Donald Trump has threatened to widen the scope of his trade tariffs, repeating his warning that the European Union – and potentially the UK – will face levies, even as he conceded that Americans could bear some of the economic brunt of a nascent global trade war.

It comes as Trump’s tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China, announced on Saturday, sparked retaliation from all three countries. Mexico and Canada have vowed levies of their own while China and Canada are seeking legal challenges.

Trump said on Sunday night that new tariffs on the EU will “definitely happen”, repeating previous complaints about the large US trade deficit with the bloc and his desire for Europe to import more American cars and agricultural products.

“It will definitely happen with the European Union, I can tell you that,” he told reporters. “I wouldn’t say there’s a timeline but it’s going to be pretty soon.”

Trump appeared to take a softer line on the UK, citing a good relationship with prime minister Keir Starmer while saying tariffs still “might happen”. “The UK is out of line but I’m sure that one, I think that one can be worked out,” he said.

“Well Prime Minister Starmer’s been very nice, we’ve had a couple of meetings, we’ve had numerous phone calls, we’re getting along very well, we’ll see whether or not we can balance out our budget.”

In Canada, the department of finance published a list of US products imported into Canada that it will target with a 25% retaliatory tariff starting on Tuesday.

The list shows products that will be hit in the first round of retaliatory tariffs by Canada starting on Tuesday, and mounts to $30bn Canadian dollars’ worth of goods (about US$20bn). The impacted products include tobacco, produce, household appliances, firearms and military gear.

Canada is also preparing for a second, broader round of retaliatory tariffs in 21 days that will target an additional C$125bn (US$86bn) worth of US imports. The second list would include passenger vehicles, trucks, steel and aluminum products, certain fruits and vegetables, beef, pork, dairy products and more.

Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s president, said her government will provide more details on the retaliatory tariffs she ordered on US goods on Monday. Sheinbaum, in a statement on Sunday, said she will announce details on her government’s “plan B” as she insisted that Mexico “doesn’t want confrontation”.

“Problems are not addressed by imposing tariffs, but with talks and dialogue,” she said. “Sovereignty is not negotiable: coordination yes, subordination no.”

Sheinbaum and Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau spoke by phone on Saturday after Trump’s administration imposed the new tariffs – 25% on goods from Canada and Mexico, with a lower rate of 10% for Canadian oil, and 10% on imports from China.

Trudeau’s office said in a statement that Canada and Mexico agreed “to enhance the strong bilateral relations” between their countries. Canadian officials have had extensive dialogue with their Mexican counterparts, but a senior Canadian official said he would not go as far as to say the tariff responses were coordinated.

“Now is the time to choose products made right here in Canada,” Trudeau posted Sunday on X. “Check the labels. Let’s do our part. Wherever we can, choose Canada.”

Trump acknowledged the sweeping tariffs he has imposed on Mexico, Canada and China may cause “short term” pain for Americans as global markets reflected concerns the levies could undermine growth and reignite inflation. Asian markets, cryptocurrencies and US and European stock futures slumped in early Asian trading on Monday.

“We may have short term some little pain, and people understand that. But long term, the United States has been ripped off by virtually every country in the world,” he said.

Late on Saturday, Trudeau said: “We’re certainly not looking to escalate, but we will stand up for Canada.” However on Sunday evening, a senior government official from Canada briefing reporters in Ottowa on condition of anonymity said: “We will obviously pursue the legal recourse that we believe we have through the agreements that we share with the United States.”

The official said the Canadian government considered the move by Trump illegal and said it violates the trade commitments between the two countries under their free trade agreement and under the World Trade Organization.

“If other legal avenues are available to us, they will be considered as well,” the official said.

Canada is the largest export market for 36 states, and Mexico is the largest trading partner of the US.

Canada and Mexico ordered the tariffs despite Trump’s further threat to increase the duties charged if retaliatory levies are placed on US goods.

China also said it would file a lawsuit against the tariffs. The imposition of tariffs by the US “seriously violates” World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, China’s commerce ministry said in a statement, urging the US to “engage in frank dialogue and strengthen cooperation”.

Filing a lawsuit with the WTO would be a largely symbolic move that Beijing has also taken against tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles by the EU.

The commerce ministry also said the tariffs were “not only unhelpful in solving the US’s own problems, but also undermine normal economic and trade cooperation”. China has said it would take countermeasures to “safeguard its own rights and interests”. It is not clear exactly what form these will take yet. But for weeks Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning has said Beijing believes there is no winner in a trade war.

Late Sunday night, Trump said he would speak with Trudeau on Monday morning and shortly after said he would speak with Mexico as well, although he did not specify that he would speak with Sheinbaum.

Beyond the official response, people were already thinking of ways to cope with Trump’s decision, including by sharing suggestions on social media for alternatives to US products.

Canadian hockey fans booed the US national anthem on Saturday night at two National Hockey League games. The booing continued on Sunday at an NBA game in Toronto where the Raptors played the Los Angeles Clippers.

One fan at the Raptors game chose to sit during the anthem while wearing a Canada hat. Joseph Chua, who works as an importer, said he expects to feel the tariffs “pretty directly”. “I’ve always stood during both anthems. I’ve taken my hat off to show respect to the American national anthem, but today we’re feeling a little bitter about things,” he said, adding that he will start to avoid buying US products.

In the streets, people in Mexico were trying to absorb the announcement on Sunday, although some in the capital acknowledged that they were unaware of the measures.

In the border city of Mexicali, across from Calexico, California, some people were concerned about the wider implications of a trade war.

Driver Alejandro Acosta says that he crosses the border weekly in his truck to deliver vegetables to US companies. He said he fears US businesses in the Mexicali Valley will no longer want to operate in Mexico and they will move to the US.

“If they raise taxes on the factories here, jobs may also decrease,” he said.

Asian sharemarkets tumbled in early trade on Monday after the Trump administration’s imposition of tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China sparked fears of an escalating global trade war.

Taiwan’s Taiex fell 4.4% at the open, led by a more than 6% plunge in semiconductor heavyweight TSMC. Japan’s Topix index was down as much as 2.3% and Korea’s Kospi fell as much as 2.4%, led by major exporters with exposure to global markets, including Canada and Mexico such as electronics manufacturers Samsung and LG, and automaker Kia. China’s sharemarkets remain closed for the lunar new year holidays.

Australia’s benchmark ASX 200 opened down more than 2%, retreating from a fresh record high reached on Friday. Iron ore miners, including BHP and Rio Tinto, followed the price of the commodity lower. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index opened down 0.9%.

European futures were also down sharply, as much as 3.4%, after Donald Trump indicated at a press conference that European Union member countries would be next in the firing line. The euro plunged as much as 2.3% to $1.0125.

“We’ll see what happens,” the US president replied when asked by reporters what countries would be next to be targeted by tariffs. “It will definitely happen with the European Union, I can tell you that.”

The US dollar shot to a record high against the Chinese yuan in offshore trading, and jumped to the highest since 2003 against Canada’s currency and the strongest since 2022 versus Mexico’s peso.

Trump on Saturday followed through with his promise to place 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico – except for Canadian energy which will attract a 10% tariff – as well as 10% tariffs on China, in retaliation over immigrants and illegal drugs that he says enter the US from those countries. The White House said the tariffs would go into effect on Tuesday.

It has already sparked retaliation from all three targeted countries. Canada’s department of finance has published a list of US products imported into Canada that it will target with a 25% retaliatory tariff, also starting on Tuesday. Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s president, has also vowed to implement retaliatory tariffs but also said her government was working on a “plan B” as she insisted that Mexico “doesn’t want confrontation”.

China said it would file a lawsuit against the tariffs. The imposition of tariffs by the US “seriously violates” World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, China’s commerce ministry said in a statement, urging the US to “engage in frank dialogue and strengthen cooperation”.

Trump’s move was the first strike in what could usher in a destructive global trade war and drive a surge in US inflation that would “come even faster and be larger than we initially expected”, said Paul Ashworth of Capital Economics.

Barclays strategists previously estimated that the US tariffs could create a 2.8% drag on S&P 500 company earnings, including the projected fallout from retaliatory measures from the targeted countries.

“During Trump’s first term in office, tariffs and trade tensions brought attention to the more general topic of the advantages but also disadvantages of globalisation,” said ING analysts led by Inga Fechner. “This time around, it is hard to see how an escalation of trade tensions can do any good, to anyone.”

Reuters contributed reporting

US business leaders are offering a mixed reaction to the steep trade tariffs that Donald Trump’s administration has imposed on Canada, Mexico and China, as the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal called it “the dumbest trade war in history”.

Donald Trump hit Canada and Mexico with a 25% tariff on imports, and China with 10%, on Saturday in a move that launched a new era of trade wars between the US and three of its largest trading partners. The tariffs against Canada tax oil and energy products at 10%.

Trump said on his own Truth Social social media platform that he had used emergency powers to issue the tariffs, due to come into effect on Tuesday, “because of the major threat of illegal aliens and deadly drugs killing our Citizens, including fentanyl”.

The Journal said the moves “reminds us of the old Bernard Lewis joke that it’s risky to be America’s enemy but it can be fatal to be its friend”, adding that with the exception of China “Mr Trump’s justification for this economic assault on the neighbors makes no sense.”

It added: “Drugs may be an excuse since Mr Trump has made clear he likes tariffs for their own sake, pointing to Trump’s comments on Thursday that the US doesn’t need oil or lumber from its neighbors.

“Mr Trump sometimes sounds as if the US shouldn’t import anything at all, that America can be a perfectly closed economy making everything at home,” the editorial continued. “This is called autarky, and it isn’t the world we live in, or one that we should want to live in, as Mr Trump may soon find out.”

Trump reacted strongly to the outlet’s editorial position, posting on Truth Social that “a ‘Tariff Lobby’, headed by the Globalist, and always wrong, Wall Street Journal, is working hard to justify Countries like Canada, Mexico, China, and too many others to name, continue the decades long RIPOFF OF AMERICA, both with regard to TRADE, CRIME, AND POISONOUS DRUGS that are allowed to so freely flow into AMERICA.

“THOSE DAYS ARE OVER!”, Trump continues in the screed. “The USA has major deficits with Canada, Mexico, and China (and almost all countries!), owes 36 Trillion Dollars, and we’re not going to be the “Stupid Country” any longer.”

Larry Summers, treasury secretary under Bill Clinton, called the impending tariffs “a self-inflicted supply shock.

“It means less supply because we’re taxing foreign suppliers. And that will mean higher prices and lower quantities,” Summers told CNN. “This is a self-inflicted wound to the American economy. I’d expect inflation over the next three or four months to be higher as a consequence, because the price level has to go up when you put a levy on goods that people are buying.”

Kirsten Hillman, Canada’s ambassador to the US, told ABC’s This Week that Trump’s tariff move “is disrupting to an incredibly successful trading relationship.

“We’re really disappointed and we’re hopeful that they don’t come into effect on Tuesday,” Hillman added. “We’re ready to continue to talk to the Trump administration about that.”

Hillman said Canada was eager to build on its trading relationship with the US but acknowledged “it’s hard to maintain that sense of common purpose and moving forward if we get into this kind of a dynamic on tariffs”.

The Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum, ordered retaliatory tariffs in response to the US decision to slap tariffs on all goods coming from Mexico, saying her government sought dialogue rather than confrontation with its trade partner to the north.

Sheinbaum pointed to her government’s action against fentanyl production in Mexico since she took office in October, saying it had seized 20m doses of the synthetic opioid and detained 10,000 individuals tied to drug trafficking.

Mexico has ordered retaliatory tariffs and Canada’s prime minister said the country would put matching 25% tariffs on up to $155bn in US imports. China’s Ministry of Commerce said it would file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization for the “wrongful practices of the US”.

But some US business leaders have reacted neutrally to Trump’s tariffs that the Budget Lab at Yale University estimates would cost the average American household $1,000 to $1,200 in annual purchasing power.

Gregory Daco, chief economist at the tax and consulting firm EY, calculates the tariffs would increase inflation, currently running at 2.9%, by 0.4% and cut US GDP by 1.5% this year.

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan, the world’s largest bank, said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week that tariff threats can be used effectively to “bring people to the table” to negotiate more favorable trade terms.

Tariffs are “an economic tool” or “an economic weapon”, depending on how they’re used, Dimon remarked to CNBC. “I would put in perspective: if it’s a little inflationary, but it’s good for national security, so be it. I mean, get over it.”

William Reinsch, a former US trade official now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said many companies had stocked up on imported goods ahead of time to avoid the tariffs and would be able to draw on existing inventories.

That may be an effective strategy for non-perishable goods, like construction materials, but less so for perishable goods that are not afforded the ability to stockpile. “You don’t stockpile avocados,’’ Reinsch said. “You don’t stockpile cut flowers. You don’t stockpile bananas.’’

The US Chamber of Commerce business group warned that the tariff policy was wrong-headed and would cause economic harm to Americans.

The group’s senior vice-president John Murphy said: “The President is right to focus on major problems like our broken border and the scourge of fentanyl, but the imposition of tariffs under IEEPA is unprecedented, won’t solve these problems, and will only raise prices for American families and upend supply chains.”

He added: “The Chamber will consult with our members, including main street businesses across the country impacted by this move, to determine next steps to prevent economic harm to Americans.”

Democratic politicians were not impressed. “Donald Trump got hired … saying he was going to lower grocery prices. Two weeks in, he’s doing something that’s going to do the opposite,” senator Mark Warner told CBS’s Face the Nation.

The Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar summed up her thoughts on the early days on the second Trump administration on MSNBC: “Chaos up, corruption up, and, sadly, prices of eggs up … This is not what American economy needs right now … He is not using a chisel, he is using a sledgehammer.”

Fans at a Toronto Raptors game on Sunday continued an emerging trend of booing the American national anthem at sporting events in Canada.

Fans of the NBA’s lone Canadian franchise booed the US anthem before the Raptors’ game against the Los Angeles Clippers at the Scotiabank Arena in downtown Toronto. Similar reactions broke out on Saturday night at NHL games in Ottawa and Calgary, where the Senators and Flames faced the Minnesota Wild and Detroit Red Wings respectively. Those games came hours after Donald Trump made his threat of import tariffs on Canada a reality.

After Raptors fans initially cheered the 15-year-old girl singing the anthems, they booed throughout her performance of The Star-Spangled Banner. At the end, mixed boos and cheers could be heard before the crowd erupted in applause for the Canadian anthem, O Canada. Three of the five starters on the Raptors are American and they glanced at each other as the boos rang out. Sportsnet reporter Michael Grange, who was at the game, wrote on X that fans emphasised the word “free” in the Canadian anthem. The game ended in a 115-108 victory for the Raptors.

Raptors forward Garrett Temple, who is American, said the players were well aware of the booing.

“Yeah, of course I noticed it,” he said. “The reaction [was], ‘Wow.’ And then you just think about why they’re booing. A lot of things bigger than basketball going on in the world right now. At the end of the day, we play in an arena that’s in Canada and they’re Canadian citizens, so they have a certain feeling about the trade situation going on, the tariffs. The people that booed let their thoughts be known.”

One of the Raptors’ Canadian players, Kelly Olynyk, said he had had sympathy for the anthem singer.

“Obviously [the tariffs have] an impact on a lot of people in this country and in this stadium,” he said. “I felt bad for the girl singing but they cheered her at the end, so I was happy for that.”

On Saturday, Trump placed tariffs on goods from Canada, Mexico and China after claiming the three countries allow immigrants and illegal drugs into the US. In addition, energy imported from Canada, including oil, natural gas and electricity, will be taxed at a 10% rate.

Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and Mexico’s president have ordered retaliatory tariffs on goods from America in response.

The booing of The Star-Spangled Banner in Canada is rare, but not unheard of especially when tied to world events. In the early 2000s, fans at games in Canada booed to show their disapproval of the US-led war in Iraq.

Trump has been the subject of booing himself at sports events. During his first term as president he was jeered and greeted with “lock him up” chants by Washington Nationals fans during the 2019 World Series. He has also been cheered loudly at college football games.

The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has held talks in Panama with its president, José Raúl Mulino, as protesters marched in opposition to Donald Trump’s demand for ownership of the Panama canal to be returned to the US.

The US’s top diplomat told Mulino in the talks that the US president has determined China’s influence threatens the Panama canal and that immediate changes were needed or the US would act.

Since Trump began talking about “taking back” the Panama canal over a month ago, Panamanian officials have looked to Rubio to understand the nature of the president’s threats and the possible concessions they can make to firm up the relationship with the US.

In a summary of the meeting released by the US state department, Rubio told Mulino that Trump believed the current situation at the canal was “unacceptable and that absent immediate changes, it would require the United States to take measures necessary to protect its rights” under a US treaty with Panama.

Meanwhile, Mulino stressed that sovereignty over the canal is not up for debate, but he offered help repatriating some migrants traveling towards the US through the country from South America if the US paid for it. Mulino suggested a possible expansion of an existing agreement with the US from last July that could pave the way for direct deportations of non-Panamanian migrants who cross the Darien Gap jungle on Panama’s southern border with Colombia.

After the meeting, Mulino said: “We had a very respectable and cordial meeting,” but that the canal “is operated by our country and will continue to be”.

Mulino noted an expanded deal could potentially allow for the deportation of migrants from Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador. “We spoke extensively about the problem of migration, with the understanding that Panama is a transit point,” said Mulino, after his meeting.

Mulino also said he would not renew Panama’s belt and road initiative with China and invited the state department to promote US investment in the country.

Rubio is touring Central America and the Caribbean on his first foray in the post as he seeks to refocus US diplomacy on the western hemisphere – in part to recruit help in stemming migration toward the US southern border.

Even before Trump’s election, Mulino had signed agreements with the US aimed at controlling irregular migration via the Darién Gap through increased surveillance and the introduction of deportation flights. In the first three weeks of January, migration through the gap fell 94% compared with the same period in 2023.

A day after Trump announced he was imposing tariffs on Canada and Mexico, prompting retaliation from those countries, Rubio was perhaps taking a less confrontational and more diplomatic approach. He was pictured cordially greeting Panama’s foreign minister, though neither he nor Mulino spoke publicly at their meeting. Rubio is also scheduled to tour an energy facility and the canal during his visit.

About 200 people marched in Panama City, carrying Panamanian flags and shouting “Marco Rubio out of Panama”, “Long live national sovereignty” and “One territory, one flag” while the meeting was taking place. Some burned a banner with images of Trump and Rubio after being stopped short of the presidential palace by riot police.

“To the imperial messenger,” union leader Saul Mendez said of Rubio, “we reiterate that there is absolutely nothing here for Trump. Panama is a free and sovereign nation.”

Upon returning to office Trump threatened to take control of the Panama canal, built by the US in the early 20th century and handed over to Panama under a 1977 treaty, claiming the canal is being operated by China. The comments were followed by a public backlash, and Panama rebuked Trump’s threats.

China has said it plays no part in operating the canal and that it respects Panama’s sovereignty and independence over the waterway. The canal is operated by the Panama Canal Authority, an autonomous agency overseen by the Panamanian government.

Following Trump’s threats, Mulino ordered Panama’s comptroller general to audit the key ports at either end of the canal. Rubio, a longtime China hawk during his Senate career, said last week that China could use ports to shut down the canal, a vital route for US shipping, in the event of a conflict between Beijing and Washington.

Last week a Senate commerce committee audience accused Panama of mismanagement of the canal. In recent years drought has reduced the number of transits and auctions for limited spots have fetched figures of up to $4m. A solid Panamanian commitment to resolve this problem – the most likely solution is a dam of the Rio Indio, an environmentally and socially complex project – could appease Rubio’s concerns.

However, US administration of the canal or a significant reduction of its fees – which form an important part of the national budget – would be unacceptable to the Panamanian government and its people. Mulino has said the ownership of the canal was not on the table in the talks with Rubio.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump said the audit concession was not enough and that Panama had “totally violated” the understanding when the US handed back the canal.

“They’ve already offered to do many things,” Trump said of Panama, “but we think it’s appropriate that we take it back.”

Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has hit back at Donald Trump’s “slanderous” claim that her government had joined forces with drug bosses, amid anger and incredulity at the US president’s attack on the leaders of Latin America’s second biggest economy.

Trump made the claim on Saturday as he announced 25% tariffs against Mexico that the US said were a response to illegal immigration and the “intolerable alliance” between drug trafficking organisations and Mexico’s government, which had allegedly offered safe haven to “dangerous cartels”.

Trump’s decision to follow through on his tariffs threat – coupled with the dramatic accusation against Sheinbaum’s administration – drew a stinging response from Mexico’s first female president, who took power last October.

“We categorically reject the White House’s slanderous claim that the Mexico government has alliances with criminal organisations, as well as any attempt to intervene in our territory,” Sheinbaum wrote on X. “If there is anywhere that such an alliance in fact exists, it is in the United States gun factories that sell high-powered weapons to these criminal groups.”

On Sunday the governors of Mexico’s 31 states and Mexico City backed Sheinbaum in a joint statement signed by politicians from across the political spectrum. “We energetically condemn the accusations that suggest there is a link between our government and narco-trafficking cartels,” it said. “These claims are not only baseless, they also ignore the major, verifiable efforts Mexico has made to combat organised crime.”

Mexican media reports suggested Sheinbaum’s administration had been bracing for Trump’s tariffs – which were also imposed on Canada and China – and had prepared a series of countermeasures with which to respond. But the US’s explicit claim that Mexico’s government had allied itself with narco-trafficking groups – which one pundit called “Trump’s missile” – appeared to have blindsided officials. “What had appeared to be a commercial and economic crisis has become an eminently political issue,” the newspaper El Universal said.

Mexican front pages were covered with references to Trump’s “narco-government” claim on Sunday. An indignant headline in the leftwing paper La Jornada said: “Mexico demands RESPECT! after Trump attack”. A cartoon depicted Trump as a caveman clutching a cudgel emblazoned with the word “tariffs”.

Mexico’s economy minister, Marcelo Ebrard, said on social media that Trump was “shooting himself in the foot”. He wrote: “Accusing the Mexican government of being an ally of narco [traffickers] is – apart from an insult to our country – a pretext to distract US public opinion from the tremendous mistake of imposing disruptive tariffs on Mexico and North American companies that operate here.”

Ebrard retweeted a post by Lawrence Summers in which the former US treasury secretary called Trump’s tariffs “inexplicable and dangerous”.

Summers wrote: “It is hard to imagine a better way to increase migration on our southern border than by destabilizing the Mexican economy, as these tariffs set out to do.” He said the tariffs would “force our allies to retaliate. And I presume they will retaliate in ways that are designed to maximize our economic pain.”

Record of the year

The Beatles – Now and Then
Beyoncé – Texas Hold ’Em
Sabrina Carpenter – Espresso
Charli xcx – 360
Billie Eilish – Birds of a Feather
Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us – WINNER
Chappell Roan – Good Luck, Babe!
Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone – Fortnight

Best pop duo/group performance

Gracie Abrams featuring Taylor Swift – Us.
Beyoncé featuring Post Malone – Levii’s Jeans
Charli xcx and Billie Eilish – Guess
Ariana Grande, Brandy and Monica – The Boy Is Mine
Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars – Die With a Smile – WINNER

Best Latin pop album

Anitta – Funk Generation
Luis Fonsi – El Viaje
Kany García – García
Shakira – Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran – WINNER
Kali Uchis – Orquídeas

Best new artist

Benson Boone
Sabrina Carpenter
Doechii
Khruangbin
Raye
Chappell Roan – WINNER
Shaboozey
Teddy Swims

Best country album

Beyoncé – Cowboy Carter – WINNER
Post Malone – F-1 Trillion
Kacey Musgraves – Deeper Well
Chris Stapleton – Higher
Lainey Wilson – Whirlwind

Best pop vocal album

Sabrina Carpenter – Short n’ Sweet – WINNER
Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard and Soft
Ariana Grande – Eternal Sunshine
Chappell Roan – The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess
Taylor Swift – The Tortured Poets Department

Best rap album

J Cole – Might Delete Later
Common and Pete Rock – The Auditorium, Vol 1
Doechii – Alligator Bites Never Heal – WINNER
Eminem – The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce)
Future and Metro Boomin – We Don’t Trust You

Best pop solo performance

Beyoncé – Bodyguard
Sabrina Carpenter – Espresso – WINNER
Charli xcx – Apple
Billie Eilish – Birds of a Feather
Chappell Roan – Good Luck, Babe!

Best dance/electronic music album

Charli xcx – Brat – WINNER
Four Tet – Three
Justice – Hyperdrama
Kaytranada – Timeless
Zedd – Telos

Best rock performance

The Beatles – Now and Then – WINNER
The Black Keys – Beautiful People (Stay High)
Green Day – The American Dream Is Killing Me
Idles – Gift Horse
Pearl Jam – Dark Matter
St Vincent – Broken Man

Best rap performance

Cardi B – Enough (Miami)
Common and Pete Rock featuring Posdnuos – When the Sun Shines Again
Doechii – Nissan Altima
Eminem – Houdini
Future and Metro Boomin featuring Kendrick Lamar – Like That
GloRilla – Yeah Glo!
Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us – WINNER

Best rap song

Rapsody featuring Hit-Boy – Asteroids
¥$ [Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign] featuring Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti – Carnival
Future and Metro Boomin featuring Kendrick Lamar – Like That
Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us – WINNER
GloRilla – Yeah Glo!

Best alternative music album

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – Wild God
Clairo – Charm
Kim Gordon – The Collective
Brittany Howard – What Now
St Vincent – All Born Screaming – WINNER

Best country solo performance

Beyoncé – 16 Carriages
Jelly Roll – I Am Not Okay
Kacey Musgraves – The Architect
Shaboozey – A Bar Song (Tipsy)
Chris Stapleton – It Takes a Woman – WINNER

Best country duo/group performance

Kelsea Ballerini with Noah Kahan – Cowboys Cry Too
Beyoncé featuring Miley Cyrus – II Most Wanted – WINNER
Brothers Osborne – Break Mine
Dan + Shay – Bigger Houses
Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen – I Had Some Help

Best melodic rap performance

Jordan Adetunji featuring Kehlani – Kehlani
Beyoncé featuring Linda Martell and Shaboozey – Spaghettii
Future and Metro Boomin featuring the Weeknd – We Still Don’t Trust You
Latto – Big Mama
Rapsody featuring Erykah Badu – 3:AM – WINNER

Best dance pop recording

Madison Beer – Make You Mine
Charli xcx – Von Dutch – WINNER
Billie Eilish – L’Amour de Ma Vie (Over Now Extended Edit)
Ariana Grande – Yes, And?
Troye Sivan – Got Me Started

Best dance/electronic recording

Disclosure – She’s Gone, Dance On
Four Tet – Loved
Fred Again.. and Baby Keem – Leavemealone
Justice and Tame Impala – Neverender – WINNER
Kaytranada featuring Childish Gambino – Witchy

Best R&B performance

Jhené Aiko – Guidance
Chris Brown – Residuals
Coco Jones – Here We Go (Uh Oh)
Muni Long – Made for Me (Live on BET) – WINNER
SZA – Saturn

Best traditional R&B performance

Marsha Ambrosius – Wet
Kenyon Dixon – Can I Have This Groove
Lalah Hathaway featuring Michael McDonald – No Lie
Muni Long – Make Me Forget
Lucky Daye – That’s You – WINNER

Best comedy album

Ricky Gervais – Armageddon
Dave Chappelle – The Dreamer – WINNER
Jim Gaffigan – The Prisoner
Nikki Glaser – Someday You’ll Die
Trevor Noah – Where Was I

Best R&B song

Kehlani – After Hours
Tems – Burning
Coco Jones – Here We Go (Uh Oh)
Muni Long – Ruined Me
SZA – Saturn – WINNER

Best progressive R&B album

Avery*Sunshine – So Glad to Know You – WINNER – tie
Durand Bernarr – En Route
Childish Gambino – Bando Stone and the New World
Kehlani – Crash
NxWorries (Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge) – Why Lawd? – WINNER – tie

Best R&B album

Chris Brown – 11:11 (Deluxe) – WINNER
Lalah Hathaway – Vantablack
Muni Long – Revenge
Lucky Daye – Algorithm
Usher – Coming Home

Best folk album

American Patchwork Quartet – American Patchwork Quartet
Madi Diaz – Weird Faith
Adrianne Lenker – Bright Future
Aoife O’Donovan – All My Friends
Gillian Welch and David Rawlings – Woodland – WINNER

Best música urbana album

Bad Bunny – Nadie Sabe lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana
J Balvin – Rayo
Feid – Ferxxocalipsis
Residente – Las Letras Ya No Importan – WINNER
Young Miko – Att.

Best metal performance

Gojira, Marina Viotti and Victor Le Masne – Mea Culpa (Ah! Ça ira!) – WINNER
Judas Priest – Crown of Horns
Knocked Loose featuring Poppy – Suffocate
Metallica – Screaming Suicide
Spiritbox – Cellar Door

Best African music performance

Yemi Alade – Tomorrow
Asake and Wizkid – MMS
Chris Brown featuring Davido and Lojay – Sensational
Burna Boy – Higher
Tems – Love Me JeJe – WINNER

Best rock song

The Black Keys – Beautiful People (Stay High)
St Vincent – Broken Man – WINNER
Pearl Jam – Dark Matter
Green Day – Dilemma
Idles – Gift Horse

Best rock album

The Black Crowes – Happiness Bastards
Fontaines DC – Romance
Green Day – Saviors
Idles – Tangk
Pearl Jam – Dark Matter
The Rolling Stones – Hackney Diamonds – WINNER
Jack White – No Name

Best alternative music performance

Cage the Elephant – Neon Pill
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – Song of the Lake
Fontaines DC – Starburster
Kim Gordon – Bye Bye
St Vincent – Flea – WINNER

Best global music album

Matt B Featuring Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – Alkebulan II – WINNER
Ciro Hurtado – Paisajes
Rema – Heis
Antonio Rey – Historias de Un Flamenco
Tems – Born in the Wild

Best audio book, narration, and storytelling recording

Various Artists; Guy Oldfield, producer – All You Need Is Love: The Beatles in Their Own Words
George Clinton – …And Your Ass Will Follow
Dolly Parton – Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones
Jimmy Carter – Last Sundays in the Plains: A Centennial Celebration – WINNER
Barbra Streisand – My Name Is Barbra

Best country song

Kacey Musgraves – The Architect – WINNER
Shaboozey – A Bar Song (Tipsy)
Jelly Roll – I Am Not Okay
Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen – I Had Some Help
Beyoncé – Texas Hold ’Em

Best song written for visual media

Luke Combs – Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma from Twisters: The Album
’N Sync and Justin Timberlake – Better Place from Trolls Band Together
Olivia Rodrigo – Can’t Catch Me Now from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes
Jon Batiste – It Never Went Away from American Symphony – WINNER
Barbra Streisand – Love Will Survive from The Tattooist of Auschwitz

Best música Mexicana album (including Tejano)

Chiquis – Diamantes
Carín León – Boca Chueca, Vol 1 – WINNER
Peso Pluma – Éxodo
Jessi Uribe – De Lejitos

Songwriter of the year, non-classical

Jessi Alexander
Amy Allen – WINNER
Edgar Barrera
Jessie Jo Dillon
Raye

Producer of the year, non-classical

Alissia
Dernst “D’Mile” Emile II
Ian Fitchuk
Mustard
Daniel Nigro – WINNER

Best musical theater album

Hell’s Kitchen – WINNER
Merrily We Roll Along
The Notebook
The Outsiders
Suffs
The Wiz

• The complete list of winners can be found on the official Grammys site

Benjamin Netanyahu has flown to Washington for Donald Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his return to office.

The pair are due to meet on Tuesday, amid widespread uncertainty about the parameters of the encounter.

The Israeli prime minister will arrive at a potentially pivotal moment, with negotiations on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire supposedly due to begin on Monday. Should those talks fail, Israel could resume its offensive in early March.

Netanyahu has made a show of portraying the meeting as “a testimony to the strength of our personal friendship”. On Sunday, as he boarded his plane for Washington, he listed a series of familiar talking points, including “victory over Hamas”, reshaping the Middle East and countering the threat posed by Iran.

However, the messaging from the White House is that Netanyahu is seen as a junior partner, and the few details that have emerged from Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff’s visit to the region last week suggest Trump is pushing for adherence to a Gaza ceasefire plan that will pose political problems for Netanyahu.

Netanyahu will arrive in Washington in the midst of a disruptive new US trade war with Mexico, Canada and China and mounting chaos over the Trump administration’s efforts to downscale and purge sections of the federal government.

The New York-based Soufan Center said Trump officials had warned that “renewed fighting in the Middle East would distract the new Trump team from addressing what Trump defines as more pressing priorities”. These include “securing the southern US border from illegal migration and settling the Russia-Ukraine war”, the thinktank said.

The uncertainties overshadowing the meeting are being driven by two competing agendas.

On Trump’s side is the apparent desire to have quiet in the Middle East to pursue his policy of widening the 2020 Abraham accords – in which Israel established relations with Bahrain, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates during his first term – to include Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia has made clear that any progress depends on an end to the conflict in Gaza or the establishment of a path towards Palestinian statehood.

On Netanyahu’s side, the objective – according to Israeli officials who briefed the Axios news website – is to understand where Trump stands on the planned start of negotiations for the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire deal, which Netanyahu was reluctantly pushed into by Trump.

Those talks are supposed to begin on Monday, the 16th day of phase one of the ceasefire. But it now looks unlikely they will start until after the Trump-Netanyahu meeting, which has been characterised as an attempt to find a joint US-Israeli position going into the talks.

Other key issues likely to dominate the meeting are a “day after” plan for Gaza, not least how it will be run and by whom, and what position to take on Iran.

Complicating Netanyahu’s position is the fact that he has been facing mounting pressure from far-right governing partners to resume the war in Gaza after the end of the first phase of the ceasefire deal, which appears at odds with Trump’s outlook.

The Israeli finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, has threatened to quit the government if the war does not restart, potentially stripping Netanyahu of his majority.

For its part Hamas, which has quickly reasserted its control over Gaza since the ceasefire took hold last month, has said it will not release the hostages slated to go free in the second phase without an end to the war and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces.

Negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire have already been complicated by Trump’s repeated demand that Egypt and Jordan absorb 1.5 million residents of the Gaza Strip – a demand forcefully rejected by the two countries and other Arab nations including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

In his previous term, Trump handed Netanyahu a series of successes, including relocation of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and the signing of the Abraham accords.

But while the new Trump administration includes several pro-Israel figures expected to endorse expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and resist international pressure over the war in Gaza, Trump’s ambitions appear less focused on Israel than on the Gulf countries.

Eldad Shavit, a former intelligence official who worked in the prime minister’s office, said Netanyahu appeared to be balancing pressure from Trump to stick to the ceasefire and domestic opposition to the deal.

“He wants to make sure Trump is on his side, but he also wants to make sure his government doesn’t collapse,” he said.

Agencies contributed to this report

Benjamin Netanyahu has flown to Washington for Donald Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his return to office.

The pair are due to meet on Tuesday, amid widespread uncertainty about the parameters of the encounter.

The Israeli prime minister will arrive at a potentially pivotal moment, with negotiations on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire supposedly due to begin on Monday. Should those talks fail, Israel could resume its offensive in early March.

Netanyahu has made a show of portraying the meeting as “a testimony to the strength of our personal friendship”. On Sunday, as he boarded his plane for Washington, he listed a series of familiar talking points, including “victory over Hamas”, reshaping the Middle East and countering the threat posed by Iran.

However, the messaging from the White House is that Netanyahu is seen as a junior partner, and the few details that have emerged from Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff’s visit to the region last week suggest Trump is pushing for adherence to a Gaza ceasefire plan that will pose political problems for Netanyahu.

Netanyahu will arrive in Washington in the midst of a disruptive new US trade war with Mexico, Canada and China and mounting chaos over the Trump administration’s efforts to downscale and purge sections of the federal government.

The New York-based Soufan Center said Trump officials had warned that “renewed fighting in the Middle East would distract the new Trump team from addressing what Trump defines as more pressing priorities”. These include “securing the southern US border from illegal migration and settling the Russia-Ukraine war”, the thinktank said.

The uncertainties overshadowing the meeting are being driven by two competing agendas.

On Trump’s side is the apparent desire to have quiet in the Middle East to pursue his policy of widening the 2020 Abraham accords – in which Israel established relations with Bahrain, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates during his first term – to include Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia has made clear that any progress depends on an end to the conflict in Gaza or the establishment of a path towards Palestinian statehood.

On Netanyahu’s side, the objective – according to Israeli officials who briefed the Axios news website – is to understand where Trump stands on the planned start of negotiations for the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire deal, which Netanyahu was reluctantly pushed into by Trump.

Those talks are supposed to begin on Monday, the 16th day of phase one of the ceasefire. But it now looks unlikely they will start until after the Trump-Netanyahu meeting, which has been characterised as an attempt to find a joint US-Israeli position going into the talks.

Other key issues likely to dominate the meeting are a “day after” plan for Gaza, not least how it will be run and by whom, and what position to take on Iran.

Complicating Netanyahu’s position is the fact that he has been facing mounting pressure from far-right governing partners to resume the war in Gaza after the end of the first phase of the ceasefire deal, which appears at odds with Trump’s outlook.

The Israeli finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, has threatened to quit the government if the war does not restart, potentially stripping Netanyahu of his majority.

For its part Hamas, which has quickly reasserted its control over Gaza since the ceasefire took hold last month, has said it will not release the hostages slated to go free in the second phase without an end to the war and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces.

Negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire have already been complicated by Trump’s repeated demand that Egypt and Jordan absorb 1.5 million residents of the Gaza Strip – a demand forcefully rejected by the two countries and other Arab nations including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

In his previous term, Trump handed Netanyahu a series of successes, including relocation of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and the signing of the Abraham accords.

But while the new Trump administration includes several pro-Israel figures expected to endorse expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and resist international pressure over the war in Gaza, Trump’s ambitions appear less focused on Israel than on the Gulf countries.

Eldad Shavit, a former intelligence official who worked in the prime minister’s office, said Netanyahu appeared to be balancing pressure from Trump to stick to the ceasefire and domestic opposition to the deal.

“He wants to make sure Trump is on his side, but he also wants to make sure his government doesn’t collapse,” he said.

Agencies contributed to this report

Tens of thousands of people marched in Germany on Sunday to protest against the decision by the centre-right leader – and frontrunner in a looming election – to send to parliament proposals for tough migration rules that received the backing of a far-right party.

Angry protesters in Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, Leipzig and Munich said that Friedrich Merz and his Christian Democrats (CDU) broke Germany’s unwritten post-Nazi promise by all democratic parties to never pass any rule or resolution in parliament with the support of far-right, nationalist parties such as Alternative für Deutschland (AfD).

Police estimated that 160,000 people attended a rally in Berlin. Organisers put the turnout at 200,000.

Hundreds of protesters temporarily blocked offices of the CDU in different cities. In Cologne, people protested on 350 boats on the Rhine, the German news agency dpa reported. The boats lined up in front of the city’s skyline with protesters holding banners with slogans such as “No racism” and “For democracy and diversity”.

Merz on Wednesday proposed a nonbinding motion in parliament calling for Germany to turn back many more people at its borders. The measure squeaked through thanks to the AfD’s support.

Merz was determined to show the commitment of his centre-right alliance, which also includes the Bavaria-only Christian Social Union, to cutting irregular migration after a deadly knife attack last month in which the suspect is a rejected asylum seeker.

However, on Friday, the German parliament narrowly rejected a bill calling for tougher rules on migration that risked becoming the first draft legislation to pass thanks to a far-right party. Nonetheless, it has become a focus of a controversy about the attitude toward the far right of the frontrunner in this month’s federal election.

Merz has been accused by protesters and politicians on the left of breaking a taboo and endangering mainstream parties’ “firewall” against the AfD. He has said his position is unchanged and that he did not and will not work with the party.

Polls show the CDU/CSU alliance, which put forward the migration proposal and bill, leading election polling with about 30% support, with the AfD second on about 20% and the Social Democrats and Greens further back.

Merz appears to hope that he will gain support by making the alliance look decisive in forcing a tougher approach to migration, while blunting the appeal of the anti-immigration AfD and making the governing parties – which say they have already done much to tackle the issue – look out of touch with Germans’ concerns.

The 12-year-old AfD first entered the national parliament in 2017, benefiting from the then chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision two years earlier to allow large numbers of people into the country.

A year ago, hundreds of thousands also protested in weeks-long rallies across Germany against the rise of the far right and purported plans to deport millions of asylum seekers, including some who hold German passports.

US President Donald Trump has asserted South Africa is “confiscating” land and “treating certain classes of people very badly” as he announced he was cutting off all future funding to the country pending an investigation.

The land issue in South Africa has long been divisive, with efforts to redress the inequality of white-rule drawing criticism from conservatives including Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest person, who was born in South Africa and is a powerful Trump adviser.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa last month signed a bill that stipulates the government may, in certain circumstances, offer “nil compensation” for property it decides to expropriate in the public interest.

“South Africa is confiscating land, and treating certain classes of people VERY BADLY,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Sunday.

“I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!” Trump wrote.

Pretoria argues the bill does not allow the government to expropriate property arbitrarily and must first seek to reach agreement with the owner.

However, some groups fear a situation similar to the Zimbabwe government’s seizure of white-owned commercial farms, often without compensation, after independence in 1980.

Later, in a briefing with journalists, Trump said that South Africa’s “leadership is doing some terrible things, horrible things” without giving examples.

“So that’s under investigation right now. We’ll make a determination, and until such time as we find out what South Africa is doing – they’re taking away land and confiscating land, and actually they’re doing things that are perhaps far worse than that.”

Land ownership is a contentious issue in South Africa with most farmland still owned by white people three decades after the end of apartheid.

Since then land courts have adjudicated on a handful of land disputes and, after exhaustive processes, returned land to previously displaced owners.

According to the South African government, the 1913 Natives Land Act saw thousands of Black families forcibly removed from their land by the apartheid regime.

The delicate issue has been a particular rallying point for the right, with various conservative figures including Musk and right-wing journalist Katie Hopkins championing the cause of white land-owners.

Musk was born in Pretoria on 28 June 1971, to an engineer father and a Canadian-born model mother, leaving the country in his late teens. The formal policy of apartheid lasted until 1990, and multi-racial elections were held in 1994.

Trump has surrounded himself with powerful Silicon Valley figures who came of age in apartheid southern Africa, like David Sacks, his newly appointed artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency czar, who co-founded PayPal along with Musk.

Billionaire Peter Thiel – another PayPal cofounder, who introduced Trump to his vice-president, JD Vance – also lived in southern Africa, including time in Namibia which was then controlled by Pretoria.

He has previously been accused of supporting the apartheid system, that violently subjugated the Black majority of South Africa to uphold white rule and economic control, something a spokesperson denied on his behalf.

• Donald Trump’s Ukraine envoy hinted that both sides would have to make concessions to end the war – which could include Kyiv giving up land occupied by Russia. After recently returning from a visit to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg told Fox News that “both sides will give a little bit”. Zelenskyy “has already indicated he will soften his position on land,” the retired lieutenant general said, adding that Putin “is going to have to soften his positions as well”. But the Ukrainian president’s communications adviser dismissed Kellogg’s intervention. “We haven’t seen Mr Kellogg’s full interview … But if his plan is just a ceasefire and elections, it is a failed plan – Putin won’t be intimidated by just those two things,” Dmytro Lytvyn told journalists.

• Trump’s threat of sanctions has left Vladimir Putin “rattled” and concerned about the Russian economy, British prime minister Keir Starmer has said ahead of an informal European defence cooperation meeting in Brussels on Monday. Starmer said it was necessary to “see all allies stepping up – particularly in Europe” when it comes to inflicting economic harm on Russia, and argued it would help bring about peace by ending the Ukraine war sooner. “President Trump has threatened more sanctions on Russia and it’s clear that’s got Putin rattled,” Starmer said ahead of the trip. “We know that he’s worried about the state of the Russian economy.”

• In talks with the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, on Sunday Starmer stressed that it was important to ensure Ukraine “was in the strongest possible position in the coming months”, so that any peace deal to end its war with Ukraine “could be achieved through strength.” Starmer will also meet Nato secretary general Mark Rutte on Monday, before travelling to meet the leaders of the 27 EU member states at the informal meeting of the European Council.

• Kyiv and Moscow traded blame on Sunday for a strike on a school in a Ukrainian-occupied town in Russia’s Kursk region. The Ukrainian air force said four people were killed on Saturday in a Russian guided aerial bomb attack on a former school building sheltering civilians in the town of Sudzha. Four others were seriously wounded and 80 people rescued from the rubble, it added. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Russia “devoid of civility”, sharing a video on social media showing a heavily damaged building, as well as a wounded man lying on the ground. But Russia blamed Ukraine for the attack, saying they had opened a criminal case against a Ukrainian commander who they said was behind it. A defence ministry statement accused Kyiv of a “war crime” with “no statute of limitations” by targeting the school.

• Ukrainian prosecutors charged two men on Sunday over the killing of an army draft officer in the central Poltava region, leading a top general to call for swift punishment as he warned of growing disrespect towards members of the military. One of the suspects, who was being driven to a military training centre on Friday with other conscripts, called an acquaintance who then arrived at the scene and shot dead one of the accompanying officers, the Prosecutor General’s office alleged. Two suspects were arrested a few hours later, the office said in a statement, adding that police had seized a hunting rifle, ammunition and two cases of hand grenades from the alleged shooter.

• Separately, an explosion near a recruitment centre for the Ukrainian military on Sunday wounded one person, police said. Taking place outside an army office in the central town of Pavlograd, Sunday’s blast was the latest in a series of similar incidents, just a day after another blast Rivne, a town in north-west Ukraine, killed one person. Without giving a possible cause, the Dnipropetrovsk regional police said an investigation was ongoing into Sunday’s blast which happened towards at 6.40pm. “According to preliminary information, a man was wounded by the explosion of a unidentified object,” the force said in a statement.

• A Ukrainian drone attack killed one civilian in the Russian region of Belgorod bordering Ukraine, the regional governor said on Sunday. “A man was killed,” governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said of the overnight strike in a post on the Telegram messaging app. “He died from his injuries before the ambulance crew arrived.” Gladkov said the attack took place in the village of Malinovka about 8km (5 miles) east of the border.

• Donald Trump’s Ukraine envoy hinted that both sides would have to make concessions to end the war – which could include Kyiv giving up land occupied by Russia. After recently returning from a visit to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg told Fox News that “both sides will give a little bit”. Zelenskyy “has already indicated he will soften his position on land,” the retired lieutenant general said, adding that Putin “is going to have to soften his positions as well”. But the Ukrainian president’s communications adviser dismissed Kellogg’s intervention. “We haven’t seen Mr Kellogg’s full interview … But if his plan is just a ceasefire and elections, it is a failed plan – Putin won’t be intimidated by just those two things,” Dmytro Lytvyn told journalists.

• Trump’s threat of sanctions has left Vladimir Putin “rattled” and concerned about the Russian economy, British prime minister Keir Starmer has said ahead of an informal European defence cooperation meeting in Brussels on Monday. Starmer said it was necessary to “see all allies stepping up – particularly in Europe” when it comes to inflicting economic harm on Russia, and argued it would help bring about peace by ending the Ukraine war sooner. “President Trump has threatened more sanctions on Russia and it’s clear that’s got Putin rattled,” Starmer said ahead of the trip. “We know that he’s worried about the state of the Russian economy.”

• In talks with the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, on Sunday Starmer stressed that it was important to ensure Ukraine “was in the strongest possible position in the coming months”, so that any peace deal to end its war with Ukraine “could be achieved through strength.” Starmer will also meet Nato secretary general Mark Rutte on Monday, before travelling to meet the leaders of the 27 EU member states at the informal meeting of the European Council.

• Kyiv and Moscow traded blame on Sunday for a strike on a school in a Ukrainian-occupied town in Russia’s Kursk region. The Ukrainian air force said four people were killed on Saturday in a Russian guided aerial bomb attack on a former school building sheltering civilians in the town of Sudzha. Four others were seriously wounded and 80 people rescued from the rubble, it added. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Russia “devoid of civility”, sharing a video on social media showing a heavily damaged building, as well as a wounded man lying on the ground. But Russia blamed Ukraine for the attack, saying they had opened a criminal case against a Ukrainian commander who they said was behind it. A defence ministry statement accused Kyiv of a “war crime” with “no statute of limitations” by targeting the school.

• Ukrainian prosecutors charged two men on Sunday over the killing of an army draft officer in the central Poltava region, leading a top general to call for swift punishment as he warned of growing disrespect towards members of the military. One of the suspects, who was being driven to a military training centre on Friday with other conscripts, called an acquaintance who then arrived at the scene and shot dead one of the accompanying officers, the Prosecutor General’s office alleged. Two suspects were arrested a few hours later, the office said in a statement, adding that police had seized a hunting rifle, ammunition and two cases of hand grenades from the alleged shooter.

• Separately, an explosion near a recruitment centre for the Ukrainian military on Sunday wounded one person, police said. Taking place outside an army office in the central town of Pavlograd, Sunday’s blast was the latest in a series of similar incidents, just a day after another blast Rivne, a town in north-west Ukraine, killed one person. Without giving a possible cause, the Dnipropetrovsk regional police said an investigation was ongoing into Sunday’s blast which happened towards at 6.40pm. “According to preliminary information, a man was wounded by the explosion of a unidentified object,” the force said in a statement.

• A Ukrainian drone attack killed one civilian in the Russian region of Belgorod bordering Ukraine, the regional governor said on Sunday. “A man was killed,” governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said of the overnight strike in a post on the Telegram messaging app. “He died from his injuries before the ambulance crew arrived.” Gladkov said the attack took place in the village of Malinovka about 8km (5 miles) east of the border.

South-eastern states sweltering in a heatwave may be waiting until late Tuesday or Wednesday for a cool change to bring some relief.

On Monday, temperatures in Melbourne were still climbing at 2pm, when the city recorded 35.5C, with the Bureau of Meteorology forecasting a top of 39C, following a high of 38C on Sunday.

Adelaide had reached 40.1C by lunchtime, with a forecast high of 41C, following a high of 39C on Sunday.

Senior BoM meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said the capital cities’ three-day run of “intensely hot” weather was remarkable, particularly given the last time Melbourne had three days in a row over 37C was in 2014.

“[In] all of these areas we’re pretty used to seeing one hot day, maybe two hot days, but getting a stretch of three or more in a row is fairly unusual,” she said.

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Three or more days of unusually hot weather triggered heatwave conditions, and also meant very warm nights in between very hot days, Bradbury said.

“That does have an impact on the body, where we can’t recuperate from the heat of the day.”

Large parts of South Australia and Victoria were forecast to reach temperatures in the high 30s and even 40s.

Bendigo, Mildura and the Latrobe Valley were expected to reach 39C and Shepparton 40C. Warrnambool, on the south-west coast of Victoria, had recorded 37.2C by 11.30am.

The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, said several days of extreme temperatures had a cumulative effect, particularly on vulnerable people.

“So if you can, please check in on your loved ones, please check in on your neighbour and also look after yourself as we go through this period of extreme heat.”

Heatwaves are Australia’s deadliest natural phenomenon, killing more people than bushfires, floods and storms.

The Victorian government’s Better Health Channel outlined the symptoms of heat-related illness including cramps, exhaustion and heatstroke, and offered advice on staying cool, including drinking plenty of water, spending time in air-conditioned spaces, wearing light and loose clothing, and taking cool showers or keeping skin wet.

Temperatures in Ceduna, an eight-hour drive north-west of Adelaide, had already hit 39.9C by 11am. Maximums in the 40s were expected in Murray Bridge, Port Augusta, Renmark and Whyalla.

Hobart was expected to hit 33C on Monday, which was “really hot compared to how it usually should be in summer”, Bradbury said. She said the average for Hobart in February was 21.8C.

Temperatures at least 10C above average was a “common story across much of the south-eastern part of the country today”, she said.

Widespread thunderstorm activity in Melbourne, “which seemed to rage for hours” on Sunday night, had not brought cooler weather, Bradbury said.

Melburnians would have to wait until Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning for a cold front to bring temperatures back down and “hopefully a much better sleep”, she said.

High fire danger was forecast for fire districts across much of the south-east.

Allan said two fires continued to burn in the Grampians national park, and blazes had developed in the Colac Otway region, around the north and west of Apollo Bay.

“There are huge resources, ground resources, being deployed right now to get on top of this fire,” she said.

Fires in the Little Desert national park and Hattah were under control, she said.

In Western Australia, another surge of heat was building, pushing temperatures well above average across much of the state’s south by Thursday and Friday. That would extend across the rest of southern Australia by next weekend, Bradbury said.

Perth had already seen a number of prolonged periods of heat during the 2024-25 summer, a pattern that was likely to continue, she said.

“It’s this cycle that we’ve seen quite a bit, where, as soon as one burst of heat clears the east coast, we get another burst of heat building in the west coming across.”

The forecast for Sydney was “much more bearable than for Melbourne”, Bradbury said, with temperatures “topping out” at about 30C.

Australia’s land surface has warmed by 1.5C since 1910, according to BoM, with the climate crisis making heatwaves longer and more intense, and increasing the number of extremely hot days.

Data from the BoM showed January 2025 was more than 2C above the long term average for the month, and the second-warmest January on record.

Greek authorities have dispatched special forces, rescue teams, tents and drones to the island of Santorini after hundreds of seismic tremors were recorded in the area.

Amid fears of a bigger earthquake that could cause a tsunami, people were advised to avoid the shoreline and derelict buildings, to empty swimming pools and to refrain from gathering in large numbers in enclosed spaces. The civil protection ministry said schools would be shut as a precautionary measure on Monday.

“Nothing can be ruled out,” Kostas Papazachos, a professor of geophysics at Thessaloniki’s Aristotle University, told the state broadcaster ERT. “And that’s why precautionary measures are being put in place, precisely to limit the impact of a stronger earthquake.”

Greece sits on multiple faultlines and is often rattled by earthquakes, but experts described the increased seismic activity over the space of 48 hours, with more than 200 tremors registered, as dramatic, although they emphasised that the tremors had been triggered by tectonic rather than volcanic activity.

Papazachos told local media that many of the earthquakes measured 4 to 4.5 on the Richter scale, with the strongest recorded in waters between Santorini and Amorgos.

The site of one the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history, Santorini is also Greece’s most popular Aegean isle, attracting an estimated 3.5 million tourists last year.

By early evening on Sunday as similar measures were taken on Amorgos and the nearby islets of Ios and Anafi, rescue teams in Santorini pitched tents in elevated areas on basketball courts and in car parks. In the event of a tsunami, people were told to head inland.

Ferry companies said there had been an increase in foreign workers leaving the island for the port of Piraeus. A UK government travel advisory referred to guidance issued by the Greek civil protection ministry on earthquakes.

Research has shown the crust beneath the seas around Santorini to be replete with faultlines. In 1956 the island sustained extensive damage after being hit by an earthquake in excess of seven on the Richter scale, which caused a tsunami.

Gerasimos Papadopoulos, a seismologist, said “everything is possible” but the heightened activity had been recorded “in the sea at significant distances from the islands”, which was “fortunate”.

Further protective measures were to be discussed at a cabinet meeting called by the prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, later on Sunday attended by the head of the armed forces, amid speculation that the military would also be dispatched to the Aegean isles.

USAid has put two senior security officials on administrative leave after a tense standoff with members of Elon Musk’s department of government efficiency (Doge) seeking access to sensitive data from the agency, five current and former USAid officials have told the Guardian.

USAid director of security John Voorhees and a deputy have been put on administrative leave after they blocked efforts by Doge members to physically access restricted areas, the people said. The demands led to a tense standoff during which a senior deputy to Musk threatened to call the US marshals in to grant access to the building.

The confrontation and Voorhees’ suspension was first reported by CNN and confirmed by the USAid officials. The Doge officials gained control over the access control system, which would allow them to lock out employees and read emails. They also sought personnel files and turnstile data, two people said.

Musk’s deputies may also have sought access to Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities, or SCIFs, and servers used to access sensitive cables with top-secret classifications. Four members of Doge have been granted regular access to USAid as the administration has suspended dozens of senior staff and furloughed hundreds more at the bureau for humanitarian assistance who help the agency respond to urgent crises around the world.

Katie Miller, who serves on the advisory board for Doge and is married to Trump’s deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, wrote on X that “no classified material was accessed without proper security clearances”, following an AP report that Doge officials did manage to access the materials, which included intelligence reports.

The Doge crew lacked high enough security clearance to access that information, the newswire reported.

USAid continued to abruptly suspend career staffers through Sunday, with the majority of staff in the legislative and public affairs bureaus cut off from their email. More than 100 career staffers at USAid have now been put on administrative leave, according to reports confirmed to the Guardian by one current and one former USAid official.

“We’re literally coming to work each day waiting to get the email that we’re supposed to go,” said one current USAid official who has not been suspended. “It is very much a terror feeling in that building right now.”

Musk has said that USAid should be shut down as the Trump administration is said to be mulling various strategies to downsize the agency or potentially fold it into the state department. CBS News reported that JD Vance has been put in charge of figuring out next steps for USAid reform.

“USAID is a criminal organization,” Musk wrote on X, the social network that he owns. “Time for it to die.” In another post, he referred to the agency in the past tense, saying it “was a viper’s nest of radical left-marxists who hate America”.

After the confrontation, Matt Hopson, USAid’s new chief of staff, resigned from his position, according to two of the officials. Hopson was one of eight Trump administration political appointees who have taken over the leadership of USAid and have sequestered themselves at the agency’s headquarters at the Ronald Reagan Building. They have rarely interacted with career staff. Hopson’s resignation was first reported by Reuters.

The efforts resemble those at other agencies such as the treasury department and the office of personnel and management where Doge officials have sought direct access to sensitive servers with data on millions of Americans, often over the protests of serving staff and leadership.

Wired on Sunday reported that Musk’s Doge had detailed six young engineers between the ages of 18-24 to carry out the agency’s takeover of USAid’s computer systems. Several of those individuals have regularly accessed USAid headquarters.

The Doge account on X has crowed about cutting hundreds of millions of dollars in grants and Donald Trump has repeated an unsubstantiated claim that the agency was sending $50m in condoms to Gaza where they were being repurposed as bombs.

US media have reported that the president is planning to either roll up or subsume the organisation into the state department, challenging Congress’s authority over the agency. He has also placed campaign ally Pete Marocco in a senior position at the state department’s office of foreign assistance, where he has overseen the ruinous freeze on foreign aid that has paralysed the organisation.

Around the time of the confrontation at USAid, the organisation’s website, including decades of grant records and financial reports, suddenly went offline. For a brief period, it redirected to the White House’s website, a Guardian reporter confirmed on Saturday evening. Now it is simply inaccessible.

On Friday evening, senior Senate Democrats warned that the Trump administration’s decisions to place senior USAid officials on leave and freeze foreign assistance without engaging with Congress “have created a maelstrom of problems that have put our nation at risk and undermined American credibility around the globe”.

They warned Trump away from reported plans to downsize or even subsume the agency into the state department. “It is imperative that we maintain an independent development voice and capability within the US government,” wrote the senators. “USAid is, by statute, an independent establishment outside of the State Department. Any proposal to modify that structure would require an Act of Congress.”

Keir Starmer has called on European leaders to put more economic pressure on Russia, saying Donald Trump’s threat of sanctions has left Vladimir Putin “rattled”.

Before a meeting in Brussels on Monday, the prime minister said it was necessary to “see all allies stepping up – particularly in Europe” when it comes to inflicting economic harm on Russia, and argued it would help bring about peace by ending the Ukraine war sooner.

“President Trump has threatened more sanctions on Russia and it’s clear that’s got Putin rattled. We know that he’s worried about the state of the Russian economy,” Starmer said.

“I’m here to work with our European partners on keeping up the pressure, targeting the energy revenues and the companies supplying his missile factories to crush Putin’s war machine. Because ultimately, alongside our military support, that is what will bring peace closer.”

Trump said last month he would impose high tariffs and further sanctions on Russia if Putin failed to end the war in Ukraine. He had claimed before the election that he would negotiate an end to the war in just one day.

Writing on his social media platform Truth Social, he said that by pushing to settle the war he was doing Russia and its president a “very big favour”.

The UK believes Putin is facing mounting domestic pressure from inflation and high interest rates as a result of the struggling economy, having ploughed billions into bankrolling the war in Ukraine.

The UK has imposed sanctions on 2,100 Russian individuals and entities, the majority of these since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Sanctions on more than 100 ships for transporting Russian energy, including 93 oil tankers, have had an impact on Russia’s oil industry and damaged its economy.

Starmer is to meet the Nato secretary general, Mark Rutte, on Monday before his attendance at an informal European defence cooperation meeting.

Rutte has previously said the west is not ready to deal with the threat of war from Russia, and declared it is “time to shift to a wartime mindset and turbocharge our defence production”.

Starmer has been under pressure to set out a timeline for the UK to meet its target of spending 2.5% of GDP on defence, up from just above 2%, but a number of other Nato countries are also not at this level of spending.

The prime minister discussed Ukraine at a meeting with the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, in Chequers on Sunday. A spokesperson said Starmer had stressed that it was “important to ensure [Ukraine] was in the strongest possible position in the coming months, so that peace could be achieved through strength”.

Starmer updated Scholz on the government’s strategic defence review, which will be published later this year and will take into account “the need to outmanoeuvre Putin’s ongoing aggression and hostile activity across Europe”.

Alongside the plea on Ukraine, Starmer is expected to set out to European leaders his pitch for an ambitious UK-EU defence and security partnership, including increased cooperation on shared threats, cross-border crime and illegal migration.

Starmer visited Ukraine for the first time as prime minister in mid-January, announcing a “historic” 100-year partnership and saying the UK would support the country “beyond this terrible war” and into a future where it is “free and thriving again”.

At the time, he said the unprecedented agreement reflected the “huge affection between our two nations”. He said that “right now Putin shows no signs of wanting to stop” his “unrelenting aggression”.

The UK-Ukraine agreement includes £3bn of British support a year, to be continued indefinitely. Starmer said the UK would increase training for Ukrainian soldiers, provide mobile air defence systems and send 150 artillery barrels made by Sheffield Forgemasters – the first to be produced in 20 years.