China

Another 26 are injured in blast near the city of Changde, Hunan Province, Xinhua News Agency says.

An explosion at a fireworks factory in southern China has killed nine people and injured 26 others, state media has reported.

The blast occurred at Shanzhou Fireworks Co, located near the city of Changde, Hunan Province, shortly before 8:30am on Monday, state-run Xinhua News Agency said on Tuesday.

During rescue efforts, 28 water tankers and two drainage vehicles were dispatched to the scene, Xinhua said.

Firefighters at the site of the blast reported “secondary hazards” and the risk of further explosions, adding to the difficulty of rescue efforts, according to the state news outlet.

“During more than 20 hours of uninterrupted and ongoing rescue work, firefighters used remote-controlled water cannons to extinguish flames at the site to prevent rescue personnel from approaching closely and reduce risks of secondary hazards,” Xinhua said.

The Hunan provincial government has established an inquiry panel to determine the cause of the explosion and “pursue accountability according to the law,” according to the report.

The incident is the latest industrial accident to draw attention to workplace safety standards in China.

Last month, at least five people were killed and 19 others injured in a chemical plant explosion in Weifang, Shandong province.

In April, at least 22 people were killed when a fire broke out at a restaurant in the northern city of Liaoyang.

China’s response was to strongly condemn Israel’s actions, which violate all basic norms governing international relations. The Chinese Foreign Ministry considered the attacks on Tehran’s nuclear facilities to set a dangerous precedent, the repercussions of which could be disastrous for international peace and stability. In response to this direct military confrontation between Israel and Iran, Beijing has consistently taken a firm pro-Iran stance, with China officially declaring that Tehran is not an instigator of regional instability. Beijing also immediately linked this Israeli escalation against Iran to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, a conflict that China has long advocated for resolving through the United Nations. All Chinese political and intelligence analyses have emphasized that the current situation and the outbreak of war between Israel and Iran are the latest extension of the conflict that has been raging for more than two years in the Gaza Strip. This serves as yet another reminder that the Palestinian issue remains central to the Middle East and impacts long-term peace, stability, and security in the region. To this end, Chinese circles believe that if the conflict in Gaza is allowed to continue, the negative impact of the conflict is expected to spread further, making the region even more unstable.

 Reflecting the same context of official Chinese statements, Chinese experts view these events not only as another chapter in the Israeli-Iranian conflict but also as an extension of the war in the Gaza Strip. According to Chinese Professor Liu Zhongmin of Shanghai International Studies University and Professor Tang Qichao, Director of the Research Center for Development and Governance in the Middle East at the Institute of West Asian and African Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the confrontation that began in the Gaza Strip has now expanded to five additional fronts: the West Bank, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and the Red Sea, where Israel’s enemies are trying to divert its attention and deplete its resources.

  Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Director of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Central Committee of the ruling Communist Party of China, held talks with his Israeli counterpart. Minister Wang Yi affirmed China’s opposition to Israel’s violation of international law by attacking Iran with force, describing Israeli behavior as internationally unacceptable. China affirmed that diplomatic means regarding the Iranian nuclear issue have not been exhausted, and there is still hope for a peaceful solution to the issue. The Chinese leadership confirmed to President Xi Jinping that “the force used by Israel against the Iranians cannot establish lasting peace between the two sides.” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also affirmed that “China is ready to play a constructive role in containing the escalation of the conflict between Tehran and Tel Aviv.”

  These Chinese talks with Iranian and Israeli officials to stop the war should be understood as part of China’s efforts to prevent relations between Tel Aviv and Tehran from destabilizing the region’s security, maritime, navigational, and logistical stability. This is particularly true given Iran’s explicit accusations that several regional powers facilitated Israeli airspace attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities. This is in addition to the current link between US President Trump’s recent visit to three Gulf countries (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE) and the coordination of Israel’s current military strike on Iran. This is in addition to analyses by several Chinese political and intelligence circles that several regional powers have shared intelligence with Israel regarding the attack on Iran. Through China’s analysis of all these current developments, Beijing’s interest in neutralizing the course of Israeli-Iranian relations, at least for the time being, stems from its pivotal role in mediating the restoration of diplomatic relations between these two regional rivals as a price for restoring stability to the Middle East. 

  Supporting the Chinese view in this context is what Chinese officials consistently praise as a wave of regional reconciliation, as evidence of the effectiveness of the Global Security Initiative launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping. This alternative security framework is often positioned in contrast to the Western system, which Chinese officials and researchers often portray as a front for American hegemony.

  Beijing is leveraging Tehran’s support for several groups in the Middle East to advance its interests in confronting the balance of power with the United States in the Middle East, most notably Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. China and Russia also appear to be working to establish closer relations with Hamas. A delegation of senior leaders from Hamas and other Palestinian movements, including Islamic Jihad, which the United States officially designates as a terrorist group, has visited Moscow and Beijing several times to coordinate their positions on the Israeli escalation in the Gaza Strip, with explicit American support. Chinese think tanks described this Iranian retaliatory attack against Israel, after its war against it, as an unprecedented development in its long-standing proxy conflict with Israel. They expected Iran to respond militarily soon through a third party, such as the Houthis in Yemen, to disrupt maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, Bab Al-Mandab, and the Suez Canal in Egypt. This would be part of Iran’s leverage over Israel and the United States to halt its war and refrain from continuing to attack its nuclear facilities, harm its interests, and assassinate its military leaders and scientists.

  On the other hand, China has several leverage points against Israel. It has significant investments in Israel, particularly in the infrastructure and technology sectors, and has maintained them throughout the conflict in the Gaza Strip. China also relies heavily on Iran for 90% of its crude oil imports, which go directly to China. To this end, China will attempt to play a calming role between Tehran and Tel Aviv, especially since these Israeli retaliatory strikes targeted Iranian oil infrastructure in a way that could impact Iranian oil exports to China. Therefore, Beijing is likely to raise its voice in condemning Israel’s actions against the Iranians and even intervene and broker a peace agreement between the two parties to preserve its oil interests with Tehran. China remains one of the few countries that buys oil from Iran despite US sanctions. Beijing also brokered the agreement to restore diplomatic relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia in 2023, which could play a role in establishing a peace agreement between Tehran and Tel Aviv.

   Regarding the views of senior Chinese military leaders regarding Iran’s role in confronting the Israeli war against it, Chinese experts Teng Jiankun, a senior researcher at the China Institute of International Studies, and Wang Mingzhi, director of the Strategic Education and Research Office at the People’s Liberation Army Air Force Command College, believe a direct attack from Iran is unlikely and instead expect Iran to respond through its proxies, such as the Houthis. In a previous interview with China Central Television (CCTV), Colonel “Du Wenlong” of the People’s Liberation Army Academy of Military Sciences stated, “If Iran transfers its weapons to areas in Syria, Yemen, Gaza, and Lebanon, then through intermediaries, it could achieve war feats similar to those of the Israeli war against it. Therefore, in the next step, Iran could influence actors throughout the Middle East to carry out joint retaliatory operations against both Israel and the United States.” Chinese military expert “Li Li” also emphasized that “Iran has effectively demonstrated its ability to retaliate against Israel, as well as the Iranians’ prowess in operational planning and the capabilities of their military industry,” which she described as “extremely systematic and extensive.” Professor Li Li emphasized that “Iran’s real goal now is to demonstrate its ability to strike deep into Israeli territory and enhance its deterrence to secure political and strategic goals.” Professor Ding Jun, a well-known Chinese professor of Middle East politics and head of the Institute of Middle East Studies at Shanghai International Studies University, emphasized that “the political nature of the operation outweighs its military significance.” According to Chinese political and military analyst Wang Mingqi, “Iran’s restraint in the attack on Tel Aviv may have been due to Tehran’s goal of not diverting the international community’s attention away from Gaza and Israel, which is the same goal the Israelis are aiming to achieve by launching their current, unexpected attack on Tehran.”

    By understanding this previous analysis, we find that the American side is counting heavily on China as well to play a role in calming the situation between Tehran and Tel Aviv. The closest example of this is the United States’ request that China use its influence over Tehran to curb the Iranian-backed Houthi group in Yemen, which is attacking ships in the Red Sea.

KANANASKIS, Canada — The Group of 7 summit began in Canada on Monday with world leaders scrambling to contain the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear program, with President Trump reiterating his call for the two nations to start negotiating.

“They should talk, and they should talk immediately,” he told reporters.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said all G-7 leaders agree they “have to find a way to de-escalate the situation” in the Middle East because the Israel-Iran conflict risks inflaming the “tinderbox” of Gaza and hurting the global economy.

Starmer said he’d spoken to Trump about the issue, adding “the risk of the conflict escalating is obvious, I think, and the implications, not just for the region but globally, are really immense, so the focus has to be on de-escalation.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told reporters Monday ahead of the summit beginning in the Canadian Rocky Mountains that Germany is planning to draw up a final communique proposal on the Israel-Iran conflict that will stress that “Iran must under no circumstances be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons-capable material.”

But as Trump met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, he also stressed it was a mistake to remove Russia from the organization in 2014 and doing so had destabilized the world. He also suggested it would be a good idea to add China to the G-7.

The U.S. president also seemed to put a greater priority on his planned emphasis on addressing his grievances with other nations’ trade policies.

“Our primary focus will be trade,” Trump said of his talks with Carney.

This year’s G-7 summit is full of combustible tensions, and it’s unclear how the gathered world leaders can work together to resolve them. Trump already has hit several dozen nations with severe tariffs that risk a global economic slowdown. There is little progress on settling the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, and now a new conflict between Israel and Iran has arisen.

Add to all of that the problems of climate change, immigration, drug trafficking, new technologies such as artificial intelligence and China’s continued manufacturing superiority and chokehold on key supply chains.

“We’re gathering at one of those turning points in history,” Carney said. “The world’s more divided and dangerous.”

But as the news media were escorted from the opening session, Carney could be heard as he turned to Trump and referenced how his remarks about the Middle East, Russia and China had already drawn attention to the summit.

“Mr. President, I think you’ve answered a lot of questions already,” Carney said.

Trump wants to focus on trade, though he may have to balance those issues with the broader need by the G-7 countries — which also include France, Italy and Japan — to project a united front to calm down a world increasingly engulfed in chaos.

Asked if he planned to announce any trade agreements at the G-7 as he left the White House on Sunday, Trump said: “We have our trade deals. All we have to do is send a letter, ‘This is what you’re going to have to pay.’ But I think we’ll have a few, few new trade deals.”

Also at stake might be the survival of the G-7 itself when the Trump administration has sent mixed signals about whether the president will attend the November Group of 20 summit in South Africa.

The German, U.K., Japanese and Italian governments have each signaled a belief that a friendly relationship with Trump this year can help to keep any public drama at a minimum, after the U.S. president in 2018 opposed a joint communique when the G-7 summit was last held in Canada.

Going into the summit, there was no plan for a joint statement this year, a sign that the Trump administration sees no need to build a shared consensus with fellow democracies if it views such a statement as contrary to its goals of new tariffs, more fossil fuel production and a Europe that is less dependent on the U.S. military.

“The Trump administration almost certainly believes that no deal is better than a bad deal,” said Caitlin Welsh, a director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank who was part of Trump’s team for the G-7 in Trump’s first term.

The White House has stayed decidedly mum about its goals for the G-7, which originated as a 1973 finance ministers’ meeting to address the oil crisis and evolved into a yearly summit meant to foster personal relationships among world leaders and address global problems.

The G-7 briefly expanded to the G-8 with Russia as a member, only for Russia to be expelled in 2014 after annexing Crimea and taking a foothold in Ukraine that preceded its aggressive 2022 invasion of that nation.

Trump will have a series of bilateral meetings during the summit with other world leaders while in Canada. Beyond Carney, he’s also expected to have bilateral meetings or pull-aside conversations with Starmer, Merz, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Ahead of his meeting with Trump, Zelensky said one of the topics for discussion will be a “defense package” that Ukraine is ready to purchase from the U.S. as part of the ongoing war with Russia.

The U.S. president has imposed 25% tariffs on steel, aluminum and autos, all of which have disproportionately hit Japan. Trump is also charging a 10% tax on imports from most countries, though he could raise rates on July 9, after the 90-day negotiating period set by him would expire.

The United Kingdom reached a trade framework with the U.S. that included quotas to protect against some tariffs, but the 10% baseline would remain as the Trump administration is banking on tariff revenues to help cover the cost of its income tax cuts.

Canada and Mexico face separate tariffs of as much as 25% that Trump put into place under the auspices of stopping fentanyl smuggling, through some products are still protected under the 2020 U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement signed during Trump’s first term.

Merz said of trade talks that “there will be no solution at this summit, but we could perhaps come closer to a solution in small steps.”

The Trump administration has insisted that its broad tariffs will produce trade agreements that box out China, though it’s unclear how antagonizing trade partners would make them want to strengthen their reliance on the U.S. Carney has been outspoken in saying Canada can no longer look to the U.S. as an enduring friend.

That might leave Trump with the awkward task of wanting to keep his tariffs in place while also trying to convince other countries that they’re better off siding with the U.S. than China.

Boak, Gillies and Lawless write for the Associated Press. Boak reported from Calgary, Canada. AP writer Kirsten Grieshaber contributed to this report.

Chinese President Xi Jinping reached Kazakhstan on Monday to attend the second China–Central Asia Summit, a high-stakes diplomatic gathering aimed at deepening Beijing’s economic and strategic ties with the region.

The summit, which will be held on Tuesday in the Kazakh capital Astana, comes at a time when China is intensifying its outreach to Central Asian countries amid shifting global power alignments — and mounting tensions in neighbouring Iran, which is roiled in an escalating conflict with Israel.

The summit will bring together the heads of state from all five Central Asian nations — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan — along with Xi.

The Astana summit also carries symbolic weight: it is the first time that the five Central Asian nations are holding a summit in the region with the leader of another country.

So, what is the importance of the China-Central Asia Summit? And is China battling both the United States and Russia for influence in the region?

What’s on Xi’s agenda in Astana?

On Monday, Xi was greeted by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and other senior officials at the airport in Astana. The Astana summit follows the inaugural May 2023 China–Central Asia Summit, which was held in Xi’an, the capital city of China’s Shaanxi province.

Xi is expected to be in Astana from June 16 to 18 and is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with Kazakhstan’s leaders on Monday before the summit on June 17.

At the summit, he is expected to deliver a keynote speech and “exchange views on the achievements of the China-Central Asia mechanism, mutually beneficial cooperation under the framework, and international and regional hotspot issues,” said a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson.

The office of Kazakhstan’s president noted that both countries are “set to further strengthen bilateral ties” and Xi will also chair “high-level talks with President [Tokayev] focused on deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership”.

Tokayev, who has been in office since 2019, is a fluent Mandarin speaker and previously served as a diplomat in China.

Zhao Long, a senior research fellow at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (SIIS), told Al Jazeera that Central Asian countries see their partnership with China as a deep, multifaceted cooperation grounded in shared strategic and pragmatic interests.

“The alignment with China helps Central Asian states enhance their regional stability, pursue economic modernisation, and diversify their diplomatic portfolios,” said Zhao. Where Central Asia has abundant energy resources, he said, China offers vast markets, advanced technology, and infrastructure expertise.

Last Friday, Lin Jian, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, told a news briefing that establishing “the China-Central Asia mechanism was a unanimous decision among China and the five Central Asian countries, which dovetails with the region’s common desire to maintain stability and pursue high-quality development”.

Since China first formalised and chaired the China-Central Asia Summit in May 2023, Lin said, “China’s relations with Central Asian countries have entered a new era … injecting fresh impetus into regional development and delivering tangibly for the peoples of all six countries.”

“We believe through this summit, China and five Central Asian countries will further consolidate the foundation of mutual trust,” Lin added.

“During the summit, President Xi will also meet with these leaders and lay out the top-level plan for China’s relations with [the] five Central Asian countries,” said the spokesperson.

SIIS’s Zhao said Xi’s attendance at the second summit sends a clear message: “China places high strategic importance on Central Asia.”

What’s ‘C5+1’ – and is China racing the US for influence?

Experts are dubbing the China-Central Asia Summit as a C5+1 framework, because of the five regional nations involved.

The United States first initiated the concept of such a summit with all five Central Asian nations in 2015, under then-US President Barack Obama. But at the time, the conclave was held at the level of foreign ministers. Then-US Secretary of State John Kerry led the first meeting in September 2015 on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

In January 2022, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a virtual summit with the five Central Asian state heads, and then in June 2025, he invited them for a follow-up conclave in India.

Meanwhile, in 2023, Xi hosted the leaders in Xi’an. Four months later, then-US President Joe Biden hosted the C5 state heads on the sidelines of the UNGA in New York. It was the first time a US president met with Central Asian heads of state under this framework.

But current US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies could upset that outreach from Washington. Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have all been tariffed at 10 percent.

Trump initially imposed an even higher 27 percent tariff on imports from Kazakhstan, the region’s largest economy, though as with all other countries, the US president has paused these rates, limiting tariffs to a flat 10 percent for now.

China has cited these tariff rates to project itself as a more reliable partner to Central Asia than the US. At the meeting with the foreign ministers of the region in April, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticised unilateralism, trade protectionism, and “the trend of anti-globalisation [that] has severely impacted the free trade system”.

The US, Wang said, was “undermining the rule-based multilateral trading system, and destabilising the global economy”.

Why does Central Asia matter to China?

The region, rich in uranium, oil, and rare earth metals, has become increasingly important to China as a key corridor for trade with Europe. Subsequently, China has increased its engagement with Central Asian countries.

Xi, who has curtailed his foreign visits since the COVID-19 pandemic, is visiting Kazakhstan for the third time since 2020. He visited in 2022, and then again in 2024.

Central Asia is also a critical part of Xi’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) — a network of highways, railroads and ports connecting Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America — as a gateway to Europe.

Experts expect the BRI to figure prominently at the summit in Astana on Tuesday, with additional emphasis on collaboration in energy and sustainable development.

A planned $8bn railway connecting China’s Xinjiang region to Uzbekistan through Kyrgyzstan is likely to be on the agenda, the SIIS’s Zhao said. Construction on the project is scheduled to begin in July. Expected to be completed by 2030, the railway route will provide China with more direct access to Central Asia and reduce the three countries’ reliance on Russia’s transport infrastructure.

Additionally, Zhao said, the summit may feature agreements on reducing tariffs, streamlining customs procedures, and lowering non-tariff barriers to boost bilateral trade volumes.

How much does Central Asia depend on China?

A lot.

China is today the top trading partner of each of the five Central Asian republics.

• Kazakhstan imported goods worth $18.7bn from China and exported goods worth $15bn in 2023 — making up 30 percent of its total imports and 16 percent of exports.
• Tajikistan imported goods worth $3.68bn from China and exported goods worth $250m in 2023 — making up 56 percent of its total imports and 16 percent of exports.
• Kyrgyzstan imported goods worth $3.68bn and exported goods worth $887m in 2023 from China — constituting 29 percent of its total imports and 26 percent of exports.
• Uzbekistan imported goods worth $12.7bn and exported goods worth $1.82bn in 2023 from the world’s second-largest economy — representing 32 percent of its total imports and 6 percent of exports.
• Turkmenistan imported goods worth $957m and exported goods worth $9.63bn in 2023 from China — or 20 percent of its total imports and 62 percent of exports.

China is also ramping up its investments in the region. It has committed to an estimated $26bn in investments in Kazakhstan, for instance.

Is China replacing Russia in Central Asia?

It’s complicated.

Formerly parts of the Soviet Union, the five Central Asian republics have long belonged in Russia’s strategic sphere of influence. Millions of people from the five republics live and work in Russia, and since 2023, Moscow has become a supplier of natural gas to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, which have faced energy shortages — even though Central Asia was historically a supplier of energy to Russia.

But though Russia remains a major economic force in the region, China has overtaken it as the largest trading partner of Central Asian republics over the past three years — a period that has coincided with Russia’s war on Ukraine. Some of that increased trade, in fact, is believed to be the outcome of China using Central Asia as a conduit for exports to Russia of goods that face Western sanctions.

Still, there are ways in which Russia remains the region’s preeminent outside ally. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan — three of the region’s five nations — are part of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) — along with Russia, Armenia and Belarus. Like NATO, this bloc offers collective security guarantees to members. In effect, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have the cover of Russia’s protection if they are attacked by another nation — something that China does not offer.

It is a conflict that has the potential to ignite the entire Middle East. Israel has been attacking Iran, saying Tehran’s nuclear programme poses an existential threat.

Iran, for its part, has responded with a barrage of retaliatory attacks.

But now, what role can the global community play?

China, Russia and Turkiye have condemned Israel’s actions.

Beijing and Moscow maintain economic and political ties with both Iran and Israel.

So, what, if anything, can these powers do to end the conflict?

And is there a shift in dynamics in the region?

Presenter: Adrian Finighan

Guests:

Barin Kayaoglu – Chair and assistant professor of American studies at the Social Sciences University of Ankara
Glenn Carle – Former CIA officer and deputy national intelligence officer for Transnational Threats at the National Intelligence Council
Nikolay Surkov – Assistant professor at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations

Emily Feng is an award-winning Chinese American journalist who spent a decade reporting from China and Taiwan. In 2022, Feng was barred from returning to the Chinese mainland and labelled a “race traitor” for her journalism.

Her recent book, Let Only Red Flowers Bloom: Identity and Belonging in Xi Jinping’s China, tells the human stories of resistance and rebellion against the Chinese state’s vision of a unified national identity.

In this episode, Ken Roth and Emily Feng examine Xi Jinping’s past, exploring what distinguishes his style of authoritarianism and how this affects human rights both within China and globally.

WASHINGTON — President Trump has long bet that he can scare allies into submission — a gamble that is increasingly being tested ahead of the Group of Seven summit beginning Monday in Canada.

He’s threatened stiff tariffs in the belief that other nations would crumple. He’s mused about taking over Canada and Greenland. He’s suggested he will not honor NATO’s obligations to defend partners under attack. And he’s used Oval Office meetings to try to intimidate the leaders of Ukraine and South Africa.

But many world leaders see fewer reasons to be cowed by Trump, even as they recognize the risks if he followed through on his threats. They believe he will ultimately back down — since many of his plans could inflict harm on the U.S. — or that he can simply be charmed and flattered into cooperating.

“Many leaders still seem intimidated by Trump, but increasingly they are catching on to his pattern of bullying,” said Jeremy Shapiro, research director at the European Council on Foreign Relations. “In places as diverse as Canada, Iran, China and the EU, we are seeing increasing signs that leaders now recognize that Trump is afraid of anything resembling a fair fight. And so they are increasingly willing to stand up to him.”

In the 22 instances in which Trump has publicly threatened military action since his first term, the U.S. only used force twice, according to a May analysis by Shapiro.

World leaders feel comfortable standing up to Trump

Ahead of the G-7 summit, there are already signs of subtle pushback against Trump from fellow leaders in the group. French President Emanuel Macron planned to visit Greenland over the weekend in a show of European solidarity. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said the U.S. is no longer the “predominant” force in the world after Trump’s tariffs created fissures in a decades-long partnership between the U.S. and its northern neighbor.

“We stood shoulder to shoulder with the Americans throughout the Cold War and in the decades that followed, as the United States played a predominant role on the world stage,” Carney said this past week in French. “Today, that predominance is a thing of the past.”

The new prime minister added that with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the U.S. became the global hegemon, a position of authority undermined by Trump’s transactional nature that puts little emphasis on defending democratic values or the rule of law.

“Now the United States is beginning to monetize its hegemony: charging for access to its markets and reducing its relative contributions to our collective security,” Carney said.

Israel’s attack on Iran has added a new wrinkle to the global picture as the summit leaders gather to tackle some of the world’s thorniest problems.

A senior Canadian official said it was decided early on that the G-7 won’t be issuing a joint communiqué as it has at past summits — an indication of how hard it can be to get Trump on the same page with other world leaders. The White House said individual leader statements will be issued on the issues being discussed.

Speaking last month at a conference in Singapore, Macron called France a “friend and an ally of the United States” but pushed back against Trump’s desire to dominate what other countries do. Macron said efforts to force other nations to choose between the U.S. and China would lead to the breakdown of the global order put in place after World War II.

“We want to cooperate, but we do not want to be instructed on a daily basis what is allowed, what is not allowed, and how our life will change because of the decision of a single person,” Macron said.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pushed back against Trump’s agenda of levying higher tariffs on imported goods, arguing it would hurt economic growth. The Japanese leader specifically called Trump ahead of the summit to confirm their plans to talk on the sidelines, which is a greater focus for Japan than the summit itself.

“I called him as I also wanted to congratulate his birthday, though one day earlier,” Ishiba said.

Trump cares about being tough, but G-7 is a chance to reset relations

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), the ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee, said the summit was an opportunity for Trump to “mend” relationships with other countries so China would be unable to exploit differences among the G-7.

She said other foreign leaders are “not intimidated” by Trump’s actions, which could be driving them away from tighter commitments with the U.S.

“The conversations that I’ve had with those leaders suggest that they think that the partnership with the United States has been really important, but they also understand that there are other opportunities,” Shaheen said.

The White House did not respond to emailed questions for this story.

Many leaders feel more confident that they can sidestep Trump’s threats

Having originally made his reputation in real estate and hospitality, Trump has taken kindly to certain foreign visitors, such as U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Starmer has sought to keep Trump in line with Europe in supporting Ukraine and NATO instead of brokering any truces that would favor Russia. He has echoed the president’s language about NATO members spending more on defense. But in his Oval Office visit, Starmer also pleased Trump by delivering an invite for a state visit from King Charles III.

The German government said it, too, wanted to send a public signal of unity, saying that while Trump’s recent meeting with Merz at the White House went harmoniously, the next test is how the relationship plays out in a team setting.

There will also be other world leaders outside of the G-7 nations attending the summit in mountainous Kananaskis, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whom Trump dressed down in the Oval Office.

Italy’s Meloni has positioned herself as a “bridge” between the Trump administration and the rest of Europe. But Italy’s strong support of Ukraine and Trump’s threatened tariffs on European goods have put Meloni, the only European leader to attend Trump’s inauguration, in a difficult position.

Mark Sobel, U.S. chair of the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum, an independent think tank, said Trump’s “trade policies, backing for right wing European movements, seeming preference for dealing with authoritarians and many of his other actions are alienating our G-7 allies,” even if the U.S. president is correct that Europe needs to do more on defense.

But even as other G-7 leaders defuse any public disputes with Trump, the U.S. president’s vision for the world remains largely incompatible with they want.

“In short, behind the curtains, and notwithstanding whatever theater, the Kananaskis summit will highlight a more fragmented G-7 and an adrift global economy,” Sobel said.

Boak writes for the Associated Press. AP reporters Rob Gillies in Toronto, Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo, Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Jill Lawless in London, Geir Moulson in Berlin and Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed to this report.

In today’s fast-changing world, where uncertainty and power rivalries are on the rise, some voices are calling for a return to old-style diplomacy—a new version of the 1945 Yalta Conference. This idea, often referred to as “Yalta 2.0,” imagines the world’s major powers—the United States, Russia, and China—coming together to divide up regions, settle territorial disputes, and determine the political fate of smaller countries. At a time when global tensions are high, this approach may seem tempting to some. But for China, the path forward does not lie in revisiting the power politics of the past. It lies in creating a peaceful, inclusive, and multipolar future.

From the outset, it is important to recall that the original Yalta Conference, while historic, was also deeply flawed. While it ended the horrors of World War II and contributed to the formation of the United Nations, it also sidelined the interests of many nations, including China. In exchange for Soviet participation in the final stages of the war against Japan, key Chinese interests in Northeast Asia were compromised without Beijing’s consent. As a country that once suffered from colonialism and great power bargaining, China cannot support any model that seeks to reintroduce a world order based on dividing the globe into spheres of influence.

China’s foreign policy has long been rooted in principles such as respect for sovereignty, peaceful coexistence, non-interference, and mutual benefit. These are not just abstract ideals; they are grounded in China’s own historical experience. China knows what it means to have its territory divided, its dignity trampled, and its voice ignored. That is why Beijing has always stood firm against unilateral changes to territorial status—whether in Kosovo, Georgia, Crimea, or elsewhere. Today, despite growing calls for the West to recognize Crimea as part of Russia, China’s position remains consistent: the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, including Ukraine, must be respected.

Supporters of Yalta 2.0 often argue that China could benefit from such a deal. They suggest that a seat at the table with Washington and Moscow would elevate Beijing’s global standing and provide an opportunity to advance core interests such as Taiwan and the South China Sea. But this view misses the point. China’s rise has never been about bargaining away the rights of others. Rather, it has been about building a more connected world where all countries—big or small—have a voice. For China, diplomacy is not a zero-sum game. True leadership lies in lifting others, not containing them.

In fact, returning to exclusive power-sharing arrangements would be deeply harmful to China’s vision for the world. China’s global strategy is based on open connectivity, economic cooperation, and institutional reform. Initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the Global Development Initiative (GDI), and China’s leadership in the BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) all reflect this commitment to inclusiveness and fairness. These platforms are not about dividing the world, but about bringing it closer together. A Yalta-style settlement, by contrast, would create divisions, deepen mistrust, and undermine the very institutions that China has helped to strengthen.

Moreover, the return of ideological conservatism in parts of the West, marked by skepticism of globalization and rising right-wing nationalism, poses an additional risk. While such political movements may find common ground with Russia’s cultural traditionalism or even aspects of Trump’s America First approach, they diverge fundamentally from China’s pragmatic and development-focused policies. China does not seek to impose its model on others. Instead, it supports a world where countries choose their own path of modernization and development.

The current U.S. push to re-engage Russia and draw it away from China—sometimes called a “reverse Nixon” strategy—also reflects a Cold War mindset that China does not share. While trilateral dialogues can help improve global stability, using them to isolate or contain any one country is neither sustainable nor responsible. For China, multipolarity means balance, not blocs. It means cooperation based on mutual interests, not coercion or side-deals made behind closed doors.

Indeed, as the idea of Yalta 2.0 gains traction in some circles, we are already seeing signs of strain in global relationships. China’s trade with Russia has shown early signs of cooling, with car exports and overall bilateral trade declining in early 2025. This is a reminder that trust and interdependence must be nurtured carefully. China is prepared to deepen strategic ties with its partners—but always on the basis of equality and long-term vision.

Equally concerning is the risk that Yalta 2.0 would alienate the Global South. Countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America have increasingly turned to China not only as a trade partner but as a champion of equitable development and reform of global governance. To now support a return to great-power bargaining would undermine this trust. It would send a signal that the future of smaller states can still be decided without their consent. China must—and will—stand against such a return to outdated thinking.

As we approach the 80th anniversaries of the end of World War II and the founding of the United Nations, we are reminded of the importance of these historic moments. They marked the beginning of a global order based on dialogue, not domination. For all its imperfections, that rules-based order gave the world decades of relative peace and prosperity. It is this legacy that must be preserved—not through nostalgia for 1945, but through renewed commitment to shared responsibility and sovereign equality.

The world today is not the world of Yalta. It is more complex, more interconnected, and more hopeful. Emerging powers want dignity, not dependency. Regional blocs seek cooperation, not confrontation. And the people of the world want peace, not power politics.

For China, the answer is clear. A Yalta 2.0 is not the way forward. What the world needs is not a division of spheres, but a convergence of minds. Not backroom deals, but open partnerships. Not great power privilege, but global progress.

Let us work together, not to rewrite the map, but to build the bridges that will carry all of us toward a more just, peaceful, and inclusive future.

The US and China are finalizing a trade agreement, according to US President Trump.

The deal is said to include the US being able to access Chinese rare earth minerals, while Chinese students can study in the United States.

“Our deal with China is done, subject to final approval from President Xi and me,” Trump wrote.

The US-China trade war tensions were one of several macroeconomic headwinds that have suppressed crypto prices in recent weeks. This new trade agreement could mark the beginning of a new chapter in which the world’s superpowers cooperate rather than oppose one another, thus bolstering economic prosperity.

US inflation data came in yesterday at a lower level than expected, providing another tailwind for crypto prices in the coming weeks.

As more of these catalysts stack up, the potential for crypto prices to explode amplifies. So, what is the best crypto by now?

Solaxy

However, this raises a pressing issue: congestion. During periods of peak network activity, wait times extend and transaction failure rates increase. That’s why Solaxy could be a smart buy. It’s the world’s first Solana layer 2 blockchain.

While Solana can compute 6,500 transactions per second (TPS), Solaxy aims for 10,000. This doesn’t just mean it’s faster; it’ll also be cheaper and more reliable than Solana.

The project is currently undergoing a presale and has raised $47 million to date.

With the market appearing ready for a breakout, Solaxy’s use case firmly positions $SOLX for big price growth. Visit Solaxy.

Snorter

Snorter is another project set to directly benefit from the bullish market conditions.

It’s an automated trading bot that enables users to capitalize on explosive projects, even while they sleep.

Snorter supports Solana, Ethereum, BSC, Base, and Polygon. It offers features such as automated token sniping, copy trading, honeypot detection, and dynamic stop-losses.

Imagine being able to outline trading parameters, and a bot monitors the market 24/7, buying and selling based on your requirements. Or imagine following the moves of the most successful on-chain traders.  Or a tool that automatically detects scam tokens. It’s all possible with Snorter.

It’s also undergoing a presale and has raised $600K so far.

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SPX6900

According to SPX6900’s most famous proponent Murad, SPX6900 addresses these issues.

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Uniswap

Uniswap is the top decentralized exchange (DEX) on Ethereum and the industry’s leading DEX coin by market cap.

While there’s no doubt that Solana leads the way in terms of active users, Ethereum  remains the go-to chain for crypto whales.

It has a total value locked of $65 billion, over 7 times more than Solana. This is why Uniswap has real growth potential.

But Uniswap is more than a DEX; it also has its own crypto wallet app and even its own Ethereum layer 2 blockchain, Unichain.

It’s a multifunctional ecosystem built on top of Ethereum’s robust liquidity infrastructure. As the Ethereum ecosystem heats up in the bull market, Uniswap will likely soar.

Uniswap is also one of the better-performing altcoins this week, with a 26% gain.

Best Wallet Token

Best Wallet Token is the new cryptocurrency that powers Best Wallet. It offers trading fee discounts, higher staking yields, governance rights, and access to promotions on partner projects.

Best Wallet is quickly making a name for itself in the cryptocurrency industry, thanks to its comprehensive range of features and cross-chain functionality, with support for over 90 different blockchains.

Some of Best Wallet’s features include a cross-chain DEX, derivative trading, a crypto debit card, a presale aggregator, an NFT gallery, and much more.

It’s the first crypto wallet to boast such an extensive ecosystem, so it certainly has a lot of potential.

It is currently available to buy via a token presale, where it has raised over $13 million so far.

The project’s early stage, combined with the powerful use case, is a setup that could result in huge gains for $BEST.Visit Best Wallet.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not provide financial advice. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile, and the market can be unpredictable. Always perform thorough research before making any cryptocurrency-related decisions.

China’s export of rare earth elements is central to the trade deal struck this week with the United States.

Beijing has a virtual monopoly on the supply of the critical minerals, which are used to make everything from cars to drones and wind turbines.

Earlier this year, Beijing leveraged its dominance of the sector to hit back at US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, placing export controls on seven rare earths and related products.

The restrictions created a headache for global manufacturers, particularly automakers, who rely on the materials.

After talks in Geneva in May, the US and China announced a 90-day pause on their escalating tit-for-tat tariffs, during which time US levies would be reduced from 145 percent to 30 percent and Chinese duties from 125 percent to 10 percent.

The truce had appeared to be in jeopardy in recent weeks after Washington accused Beijing of not moving fast enough to ease its restrictions on rare earths exports.

After two days of marathon talks in London, the two sides on Wednesday announced a “framework” to get trade back on track.

Trump said the deal would see rare earth minerals “supplied, up front,” though many details of the agreement are still unclear.

What are rare earths, and why are they important?

Rare earths are a group of 17 elements that are essential to numerous manufacturing industries.

The auto industry has become particularly reliant on rare-earth magnets for steering systems, engines, brakes and many other parts.

China has long dominated the mining and processing of rare earth minerals, as well as the production of related components like rare earth magnets.

It mines about 70 percent of the world’s rare earths and processes approximately 90 percent of the supply. China also maintains near-total control over the supply of heavy rare earths, including dysprosium and terbium.

China’s hold over the industry had been a concern for the US and other countries for some time, but their alarm grew after Beijing imposed export controls in April.

The restrictions affected supplies of samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium, and required companies shipping materials and finished products overseas to obtain export licences.

The restrictions followed a similar move by China in February, when it placed export controls on tungsten, bismuth and three other “niche metals”.

While news of a deal on rare earths signals a potential reprieve for manufacturers, the details of its implementation remain largely unclear.

What has been the impact of the export restrictions?

Chinese customs data shows the sale of rare earths to the US dropped 37 percent in April, while the sale of rare earth magnets fell 58 percent for the US and 51 percent worldwide, according to Bloomberg.

Global rare earth exports recovered 23 percent in May, following talks between US and Chinese officials in Geneva, but they are still down overall from a year earlier.

The greatest alarm has been felt by carmakers and auto parts manufacturers in the US and Europe, who reported bottlenecks after working their way through inventories of rare earth magnets.

“The automobile industry is now using words like panic. This isn’t something that the auto industry is just talking about and trying to make a big stir. This is serious right now, and they’re talking about shutting down production lines,” Mark Smith, a mining and mineral processing expert and the CEO of the US-based NioCorp Developments, told Al Jazeera.

Even with news of a breakthrough, Western companies are still worried about their future access to rare earths and magnets and how their dependence on China’s supply chain could be leveraged against them.

The Financial Times reported on Thursday that China’s Ministry of Commerce has been demanding “sensitive business information to secure rare earths and magnets” from Western companies in China, including production details and customer lists.

What have the US and China said about rare earth exports?

Trump shared some details of the agreement on his social media platform, Truth Social, where he also addressed concerns about rare earths and rare earth magnets.

“We are getting a total of 55% tariffs, China is getting 10%. The relationship is excellent,” Trump said, using a figure for US duties that includes levies introduced during his first term.

“Full magnets, and any necessary rare earths, will be supplied, up front, by China. Likewise, we will provide to China what was agreed to, including Chinese students using our colleges and universities (which has always been good with me),” Trump said.

Ahead of the negotiations in London, China’s Ministry of Commerce had said it approved an unspecified number of export licences for rare earths, and it was willing to “further strengthen communication and dialogue on export controls with relevant countries”.

However, an op-ed published by state news outlet Xinhua this week said rare earth export controls were not “short-term bargaining tools” or “tactical countermeasures” but a necessary measure because rare earths can be used for both civilian and military purposes.

NioCorp Developments’ Smith said Beijing is unlikely to quickly give up such powerful leverage over the US entirely.

“There’s going to be a whole bunch of words, but I really think China is going to hold the US hostage on this issue, because why not?” he said.

“They’ve worked really hard to get into the position that they’re in. They have 100 percent control over the heavy rare earth production in the world. Why not use that?”

Deborah Elms, the head of trade policy at the Hinrich Foundation in Singapore, said it was hard to predict how rare earths would be treated in negotiations, which would need to balance other US concerns like China’s role in exporting the deadly opioid fentanyl to the US.

Beijing, for its part, will want guarantees that it can access advanced critical US technology to make advanced semiconductors, she said.

Japan said J-15 warplanes operating from two Chinese aircraft carriers in the Pacific carried out risky manouvres around patrol planes.

Japan has protested to Beijing over what was described as Chinese fighter jets’ “near-miss” manoeuvres near Japanese maritime patrol planes over the Pacific where China’s two operational aircraft carriers were spotted deployed simultaneously for the first time last weekend.

Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported on Thursday that a Chinese J-15 warplane from the Shandong aircraft carrier flew within 45 metres (147 feet) of a Japanese P-3C maritime surveillance plane and made other “dangerous manoeuvres” during incidents on Saturday and Sunday.

“We have expressed serious concern to the Chinese side and solemnly requested prevention of recurrence,” Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said.

According to Japan’s defence ministry, P-3C aircraft, belonging to Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force based on the island of Okinawa, were conducting surveillance over international waters in the Pacific when they encountered Chinese warplanes.

On Saturday, a J-15 from the Shandong chased a Japanese P-3C patrol aircraft for about 40 minutes. Then, on Sunday, a J-15 fighter chased a P-3C for 80 minutes, crossing in front of the Japanese aircraft at a distance of only 900 metres (2,952 feet), the ministry said.

“Such abnormal approaches by Chinese military aircraft could potentially cause accidental collisions,” the defence ministry said in a statement on Wednesday, attaching close-up images of the J-15 jet it took on Sunday. There was no damage to the Japanese planes or harm caused to the aircraft crew, the ministry added.

Hayashi, the top Japanese government spokesperson, said Tokyo will maintain communications with Beijing at various levels and will also ensure the monitoring of airspace around Japan’s territories continues.

The last time a similar incident was reported was more than a decade ago in May and June 2014, when Chinese Su-27 fighter jets flew within 30 metres (98 feet) of Japan’s military planes.

The Kyodo news agency also reported that the Shandong aircraft carrier conducted takeoff and landing drills on Monday to the north of Japan’s southernmost Okinotori Island, inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The Liaoning carrier was also spotted inside the EEZ on Saturday before moving outside the zone where it also conducted takeoffs and landings on Sunday.

The United States and China say they’ve reached in principle a framework to roll back some of the punitive measures they have taken against each other’s economies.

That means Washington could ease restrictions on selling chips to China if Beijing agrees to speed up the export of rare earths.

Whether that happens depends on the approval of presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.

The plan reached after talks in London marks the latest twist in a trade war that has threatened to disrupt global supply chains.

Also, what’s behind the surge in Russia’s rouble?

Plus, are nations choosing warfare over welfare?

Five-time champions Brazil have confirmed their participation in the 2026 FIFA World Cup by defeating Paraguay 1-0, thanks to a goal by star forward Vinicius Jr in front of a jubilant home crowd in Sao Paulo.

Playing under new head coach Carlo Ancelotti, the Selecao went ahead at the stroke of half-time when the Real Madrid star found the net, much to the delight of the 46,000 fans at the Corinthians Arena on Tuesday.

In other major World Cup qualifying results, war-torn Palestine were left heartbroken when Oman drew level against them from a penalty converted deep into stoppage time in their Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualifying match in Amman, Jordan.

Palestine have been playing their international fixtures at neutral venues, including Jordan, Kuwait and Qatar. Israel’s war on Gaza, its control and destruction of sports facilities and venues in Gaza and the occupied West Bank have left the players unable to travel and play at their home venue, the Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium in ar-Ram, a town northeast of occupied Jerusalem.

Needing a win to reach the fourth round of the AFC qualifiers, Palestine led the home side through Oday Kharoub’s goal at the end of the first half.

The Al-Fidai seemed to have done enough until they conceded a penalty in the last moments of the match, and Essam al-Subhi’s spot kick in the 97th minute ended the game in a draw, crushing the Palestinian dream of having another shot at qualification by proceeding to the fourth round.

Oman have now taken up that spot.

Which teams have confirmed their qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup?

After the latest round of qualifying matches, here is a breakdown of the confirmed contenders from each of the six regions:

Africa: None of the 54 nations involved in the qualifiers has been able to confirm their spots as the first round of qualifying matches does not conclude until October 16.

Asia: Iran, Uzbekistan, South Korea, Jordan, Australia, Japan.

Europe: None. Similar to Africa, none of the 54 European teams vying for 16 qualification spots have confirmed their berths as their first-round matches will run until November 18.

North, Central American and Caribbean region: Canada, Mexico and USA. With the World Cup host nations taking three spots, only three are left up for grabs and will be decided on November 18.

Oceania: New Zealand. With one spot up for grabs and 11 nations fighting for it, New Zealand emerged victorious and took the spot by winning the third-round playoff final against New Caledonia on March 24.

South America: Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador.

Which major teams have been eliminated from qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup?

Chile, third-place finishers in 1962, are among the biggest names confirmed out of the next World Cup.

While China are not considered among the football powerhouses in Asia, the nation’s focus on building the game at home and seeing its team in another World Cup since 2002 was crushed on June 5.

Which teams can still qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup?

Apart from the nine African and 16 European spots still fully up for grabs, the others that are still in the race for a World Cup spot are:

Asia: Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Iraq, and Oman are vying for the two direct qualification slots for the World Cup and one intercontinental playoffs spot.

South America: Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia, Venezuela and Bolivia will fight for the three remaining World Cup slots, while Peru can only advance to the intercontinental playoffs.

North, Central American and Caribbean region: Honduras, Bermuda, Costa Rica, Trinidad and Tobago, Curacao, Haiti, Panama, Nicaragua, Jamaica, Guatemala, Suriname and El Salvador have all advanced to the third round, from where three teams will directly qualify for the World Cup. The three second-placed teams from each group will then fight for the intercontinental playoffs spot.

Oceania: New Caledonia have qualified for the intercontinental playoffs.

When will all teams for the 2026 FIFA World Cup be confirmed?

As late as March 31, 2026. With the European qualification rounds stretching to March and the intercontinental playoff final also scheduled for the same month, we will not know our final 48 teams for the World Cup until less than three months ahead of the tournament.

When is the 2026 FIFA World Cup scheduled?

The tournament begins in Mexico City on June 11 and ends with the final in New Jersey on July 19.

The biggest temperature increases were recorded in the Middle East, West Asia, northeast Russia, and north Canada.

This year, the world experienced its second-warmest month of May since records began, the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) has said in a monthly bulletin.

Global surface temperatures last month averaged 1.4 degrees Celsius (2.5 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than in the 1850-1900 pre-industrial period, when humans began burning fossil fuels on an industrial scale, C3S said.

The latest data comes amid mixed momentum on climate action globally, with China and the EU reducing emissions as the Trump administration and technology companies increase their use of fossil fuels.

“Temperatures were most above average over western Antarctica, a large area of the Middle East and western Asia, northeastern Russia, and northern Canada,” the C3S bulletin added.

At 1.4C above pre-industrial levels, May was also the first month globally not to go over 1.5C (2.7F) in warming in 22 months.

“May 2025 breaks an unprecedentedly long sequence of months over 1.5C above pre-industrial,” said Carlo Buontempo, director of C3S.

“Whilst this may offer a brief respite for the planet, we do expect the 1.5C threshold to be exceeded again in the near future due to the continued warming of the climate system,” Buontempo said.

The increased temperatures were particularly felt in Pakistan’s Jacobabad city in Sindh province, where residents grappled with extreme temperatures in the high 40s, which sometimes reached 50C (122 F).

The soaring temperatures followed another heatwave last June that killed more than 560 people in southern Pakistan.

“While a heatwave that is around 20C might not sound like an extreme event from the experience of most people around the world, it is a really big deal for this part of the world,” Friederike Otto, associate professor in climate science at Imperial College London, told reporters.

“It affects the whole world massively,” Otto added. “Without climate change, this would have been impossible.”

In a separate report released on Wednesday, the World Weather Attribution (WWA) research collaboration said Greenland’s ice sheet melted 17 times faster than the past average during a May heatwave that also hit Iceland.

Mixed momentum on climate action

The latest data comes amid mixed progress on climate change action.

United States President Donald Trump has promised to “drill, baby, drill” during his presidency, even as his country faces increasingly severe weather events, like the fires that tore through California’s capital, Los Angeles, late last year. Emissions from technology companies are also surging, as expanding use of artificial intelligence (AI) and data centres drives up global electricity demand, according to a recent report from the United Nations International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

New analysis by the climate reporting site Carbon Brief found that China’s emissions may have peaked, as the country increased electricity supplies from new wind, solar, and nuclear capacity and reduced its reliance on coal and other fossil fuels.

“China’s emissions were down 1.6 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025 and by 1 percent in the latest 12 months,” Carbon Brief reported last month.

“If this pattern is sustained, then it would herald a peak and sustained decline in China’s power-sector emissions,” it added.

The EU also announced last week that its 27 member states are well on track to meet their goal of a 55 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

“Emissions are down 37 percent since 1990, while the economy has grown nearly 70 percent — proving climate action and growth go hand in hand,” said Wopke Hoekstra, the EU’s commissioner for climate, net zero and clean growth.

In the Caribbean, leaders met recently to plan ways to restore the region’s mangrove forests, which help prevent climate change and protect from rising sea levels and intensifying storms.

June 11 (UPI) — The United States and China have agreed to a framework that would revive last month’s trade truce following two days of talks in London, negotiators announced Wednesday.

The framework and agreement, struck last month in Geneva, must be approved by U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping before it can take effect.

“The two largest economies in the world have reached a handshake for a framework,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters. “We have reached a framework to implement the Geneva consensus and the call between the two presidents.”

“The idea is we’re going to go back and speak to President Trump and make sure he approves it. They’re going to go back and speak to President Xi and make sure he approves it, and if that is approved, we will then implement the framework,” Lutnick said.

China’s vice commerce minister told reporters the same information.

“The two sides have, in principle, reached a framework for implementing the consensus reached by the two heads of state during the phone call on June 5th and the consensus reached at the Geneva meeting,” China’s vice commerce minister Li Chenggang said Wednesday.

While specifics of the deal were not revealed, Lutnick said both sides have agreed to roll back controls on exports that are vital to each country. Lutnick expressed optimism that that would include China’s exports of rare earth minerals and magnets to the United States.

“There were a number of measures the United States put on when those rare earths were not coming,” Lutnick added. “You should expect those to come off, sort of as President Trump said, ‘in a balanced way.'”

After their phone call last week cooled tensions amid the escalating trade dispute, Trump said Xi had agreed to restart exports of rare earth minerals and magnets, which are critical to American manufacturing.

Last month, the United States and China announced a 90-day pause on most of their tariffs. Under the agreement, the United States reduced its tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%, while China reduced its tariffs on U.S. goods from 125% to 10%.

The agreement was reached during trade negotiations in Geneva, where U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met with their Chinese counterparts, including Vice Premier He Lifeng.

Asian stocks were mostly up after Wednesday’s announcement, as Mainland China’s CSI 300 index advanced 0.77% higher. U.S. stock futures were initially flat as investors waited for more information on the trade talks.

Bessent announced he would depart the negotiations, which could continue through Wednesday, if needed. Lutnick and Greer planned to remain in London.

Negotiators say agreement will be presented to US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping for approval.

The United States and China have agreed on a “framework” on trade after two days of talks in London aimed at deescalating tensions between the sides.

While the specifics of the framework announced on Tuesday were unclear, the apparent breakthrough comes a month after Washington and Beijing announced a 90-day pause on most of their tariffs following talks in Geneva.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the sides would work to implement the “Geneva consensus” and had “pounded through” all the issues dividing the world’s two largest economies.

Lutnick said the sides would move forward with the framework pending its approval by US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who held a 90-minute phone call on trade last week.

“Once the presidents approve it, we will then seek to implement it,” Lutnick told reporters outside Lancaster House.

Lutnick indicated that US measures imposed in response to a slowdown in Chinese exports of rare earths, a key issue dividing the sides, would likely be eased once supplies of the critical minerals ticked up.

Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Li Chenggang called the talks “professional, rational, in-depth and candid”.

“The two sides will bring back and report to our respective leaders the talks in the meeting as well as the framework that was reached in principle,” Li told reporters.

“We hope that the progress we made in this London meeting is conducive to increasing trust between China and the United States.”

Asian stock markets rose on hopes of a de-escalation in the trade tensions, which have cast a shadow over the global economy.

The World Bank on Tuesday lowered its forecast for global growth from 2.7 percent to 2.3 percent, pointing to the ongoing uncertainty around trade.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up almost 0.5 percent as of 03:30 GMT, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong and CSI 300 in mainland China were about 1 percent and 0.8 higher, respectively.

“I would say that meeting a 90-day deadline for complex discussions was always going to be challenging,” Deborah Elms, the head of trade policy at the Hinrich Foundation in Singapore, told Al Jazeera.

“After two rounds of apparently intense discussions, both sides seem to have reaffirmed their interest in avoiding new escalation and have started to flesh out the path forward. Despite the optimistic language from some out of the White House, these talks are not going to be easy.”

The World Bank has slashed its 2025 global growth forecast, citing trade tensions and policy uncertainty as the United States imposed wide-ranging tariffs that weigh on global economic forecasts.

On Tuesday, the bank lowered its projection for global gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 2.3 percent in its latest economic prospects report, down from the 2.7 percent that it expected in January. This is the most recent in a series of downgrades by international organisations.

In its twice-yearly Global Economic Prospects report, the bank lowered its forecasts for nearly 70 percent of all economies, including the US, China and Europe, as well as six emerging market regions, from the levels it projected just six months ago before US President Donald Trump took office.

“That’s the weakest performance in 17 years, outside of outright global recessions,” said World Bank Group chief economist Indermit Gill.

Global growth and inflation prospects for this year and next have worsened because of “high levels of policy uncertainty and this growing fragmentation of trade relations”, Gill added.

“Without a swift course correction, the harm to living standards could be deep,” he warned.

By 2027, the World Bank expects global GDP growth to average 2.5 percent in the 2020s, which would be the slowest rate in any decade since the 1960s.

The Trump effect 

The gloomier projections come as Trump imposed a 10 percent tariff on imports from almost all US trading partners in April as well as higher rates on imports of steel and aluminium. He had initially also announced radically higher rates on dozens of these economies, which he has since suspended until early July.

Trump’s on-again off-again tariff hikes have upended global trade, increased the effective US tariff rate from below 3 percent to the mid-teens, its highest level in almost a century, and triggered retaliation by China and other countries.

He also engaged in tit-for-tat escalation with China, although both countries have hit pause on their trade war and temporarily lowered these staggering duties as well. But a lasting truce remains uncertain.

While the World Bank’s growth downgrade was proportionately larger for advanced economies, the bank cautioned that less wealthy countries have tricky conditions to contend with.

Commodity prices are expected to remain suppressed in 2025 and 2026, Gill said.

This means that some 60 percent of emerging markets and developing economies – which are commodity exporters – have to deal with a “very nasty combination of lower commodity prices and more volatile commodity markets”.

GDP downturn 

By 2027, while the per capita GDP of high-income economies will be approximately where it was in pre-pandemic forecasts, corresponding levels for developing economies would be 6 percent lower.

“Except for China, it could take these economies about two decades to recoup the economic losses of the 2020s,” Gill cautioned.

Even as GDP growth expectations have been revised downwards, inflation rates have been revised up, he said, urging policymakers to contain inflation risks.

Despite trade policy challenges, however, Gill argued that “If the right policy actions are taken, this problem can be made to go away with limited long-term damage.”

He urged for the “differential in tariff and non-tariff measures with respect to the US” to be quickly reduced by other countries, starting with the Group of 20, which brings together the world’s biggest economies.

“Every country should extend the same treatment to other countries,” Gill stressed. “It’s not enough to just liberalise with respect to the US. It’s also important to liberalise with respect to the others.”

The World Bank said developing economies could lower tariffs on all trading partners and convert preferential trade deals into pacts spanning the “full range of cross-border regulatory policies” to boost GDP growth.

Generally, wealthier countries have lower tariffs than developing countries, which could be seeking to protect budding industries or have fewer sources of government revenue.

This month, the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development also slashed its 2025 global growth forecast from 3.1 percent to 2.9 percent, warning that Trump’s tariffs would stifle the world economy.

This came after the International Monetary Fund in April too cut its world growth expectations for this year on the effects of Trump’s levies, from 3.3 percent to 2.8 percent.

Top US and Chinese officials are meeting in London in a bid to defuse trade tensions over rare earth minerals and advanced technology after a phone call between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping last week.

The two sides are aiming in Monday’s talks to build on a preliminary trade deal struck in Geneva in May, which briefly lowered the temperature between Washington and Beijing and offered relief for investors battered by months of Trump’s global trade war.

Since then, the agreement to mutually suspend most of the 100 percent-plus tariffs for 90 days has been followed by barbs and accusations from both sides.

But after reaching a tentative understanding with Xi on resuming the flow of critical minerals, Trump said on Thursday that he expected Monday’s meeting to go “very well”.

Who is leading the US and Chinese delegations?

The US delegation in London is headed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. The Chinese contingent will be led by Vice Premier He Lifeng.

The venue of the meeting has not been disclosed.

What happened during last week’s call between Xi and Trump?

Monday’s meeting comes four days after Trump and Xi spoke by phone, their first direct interaction since Trump’s January 20 inauguration.

After the more than hourlong call on Thursday, Trump said the conversation was focused on trade and had resulted in a “very positive conclusion” for both countries.

In the first readout of the call, Trump posted on his social media site, Truth Social: “I just concluded a very good phone call with President Xi, of China, discussing some of the intricacies of our recently made, and agreed to, Trade Deal.”

“There should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of Rare Earth products. Our respective teams will be meeting shortly at a location to be determined. During the conversation, President Xi graciously invited the First Lady and me to visit China, and I reciprocated,” he added.

For his part, Xi was quoted by Chinese state TV as saying after the call that the two countries should strive for a win-win outcome and dialogue and cooperation are the only right choice for both.

In recent weeks, both sides have accused the other of breaching their deal made in Geneva and aimed at dramatically reducing tariffs – an agreement Trump touted as a “total reset” after he announced tariffs on all US trading partners on April 2.

The tentative truce struck on May 11 in Geneva brought US tariffs on Chinese products down from 145 to 30 percent while Beijing slashed levies on US imports from 125 to 10 percent.

The agreement gave both sides a three-month deadline to try to reach a more lasting deal.

In what ways have US export controls played a role?

Renewed tensions between the US and China began just one day after the May 12 announcement of the Geneva agreement to temporarily lower tariffs.

The US Department of Commerce issued guidance saying the use of Ascend artificial intelligence chips from Huawei, a leading Chinese tech company, could violate US export controls.

The agency warned companies “anywhere in the world” against using AI chips made by Huawei, claiming they illegally contained, or were made with, US technology.

Beijing publicly criticised Washington’s move to limit access to American technology, accusing the US of trying to stymie China’s ability to develop cutting-edge AI chips.

On May 15, Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesperson He Yongqian accused the US of “abusing export control measures”, adding that China would take steps to defend its business interests.

Lutnick wasn’t in Geneva last month, but he is a lead negotiator in Monday’s talks in London. His Commerce Department oversees export controls for the US, and some analysts believe his participation is an indication of how central the issue has become for both sides.

China issuing rare earth licences to US companies

In response to Trump’s April 2 tariff announcement, Beijing suspended exports to all countries of six heavy rare earth metals and associated magnets on April 4.

The move upended global supply chains central to automakers, aerospace manufacturers and military contractors.

China produces 90 percent of the world’s rare earth minerals, which are essential components in permanent magnets – used in a swath of high-tech applications.

Without mentioning rare earths specifically, Trump took to social media last month to attack China’s trade restrictions.

“The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US,” Trump posted on Truth Social on May 30.

After Xi and Trump’s phone call last week, however, the Chinese government hinted that it is addressing US concerns, which have also been echoed by some European companies.

On Saturday, China’s Commerce Ministry said it had approved some rare earth exports, without specifying which countries were involved.

It issued a statement saying it had granted some approvals and “will continue to strengthen the approval of applications that comply with regulations”.

On Monday, the rare earth suppliers of three big US automakers – General Motors, Ford and Stellantis – got clearance from Beijing for a handful of export licences.

Washington wants access to as many rare earths as quickly as possible, Kevin Hassett, head of the National Economic Council at the White House, said on the CBS TV network’s Face the Nation programme on Sunday.

“We want the rare earths, the magnets that are crucial for cellphones and everything else to flow just as they did before the beginning of April, and we don’t want any technical details slowing that down,” Hassett said.

What challenges remain?

Student visas don’t normally figure in trade talks, but a recent US announcement that it would begin revoking the visas of Chinese students has emerged as another flashpoint between Washington and Beijing.

On May 28, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration would begin to “aggressively” revoke the visas of Chinese university students.

He also said the US would revise visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications from China and Hong Kong.

China is the second largest country of origin for international students in the US after India.

More than 270,000 Chinese students studied in the US in the 2023-2024 academic year.

Beijing’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning criticised Washington’s decision to revoke the visas, saying it “damaged” the rights of Chinese students.

Other concerns continue to strain the bilateral relationship from the illicit fentanyl trade to the status of democratically governed Taiwan and US complaints about China’s state-dominated economic model.

Still, Trump’s geopolitical bluster goes well beyond China. While promising to reshape relationships with all US trading partners, Trump so far has reached only one new trade agreement – with the United Kingdom.

Trump’s reduction of US tariffs on Chinese goods runs out in August unless he decides to extend it. If deals aren’t reached, the White House said Trump plans to restore tariff rates to the levels he first announced in April.

Senior delegations expected to discuss fragile tariffs deal in bid to avert trade war between world’s two biggest economies.

High-level delegations from the United States and China are to meet in London to try to save a fragile tariffs deal and avert a possible trade war that has already roiled the global economy and sparked fears of recession.

The meeting on Monday follows negotiations in Geneva last month that resulted in a temporary respite in the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. However, the agreement to suspend most of the 100 percent-plus tariffs each had imposed on the other for 90 days has been followed by barbs fired by both sides.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will meet with a Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng at an undisclosed location in the British capital.

“The meeting should go very well,” US President Donald Trump, who announced the talks on Friday after a phone call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, wrote on social media.

“We want China and the United States to continue moving forward with the agreement that was struck in Geneva,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Sunday.

While the government of United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer reiterated that it was not involved in the talks in London, a spokesperson said, “A trade war is in nobody’s interests, so we welcome these talks.”

The meeting comes just a few days after Trump and Xi held their first publicly acknowledged telephone call since the Republican returned to the White House in January.

Trump said Thursday’s call had reached a “very positive conclusion”. The US president had previously accused China of violating the Geneva deal and described Xi as “hard to make a deal with”.

Xi was quoted by the state-run news agency Xinhua as saying “correcting the course of the big ship of Sino-US relations requires us to steer well and set the direction”.

Underscoring the impact of the trade war, customs data released on Monday showed Chinese exports to the US plunged by 34.5 percent year-on-year in May, the sharpest drop since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Still, stock markets in Asia, including in China, rose on Monday before the new round of talks.