US, China reach deal to cut trade deficit, US officials say, details on Monday
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday reported "substantial progress" in U.S. talks with China's top economic officials to de-escalate a damaging trade war, but offered no details of an agreement reached as two days of negotiations wrapped up in Geneva, Reuters reported.
Bessent told reporters that details would be announced on Monday and that U.S. President Donald Trump was fully aware of the results of the "productive talks."
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who participated in the talks with Bessent, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and two Chinese vice ministers, described the conclusion as "a deal we struck with our Chinese partners" that will help reduce the $1.2 trillion U.S. global goods trade deficit.
"And this was, as the Secretary pointed out, a very constructive two days. It's important to understand how quickly we were able to come to agreement, which reflects that perhaps the differences were not so large as maybe thought," Greer said, adding that the Chinese officials were "tough negotiators," according to Reuters.
Zelensky says Ukraine is ready to meet Russia only if ceasefire agreed
Volodymyr Zelensky said it was a "positive sign" that Russia was considering ending the war in Ukraine after Russia offered "direct talks" this coming Thursday, BBC reported.
His comments came after Russian President Vladimir Putin invited Ukraine to take part in "serious negotiations" in a late-night address.
But the Ukrainian president said: "We expect Russia to confirm a ceasefire - complete, lasting and credible - starting tomorrow, 12 May, and Ukraine is ready to meet."
Western powers called for a 30-day pause in fighting to begin on Monday after European leaders spearheading the so-called "coalition of the willing" met in Kyiv on Saturday, according to BBC.
US says latest round of nuclear talks with Iran were 'encouraging'
A fourth round of talks between the US and Iran over Tehran's nuclear programme have taken place in Oman, with both sides agreeing to meet again, BBC reported.
US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff said the discussions in Muscat were encouraging, while Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described them as "difficult but useful".
The US has insisted that Iran must scrap its uranium enrichment to prevent the country developing nuclear weapons, but Tehran denies it has such an aim and on Sunday again stressed it did not intend to give up the programme.
Donald Trump pulled out of a previous nuclear agreement between Iran and five other world powers in 2018, according to BBC.
Sagarmatha Sambaad is for solving problems of planet and its people, says PM Oli
Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said that the government is organizing the 'Sagarmatha Sambaad (Dialogue)' to seek solutions to common problems related to the future of humanity and the Earth.
"Let us ensure the future of the planet and humanity; for this purpose, we will host the Sagarmatha Sambaad in Kathmandu from May 16 to 18," PM Oli said in a video message today in the context of the Sagarmatha Dialogue.
The Prime Minister has expressed concern over the adverse situations arising from climate change and the continued growing pollution of our surrounding environment, mentioning that a dialogue is being organized to convey the message that everyone must be aware to prevent the deteriorating environment of the country from worsening further and to ensure its preservation.
"Our activities should not spoil the Earth's environment. Now, let us clean up the environment that has been damaged by our activities. And, may our future generations live in a clean, safe and beautiful environment tomorrow,' the Prime Minister stated in the video message.
He mentioned that the Sagarmatha Sambaad plays a crucial role in understanding the relationship between the mountains and the sea, contributing to environmental issues of the mountains, from the formation of rivers to cooling the environment, and that not understanding it properly or ignoring it is detrimental to humanity.
He emphasized that since environmental conservation is a global shared problem, a collective effort from the world’s inhabitants is essential for its solution.
"It is essential to work on controlling carbon emissions and other elements that harm the environment, and also to advance efforts to protect the environment. For this, people of the world, let us gather at one place to discuss, identify the problems, and strive to find solutions to them from a single forum," the Prime Minister stated in his message.
