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Former president Donald Trump referred to the armed rebellion in Russia as a “big mess” on Saturday as insurgent leader Yevgeny Prigozhin turned his Wagner paramilitary forces away from Moscow. “A big mess in Russia, but be careful what you wish for. Next in may be far worse!” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social account. In a separate post, he appeared to invoke news of the latest threats in Russia to baselessly accuse President Joe Biden and his son Hunter of “illegally” collecting money from China and asserting that his rival will “do about Russia whatever President Xi” wants. He went on to claim that the latest assault provides an “unthinkable opportunity” for China to seize “large portions” of Russia. Mr Trump’s rivals in the 2024 Republican presidential race also weighed in on the Wagner crisis which unfolded rapidly on Saturday. By the end of the day, Prigozhin had ordered his forces to halt their march towards Moscow in what Russian officials called an attempted coup. “This is one more piece of evidence that Russia is likely a paper tiger,” GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy alleged in an interview with Fox News. “The idea that Russia has the capabilities that go for Poland or other parts of Western Europe looks increasingly farcical.” Mr Ramaswamy said China remains a “top threat” and the US should remain focused on “deterring Chinese aggression”. He added that if elected president he would urge Russia to end its war in Ukraine on the condition that Russian President Vladmir Putin distance himself from Chinese President Xi Jinping. Former Texas congressman Will Hurd, another long-shot candidate for the GOP nomination, called on the US to help Ukraine implement a no-fly zone to protect the country in the event of an outbreak of civil war in Russia. “In complicated times when our adversaries are trying to displace us as a superpower, it’s common sense to defend the global order that has benefited us and to help our allies,” he tweeted. “Ukraine is not a territorial dispute and Vladimir Putin is a war criminal,” he added. “It shouldn’t be hard to admit this. Even the villainous [Yevgeny] Prigozhin knows this.” Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, another long-shot candidate for the 2024 nomination, called on “peace-loving people around the world” to pray for the “freedom-loving people of Russia.” “The next few days will be crucial,” he wrote on Twitter. “Please pray for God to protect the innocent.” Mr Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris along with cabinet officials and top national security officials were briefed on the crisis throughout the day, according to the White House. The president also spoke with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French president Emmanuel Macron, and German chancellor Olaf Scholz to discuss the situation and “affirmed their unwavering support for Ukraine,” according to a White House readout of the call. Read More Russia-Ukraine war live: Prigozhin calls off Wagner coup on Moscow as Kremlin denies Putin has fled Trump news – live: Trump calls Russia coup ‘a big mess’ in rambling statement

US and Western officials are being careful not to weigh in on the events unfolding in Russia because of how Russian President Vladimir Putin could weaponize any perceived involvement by the west in the escalating crisis, sources familiar with the administration's thinking told CNN.

US President Joe Biden has been briefed and his administration is closely monitoring fast-moving developments in Russia as Vladimir Putin vowed “decisive actions” to suppress mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and his armed rebellion. “We are monitoring the situation and will be consulting with allies and partners on these developments,” according to a statement on Friday night from National Security Council spokesman Adam Hodge. Prigozhin – once a longtime ally of Putin – is accused of treason for mounting what Russian officials have called an armed rebellion with his Wagner paramilitary group, fuelled by allegations that Russia failed to adequately support his forces in Ukraine. He also has accused Russia’s military leadership of striking against his forces. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday that he has spoken with G7 foreign ministers and European Union officials “to discuss the ongoing situation in Russia”. “The United States will stay in close coordination with Allies and partners as the situation continues to develop,” he added. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin Defense also is monitoring the crisis, according to Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also has been briefed on the situation. Canada’s Incident Response Group will meet on Saturday to discuss developments. “We’re in contact with our allies and will continue to monitor the situation closely,” he announced on Saturday. Russian prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation. In a televised address on Friday, Putin called Prigozhin’s maneuvers “a stab in the back of our country and our people”. The Wagner group was designated a transnational criminal organization by the US in January. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the group had an estimated 50,000 personnel inside Ukraine made up of 10,000 contractors and 40,000 people enlisted from Russian prisons. Wagner’s armed convoys have moved into Rostov-on-Don, the largest city in southern Russia and roughly 100km from the eastern Ukraine border. Rostov, with a population of roughly one million people, also houses Russia’s southern military district command and the 58th Combined Arms Army, currently engaged in major counteroffensive efforts against Ukraine. The governor of Russia’s Lipetsk province announced on Saturday that the group has now entered that region. Prigozhin also was among 13 Russians indicted by a federal grand jury for interfering in the US elections in 2016, allegedly using his Russia-based Internet Research Agency to wage “information warfare” with false social media accounts promoting bogus statements and messages that supported Donald Trump. He has denied wrongdoing but remains wanted by the FBI. Read More Russia-Ukraine war live: Kremlin denies Putin has fled Moscow as plane mysteriously disappears from radar Who is Yevgeny Prigozhin? The Wagner Group mercenary chief urging a ‘civil war’ against Putin Rishi Sunak ‘in touch with allies’ about Wagner group rebellion in Russia

Donald Trump will address an evangelical political conference in Washington DC on Saturday, the one-year anniversary of the US Supreme Court’s decision to revoke constitutional protections for abortion, a landmark decision hailed by conservative Christian groups. Mr Trump has repeatedly taken credit for the decision to overturn Roe v Wade, after he appointed three conservative justices to the nation’s highest court in office. His appearance at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s annual event follows comments at the conference from his 2024 rival and former vice president Mike Pence, who announced his endorsement of a national ban on abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy. Meanwhile, special counsel Jack Smith has reportedly compelled at least two Republican fake electors to testify to a federal grand jury in Washington in recent weeks by giving them limited immunity, an effort to swiftly nail down evidence in the sprawling criminal investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election, which some believe may now be drawing to a conclusion. Mr Smith also has requested a delay in Mr Trump’s trial in Miami in the classified documents as prosecutors obtain necessary security clearances to review the materials. Read More Trump drops below 50 per cent among GOP voters in new CNN poll following second indictment Fox News’s Bret Baier hits back at Trump conspiracy theorist after ex-president appears to incriminate himself in interview Attorneys spar in case of ex-Trump adviser who devised strategy to keep former president in power Trump claimed the Durham report would uncover the ‘crime of the century.’ Here’s what it really found

Highly-anticipated reforms of UK pensions could channel billions of pounds into fast-growing companies and boost investments in riskier

Vice President Kamala Harris was fed up.

Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd., the world’s biggest sulfur dioxide emitter, has been given permission to bypass pollution abatement

Andrew Cowell said the journey was seamless but he might have been a bit ambitious with the distance.

Former President Donald Trump is set to address evangelical Christian voters at a major gathering Saturday in Washington, where he will seek to shore up their support as his legal troubles mount and rivals take aim at his character.

The video was shocking — not just for what it showed but also for what was said. Yevgeny Prigozhin, the outspoken millionaire head of the private military contractor Wagner, stood in front of the bloodied bodies of his slain troops in Ukraine and yelled expletive-riddled insults at Russian military leaders, blaming them for the carnage. “They came here as volunteers and they died to let you lounge in your red wood offices,” Prigozhin shouted. “You are sitting in your expensive clubs, your children are enjoying good living and filming videos on YouTube. Those who don’t give us ammunition will be eaten alive in hell!” It was a disquieting display for Russians used to more than two decades of rigidly controlled rule by President Vladimir Putin — years with little sign of infighting among his top lieutenants. Prigozhin's video in May and his other rants against the military leadership have been met with silence from Putin, as well as the brass. Some see Putin's failure to squelch the infighting as a sign of potential shifts in Russia’s political scene that set the stage for more internal battles. Prigozhin's rift with the military has been ignored by state-controlled TV, where most Russians get their news, although it is followed closely by the politically active, ultrapatriotic readers and viewers on social media networks, which share his contempt for military leaders. While there are no indications that Putin is losing influence, “there are growing signs of deep dysfunction, anxiety, worry about the war and real problems in marshaling the resources necessary to fight it effectively,” said Nigel Gould-Davies, a senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies and the editor of its Strategic Survey. Prigozhin’s feud with military leaders goes back years, and it spilled into the open amid the fighting for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut that was spearheaded by his mercenaries. It has pushed the 62-year-old Wagner owner, dubbed “Putin's chef” for his lucrative Kremlin catering contracts, to the forefront of Russian politics and signaled his growing ambitions. He scathingly criticized Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the chief of the General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, as weak and incompetent in mocking statements full of vulgar language. At one point, he even alleged the army planted mines on the route his fighters planned to use and opened fire at them. With his crude remarks, Prigozhin ventured into territory where only Putin had gone before: Over the years, the Russian leader occasionally broke decorum with an earthy remark or off-color joke, while top officials used carefully worded language. In a later video, Prigozhin made a statement that some have interpreted as a thinly veiled attack on Putin himself. He declared that while his men were dying due to the Defense Ministry’s failure to supply ammunition, a “happy granddad is thinking he’s doing well,” and then referred to that “granddad” with an obscenity. The blunt comment caused a social media uproar, where it was broadly seen as a reference to Putin. Prigozhin later said he was talking about Gerasimov. “Prigozhin is now sailing much closer to the wind than he ever has,” Gould-Davies told The Associated Press. Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin political commentator, described Prigozhin as “the second-most popular man after Putin” and a “symbol of Russia’s military victory for millions of people.” Putin needs Prigozhin's mercenaries at a time when the regular military is still recovering from setbacks earlier in the invasion. The Wagner chief's position was bolstered after the private army captured Bakhmut last month in the war’s longest and bloodiest battle, relying on tens of thousands of convicts who were promised pardons if they survived six months of fighting. “Putin dominates the system, but he still sort of depends upon a small number of big people to implement his will, to provide him with resources to carry out his orders, including fighting the war,” Gould-Davies told AP. While Putin may adhere to keeping various factions divided and then intervening to “decide who wins and who loses, and who’s up and who’s down,” the process erodes the government's authority in wartime, Gould-Davies said. “That may be a way of keeping the political system going, but it’s certainly not the way to fight the war, because if your military forces are divided and if they’re not fighting together effectively, then your military operations will suffer accordingly and that’s exactly what’s happening here,” he said. Mark Galeotti, a London-based expert on Russian politics and security, noted the infighting was continuing even as Ukraine is in the early stages of its long-expected counteroffensive — "a point when really everyone should have one single common goal.” In a recent podcast, he speculated that Putin’s failure to resolve political disputes could be rooted in a lack of interest, a focus on other issues or, more likely, a reluctance to take sides. “It also raises questions about his overall capacity to do his job,” Galeotti said. “This is the one thing, the one job he can’t really outsource, and he’s not even trying.” The lack of response from military leaders to Prigozhin’s insults appeared to indicate they weren’t sure if Putin was on their side. St. Petersburg regional Gov. Alexander Beglov was another recent Prigozhin target, following their long-standing conflict rooted in Beglov’s reluctance to award lucrative contracts to Prigozhin’s companies. Just like the military leaders, Beglov has not responded. Prigozhin has allied with other hawkish officials, reportedly including Tula Gov. Alexei Dyumin, a former Putin bodyguard seen by many as a potential successor. The Wagner head also gravitated for some time toward Ramzan Kadyrov, the Moscow-backed regional leader of Chechnya. While denouncing most senior military leaders, Prigozhin spoke approvingly about Gen. Sergei Surovikin, who led Russian forces in Ukraine for several months before Putin appointed Gerasimov to oversee the operations. But some of those alliances have been shaky. While Kadyrov initially praised Prigozhin and backed some of his criticism of the military leaders, he later shifted course and criticized him for sounding defeatist. Kadyrov’s lieutenants went further, blasting Wagner's efforts in Bakhmut after Prigozhin made dismissive comments about Chechen fighters in Ukraine. Kadyrov’s right-hand man, Magomed Daudov, bluntly said Prigozhin would have been executed for such statements during World War II. Prigozhin quickly backed off, saying he was only expressing concern about Russian operations. Prigozhin has dodged questions about his ambitions, but in a move that reflected his desire to gain political clout, he recently toured Russia, continuing a barrage of blustery comments. “There are signs that he seeks some sort of political future,” Gould-Davies observed. Even though Prigozhin owes his position and wealth to Putin, he's playing the role of outsider with his criticism of some leaders and by trying to appeal to the masses amid setbacks in Ukraine, said Andrei Kolesnikov of the Carnegie Endowment. “He is posturing as an enemy of the elites, even though he is a product of Putin’s system, the embodiment of his regime and state contracts,” Kolesnikov said. “Prigozhin is playing an independent politician, raising the stakes and testing the system’s limits. But it’s only technically and physically possible for as long as Putin finds him useful and is amused by his escapades.” In a show of support for the military, Putin backed the Defense Ministry’s demand for all private companies to sign contracts with it — something Prigozhin has refused to do. And in another sign Putin's administration may finally be cutting Prigozhin down to size, messaging app channels connected to the Kremlin carried photos of his partying children, including a daughter in Dubai, in apparent retaliation for Prigozhin’s attacks on the defense minister’s daughter. Prigozhin has urged all-out war with Ukraine, including a total nationwide mobilization and the introduction of martial law in Russia — calls welcomed by some hawks. But Kolesnikov notes that the vast majority of Russians who are mostly apathetic or unwilling to make larger sacrifices could be frightened and appalled by that message. He cautions against overestimating Prigozhin’s clout and political prospects, and underestimating Putin's authority. "It’s enough for the commander-in-chief to move his finger to make the Wagner chief disappear,” Kolesnikov said. ___ Associated Press writer Danica Kirka in London contributed. ___ Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine-war Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Live Updates | Armed rebellion by Russian mercenary chief Furious Putin calls Wagner mutiny ‘treason’ and ‘mortal blow’ to troops –live Mapped: Inside Russian Wagner group’s road towards Moscow

The US intelligence community still believes it is plausible that Covid-19 originated in a laboratory or in the wild, a conclusion that has been consistent for months, according to newly declassified information released Friday evening.

Donald Trump’s criminal trial over a stash of White House documents recovered from his home in an FBI raid may not take place until November. That was the request that Department of Justice Special Counsel Jack Smith filed late Friday evening with Judge Aileen Cannon, who is overseeing the prosecution of the former president. ABC News first reported the filing, which cites the need for prosecutorial staff to obtain security clearances as one of the key reasons for their requested delay past the original trial date in August. A second motion requests that Ms Cannon prevent the release of a list of witnesses for the trial whom the Justice Department will seek Mr Trump be barred from contacting. Among other crimes, the ex-president is also charged with witness tampering, and has been ordered not to be in contact with one of his close aides: Walt Nauta. The development means that any trial will likely begin after at least the initial GOP primary debate this summer and could very well continue through voting in early primary states next year. Mr Trump has plead not guilty to all 37 counts, and loudly decried what he calls a witch hunt against him. But senior officials from his own administration have undercut that defence, unwilling to propagate the fantasy that Mr Trump had the authority to retain classified documents that pertained to national defence or the nonsense theory that the trove is somehow comparable to much smaller batches of presidential records recovered (without resistance, unlike in Mr Trump’s case) from the homes of Mike Pence and Joe Biden. His allies have claimed without evidence that the Justice Department is coordinating with the White House on the case, and have held strong to the idea that their leader did nothing wrong. But new evidence obtained by news outlets indicates that Mr Trump even spoke to reporters about a document in his possession which he verbally acknowledged was still classified. Mr Smith’s case exploded into view last year with the FBI’s raid of Mar-a-Lago; now, it is one of more than a half dozen criminal and civil legal fights bearing down on the former president. Aside from being accused of violating the Espionage Act with his trove of (allegedly) stolen documents, Mr Trump is also accused of 34 counts of falsifying business records in New York; in addition, the actions of the ex-president and his legal team are thought to be at the centre of a grand jury investigation in Georgia over the efforts to change the election results in that state. Read More Trump claims he ‘doesn’t want any help’ fighting federal indictment after he struggled to find attorneys willing to represent him Trump calls on Congress to help him wriggle out of federal charges Fox News’s Bret Baier hits back at Trump conspiracy theorist after ex-president appears to incriminate himself in interview New recordings of Trump revealed in classified papers investigation, documents show ‘I’m very proud of my son’: Joe Biden defends son Hunter Biden after deal with DoJ to plead guilty to federal charges Democrats downplay Hunter Biden's plea deal, while Republicans see opportunity to deflect from Trump