By Luc Cohen NEW YORK -A former director of Venezuelan military intelligence pleaded not guilty on Thursday to U.S. drug

The State Department has launched a new bureau aimed at making the battle against global outbreaks a lasting priority of U.S. foreign policy

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is to speak before the Canadian Parliament on Friday as part of his campaign to shore up support from Western allies for Ukraine’s war against the Russian invasion

The artist behind a flattering courtroom sketch of Donald Trump has defended his controversial depiction of the former president. William J Hennessy Jr was one of three artists who drew Mr Trump, 77, during his arraignment in Miami on 13 June on 37 federal counts related to willful mishandling classified documents, obstruction of justice and making false statements. The sketch of a slimmed down, youthful-looking Mr Trump standing bolt upright provoked protests on social media for being overly generous to the defendant. “Is this William J Hennessy Jr’s audition to do Trumps official White House portrait?” quipped one person. “That last sketch of Trump looks almost exactly like the recent photo of his son Barron,” another tweeted. A third person commented that “they got Trump looking like ‘Prince of Tides’ Nick Nolte in this sketch.” Mr Hennessy told the Boston Globe he was bemused by the strong response, which he said had been about half positive and half critical. “It’s rare I get any kind of feedback,” Mr Hennessy told the news site. “Some said he looked too thin, too young, and some said he looked too good.” He told the Globe the court appearance had been “pretty stressful” to cover. Journalists reported waiting in line for 24 hours to get a seat in the courtroom. “I don’t editorialise,” he said. “I just draw what I see.” Other sketches during Mr Trump’s arraignment showed the 45th president hunched over with his arms folded and a scowl on his face. Mr Trump has pleaded not guilty to all the counts, and has denounced the investigation as a political “witch hunt”. When Mr Trump appeared for arraignment in New York in April on charges relating to falsifying business records around hush money payments during the 2016 presidential campaign, he told officers he weighed 240 pounds (109 kgs). Read More Trump news – live: Bill Barr slams Trump’s ‘absurd’ classified papers defence as ex-attorney quits CNN lawsuit Attorney General Garland keeps poker face as firestorm erupts after Trump charges Fox News quietly changes headline after White House accused network of lying about Pride flag Why aren’t more Republicans attacking Trump like Bill Barr? Trump news – live: Bill Barr slams Trump’s ‘absurd’ classified papers defence as ex-attorney quits CNN lawsuit

The US secretary of state Antony Blinken met with China’s President Xi Jinping on Monday as the two nations try to salvage a diplomatic relationship and ensure that it does not spiral towards conflict. Beijing has described ties between the two nations as being at a low point thanks to America’s “wrong perception” of the country. Mr Xi said he hopes Mr Blinken will make "more positive contributions" to stabilising China-US relations. "State-to-state interactions should always be based on mutual respect and sincerity," Mr Xi said. "I hope that, through this visit, Mr Secretary, you will make more positive contributions to stabilising China-US relations." Mr Blinken told the Chinese president that Joe Biden believes that the US and China have an obligation to manage our relationship and that “the US is committed to doing that”. Mr Blinken said the US and China agreed on the need to stabilise their bilateral relationship, adding that America is clear-eyed about the challenges that China poses. Mr Blinken also said US expected additional visits by senior US officials to China over the coming week. Hours of talks across two days have seemingly done little to bridge the two sides' differences on issues ranging from the status of Taiwan to trade, human rights or their approach to the war in Ukraine. However, the fact that the discussions are so extensive on the first visit to China by a US secretary of state in five years will only be seen as a positive by Washington. Mr Blinken’s meeting with Mr Xi was roughly 30 minutes long and could help facilitate a summit between Mr Biden and the Chinese president later in the year, it was reported. According to a video posted online by Chinese state television, Mr Xi said that “the two sides agreed to follow through with the common understandings President Biden and I had reached in Bali. The two sides have also made progress and reached the agreement on some specific issues. This is very good”. Mr Xi said China “hopes to see a sound and steady China-US relationship” and believes that the two countries “can overcome various difficulties”, according to Xinhua. Ahead of the meeting with Mr Xi, Mr Blinken met China’s top diplomat Wang Yi who warned that the US that the two nations “must take a responsible attitude toward the people, history and the world, and reverse the downward spiral of US-China relations.” According to the nation’s state media, he also said “it is necessary for the US to reflect deeply and work with China to manage differences and avoid strategic surprises”. Mr Wang spoke with Mr Blinken for more than three hours and told the US secretary of state that Washington must choose between “cooperation or conflict”. “The Secretary of State’s trip to Beijing this time comes at a critical juncture in China-US relations,” Mr Wang told Mr Blinken, according to state broadcaster CCTV. “It is necessary to make a choice between dialogue and confrontation, cooperation or conflict. We must reverse the downward spiral of China-US relations, push for a return to a healthy and stable track, and work together to find a correct way for China and the United States to get along,” Mr Wang added. He also reportedly asked the US to stop speculating on the “China threat theory” and lift “illegal unilateral sanctions” against China. On Sunday, Mr Blinken met with the Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang for seven and a half hours hoping to ease the tensions between the two sides. Mr Blinken invited the Chinese foreign minister to visit Washington and the invitation was accepted, according to US state department spokesperson Matt Miller. He called the talks with Mr Qin “candid, substantive and constructive”. “The Secretary invited foreign minister Qin to Washington to continue discussions, and they agreed to schedule a reciprocal visit at a mutually suitable time,” Mr Miller said. He added that Mr Blinken had emphasised the “importance of diplomacy and maintaining channels of communication across the full range of issues to reduce the risk of misperception or miscalculation”. Mr Blinken stressed “the need to reduce the risk of misperception and miscalculation” in his talks with Mr Qin on Sunday. China took a strong stand on Taiwan with reports suggesting that Mr Wang told the US secretary of state that China has no room for compromise and concessions on the Taiwan issue. “On this issue, China has no room to compromise or concede,” Mr Wang told Mr Blinken, according to CCTV. “The United States must truly adhere to the One China principle confirmed in the three joint US-China communiques, respect China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and clearly oppose ‘Taiwan independence’.” “Despite very low expectations for any breakthroughs made during Blinken’s visit to China, there is still hope that both sides can maintain their ‘bottom line’ in the relationship,” state-run Global Times said in an editorial on Monday. “This is going to be a process of sustained diplomacy,” one senior State Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity told Reuters. The Taiwan premier Chen Chien-jen told the media: “For this high-level interaction between China and the United States, Taiwan closely grasps the relevant details.” “Qin Gang pointed out that the Taiwan issue is the core of China’s core interests, the most important issue in Sino-US relations, and the most prominent risk,” Chinese state media quoted Mr Qin as having told the US diplomat. Read More Blinken opens second day of talks in Beijing on mission to ease soaring US-China tensions Blinken seeks to warm up frosty US-China relations in high-stakes Beijing trip Watch: Antony Blinken visits China for high-stakes meeting after ‘spy balloon’ Watch: Antony Blinken visits China for high-stakes meeting after ‘spy balloon’ Blinken seeks to warm up frosty US-China relations in high-stakes Beijing trip Taiwan handbook teaches civilians how to spot ‘enemy’ Chinese soldiers

David Fry had a game-ending hit and the Cleveland Guardians stopped the Atlanta Braves’ nine-game winning streak with a 6-5 victory in 10 innings Tuesday night

A dog was stabbed in New York's Central Park on Saturday following a "verbal dispute" between dog owners, the New York City Police Department said.

Binance.US is being cut off from its banking partners in the fallout from a Securities and Exchange Commission

Global prices for food commodities like rice and vegetable oil have risen for the first time in months after Russia ended a deal allowing Ukraine ship grain and India restricted some rice exports

'Celine [Dion] is in an enormous amount of pain. She has the best medical team money can buy but things aren’t looking good,' said a source

'He cornered an officer up against a vehicle with a knife in hand and didn’t give up his knife,' said the executive chief

'My love and respect for Jeannie (Mai) remains and the time we spent together holds a cherished place in my heart,' said Jeezy