Day: May 8, 2025

Trump offers to mediate as India-Pakistan conflict spirals

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Donald Trump’s administration is pushing to prevent Indian missile strikes against Pakistan from spiralling into a nuclear stand-off, offering to mediate in what is the first big international crisis to erupt since the inauguration. The US president said he hoped “they can stop now”. “If I can do anything to help, I will be there,” he said on Wednesday. “My position is I get along with both, I know both very well and I want to see them work it out.” India and Pakistan face their worst clash in more…

Can China launch hypersonic glider from satellite? Rocket force study suggests possibility

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China’s hypersonic weapons can travel at extreme speeds of up to Mach 20, strike global targets within half an hour and even be launched from space, according to a new study. Advertisement Researchers from the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) summarised the capabilities and vulnerabilities of China’s re-entry glide missiles, revealing they can travel up to 21,000km/h (13,000 miles per hour) in high altitudes within the atmosphere. Certain variants may even be launched from space-based platforms, making them “capable of drastically compressing the adversary’s early-warning system response time and…

Taiwan president says country faces similar threat to Europe before WW2

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Taiwan’s president, Lai Ching-te, has compared his nation to the European countries headed for conflict with Nazi Germany in the 1930s, in a punchy speech commemorating the end of the second world war in Europe. “Eighty years after the end of the European war, the message of history is clear. Today, 80 years later, we share the same values ​​and face similar challenges as many of the democracies that participated in the European war,” Lai said to a group of foreign dignitaries gathered in Taipei. Lai speech comes at a…

China, US watch closely from the sidelines as India-Pakistan crisis unfolds

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As cross-border shelling unfolded on Wednesday following India’s missile strikes inside Pakistani territory, the rising tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours have drawn international attention – particularly from China and the US. Advertisement US President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday that “if I can do anything to help, I will be there” and claimed to “get along very well” with both sides. Underscoring the wider geopolitical stakes of the tensions, China has tacitly backed its long-time regional ally Pakistan, which has acknowledged deploying Chinese-made fighter jets…

Toyota warns profits set to fall 21% as Trump tariffs take their toll

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Toyota has warned operating profits will fall 21 per cent this fiscal year due to the fallout from Donald Trump’s trade war, increasing the pressure on Japan to reach a deal on tariffs with the US.  For its year ending in March 2026, Toyota said it expected an operating profit of ¥3.8tn ($26bn) compared with ¥4.8tn in the year just ended. The forecast includes a US tariff impact of ¥180bn…

Shell-shocked voters of US allies choose stability over disruption

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Elon Musk, who described himself as Donald Trump’s “First Buddy”, had a very public clash with “First Brain” Peter Navarro. Advertisement The founder of Tesla, whose market cap has crashed along with Musk’s personal reputation, last month took to social media to call Navarro “truly a moron” and “dumber than a sack of bricks”. Given Musk’s own highly destructive sackings, downsizing and cancelling of key departments within the US federal government under his Doge, or Department of Government Efficiency, drive for productivity and cost-cuttings, it’s not clear the same cannot…

A resilient US economy can withstand the Trump tariff shock

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Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free Your guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the world Three years ago the ports on the US west coast, their container terminals and rail lines hopelessly congested by the supposed post-Covid dislocation of value networks, were held to be the locus of a deep and abiding weakness in globalisation. These days it’s the opposite — ports emptying out as Donald Trump’s tariffs punch holes in the sailing schedules of cargo ships from China. Honestly, there’s no pleasing…

China’s top negotiator strikes bullish tone on economy ahead of US trade talks

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Vice-Premier He Lifeng struck a confident tone as he prepared to lead a crucial opening round of trade talks with US officials later this week, saying that China’s economy was performing well and would continue to open up to foreign investment. Advertisement “China’s economy is off to a good start so far this year … society’s confidence and expectations continued to increase,” He said during a meeting with the visiting head of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority in Beijing. “We welcome foreign financial institutions and long-term investors … to come…

China fires up powerful radar to search for lunar ice that can make or break moon race

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Water ice is likely to exist at the moon’s south pole, but it would be fragmented, scattered and buried deep beneath the surface, posing significant challenges for detection and extraction, according to a new study by Chinese researchers. Advertisement Using powerful Earth-based instruments, including the world’s largest radio telescope and one of the most advanced radar systems, the team estimated that ice made up no more than 6 per cent of the material within the top 10 metres (33 feet) of lunar soil in the region. The ice was thought…