“We are in a remarkable moment where a company, not a government, is dictating terms of use to a government that is actively engaged in a conflict,” she said. “It’s like a tank manufacturer telling a country you can only use our tanks for these specific reasons. That is a new world.”
In 2011, some 800 of the snails accidentally died in a Department of Conservation refrigerator with faulty temperature control.But the species’ slow survival continues: In March this year, there were nearly 1,900 snails and nearly 2,200 eggs in captivity, the conservation agency said.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. and Ukraine on Wednesday signed an agreement granting American access to Ukraine’s vast mineral resources, finalizing a deal months in the making that could enable continued military aid to Kyiv amid concerns that President Donald Trump might scale back support in ongoing peace negotiations with Russia.The two sides offered only barebone details about the structure of the deal, which they called the United States-Ukraine Reinvestment Fund. But it is expected to give the U.S. access to Ukraine’swhile providing Kyiv a measure of assurance about continued American support in its grinding war with Russia.
“This agreement signals clearly to Russia that the Trump administration is committed to a peace process centered on a free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine over the long term,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. “President Trump envisioned this partnership between the American people and the Ukrainian people to show both sides’ commitment to lasting peace and prosperity in Ukraine.”The announcement comes at a critical moment in the three-year war as Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with both sides. The signing comes two months after a different but similar agreement was nearly signed before being derailed in a
involving President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Trump has long criticized Zelenskyy, saying he didn’t “have the cards” to win the war and blaming him forKremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refused to say who might travel to Istanbul from the Russian side.
“Overall, we’re determined to seriously look for ways to achieve a long-term peaceful settlement. That is all,” Peskov said.The United States and European governments are making a concerted push to stop the fighting, which has killed tens of thousands of soldiers on both sides, as well as more than 10,000 Ukrainian civilians. Russia’s invading forces have taken around one-fifth of Ukraine in Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he’s optimistic about the Istanbul talks. There is “the potential for a good meeting” between Putin and Zelenskyy, Trump said in Washington, adding that he was “thinking about flying over” to the talks from his visit to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates that day.Zelenskyy supported the prospect of Trump attending the negotiations. “I supported President Trump with the idea of direct talks with Putin. I have openly expressed my readiness to meet,” he said. “And of course, all of us in Ukraine would appreciate it if President Trump could be there with us at this meeting in Turkey.”