defence

Thousands of military homes across the UK will be modernised, refurbished or rebuilt over the next decade under a £9bn government plan to improve defence housing.

The Ministry of Defence’s new housing strategy will see improvements made to almost all of its 47,700 homes for military families in what Defence Secretary John Healey said will be the “biggest renewal of Armed Forces housing in more than 50 years”.

The plan is in response to consistent complaints from serving personnel about the state of their accommodation.

In 2022, dozens of members and their families told the BBC they were having to live in damp, mould-infested housing without heating.

A Commons defence committee last year found two-thirds of homes for service families needed “extensive refurbishment or rebuilding” to meet modern standards.

Under the new strategy, service family accommodation (SFA) will be refurbished with new kitchens, bathrooms and heating systems.

About 14,000 will receive either “substantial refurbishment” or be completely replaced.

The plans are part of the government’s wider defence housing strategy, to be published on Monday. A total of £4bn in funding to tackle the housing problem had already been announced.

The government says it has also identified surplus MoD land which could be used to build 100,000 new homes for civilian and military families.

Healey said: “This is a new chapter – a decisive break from decades of underinvestment, with a building programme to back Britain’s military families and drive economic growth across the country.”

Almost three years ago, the BBC was contacted by families in military accommodation in Sandhurst who had been living without heating for days.

“We’re at breaking point and something has to change. The system is broken,” they said at the time.

In response to the story, the MoD said it was working with its contractors to improve the service. But a report released in December last year found those problems “still exist”.

“It is shocking that until a policy change in 2022, it was considered acceptable to house families in properties known to have damp and mould,” the report said.

The MoD last year announced it would acquire 36,347 military houses from property company Annington Homes for nearly £6bn, reversing a privatisation deal struck in 1996 under the Conservative government.

The deal would save millions in rent and maintenance costs, the MoD said, money that would be put towards fixing military accommodation.

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to meet his U.S. counterpart Pete Hegseth in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, two Indian officials confirmed. The meeting, taking place on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM), will mark the first direct interaction between the two leaders and comes at a delicate moment for bilateral relations strained by Washington’s punitive trade tariffs on Indian imports.

The discussions are expected to cover India’s ongoing plans to acquire six Boeing P-8I maritime patrol aircraft for its navy and a proposed new India-U.S. defence cooperation framework aimed at revitalising strategic ties. According to one official, the meeting could lay the groundwork for a bilateral visit either by Hegseth to New Delhi or Singh to Washington as both sides look to reset momentum in defence diplomacy.

Key Issues

Relations between India and the United States hit a low point earlier this year when U.S. President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on Indian imports to 50% to punish New Delhi for continuing to purchase Russian oil. The planned Singh-Hegseth meeting in Washington in August was consequently scrapped.

However, geopolitical shifts are now offering both sides an opening to rebuild ties. Following U.S. sanctions on Moscow’s top crude exporters, Indian refiners have reduced imports of Russian oil, aligning New Delhi’s actions more closely with Western interests. Washington, in turn, appears keen to re-engage with India to strengthen strategic cooperation in Asia particularly in countering China’s influence.

Why It Matters

The meeting is a key test of how far the India-U.S. strategic partnership can withstand trade disputes and geopolitical friction. Defence cooperation has been one of the strongest pillars of bilateral relations, spanning arms sales, joint exercises, and intelligence sharing under the Quad framework.

Reviving momentum now could reinforce India’s role as a security partner for the U.S. in the Indo-Pacific, especially as Washington seeks to deepen defence ties in the region amid rising tensions in the South China Sea and with China’s growing assertiveness.

India’s Defence Ministry: Seeking to secure technology transfers and diversify suppliers while preserving its strategic autonomy.

U.S. Department of Defense: Looking to reassure New Delhi of continued defence engagement despite trade frictions.

Boeing and U.S. defence contractors: Potential beneficiaries if new procurement deals move forward.

ASEAN nations: Watching the talks closely as regional defence alignments shift amid great-power competition.

What’s Next

Singh is expected to deliver formal remarks at the ASEAN meeting on November 1, where he may underscore India’s vision for regional security and freedom of navigation. If Friday’s talks go smoothly, analysts anticipate a high-level bilateral visit could follow within months a sign that the world’s two largest democracies are again moving toward strategic alignment after a period of economic friction.

For now, both sides remain cautious but pragmatic, aware that long-term interests especially in defence and Indo-Pacific security outweigh short-term trade disputes.

With information from Reuters.

The Great British Bake Off judges Dame Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood have opened up about their judging roles on the popular Channel 4 show and how they’re perceived by viewers

Prue Leith has leapt to the defence of her fellow judge, Paul Hollywood, over his so-called “horrible” image on The Great British Bake Off. Speaking from the iconic tent at Welford Park in Berkshire, the Bake Off judges shed light on their roles and how they’re seen by fans of the Channel 4 programme.

Prue, a South African-born restaurateur, pointed out that they’re perceived quite differently by the public, with her being seen as “kind” and Paul as “horrible”, but when it comes down to the brass tacks of scoring, they’re pretty similar.

The chef disclosed that their chat about the bakes in Cake Corner is generally to “inform and remind” the viewers, as, in reality, Prue and Paul could “do it in two seconds”.

Prue told Radio Times magazine: “The audience often say that I’m kind and Paul’s horrible, but if you look at our scores out of 10, we’re never more than one point apart. I think I’ve given one 10 in nine years… I can’t remember to who though!”.

She continued: “I used to say, ‘It’s not worth the calories’. That is my absolute judgment about any baking, because you know it’s full of fat and sugar, so: ‘Do I really want to eat this? Am I prepared to get fat?'”

However, it appears Prue had a change of heart regarding this particular remark, as people would say they “felt judged” for enjoying cake and thought she was being “fattist”.

Paul stated: “I’ve never given a 10, only a 9.5. A handshake is very close to a 10. These are amateur bakers, but if they get a handshake from me, it means it’s very professional.”

Prue added that Paul often claims he won’t be giving out any handshakes, but inevitably his hand will “come out” when a bake is so impressive that he “can’t resist”. She also mentioned the idea of her own version, the “Prue pat”.

In other developments, Paul, who has been on the show since 2010, reportedly showed a different side away from the cameras. Briony May Williams, who came fourth in the 2018 series, broke down in tears when “every element” of her showstopper went awry.

On the show, the chef labelled her creation “a disaster” as she “overcooked” the mirror glaze and was unfortunately left with uncooked pastry. However, Paul’s off-camera actions revealed a gentler side.

She disclosed: “I never got a [Paul Hollywood] handshake. I did, however, get a Hollywood hug off-camera when I was really upset about my cake on Cake Week, my showstopper, because it was really bad.

“I was upset, I was sat on my bench crying and I realised someone was stood behind me and I turned around and it was Paul.

“He gave me a really big hug and he said, ‘It’s okay it’s only a f*****g cake’. And yeah, that just really made me laugh.”

You can catch The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice on Channel 4 on Friday, October 24, from 8pm to 9pm.

BBC

‘Time to get more aware’

South Korea is setting its sights on joining the ranks of the world’s top four defence powers by 2030, with President Lee Jae Myung announcing a major funding boost for weapons and aerospace research at the country’s largest-ever arms fair on Monday.

Speaking at the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (ADEX) 2025, President Lee unveiled plans for a “larger-than-expected budget” dedicated to defence innovation, including next-generation weapons, unmanned systems, and AI-driven combat technology.

South Korea, currently ranked 10th globally in arms sales according to SIPRI data, has rapidly emerged as a major weapons exporter, fueled by rising global demand following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Becoming one of the top four powerhouses in the defence industry is by no means an impossible dream,” Lee declared, outlining a strategy centered on self-reliance and technological sovereignty.

Technological Focus: Building Independence

Lee emphasized that Seoul’s path to military dominance will hinge on indigenous innovation from advanced semiconductors to locally developed materials and components critical for modern warfare systems.

“We will establish technological sovereignty by focusing investment on technologies, parts, and materials that must be secured independently,” Lee said, signaling a drive to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers and strengthen Korea’s high-tech defence ecosystem.

Why It Matters

South Korea’s defence surge represents a new phase in global power dynamics, as traditional arms leaders like the U.S., Russia, and China face rising competition from technologically agile exporters. The move also underscores Seoul’s bid to leverage its world-class electronics and shipbuilding expertise for military dominance.

With defence exports surging from howitzers and missiles to warships and ammunition South Korea is fast becoming a preferred arms supplier for nations seeking reliable alternatives amid supply disruptions from traditional powers.

Government: Pledging billions in R&D and industry subsidies through 2030.

Korean Defence Firms (Hanwha, LIG Nex1, Hyundai Rotem): Showcasing AI-enhanced and unmanned weapons at ADEX to attract new export clients.

Overseas Buyers: Poland, Australia, and the UAE remain top partners, signaling Seoul’s growing footprint in both European and Middle Eastern markets.

Industry Analysts: See the move as a turning point that could push South Korea past traditional mid-tier arms exporters like France and the U.K. in global rankings.

What’s Next

South Korea plans to use the ADEX 2025 platform to announce new export deals and joint ventures aimed at expanding its defence technology abroad. The government is expected to release its 2030 Defence Industry Roadmap early next year, detailing specific spending targets and export goals.

If successful, Seoul’s ascent could redefine Asia’s military-industrial balance transforming the country from a security consumer into one of the world’s dominant arms producers.

With information from Reuters.

Although that option is viable, it is much more likely Crocker will either face Benn or enjoy another big night in Belfast for a first voluntary defence.

However, much will depend on the outcome of November’s middleweight rematch between Benn and Chris Eubank Jr in terms of when Benn could be ready to return to the ring and drop back to welterweight.

The updated IBF rankings have former light-welterweight champion Liam Paro in the number two position with Donovan, who is understood to be appealing September’s decision at Windsor Park, in third.

A successful outcome for Donovan would most likely see him retain his high ranking and secure a final eliminator against Paro for the mandatory slot.

“Benn is the fight Crocker wants and he is confident he will beat him,” Conlan confirmed.

“That’s all well and good and the numbers are exciting, but you are putting Lewis’ livelihood on hold in hope of what will happen in another fight [Eubank-Benn II] and it doesn’t work like that, so get something booked for Belfast and most likely that’s what will happen next. If they [Matchroom] control the situation with the mandatory, then it can be pushed off and we can do Benn [after a first voluntary].

“There are still a few moving parts to happen, but I think Paro will fight Donovan or Karen Chukhadzhian next.

“Donovan’s team have appealed so his ranking hasn’t moved. That could be good news for ‘Croc’ as his mandatory will be kept on the long finger if Paro is out in the early part of next year. That could give us the opportunity of two voluntaries before we have a mandatory.”

Kyiv has announced that it is sending a delegation to Washington for talks on strengthening its defence and energy resilience as Russian forces continue targeting Ukraine’s power infrastructure ahead of the cold winter months.

The departure of a senior delegation, led by Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, was announced on Monday, just as Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said it had imposed power outages across the country in a bid to reduce pressure on the grid in the wake of damaging Russian attacks.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that he would meet with his US counterpart, President Donald Trump, in Washington on Friday to discuss Ukraine’s air defence and long-range strike capabilities.

Speaking to reporters in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said that he had shared with Trump a “vision” of how many US Tomahawk missiles Ukraine needs for its war effort against Russia and that the two leaders would further discuss the matter on Friday.

The comments came after recent remarks by Trump that he might consider giving Ukraine long-range precision strike Tomahawk missiles if Russia did not end the war soon, and as Zelenskyy has urged Trump to turn his attention to ending his country’s war with Russia, after having brokered a deal in Gaza.

Attacks on energy grid

The renewed talk of escalating pressure on Moscow comes in the wake of intensified Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy facilities, prompting Ukraine’s Energy Ministry to announce that it was introducing restrictions across seven regions in an effort to reduce pressure on the damaged grid and preserve supply.

For the past three years, Russia has targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in a bid to demoralise the population, leaving millions without power amid brutally cold conditions.

“Due to the complicated situation in Ukraine’s Unified Energy System caused by previous Russian strikes, emergency power outages were implemented” across seven regions, the energy ministry said in a post on Telegram.

It listed territories mainly in the centre and east of the country, including the Donetsk region, where officials have encouraged civilians to leave due to the targeted attacks on power facilities.

“The emergency power cuts will be cancelled once the situation in the power grid has stabilised,” the statement said.

The escalating attacks left more than a million households and businesses temporarily without power in nine regions on Friday, while overnight attacks on Saturday night left two employees of Ukraine’s largest private energy company wounded.

“Russia has … made its attacks on our energy more vicious – to compensate for their failure on the ground,” Zelenskyy said on Sunday.

Delegation to Washington

In response to the attacks, Zelenskyy’s Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak said on Monday that a delegation, including Svyrydenko and National Security and Defence Council Secretary Rustem Umerov, had left for talks in Washington.

“We’re heading for high-level talks to strengthen Ukraine’s defence, secure our energy resilience, and intensify sanctions pressure on the aggressor,” he posted on X.

“The ultimate goal remains unchanged – a just and lasting peace.”

The delegation came after Zelenskyy said on Sunday that he had spoken to Trump for the second time in two days, in discussions that covered “defence of life in our country” and  “strengthening our capabilities – in air defence, resilience, and long-range capabilities”.

“We also discussed many details related to the energy sector. President Trump is well informed about everything that is happening,” he said, adding that their respective teams were preparing for the talks.

Tomahawks on the table

Following the conversation, Trump told reporters on board his flight to Israel that he might consider giving Ukraine long-range precision strike Tomahawk missiles if Russia did not end the war soon.

“They’d like to have Tomahawks. That’s a step up,” Trump said, referring to the Ukrainians.

“The Tomahawk is an incredible weapon, very offensive weapon. And honestly, Russia does not need that,” Trump added.

On Monday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov responded to the suggestion that Washington could provide the missiles to Kyiv by saying such a move could have serious consequences.

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev went even further, warning Trump on Monday that supplying Tomahawks to Ukraine could “end badly” for him.

Moscow has long expressed its concern over the prospect of advanced weapons transfers to Ukraine, saying such deliveries would entail direct US involvement in the conflict.

The meeting was supposed to be the prelude to the purchase of Finnish icebreaker ships.

But as United States President Donald Trump welcomed Finland’s President Alexander Stubb to the Oval Office on Thursday, he veered into a discussion of the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance (NATO) — and his ongoing feud with one of its members, Spain.

At a NATO summit in June, Spain was the most prominent holdout against Trump’s push to increase defence spending among member states.

Trump has long sought for all NATO members to commit 5 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) to building up their military assets. But Spain successfully pushed for an exemption at June’s meeting, allowing its expenditures to remain around the previous benchmark of 2 percent.

That resistance lingered on Trump’s mind at Thursday’s meeting, as he discussed the US commitment to NATO with Stubb.

“As you know, I requested that they pay 5 percent, not 2 percent,” Trump said of the NATO members.

“And most people thought that was not gonna happen. And it happened virtually unanimously. We had one laggard. It was Spain. Spain. You have to call them and find out: Why are they a laggard?”

He then mused about taking retribution: “They have no excuse not to do this, but that’s all right. Maybe you should throw them out of NATO, frankly.”

It was a bitter note in an otherwise friendly meeting with Stubb, whom Trump hosted in March at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

Since his first term as president, Trump has wavered in his public comments about NATO, at times embracing the alliance and, at other moments, rejecting it as “obsolete”.

But seated next to Stubb and Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, Trump took a decidedly enthusiastic approach to defending Finland, one of the newest members of NATO. It joined the alliance in April 2023, followed by Sweden less than a year later.

Reporters at Thursday’s Oval Office meeting pressed Trump about what he might do if Russia expands its war in Ukraine to other countries in Europe.

In Finnish politics, the spectre of Russian interference looms large: The former Soviet Union invaded Finland in the 1930s, and since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, relations between the two countries have soured even further.

Finland closed its shared border with Russia in 2024, an international divide that stretches across 1,340 kilometres, or 841 miles.

“What if Russia and Vladimir Putin attacks Finland? Would you defend Finland?” one reporter asked Trump on Thursday.

Trump did not mince words in his reply. “I would. Yes, I would. They’re a member of NATO.”

He nevertheless cast doubt on the prospect of a Russian invasion under Putin.

“I don’t think that’s going to happen. I don’t think he’s going to do that. I think the chances of that are very, very small,” he said, turning to Stubb. “You have a very powerful military, one of the best.”

When pushed to specify how he might defend Finland in case of an attack, Trump offered one word in reply: “Vigorously.”

Those warm remarks offered a stark contrast with his approach to Spain. In the wake of the June NATO summit, for instance, Trump called Spain’s position “hostile” and threatened its economy, pledging to make it pay “twice as much” in tariffs to the US.

“I think Spain is terrible, what they’ve done,” he told reporters, accusing the country of taking a “free ride” at other countries’ expense. “That economy could be blown right out of the water with something bad happening.”

NATO was founded with 12 original members and has since expanded to include 32. Spain joined in 1982. So far, no members have ever been expelled.

Pukpuk treaty commits the two neighbours to greater military cooperation, although the text is yet to be released.

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea (PNG) James Marape have signed a mutual defence treaty in Canberra, with the leaders saying the text of the agreement will be available soon.

Marape told reporters on Monday in the Australian capital that the treaty was drawn up “out of geography, history and the enduring reality of our shared neighbourhood”.

“It is about one bigger fence that secures two houses that has its own yard space,” Marape said, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

The Papua New Guinean leader disagreed that the pact was drawn up due to broader geopolitical issues, in an apparent reference to the military interests of countries like China and the United States in the Pacific region.

“This treaty was not conceived out of geopolitics or any other reason,” Marape said.

“We maintain friendships to all enemies, we advocate peace wherever we engage, in as far as foreign relations concern,” PNG’s leader added.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the treaty “makes very explicit” that there will be “interoperability” between the two neighbouring countries’ “defence assets”, adding that “our greatest asset is our people”.

The ABC reported that this meant the two countries would share the same rights as current members of the Five Eyes agreement, which Australia shares with Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the US.

Marape’s office said last week that the agreement will create a path for 10,000 Papua New Guineans to serve in the Australian Defence Force, as his country also aims to build up its own defence force to 7,000 troops.

Papua New Guinea has a population of some 12 million people, of which about 40 percent live below the poverty line, in stark contrast to its richer neighbour, Australia.

The signing of the Pukpuk treaty comes weeks after Papua New Guinea celebrated 50 years of independence from Australia, which assumed control of its northern neighbour as a colonial power in 1902, after both countries were colonised by the UK.

In August 2013, Australia signed a memorandum of understanding with Papua New Guinea, which saw thousands of migrants arriving in Australia by boat detained on Manus Island in offshore detention.

The controversial detention centre closed in 2017, leaving hundreds of refugees stranded.

Australia is also seeking to sign a security agreement with Fiji, after a similar agreement covering both security and climate change with Vanuatu stalled last month.

Australia also recently signed a landmark treaty with Tuvalu, the world’s first agreement offering visas to help people facing displacement due to the climate crisis to resettle.

Climate change remains a key security concern for many countries in the region, with Australia bidding to host the 2026 UN COP climate change meeting, alongside its Pacific neighbours.

The bid has yet to materialise as Turkiye is also formally campaigning to host the same meeting.

Australia are the team to beat in this tournament and Alyssa Healy’s side showed signs of the quality that has seen them rack up so many global titles.

While not at their best against their Trans-Tasman rivals, the overwhelming quality of their line-up was enough to dig their side out of the occasional holes they found themselves in over the course of the match.

Healy’s side is star-studded, and strong enough that it could omit Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham, Heather Graham and Megan Schutt, all players of sufficient quality to be signed as overseas players in the recent Hundred season.

Gardner starred with 16 fours and one six in her aggressive innings, but she was supported by a lower order that bats deep, with McGrath (26), Sophie Molineux (14) and Garth (38) all chipping in useful runs.

Molineux and Darcie Brown bowled superbly in the powerplay, with the former bowling Suzie Bates in the second over after Georgia Plimmer had been run-out without facing.

Alana King took the crucial middle-order wickets of Melie Kerr and Brooke Halliday to deprive Devine of two potential long-term partners at the crease, while Sutherland conceded just 25 runs from her first eight overs.

It was her ninth that brought the game to its dramatic conclusion, with the all-rounder dismissing Devine then Jess Kerr and Eden Carson with consecutive deliveries for a triple-wicket maiden, before Molineux (3-25) wrapped up the match by having Illing caught behind in the following over.

Harlequins: T Green; David, Beard, Kerr, Murley; J Evans, Porter; Baxter, Walker, Williams, Cunningham-South, Treadwell, Kenningham, W Evans, Dombrandt

Replacements: Turner, Els, Streeter, J Green, Carr, M Green, Kolade, Anderson

Sin-bin: Cunningham-South [33]

Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Lawrence, Redpath, Arundell; Ojomoh, Spencer; Obano, Dunn, Sela, Roux, Ewels, Bayliss, Pepper, Reid

Replacements: Tuipulotu, Van Wyk, Griffin, Molony, Hill, Carr-Smith, Harris, Underhill

Referee: Stuart Terheege

The reason for the meeting, set for next Tuesday, remains unclear, with Trump dismissing concerns as not ‘a big deal’.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has summoned senior United States military officers from their posts around the world to a meeting next week in Virginia, for what is expected to be a rare gathering.

The summons was reported in US media on Thursday and confirmed later in the day by Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell.

It was not immediately clear why Hegseth ordered the generals and admirals to meet in Virginia on such short notice or what the meeting’s agenda will look like.

There are approximately 800 generals and admirals in the US military, and such senior officials can, in some cases, command thousands of troops, including in sensitive locations overseas.

Most have detailed schedules that are set weeks in advance. One military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the news agency Reuters that those schedules have now been upended.

“People are scrambling to change their plans and see if they have to attend,” the official said.

For his part, Parnell declined to offer specifics about the meeting, telling reporters, “The Secretary of War will be addressing his senior military leaders early next week.”

At an Oval Office signing ceremony on Thursday, Trump expressed optimism about Hegseth’s meeting, describing it as a good idea.

“I love it. I think it’s great,” Trump said. “Let him be friendly with the generals and admirals from all over the world.”

He also appeared to downplay concerns that the event could take military leaders away from posts critical for national security. He expressed surprise that the meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, had gained national attention.

“Why is that such a big deal?” Trump asked a reporter. “The fact that we’re getting along with the generals and admirals? Remember, I’m the president of peace. It’s good to get along. It’s good. You act like this is a bad thing.”

Vice President JD Vance, who was at the Oval Office meeting, also sought to brush aside the anticipated criticism.

“It’s not particularly unusual that generals who report to the secretary of war and then to the president of the United States are coming to speak with the secretary of war,” Vance said, adding it was “odd” that reporters were asking about it.

Since Trump took office for a second term in January, he and Hegseth have taken on a campaign of reimagining the Department of Defense.

They have, for instance, fired top military leaders, including CQ Brown, a former Air Force general who was serving as the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

In May, he ordered a 20-percent reduction in the number of four-star officers, adding that there would be an additional 10-percent reduction among general and flag officers across the military.

Hegseth has also called for the military to end its diversity initiatives, and several officials have been terminated for their alleged roles in such programmes.

Instead, Hegseth has called on the military to increase its “lethality” and “restore” its “warrior ethos”.

Earlier this month, Trump signed an order making it his policy to refer to the Defense Department as the Department of War, as it had been until 1949.

But the name change will remain largely confined to the executive branch. A permanent change would require Congress to pass legislation adopting the new name.

Australian PM Albanese fails to sign mutual defence pact a week after also failing to sign security deal with Vanuatu.

Australia has failed to secure a defence treaty with Papua New Guinea (PNG) that would have seen their militaries commit to defending each other in the case of an armed attack.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and PNG Prime Minister James Marape signed a “defence communique” in the capital Port Moresby on Wednesday instead of the anticipated mutual defence treaty.

Albanese’s failure to sign the defence deal with PNG, the largest Pacific Island nation, comes on the heels of last week’s failed attempt by the Australian prime minister to secure a security partnership with fellow Pacific nation Vanuatu.

Both security deals are seen as part of Australia’s push to counter China as a rising power in the Pacific region.

Waiting a little longer to sign the treaty with PNG was “perfectly understandable”, Albanese told reporters, adding that he expected it to be signed in the “coming weeks”.

“The wording has been agreed to. The communique today, as signed, outlines precisely what is in the treaty,” Albanese said, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Joint communique between Papua New Guinea and Australia on a Mutual Defence Treaty, signed today. 🇵🇬🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/rSUCHPLCJW

— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) September 17, 2025

Marape told reporters there was “no sticking point”, suggesting that the mutual defence treaty could be signed shortly.

Marape also said that China had no hand in delaying the signing of the deal with Australia.

The Australian prime minister said earlier that the delay was due to a meeting of the PNG cabinet failing to reach a quorum of members to endorse the treaty.

Vanuatu security partnership also delayed

Last week, officials in Vanuatu said that the government’s coalition partners required further scrutiny of the security partnership with Australia, worth some $500 million Australian dollars ($326.5m), as there were fears it could limit the country’s access to infrastructure funding from other countries.

China is Vanuatu’s largest external creditor and has provided loans for Chinese firms to undertake major infrastructure projects in the country.

PNG’s Marape struck a more optimistic tone on Wednesday, telling journalists that it was in his country’s and Australia’s mutual interests to work side by side on defence.

“I made a conscious choice that Australia remains our security partner of choice,” Marape said, according to the Reuters news agency.

Australia’s delays in sowing deeper defence ties with PNG and Vanuatu in the Pacific region come as the much-vaunted AUKUS submarine deal between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, remains under a cloud amid a review of the original 2021 deal by the Pentagon.

US defence officials have said they ordered the review to reassess if it was in line with President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda.

Despite the review, Australian Minister for Defence Richard Marles said in June that he was confident that the AUKUS plan to provide Australia with closely-guarded US nuclear propulsion technology, worth hundreds of billions of dollars, to build next-generation nuclear submarines would proceed.

In a tetchy exchange with an Australian reporter on Tuesday, Trump revealed that Albanese would be visiting him shortly in Washington, DC.

When asked whether it was appropriate for a president to have so many business dealings, Trump told the ABC reporter that he was “hurting” relations between the US and Australia.

“You’re hurting Australia. In my opinion, you are hurting Australia very much right now, and they want to get along with me,” Trump told the reporter.

“You know, your leader is coming over to see me very soon. I’m going to tell him about you. You set a very bad tone,” Trump said, before sharply telling the reporter to be “quiet”.

Albanese is scheduled to attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York next week.

MICHAEL OWEN has launched a passionate defence of his own career after being compared to Wayne Rooney on social media.

Owen, 45, has made sure everybody remembers just how good he was in his youth, replying to a question over who was better at 17 between Rooney and the former Real Madrid man.

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Fans online have been debating the topic of which breakthrough teenager was the better player, given that both Owen and Rooney burst on to the scene and impressed at such young ages.

But in reply to a post asking who was better aged 17, Owen laid out the facts as to why he thinks his early years trump Wazza’s.

He wrote on X: “At 17 I scored 18 PL goals (winning the Golden Boot), Wazza scored 6.

“At 18, I again scored 18 goals (again winning the Golden Boot and coming 4th in The Ballon d’Or), Wazza scored 9.

“In our opening 7 seasons, Wazza didn’t outscore me once (117 goals v 80). In which time I became the 2nd youngest Ballon d’Or winner ever.

“Injuries hindered me from then on while he sustained his level.

“Therefore, he’ll go down as a better player than me. But, at 17, please…”

Owen won the Ballon d’Or in 2001 – the last Brit to lift the prestigious individual award.

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While he twice won the Premier League Golden Boot as a teenager, doing it at 18 and 19 years of age to become the youngest ever recipient of the award.

Despite Owen’s claims of scoring 18 goals in the Premier League aged 17, he had actually only bagged five league goals before his 18th birthday.

He went on to score a total of 18 during the 1996/97 season, subsequently winning his first Golden Boot, but scored 13 of those goals after his 18th birthday.

His later career tailed off, with injuries meaning Owen ended his playing days with a total of 223 goals in 483 appearances.

Rooney, on the other hand, notched 313 goals in 764 appearances.

Owen recently described his “agony” at the fact people don’t remember how good he was.

Speaking on the Rio Ferdinand Presents Podcast, Owen explained: “People will have only seen me or remember me in the later years when I’m getting worse and worse and worse and worse and worse.

“The agony for me is that nobody remembers. Only a few people remember what I was like when I was ten and 12 and 15 and 18 and maybe up to 22.

“I was past it and on the way down by 21 or whatever.

“That’s the agony because was there another 18-year-old that was anywhere near me at 18? I was light years clear of anything in my age group, anything in England.

“You can bring the next kid and the next kid and the next kid and the next one that scores ten goals and everybody’s like: ‘Oh, it’s the next Michael Owen’.

“But I was competing against great strikers. Now there’s like four, five good strikers in the Premier League.”

Rooney vs Owen before they turned 18

Here’s a look at how Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney’s careers looked before their 18th birthdays…

MICHAEL OWEN

• Club apps: 21
• Club goals: 9
• Club assists: 5
• International apps: 0
• International apps: 0

WAYNE ROONEY

• Club apps: 46
• Club goals: 9
• Club assists: 2
• International apps: 8
• International apps: 2

DEFENCE chiefs were hit by nearly 300 suspected security breaches every week, latest figures show.

The toll, for the first half of last year, more than doubled in two years.

It included staff posting sensitive information on social media and gaming sites.

Military personnel have also given away secrets on their OnlyFans subscription pages, while restricted papers have been found in the street.

Blunders have included revealing the position of troops and ships, the security of military bases and details on weaponry and manoeuvres.

Figures obtained by The Sun show that in 2023 — the most recent full year with available stats — there were 12,713 security incidents.

In the first six months of 2024 there were a further 7,710. In 2021, the MoD recorded just 5,522.

There are no rules banning personnel from joining social networks as long as they maintain high standards.

This year Apache helicopter pilot Harry Bourne was dishonourably discharged from the Army for sharing videos and photos of himself on OnlyFans which revealed secrets of Wattisham Airfield, in Suffolk.

Security expert Graham Cluley said: “It all sounds like a joke but it’s deadly serious.”

The Ministry of Defence said: “We take data security extremely seriously and are committed to ensuring incidents are dealt with properly.”

1

Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka set the platform for a US Open second-round victory over Polina Kudermetova by continuing her formidable tie-break record.

Sabalenka, 27, claimed her 17th consecutive tie-break in a 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 win in Wednesday’s night session in New York.

Being able to lock in when it mattered proved crucial once again for the world number one, who has won 10 of her past 11 matches when winning a first-set tie-break.

Taking the opener dampened her Russian opponent’s spirits and led to Sabalenka going on to break early in the second set.

Sabalenka’s service game was still a little scratchy – digging deep to save two break points before holding for 3-1 – but her level improved as she raced towards victory.

On the reason why she has been so dominant in tie-breaks this season, the three-time Grand Slam champion said: “I’m just trying to stay aggressive and fight for every point.

“I know every point can be a key moment of the set so I’m just trying to stay strong and play aggressive.”

Sabalenka is aiming to become the first player to defend the women’s singles title since Serena Williams in 2014.

Next she will face Canada’s Leylah Fernandez, who was a beaten finalist in 2021 when she lost to Britain’s Emma Raducanu.

World number one Jannik Sinner dropped only four games in a dominant straight-set win over Vit Kopriva in the first round of the US Open.

The defending champion wrapped up a 6-1 6-1 6-2 victory over Czech player Kopriva, ranked 89th in the world, in an hour and 38 minutes on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Most notably, the 24-year-old Italian showed little sign of the illness which forced him to retire early from his Cincinnati Open final against Carlos Alcaraz last week.

“I’m very happy that I’m healthy again and that we did our best to be in the best possible shape here,” Sinner said after his win.

Kopriva, making his main-draw debut in New York, failed to pose any serious threat to Sinner, who has now won 22 consecutive matches at hard-court Grand Slams.

Israel has completely destroyed more than 1,000 buildings in the Zeitoun and Sabra neighbourhoods of Gaza City since it started its invasion of the city on August 6, trapping hundreds under the rubble, the Palestinian Civil Defence says.

The agency said in a statement on Sunday that ongoing shelling and blocked access routes are preventing many rescue and aid operations in the area.

Emergency workers continue to receive numerous reports of missing people but are unable to respond, while hospitals are overwhelmed by the toll of the attacks, it added.

“There are grave concerns about the continued incursion of Israeli forces into Gaza City, at a time when field crews lack the capacity to deal with the intensity of the ongoing Israeli attacks,” the Civil Defence said.

“There is no safe area in the Gaza Strip, whether in the north or south, where shelling continues to target civilians in their homes, shelters, and even in their displacement camps.”

Israeli tanks have been rolling into the Sabra neighbourhood as Israel moves to fully occupy Gaza City, forcing close to 1 million Palestinians there southwards.

The Civil Defence’s assertion appears to confirm fears that Israel is planning to fully demolish Gaza City, as it did in Rafah, a campaign that rights advocates say could be aimed at removing all Palestinians from Gaza.

At least three people, including a child, were among the latest victims killed in an attack on a residential apartment on al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City, according to a source in the enclave’s emergency and ambulance department.

The area, where famine has been declared, has been under relentless Israeli bombardment over the last several weeks. Residents reported explosions echoing nonstop through the neighbourhoods, while several buildings were also blown up further north, in the ravaged Jabalia refugee camp.

At least 51 people were killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza on Sunday, including 27 in Gaza City and 24 aid seekers, medical sources told Al Jazeera.

Gaza’s Ministry of Health said eight more people died of Israeli-induced hunger as starvation in the enclave intensifies, raising deaths from malnutrition to 289 people, including 115 children, since the war began.

Israeli forces have been routinely opening fire on hungry Palestinians as they attempt to secure meagre aid parcels at the controversial, Israeli and US-backed GHF sites.

‘Impossible’ to stay alive

Commenting on the worsening humanitarian situation, Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), said that famine is the “last calamity” hitting Gaza, where people are experiencing “hell in all shapes”.

“‘Never Again’ has deliberately become ‘again’. This will haunt us. Denial is the most obscene expression of dehumanisation,” Lazzarini wrote on X.

He added that it was time for the Israeli government to allow aid organisations to provide assistance, and for foreign journalists to be allowed into the enclave.

Gaza’s Ministry of Interior warned against Israeli plans to forcibly displace residents from Gaza City and the northern governorates, urging people against leaving their homes despite heavy bombardment.

The ministry called on residents to remain in their communities, or if threatened, to move only to nearby areas rather than relocate to the south.

“We urge citizens and displaced persons residing in Gaza City not to respond to the occupation’s threats and terrorism, and to refuse to be displaced and move to the remaining areas of the central and Khan Younis governorates,” it said.

“There is no safe place in any of the governorates of the Gaza Strip, and the occupation commits the most heinous crimes daily, even bombing the tents of displaced persons in areas it falsely claims are humanitarian or safe.”

Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Deir el-Balah, said Palestinians are nonetheless fleeing areas in Gaza City “under intensive Israeli air strikes and also attacks by quadcopters”.

“We met a couple of these families, and they said that it was [nearly] impossible for them to stay alive as they were fleeing and quadcopters were opening fire on whatever was moving in that area,” Khoudary said.

“Some Palestinians made it safely and were able to flee, but others were trapped in those areas and are unable to leave,” she added.

Leading rights groups and UN experts have accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.

Report comes a day before US President Donald Trump’s summit with his South Korean counterpart, Lee Jae-myung, in Washington, DC.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has overseen the firing of two new air defence missiles, state media reported, announcing that the tests showed the weapons had “superior combat capability”.

The report on Sunday comes a day before United States President Donald Trump meets his South Korean counterpart, Lee Jae-myung, in Washington, DC.

North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said the tests, which took place on Saturday, showed that the missiles demonstrated a “fast response” to aerial targets such as attack drones and cruise missiles.

The report did not explain the new missiles in any detail, only that their “operation and reaction mode is based on unique and special technology”.

It also did not say where the test had been carried out.

The launches also come as South Korea and the US continue their annual joint military drills and as the South Korean military announced that it had fired warning shots at several North Korean soldiers who had briefly crossed their heavily militarised border on Tuesday.

The United Nations Command in South Korea put the number of North Korean troops that crossed the border at 30, the Yonhap news agency reported.

North Korean state media, meanwhile, quoted Army Lieutenant General Ko Jong Chol as saying the incident was a “premeditated and deliberate provocation”.

“This is a very serious prelude that would inevitably drive the situation in the southern border area, where a huge number of forces are stationing in confrontation with each other, to the uncontrollable phase,” Ko said.

Earlier this month, Kim condemned the US-South Korea joint military drills as their intent to remain “most hostile and confrontational” to his country, pledging to speed up nuclear build-up.

South Korea’s new leader, Lee, has sought warmer ties with the nuclear-armed neighbour, and has promised to build “military trust”, but Pyongyang has said it has no interest in improving relations with Seoul.