AnewZ Morning Brief - 8th July, 2025
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for 8th July, covering the latest developments you need to know....
The Kremlin stated that Russia and the U.S. are working on ideas for a peace settlement in Ukraine, despite U.S. President Trump expressing frustration with Putin. Trump threatened secondary tariffs on Russian oil if no ceasefire is reached.
The Kremlin said on Monday Russia and the United States were working on ideas for a possible peace settlement in Ukraine and on building bilateral ties despite U.S. President Donald Trump saying that he was "pissed off" with Vladimir Putin.
Trump told NBC News he was very angry after the Russian leader criticised the credibility of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and the U.S. president suggested he could impose secondary tariffs of 25%-50% on buyers of Russian oil.
Trump later reiterated to reporters he was disappointed with Putin but added: "I think we are making progress, step by step."
Asked about Trump's comments, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow was continuing to work with Washington and that Putin remained open to contacts with Trump.
"We are continuing to work with the American side, first of all, to build our bilateral relations, which were badly damaged during the previous (U.S.) administration," Peskov said.
"And we are also working on the implementation of some ideas related to the Ukrainian settlement. This work is underway, but so far there are no specifics that we could or should tell you about. This is a time-consuming process, probably due to its complexity."
A call between Trump and Putin, he said, could be set up at short notice if necessary, though none was scheduled for this week.
Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker, has repeatedly said he wants the three-year conflict in Ukraine to end and has warned of the risks of it escalating into a world war between the United States and Russia.
OIL AND RARE EARTHS
Since taking office in January, Trump has shifted the U.S. to a more conciliatory stance towards Russia that has left Western allies wary as he tries to broker an end to the war.
His comments about Putin on Sunday reflect his growing frustration about the lack of movement on a ceasefire.
"If Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it was Russia’s fault ... I am going to put secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia," Trump said.
“That would be, that if you buy oil from Russia, you can’t do business in the United States,” Trump said. “There will be a 25% tariff on all oil, a 25- to 50-point tariff on all oil.”
Oil prices were little changed on Monday as traders tried to work out how Trump's threat of secondary tariffs against the world's second largest oil exporter might look.
China and India buy about 80% of Russian crude exports. Chinese traders said they were unfazed by the threat, while Beijing said its cooperation with Russia is neither directed nor affected by third parties. India declined comment.
Amid efforts by Trump to end the fighting in Ukraine, minerals cooperation has been floated by both Kyiv and Moscow, though Trump said on Sunday that Zelenskyy wanted to back out of a proposed deal.
Russia and the U.S. have started talks on joint rare earth metals and other projects in Russia, and some companies have already expressed an interest in them, Putin's investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, said on Monday.
"There are no specifics here yet, but the interest is evident. The interest is mutual, because we're talking about mutually beneficial projects," Peskov told reporters.
Australian researchers have pioneered a low-cost and scalable plasma-based method to produce ammonia gas directly from air, offering a green alternative to the traditional fossil fuel-dependent Haber-Bosch process.
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck off Japan’s Tokara Islands on Wednesday, with no tsunami warning issued but residents advised to remain vigilant.
The United States has rescinded licensing restrictions on ethane exports to China, allowing shipments to resume after a temporary halt and signalling progress in efforts to ease recent trade tensions.
Italy plans to grant approximately 500,000 work visas to non-EU nationals between 2026 and 2028, as announced in a cabinet statement. The initiative aims to address labor shortages by expanding legal immigration pathways
A deadly mass shooting early on Monday (7 July) in Philadelphia's Grays Ferry neighbourhood left three men dead and nine others wounded, including teenagers, as more than 100 shots were fired.
China has warned Myanmar's Kachin rebels it will block rare-earth imports from their territory unless they halt an offensive on a key junta stronghold, raising fears over the global supply of critical minerals.
China has consolidated its rare-earth sector into two state-owned giants, tightened export quotas, and introduced new supply-chain tracking systems as part of a sweeping push to reinforce its global dominance in critical mineral processing.
Beijing has warned the Trump administration against restoring steep U.S. tariffs next month and signalled it will retaliate against countries that cut China out of supply chains through bilateral deals with Washington.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for 8th July, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday told President Donald Trump he had nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize, handing Trump a nomination letter during a meeting at The White House. The two leaders met for the first time since the US launched strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
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