Nationalist parties have tended to praise the US president’s politics, but many voters dislike his treatment of Ukraine

Europe’s rightwing populist parties are split over how far to distance themselves from Donald Trump’s pressure on Ukraine, with some fearing unflinching solidarity with the US president’s brand of nationalism will damage their efforts to widen their domestic support.

Broadly, unease over Trump’s treatment of Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and the ominous encroach of authoritarianism by the new US administration, is strongest among the populist parties in western Europe and some Nordic countries.

First step by president to open discussions comes as Iranian government locked in dispute over negotiating with US

Donald Trump has said he wants to negotiate a new deal with Iran to prevent its development of nuclear weapons and sent a letter to its leaders saying he hoped they would open talks.

It is the first practical step taken by the US president to see if new negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme are possible.

Head-spinning speed of events leaves EU adapting at pace while trying to infer Trump’s possible geo-strategic aims

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With a mixture of regret, laced with incredulity, European leaders gathered in Brussels to marshal their forces for a power struggle not with Russia, but with the US.

Even now, of course at the 11th hour, most of Europe hopes this coming battle of wills can be averted and the Trump administration can still be persuaded that forcing Ukraine to the negotiating table, disarmed and blinded, will not be the US’s long-term strategic interest.

The news that the US had suspended military aid to Ukraine stunned world leaders and led to a rapid reassessment of how much we can really rely on our American ally. Is this the end of the western alliance? John Harris asks our diplomatic editor, Patrick Wintour. Plus, as the UK pledges to boost defence spending by slashing our foreign aid budget, ActionAid’s CEO, Taahra Ghazi, tells John about the fallout for organisations working on the ground.

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Lashes were part of agreement to end criminal case against Yarrahi over song against Iran’s strict dress code for women

Mehdi Yarrahi, a well-known Iranian protest singer who spoke out against the country’s strict dress code for women, has been given 74 lashes as part of an agreement to end a criminal case against him.

Yarrahi was initially convicted in January 2024 of acting unlawfully by releasing a protest song in September 2023 entitled Your Headscarf (Roo Sarito) on the first anniversary of the “Women, Life, Freedom” uprising.