

The air force said that the pilot destroyed three air targets before the incident.

It is believed to be the third known crash involving an F-16 since the US and its allies began sending the jets to Ukraine. The first crashed in August 2024 during a Russian air strike, with a second loss confirmed in April.

Who is the man leading the Russians in talks?

The man chosen by President Putin to lead the Russian delegation has been held up by President Zelensky as an example of Moscow’s “unserious” attitude to peace talks. Vladimir Medinsky is a former culture minister known for his devotion to Putin’s traditionalist world view.

While Medinsky, 54, led Moscow’s team at previous negotiations in 2022, he is better known by the public for his popular, but controversial, books on history and for censoring films deemed unpatriotic.

Vladimir Medinsky speaking to the press before travelling to Turkey YASIN AKGUL/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

The bespectacled Putin aide is a former tobacco lobbyist and nationalist historian, who has insisted that Russians “have one extra chromosome”.

In 2017, an academic panel in Russia recommended stripping Medinsky of his PhD after it found that his dissertation on “problems of objectivity” in the treatment of 15th to 17th century Russian history “misled readers” and was littered with mistakes. The Russian Higher Attestation Commission said it was more of a personal diatribe about foreigners allegedly besmirching the country, rather than a scholarly investigation.

Zelensky joins EU leaders in Albania

While talks are being prepared in Turkey, President Zelensky has landed in Albania to join Sir Keir Starmer and other European leaders in a European Political Community Summit.

The war in Ukraine is likely to feature heavily in today’s meeting in Tirana.

On Thursday, Zelensky lashed out at Russia’s “unserious” approach to negotiations by sending a junior delegation on behalf of President Putin. “So far, we do not see anyone present who takes real decisions,” he said in Ankara on Thursday.

Putin’s tactics are to ‘dither and delay’, says Starmer

President Putin must “pay the price for avoiding peace”, Sir Keir Starmer said in a statement before a summit with European leaders.

The prime minister said that further sanctions on Russia — focusing on energy revenues — would be discussed at the meeting in Tirana, Albania, on Friday.

“Putin’s tactics to dither and delay, while continuing to kill and cause bloodshed across Ukraine, is intolerable,” he said. “A full, unconditional ceasefire must be agreed and if Russia is unwilling to come to the negotiating table, Putin must pay the price.”

Rubio in Turkey but not expected to join talks

Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, has landed in Istanbul before the talks.

UMIT BEKTAS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Neither the Ukrainian or the Russian delegation will be led by his counterparts, but instead by lower-level officials after Moscow refused to send a more senior team to Turkey.

Rubio is no longer expected to join the direct negotiations, but will hold meetings with the Ukrainians and Russians this morning.

‘Trump and Putin must meet’

The US secretary of state said he did not have “high expectations” for the talks.

Marco Rubio echoed the words of the US president, saying President Trump and President Putin needed to meet if any progress was to be made in the Ukraine-Russia peace talks.

Rubio added: “It’s my assessment that I don’t think we’re going to have a breakthrough here until the President [Trump] and President Putin interact directly on this topic.”

On Thursday, Trump had said: “Look, nothing’s going to happen until Putin and I get together.”

Talks to start this morning

Russian and Ukrainian delegations are due to meet with Turkish officials at about 10.30am BST, a Turkish military source told AFP.

There will also be a three-way meeting at 8.45am BST between Turkish, Ukrainian and US officials, the source added, suggesting all talks would take place at Dolmabahce Palace on the banks of the Bosphorus.

Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, and Hakan Fidan, the Turkish foreign minister, are expected to be present at the talks at some point during the day.

It comes after a day of confusion on Thursday, when it was unclear whether the talks would go ahead at all in the absence of President Putin.

The Russian delegation is led by Vladimir Medinsky, a former culture minister and author, who acts as an adviser to Putin on historical issues. The Ukrainian team is headed by Rustem Umerov, the defence minister.

The Directorate of Government Examinations, Andhra Pradesh is set to declare the AP SSC Results 2025 today, April 23. The Class 10 results will be announced at 10 am and will be available on the official BSEAP websites — bse.ap.gov.in and results.bse.ap.gov.in. This year, nearly 6.5 lakh students appeared for the AP SSC exams, which were conducted from March 17 to March 31, 2025. The exams were held in a single shift, from 9:30 am to 12:45 pm on most days, starting with the First Language (Group A) paper and concluding with Social Studies. In addition to the regular SSC results, the board will also release the results for Open School SSC and Intermediate exams today. Stay tuned to the live blog for the latest updates, direct result links, and more.

AP SSC 2025 Results Live News Updates: BSEAP Manabadi Class 10 results to be announced today at 10 am — here’s where to check

BSEAP AP SSC Results 2025 LIVE: Websites to check Class 10 results AP SSC Results 2025 LIVE Updates: The AP SSC 2025 results can be accessed on the official Board of Secondary Education Andhra Pradesh (BSEAP) portals — bse.ap.gov.in and results.bse.ap.gov.in.

AP SSC Result 2025 LIVE: Alternative ways to access results In addition to the official website, students can also check their results through the Mana Mitra service on WhatsApp and the LEAP app.

AP SSC Result 2025 LIVE: Total number of students who took the exam This year, approximately 6.5 lakh students appeared for the Andhra Pradesh Class 10 or SSC examinations.

BSEAP Class 10 results to be announced today at 10 am — here’s where to check The Directorate of Government Examinations, Andhra Pradesh is set to declare the AP SSC Results 2025 today, April 23. The Class 10 results will be announced at 10 am and will be available on the official BSEAP websites — bse.ap.gov.in and results.bse.ap.gov.in.

This year, nearly 6.5 lakh students appeared for the AP SSC exams, which were conducted from March 17 to March 31, 2025. The exams were held in a single shift, from 9:30 am to 12:45 pm on most days, starting with the First Language (Group A) paper and concluding with Social Studies.

In addition to the regular SSC results, the board will also release the results for Open School SSC and Intermediate exams today. Stay tuned to the live blog for the latest updates, direct result links, and more.

TS Inter 1st, 2nd Year Result Live: Supplementary exams on May 22 TS Inter 1st, 2nd Year Result Live: Supplementary exams for both 1st and 2nd year students will begin from May 22. Students who were unable to pass in the regular exams can now apply for the supplementary exams. The revaluation process will also begin on the same day.

TS Inter 1st, 2nd Year Result Live: Girls achieve 74.21% pass rate in 2nd year The TS Inter 2nd Year Results 2025 confirm that girls have once again taken the lead. Among the 5,08,582 students who sat for the second-year exams conducted by TSBIE, 74.21% of girls passed compared to just 57.31% of boys. This gender-based gap in results continues a long-standing trend, showcasing the consistent academic efforts of female students. With results now accessible online, this data is expected to guide future steps in improving educational support and closing the performance gap.

TS Inter Results 2025 Live: Girls outperform boys once more In the TS Inter 1st Year Results 2025, girls have maintained their lead over boys in academic performance. Out of 4,88,430 students who took the Telangana Intermediate Public Exams, 73.83% of girls passed, while the pass percentage for boys stood at 57.83%. This continued pattern points to the steady academic rise of female students in Telangana. The results are now available on official websites, and students can check their marks using their hall ticket numbers.

TS Inter Results 2025 Out: 1st year passes at 66.89%, 2nd year at 71.37% The Telangana State Board of Intermediate Education (TGBIE) has released the TS Inter 2025 results for both 1st and 2nd year students. This year, 66.89% of Class 11 students cleared the exams, while Class 12 students performed better with a pass percentage of 71.37%. Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka announced the results at the TSBIE headquarters. Nearly 10 lakh students had appeared for the exams, showing an overall improvement in performance. Students can view their results on the official website — tgbie.cgg.gov.in — and apply for revaluation or supplementary exams from May 22.

TS Inter Results 2025 Out Now: Check supplementary exam dates The Telangana State Board of Intermediate Education (TSBIE) has officially revealed that the Intermediate Public Advanced Supplementary Examination (IPASE) for 2025 will start on May 22. This exam offers a vital chance for students who did not pass their regular exams or those looking to enhance their scores.

TS Inter Results 2025 Declared: Check 1st and 2nd year scores at tgbie.cgg.gov.in The Telangana State Board of Intermediate Education (TSBIE) has officially announced the Inter 1st and 2nd Year results today. Students can check their scores by visiting the official website: tgbie.cgg.gov.in.

TS Inter Results 2025 Live: Marks memo to be available soon

TS Inter Results 2025 Live: Keep your hall ticket details ready With the TS Inter Results 2025 expected to be announced soon, students are advised to keep their hall tickets ready. The hall ticket number is required to check both 1st and 2nd year results on the official website (tgbie.cgg.gov.in) or private platforms like Manabadi. Without the correct number, you won’t be able to view your marks or download the scorecard. Keeping the information handy will help you avoid any last-minute hassle. Once the result is declared, simply enter your number in the required field, hit submit, and your marks will be available for download. Stay prepared and keep your details close.

TS Inter Results 2025 Live: Supplementary exam option Students who fail in one or two subjects in the TS Inter 2025 exams can take supplementary exams. This provides them with a second chance to pass without losing the academic year. The Telangana Board of Intermediate Education will announce the schedule for supplementary exams shortly after the main results. Students must apply through their schools or the official website by paying a small fee. It is crucial to prepare well, as these exams are the last opportunity to qualify for higher education within the same academic year. Students may also receive counselling and academic support to help them succeed.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Covering four streams The TS Inter Results 2025 will include four different streams: General, Vocational, General Bridge Course, and Vocational Bridge Course. Each stream is tailored to meet various academic and career aspirations. The General stream includes traditional subjects like Science, Commerce, and Humanities, while Vocational courses focus on practical skills for the job market. Bridge courses are for students transitioning between academic tracks. Results for all these streams will be announced at the same time, and students must choose the appropriate category when checking their results online. Understanding the stream is vital when interpreting the results and planning future education or career paths.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Accessing results on DigiLocker Students can access their TS Inter 2025 results via DigiLocker, a secure government-endorsed platform for digital documents. To view the results on DigiLocker, students need to register with their Aadhaar number or mobile number and select the Telangana Board as the issuing authority. This method is especially beneficial for students applying to colleges or jobs that require verified digital documents. DigiLocker provides a secure, tamper-proof copy of the marks memo that can be downloaded at any time, offering convenience and accessibility, particularly for those who might lose the physical copy.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Revaluation process Students dissatisfied with their TS Inter 2025 marks can apply for a revaluation. This process involves rechecking the answer scripts to ensure all questions were marked and the totals are correct. Revaluation requests can be submitted online, with a processing fee for each subject. The Telangana Board will assess the applications and revise the scores if any errors are identified. This opportunity is crucial for students who narrowly miss higher grades or entrance eligibility. It is important to act promptly, as the application window is typically short after results are released.

TS Inter Results 2025 Live: Checking results for schools In addition to individual results, schools will have access to their institution’s results to evaluate the overall performance of their students. These results can be downloaded using special login details provided to school administrators. This data will assist schools in generating detailed performance reports, which may guide future academic planning and counselling sessions. School-wide performance also contributes to state rankings and highlights top-performing schools, fostering healthy competition and targeted academic growth. Schools are expected to distribute original mark sheets and offer guidance to students who need to take supplementary exams.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Previous years’ pass percentage

2024: 64.19%

2023: 63.49%

2022: 67.16%

2021: 100%

2020: 68.86%

2019: 63.23%

2018: 59.37% Here’s how many students passed in earlier years:

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Minimum marks to pass Students must score at least 35% in each subject to pass. In total, they need 350 out of 1000 marks. For visually or hearing-impaired students, the pass mark is 25%.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Save a screenshot as backup While waiting for official mark sheets, students should download and save a screenshot of their provisional result. This can be helpful for temporary references.

TS Inter Results Live 2025: Grades matter for entrance exams The marks and grades scored in Inter exams are important for applying to competitive exams like EAMCET, NEET, and JEE. Students should keep these documents safe.

Manabadi TS Inter Result 2025 Live: Support helpdesks expected The board may share helpline numbers and email support soon to help students solve technical issues or answer questions about their results.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Apply for migration or duplicate marksheet if needed Once students get their original mark sheets, they can also apply for migration certificates or duplicate copies in case of loss or further studies elsewhere.

TS Inter Results Live 2025: No official app launched yet Currently, there is no official app to check the TS Inter results. Students should only use the official websites or wait for updates if any new method is introduced.

Manabadi TS Inter Result 2025 Live: Online results not valid for admissions Though students can view their results online, only the printed original mark sheets will be accepted for admissions and official purposes.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Stream-wise analysis coming soon After results are announced, the board is expected to release data on pass percentages, toppers by district, and stream-wise performance to show overall trends.

Manabadi TS Inter Result 2025 Live: Option for re-evaluation available If students are unhappy with their marks, they can apply for re-evaluation after the results are declared by paying a fee through the official portal.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Stick to official websites only To keep your data safe and avoid errors, check your results only on the official sites and avoid clicking on unverified third-party links or SMS messages.

TS Inter Results Live 2025: What your online scorecard will show The digital marks memo will show your name, hall ticket number, marks in each subject, total score, grade, and division. This helps you know your eligibility for future admissions.

Manabadi TS Inter Result 2025 Live: Use stable internet Students should use a good internet connection while checking their results as there may be high traffic on the websites right after the release.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Past dates hint at result timing Last year, the board declared the results on April 24. If the trend continues, students can expect the results around the same time this year.

TS Inter Results Live 2025: Over 9 lakh students waiting This year, more than 9 lakh students appeared for the TS Inter exams. The board is expected to ensure smooth access to results despite the large number of candidates.

TSBIE Telangana Inter Results 2025: Check scores online and download your marks memo Students eager to access their scores can do so through the official website: tgbie.cgg.gov.in.

To view the TS Inter Results 2025, students need to click on the “IPE 2025 Results TS” link available on the homepage.

They’ll then be required to enter their hall ticket number, select the exam category (General or Vocational), and specify the examination type.

After submitting these details, the provisional marks memo will appear on the screen.

The online memo will display subject-wise marks, total marks, overall pass percentage, and qualifying status.

Students are advised to save and print a copy of this provisional memo for future use until the original mark sheet is issued by their respective colleges.

Manabadi TS Inter Result 2025 Live: Easy steps to view your result To check the result, go to the official website, click on the result link, select your stream, enter your hall ticket number, and submit. The marks memo will appear on the screen.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Double-check your details After results are visible, students must carefully check their name, hall ticket number, subjects, and marks. Any mistake should be reported immediately to the college or board.

TS Inter Results Live 2025: Results for all streams at once The board will declare results for both General and Vocational streams at the same time. Students must choose their correct stream before entering their hall ticket number.

Manabadi TS Inter Result 2025 Live: Provisional results out first Students will first get to see their provisional mark sheets online. The original ones will be given by their junior colleges later, which are needed for college admissions.

TS Inter 1st 2nd Year Result Live: Morning release expected Going by previous years, the results are likely to be declared in the morning. Students should keep their hall ticket numbers ready to avoid delays once the links are active.

Read the best of our journalism from Washington and beyond on our US homepage

Al Green, a Democrat from Texas, was removed from the chamber for heckling

Among other acts of theatre, a 13-year-old brain cancer survivor was made an honorary Secret Service agent

He reads letter from Zelensky asking to sign minerals deal and says he has “strong signals” Russia wants peace

• Read our full report: Trump teases Ukraine deal — and digs in on tariffs

Trump put a 13-year-old in the Secret Service. How do you top that?

SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

This was the longest presidential address to a joint Congress in history — and it was not short on theatrics or surprises, writes Will Pavia

Key moments: Zelensky letter, a heckler and Isis capture

WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES

In his address to Congress the president acknowledged tariff ‘disturbance’, praised Elon Musk and made a 13-year-old cancer survivor an honorary Secret Service agent. Read the eight key moments in full

Trump ridicules Aids funding for Lesotho

In his speech Trump mocked the African nation of Lesotho as a country “nobody has ever heard of” as he defended his sweeping cuts in aid.

The president highlighted the country, an enclave in eastern South Africa with a population of 2.3 million, while giving a long list of past US aid projects. “Eight million dollars to promote LGBTQI+ in the African nation of Lesotho,” Trump said, struggling with the pronunciation. “Which nobody has ever heard of.”

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Lesotho has one of the highest rates in the world of HIV/Aids. The US has sought to address this by committing more than $630 million since 2006 to efforts to fight the spread of the disease in the country.

Theatrical military acceptance for high school pupil

Jason Hartley, centre ALEX BRANDON/AP

In one of several theatrical flourishes, Trump introduced a young man in the audience, Jason Hartley, as a talented high school pupil whose dream was to “carry on the family legacy of service” by joining the US military.

Trump then surprised the teenager from California by revealing he had been accepted to the United States Military Academy at West Point.

Among the first to congratulate Hartley was DJ Daniel, a 13-year-old cancer survivor and aspiring police officer that Trump had earlier announced would be sworn in as an honorary Secret Service agent.

China: We’re ready for any type of war

The Chinese embassy in Washington issued a strong response to Trump’s tariffs late on Tuesday night. “If war is what the US wants, be it a tariff war, a trade war or any other type of war, we’re ready to fight till the end,” the embassy said in a post to X.

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The post referenced earlier comments from a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman that sought to frame the US fentanyl squarely as a domestic issue.

Trump has justified his sweeping tariffs on imported goods from China, Mexico and Canada as a way to halt the flow of fentanyl into the US.

The Chinese government spokesman said the US had “sought to smear and shift blame to China … The fentanyl issue is a flimsy excuse to raise US tariffs on Chinese imports. Our countermeasures to defend our rights and interests are fully legitimate and necessary.”

Will heckler Al Green be disciplined?

KEVIN LAMARQUE/REUTERS

Mike Johnson, the speaker of the House, suggested that disciplinary measures would be brought against Al Green, a Democrat who was kicked out of the US Capitol chamber for repeatedly disturbing Trump’s address.

Shortly after the president began speaking, Green stood up and began shouting about cuts to social security while waving his cane.

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Watch the incident

Johnson then ordered the sergeant-at-arms to remove Green from the chamber, one of several disturbances from Democrats during the 100-minute speech.

“It was quite shameful, I’m sure his constituents are not proud of that tonight,” Johnson told Fox News in an interview. “I suspect that there’ll be a censure resolution brought on the floor to discipline him.”

Elizabeth Warren responds in kind to name-calling

BEN CURTIS/AP

After being mocked by President Trump during his address to Congress, the Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren dismissed his efforts to end the war in Ukraine as a “fantasy”.

Trump drew laughter from Republicans when he called the Massachusetts senator “Pocahontas”, a derogatory reference to Warren once claiming to have native American ancestry. He made the comment while calling for a swift peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia.

Speaking to The Hill afterwards, Warren said she was not surprised by the insult. “The whole speech was a fantasy that Donald Trump tries to construct,” she said, adding that Trump was prepared to sacrifice the Ukrainian efforts of the last three years and was “determined to throw in with Vladimir Putin”.

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‘If he’s not careful, we’ll have recession’

Slotkin ended her brief rebuttal by warning that Trump’s economic policies would harm everyday Americans.

“He’s going to make you pay in every part of your life. Grocery and home prices are going up — not down,” she said, adding that tariffs would raise prices on energy, lumber, cars and prescription medicines. “If he’s not careful, he could walk us right into a recession,” Slotkin said of the looming trade war.

Trump ‘would have lost the Cold War’

Slotkin went on to criticise Trump’s foreign policy, claiming that America would have lost the Cold War under his leadership. “After the spectacle that just took place in the Oval Office last week, Reagan must be rolling in his grave,” Slotkin said, referring to last Friday’s meeting with President Zelensky. “Trump believes in cosying up to dictators and kicking our friends like the Canadians in the teeth.”

Elissa Slotkin targets government by CEO

Slotkin took aim at Elon Musk over his recent statement that Social Security was the “biggest Ponzi scheme of all time”. She said that no private sector chief executive could have gotten away with firing federal workers who oversaw the US nuclear arsenal only to rehire them days later.

“Change doesn’t need to be chaotic, or make us less safe,” she said. “We can make that change without forgetting who we are as a democracy, as a country.”

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Slotkin added that Trump did not appear to believe in American exceptionalism. “He sees America’s leadership as a series of real estate transactions,” she said.

Democratic response from a rising star

PAUL SANCYA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Elissa Slotkin, a Democratic senator, began her rebuttal by promising to keep it short. “America wants change, but there’s a responsible way to make change and a reckless way,” Slotkin said. “We can make that change without forgetting who we are as a democracy, as a country.”

The former CIA agent was one of the few bright spots for the Democrats in November when she won a tight Senate race in Michigan, one of the seven swing states that Kamala Harris lost to Trump.

Kabul terrorist arrested in Pakistan

Trump revealed in his speech that the US had taken custody of an Afghan involved in planning a deadly 2021 suicide attack on American troops at Kabul airport.

Mohammed Sharifullah, a senior Isis figure, is a key suspect in the deadly Abbey Gate bombing in the final days of the Afghanistan withdrawal that killed 13 American servicemembers.

He was taken into custody in Pakistan, Trump said. “I am pleased to announce that we have just apprehended the top terrorist responsible for that atrocity, and he is right now on his way here to face the swift sword of American justice,” he said.

The extradition was the result of work by the FBI, justice department and CIA, according to a statement by Kash Patel, the FBI director.

‘Get ready for a golden age’

After nearly 100 minutes — the longest speech to a joint session of Congress, beating a previous record set by Bill Clinton — Trump finishes his first address to Congress of his second term on a triumphant note.

He pledged to create the “freest, most advanced, most dynamic, and most dominant civilisation ever to exist”, and plant an American flag on Mars. “My fellow Americans — get ready for an incredible future because the golden age of America has only just begun.”

• How long until the US can ‘plant the Stars and Stripes’ on Mars?

Russian hostage, his 95-year-old mother and the assassination attempt

Marc Fogel with his mother and Steve Witkoff, who helped to negotiate his release JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Trump called on Marc Fogel, a detained American school teacher recently released by Russia, who is in the audience. He recalled a chance meeting with Fogel’s 95-year-old mother Malphine at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, last July where he promised to free her son.

Malphine was watching from the stage as Trump narrowly survived an assassination attempt a few minutes later. “I believe that my life was saved that day in Butler for a very, very good reason,” Trump said. “I was saved by God to make America great again. I believe that.”

Trump reads Zelensky plea to sign minerals deal

More than an hour into his speech, Trump pivoted to the war in Ukraine and his efforts to find a peace deal with Russia.

“I am also working tirelessly to end the savage conflict in Ukraine,” he said. “Millions of Ukrainians and Russians have been needlessly killed or wounded in this horrific and brutal conflict, with no end in sight. The United States has sent hundreds of billions of dollars to support Ukraine’s defence, with no security.”

Trump read aloud part of a letter that he had received a letter from President Zelensky that stated Ukraine’s intention to sign a deal with the US as soon as possible. The letter appeared to mirror some of the same language in a message Zelensky posted to X earlier in the day.

Trump added that he had received “strong signals” from Russia that Moscow is ready to make peace. “Wouldn’t that be beautiful?” Trump asked.

Seizure of Panama Canal and Greenland ‘one way or another’

Trump repeatedly pledged to keep the US out of foreign military entanglements during the campaign.

But he is using the speech to once again call for the US to reclaim the Panama Canal, and said he would “get” Greenland “one way or another”.

“We need Greenland for national security, and even international security,” Trump added.

Empty seats after Democrats walk out

JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Reiterates call for ‘golden dome missile defence’

Trump said he would call on Congress to build a “golden dome missile defence system” to protect the United States. The system is inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome air defence system, but on a much larger scale.

He claimed it was something that Ronald Reagan had wanted to build, but the technology was not available during the 1980s. “We’re going to protect our citizens like never before,” Trump said.

• Could the US build its own Iron Dome missile shield?

Trump also announced special tax breaks to promote domestic shipbuilding.

Cancer survivor, 13, joins Secret Service

Trump announced that DJ Daniel, a 13-year-old boy in the audience who has been battling cancer most of his life, was being made an honorary Secret Service agent.

Daniel had always wanted to be a police officer, Trump said. Sean Curran, the new Secret Service director, gave Daniel a hug and handed him his new credentials.

Trump noted the rise in child cancer rates, something that his new health and human services secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, has spoken about wanting to reduce.

Elon Musk later shook his hand ALEX BRANDON/AP

No repeat of cats and dogs claim

Trump praised the US Border Patrol agent Roberto Ortiz JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

As Trump moved on to the border section of his speech he mentioned the impact of immigration on cities like Springfield, Ohio, where local public services were overwhelmed by an influx of migrants from Haiti. However, he does not repeat the false claim from the presidential campaign that the migrants ate people’s pets.

He then introduced Roberto Ortiz, a veteran US Border Patrol agent, whom he said had been shot at repeatedly by cartel members while carrying out his duties near the Rio Grande.

Playing to the crowd

J SCOTT APPLEWHITE/AP

Among others Trump has made reference to Elliston Berry, who is seated to the right of his wife Melania this evening. Berry was the 14-year-old victim of so-called nude deepfaking and Melania Trump has been campaigning to change the law on “revenge porn” to protect children from such crimes.

• Ellison Berry: I was 14. How did the world see nude deepfakes of me?

JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Trump also signed an executive order renaming a wildlife sanctuary in honour of Jocelyn Nungaray, a 12-year-old girl murdered by two illegal immigrants.

SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

He also praised Lauren and Allyson Phillips, mother and sister of Laken Riley, who was murdered by an illegal immigrant.

Temporary tariff pain for farmers before ‘field day’

Trump argued that tariffs would help US farmers, but may cause temporary uncertainty. “I love farmers,” Trump said, as he asked them to “bear with me again” as he imposes tariffs on imported goods from April 2.

Counter-tariffs from other countries could hurt farmers’ bottom lines if they remain in place long term, while consumers could quickly see higher prices for produce and beef. Trump admitted that there may be “a little bit of an adjustment period” but farmers will eventually “have a field day”.

Vow to balance budget

Trump said his administration would seek to balance the federal budget in the near future. This has not been achieved for 24 years.

Applause for steel plant foster parent

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Trump gave a special acknowledgement to Jeff Denard, a steel plant employee and volunteer firefighter from Decatur, Alabama. He said his tariffs would benefit workers like Denard, who has been employed for almost three decades at a steel plant.

The father of seven and foster parent to 40 received a standing ovation from Republican lawmakers and applause from many in the Democratic caucus.

Reciprocal tariffs on every country from April 2

Trump first makes mention of one of his signature policies, tariffs, about 40 minutes into his speech.

The president boasted that his tariffs would “take in trillions and trillions of dollars” for federal coffers and help to balance the budget. “Other countries have used tariffs against us,” he said, adding that it was time to turn the tables on India, the European Union and China. He pledged to impose reciprocal tariffs on every country on April 2.

“Whatever they tariff us, we tariff them. Whatever they tax us, we tax them,” Trump said. “If they do non-monetary tariffs to keep us out of their market, then we do non-monetary barriers to keep them out of our market.”

Cabinet members, from left: Pam Bondi, attorney-general; Pete Hegseth, defence secretary; Scott Bessent, Treasury secretary; and Marco Rubio, secretary of sate SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

What was Al Green shouting about?

KEVIN LAMARQUE/REUTERS

Al Green, the Democratic congressman from Texas evicted for heckling Trump’s speech, told reporters outside the chamber his protest was to call on Trump not to cut Medicaid.

He said Trump “has no mandate” to cut Medicaid and other social security programmes. “It’s worth it to let people know that there are some people who are going to stand up” to Trump, he said.

Democrats walk out as Musk praised

SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Elon Musk rose to accept applause from the audience as Trump praised his cost-cutting efforts.

Trump read out a list of USAid programmes that had been cut by Musk’s Doge, to laughter from Republicans and boos from Democrats. Gesturing to the Democrats in attendance, Trump said that even they had to admit Musk was doing a good job to rein in fraud and waste in the federal bureaucracy. As he spoke, several Democrats turned and walked out of the chamber.

Biden put economic survival ‘out of reach for millions’

JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Trump said he inherited an “economic catastrophe” and “inflation nightmare” from his predecessor, Joe Biden. Trump blamed Biden’s policies for driving up energy prices, pushing up the cost of groceries, and driving the “necessities of life out of reach for millions of Americans”.

He said in particular Biden had “let the price of eggs get out of control”.

The soaring price of eggs has become a big talking point among US consumers. The January monthly consumer price index showed that the average price of a dozen Grade A eggs in US cities reached $4.95 in January, eclipsing the previous record of $4.82 set two years earlier.

Trump hails schoolgirl in trans row

JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Trump gave a special mention to Payton McNabb, a former high school girls volleyball player who was severely injured when a transgender opponent spiked a ball in her face.

McNabb suffered the concussion and traumatic brain injury while attending Hiwassee Dam High School in Murphy, North Carolina. She has since become an activist for women’s sport, and was one of the athletes who attended an event when Trump signed the “No Men in Women’s Sports” executive order.

A runthrough of achievements

ANDREW HARNIK/GETTY IMAGES

Trump is running through a list of achievements since he took office on January 20.

They include withdrawing the US from the World Health Organisation, removing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives from federal agencies and renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

He said he had ended the weaponisation of the Justice Department that had led to four separate criminal investigations against him. “How did that work out?” Trump asked of the latter. “Not too good.”

As he touts border, Democrats show dissent

Republicans show their appreciation, including Nancy Mace of South Carolina and John McGuire of Virginia SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES

Trump claimed that illegal crossings over the southern border had fallen to their lowest levels since records began. “They heard my words and they chose not to come,” he said of prospective illegal immigrants. “Much easier that way.”

As he spoke, Democrats held up signs reading “Musk steals” and “Save Medicaid”.

SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

J SCOTT APPLEWHITE/AP

Democratic heckler removed from chamber

As Al Green, a Democratic congressman, stood to heckle Trump from the audience, he was drowned out by chants of “USA, USA” by clapping Republicans.

Green, from Texas, continued to stand and shout at Trump, drawing a rebuke from Mike Johnson, the speaker. “Mr Green, take your seat sir,” Johnson said. He then directed the sergeant of arms to remove Green from the chamber.

WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES

Earlier, the opposition to Trump was presented more subtly by Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico:

WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES

‘Our pride is back’

JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

President Trump begins his address by boasting that his administration had “accomplished more in 43 days than most administrations accomplish in four years or eight years”.

“And we are just getting started,” Trump said. “American’s momentum is back. Our spirit is back. Our pride is back. Our confidence is back. The American Dream is unstoppable, and our country is on the verge of a comeback the likes of which the world has never witnessed, and perhaps will never witness again.”

He also reflects on winning every swing state in the election in November.

• See the results of the election in full

Trump takes the podium

JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

President Trump received a raucous reception from Republicans, members of his cabinet and supporters in the audience as he entered the chamber of the US Capitol a few moments ago.

He is wearing a dark blue suit, off-white shirt with a burgundy-coloured tie and a US flag lapel. He stopped to chat to several Supreme Court justices on his way to the dais, and gave one of his characteristic fist pumps.

With John Roberts, chief justice of the Supreme Court JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Why are Democrats wearing pink?

Several Democratic women in Congress are wearing bright pink tonight as a display of defiance against the president.

Teresa Leger Fernández, a representative from New Mexico who leads the Democratic Women’s Caucus, told Time magazine that the colour signified their “protest of Trump’s policies which are negatively impacting women and families … pink is a colour of power and protest. It’s time to rev up the opposition and come at Trump loud and clear.”

Melania Trump makes her entrance

J SCOTT APPLEWHITE/AP

JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Supreme Court justices assemble

SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Several Supreme Court justices, including two of the three appointed by Trump in his first term, are in attendance. From left: John Roberts, the chief justice, the liberal Elena Kagan, the Trump appointees Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett, and Anthony Kennedy, who retired from the court in 2018.

Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson were not in attendance.

Trump clan out in force

Donald Trump Jr with his new girlfriend, Bettina Anderson SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Several members of the Trump family are in the audience tonight. They include Donald Trump Jr, Eric Trump and his wife Lara, Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, and Tiffany Trump and her husband Michael Boulos.

Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

From left: Eric Trump, Tiffany Trump and Michael Boulos ANDREW HARNIK/GETTY IMAGES

Usha Vance, who as the wife of JD Vance, the vice-president, is America’s second lady, is seated in the Executive Gallery.

Usha Vance, second from left JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON/AP

How popular is Trump? His approval rating tracked

How is Trump delivering on his key pledges — and is he more popular in his second term? We’re keeping track of the data on his performance. Read in full

Elon Musk arrives to applause

SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Elon Musk has entered the US Capitol to a standing ovation from the gathered Republicans.

The SpaceX chief executive and “special government employee” has become a familiar presence at the White House, attending the administration’s first cabinet and holding court before reporters in the Oval Office. He has been invited to sit with Melania Trump in the first lady’s box.

Joining them are Marc Fogel, an American teacher who was released from a Russian prison last month, and his 95-year-old mother Malphine. Melania Trump has also invited relatives of Corey Comperatore, a retired firefighter who was killed during the attempt on Trump’s life in Pennsylvania last summer, and family members of Laken Riley, who was murdered by an undocumented immigrant.

Doug Collins is ‘designated survivor’

JOHN BAZEMORE/AP

With the president, vice-president and several others in the line of presidential succession in attendance at tonight’s speech, the constitution calls for one cabinet member to sit out the event in case of a catastrophic event.

Trump has selected Doug Collins, the secretary of veterans affairs, as this “designated survivor”, according to CNN. After Vance, Mike Johnson is second in line, Chuck Grassley, the Senate pro tempore, third and Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, fourth.

A pink protest as Trump departs

Members of the Democratic women’s caucus wear pink in protest at Trump LEIGH VOGEL/REX

Trump has just left the White House accompanied by the first lady, Melania Trump. They will take the short ride to the US Capitol in the presidential limo.

ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP

In pictures: key figures arrive on the Hill

JD Vance, the vice-president WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES

Elon Musk en route to the Capitol from the White House ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP

Linda McMahon, who was confirmed as education secretary this week, with the Alabama senator Katie Britt BEN CURTIS/AP

Mike Johnson, the House speaker ALEX WROBLEWSKI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Pete Hegseth, the defence secretary, and his wife Jennifer Rauchet ALEX WROBLEWSKI/AFP

Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary BRIAN SNYDER/REUTERS

Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia congresswoman DEMAREE NIKHINSON/AP

Robert F Kennedy Jr, the health secretary BEN CURTIS/AP

Marco Rubio, secretary of state, with Jim Jordan of Ohio ALEX WROBLEWSKI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Nancy Mace, a congresswoman from South Carolina BEN CURTIS/AP

After day of protests…

Pro-Ukrainian and immigrant rights groups in Tampa, Florida DAVE DECKER/REX

Demonstrators across the street from the Capitol ROD LAMKEY JR/AP

THE MEGA AGENCY

Speaker’s guests include ex-hostage and conservative pundits

Noa Argamani embraces her father after her release from Hamas captivity ISRAELI ARMY/REUTERS

Mike Johnson, the House speaker, has invited an Israeli woman who spent nearly 250 days as a hostage of Hamas to tonight’s presidential address.

Noa Argamani, 27, was kidnapped from the Nova music festival on October 7. Since her release last June, she has become an advocate for hostages who remained in Gaza. “Despite experiencing the unimaginable, Noa has been strong and courageous,” Johnson wrote on X. “Her return gives us hope that all Hamas hostages will come home soon. I’m honoured she will join me tonight.”

Trump is expected to talk up his foreign policy victories, including a ceasefire deal reached between Hamas and Israel in January, for which his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, has been given much of the credit. Johnson has also invited the conservative media personalities Ben Shapiro and Matt Walsh, and Tom Homan, Trump’s border tsar.

Republicans warn Democrats off ‘heckler’s veto’

Marjorie Taylor Greene was among the Republicans interrupting President Biden’s state of the union last year WILL OLIVER/EPA

Democrats who try to disrupt President Trump’s speech are on notice that they could face repercussions. The House freedom caucus, a group of conservative Republican lawmakers, said in a post on X they would censure Democrats who “use noisemakers, make threats, throw things or otherwise disrupt” the president’s address.

“Our colleagues are on notice that the heckler’s veto will not be tolerated,” the group wrote. “We expect the sergeant-at-arms and Capitol police to take appropriate action against any members of Congress or other persons violating House rules.”

Censures are voted on by the House and amount to a public dressing-down for poor behaviour that does not carry any formal penalty.

Last year, Republicans repeatedly heckled President Biden during the state of the union, calling him a “liar” and demanding he acknowledge Laken Riley, a nursing student who was murdered by an undocumented immigrant.

First UK-US meeting since Oval Office meltdown

Pete Hegseth and John Healey meeting at a Nato conference last month JOHANNA GERON/EPA

John Healey, the British defence secretary, will meet his US counterpart Pete Hegseth in Washington on Thursday to discuss a peace plan for Ukraine. The visit comes as European leaders scramble to come up with a ceasefire agreement after President Trump paused military aid to Ukraine on Monday.

“The prime minister was clear following his meetings over the past week, that we will continue our dialogue with friends and allies to secure a path to a lasting peace in Ukraine,” Healey said in advance of his visit to the US.

It will represent the first meeting between the senior US and UK officials since Trump’s acrimonious White House meeting with Zelensky last Friday.

Why uber-rich Americans are escaping to the UK

Tom Ford, Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi all now have homes in England TODD WILLIAMSON/E! ENTERTAINMENT/NBCUNIVERSAL/NBCU PHOTO BANK VIA GETTY IMAGES; ALAMY

US citizens are applying for British passports in numbers not seen before. These so-called Donald Dashers pay huge sums for a quick move, says Helen Kirwan-Taylor

Trump will tout lower border crossings

Illegal border crossings across the United States’ southern border have fallen to their lowest levels in decades, according to figures from the Customs and Border Protection agency.

Border agents reported 8,326 apprehensions of migrants attempting to cross illegally in February, after President Trump declared an emergency at the border and called for a sweeping immigration crackdown. That was the lowest monthly figure since 2000, and was down sharply from the more than 130,000 encounters recorded in February 2023 and 2024.

Trump has cited the need to curb the illegal flow of migrants and drugs for enacting a trade war with Mexico and Canada. “The Invasion of our Country is OVER,” he wrote in a Truth Social post at the weekend.

Ross Ulbricht, pardoned drug trafficker, will be watching

REUTERS

The man Trump pardoned for founding the world’s largest online black market for drugs and guns is expected to be among the guests at the US Capitol tonight.

Ross Ulbricht, the founder of Silk Road, has been invited to watch Trump’s speech by Thomas Massie, a Republican congressman from Kentucky.

Using the pseudonym Dread Pirate Roberts, Ulbricht grew the Silk Road into an e-commerce giant where shoppers used bitcoin to purchase drugs including cannabis, ecstasy and opioids, along with firearms. Ulbricht, 40, had been serving a term of life imprisonment with no chance of parole after being found guilty in 2015 of distributing narcotics, computer hacking, trafficking in false identity documents and money laundering in 2015.

He became a cause célèbre among the US libertarian movement, and Trump vowed to pardon him during the presidential campaign. Announcing the pardon in January, Trump wrote on Truth Social: “The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern-day weaponisation of government against me.”

• Why did Trump pardon Silk Road mastermind Ross Ulbricht?

Tonight’s key timings

All times EST; for GMT, add five hours

8.35pm: Mike Johnson, the Republican speaker, calls the House to order and the sergeant-at-arms announces JD Vance, the vice-president

8.40pm: Joint chiefs enter House chamber

8.45pm: Usha Vance, the second lady, is escorted into the Executive Gallery

8.55pm: Melania Trump, the first lady, is escorted into the Executive Gallery

9.10pm: President Trump begins his speech

10.45pm: The Democrat Elissa Slotkin presents the opposition’s rebuttal

What the Democrats plan to do

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is among those thought not to be in attendance tonight MANDEL NGAN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Several Democrats have said they will boycott President Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress tonight. Others who do attend have discussed trying to disrupt the speech by walking out during specific moments or trying to provoke a reaction from Trump.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York congresswoman; Patty Murray, a senator from Washington; and Ron Wyden, a senator from Oregon, have all said they plan to snub the speech.

During closed-door discussions this week, Democrats are said to have discussed bringing signs with anti-Trump or anti-Doge messages, and empty egg cartons, to signify the soaring cost of eggs in the US. One House Democrat told the news site Axios that disparaging remarks about transgender children would represent a line in the sand that could trigger a walkout.

Trump ‘open to tariff deals’ to avoid trade war

President Trump announcing the start of tariffs on Canada and Mexico

President Trump appears to be looking for deals with Canada and Mexico that he can present as a victory so he can step back from his aggressive tariffs after causing turmoil on stock markets and outrage from allies.

Trump, taking time out from preparing a triumphant annual address to Congress, posted online that he would match Canada’s plans for retaliatory tariffs after Justin Trudeau, the prime minister, called the imposition of 25 per cent US levies “a very dumb thing to do”.

But later in the day Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary and one of Trump’s closest advisers on the tariffs, told Larry Kudlow from Fox Business that after intense negotiations with Canada and Mexico, a deal would probably be announced on Wednesday.

• Trump ‘open for deals with Canada and Mexico’ to avoid trade war

Democrats pick their challenger: Elissa Slotkin

REBECCA COOK/REUTERS

Elissa Slotkin, a first-term Democratic senator from Michigan, has been chosen to deliver the party’s rebuttal to President Trump’s joint address to Congress tonight.

Before entering politics Slotkin, 48, was a CIA analyst during the Iraq war and also worked in the State Department and Department of Defense under the Obama administration.

Slotkin was a member of the House of Representatives for six years, earning a reputation as a moderate who was unafraid to challenge her own party. She has credited growing up in a household where her father was a Republican and her mother was a Democrat for her bipartisan approach to governing.

She won a tight Senate election race in November as Trump carried Michigan by 80,000 votes. Slotkin has said she is “looking forward to speaking directly to the American people”, and promised to counter Trump’s speech by focusing on the economy and national security. She is also expected to take on Trump and Elon Musk’s efforts to shrink the federal government through mass layoffs and identifying fraud and waste.

Retailers: Expect tariffs to increase prices

Brian Cornell, chief executive of Target, said the company would “do everything” it could to protect pricing BRENDAN MCDERMID/REUTERS

US consumers have been warned to expect higher prices on everything from avocados to electronics in the coming days after sweeping tariffs came into effect early on Tuesday.

Brian Cornell, chief executive of the retail giant Target, said his stores heavily relied on Mexican produce during the winter, and that prices were likely to increase in the coming days after Trump imposed 25 per cent tariffs on imports.

Best Buy, an electronics retailer, said it was “highly likely” that the stores would be forced to raise prices on everything from phones to laptops, as most of its merchandise is sourced from China.

US petrol companies heavily rely on imported petroleum products from Canada, and experts said motorists were likely to see rises of up to 40 cents per gallon in the next week.

Auto manufacturers who have built out supply chains across the US, Canada and Mexico will also be affected. One analyst said average US car prices could rise by about $3,000, at a time when the average new car already sells for $49,000 and the average used car for $25,000.

• Target warns of price rises within days as Trump tariffs kick in

The art of the bigger deal

Zelensky and Trump at their acrimonious Oval Office press conference THE MEGA AGENCY

Trump is said to be holding out for a “bigger, better deal” to gain access to Ukraine’s rare mineral reserves, a source familiar with negotiations told CBS News.

Hopes had been raised that an agreement could be announced as soon as Tuesday, a stark turnaround from when Zelensky was ordered to leave the White House after an acrimonious joint press conference on Friday.

White House officials have since appeared to discount that possibility, saying no deal had been finalised. The US president is now said to be looking to increase the size and scope of the deal.

Trump had proposed a $500 billion deal to compensate the US for military and humanitarian aid it had allocated to Ukraine to fight the Russian invasion. Ukraine estimates that it holds about 5 per cent of the world’s rare earth metals.

• What minerals does Ukraine have and why does Trump want them?

Times exclusive: Russia sends warship into Channel

EDDIE MITCHELL FOR THE TIMES

As negotiations over Ukraine continue, a sanctioned Russian cargo ship crewed by men in military fatigues has been seen transporting military hardware through the English Channel, escorted by a Russian warship, as President Putin bolsters his war effort with weapons from Syria.

Dramatic pictures taken by The Times from a fishing vessel show armed officers and crew manning machine guns on the warship.

• Read in full: Suspected arms shipment through English Channel

A climbdown on hopes of a deal

Scott Bessent met President Zelensky in Kyiv last month EPA

Scott Bessent, the US Treasury secretary, has pushed back on a report by Reuters that a US-Ukraine rare earth deal was expected to be signed on Tuesday.

Bessent told Fox News there were no plans to sign a deal on Tuesday afternoon, after Reuters claimed there had been a breakthrough in negotiations following Friday’s fiery meeting between Trump and Zelensky.

The White House has yet to officially comment on the report. Reuters’ sources cautioned that the situation could still change.

What to expect from Trump’s speech

At Trump’s last presidential address to Congress, in 2020, he was watched on by Mike Pence, his vice-president, and a speech-ripping Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic speaker of the House MANDEL NGAN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

When President Trump addresses a joint session of Congress tonight he is expected to laud his achievements in his first 43 days in office and outline plans for his second term.

Under the theme of “The Renewal of the American Dream”, Trump will extol his new policies on the economy, and in domestic and international affairs, a White House official told Fox News. He is also expected to use the speech to unveil his plans for global peace, and call on Congress to pass additional funding for border security.

Additionally, Trump is likely to celebrate the cost-cutting endeavours of Doge, the government watchdog agency led by Elon Musk, and his cabinet appointments.

The speech, due to begin at 9pm ET (2am UK time) is not officially called a “state of the union” address because Trump has not been in office for a full year.

Trump effect erased by tariff effect

American stocks have seen all their post-inauguration gains wiped out as investors become increasingly concerned about the damaging economic impact of President Trump’s trade tariffs.

In the first full day’s trading since the White House activated a delayed 25 per cent tariff on Mexican and Canadian imports and doubled to 20 per cent a tax on Chinese goods, investors headed for the exit.

The S&P 500, regarded as a barometer on the health of the US economy, was down 71.57 points, or 1.2 per cent, at 5,778.15, a drop of 3.6 per cent since the president was sworn in for a second term while the Dow Jones industrial ­average slid 670.25 points, or 1.6 per cent, to 42,520.99, a fall of 2.2 per cent.

• Read in full: US stocks erase post-election gains after Trump tariffs

What is Trump’s strategy with Ukraine — and can Kyiv appease him?

CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

President Zelensky expressed regret for his clash with the US president — but will it be enough to revive US arms shipments and the minerals deal? David Charter explains

Will tariffs compromise be reached?

The US could reach a compromise with Mexico and Canada on tariffs as soon as Wednesday, according to Howard Lutnick, the US commerce secretary. “Both the Mexicans and the Canadians were on the phone with me all day today trying to show that they’ll do better,” Lutnick told Larry Kudlow from Fox Business today. “And the president is listening because you know he’s very very fair and very reasonable. So I think he’s gonna work something out with them.”

He said the deal would likely see the US meet Canada and Mexico “in the middle” if they shut down the flow of illegal fentanyl, but declined to provide details. Lutnick’s conciliatory tone was in stark contrast to Trump. After Canada announced retaliatory tariffs, the US president said he would hike US tariffs by the same amount.

Earlier today Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada, called Trump a “very smart person” who has done a “very dumb thing”.

Zelensky extends an olive branch

President Zelensky has sought to mend ties with President Trump earlier after last week’s dramatic row in the Oval Office.

“Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer. Nobody wants peace more than Ukrainians. My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump’s strong leadership to get a peace that lasts,” Zelensky wrote on X. “Our meeting in Washington, at the White House on Friday, did not go the way it was supposed to be. It is regrettable that it happened this way. It is time to make things right. We would like future cooperation and communication to be constructive.”

He stressed that Ukraine was grateful to the United States for its help and praised Trump’s decision to supply Kyiv with Javelin anti-tank missiles during his first term as president. He also said Ukraine would agree to halt missile attacks on Russia, if Moscow followed suit. “We are ready to work fast to end the war,” he wrote.

He also said that Ukraine was ready to sign a minerals deal with the US after the agreement fell through on Friday. However, Zelensky did not offer an explicit apology, something that the White House is said to be demanding before talks can resume.

Tamil Nadu Board +2 12th Result 2025 LIVE Updates: Result link live at 9 am on official websites The Tamil Nadu Directorate of Government Examinations (DGE) is set to declare the Class 12 (HSE +2) exam results for 2025 today, May 8, at 9 am. Students can access their results via the official websites — dge.tn.gov.in and tnresults.nic.in — once the link is activated. This year’s Tamil Nadu Class 12 board exams were held from March 3 to March 25 at various exam centres across the state, with around 8.2 lakh students appearing.

TN HSC Results 2025 LIVE: The Directorate of Government Examinations (DGE), Tamil Nadu, released the Class 12 (HSE +2) results today, May 8, at 9 am. Students can check their results on dge.tn.gov.in and tnresults.nic.in. Results will include subject-wise scores and provisional marksheets.

TN 12th Result 2025 Live: Ariyalur district tops with 98.8% pass rate TN 12th Result 2025 Live: Ariyalur district has secured the highest pass percentage in this year’s Tamil Nadu HSE +2 results, with an exceptional 98.8%. This remarkable performance highlights the region’s dedication to academic excellence and the combined efforts of its students and teachers.

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TN 12th Result 2025 Live: Tamil Nadu Class 12 results 2025 released TN 12th Result 2025 Live: The Tamil Nadu Directorate of Government Examinations (TNDGE) has released the TN 12th Result 2025 today. Students can view their scores by entering their roll number and date of birth on either dge.tn.gov.in or tnresults.nic.in.

TN 12th Result 2025 Live: Tamil Nadu Class 12 results 2025 to be announced anytime soon; Here’s how to check Tamil Nadu Board +2 12th Result 2025 LIVE Updates: Result link to go live at 9 am on official websites

The Tamil Nadu Directorate of Government Examinations (DGE) is set to declare the Class 12 (HSE +2) exam results for 2025 today, May 8, at 9 am. Students can access their results via the official websites — dge.tn.gov.in and tnresults.nic.in — once the link is activated.

This year’s Tamil Nadu Class 12 board exams were held from March 3 to March 25 at various exam centres across the state, with around 8.2 lakh students appearing.

TN 12th Result 2025 Live: TN 12th HSC Result 2025 Topper List: Check names, districts, merit list, other details The Directorate of Government Examinations (DGE) Tamil Nadu has officially announced the TN 12th HSC results for 2025. Students can now access their results on the official websites tnresults.nic.in and dge.tn.gov.in. Read more

TN 12th Result 2025 Live: What is the pass mark for Tamil Nadu HSE +2 exams? To pass, students must secure at least 35% in each subject and fulfill the minimum overall aggregate, including in practicals/internal assessments, where applicable.

TN 12th Result 2025 Live: Are the online marksheets final? No, the online marksheets are provisional. Original marksheets must be collected from the respective schools in the coming days.

TN 12th Result 2025 Live Updates: What details are required to check the result? Students will need their roll number and date of birth to view and download their results online.

TN 12th Result 2025 Live: Where can students check their TN Class 12 results 2025?

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Students can access their results on the official websites: dge.tn.gov.in and tnresults.nic.in.Read More: TN 12th Result Website Direct Link