International
World Leaders Pay Tribute To Biden After He Ended His Re-Election Bid

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Sunday paid tribute to President Joe Biden, saying he had made “democracy stronger” after the US leader announced he was dropping out of the White House race.
Tusk, who served as the European Council president in 2014-2019, said in March that it was important to “nurture transatlantic relations, regardless of who the US president is”.
“You’ve taken many difficult decisions thanks to which Poland, America and the world are safer, and democracy stronger,” Tusk wrote on X.
“I know you were driven by the same motivations when announcing your final decision. Probably the most difficult one in your life,” he added.
On his part, Israeli President Isaac Herzog thanked Biden for his decades of supporting “the Israeli people” after the US leader’s move.
“I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to @POTUS Joe Biden for his friendship and steadfast support for the Israeli people over his decades-long career,” Herzog, whose role is largely ceremonial, wrote on social media.
Germany’s Scholz says Biden decision deserves ‘respect’
Meanwhile, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz praised Biden after he announced his decision to drop out of the 2024 US presidential election.
“My friend @POTUS Joe Biden has achieved a lot: for his country, for Europe, for the world,” Scholz wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “His decision not to run again deserves respect.”
Also, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he respected the US President’s decision to withdraw from the race for the White House, paying tribute to a “remarkable career”.
“I respect President Biden’s decision and I look forward to us working together during the remainder of his presidency,” Starmer wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
“I know that, as he has done throughout his remarkable career, he will have made his decision based on what he believes is best for the American people,” he added.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also thanked Biden for his years of service.
“I’ve known President Biden for years,” he wrote on X.
“He’s a great man, and everything he does is guided by his love for his country. As President, he is a partner to Canadians — and a true friend. To President Biden and the First Lady: thank you.”
AFP
International
U.K.–India set to boost bilateral trade by over $34 billion a year
The FTA, which slashes duties on goods including textiles, alcohol and automobiles, was signed Thursday in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart, Keir Starmer.

•Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart, Keir Starmer.
U.K. and India’s bilateral trade is set to get a more than $34 billion annual boost over the long term following their free trade agreement, with the countries’ leaders calling it a “historic” deal.
CNBC reported that the FTA, which slashes duties on goods including textiles, alcohol and automobiles, was signed on Thursday in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart, Keir Starmer.
Both sides had finalized the trade pact in May after three years of intense negotiations — marked by thorny issues such as visas, tariff reduction and tax breaks.
Talks gained momentum and both governments accelerated to seal the deal as U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats sent the world in disarray.
The agreement between the world’s fifth and sixth largest economies is expected to boost their bilateral trade by 25.5 billion pounds per year by 2040.
Trade in goods and services stood at over 40 billion pounds in 2024.
The deal offers “huge benefits to both of our countries,” boosting wages, raising living standards and bringing down prices for consumers, Starmer said.
India’s Modi lauded the agreement as “a blueprint for our shared prosperity,” highlighting how Indian goods including textiles, jewelry, agricultural products and engineering items would benefit from a better access to the U.K. market.
International
Russian missing plane found in Forest – No Survivors
Amur’s regional governor Vasily Orlov said five children were among those on board and declared three days of mourning.

Russian officials say 48 people were killed when an Angara Airlines plane went down in a dense forest in the far-eastern Amur region.
The Antonov An-24 plane, carrying 42 passengers and six crew, had left Blagoveshchensk close to the Chinese border and vanished from radar screens as it approached Tynda airport, officials said.
A Russian civil aviation helicopter then spotted burning fuselage from the plane on a remote hillside about 16km (10 miles) from Tynda.
Amur’s regional governor Vasily Orlov said five children were among those on board and declared three days of mourning.
Orlov said that according to preliminary data, there were 43 passengers, including five children, and six crew members on board the plane operated by a Siberian airline.
International
EU ready to hit US with 21-billion-euro tariff list
He said the goal should be “zero tariffs” and an open market among Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe.

MILAN (Reuters) -The European Union has already prepared a list of tariffs worth 21 billion euros ($24.52 billion) on U.S. goods if the two sides fail to reach a trade deal, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said in a newspaper interview on Monday.
President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the EU starting on Aug. 1, after weeks of negotiations with major U.S. trading partners failed to reach a comprehensive deal.
Tajani also told daily Il Messaggero that to help the euro zone economy the European Central Bank should consider a new “quantitative easing” bond-buying-programme, and more interest rate cuts.
The European Union said on Sunday it would extend its suspension of countermeasures to U.S. tariffs until early August and continue to press for a negotiated settlement.
Tajani said the 21-billion-euro package of tariffs the EU has already prepared could be followed by a second set if a deal with the U.S proves impossible.
He added, however, that he was confident that progress could be made in negotiations.
“Tariffs hurt every one, starting with the United States,” he said. “If stock markets fall that puts at risk the pensions and the savings of the Americans.”
He said the goal should be “zero tariffs” and an open market among Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe.
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