World Briefing: March 11, 2025

A Ukrainian delegation is to meet with America’s top diplomat in Saudi Arabia today about ending the three-year war with Russia. The US side is led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz. Ukraine is expected to propose a ceasefire covering the Black Sea and long-range missile strikes, as well as the release of prisoners, according to two senior Ukrainian officials. The officials also said Kyiv is ready to sign an agreement with the United States on access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals — a deal that U.S. President Donald Trump is keen to secure. On his plane to Jeddah, Rubio said the U.S. delegation would not be proposing any specific measures to secure an end to the three-year conflict but rather wanted to hear from Ukraine about what they would be willing to consider. “I’m not going to set any conditions on what they have to or need to do,” Rubio told reporters accompanying him. “I think we want to listen to see how far they’re willing to go and then compare that to what the Russians want and see how far apart we truly are.” Rubio said the rare earths and critical minerals deal could be signed during the meeting but stressed it was not a precondition for the United States to move ahead with discussions with either Ukraine or the Russians. He said it may, in fact, make more sense to take some time to negotiate the precise details of the agreement, which is now a broad memorandum of understanding that leaves out many specifics - AP

Rodrigo Duterte, the former president of the Philippines, was arrested on Tuesday in Manila, after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant accusing him of crimes against humanity in his war on drugs in which, human rights groups say, tens of thousands of Filipinos were summarily executed. He was taken into custody at Manila’s main airport after returning from a trip to Hong Kong, according to the Philippine government. Mr. Duterte’s lawyer, Salvador Panelo, said the arrest was unlawful, partly because the Philippines withdrew from the court while Mr. Duterte was in office. In the I.C.C. warrant, a three-judge panel wrote that, based on evidence presented by the court’s prosecutor, it believed that killings ordered by Mr. Duterte as mayor of the city of Davao and later as president were “both widespread and systematic.” The panel also said it believed that “Mr. Duterte is individually responsible for the crime against humanity of murder.” The New York Times obtained a copy of the warrant, which was sealed and labeled “secret.” - New York Times

Canada’s wealthiest province, Ontario, is imposing a 25 per cent surcharge on all U.S.-bound electricity as part of its retaliatory measures against U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods. The new levy took effect Monday and will add about $10 per megawatt-hour to the cost of power heading south, the province says. It will generate an estimated $300,000 to $400,000 per day, money that will be used to support workers and businesses hit by U.S. tariffs. Ontario provides electricity to roughly 1.5 million customers in the northern border states of New York, Michigan and Minnesota. The surcharge will cost the average household or business in these states an additional $100 per month on their power bills. The premier said the magnitude of the levy could be increased if the Trump administration continues to escalate its trade war against Canada - CBC

US President Donald Trump could visit China as early as next month, according to multiple diplomatic sources, as the American leader has appeared focused on hammering out a deal with Beijing since his return to the White House. The presidents of both countries would like the other side to visit to present it as a diplomatic triumph, but initial discussions have been around Trump visiting China, according to sources. It is unclear how far discussions about a potential trip have progressed. One Chinese source said “it is more difficult for Beijing officials to talk to their counterparts in Washington now than in the Biden administration, as Washington is going through drastic changes” - SCMP

President Donald Trump’s tariffs have spooked investors, with fears of an economic downturn driving a stock market sell-off that has wiped out $4 trillion from the S&P 500’s peak last month, when Wall Street was cheering much of Trump’s agenda. A barrage of new Trump policies has increased uncertainty for businesses, consumers and investors, notably back-and-forth tariff moves against major trading partners like Canada, Mexico and China. The stock market selloff deepened on Monday. The benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab fell 2.7%, its biggest daily drop of the year. The Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), opens new tab slid 4%, its largest one-day decline since September 2022. The S&P 500 on Monday closed down 8.6% from its February 19 record high, shedding over $4 trillion in market value since then and nearing a 10% decline that would represent a correction for the index. The tech-heavy Nasdaq ended Thursday down more than 10% from its December high - Reuters

Foul play has not been ruled out as fires continue to burn after an oil tanker carrying jet fuel and a cargo ship loaded with highly toxic chemicals collided in the North Sea off the coast of East Yorkshire. The crash, which occurred just before 9.50am, involved the US-registered Stena Immaculate, transporting fuel for the US military, and the Portuguese-flagged Solong. HM Coastguard confirmed that 36 people were rescued, with one taken to hospital. There are concerns that the chemical spill could harm the marine environment, particularly seabird colonies on the East Yorkshire coast - The Independent

Ruth Marcus, a columnist and editor for The Washington Post’s opinion section, said Monday she was leaving the newspaper after Will Lewis, the paper’s publisher, killed a column she wrote that was critical of the editorial pages’ new direction. Ms. Marcus announced her resignation in an email to her colleagues at The Post, saying she had arrived at the decision to resign “with immense sadness.” She added: “I am taking this step, after more than 40 years at The Post, following Will’s decision to spike a column that I wrote expressing concern about the newly announced direction for the section and declined to discuss the decision with me,” Ms. Marcus wrote. Ms. Marcus is the most prominent writer to leave The Post’s opinion section since Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon who owns the paper, changed its focus to “personal liberties and free markets.” David Shipley, the section’s editor, resigned as a result of that decision - NYT

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