Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov came face-to-face with Western critics while attending international security talks on Thursday, amid European protests that Vladimir Putin’s top diplomat was invited to the summit while he wages war against Ukraine. Some European officials present in North Macedonia walked out as the Russian minister addressed a session for foreign ministers of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation of Europe (OSCE), videos of the event showed. A number of foreign ministers refused to attend the event over Russia’s involvement, including those of Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Some states, Ukraine among them, sent no representatives whatsoever. US secretary of state Antony Blinken made only a brief stop in North Macedonia’s capital, Skopje, late on Wednesday, and did not attend Thursday’s talks. Mr Lavrov spoke for15 minutes, during which the walkout occurred. It was not immediately clear from videos which countries’ officials were involved. The Russian foreign minister’s comments followed the now-familiar narrative from the Kremlin that “Nato’s reckless expansion to the East” was to blame for war returning to Europe, rather than his own president’s decision to order the invasion of Ukraine. “Unfortunately, the Western political elites, which have arrogated to themselves the right to decide the fate of humanity, have made a short-sighted choice not in favour of the OSCE, but in favour of Nato. In favour of the philosophy of containment, zero-sum geopolitical games and the ‘master-slave’ logic,” Mr Lavrov told the session. He also attacked the platform of the summit itself, saying that “the OSCE and its relevant institutions are silent” over what he described as the denial of “the very existence of Russians and their decisive contribution to the histroy of Ukraine”. And he blamed the start of the Ukraine war on Western tolerance for the “ruling neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv”. Russian president Vladimir Putin has repeatedly alleged that Ukraine’s government is made up of “neo-Nazis,” even though the country has a democratically elected Jewish president who lost relatives in the Holocaust. Western ministers attending the OSCE meeting were sharply critical of Mr Lavrov after he spoke. “Russia’s attempts to blame others for its own choices are transparent,” said Danish foreign minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, who was speaking when Mr Lavrov himself walked out of the summit. “We will not compromise on the core principles of the European security order or allow Russia to deny Ukraine the right to make its own independent foreign and security policy choices – principles that Russia itself has agreed to,” he continued. Based in Vienna, Austria, the OSCE is an intergovernmental organisation focused on promoting security, stability, and cooperation among its participating states. Nato member North Macedonia lifted a ban on Russian flights to enable Lavrov to attend the meeting. Russian state news agency Tass reported that the minister flew a longer route over Turkey and Greece to reach the summit after Bulgaria blocked his plane from using its airspace. Greek officials did not immediately return a request for comment. Additional reporting by agencies Read More Takeaways from AP's Interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy The AP Interview: Ukraine's Zelenskyy says the war with Russia is in a new phase as winter looms Ukraine war live: Russia sees record losses as baby amongst injured in missile strike Russia’s Supreme Court effectively outlaws LGBTQ+ activism in a landmark ruling UN atomic chief backs nuclear power at COP28 as world reckons with proliferation Russia’s top court bans LGBT+ activism as ‘extremist’ in new crackdown

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A Donald Trump-supporting New York billionaire says that he wants to buy embattled CNN from Warner Bros. Discovery. Grocery mogul John Catsimatidis told The New York Post that he would “go run the place tomorrow morning and all I’d want is $1 per year.” The news network has been hit by falling ratings and earlier this week under-fire CEO Chris Licht, who attempted to drag CNN to the right, was fired after a searing profile in The Atlantic. Greek-born Mr Catsimatidis, 74, refused to tell the newspaper how much he would be willing to offer for CNN. “It’s up to the investment bankers to come up with the numbers,” he said, as he suggested that finance to complete the deal would not be an issue. “We could always bring partners in, but I want to run the place,” he continued. “We are capable of putting down a substantial amount of money.” And he added: “I’d go run the place tomorrow morning, and all I’d want is $1 per year and a piece of the upside.” Mr Catsimatidis, who has a reported personal wealth of more than $4bn, is already in the media business having bought New York’s WABC radio station for $12.5m in 2019. “Whoever is running that company (CNN) is wrong,” Mr Catsimatidis said, telling the newspaper the network should not have fired Mr Licht, who supported the controversial Donald Trump town hall. “If the network is getting half a million (viewers) a night and they have Trump on and they get 3 million (viewers), to fire the CEO for getting that many people…” he said. But he insisted that if took over CNN he would continue to try and ensure that Republicans got equal coverage to Democrats. “I want the truth, not opinions. If people say there’s two truths, let’s voice both truths and let the viewers decide.” Read More How Chris Licht’s botched effort to drag CNN to the right ended with his own stunning downfall CNN CEO Chris Licht out days after devastating expose CNN’s own media reporter turns on embattled CEO The folly of trusting Trump claims two more victims. Why do they do it?

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TV star Jonnie Irwin has admitted that he “never thought” he’d be alive to see his 50th birthday, which is next week. Irwin, 49, who is best known for presenting property TV shows A Place in the Sun and Escape to the Country, was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2022. In January, Irwin threw an early 50th birthday party, ahead of the actual date next week, with a huge part with 170 friends and family. But in a new interview, the presenter has said he will be jetting off on holiday to Spain with his family for his actual birthday. “I never thought I’d be here,” Irwin told The Sun. “I’m really looking forward to some time with [wife] Jess and the boys.” Irwin shares three young sons with his wife, Jessica Holmes. He has been praised for his transparency about his condition, and his experiences with various cancer treatments. Since his diagnosis, Irwin has followed a strict diet and spends one to two hours a day in an O2Worx hyperbaric oxygen tent. Some studies have shown that flooding the body with oxygen does not promote tumour growth and has been linked to preventing cancer growth. In July this year, Irwin discussed his “really good” experience with palliative care, which focuses on improving the quality of life for anyone facing a life-threatening condition. Irwin said that he has been in palliative care since the day he received his terminal cancer diagnosis. He was first diagnosed with lung cancer in August 2020, but only publicly shared the news in November 2022 after the cancer spread to his brain. His hospice experience was a “delight”, Irwin said, challenging his initial perception that such facilities were “very much a boiling hot room full of people who looked frail and towards the end of their days”. In September, the presenter made his long-awaited return to TV when he hosted a new episode of Escape to the Country on BBC One. Looking back at his time in a hospice six months ago, Irwin said he was “on the cusp of death”. “Lying in the hospice, I thought I’d had it,” he told The Sun. ​​“But at my weakest point I thought, ‘This is it, this is the beginning of the end.’” ​​Irwin returned home and resumed his strict diet, drinking protein shakes and spending time in the oxygen tent to attempt to curb the growth of his cancer. “I won’t let cancer define me,” Irwin told the publication from his newly renovated home in Newcastle. “A friend of mine told me, ‘Your body achieves what your mind achieves’, and I want to live by that.” Read More Jonnie Irwin jokes he’s ‘whacked’ after attending The Streets gig in Newcastle Billy Connolly shares health update on Parkinson’s disease: ‘Every day gets stranger’ What are the symptoms of Parkinson's disease and how can it be treated? Billy Connolly shares health update on Parkinson’s disease: ‘Every day gets stranger’ What are the symptoms of Parkinson's disease and how can it be treated? Tracey Emin says she ‘totally accepted death’ following cancer diagnosis

QAMISHLI, Syria/BEIRUT A Russian fighter was killed and several others wounded in Syria's northern province of Aleppo on