World, in brief

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that Ukraine and Russia had both agreed not to hit each other's energy targets. [2][3]

He wrote that the world's diesel price rise is mostly caused by the Russia-Ukraine war, not Iran. [4]

A day earlier, at his golf course in Ireland, he had said Ukraine's president must stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia. [6]

Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, denied that Ukraine had formally signed up to Trump's statement. [3]

Zelensky said Ukraine would stop its own strikes only if the US can make sure Russia really stops hitting Ukraine's power, energy and food routes. [2][3]

Russia's government had not commented on the announcement by Monday evening. [2] Earlier that day its spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, welcomed Trump's call on Ukraine to stop. [1]

Peskov also said world energy markets are getting worse mainly because of fighting in the Persian Gulf. [1]

Ukrainian drones have hit a Russian refinery about every three days this year, according to the International Energy Agency, which tracks world energy supply. [5]

That has caused petrol shortages across Russia, and Russia has banned diesel exports since July. [1][5]

Oil prices were 40% lower before the US and Israel began their war with Iran in February. [6] Iran answered by effectively shutting the Strait of Hormuz. [4]

US diesel now costs about $6.20 a gallon, around 65% more than in February. [6] Congressional elections in the US are due in November. [6]

A similar energy truce that Trump arranged in March 2025 fell apart almost at once, with each side accusing the other of breaking it. [5]

Zelensky said any truce must last, and must not be a short deal that eases Russia's petrol and diesel troubles before its parliamentary election on 18 to 20 September. [2]

Even if the strikes stop, damaged refineries in Russia and the Gulf will take months to repair, so diesel is likely to stay scarce into next year. [5]

Why it matters. Watch whether Russia's government says yes in its own words, and whether a night passes without drones hitting a Ukrainian power station or a Russian refinery. [2][3]

Yemen's Houthis, the Iran-backed group holding most of northern Yemen, said they fired dozens of missiles and drones at King Khalid air base in Khamis Mushait, in southern Saudi Arabia, on Monday. [18] The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said 13 civilians were wounded. [16] The Houthis said they were answering more than 300 Saudi air strikes on Yemen in five days. [18] Sources told Reuters that the US refused Saudi requests for air strikes and offered only intelligence and help with targets. [19] Saudi Arabia's crown prince met the top US commander for the region, Admiral Brad Cooper, in Jeddah on Monday. [16]

Why it matters. Saudi Arabia's east-west oil pipeline, built to get around the Strait of Hormuz, is still shut after an attack last Thursday. [16] A defence pact Saudi Arabia signed with Turkey and Pakistan last month has produced no joint response, and a Turkish official says its defence duties are not yet legally binding. [20]

The Houthis captured the islands of Greater and Lesser Hanish in the southern Red Sea after government-allied forces pulled out, officials on both sides said on Monday. [21] The islands sit about 160km north of Bab el-Mandeb, the narrow strait between Yemen and Africa that Saudi oil shipments now depend on. [21] Last week the Houthis took the port of Mocha and Mayun island, which lies inside the strait. [21] Yemen's government says about 150 civilians have been killed in the fighting since 3 September. [21] The UN's migration agency says 82,000 Yemenis have fled since the start of the month. [17]

Why it matters. The Houthis are now about 32km from the US military base in Djibouti, on the other side of the strait. [21] Government forces backed by Saudi air strikes are pushing back in Taiz province, inland. [18]

Oman was due to host Iran and the Gulf states on Monday to talk about reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which carried a fifth of the world's oil exports before the war. [16] The meeting was postponed with no new date. [22] Iran's foreign ministry said Saudi Arabia objected. [22] US media reported that Saudi Arabia wanted changes to an Iran-Oman plan, fearing it would fix a new status quo in the strait. [22] The plan would set up temporary lanes for ships in and out, mostly through Iranian and Omani waters. [22]

Why it matters. Iran says it will keep pursuing its own deal with Oman over the strait and decide how to announce it. [22] Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's top security council, said there will be no talks until Iran's conditions are met. [16]

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Monday that the Panama-flagged oil tanker El Gaia struck a sea mine and exploded in the Strait of Hormuz. [23] The US military's Central Command said that was false. [23] It said an Iranian missile had disabled the ship last month, and an Iranian drone hit it again this weekend off Oman. [23] The UN's shipping agency said the tanker was damaged on Saturday and two seafarers are missing, without saying what caused it. [16]

Why it matters. Nobody outside the two militaries has said what hit the ship. [16] Reuters could not reach its owners in Dubai to check either account. [16]

A Russian drone hit a train on Sunday near Ukraine's border with Poland, minutes after a delegation including former UK prime minister Boris Johnson passed through the same station. [8] The EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said the attack was meant to scare Western countries out of supporting Ukraine. [7] NATO's secretary general, Mark Rutte, said the alliance would increase its support for Ukraine. [7][8] Poland's army recovered what it believes is a Russian military drone from the Baltic Sea. [7] Russia's defence ministry said it had hit railway lines used to bring military cargo from Europe. [9]

Why it matters. Poland's prime minister, Donald Tusk, warned of more Russian attacks in the coming weeks. [7] Polish officials say intelligence points to strikes on border crossings and more sabotage inside Europe. [7] NATO diplomats say there is no agreement yet on whether many small attacks could count as an attack on the whole alliance. [10]

NATO fighter jets shot down a drone over southern Lithuania, near Kaunas, the country's second-largest city, shortly after midnight on Tuesday. [13] Lithuanian officials said it probably came from Belarus, a close ally of Russia, but its origin has not been determined. [12] Italian pilots flying for NATO's air defence mission in the Baltic states took part. [13] NATO jets have already shot down stray Ukrainian drones over Estonia and Latvia this year. [12][13] Ukraine says Russian jamming pushes its drones off course. [12]

Why it matters. Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are covered by NATO's promise that an attack on one member is an attack on all. [13] Drone incursions into European countries have become more common since Russia's full invasion of Ukraine. [13]

Finland has joined France's plan to extend its nuclear protection to partner countries in Europe, the two presidents said on Monday. [14] France launched it in March, after Trump raised doubts about US protection for Europe. [14] Only France's president can decide to use the weapons. [14] Finland's president, Alexander Stubb, said Finland will not allow nuclear weapons on its soil in peacetime. [14] Ten countries now take part. [14]

Why it matters. Twelve EU countries said in a joint statement the same day, at a European Arctic summit in Finland, that the EU should take a bigger role in the far north. [15] France's foreign minister told that summit the train strike near Poland was meant to divide Europeans. [11]

Syria's government raised the price of diesel by 40% on Saturday, to 175 Syrian pounds ($1.32) a litre. [24] People burned tyres and blocked roads, including the highway from Damascus to Aleppo, in the widest protests since Bashar al-Assad was overthrown almost two years ago. [24] Syria's government said the rise is temporary and caused by the war on Iran and new fighting in Yemen. [25] Syria's largest refinery, at Baniyas, is also closed for three months of maintenance. [24] The UN estimates 90% of Syrians live below the poverty line. [24]

Why it matters. Protesters demanded the sacking of the energy and economy ministers, and parliament has called the energy minister to a hearing. [24][25] Syria also relies on Russian crude oil, a supply that Ukraine's strikes on Russian refineries have put under pressure. [24]

Israel's army chief, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, called the documentary NAZA a blood libel on Monday. [27] He ordered military lawyers to examine legal action against the film and the people involved, and a search for who leaked classified material. [27] NAZA, by the Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, alleges AI-assisted killing of civilians in Gaza, drawing on 24 soldiers and intelligence staff. [28][29] The army says the witnesses cannot be verified. [28] More than 200 Israeli filmmakers signed a petition backing its makers. [28]

Why it matters. Two former army chiefs who now lead opposition parties, Gadi Eisenkot and Benny Gantz, also attacked the film. [29] The petition says the campaign against the makers is edging towards threats to their lives. [28]

The centre-left bloc of Magdalena Andersson has a thin lead in Sweden's 349-seat parliament. [33] Politico reported it as three seats with 95% of votes counted. [35] Early and overseas votes are counted on Wednesday. [33] Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said parliament has a clear majority against left-wing economics, and he will see whether there are any possibilities. [33] He is expected to try to pull the small liberal Centre Party away from Andersson's side. [35] The far-right Sweden Democrats fell to about 17.5%, their first loss since entering parliament in 2010. [36]

Why it matters. A Kristersson win could put the Sweden Democrats, a party founded by people from neo-Nazi groups, in government for the first time. [35] Their leaders blamed tactical voting for the loss. [34]

The US Air Force secretary, Troy Meink, said on Monday that the US has deployed a weapon in orbit around Earth. [37] It is the first time the US has said it has such an offensive capability. [37] He gave no details of what it does or when it was launched. [37] A Space Force statement said the weapons can be used to attack or to defend. [38] A 1967 treaty bans weapons of mass destruction in orbit, and other kinds of weapon fall outside it. [37]

Why it matters. The US says Russia and China are building ways to attack satellites, which armies use to talk, watch and navigate. [37] The Trump administration wants space-based defences for its planned Golden Dome shield against missiles. [37]

A four-ship Russian convoy delivered supplies to the port of Tartous in Syria on 7 September, satellite images checked by Reuters show. [26] It is the first delivery since Syria and Russia agreed in August on the future of Russia's two bases there, the Tartous port and the Hmeimim air base. [26] Under the deal they become joint training centres, with Syria running civilian operations. [26] Russia had propped up the former ruler, Bashar al-Assad, who now shelters in Russia. [26]

Why it matters. They are Russia's only military bases outside the former Soviet Union. [26] Syria's new government still demands that Russia hand Assad over. [26]

New Chinese rules took effect on Tuesday that let the authorities stop citizens they see as a threat to technology security from leaving the country. [39] The rules target people who break export controls or technology trade rules. [39] People who commit crimes abroad that harm China's security can be barred from leaving for six months to three years. [39] Foreigners who lie on visa applications can be refused entry for one to five years. [39]

Why it matters. Taiwan's government has warned its people to take extra care when visiting China, which counts people from Taiwan as Chinese citizens. [39] Travel limits already applied to senior officials. [39]

China's foreign ministry said on Monday that talk of AI threats and malicious competition only disrupts global rules for AI. [40] It followed calls by Dario Amodei, head of the US AI company Anthropic, to slow AI in a way that stops China pulling ahead. [40] China's state security minister, Chen Yixin, wrote on Sunday that advanced US models could threaten China's critical computer systems. [41] Xi Jinping proposed a group for open AI at the BRICS summit in India. [40]

Why it matters. AI is expected to be a big subject in talks between the US and China later this month. [41] A Singapore scholar told the BBC that a US-China deal to slow AI is next to impossible. [40]

Officials from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda meet in Geneva on 16 and 17 September to check progress on their US-backed peace deal, signed in June 2025. [47] Congo promised to disarm the FDLR, a militia rooted in forces that fled Rwanda after the 1994 genocide. [47] Rwanda promised to pull back its forces. [47] Neither has been declared done. [47] Fighting continues in eastern Congo between the army and the M23 rebels, who took the cities of Goma and Bukavu in 2025. [47]

Why it matters. Congo accuses Rwanda of backing M23, which Rwanda denies. [47] M23 is not part of this deal, and a separate process led by Qatar deals with it. [47]

Bangladesh had recorded 1,009 measles deaths by 9 September, 100 of them confirmed by lab tests and 909 suspected. [45] Last year it had 132 measles cases and no deaths. [45] Bangladesh's government says it has vaccinated 19.75 million children since April, above its target of 18 million. [45] Experts say the target was set too low, because a later health campaign counted about 24 million children in the same age group. [45]

Why it matters. Vaccination fell after the Covid pandemic and during the upheaval after Sheikh Hasina was forced from power in 2024, causing vaccine shortages. [45] Measles only stops spreading when about 95% of children are protected. [45]

Chubu Electric, a Japanese power company, says its president and chair will step down on 30 September. [44] An outside panel found the company had for years manipulated earthquake data for two reactors at its Hamaoka nuclear plant, so the figures met safety rules. [44] Japan's nuclear regulator suspended its review last December after a tip from a whistleblower. [44] The company has dropped its request to restart the reactors for now. [44]

Why it matters. Hamaoka is about 200km west of Tokyo, on a coast at risk from very large earthquakes. [44] The panel said bosses pressed staff hard for a quick restart, which may have pushed them to cheat. [44]

India's yearly inflation, the rate at which prices rise, reached 4.82% in August, up from 4.45% in July. [46] Food prices rose 5.95%, pushed up by weak monsoon rains. [46] India imports nearly 85% of its oil, more than half of it from the Middle East. [46] Government-owned fuel sellers have not raised petrol and diesel prices lately. [46]

Why it matters. Economists say the Reserve Bank of India, which sets the country's interest rates, is now more likely to raise them. [46] Indonesia and the Philippines have already done so because of higher energy prices. [46]

The foreign ministers of Cambodia and Thailand met in Singapore on Tuesday for the first session of a UN conciliation process on their sea border. [43] Both claim about 26,000 square km of the Gulf of Thailand, thought to hold gas and oil worth about $300 billion. [43] Thailand ended a 2001 deal to share those resources in May, after deadly border clashes last year. [43] A panel of independent experts will make recommendations, which neither side has to accept. [43]

Why it matters. The same process helped East Timor settle a decades-old sea border dispute with Australia. [43] Cambodia says it would accept a shared development deal instead of a fixed line. [43]

North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, said he would expand and deepen work with Russia, in a reply to Vladimir Putin published on Tuesday. [42] Putin had congratulated North Korea on its 78th founding anniversary. [42] Kim said he was sure Russia would win what he called a sacred war, which appeared to mean the war in Ukraine. [42] North Korea sent troops to fight for Russia in 2024, under a mutual defence pact. [42]

Why it matters. Kim sent a similar message to China's president, Xi Jinping, published on Sunday. [42] Both of North Korea's big neighbours got the same kind of pledge within two days. [42]

Northern Ireland's first minister, Michelle O'Neill of Sinn Fein, was due to meet the first ministers of Scotland and Wales in Cardiff on Monday. [48] For the first time, all three have first ministers who want to leave the United Kingdom. [48] Before the meeting, their parties agreed a memorandum calling on the British government to prepare for constitutional change in each place. [48] Northern Ireland's deputy first minister, Emma Little-Pengelly, said O'Neill had not asked her permission to attend or sign anything as first minister. [48]

Why it matters. In Northern Ireland the first and deputy first minister share identical powers, so neither can speak for the whole government alone. [48] The meeting came two days after Trump said he would love to see a united Ireland. [48]

The heads of Belgium's ten leading universities condemned Belgium's government on Monday for refusing to help 13 students from Gaza reach Belgium. [32] The students won scholarships to study there. [32] Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot wants them evacuated. [32] He said one party in the five-party coalition demanded new migration measures, including deportation centres, in return. [32] About 1,500 people in Gaza have been granted the right to come to Belgium, mostly to join family. [32]

Why it matters. The rectors accused Belgium's government of using the students as bargaining chips. [32] Evacuations from Gaza to Belgium are moving at a trickle. [32]

Israeli authorities demolished homes, farm buildings and other structures in three Palestinian villages in the South Hebron Hills, in the occupied West Bank, over six days earlier this month. [30] The demolitions left 109 people without shelter. [30] The villages lie in an area the Israeli army treats as a firing zone. [30]

Why it matters. The firing-zone rules also apply to Israeli settler outposts. [30] Activists say the army enforces them only against Palestinians. [30]

Israel's ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, is expected to meet Lebanon's ambassador, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, in Washington this week, an Israeli source told Haaretz. [31] Israel is frustrated that Lebanon's army will not confront Hezbollah, the Iran-backed armed group, in the zones already under its control. [31] Lebanon has been more reluctant since Israel's army blew up Hezbollah tunnels under the Ali Taher ridge. [31]

Why it matters. Israel wants Lebanon's army to confront Hezbollah directly, and Lebanon has held back. [31] That gap is what the two ambassadors have to work on. [31]

Mark Carney, Canada's prime minister, will speak to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Thursday. [50] He wants closer ties with the EU while Canada fights a trade war with the US. [50] The European Commission first said its president, Ursula von der Leyen, would not attend. [49] After some lawmakers objected, one calling it unacceptable, she said on Monday evening she would be there. [50]

Why it matters. Carney is setting out what he wants before a Canada-EU summit in October. [49] He then meets France's president and the UK's prime minister. [50]

Germany's foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, visited Budapest on Monday, the first visit by a German foreign minister in nearly seven years. [51] Peter Magyar became Hungary's prime minister this year, ending Viktor Orban's 16 years in power. [51] Germany has welcomed a new start in relations under him. [51]

Why it matters. Wadephul said Hungary's change of government offers a chance to restore relations quickly, on a basis of trust. [51] He also said there is much ground to make up. [51]

Ukraine's state postal service, Ukrposhta, pays pensions in cash and brings food and medicine to remote villages. [54] Its head, Igor Smelyansky, decides each morning where it is safe enough to send vans near the front line. [54] Russia has stepped up attacks on postal workers, sorting offices and depots in recent months. [54] Russia's government says the strikes answer Ukrainian attacks on Russian online retailers. [54]

Why it matters. Millions of poor and elderly Ukrainians in villages rely on it. [54] If the vans stop coming, some villages lose food and medicine. [54]

Claudia Tacoronte, a 21-year-old student from the University of Granada in Spain, was found dead late on Saturday in Cuautla, about 100km from Mexico City. [52] Local media said she died of stab wounds. [52] She was on an exchange at a university in Morelos state. [52] The state prosecutor is investigating it as a femicide, the killing of a woman because she is a woman. [52]

Why it matters. Spain's foreign minister, Jose Manuel Albares, said Spain wants to get to the bottom of it. [52] Mexico has long had high rates of such killings. [52]