Two of President Donald Trump's top national security aides plan to hold talks in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday as the United States and Europe search for common ground on ending the Ukraine war and averting an Iran conflict.
French government spokesperson Sophie Primas told reporters on Wednesday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff would visit France soon.
Primas added that they would broadly discuss issues in the Middle East with French officials, saying: "All subjects regarding the Middle East will be on the table."
Separately, on Thursday, French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu will travel to Washington to meet with his counterpart, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as well as with Keith Kellogg, Trump's Ukraine envoy, and Tulsi Gabbard, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence, the ministry said.
The two advisers, , are expected to hear European concerns about Russia amid U.S. attempts to arrange an elusive ceasefire in Ukraine three years after Russia invaded its neighbor.
Trump's frustration with Russia and Ukraine over the ongoing bloodshed between them has been growing and he has been threatening military action against Iranian nuclear facilities.
European leaders have grown more concerned as Trump has made diplomatic gestures to Russian President Vladimir Putin and applied pressure on Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
"I'm just trying to get it stopped so that we can save a lot of lives," Trump told reporters on Sunday.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on Monday he hoped Trump and his administration would see that Putin was "mocking their goodwill" following Moscow's deadly missile strike on the Ukrainian city of Sumy.
Besides Macron, the French foreign ministry said Rubio will also meet his French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot to discuss Ukraine, prospects for a new Iran nuclear deal and the Middle East.
Witkoff plans to fly for a second round of discussions on Saturday with Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi about Iran's nuclear program. They met for 45 minutes last Saturday in Oman.
Both sides described last weekend's talks as positive while acknowledging that any potential deal remains distant.
Trump said on Monday he was willing to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities if a deal was not reached.
On Tuesday, he held a meeting with top national security advisers at the White House focused on Iran's nuclear program, according to sources familiar with the encounter.
The United States had not told European countries about the nuclear talks in Oman before Trump announced them, even though they hold a key card on the possible reimposition of U.N. sanctions on Tehran. Thursday's talks will be a key opportunity for potential coordination between U.S. and Europe.
Trump has restored a "maximum pressure" campaign on Tehran since February, after the U.S. leader ditched a 2015 nuclear pact between Iran and six world powers during his first term and reimposed crippling sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Trump said on Monday he believes Iran is intentionally delaying a nuclear deal with the United States and that it must abandon any drive for a nuclear weapon or face a possible military strike on Tehran's atomic facilities.
"I think they're tapping us along," Trump told reporters.
U.S. President Donald Trump will personally attend a key meeting with Japanese trade officials on Wednesday, signaling his direct involvement in negotiations stemming from his recent wave of tariffs on global imports.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio by phone, discussing the situations in Syria, Gaza, and efforts for a Ukraine ceasefire, according to diplomatic sources.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reaffirmed the strong relationship between the United States and Denmark during a meeting with Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen in Brussels on Thursday, according to the State Department.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Brussels, Belgium from April 2-4. In Brussels, he will attend the NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting to discuss security priorities for the Alliance, including increased Allied defense investment and securing lasting peace in Ukraine.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Monday that the United States has imposed additional visa restrictions on Chinese officials involved in policies that limit foreign access to Tibetan areas.
A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck the border area between Afghanistan and Tajikistan on Saturday, according to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ). The earthquake occurred at a depth of 92 kilometers (57 miles).
Japan is contemplating offering concessions in the form of increased soybean and rice imports as part of ongoing trade negotiations with the United States, according to a report by the Yomiuri daily on Saturday.
Mexico's Health Ministry confirmed the country's first human case of myiasis caused by screwworm, a parasitic infection, the government reported on Friday. The case was detected in a 77-year-old woman from Acacoyagua, a municipality in the southern state of Chiapas.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have stated that the United States will abandon efforts to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine unless significant progress is made in the coming days.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for April 19th, covering the latest developments you need to know.
The Russian ruble has emerged as the top-performing currency globally in 2025, registering an impressive 38% appreciation against the US dollar since the beginning of the year, according to a report by Bloomberg.
A small plane crashed near Kopake, New York, on April 13, killing at 6 people. The Mitsubishi MU-2B aircraft, carrying six people, went down under unclear circumstances. This marks the second aviation accident in New York in a week, raising safety concerns.
Several regions in Ukraine faced heightened alert on Palm Sunday, as reports of explosions and missile threats drew public attention and official responses.
Severe rainfall on April 17 led to flooding and landslides in the Piedmont region, prompting a large-scale emergency response from over 400 firefighters.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for April 16th, covering the latest developments you need to know.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Friday his plan to reclassify approximately 50,000 federal workers under a new category, "Schedule Policy/Career," which would make it easier to fire civil servants who do not align with his administration's policy agenda.
The U.S. Supreme Court issued an order early Saturday blocking the deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members from Texas under the Alien Enemies Act, a wartime law from 1798.
At least 17 people were killed when suspected cattle herders launched attacks on communities in central Nigeria's Benue State on Thursday, police confirmed. The assault is part of a worrying resurgence in violent clashes between farmers and herders, which have long plagued the region.
In a groundbreaking event, China hosted the world’s first humanoid robot race, where robots and humans competed side by side. The competition saw Chinese-made Tien Kung Ultra emerge victorious in the half-marathon, completing the 21-kilometer course in an impressive 2 hours and 40 minutes.
Japan is contemplating offering concessions in the form of increased soybean and rice imports as part of ongoing trade negotiations with the United States, according to a report by the Yomiuri daily on Saturday.
A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck the border area between Afghanistan and Tajikistan on Saturday, according to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ). The earthquake occurred at a depth of 92 kilometers (57 miles).
Japan is contemplating offering concessions in the form of increased soybean and rice imports as part of ongoing trade negotiations with the United States, according to a report by the Yomiuri daily on Saturday.
Mexico's Health Ministry confirmed the country's first human case of myiasis caused by screwworm, a parasitic infection, the government reported on Friday. The case was detected in a 77-year-old woman from Acacoyagua, a municipality in the southern state of Chiapas.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have stated that the United States will abandon efforts to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine unless significant progress is made in the coming days.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for April 19th, covering the latest developments you need to know.
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