Trump and Macron playful in Oval office; Musk downplays ultimatum given to federal workers: Live updates – UK Times

President Donald Trump said Russian leader Vladimir Putin would accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine as part of a potential deal to end Russia’s war there.

Trump made the comments to reporters at a start of a meeting at the White House on Monday with French President Emmanuel Macron on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Yeah, he will accept it,” Trump said. “I have asked him that question. Look, if we do this deal, he’s not looking for World War.”

Both Macron and Starmer are in impossible positions, writes Holly Baxter – they’re dealing with a petulant bully combined with the might of a global superpower.

Donald Trump has said Ukraine’s president could visit Washington in the next few weeks to sign a deal granting America significant mineral wealth to repay support given by the U.S. during the war with Russia.

Read more about this breaking news story here:

Federal staffers at the Department of Housing and Urban Development were greeted by an AI video depicting President Donald Trump kissing Elon Musk’s feet when they came into work Monday morning.

Hackers rolled out the 19-second video throughout HUD’s building on the day that federal workers were ordered to return to the office following an executive order bringing an end to working from home.

Here’s the full story from Rhian Lubin:

More than 100 House Democrats have signed a letter to Trump administration officials telling them to immediately tell federal workers they do not have to reply to Elon Musk’s email “stunt” asking them to explain their accomplishments last week or risk being fired.

“Whether Mr. Musk understands it or not, America is a nation of laws, our government is a system of checks and balances, and federal agencies will not be reorganized by social media post,” the lawmakers wrote.

“This stunt is yet another example of the cruel and arbitrary chaos Mr. Musk inflicts on the American people by carelessly ‘taking a chainsaw’ to the people’s government and the dedicated public servants who keep it running.

“Mr. Musk’s consistent refusal to take any amount of care before disrupting operations across the federal government imposes far greater costs than it will legitimately save.”

In a post on Truth Social Donald Trump gave a run-down of Monday’s call with G7 leaders about ending the war in Ukraine, but doubled down on his claim that it would not have started if he had been president at the time.

“At the same time, I am in serious discussions with President Vladimir Putin of Russia concerning the ending of the War, and also major Economic Development transactions which will take place between the United States and Russia,” he wrote.

“Talks are proceeding very well!”

Scientists reviewing medical devices for Elon Musk’s company Neuralink who lost their jobs in a flurry of Food and Drug Administration firings have already been hired back, according to reports.

The FDA is attempting to claw back around 300 staffers after Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) axed thousands of jobs from the Department of Health and Human Services, sources told Reuters.