Morning Briefing: May 31, 2025
Anadolu’s recap of top stories from around the globe
ISTANBUL
Here’s a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Saturday, including peace talks in Istanbul giving ‘new dimension' to Russia-Ukraine peace push, says Turkish foreign minister; Trump strikes upbeat tone on Gaza ceasefire, Iran nuclear deal and the UN humanitarian office saying Gaza is being 'drip fed' as hunger nears catastrophic levels.
TOP STORIES
Peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in Istanbul on May 16 have added a “new dimension” to the search for a diplomatic solution, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said during his visit to Ukraine.
Fidan’s remarks came at a news conference with his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, in Ukraine.
“We proved that (Russia-Ukraine) talks (in Istanbul) can yield concrete results,” said Fidan, expressing Ankara’s desire to maintain the momentum achieved in Istanbul.
“Either we'll tolerate continuation of this (Moscow-Kyiv) war or reach lasting peace within this year,” he stated.
“We are considering whether the talks in Istanbul could be crowned by a meeting hosted by President Erdogan, bringing together Trump, Putin and Zelenskyy,” he added.
US President Donald Trump was optimistic when asked about the potential for concluding an agreement to end Israel's war on the besieged Gaza Strip, as well as a long-elusive pact on Iran's nuclear program.
"They're very close to an agreement on Gaza, and we'll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow, and we have a chance of that," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "I think we have a chance of making a deal with Iran also. They don't want to be blown up. They would rather make a deal. And I think that could happen in the not too distant future."
The UN humanitarian office said aid deliveries into the Gaza Strip remain severely restricted, describing the current flow of food as a "trickle" into an area facing catastrophic levels of hunger.
"It is drip-feeding food into an area on the verge of catastrophic hunger," said Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), during a news briefing in Geneva. "It's not a flood."
Over the past 10 days since the reopening of some entry points into Gaza, nearly 900 trucks were approved to enter. However, Laerke said only around 600 had been off-loaded on the Gaza side, and even fewer had been distributed due to operational bottlenecks.
NEWS IN BRIEF
- At least 54,321 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war since October 2023, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
- The Israeli army has detained more than 12,000 Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in the course of its genocidal war, a Palestinian prisoners' affairs group said.
- The Spanish government strongly condemned Israel's recent approval of 22 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, warning the move violates international law and jeopardizes the prospects for peace in the region.
- Germany needs to increase its troop size by as much as 45% to meet NATO requirements and address the threat from Russia, the chairman of the German Armed Forces Association said.
- Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine is ready to enter a durable ceasefire and pursue diplomacy, urging Russia to accept an unconditional halt to hostilities.
- The US National Association of the Deaf (NAD) filed a lawsuit against the White House, seeking the immediate reinstatement of American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters at official media briefings, according to a statement by the organization.
- Iran called for an "official explanation" from Austria following a report by the country’s intelligence agency concerning Iran’s nuclear program.
- China has developed the world’s first artificial intelligence system capable of distinguishing real nuclear warheads from decoys, a major advancement in arms control verification, the South China Morning Post reported.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready for high-level negotiations on Ukraine, but a concrete outcome must first be achieved in direct talks between the delegations, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to Russian state-run media.
- At least 10 people were killed and six injured when a natural stone quarry collapsed on several people in Indonesia's West Java.
- The Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, has been identified by opposition lawmakers as the source of funding behind the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), an organization reportedly created to facilitate Israel’s controversial aid operations in the Gaza Strip.
- The Nigerian Army killed at least 60 Boko Haram terrorists after repelling an attack on a military base in Bita, Gwoza Local Government Area, northeastern Borno State.
- American singer Taylor Swift announced that she has regained control of all of her music.
SPORTS
Real Madrid announced that it has reached an agreement with Liverpool to sign Trent Alexander-Arnold on a six-year deal.
The Spanish club will pay a €10 million ($11.32 million) transfer fee to secure the 26-year-old right-back, whose contract with Liverpool is set to expire this summer.
He will join Madrid on June 1, ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup, which begins June 14 in the United States.
Alexander-Arnold confirmed earlier this month that he will leave Liverpool at the end of the season after 20 years with the club.
Italian Serie A club Milan announced that they appointed Massimiliano Allegri as the new head coach of the club.
Rossoneri extended a welcome and best wishes to Massimiliano, but did not provide information regarding the contract period in a statement.
The 57-year-old, who previously coached Milan between 2010 and 2014, also helmed rivals Juventus twice, between 2021 - 2024 and 2014 - 2019.
He has six Serie A titles under his belt; five with Juventus and one with Milan.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
The Turkish economy has grown 2% year-on-year in the first quarter, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) announced.
Gross domestic product (GDP) at current prices soared 36.7% to 12.12 trillion Turkish liras ($335.5 billion) from January - March, compared to the same period last year, TurkStat noted.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, the Turkish economy expanded 3% year-on-year.
An Anadolu survey predicted last week that the GDP growth rate of the country would be 2.17%.
On a quarterly basis, Türkiye's GDP increased 7% in the three months to March, down from 1.7% in the previous quarter.
US President Donald Trump said he will speak to Chinese President Xi Jinping, after accusing China of violating a trade deal announced earlier this month, possibly plunging global trade back into a state of uncertainty after a sigh of relief from the deal in Geneva.
“They violated a big part of the agreement we made,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "I'm sure that I'll speak to President Xi, and hopefully we'll work that out."
Trump's remarks followed his accusation of China breaching the preliminary trade agreement after talks in Geneva on May 10-11, possibly fueling the trade tensions between the world's top two economies.
