Road, rail and air travel disrupted as Storm Goretti brings wind, rain and snow to the UK and parts of Europe

• Tell us: how have you been affected by Storm Goretti?

Officials in the West Midlands have warned of the “worst snowfall in a decade” as parts of England and Wales prepare to be hit with 5-10cm of snow on Friday, and up to 15-25cm in some areas.

In a statement on Wednesday, Stoke-on-Trent city council reassured residents it had not run out of grit after “misinformation” began to circulate. It said:

We are now facing the worst snowfall we have faced in 10 years. The Met Office has predicted that we could have 3.5 inches of snow and temperatures as low as minus 4C on Thursday into Friday morning. As a result, we are carefully managing our resources and stock of salt.

Unfortunately, we have been made aware of some misinformation circulating regarding the council’s salt supplies and gritting operations. It simply isn’t true that we have run out of grit.

The current cold snap is now expected to last at least until this weekend according to Met Office forecasts, and we know that prolonged exposure to low temperatures can have a severe impact on people’s health, especially if they’re older or have serious health conditions.

That’s why we’re urging people to check in on friends, family and neighbours who may be more vulnerable to the cold and make sure that they’re able to keep themselves warm while this period of cold lasts.

US takes over two tankers, one Russian-flagged in the North Atlantic and the other Venezuela-linked in the Caribbean; Trump says Caracas will be ‘purchasing only American Made Products’

• Explainer: why so much interest in a rusty tanker in the Atlantic?

Meanwhile, in the UK, Nigel Farage has offered his take on Trump’s plans to control Greenland, saying it would be “outrageous” for the US to seize it from Denmark.

Farage says he agrees with Starmer that the fate of Greenland must be decided by Greenland and Denmark, not the US – but sided with Trump on “some genuine security concerns” that require further presence there.

“What I will say is this. There are some genuine security concerns around Greenland and that becomes ever more relevant with a retraction of the ice caps as we head towards the North Pole. There is a strong feeling in British intelligence circles, and many in Nato, that there needs to be a significant Nato base located directly on the north of Greenland.

At the moment, it would appear that is something Greenland is not particularly keen to do.

Many of those at today’s march, including ex-Proud Boy leader Enrique Tarrio say that they were there to protest against the death of Ashli Babbitt, a rioter who was killed by Capitol police five years ago

My colleague Sibylla Brodzinsky has reported on the relationship between the US and Colombia, home to significant oil reserves. Here is an extract from her story:

Colombia has long been a close partner of the US in the fight against drug trafficking and enjoyed bipartisan support in Washington but relations have soured dramatically since Trump came to office.

Colombia’s narcotics trade is largely controlled by illegal armed groups such as the Gulf Clan, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) guerrilla group, the majority of whose members demobilised after a 2016 peace deal …

Lawyers for both Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, said that their clients won’t seek bail at this time; the next hearing will take place on 17 March

• Delcy Rodríguez strikes conciliatory tone with US after Trump warning

A UK minister would not be drawn into saying whether his government believes the US capture of Venezuela’s president was influenced by the country’s rich oil reserves.

Asked on Sky News why he thought Donald Trump had captured Nicolás Maduro and said America would “run” Venezuela, Home Office minister Mike Tapp said:

This is for Donald Trump to answer, and I think he has said in his press conference, which I watched with interest around narco-terrorism and that threat.

US president says operation in Colombia ‘sounds good’ and elections in Venezuela will happen at the ‘right time’

• Top Republicans backpedal from Trump claim that US will run Venezuela

Keir Starmer also told the BBC that he thinks we are living in a more “volatile” world than we have been for “many, many years” and said global affairs have much more of a “direct impact” on the UK than they have in a long time, citing the effects of military conflicts and the climate crisis.

Asked if Donald Trump is worsening global turmoil, Starmer dodges the question and speaks about the so-called special relationship between the UK and the US.

The relationship between the US and the UK is one of the closest relationships in the world. It is vitally important for our defence, for our security, for our intelligence.

It is my responsibility to make sure that relationship works as the prime minister of this country, working with the president of the United States. Not only have I stepped up to that responsibility, I have made it my business and I do get on with President Trump.