By Ben Farmer America is close to sealing a security pact with Nigeria after US President Donald Trump threatened to send in troops “guns a-blazing” to stop the persecution of Christians. A delegation of US congressmen who toured the country say Washington is nearing an agreement, which is expected to include intelligence sharing and training for Nigeria’s forces. Mr Trump in November threatened military action after saying Christianity faced an “existential threat” from attacks by Muslim militants in the West African nation. “They’re killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers,” he said at the time.“We’re not going…

By Staff Writer Vladimir Putin has dismissed European leaders as “little pigs”, as Russia hardened its public stance on a US-backed peace framework that would offer Ukraine Nato-style security guarantees but stop short of full alliance membership. Russian officials said they would not return territory occupied in Ukraine or accept the presence of foreign peacekeepers, following the presentation of a revised 20-point framework discussed during talks involving Ukraine, the United States and European governments. Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, said Moscow viewed the proposals with “extreme seriousness”, but added that Russia would not agree to terms that, in his…

By Staff Writer Blaise Metreweli, Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service’s first speech on how MI6 is keeping the UK safe in a world where the rules of conflict are being rewritten. In her first speech Ms Metreweli,  the head of MI6 also known as C, describes the threats facing the UK now and in the future. The full transcript of her speech is below: Welcome inside MI6. This iconic building, familiar to movie fans everywhere, is the home of Britain’s foreign intelligence agency. But whilst hundreds of my team pass through the entry pods each day, the truth is…

By Sean Rayment Defence chiefs believe that UK military intelligence will be more efficient, faster and better able to anticipate future threats following the launch of the new Military Intelligence Services (MIS). The major overhaul of Defence’s intelligence organisations comes amid increasing threats to the UK and will help keep Britain ahead of hostile states and terrorists, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said. Following the recommendations of the Strategic Defence Review, the reforms bring every intelligence unit and organisation within Defence under a single structure for the first time. This includes units from the Royal Navy, British Army and…

By Sean Rayment Britain’s top spy has warned that the front line against Russia is “everywhere”, urging the country to be ready for President Vladimir Putin’s “export of chaos” to continue until he is forced to change his methods. In her first public speech since becoming “C”, Blaise Metreweli will say that the “front line is everywhere” as a result of Moscow’s use of hybrid warfare, including disinformation, sabotage and cyberattacks. She warned that the UK is entering an “age of uncertainty” as the rules of conflict are being rewritten by Russia and other hostile actors. Metreweli is the first…

By Staff Writer When Hugo Armando “El Pollo” Carvajal finally pleaded guilty in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on 25 June 2025, the former Venezuelan military intelligence chief admitted what US prosecutors had alleged for years: that senior officials inside the Chávez–Maduro regime used cocaine as a weapon against the United States, in partnership with a designated terrorist group, and were prepared to arm that conspiracy with machine guns and explosives. Now, from a US federal prison cell, Carvajal has gone further. In a letter dated 02 December 2025, addressed to President Donald Trump…

By Staff Writer President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine is “ready for elections” if its partners can guarantee security, rejecting claims by US President Donald Trump that Kyiv is using the war to delay democracy. Zelensky’s five-year term expired in May 2024, but elections have remained suspended under martial law imposed after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Speaking after Trump repeated his accusations in a Politico interview, Zelensky said elections could be held within 60 to 90 days if security was guaranteed with the help of the US and European allies. “I’m asking now, and I’m stating this openly, for the…

By Sean Rayment Britain’s “hollowed out” armed forces are not ready for a war with Russia, defence chiefs have declared. The UK’s armed forces need more soldiers, warships and combat aircraft if British troops are going to help Nato defeat President Vladimir Putin in a future war with Russia. The disclosure comes after the Russian leader declared that he was prepared to go to war with Europe if peace talks in Ukraine failed. Although Russia has lost more than one million troops and the country’s economy is about to go into recession, Putin said that he was ready to fight…

By Sean Rayment President Donald Trump intends for the US to maintain a larger military presence in the Western Hemisphere going forward to combat migration, drugs and the rise of adversarial powers in the region, according to his new National Security Strategy. The 33-page document is a rare formal explanation of the Trump administration’s foreign policy worldview. Such strategies, which presidents typically release once per term, can help shape how parts of the US government allocate budgets and set policy priorities. Publication of the strategy comes as Russia has welcomed US President Donald Trump’s new National Security Strategy, calling it…

By Staff Writer Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in London on Monday for talks with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, amid a renewed Western effort to secure a peace deal with Russia. After landing, the Ukrainian president said: “Today in the UK. Meetings and coordination talks with our European partners are planned. We are joining efforts to end this war with a just peace for Ukraine. Security must be guaranteed.” Zelensky will also join a video call with EU leaders and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte before travelling to Brussels for further talks…

By Sean Rayment Thailand has deployed F-16 fighter jets to bomb a casino and an alleged drone base in Cambodia, weeks after the US brokered a peace deal between the two countries. The airstrikes were launched on Monday after each side accused the other of breaking the fragile ceasefire. US President Donald Trump had previously claimed the conflict between Thailand and Cambodia as one of the eight wars he had “ended”. Thailand’s military said the airstrikes were launched after one of its soldiers was killed and four others wounded in fighting along the tense border on Monday morning. The Thai…

By Andre Pienaar Yesterday, under President Trump’s leadership, a peace agreement was signed that will not only bring much-needed stability to Africa’s largest and most resource-rich country, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), but will also provide long-term security for the Tutsi minority in the east of the DRC, the so-called Banyamulenge. President Donald Trump’s second term is forcing a hard question back onto the global agenda: what should the United States do when governments fail to protect vulnerable minorities? On Nigeria, South Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Trump is placing the security of vulnerable minorities…