China has played down the risk of damage to its exports from Donald Trump’s tariffs, with an official saying the “the sky won’t fall”, as stock markets rose on Monday amid signs of a retreat on electronics restrictions.

The world’s second-largest economy has diversified its trade away from the US in recent years, according to Lyu Daliang, a customs administration spokesperson, in comments reported by state-owned agency Xinhua.

China has retaliated forcefully to Washington’s tariffs, with 125% levies on US imports against the US’s total of 145% border taxes on goods moving the other way. The trade war has prompted turmoil on financial markets since Trump first revealed tariffs on every country in the world on 2 April. Since then he has partly retreated on the highest levies on most trading partners for at least 90 days, but has doubled down in his spat with China.

The White House offered further relief over the weekend with an exemption from the steepest tariffs for electronics including smartphones, laptops and semiconductors. Trump officials later appeared to walk that back with the commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, saying such devices would be “included in the semiconductor tariffs which are coming in probably a month or two”.

Trump said on Sunday night on his social network, Truth Social, that “NOBODY is getting ‘off the hook’”, highlighting that smartphones are still subject to 20% levies and suggesting they could still rise higher.

However, investors on Monday appeared unconvinced by Trump’s attempts to play down the retreat. Japan’s Nikkei gained 1.2% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose by 2.2% and the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges climbed by 0.8% and 1.2%, respectively. European stock market indices also jumped in opening trades, with London’s FTSE 100 up by 1.6%, Germany’s Dax up 2.2%, and France’s Cac 40 up 2%.

“The sky won’t fall” for Chinese exports,” China’s Lyu said. “These efforts have not only supported our partners’ development but also enhanced our own resilience”.

The customs report also played up China’s “vast domestic market”, and said “the country will turn domestic certainty into a buffer against global volatility”. China has increasingly tried to stimulate private consumption.

China’s president, Xi Jinping, on Monday criticised the US tariffs, during a visit to Vietnam. Vietnam has in recent decades grown to become the eighth largest source of goods for US consumers, but it is facing the threat of 46% tariffs when Trump’s 90-day pause expires.

In an article in a Vietnamese newspaper, Xi said that a “trade war and tariff war will produce no winner, and protectionism will lead nowhere”.

The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, warned there would be “no winners” in a trade war and that protectionism “leads nowhere”, as he began a three-nation trip to south-east Asia, starting in Vietnam on Monday.

Xi’s tour, which started in Hanoi, also includes rare visits to Malaysia and Cambodia and will seek to strengthen ties with China’s closest neighbours amid a trade war that has sent shock waves through global markets.

Writing in an article published in Vietnam’s Nhân Dân newspaper on Monday, Xi urged Vietnam to “resolutely safeguard the multilateral trading system, stable global industrial and supply chains, and open and cooperative international environment”, Beijing’s Xinhua news agency said.

He added that a “trade war and tariff war will produce no winner, and protectionism will lead nowhere”.

It is expected Xi’s visit will seek to present China as a reliable partner, in contrast to Washington, which imposed – then suspended – tariffs of more than 40% on some countries in south-east Asia, an export-reliant region.

Officials in Vietnam, a manufacturing powerhouse, were shocked when the country was hit with a tariff of 46%, even after various efforts to appease the Trump administration. The tariff, which has been paused, threatens to devastate the country’s ambitious economic growth plan.

Xi’s visit was reportedly planned prior to Trump’s tariff announcement. During meetings Vietnam and China will sign about 40 agreements across different sectors, Vietnam’s deputy prime minister, Bùi Thanh Sơn, said on Saturday. It is expected this will include cooperation to develop Vietnam’s railway network.

Vietnam’s leader, Tô Lâm, wrote in an article published in state media on Monday that Hanoi wanted to boost cooperation in defence, security and infrastructure, especially on rail links.

Xi’s visit will probably form part of an effort to prevent economic encirclement by the US and in the region, said Dr Nguyen Khac Giang, a visiting fellow at the Vietnam studies programme of the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, who cited reports that Washington would prioritise trade negotiations with countries such as Vietnam, Japan, South Korea and India.

For Vietnam, Giang added, Xi’s visit presented “a risk and an opportunity”.

Vietnam, and many other south-east Asian countries, are trying to maintain a delicate balancing act between the US and China. The US is Vietnam’s main export market, with US exports accounting for 30% of Vietnam’s GDP. However, China is Vietnam’s top import source, which it relies on for raw materials and other supplies that will be used to produce exports destined for the US.

Vietnam has traditionally sought to avoid taking sides between the US and China and will want to avoid antagonising either party, especially as it tries to persuade Washington to lower tariffs.

Vietnam is vulnerable to Washington’s tariffs because its trade surplus with the US has grown rapidly over recent years to more than $123bn (£94bn), fuelled in part by companies relocating production to Vietnam to avoid tariffs imposed on China by the last Trump administration.

Hanoi is preparing to crack down on Chinese goods being shipped from its territory to the US, in an effort to appease Washington, according to a Reuters report, and to tighten controls on sensitive exports to China. It has also made other concessions, including offering to remove all tariffs on US imports and promising to buy more US goods.

Cambodia and Malaysia, which face tariffs of 49% and 24% respectively, are also seeking to negotiate with Donald Trump, while China has previously vowed to “fight until the end” if the US continued to escalate the trade war.

Hanoi will want to avoid being seen as moving too close to Beijing during Xi’s visit, given the tension between China and Washington, said Giang, but he added that China may be able to offer a “life-saving opportunity for Vietnamese economy … at least in the short run”.

This could include a commitment from China not to export its excess capacity to Vietnam. Across many south-east Asian countries there is concern that tariffs imposed on China by the US will worsen a problem of cheap Chinese goods overwhelming domestic industries. China could also increase its imports from south-east Asia, including in areas such as agriculture.

A willingness to pursue peaceful solutions to the dispute in the South China Sea, where Beijing and several south-east Asian countries have overlapping claims, would also improve perceptions of China in the region, added Giang.

“Now we are viewing the US as a global disruptor – that presents China a golden opportunity to be a responsible stakeholder in the region. And if they can do so, I think more and more south-east Asian countries will eventually move closer to China,” Giang said.

The UN’s trade and development arm, Unctad, is calling on Donald Trump to exempt the world’s poorest and smallest countries from “reciprocal” tariffs, or risk “serious economic harm”.

In a report published on Monday, Unctad identifies 28 nations the US president singled out for a higher tariff rate than the 10% baseline – despite each accounting for less than 0.1% of the US trade deficit.

These include Laos, which is expected to face a 48% tariff; Mauritius, on 40%; and Myanmar, to be hit with 45%, despite trying to recover from a devastating earthquake.

The White House shocked many developing countries with the punitive tariff rates announced this month.

Trump claimed rival economies had “looted, pillaged, raped, plundered” the US with unfair trade practices, and he wanted to create a level playing field.

Unctad said many of the countries targeted with high tariff rates were unlikely to be a threat to the world’s largest economy, given their small size and modest levels of exports.

The White House last week put the higher tariff rates on pause for 90 days, after unleashing chaos on world financial markets, leaving a 10% levy in place across the board.

But the administration’s formal position remains that the “reciprocal” tariff rates will come into force, subject to negotiations.

“The current 90-day pause presents an opportunity to reassess how small and vulnerable economies – including the least developed countries – are treated,” Unctad said.

“This is a critical moment to consider exempting them from tariffs that offer little to no advantage for US trade policy but risk causing serious economic harm.”

Unctad’s analysis said many of these economies were so small that they were likely to generate little demand for US exports, even if they lowered tariffs, as the White House appears to be demanding.

Malawi, facing 18% tariffs, bought just $27m of US exports last year; Mozambique, which faces 16% tariffs, $150m; Cambodia, set for 49% tariffs, $322m.

Unctad’s experts added that 36 of these small and poor countries were likely to generate less than 1% of total US tariff revenue, even if the US did not cut imports from them as the tariffs took effect.

Part of the logic of the tariff policy is meant to be to bring manufacturing jobs back to the US. But for several tiny countries, their key exports are agricultural commodities, for which the US is unlikely to be able to find substitutes elsewhere – let alone develop a domestic industry.

Unctad highlighted the $150m in vanilla imported from Madagascar, close to $800m in cocoa from Ivory Coast and $200m in cocoa from Ghana.

With Madagascar set to face 47% tariffs, for example, the report said the main impact on the US was likely to be higher prices for consumers.

Some of the countries hit by the 10% tariffs – and due to face higher rates when the pause is over – were previously beneficiaries of a US policy called the African Growth and Opportunity Act.

The scheme had been in place since 2000 and gave sub-Saharan African countries tariff-free access to US markets in order to encourage economic development. As many as 32 countries were eligible, before Trump’s announcement appeared to tear up the scheme.

Financial markets and manufacturers in developing countries are continuing to wrestle with the changeable nature of US trade policy.

Trump sowed fresh confusion over the weekend by appearing to revisit an announcement made on Friday, that some hi-tech goods, including laptops, would be exempt from tariffs.

In a post on his social media site Truth Social on Sunday, the president said no one was getting “off the hook”, and the administration would be investigating the “whole electronics supply chain”.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has invited Donald Trump to visit Ukraine to see the devastation caused by Russia’s invasion, while the US president appeared to play down Moscow’s latest deadly attack, the worst on civilians this year, calling it “a mistake”.

International leaders condemned Russia’s strike on the centre of the Ukrainian city of Sumy on Sunday, which killed 34 people, including two children. Two ballistic missiles hit as people made their way to church for Palm Sunday.

One of the missiles exploded next to a crowded trolleybus, killing many of the passengers onboard. Bodies lay on the ground and cars burned as rescuers carried away bloodied survivors. More than 100 were injured.

Asked about Russia’s attack on civilians, Trump said he was trying to get the war stopped. “I think it was terrible and I was told they made a mistake, but I think it’s a horrible thing. I think the whole war is a horrible thing,” he said.

Trump also implied his predecessor Joe Biden was at fault for the war that began with Vladimir Putin’s invasion. “This war would never have started if I were president. That war is a shame,” he said.

His latest comments prompted an angry response from Ukrainians who are frustrated at Trump’s failure to confront or condemn Putin.

Olena Halushka, the head of the Anti-Corruption Action Centre in Kyiv, said: “No one accidentally uses a cluster munition warhead against a crowded city centre on a major holiday.” She also noted that Russia killed nine children in a similar strike last week on the city of Kryvyi Rih.

Lithuania’s former foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis added: “This was not a mistake. A mistake is something like imposing tariffs on penguins. What we saw in Sumy is a deliberate continuation of a genocidal invasion. Our real mistake is not helping Ukraine enough.”

In an interview with the CBS show 60 Minutes, recorded before the attack on Sumy, Zelenskyy urged Trump to see the damage from Russia’s invasion for himself. “Please, before any kind of decisions, any kind of forms of negotiations, come to see people, civilians, warriors, hospitals, churches, children destroyed or dead,” he said.

The Ukrainian president pushed back on a suggestion made by the US vice-president, JD Vance, that Ukraine laid on “propaganda tours” for foreign leaders. “We will not prepare anything. It will not be theatre. You can go exactly where you want, in any city which [has] been under attacks,” Zelenskyy said.

He expressed frustration that senior White House figures continue to repeat Kremlin talking points. Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff – who met Putin on Friday in St Petersburg – recently said four Ukrainian regions had “voted” to join Russia, a reference to fake referendums in occupied territory.

“I believe that Russian narratives prevail in the United States. It seems to me that the vice-president is justifying Putin’s actions. This is a change in reality. The Russians are the aggressors, and we are the victims,” Zelenskyy said.

Kyiv has accepted a US proposal made a month ago for a 30-day ceasefire. During this period Russia has escalated its bombardment of Ukrainian cities. Zelenskyy said: “Putin can’t be trusted. I told that to President Trump many times. So when you ask why the ceasefire isn’t working – this is why.”

He added: “Putin never wanted an end to the war. Putin never wanted us to be independent. Putin wants to destroy us completely – our sovereignty and our people.”

Zelenskyy said the conflict could “escalate into world war three if Putin is not stopped”. He said the “dictator’s ultimate goal was to revive the Russian empire” and to “return territories under Nato protection” – meaning the Baltic states and eastern Europe.

Ukrainian officials said Zelenskyy had been trying to fix his relationship with Trump after their disastrous February meeting in the White House. The Trump administration has indicated that Ukraine’s future security needs are now Europe’s problem.

Speaking to CBS, Zelenskyy said US military aid to Ukraine had “practically stopped”, adding that Kyiv was willing to buy US-made Patriot air defence systems.

Tiger Woods welcomed Rory McIlroy to golf’s most exclusive club after his dramatic victory in the Masters . McIlroy, born in Holywood, Co Down, defeated Justin Rose on the first hole of a playoff at Augusta National to join Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen in having won all four major titles.

“Welcome to the club @McIlroyRory,” Woods posted on social media. The 15-time major winner achieved three Grand Slams added: “Completing the grand slam at Augusta is something special. Your determination during this round, and this entire journey has shown through, and now you’re a part of history. Proud of you!”

Player, now 89, completed the grand slam in 1965 on his way to nine major wins. He posted on X: “I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Rory McIlroy on his historic win at the Masters and completion of the career Grand Slam.

“This is one of the rarest and most difficult achievements in all of sport, something only now six golfers in history have ever accomplished. We are proud to add Rory to our exclusive club and no doubt he has set the standard for his era.

“Rory has made his mark on history, and all of us who love this game are incredibly proud. Well done, my friend. Welcome to our club.”

Nicklaus, whose first grand slam of three was completed a year after Player’s, spoke warmly of McIlroy’s exploits on CBS. “I’m so happy for him. It will take the world off his shoulders and you’re now going to see a lot more of really good golf out of Rory McIlroy.”

McIlroy’s close friend and fellow player Shane Lowry joked that McIlroy could happily retire after completing the career grand slam. “This means everything to him,” Lowry told Golf Channel. “This is all he thinks about, all he talks about. He always said to me he’d retire a happy man if he won the Green Jacket, so I told Erica [McIlroy’s wife] he can retire now. He’s had a long 10, 11 years, he’s had a lot of hurdles to get over and it’s a credit to him.”

Tommy Fleetwood, like Lowry, is a Ryder Cup teammate of McIlroy, and finished tied for 21st after a closing round of 69. “I’ve said it a bunch of times, Rory is the best player of our generation. I don’t think he’s had to prove that for a while,” he said.

“For him to have finally got this one, a career grand slam, is unbelievably special. This time was always going to come, it’s just Rory makes you feel like it’s not going to at some point.

“Whatever he did today, Rory’s place in golf [history] was secure, but this has just added another layer on top of that. I do believe he’s the best of our generation and now he’s one of the greatest of all time.”

Michael D Higgins, the Irish president, joined political leaders in celebrating McIlroy’s victory, calling it a “truly outstanding achievement”. Northern Ireland’s first minister, Michelle O’Neill, said the “incredible” triumph placed him among the sport’s greatest. “This is a huge moment in sporting history, and one that has filled everyone back home with great pride and that will undoubtedly inspire future generations to chase their dreams,” she posted on X. “Enjoy the well-deserved celebrations, Rory!”

The Irish taoiseach, Micheál Martin, posted on X: “The Green Jacket is yours Rory McIlroy. A finish for the ages at Augusta to win The Masters and complete a richly-deserved career Grand Slam. Epic achievement by one of golf’s greatest talents.”

Keir Starmer also weighed in offering “massive congratulations” on “an incredible achievement”. The UK prime minister added: “Through all the expectations and the rollercoaster ride of yesterday, Rory held his nerve and made history.”

The late-night finish – with the playoff concluding just after midnight BST – left Irish newspapers scrambling to reflect the momentous result in their final print editions. The Irish Times’s headline recognised “The Master” on their front page: “Rory finally conquers Augusta and completes Grand Slam”, adding that the victory “seals place among immortals”.

The Belfast Telegraph saluted “Rory’s Master piece” after “final hole agony” turned to “play-off ecstasy”. The Irish Independent carried a similar picture of McIlroy roaring in delight after he had collapsed to his knees on sinking the winning putt . It noted the “tears and cheers” on and around the 18th green. The Irish Daily Star took a similar tack with “Rory’s Masters peace”, reflecting the weight lifted off the 35-year-old’s shoulders.

The New York Times reflected on the “roller coaster ride” on the final day – and the three that had preceded it – that had led McIlroy to victory, while the LA Times said: “Rory rose even higher”. The Washington Post reflected on a “wild” final round at Augusta, saying: “After a stomach-churning Sunday, Rory McIlroy looks grand in green.”

Rory McIlroy reflected on the lifting of a “burden” lasting more than a decade after winning the Masters in dramatic fashion at Augusta National. McIlroy’s defeat of Justin Rose on the first sudden death hole means he has become just the sixth player in history to win the career grand slam.

McIlroy needed the Masters to complete his set of majors since winning the US PGA Championship of 2014. He had not added to his major tally, then four, between that Valhalla success and this one at the Masters.

“It’s [been] very difficult,” McIlroy said. “I think I’ve carried that burden since August 2014. It’s nearly 11 years. And not just about winning my next major, but the career grand slam. Trying to join a group of five players to do it, watching a lot of my peers get Green Jackets in the process. Yeah, it’s been difficult.

“I’ve tried to approach this tournament with the most positive attitude each and every time that I’ve shown up and I think just the sort of cumulative experience that I’ve gained coming back here each and every year, I just feel like I get a little more comfortable with the shots needed. There’s talking about it and actually doing it.

“Today was difficult. I was unbelievably nervous this morning. Look, it was a heavy weight to carry and thankfully now I don’t have to carry it. That frees me up and I know I’m coming back here every year, which is lovely.

“It’s a dream come true. I have dreamt about that moment for as long as I can remember. There were points in my career where I didn’t know if I would have this nice garment over my shoulders.”

McIlroy crashed to his knees before bursting into tears as victory was secured. “It was all relief,” he said. “There wasn’t much joy in that reaction. It was all relief.”

On an extraordinary day at Augusta, McIlroy at one stage held a five-shot lead over the field before being pulled back. He had a chance to win the Masters on the final regulation hole but missed from 5ft. Rose’s 66 earned him a playoff berth. “I’ve rode my luck all week,” McIlroy admitted. “And again, with the things that I’ve had to endure over the last few years, I think I deserved it.”

McIlroy revealed the former Masters champion Ángel Cabrera, who from 2021 to 2023 spent time in jail in Brazil and Argentina related to domestic abuse, left him a note of good luck before the final day’s play. Cabrera was McIlroy’s playing partner when the latter collapsed so painfully over the back nine at Augusta on the last day of the 2011 Masters.

McIlroy cut an emotional figure once more when he was asked about his caddie and long-time friend, Harry Diamond. “I’ve known Harry since I was seven years old,” McIlroy said. “I met him on the putting green at Holywood Golf Club. We’ve had so many good times together. He’s been like a big brother to me the whole way through my life.

“To be able to share this with him after all the close calls that we’ve had, all the crap that he’s had to take from people that don’t know anything about the game, yeah, this one is just as much his as it is mine. He’s a massive part of what I do and I couldn’t think of anyone better to share it with than him.”

While unsure of his celebration plans, McIlroy suggested he may visit his parents in Northern Ireland over the coming days. “Just keep believing,” he said of his Masters journey. “I would say that to any young boy or girl that’s listening to this. I’ve literally made my dreams come true today. I would say to every boy and girl listening to this, believe in your dreams, and if you work hard enough and if you put the effort in, you can achieve anything you want.”

Rory McIlroy, Masters champion. Four words that belie what this remarkable Northern Irishman achieved on a spine-tingling afternoon at Augusta National. They ignore, too, the torturous process McIlroy endured to realise this lifetime goal.

Did he win the 89th Masters the hard way? Too right he did. From a seemingly untouchable position, McIlroy was dragged back into a scrap he was so desperate to avoid. He emerged from it on the first extra hole, where the unlikely adversary of Justin Rose was nudged aside. Rory McIlroy, Masters champion.

No wonder the scenes were so moving as McIlroy battered down the Masters door. McIlroy reduced so many others to tears, let alone himself. Finally, they were of unbridled joy. It almost felt the heartache had been worth it. What a ride. What a gobsmacking, exhausting ride. From 5ft on the last hole of regulation play, McIlroy passed up a chance to claim the Masters. Soon, he would be hugging his lifetime friend and caddie Harry Diamond in a scene of euphoria. This was a success built on sheer guts. Rory, you are immortal now.

“I started to wonder if it would ever be my time,” McIlroy admitted in the Butler Cabin. He was not the only one.

McIlroy joins Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus as winners of golf’s career grand slam. He also has Tiger Woods, his childhood idol, for company in that special group. We have known about McIlroy’s genius since he flicked golf balls into a washing machine on national television in 1999. He had long since been holing putts outside the family home on the outskirts of Belfast with the dream of winning the Masters. Little did anybody know that his career would be so storied, so dramatic, such compulsive viewing.

McIlroy did not exactly sprint into the pantheon of legends. Augusta National tugged upon every dark corner of his psyche, from a point where McIlroy looked like he would enjoy a procession. Rose and Ludvig Åberg had late hope. Rose’s rampaging 66 meant second at 11 under. McIlroy’s 73 tied that. Patrick Reed took third.

More than a decade had passed since McIlroy won the last of his quartet of majors. Near misses had come and gone, none as painful as at last year’s US Open. It felt appropriate that McIlroy had Bryson DeChambeau, the man who pipped him at Pinehurst, for company here. DeChambeau capsized. He spent Saturday evening watching James Bond movies and Sunday afternoon starring in one: Bogeys Galore.

There were moments that implied the golfing gods were on McIlroy’s side. He played a dangerous, low second shot to the 11th which clung on for dear life at the top of a bank leading to a water hazard. Moments later, DeChambeau found the same pond. There were also examples of McIlroy’s jaw-dropping talent, such as the second shot to the 7th, which danced through trees. Those who criticise McIlroy’s propensity to live dangerously should remember the theatre when his audacity pays off.

McIlroy’s nerves were jangling to the extent he made a terrible mess of the 1st, his double bogey cancelling out a two-stroke lead. DeChambeau licked his lips. A DeChambeau birdie to McIlroy’s par at the 2nd and the Californian was ahead.

McIlroy jabbed back with a birdie at the 3rd as DeChambeau three-putted. DeChambeau did the same at the next with McIlroy’s birdie earning him a three-stroke lead. It remained that way until the 9th, where McIlroy collected another shot and DeChambeau wasted an opportunity. McIlroy smiled when reaching dry land at the 12th, his playing partner now six back. The danger lay elsewhere; Rose and Åberg.

Yet with six holes to play the only person who could beat McIlroy was McIlroy himself. Case in point; the 13th, where McIlroy laid up before astonishingly chipping into Rae’s Creek. Cue McIlroy’s fourth – yes, fourth – double bogey of the week. Åberg made a four at the 15th for 10 under. Rose had birdied the same hole. McIlroy’s five-shot lead after 10 evaporated into a three-way tie as his par putt on the 14th somehow remained above ground. How would he recover from tossing this away? How would he ever recover?

McIlroy’s iron into the 15th, bent around pine trees from 209 yards, is among the finest of his life. A birdie ensued. Rose matched 11 under at the 16th. Although he later made a triple bogey at the last, Åberg’s race ended on the penultimate hole. Up ahead, Rose converted for a closing birdie – he had made a bogey on the 17th – to again tie McIlroy. A downhill birdie putt on the 16th gave McIlroy fresh hope but it missed to the right.

One birdie from the last two was needed to avoid a playoff. There, Rose would not be lacking in incentive; he lost in extra holes to Sergio García in 2017. McIlroy delivered that three on the 17th but wobbled on the last after finding a greenside bunker from the fairway. Tension, wild tension. Back to the 18th tee they went.

Lost in this melee will be that McIlroy’s approach in the playoff hole was a thing of utter beauty. This time, it was a putt he could not possibly miss. Rose is due huge credit for his contribution to this major.

When dust eventually settles, we will be left to ponder what on earth else McIlroy might fixate on for the remainder of his career. He has reached the promised land in only his 36th year. Rory McIlroy, Masters champion.

Aimee Lou Wood has described a sketch on the US comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL) which mocked her appearance as “mean and unfunny”.

The British actor used an Instagram post to criticise a skit of the television series The White Lotus, in which the SNL cast member Sarah Sherman impersonated her, appearing in exaggerated prosthetic teeth.

“Whilst in honest mode – I did find the SNL thing mean and unfunny,” she wrote, but said she might delete the post later. SNL had since apologised for the sketch, Wood added.

Wood plays Chelsea in the third series of The White Lotus, which follows the lives of guests and staff at a luxury resort in Thailand as dark secrets are revealed and tensions rise over the course of the holiday.

During the skit, titled White Potus, the series’ characters were replaced by depictions of Donald Trump and his inner circle.

In later posts, Wood, who has also starred in Sex Education and Toxic Town, said: “Such a shame cuz I had such a great time watching it a couple weeks ago. Yes, take the piss for sure – that’s what the show is about – but there must be a cleverer, more nuanced, less cheap way?”

Wood also later said she was “not thin skinned” and understood that SNL was about “caricature”.

“But the whole joke was about fluoride,” she added. “I have big gap teeth not bad teeth. The rest of the skit was punching up and I/Chelsea was the only one punched down on.”

She added: “On a positive note, everyone is agreeing with me about it so I’m glad I said something instead of going in on myself.”

In a recent GQ Hype interview, Wood said the conversation about her appearance made her “a bit sad” as she was “not getting to talk about my work”.

On Instagram, she also addressed confusion over the interview, clarifying that her comments about feeling “ugly” stemmed from her own insecurities, not from anything said by HBO.

In the interview, Wood explained how Mike White, the White Lotus creator, was said to have fought to cast her, which had made her feel insecure. “That was my own paranoid thought,” she said.

Hungarian lawmakers are expected to vote in a controversial constitutional amendment on Monday that rights campaigners have described as a “significant escalation” in the government’s efforts to crackdown on dissent and chip away at human rights.

Backed by the prime minister, Viktor Orbán, and his rightwing populist party, Fidesz, the amendment seeks to codify the government’s recent ban on Pride events, paving the way for authorities to use facial recognition software to identify attenders and potentially fine them.

The amendment, which the government says prioritises the protection of children’s physical, mental and moral development, also enshrines the recognition of only two sexes, providing a constitutional basis for denying the gender identities of some in Hungary.

After Orbán’s repeated claims of foreign interference in the country’s politics, the amendment will also allow the government to temporarily suspend Hungarian citizenship in the case of dual nationals deemed to pose a threat to the country’s security or sovereignty.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a rights group, described the amendment as a means of “legislating fear” in the EU country. “These laws represent a significant escalation in the government’s efforts to suppress dissent, weaken human rights protection and consolidate its grip on power,” it said in a statement.

The opposition Momentum party highlighted similarities with restrictions in Russia. Much like Vladimir Putin, Orbán has sought to portray himself as a champion of traditional family values, ushering in policies that include blocking same-sex couples from adopting children and barring any mention of LGBTQ+ issues in school education programmes.

Momentum has issued a call on social media for Hungarians to join it in a blockade of the country’s parliament on Monday, in the hope of keeping lawmakers from voting in the legislation. “Let’s collectively prevent them from leading us down the Putin road and depriving us of our freedom,” it said.

The constitutional amendment is expected to be approved almost a month after lawmakers fast-tracked a law that banned public events held by LGBTQ+ communities. Thousands of people have since taken to the streets, blocking bridges and major thoroughfares with chants of “democracy” and “assembly is a fundamental right” in weekly protests.

“This government isn’t just dismantling democracy brick by brick, it’s now going at it with a bulldozer,” Ákos Hadházy, an independent lawmaker who campaigns alongside Momentum, said at a recent rally, according to Bloomberg. “We are here because we need to act fast to get ahead and stop it.”

Orbán and his government have said their aim is to protect children from what they describe as “sexual propaganda”, but analysts have pointed to forthcoming elections to argue that the country’s LGBTQ+ minority is being scapegoated by a government intent on mobilising its conservative base.

Orbán, who has long faced criticism for weakening democratic institutions and gradually undermining the rule of law, is facing an unprecedented challenge from a former member of the Fidesz party’s elite, Péter Magyar, before next year’s elections.

As news of the Pride ban broke last month, 22 European embassies in Hungary, including those of the UK, France and Germany, issued a joint statement saying they were deeply concerned that the legislation would result in “restrictions on the right of peaceful assembly and the freedom of expression”.

The EU’s equality commissioner, Hadja Lahbib, also weighed in, writing on social media: “Everyone should be able to be who they are, live & love freely. The right to gather peacefully is a fundamental right to be championed across the European Union. We stand with the LGBTQI community – in Hungary & in all member states.”

The organisers of Budapest Pride, which regularly attracts tens of thousands of people, said they were determined to go ahead with this year’s march on 28 June. “This is not child protection, this is fascism,” they said last month.

The amendment, the 15th to Hungary’s constitution since it was unilaterally authored and approved by the ruling Fidesz-KDNP coalition in 2011, also seeks to reinforce Orbán over what he claims are foreign efforts to influence Hungary’s politics.

In a recent speech laced with conspiracy theories, Orbán pledged to “eliminate the entire shadow army” of foreign-funded “politicians, judges, journalists, pseudo-NGOs and political activists”.

Rights groups described the amendment as a step in this direction for Orbán, a self-described “illiberal” leader, because it allows for the suspension of Hungarian citizenship for up to 10 years for dual nationals deemed to pose a threat to public order or security. The suspensions would only apply to Hungarians who hold citizenship of another country that is not a member of the EU or European Economic Area.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International and the Háttér Society have urged the European Commission to launch a procedure against Hungary’s government, arguing that the recent changes breach EU law.

The groups highlighted the “gravity and urgency of the consequences of the adopted changes” in a recent statement, noting that they would “force LGBTQ+ people complete out of the public eye”. The nationwide ban is believed to be the first of its kind in the EU’s recent history.

The groups also said the amendment went further than violating the rights of LGBTQ+ people and those who support them, describing it as a tool to further instil fear among those who voice dissent in the country. “The changes have overarching consequences that affect fundamental rights well beyond the issue of Pride,” they said.

Hungarian lawmakers are expected to vote in a controversial constitutional amendment on Monday that rights campaigners have described as a “significant escalation” in the government’s efforts to crackdown on dissent and chip away at human rights.

Backed by the prime minister, Viktor Orbán, and his rightwing populist party, Fidesz, the amendment seeks to codify the government’s recent ban on Pride events, paving the way for authorities to use facial recognition software to identify attenders and potentially fine them.

The amendment, which the government says prioritises the protection of children’s physical, mental and moral development, also enshrines the recognition of only two sexes, providing a constitutional basis for denying the gender identities of some in Hungary.

After Orbán’s repeated claims of foreign interference in the country’s politics, the amendment will also allow the government to temporarily suspend Hungarian citizenship in the case of dual nationals deemed to pose a threat to the country’s security or sovereignty.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a rights group, described the amendment as a means of “legislating fear” in the EU country. “These laws represent a significant escalation in the government’s efforts to suppress dissent, weaken human rights protection and consolidate its grip on power,” it said in a statement.

The opposition Momentum party highlighted similarities with restrictions in Russia. Much like Vladimir Putin, Orbán has sought to portray himself as a champion of traditional family values, ushering in policies that include blocking same-sex couples from adopting children and barring any mention of LGBTQ+ issues in school education programmes.

Momentum has issued a call on social media for Hungarians to join it in a blockade of the country’s parliament on Monday, in the hope of keeping lawmakers from voting in the legislation. “Let’s collectively prevent them from leading us down the Putin road and depriving us of our freedom,” it said.

The constitutional amendment is expected to be approved almost a month after lawmakers fast-tracked a law that banned public events held by LGBTQ+ communities. Thousands of people have since taken to the streets, blocking bridges and major thoroughfares with chants of “democracy” and “assembly is a fundamental right” in weekly protests.

“This government isn’t just dismantling democracy brick by brick, it’s now going at it with a bulldozer,” Ákos Hadházy, an independent lawmaker who campaigns alongside Momentum, said at a recent rally, according to Bloomberg. “We are here because we need to act fast to get ahead and stop it.”

Orbán and his government have said their aim is to protect children from what they describe as “sexual propaganda”, but analysts have pointed to forthcoming elections to argue that the country’s LGBTQ+ minority is being scapegoated by a government intent on mobilising its conservative base.

Orbán, who has long faced criticism for weakening democratic institutions and gradually undermining the rule of law, is facing an unprecedented challenge from a former member of the Fidesz party’s elite, Péter Magyar, before next year’s elections.

As news of the Pride ban broke last month, 22 European embassies in Hungary, including those of the UK, France and Germany, issued a joint statement saying they were deeply concerned that the legislation would result in “restrictions on the right of peaceful assembly and the freedom of expression”.

The EU’s equality commissioner, Hadja Lahbib, also weighed in, writing on social media: “Everyone should be able to be who they are, live & love freely. The right to gather peacefully is a fundamental right to be championed across the European Union. We stand with the LGBTQI community – in Hungary & in all member states.”

The organisers of Budapest Pride, which regularly attracts tens of thousands of people, said they were determined to go ahead with this year’s march on 28 June. “This is not child protection, this is fascism,” they said last month.

The amendment, the 15th to Hungary’s constitution since it was unilaterally authored and approved by the ruling Fidesz-KDNP coalition in 2011, also seeks to reinforce Orbán over what he claims are foreign efforts to influence Hungary’s politics.

In a recent speech laced with conspiracy theories, Orbán pledged to “eliminate the entire shadow army” of foreign-funded “politicians, judges, journalists, pseudo-NGOs and political activists”.

Rights groups described the amendment as a step in this direction for Orbán, a self-described “illiberal” leader, because it allows for the suspension of Hungarian citizenship for up to 10 years for dual nationals deemed to pose a threat to public order or security. The suspensions would only apply to Hungarians who hold citizenship of another country that is not a member of the EU or European Economic Area.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International and the Háttér Society have urged the European Commission to launch a procedure against Hungary’s government, arguing that the recent changes breach EU law.

The groups highlighted the “gravity and urgency of the consequences of the adopted changes” in a recent statement, noting that they would “force LGBTQ+ people complete out of the public eye”. The nationwide ban is believed to be the first of its kind in the EU’s recent history.

The groups also said the amendment went further than violating the rights of LGBTQ+ people and those who support them, describing it as a tool to further instil fear among those who voice dissent in the country. “The changes have overarching consequences that affect fundamental rights well beyond the issue of Pride,” they said.

In an election seen as a referendum on his “war on drugs”, Ecuador’s right-wing president, Daniel Noboa, won Sunday’s presidential runoff, defeating leftist candidate Luisa González.

With 97% of ballots counted, the incumbent had secured 55.65% of the vote, compared to 44.35% for the former congresswoman.

The National Electoral Council (CNE) stated that the margin “marks an irreversible trend,” effectively recognising Noboa’s victory.

In a speech shortly after the announcement, Noboa, called it a “historic victory”.

“A victory by more than 10 points, a victory by over a million votes, leaving no doubt about who the winner is,” he told his supporters.

González, meanwhile, said she would not accept the results. “We will request a recount and for the ballot boxes to be opened,” she told her supporters, while the crowd shouted “fraud”.

International observers from the European Union and the Organization of American States monitored the vote, but their official reports have yet to be released. Throughout the day, the heads of both missions said the atmosphere was one of “normality”.

The margin of victory – more than 1.1m votes – was significantly larger than suggested by opinion polls, which had indicated a technical tie, as well as the result of the first round in February, when Noboa had beaten González by just 16,746 votes (0.17%).

Noboa’s term has been defined by an “internal armed conflict” he declared in January 2024 against drug trafficking gangs.

He placed the armed forces at the centre of his mano dura (iron fist) offensive, which initially led to a drop in crime – soon followed by a surge in reports of human rights violations and a return to previous levels of violence.

Once one of the safest countries in Latin America, Ecuador registered the highest homicide rate in the region in 2024.

The population also faced an energy crisis that led to scheduled blackouts of up to 14 hours, a shrinking GDP, and rising poverty levels – yet the incumbent emerged victorious.

The heir to a banana fortune will now serve a full term in office – until 2029 – as his current 17 months in power were to complete the term of former president Guillermo Lasso, who dissolved Congress and stepped down to avoid impeachment.

In the 2023 snap election, Noboa also defeated González in the runoff but by a much narrower margin: 51.83% to 48.17%.

Voting is compulsory in Ecuador, and, according to the National Electoral Council, 83.76% of eligible voters turned out.

One move by Noboa on the eve of the election sparked controversy.

Less than 24 hours before polls opened, the president signed a decree declaring a 60-day state of emergency – something that has been a frequent feature of his presidency – suspending the right to freedom of assembly and authorising warrantless searches.

The president claimed there was a “serious internal disturbance” in light of rising violence levels, but the decision was sharply criticised by the opposition, Indigenous movements and even Congress.

Despite once again coming close to becoming the first female president in Ecuador’s history, González’s competitiveness had more to do with her political patron: former leftist president Rafael Correa, who governed Ecuador from 2007 to 2017.

A split between Correístas – the former president’s supporters, such as González – and anti-Correístas has since polarised Ecuador. Correa has lived in Belgium since leaving office and was convicted by an Ecuadorian court in 2020 for corruption during his presidency.

In the speech in which she said she would not recognise the election result, González claimed that none of the opinion polls showed such a large margin and that Noboa had abused his power by not stepping down from office to run, as required by law.

“This is a dictatorship, and this is the biggest electoral fraud that we, the Ecuadorians, are witnessing,” she said.

To the Ecuadorian outlet Primicias, Noboa said it was regrettable that González would not accept defeat. “I find it regrettable that, with an 11- or 12-point difference, she’s still trying to somehow question the will of the Ecuadorian people. The Ecuadorians have already spoken, and now it’s time to get to work starting tomorrow,” he said.

An active-duty serviceman in the US army is openly following a proscribed neo-Nazi terrorist group on social media, one that has vowed to recruit soldiers in preparation for a so-called race war.

Experts say examples like this shows how under Pete Hegseth, the Pentagon is allowing extremism to go unchecked.

On the surface, following a TikTok account might seem like a minor infraction for a young private in the 1st Infantry Division. But not only has that private followed the Base, a violent neo-Nazi terrorist organization once the target of an FBI investigation, there are directives issued under Joe Biden that discourages that kind of social media activity.

But in February, the DoD issued a memo halting a major counter-extremism initiative rooting out white nationalists and far-right influences among servicemen, citing that it was not in line with Donald Trump’s executive orders. Since, the efficacy of rooting out the far right within the ranks remains unclear.

In the wake of the January 6 insurrection on Capitol Hill and early revelations that at least 151 of those attackers had a military background, the Pentagon issued a historic stand-down order and created a working group on extremism.

By December 2021, it released new policies on what constitutes extremist activities, namely policing how soldiers behave on social media, which included any affiliations to extremist organizations.

On an obscure and secretive TikTok account the Base operates for recruitment, counting just 30 followers, a private and mortarmen in the 1st Infantry Division is listed as a follower. Posts on the account promote the Base’s assassination and sabotage mission in Ukraine, neo-Nazi iconography, and plans to create “platoon-sized units of highly dedicated, trained men”.

The Guardian provided the name and rank to the US army, which said it was now investigating the matter.

“The army will not tolerate harmful behaviors and activities – including active participation in extremist activities,” said a spokesperson in an email, affirming that the army complies with tracking extremist activities and submitting data to the Pentagon’s inspector general.

“Army senior leaders are committed to confronting extremism in the army, identifying the root of the problem, and understanding the issue’s depth.”

On the private’s Instagram account, he appears to be an airsoft gun enthusiast and a second world war re-enactor that has played as a member of a unit of what appears to be Germany’s Nazi-era Wehrmacht.

“The TikTok account affiliated with the group includes a clear statement supporting accelerationism and advises joining the group to be linked up with other individuals to exploit ‘collapse’,” said Joshua Fisher-Birch, a longtime far-right analyst and expert on the Base who noticed the soldier following the account.

“The Base has been designated as a terrorist group by the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.”

Fisher-Birch pointed out that the Base and other adjacent groups, like the now-defunct Atomwaffen Division, are still interested in political violence and continue to prioritize the recruitment of soldiers because “combat experience and military training are prized”.

But under the reign of the new Pentagon, extremism and the far-right are an afterthought, while policing and deleting away “woke” ideologies remains paramount. Hegseth has his own connections to Christian nationalism and was reported by a servicemember for alleged extremist tattoos that prevented him from attending president Biden’s inauguration.

“I think it’s pretty obvious that soldiers interested in the far right have less to fear – Hegseth has made it clear he doesn’t care about this issue,” said Heidi Beirich, co-founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism.

“So why would a soldier be worried about getting into trouble for associations with white supremacists and neo-Nazis?”

Critics have already made clear that neglecting far-right extremism in the military is not only historically ignorant, it’s dangerous. For example, the mastermind behind the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 that killed 168 people, Timothy McVeigh, was a Desert Storm veteran that once tried out for the US army special forces.

Beirich notes that if any servicemen is connected to the Base, the military should immediately initiate dismissal hearings or at the very least issue a punishment, adding it is “terrifying” that an American soldier is even “linked to such a violent neo-Nazi group”.

“There is no question this would be the end of the soldier’s career – and it still should be. There are regulations on the books banning this activity, but whether they are enforced or not remains to be seen,” she said.

The Base also has its own well-documented and decorated track record of attracting active-duty soldiers and veterans into its service. Led by a former special forces contractor, the Base counted several global war on terror veterans among its members and one Canadian reservist who crossed into the US illegally and was subsequently implicated in a litany of terrorism plots he is now serving time for.

Beirich counted out several other recent examples of men with military backgrounds and their membership in hardcore neo-Nazi groups that were similarly intent on stateside attacks.

“No one should forget that just two months ago, Brandon Russell, a former National Guardsman and white supremacist group leader, was found guilty of plotting to sabotage Baltimore’s electrical grid,” she said.

“Two former marines were sentenced in July for a neo-Nazi plot to attack the electric grid in the north-western US, and attempted to build an arsenal of arms and explosives to do so. There are of course many other examples.”

Sony has increased the price of its PlayStation 5 by 25% as the video game industry reels from the impact of Donald Trump’s tariffs.

The Japanese game developer said it had made the “tough decision” to raise the price of the console’s digital edition to £429.99 in the UK and €499.99 in Europe, starting from Monday. There will be no price change for the standard PS5, which comes with a disk drive.

The company cited “a challenging economic environment, including high inflation and fluctuating exchange rates” behind its decision to increase the retail price of the PS5 in some markets in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania.

In Australia, the standard PS5 will rise to A$829.95, while the digital edition will increase to A$749.95. In New Zealand, the standard console will increase to NZ$949.95, and the digital to NZ$859.95.

The technology industry has been grappling with the possible impact of President Trump’s tariffs on its supply chains. Rival Japanese game developer Nintendo unveiled its new handheld console, the Switch 2, the day before Trump launched his barrage of “reciprocal” tariffs on foreign goods on 2 April. A few days later, the company postponed preorders of the device in the US, as it said it would need to assess the potential effect of tariffs.

Japan was hit with a 24% tariff on its exports to the US on Trump’s “liberation day” on 2 April. Like most of Trump’s new tariffs, they have been paused for 90 days. However, the Japanese prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba, said on Monday that his country did not plan to make big concessions in negotiations with the US and that it would not rush to reach a deal. Talks between the two governments are due this week.

Companies such as Apple, whose products are largely assembled in China, are also bracing for higher costs. Analysts at the investment bank UBS have warned that the price of an iPhone 16 Max, with 256GB of storage, could rise 79% from $1,199 (£915) to about $2,150 (£1,600), based on a total tariff of 145%.

While there is still a great deal of uncertainty around Trump’s trade policy, Japanese shares rose on Monday after the US said it would pause levies on some electronics, including smartphones. Tokyo’s index of blue chip stocks, the Nikkei 225, closed up 1%.

However, US officials said on Sunday that the pause on smartphones, laptops and other electronic products from import tariffs on China will be short-lived, with Trump warning on Sunday that no one was “getting off the hook”.

In a post on Truth Social, his social media platform, the president promised to launch a national security trade investigation in the semiconductor sector and “the whole electronics supply chain”.

“We will not be held hostage by other Countries, especially hostile trading Nations like China,” he wrote.