Donald Trump said that Ukraine and Russia want to make peace, after speaking separately by phone with both countries’ leaders. He spoke first to Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, and said that America would “immediately” start talks with Russia to end the war. Earlier America’s defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, said it was “unrealistic” that Ukraine would regain territory annexed by Russia since 2014.
Inflation in America rose faster than expected in January, up by 3% year on year, compared with 2.9% in December. Core inflation, stripping out volatile food and energy prices increased from an annualised rate of 3.2% in December to 3.3%. The figures come as a blow to those, like President Donald Trump, who argue that interest rates should come down quickly
Austria’s hard-right Freedom Party is returning its mandate to form a government after failing to form a coalition. The FPÖ came first in federal elections in September but has failed to divvy up ministries with the centre-right People’s Party since. Austria’s president, Alexander Van der Bellen, may appoint a technocratic government or give other parties the chance to form a coalition.
America’s Senate confirmed Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence in a 52-48 vote. Her soft stance on Russia was among the reasons even some Republicans expressed concerns about Mr Trump’s nominee. But enough sceptics were swayed; only one Republican, Mitch McConnell, voted against Ms Gabbard. So far the Senate has confirmed all of the president’s cabinet nominees who sat for hearings.
Chevron said it would cut between 15% to 20% of its workforce as part of a broader effort to reduce costs by up to $3bn. The American oil giant, which counted around 45,000 employees in 2023, recently reported disappointing quarterly earnings. Its planned $53bn takeover of Hess, an energy-exploration company, is facing legal challenges from rival firm ExxonMobil.
Belarus released three detainees, including Andrey Kuznechyk, a Belarussian journalist, and an unnamed American citizen. America’s hostage envoy said that the move was unilateral, meaning Belarus received nothing in return. Meanwhile, in exchange for Russia’s release of Marc Fogel, an American teacher, the Trump administration prepared to release Alexander Vinnik, a Russian crypto-exchange boss who pleaded guilty to money-laundering charges in 2024.
A Chinese rocket launched for its first mission, transporting low-Earth-orbit satellites into space. The Long March 8A rocket is part of China’s strategy to compete against Starlink, a satellite-internet service provided by Mr Musk’s SpaceX that already has around 7,000 satellites in orbit. China has many fewer.
Figure of the day: 30,000. The number of troops mobilised by Ukraine every month over the past year, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky. Read the full story.
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