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World Leaders React to Labor's Sweeping Victory in UK Election

Keir Starmer, leader of Britain's Labor party, speaks at a reception to celebrate his win in the election, at Tate Modern, in London, Britain, July 5, 2024. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett
Keir Starmer, leader of Britain's Labor party, speaks at a reception to celebrate his win in the election, at Tate Modern, in London, Britain, July 5, 2024. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett
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World Leaders React to Labor's Sweeping Victory in UK Election

Keir Starmer, leader of Britain's Labor party, speaks at a reception to celebrate his win in the election, at Tate Modern, in London, Britain, July 5, 2024. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett
Keir Starmer, leader of Britain's Labor party, speaks at a reception to celebrate his win in the election, at Tate Modern, in London, Britain, July 5, 2024. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett

Keir Starmer will be Britain's next prime minister after his center-left Labor Party won a huge majority in a parliamentary election, defeating Rishi Sunak's Conservatives and ending their 14 years of often tumultuous rule, Reuters said.
Here are some reactions to the news:
INDIAN PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI ON X:
"Heartiest congratulations and best wishes to @Keir_Starmer on the remarkable victory in the general elections. I look forward to our positive and constructive collaboration to further strengthen the India-UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in all areas, fostering mutual growth and prosperity."
"Thank you @RishiSunak for your admirable leadership of the UK, and your active contribution to deepen the ties between India and the UK during your term in office."
IRISH PRIME MINISTER SIMON HARRIS AT PRESS CONFERENCE:
"The relationship between an Irish Taoiseach (prime minister) and a British prime minister is vital... It is time for a great reset. This morning from Dublin, I want to send a message to London that I will match Keir Starmer's commitment and energy to our peace process and to our future potential in so many areas."
UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY ON X:
"Congratulations to @Keir_Starmer and @UKLabor on their convincing election victory. Ukraine and the United Kingdom have been and will continue to be reliable allies through thick and thin. We will continue to defend and advance our common values of life, freedom, and a rules-based international order...
"I am grateful to my good friend @RishiSunak for the UK government's steadfast support under his leadership. Challenger tanks, Storm Shadow missiles, F-16 training for our pilots, and the first bilateral security cooperation agreement are just a few of our shared achievements that Ukraine will never forget."
FRENCH PRESIDENT EMMANUEL MACRON ON X:
"Congratulations Sir @Keir_Starmer on your victory. Pleased with our first discussion. We will continue the work begun with the UK for our bilateral cooperation, for peace and security in Europe, for the climate and for AI."
NORWEGIAN PRIME MINISTER JONAS GAHR STOERE TO NTB NEWS AGENCY:
"Voters have given the British Labor Party a historically strong mandate to change its course, give people in Great Britain more money in their pockets and strengthen state schools and the National Health Service. I wish Starmer the very best and good luck with a very important job."
URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, ON X:
"Congratulation @Keir_Starmer on your electoral victory. I look forward to working with you in a constructive partnership to address common challenges and strengthen European security."
CHARLES MICHEL, PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL
"Congratulations Keir Starmer on a historic election victory in the UK. The European Union and the UK are crucial partners, co-operating in all areas of mutual interest for our citizens. I look forward to working with you and your government in this new cycle for the UK."
AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER ANTHONY ALBANESE TO REPORTERS:
"We have a strong relationship between our two countries, but Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner and so many others who I am very familiar with in the British Labor Party, I look forward very much to working with them. They have very similar views to us on a range of issues. I'm sure we'll work closely on AUKUS, where we worked very closely as well with the former government."
CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU ON X:
"Congratulations, @Keir_Starmer, on a historic UK election victory. Lots of work ahead to build a more progressive, fair future for people on both sides of the Atlantic. Let's get to it, my friend."
NEW ZEALAND PRIME MINISTER CHRISTOPHER LUXON ON X
"Congratulations @Keir_Starmer on your election victory. New Zealand and the UK are great friends and can do so much more together. I look forward to working on every opportunity together as prime ministers. Thank you @RishiSunak for your service to your nation and friendship to New Zealand."

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World

EU to Slash Asylum Cases from 7 Nations Deemed Safe

FILE - A convoy of buses carry Syrian refugees who return home from Lebanon, arrive at the Syrian border crossing point, in Jdeidet Yabous, Syria, Tuesday, July 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki, File)
FILE - A convoy of buses carry Syrian refugees who return home from Lebanon, arrive at the Syrian border crossing point, in Jdeidet Yabous, Syria, Tuesday, July 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki, File)
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EU to Slash Asylum Cases from 7 Nations Deemed Safe

FILE - A convoy of buses carry Syrian refugees who return home from Lebanon, arrive at the Syrian border crossing point, in Jdeidet Yabous, Syria, Tuesday, July 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki, File)
FILE - A convoy of buses carry Syrian refugees who return home from Lebanon, arrive at the Syrian border crossing point, in Jdeidet Yabous, Syria, Tuesday, July 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki, File)

The European Union on Thursday said it would drastically reduce asylum claims from seven nations in Africa, the Middle East and Asia by considering them safe countries of origin, prompting widespread outrage from human rights groups on International Migrants' Day.

An agreement between European Parliament and the European Council, or the group of the 27 EU heads of state, said that the countries would be considered safe if they lack “relevant circumstances, such as indiscriminate violence in the context of an armed conflict.”

Asylum requests by people from Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, Kosovo, India, Morocco and Tunisia will be "fast-tracked, with applicants having to prove that this provision should not apply to them,” read the announcement of the agreement. “The list can be expanded in the future under the EU’s ordinary legislative procedure.”

In 2024, EU nations endorsed sweeping reforms to the bloc’s failed asylum system. The rules were meant to resolve the issues that have divided the 27 countries since well over 1 million migrants swept into Europe in 2015, most fleeing war in Syria and Iraq.

Under the Pact on Migration and Asylum, which goes into force in June 2026, people can be sent to countries deemed safe, but not to those where they face the risk of physical harm or persecution.

According to The Associated Press, Amnesty International EU advocate Olivia Sundberg Diez said the new measures were “a shameless attempt to sidestep international legal obligations" and would endanger migrants.

French MEP Mélissa Camara said the safe countries of origins concept and others agreed to by the Council and Parliament “opens the door to return hubs outside the EU’s borders, where third-country nationals are sometimes subjected to inhumane treatment with almost no monitoring” and “undoubtedly places thousands of people in exile in situations of danger.”

Céline Mias, the EU director of the Danish Refugee Council said that "we are deeply worried that this fast-track system will fail to protect people in need of protection, including activists, journalists and marginalized groups in places where human rights are clearly under attack.”

Alessandro Ciriani, an Italian MEP with the European Conservatives and Reformists group, said the designation sends a firm message that the EU has toughened its borders.

“Europe wants enforceable rules and shared responsibility. Now this commitment must become operational: effective returns, structured cooperation with third countries and real measures to support EU member states,” he said.

He said that clear delineations of safe and unsafe nations would rid the EU of “excessive interpretative uncertainty” that led to a kind of paralysis for national decision makers over border controls.

The measures also allows individual nations within the bloc to designate other countries safe for their own immigration purposes.

World

Rubio Says US Sanctioning ICC Judges for Targeting Israel

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to traveling journalists at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in Hamilton, Ontario, on November 12, 2025 after the G7 foreign ministers meeting. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / POOL / AFP)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to traveling journalists at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in Hamilton, Ontario, on November 12, 2025 after the G7 foreign ministers meeting. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / POOL / AFP)
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Rubio Says US Sanctioning ICC Judges for Targeting Israel

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to traveling journalists at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in Hamilton, Ontario, on November 12, 2025 after the G7 foreign ministers meeting. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / POOL / AFP)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to traveling journalists at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in Hamilton, Ontario, on November 12, 2025 after the G7 foreign ministers meeting. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / POOL / AFP)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday that the US was sanctioning two judges of the International Criminal Court for targeting Israel.

"Today, I am designating two International Criminal Court (ICC) judges, Gocha Lordkipanidze of Georgia and Erdenebalsuren Damdin of Mongolia, pursuant to Executive Order 14203," Rubio said in a statement, referring to the order President Donald Trump signed in February sanctioning the ICC, Reuters reported.

"These individuals have directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute Israeli nationals, without Israel's consent," he said.

The United States and Israel are not members of the ICC.

The US sanctions in February include freezing any US assets of those designated and barring them and their families from visiting the United States.

World

US Imposes Sanctions on Vessels Linked to Iran, Treasury Website Says

A crew member raises the Iranian flag on Iranian oil tanker Adrian Darya 1, previously named Grace 1, as it sits anchored after the Supreme Court of the British territory lifted its detention order, in the Strait of Gibraltar, Spain, August 18, 2019. REUTERS/Jon Nazca
A crew member raises the Iranian flag on Iranian oil tanker Adrian Darya 1, previously named Grace 1, as it sits anchored after the Supreme Court of the British territory lifted its detention order, in the Strait of Gibraltar, Spain, August 18, 2019. REUTERS/Jon Nazca
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US Imposes Sanctions on Vessels Linked to Iran, Treasury Website Says

A crew member raises the Iranian flag on Iranian oil tanker Adrian Darya 1, previously named Grace 1, as it sits anchored after the Supreme Court of the British territory lifted its detention order, in the Strait of Gibraltar, Spain, August 18, 2019. REUTERS/Jon Nazca
A crew member raises the Iranian flag on Iranian oil tanker Adrian Darya 1, previously named Grace 1, as it sits anchored after the Supreme Court of the British territory lifted its detention order, in the Strait of Gibraltar, Spain, August 18, 2019. REUTERS/Jon Nazca

The United States imposed sanctions on Thursday on 29 vessels and their management firms, the Treasury Department said, as Washington continues targeting Tehran's "shadow fleet" it says exports Iranian petroleum and petroleum products, Reuters reported.

The targeted vessels and companies have transported hundreds of millions of dollars of the products through deceptive shipping practices, Treasury said.

Thursday's action also targets businessman Hatem Elsaid Farid Ibrahim Sakr, whose companies are associated with seven of the vessels cited, as well as multiple shipping companies.