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New Zealand raised fresh concerns Monday over nearby live-fire drills conducted by Chinese warships armed with “extremely capable” weapons, an unprecedented show of firepower last week that analysts say are part of Beijing’s ongoing plan to build a blue-water navy with global reach.

A Chinese Navy formation held two live-fire exercises in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand on Friday and Saturday, prompting passenger planes to change course mid-flight and rattling officials in both countries.

Judith Collins, the defense minister of New Zealand, said the drills were unprecedented.

“We’ve certainly never seen a task force or task group of this capability undertaking that sort of work. So it is certainly a change,” Collins told public broadcaster Radio New Zealand (RNZ) on Monday.

“The weapons they have are extremely capable. One has 112 vertical launch cells and has reported anti-ship ballistic missile range of 540 nautical miles,” she said.

Chinese state media have suggested that Western countries should get used to such military exercises in their nearby waters.

Song Zhongping, a Chinese military affairs expert, told nationalist tabloid the Global Times that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy will increasingly conduct exercises not only near China’s shores but also in international waters.

As drills like these will become more frequent, some countries should adjust to this trend, Song told the newspaper.

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Saturday that while China’s drills complied with international law, Beijing “could have given more notice.”

Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong said she sought an explanation from her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi when the two met in Johannesburg on Saturday on the sidelines of a G20 foreign ministers gathering.

China’s Defense Ministry slammed Australia on Sunday for “hyping up” the drills and making “unreasonable accusations.”

Wu Qian, a spokesperson for the ministry, said China had issued safety notices in advance and that the exercises conducted in international waters complied with international law and did not affect aviation safety.

But Collins said China’s warning was given at too short notice.

“There was a warning to civil aviation flights, that was basically a very short amount of notice, a couple of hours, as opposed to what we would consider best practice, which is 12-24 hours’ notice, so that aircraft are not having to be diverted when they’re on the wing,” she told RNZ.

Collins added that the ships were currently about 280 nautical miles east of Tasmania and had slightly changed their formations, while being closely monitored by a New Zealand navy frigate.

New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters is scheduled to visit China on Tuesday at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

World

After three years of war in Ukraine, Europe’s security guarantees face the abyss

In a war dominated by the unexpected, few imagined Ukraine’s fourth year at war would so firmly question the security of all of Europe.

The most basic tenets have crumbled in this war. Russia’s military superpower status has weakened, and the Kremlin’s inner circle overcame an uprising. Drones have altered warfare permanently, and rendered warehouses of tanks near-useless.

The United States has flipped from a moralistic benefactor to a transactional predator of Kyiv’s resources. The president of Ukraine has survived physically yet now must deal with a revisionist version of events purveyed by a White House that just over a month ago was his steadfast backer.

Flippant or spontaneous as it may have been, US Secretary of Defense Peter Hegseth’s remark in Brussels that the US was no longer the guarantor of European security has overturned eighty years of norms on the continent. Perhaps it was a bluff to boost European security spending, but you cannot bluff in nuclear security.

The Kremlin will have heard about the weakness in the transatlantic alliance and will be plotting accordingly. In one sentence, Hegseth turned a conflict, in which Moscow had been roundly diminished and humiliated for three years, into the chaotic re-ordering of continental security, in which Moscow may somehow dominate to its west.

With Moscow tied up in Ukraine, the security of wider Europe is for now an ethereal policy debate – an unwelcome distraction when contrasted with the relentless daily horror of the actual fight. After a week of social media tirades and tense microphone diplomacy, the gruesome battle has somehow faded into the background. Yet the acute horror is real.

A Ukrainian company commander serving inside Russia’s Kursk region said his men had to regularly dig new positions in the frozen ground as they were so accurately targeted by waves of Russian drones. “I don’t really believe in a quick end to the war or in peace in general”, he said after three years of fighting. “I am very exhausted, so is everyone here. Nothing changes for us here because of political statements.”

Portraits of soldiers are displayed at a makeshift memorial paying tribute to Ukrainian and foreign fighters at Independence Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sunday.

Roman Pilipey/AFP/Getty Images

Ukrainian servicemen fire toward Russian army positions near Chasiv Yar, in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, on February 15.

Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukraine’s 24th Mechanised Brigade/AP

Oleksandr Nastenko, a battalion commander in the 475th assault brigade, said talk of peace had impacted recruitment as potential soldiers were saying “maybe it will all be over in a month or two, I’ll wait.” He said talk of Ukraine collapsing after six months without American aid was premature. “We will somehow figure it out, there is no smell of capitulation.”

Yet a form of capitulation has haunted the opening salvos of the Trump administration’s negotiating plan – Hegseth gifting Moscow with the prospect of Ukraine not joining NATO or recovering territory, before talks had apparently begun. The White House’s revisionism has become an ugly extension of their apparent race to purse a détente with the Kremlin almost at all costs.

Russia’s parallel narrative – that it was forced into action to prevent NATO expansion, and Ukraine must be de-nazified – had been overwhelmed by the sheer weight of its frailty on the frontlines and isolation. It had begun to sound silly – the wobbly excuses of the loser. Yet it has suddenly gained a new lease of life, parroted in part by the world’s most powerful man and his inner circle. It is a potent sign of how the war continues to turn basic norms upside down, that a pressing question on its third anniversary is: “Who is feeding Trump these Kremlin talking points?” Russian state television seems to think it is Russian President Vladimir Putin himself in his conversations with Trump.

Western unity has been an outlier during the war: European nations often differed in how suspicious of Russia they instinctively were, but they spoke as one since Moscow’s full invasion. Yet we now face the world’s pre-eminent power somehow convinced Russia might be a potential ally, and it is their European democratic allies who are the tyrannical problem. It is naïve for anyone in Washington to imagine a future in which Moscow drops its main financier and neighbor, China, in favor of an alliance with the US. Instead, they project frailty at a time when Beijing is actively weighing its next moves on Taiwan, and at times seems the most stable, serious power globally.

On Sunday, Zelensky said he would step aside if it meant peace for Ukraine. The distressing fact is his fraught relationship with Trump risks becoming an obstacle to almost everything. Yet the alternative is worse still. An election in wartime or handover to an anointed successor would simply increase false claims of Zelensky’s illegitimacy.

The dichotomy of the White House’s position is evident again in the inflated casualty numbers they claim is the reason the war must end (millions have not died, as Trump suggests, but possibly hundreds of thousands). This onus on preserving life is not compatible with a peace deal that weakens Ukraine’s defense and risks Russia refitting and coming back for more ground next year. More will die if peace fails or is weak.

The ugliest truth of this moment also needs saying out loud so Europe can be ready. The evidence of our eyes and ears is, as the biggest war in Europe since the forties drags into its fourth year, that Trump favors Putin.

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Politics

Trump announces Dan Bongino will be deputy director of the FBI

President Donald Trump announced that Dan Bongino will serve as the next deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

‘Great news for Law Enforcement and American Justice,’ Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Sunday night. ‘Dan Bongino, a man of incredible love and passion for our Country, has just been named the next DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE FBI, by the man who will be the best ever Director, Kash Patel.’

The president said Bongino has a Master’s Degree in Psychology from the City University of New York and an MBA from Penn State.

‘He was a member of the New York Police Department (New York’s Finest!), a highly respected Special Agent with the United States Secret Service, and is now one of the most successful Podcasters in the Country, something he is willing and prepared to give up in order to serve,’ Trump wrote. ‘Working with our great new United States Attorney General, Pam Bondi, and Director Patel, Fairness, Justice, Law and Order will be brought back to America, and quickly. Congratulations Dan!

‘Another aspect of the life of Dan Bongino that I think is very important. He has a great wife, Paula, and two wonderful daughters who truly love their dad,’ Trump later wrote. ‘What an incredible job Dan will do!!!’

Bongino is also a former Fox News host.

Shortly after the announcement, Bongino responded on X, saying, ‘Thank you Mr. President, Attorney General Bondi, and Director Patel.’

Patel was sworn in to serve as the ninth FBI director on Friday, after a narrow senate vote of 51-49.

Patel, a vociferous opponent of the investigations into Trump and one who served at the forefront of Trump’s 2020 election fraud claims, vowed during his confirmation hearing last month that he would not engage in political retribution against agents who worked on the classified documents case against Trump and other politically sensitive matters.

But his confirmation comes at a time when the FBI’s activities, leadership and personnel decisions are being closely scrutinized for signs of politicization or retaliation.

Patel held a number of national security roles during Trump’s first administration — chief of staff to acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller, senior advisor to the acting director of national intelligence and National Security Council official.

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World

Children of UK couple detained in Afghanistan appeal to Taliban for their release

A British couple in their 70s who run education programs in Afghanistan have lost contact with their family after being detained by the Taliban early this month, their children say.

The family urged the Taliban authorities to release Peter and Barbie Reynolds. Their four adult children said the couple have lived in Afghanistan for 18 years, remaining after the Taliban toppled the Western-backed government in 2021.

The couple runs Rebuild, an organization that provides education and training programs for businesses, government agencies, educational organizations and nongovernmental groups. The Sunday Times, which first reported the story, said one project was for mothers and children. The Taliban has severely restricted women’s education and activities.

“They have always been open about their presence and their work, diligently respecting and obeying the laws as they change,” the children said in a letter to the Taliban, shared Sunday with The Associated Press. “They have chosen Afghanistan as their home, rather than with family in England, and they wish to spend the rest of their lives in Afghanistan.

“We kindly ask for the release of our father and mother so they can return to their work in teaching, training, and serving Afghanistan, which you have previously supported.”

The children said their parents had asked the British government not to get involved with their case. Britain’s Foreign Office declined to comment.

Rebuild said the husband and wife were taken from their home in the Nayak area of central Bamiyan province, along with another foreigner and an Afghan.

In a message to AP, Rebuild said the detained couple had been living in the area for more than two years and had Afghan identity cards. It said Taliban officials had previously searched their home and taken the couple to Kabul, before returning them to Bamiyan.

“Then a delegation came from Kabul, along with Bamiyan provincial officials, and took them again to Kabul,” the organization said. “It is now around 17 days and there is still no information about them.”

No one from the Taliban government was available for comment.

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Investing

PDAC Presentation

Jindalee Lithium (JLL:AU) has announced PDAC Presentation

Download the PDF here.

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Investing

Updated Scoping Study Highlights Billion-Dollar Potential— Positioning ARR as a Future Rare Earth Leader in the USA

American Rare Earths (ASX: ARR | OTCQX: ARRNF and AMRRY) (“ARR” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the results of its Updated Halleck Creek Scoping Study, confirming the project’s strong economics, scalability, and strategic importance.

HIGHLIGHTS

Strong economics, scalable growth: 3 Mtpa base case offers NPV10% of US$558M, IRR 24%, with a low-risk CAPEX of US$456M.
Billion-dollar potential: 6 Mtpa case delivers NPV10% of US$1.17B, IRR 28.4%, and CAPEX of US$737M.
First-mover advantage: State land tenure accelerates permitting, positioning ARR as a leading U.S.- based rare earths developer independent of tariffs and reliance on foreign processing.
Vast Scalability & Growth: The 3 Mtpa Phase 1 will mine ~62.3Mt of ore over 20 years, utilising just ~2.4% of the 2.63Bt JORC resource2. With further studies underway, Halleck Creek could support a larger, long-term operation, with potential for extended mine life and increased production capacity.
Deposit remains open at depth and along strike, with the current JORC resource of 2.63Bt covering only ~16% of the greater Halleck Creek surface area, highlighting significant expansion potential.

Compiled by independent engineering firm Stantec Consulting Services Inc., the Study highlights Halleck Creek’s strong economic potential, strategic advantages, and clear pathway to development as a U.S.-based rare earths project. Located in Wyoming, a Tier 1 mining jurisdiction, Halleck Creek benefits from state land tenure, allowing for accelerated permitting and development.

Compelling Economics & Scalable Growth

The Updated Scoping Study confirms Halleck Creek as a world-class rare earths project with robust financials and long-term scalability:

3 Mtpa Base Case:
- NPV10% of US$558 million, IRR of 24%
- CAPEX of US$456 million, with a 2.7-year payback period
- Annual production: ~4,169 metric tons of TREO, including 1,833 metric tons of NdPr oxide
6 Mtpa Case:
- NPV10% of US$1.171 billion, IRR of 28.4%
- CAPEX of US$737 million, with a 1.8-year payback period
- Annual production: ~7,661 metric tons of TREO, including 3,344 metric tons of NdPr oxide

First-Mover Advantage & U.S. Supply Chain Security

As the only large-scale rare earths project in the U.S. with a clear path to production, ARR is positioned to secure a domestic, tariff-free supply of critical minerals for U.S. and allied markets.

China controls over 90% of global rare earth refining. With the U.S. prioritizing supply chain security, ARR is uniquely positioned as a credible U.S.-based developer to deliver a fully integrated solution— from mining to refining.
State land tenure accelerates permitting, avoiding the lengthy delays often associated with projects on federal land.
Halleck Creek’s 100% U.S.-based production and refining will ensure a secure, domestic supply of rare earth oxide metals—eliminating reliance on foreign supply chains and reinforcing the ‘Made in America’ commitment.
Deposit remains open at depth and along strike, with the current JORC resource of 2.63Bt covering only ~16% of the greater Halleck Creek project area, highlighting significant expansion potential.

Clear Development Pathway & Future Growth

Halleck Creek’s staged development approach ensures financial and operational flexibility, allowing ARR to scale production in alignment with market demand:

Base Case: 3 Mtpa – Low-risk entry to production to produce an average of 4,169 mt of TREO per annum, including 1,833 mt of NdPr Oxide.
Alternate Case: Scalable to 6 Mtpa – Enhancing project economics, producing an average of 7,661 mt TREO per annum, including 3,334 mt of NdPr Oxide
Future Expansion Potential: The Cowboy State Mine (“CSM”) represents only Phase 1 of Halleck Creek’s development, benefiting from a strategic permitting advantage. The 20-year CSM LOM plan includes mining approximately 62.3 Mt of ore—just ~2.4% of the total 2,627 Mt JORC Mineral Resource—highlighting the vast potential for extended mine life and increased production in future phases. Given the increasing demand for rare earths, ARR is evaluating further studies, as Halleck Creek could support a much larger, long-term operation, with potential for extended mine life and increased production capacity that could position ARR among the top rare earth producers outside China.

CEO Commentary

Chris Gibbs, CEO of American Rare Earths, commented:

‘The Updated Scoping Study reinforces Halleck Creek strong economic potential, strategic permitting advantage and clear pathway to development. With a large-scale resource and favourable economics, we are uniquely positioned to help secure America’s rare earth supply and reduce dependence on foreign sources.

‘The 6 Mtpa case highlights Halleck Creek’s billion-dollar potential, delivering an NPV10% of US$1.17B and an IRR of 28%, showcasing the project’s scalability. The 3 Mtpa base case offers a low-risk entry point, producing 1,833 metric tonnes of NdPr oxide annually, with an NPV10% of US$558M, an IRR of 24%, and a 2.7-year payback period.

‘With a scalable development pathway under evaluation, Halleck Creek has the potential to become a major supplier to U.S. and allied markets. Future production scenarios could position ARR among the top rare earth producers outside China, reinforcing America’s supply chain security for decades to come.

‘And we’re not just mining—we are developing a fully integrated U.S. supply chain, refining and producing high- purity rare earth oxides for American manufacturers. Halleck Creek aligns with the growing push for Made-in- America critical minerals, securing a domestic supply for defense, aerospace, and high-tech manufacturing.”

Next Steps & Milestones

Building on strong execution in 2024, ARR is advancing key milestones to further de-risk and develop Halleck Creek, as outlined in the Updated Scoping Study and supported by recent metallurgy results. These developments reinforce the project’s scalability and strategic importance as a leading U.S. rare earths asset. With a staged development approach, first production could be as early as 2029, subject to ongoing technical and economic assessments. The Company is looking at ways to fast-track development, including plans to commence Phase One of a pilot plant for the beneficiation process. The roadmap ahead highlights key next steps for 2025 and the next major stage gate in the project’s development.

Click here for the full ASX Release

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Investing

Reconnaissance AC Drilling Yield Structural Targets

Many Peaks Minerals (MPK:AU) has announced Reconnaissance AC Drilling Yield Structural Targets

Download the PDF here.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Politics

Trump set to meet with world leaders in DC during busy week as Russia-Ukraine peace talks continue

President Donald Trump is set to have another busy week meeting with foreign leaders in the nation’s capital as administration leaders continue working out a potential peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

Trump will meet with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron in his fifth week back in the Oval Office, national security advisor Mike Waltz said on Fox News’ ‘America Reports.’ The announcement follows Macron calling for an emergency meeting of world leaders after the Trump administration excluded Europe from sitting at the negotiating table to settle the war between Ukraine and Russia.

‘Just a few months ago, everyone was talking about this war as though it would never end,’ Waltz said on ‘America Reports’ after confirming Starmer and Macron will visit Washington, D.C. ‘In just a very short amount of time, President Trump has us, everyone – the Ukrainians, the Russians, the Europeans – talking about it now and debating.… Only President Trump could drive that shift in conversation. And we have to acknowledge that that’s happened.’

Waltz, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff met in Riyadh last week with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and President Vladimir Putin’s foreign affairs advisor Yuri Ushakov to hash out ways to end the conflict. Ukraine was absent from the negotiations in Saudi Arabia.

Ukraine’s lack of involvement sparked President Vlodomyr Zelenskyy to double down on the stance that his nation will not accept a peace deal unless they are a part of the negotiation process.

Zelenskyy told reporters Tuesday in Turkey that ‘nobody decides anything behind our back,’ after stressing in recent days that Kyiv will not agree to a peace negotiation without Ukraine’s input.

Trump amplified his rhetoric against Zelenskyy last week, including arguing Zelenskyy is a poor negotiator and that he’s ‘sick of it.’

‘I’ve been watching this man for years now as his cities get demolished, as his people get killed, as his soldiers get decimated,’ Trump told Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade last week. ‘I’ve been watching him negotiate with no cards. He has no cards, and you get sick of it,’ he continued. ‘You just get sick of it, and I’ve had it.’

‘I get tired of listening to it,’ Trump responded. ‘I’ve seen it enough, and then he complains that he’s not at a meeting that we’re having with Saudi Arabia trying to intermediate peace. Well, he’s been at meetings for three years with a… president who didn’t know what the hell he was doing. He’s been at the meetings for three years and nothing got done, so I don’t think he’s very important to be at meetings, to be honest with you. He’s been there for three years. He’s he makes it very hard to make deals.’

Trump added on Friday that Macron and Starmer ‘haven’t done anything’ since 2022 to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Trump’s recent remarks on Zelenskyy have apparently alarmed European leaders who have backed Ukraine throughout the war. Macron previewed in remarks on Thursday that he will reportedly take a tough tone with Trump during their meeting.

‘Trump, I know him. I respect him and I believe he respects me,’ Macron, who will meet with Trump on Monday, said during a question-and-answer session on social media. ‘I will tell him: deep down you cannot be weak in the face of President (Vladimir Putin). It’s not you, it’s not what you’re made of, and it’s not in your interests.’

Starmer, who is slated to meet with Trump on Thursday, said on Sunday in Scotland that there cannot be peace talks without Ukraine’s input.

‘Nobody wants the bloodshed to continue. Nobody, least of all the Ukrainians,’ he said Sunday, according to Reuters.

‘But after everything that they have suffered, after everything that they have fought for, there could be no discussion about Ukraine without Ukraine, and the people of Ukraine must have a long-term secure future.’

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt spoke to members of the media on Saturday following CPAC, saying a peace deal could be reached as soon as this week.

‘The president, his team are very much focused on continuing negotiations with both sides of this war to end the conflict, and the president is very confident we can get it done this week,’ she said.

Fox News Digital’s Bailee Hill, Morgan Phillips and Diana Stancy contributed to this report.

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Politics

Trump celebrates conservative party win in Germany

President Donald Trump celebrated on Sunday after German conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz claimed victory in a national election, ousting Social Democrat incumbent Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

‘LOOKS LIKE THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY IN GERMANY HAS WON THE VERY BIG AND HIGHLY ANTICIPATED ELECTION,’ Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. ‘MUCH LIKE THE USA, THE PEOPLE OF GERMANY GOT TIRED OF THE NO COMMON SENSE AGENDA, ESPECIALLY ON ENERGY AND IMMIGRATION, THAT HAS PREVAILED FOR SO MANY YEARS.

‘THIS IS A GREAT DAY FOR GERMANY, AND FOR THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF A GENTLEMAN NAMED DONALD J. TRUMP,’ he added. ‘CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL — MANY MORE VICTORIES TO FOLLOW!!!’

Germany’s center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) won Sunday’s national election, with the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) finishing a strong second, according to exit polls.

The snap election came as the European nation grapples with illegal immigration and a souring economy. CDU leader Merz is expected to take a harder line than Scholz on immigration, though not as much as AfD supporters have called for.

Merz, whose party got about 29% of the vote, must form a coalition with one or more of the other parties, but has said he will not do so with AfD.

Merz has said he will execute a 15-point plan to tackle immigration, including tightening the borders and deporting rejected asylum seekers. AfD wants to deport migrants en masse.

While the AfD may be frozen out of the incoming coalition, it doubled its vote total from the last election.

Endorsed by Trump and Elon Musk, and led by Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, the party believes it has built momentum for the next election, expected in 2029.

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Politics

Netanyahu shows picture of Bibas family at combat officers’ graduation: ‘Remember what we are fighting for’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu displayed images of Shiri Bibas and her two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, during an address at a combat officers’ graduation ceremony on Sunday, delivering a solemn message.

‘I want to show you something. I want to show you this picture of Shiri Bibas and her tender children, Ariel and Kfir Bivas. This picture says it all; I ask that you engrave it on the board of your hearts, so that you will always remember what we are fighting for and against whom we are fighting,’ Netanyahu told the graduates, according to Fox News’ translation of the Hebrew speech. ‘We are fighting to secure our existence against man-monsters who have risen to annihilate us.’

‘Already in the first days of the war, they murdered Shiri and her children in cold blood; they strangled the tender children with their own hands,’ Netanyahu said, holding up a photo of the Bibas family. ‘And if they could, they would have killed us all with the same cruelty, until our very last man. Against this we fight, and these monsters we must and can defeat – and defeat them we will. This is our mission, and this is your mission!’

‘As the defenders of our homeland, each of you is imbued with purpose, wielding sword and shield,’ he added. ‘We have high expectations of you, but I know that above all, you have expectations of yourselves.’

Hamas handed over the bodies of the two young brothers on Thursday, but initially returned the wrong remains for Shiri in what Netanyahu had decried as a ‘brazen violation of their agreement.’ The Israeli mother’s actual remains were handed over on Saturday and identified by Israeli forensic authorities to be Shiri following a standoff with the terrorist group. Also returned was the body of Oded Lifshitz, a fellow resident of Kibbutz Nir Oz kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, and who Israel says was murdered in captivity. The Israel Defense Forces said the boys’ bodies proved they were ‘murdered by terrorists in cold blood,’ despite Hamas previously claiming the brothers were killed in an airstrike.

In his speech Sunday, Netanyahu said President Donald Trump ‘sees eye to eye with us on everything related to Gaza.’

‘We support President Trump’s groundbreaking plan to allow free exit for Gazans, and to create a different Gaza,’ Netanyahu told the graduating combat officers.

‘I thank President Trump for his directive to supply Israel with vital weapons,’ Netanyahu said. ‘The new defensive and offensive arms will greatly aid us in achieving absolute victory. At the same time, we have approved enormous budgets for the domestic development of weapon systems – systems that will enhance our ability to stand up to our enemies on our own.’

The prime minister also laid out his government’s objectives. Netanyahu said Israeli forces ‘have eliminated most of Hamas’s organized strength’in Gaza.

‘But let there be no doubt: we will complete the war objectives, including this one, to the very end,’ he said. ‘It can be achieved through negotiation, and it can also be achieved by other means. From the start of the war, the conditions we set for its conclusion were clear – and they remain clear. All of our abductees, without exception, will return home. Hamas will not govern Gaza. Gaza will be purged, and its combat capability will be dismantled.’

Trump’s envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said he plans to return to the region on Wednesday to negotiate an ‘extension’ of Phase One of the ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas.

Phase Two, Witkoff noted, includes ensuring Hamas will never return to government leadership in Gaza, which he predicts will not be a safe living environment for another 15 to 20 years and will require a lengthy reconstruction plan.

Fox News’ Yael Rotem-Kuriel contributed to this report.

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