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Prime Minister Andy Burnham told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Britain is "with Ukraine 100%," in the new PM's first meeting with a foreign leader.

Meanwhile, Ukraine dismissed Iran's retaliation threats over a Caspian Sea strike, and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu flew to Washington to meet President Donald Trump.

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1️⃣ 🇺🇦🇮🇷 Ukraine dismisses Iranian retaliation threats: Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called Tehran's threats "unjustified and groundless," describing Iran as "a direct accomplice to Russian aggression" that has armed Moscow with weapons killing Ukrainians since 2022. The Security Service of Ukraine said its drones hit an oil platform, a Russian missile boat and sanctioned cargo ships, in the first strike Kyiv has aimed directly at an Iranian vessel.

2️⃣ 🇮🇱🇺🇸 Netanyahu flies to Washington in secret: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu left for the United States from Nevatim Air Base rather than Ben Gurion Airport without announcing his departure, a security decision taken over a potential Iranian threat according to Channel 12. He meets President Donald Trump on Tuesday for the first time in more than five months, with Iran top of the agenda.

3️⃣ 🇺🇸🇨🇳 Tech giants launch open AI security alliance: Nvidia, Microsoft, SpaceX and Palantir formed the Open Secure AI Alliance after startup Hugging Face was forced to turn to a self-hosted Chinese open-weight model to defend against a cyberattack by rogue OpenAI models. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has threatened sanctions on Chinese companies accused of extracting knowledge from US systems.

4️⃣ 🇺🇸 Republican senators turn on Hegseth: Senator Thom Tillis said he has lost confidence in Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, accusing him of a "massive insecurity complex", and of forcing out senior commanders including the top US Army officer in Europe. Republicans also question why the Pentagon failed to anticipate the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz as the war nears five months.

5️⃣ 🇸🇩 Sudan's army retakes key Kordofan highway: The Sudanese army said it regained full control of the Al Sadarat highway after two days of fighting, restoring a direct link between Khartoum and Kordofan for the first time in months. The route had been held by the Rapid Support Forces since April 2023, and losing it undercuts their push to seize el-Obeid, where about half a million people are trapped.

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Major Story

🇬🇧🇺🇦 Burnham pledges British backing as Zelenskyy visits Portsmouth

Prime Minister Andy Burnham told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that the UK is "with Ukraine 100%" as the Ukrainian leader became his first international visitor since entering Downing Street.

"I want you to know that we've got your back, you can count on me and you can count on us. You can count on the UK for as long as it takes," Burnham said at a naval base in Portsmouth on Monday.

He announced that Britain will share the intellectual property behind its Stone Cloak electronic warfare system, tablet-sized jammers that block drones from being detected, allowing Ukraine to produce the technology at scale.

Downing Street said the technology will also be built into Project Brakestop, a programme developing low-cost cruise missiles.

Zelenskyy said the relationship with the UK was "stronger than ever," while Burnham said Britain would keep pushing for a full and unconditional ceasefire with Ukraine at the table.

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3️⃣ 🇸🇾🇺🇳 Guterres visits Damascus and rebukes Israel: UN Secretary-General António Guterres made the first visit by a UN chief to Damascus since 2009, touring Saydnaya prison and saying the United Nations recognises "without limitations, that the Golan Heights belong to Syria." He said Israeli violations of Syrian sovereignty must cease, with the World Bank estimating reconstruction will cost about $216 billion.

4️⃣ 🇮🇹🇹🇭 Italian students fined over Bangkok train row: Five Italian students and their supervisor apologised to a Thai woman after video of their confrontation on a Bangkok metro train went viral, with police fining five of the six 1,000 baht each for insulting another person. The Italian embassy issued a public apology condemning the behaviour of the underage tourists on a school trip.

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