Ukraine to receive US Patriot air defence systems, says Trump

Published

9 hours ago

July 11, 2025

US President Donald Trump has said he will send weapons, including Patriot air defence systems, for Ukraine via Nato.

Trump told NBC News that in a new deal, “we’re going to be sending Patriots to Nato, and then Nato will distribute that”, adding that Nato would pay for the weapons.

His announcement came after Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke of having a “positive dialogue” with Trump on ensuring that arms arrived on time, particularly air defence systems.

Zelensky said he had asked for 10 Patriot systems, after a surge in Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities in the past week.

Speaking in Rome on Thursday, the Ukrainian leader said Germany was ready to pay for two of the Patriots and Norway for one, while other European partners were also prepared to help.

After a phone-call with Russia’s Vladimir Putin last week, Trump said he was “not happy” that progress had not been made towards ending the war, and he has since complained that Putin’s “very nice” attitude turned out to be meaningless.

During his interview with NBC News, Trump said he would make a “major statement” on Russia on Monday, but did not say what it would be about.

He said “Nato is going to reimburse the full cost” for the weapons sent on to Ukraine. Nato is funded through the contributions of its members, including the US.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Friday that he had urged countries including Germany and Spain to hand over some of their existing Patriot batteries, as they could reach Ukraine faster.

“We have continued to encourage our Nato allies to provide those weapons… since they have them in their stocks, then we can enter into financial agreements… where they can purchase the replacements.”

The US defence department halted some shipments of critical weapons last week, raising concerns in Kyiv that its air defences could run low in a matter of months.

Among the armaments reported to have been placed on pause were Patriot interceptor missiles and precision artillery shells.

Then, as Ukraine was pounded by record numbers of drone attacks this week, Trump said more weapons would be sent: “We have to… They’re getting hit very hard now.”

Zelensky had appealed for the shipments to resume, describing the Patriot systems as “real protectors of life”.

On Tuesday night, Ukraine was hit by a record 728 drones, and the Ukrainian president warned that Russia wanted to increase that to 1,000.

June saw the highest monthly civilian casualties in Ukraine in three years, with 232 people killed and more than 1,300 injured, according to the UN.

Since re-entering the White House in January, Trump has pushed to scale back US support for Ukraine.

The US was the biggest source of military aid to Ukraine between the start of 2022 and the end of 2024, giving $69bn (£54.6bn) in that time period, according to German think tank the Kiel Institute.

Trump has also pressed Nato allies to pledge more of their GDP to the security alliance. Last year, all European Nato members pledged to spend 2% of GDP on defence.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The US has been urging the two countries to reach an agreement to end the war.

Rubio told reporters that he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had a “frank” conversation on the sidelines of a meeting in Malaysia on Thursday.

Rubio echoed Trump’s “frustration at the lack of progress at peace talks”, including “disappointment that there has not been more flexibility on the Russian side to bring about an end to this conflict”.

He said the two had shared some new ideas about how the conflict could conclude, which he would take back to Trump.

Rubio declined to elaborate on what Trump said would be a “major” announcement about Russia on Monday.

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Sources: Bears extend general manager Ryan Poles through 2029

Published

1 hour ago

July 11, 2025

Courtney Cronin

Courtney CroninJul 11, 2025, 03:51 PM ET
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LAKE FOREST, Ill. — The Chicago Bears and general manager Ryan Poles have agreed to a three-year contract extension that runs through the 2029 season, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Friday.

Poles had two years remaining on the five-year contract he signed upon becoming Chicago’s general manager in 2022. He is now aligned with head coach Ben Johnson, whose contract runs through the 2029 season.

ESPN first reported the Bears’ plan to extend Poles during the 2025 offseason in January.

Poles, 39, oversaw a substantial rebuild that coincided with the Bears earning the No. 1 pick after the 2022 and 2023 seasons, respectively. Chicago traded the draft’s top pick to the Carolina Panthers in March 2023 for wide receiver DJ Moore and four draft picks, which Poles used to draft quarterback Caleb Williams, right tackle Darnell Wright, cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, wide receiver Luther Burden III and punter Tory Taylor.

The Bears have gone 15-36 since Poles was hired and saw former coach Matt Eberflus fired midway through the 2024 season, which ended with a 5-12 finish during Williams’ rookie year. Poles led an extensive coaching search in January that saw the Bears interview 17 candidates before landing on Johnson.

Since then, Chicago has made significant investments in the offensive line via trades for guards Joe Thuney, Jonah Jackson and signing center Drew Dalman in free agency. Poles also invested heavily in the defensive trenches with tackles Grady Jarrett, Shemar Turner and defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo.

Poles and Johnson’s first draft together saw the Bears draft two pass-catching weapons with the team’s top two draft picks (tight end Colston Loveland at No. 10 and Burden at No. 39) for the first time in franchise history.

“There’s a rhythm to all the madness behind what we do and how we do it,” Johnson said in April. “And Ryan really is all the brains behind that. He set it all up and you can tell that this group, this organization has been together for a number of years now because it’s been running so smoothly. He’s consistent every single day when he comes in. I think that sometimes is under looked at times, particularly in this profession. Consistency is a huge deal and he’s just done a great job every single day laying out a plan, executing a plan and just getting to know him more.”

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Statement from Chairman of the Board of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac William J. Pulte on Reports that Jerome Powell Is Considering Resigning

Published

2 hours ago

July 11, 2025

The Editors

Washington, D.C. – “I’m encouraged by reports that Jerome Powell is considering resigning. I think this will be the right decision for America, and the economy will boom.”

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The Federal Housing Finance Agency regulates Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the 11 Federal Home Loan Banks. These government-sponsored enterprises provide more than $8.5 trillion in funding for the U.S. mortgage markets and financial institutions. Additional information is available at www.FHFA.gov, on X @FHFA, YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Contacts: MediaInquiries@FHFA.gov

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Here are the best Prime Day 2025 deals on the final day of the sale

Published

2 hours ago

July 11, 2025

Brandon Russell

We made it to the last day of Amazon’s extended Prime Day extravaganza. And, yeah, we’re a little exhausted, but after three days of lightning deals and all-time low prices, there are fewer than 12 hours to go until many of the discounts disappear. So, if you’ve been hesitant to jump on these laptop deals before heading back to school, now’s your time to act. Typically, Prime Day is your last opportunity to take advantage of bottom-dollar prices until Black Friday / Cyber Monday, so it may be a while before you see prices plummet on a gadget you’re interested in buying.

Really, there’s an overwhelming amount of Prime Day deals, so to make things easier to navigate, we’ve organized all of our favorites by category below. That will allow you to quickly find exactly what you’re looking for — or even uncover a deal on something you didn’t know you wanted. You have until Saturday, July 12th, at 3:00 AM ET (that’s Friday, July 11th, at 12:00 AM PT for you West Coast folks), so don’t miss out.

Tablet and e-reader deals

Soundbar and Bluetooth speaker deals

Verge favorites and other miscellaneous deals

Update, July 11th: Added several more deals, including those for Google’s original Pixel Fold, Logitech’s Lift mouse, Oppenheimer on 4K Blu-ray, Sennheiser’s Momentum 4 Wireless, and more.

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