Connect with us

INTERNACIONAL

Italy’s Meloni rebukes Trump remarks on NATO’s role in Afghanistan

Published

on


NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Saturday called President Donald Trump’s comments about NATO allies’ role in Afghanistan «unacceptable,» pushing back against suggestions they «stayed a little back» from the front lines.

Advertisement

«Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, NATO activated Article 5 for the first and only time in its history: an extraordinary act of solidarity toward the United States,» Meloni wrote on X.

«In that massive operation against those who fueled terrorism, Italy responded immediately alongside its allies, deploying thousands of troops and taking full responsibility for Regional Command West, one of the most significant operational areas of the entire international mission,» she said.

Meloni explained that Italy’s nearly two decades of involvement in Afghanistan came at a significant cost, with 53 Italian soldiers killed and more than 700 wounded during combat operations, security missions and training programs for Afghan forces.

Advertisement

TRUMP SAYS US SHOULD HAVE TESTED NATO BY INVOKING ARTICLE 5 OVER BORDER SECURITY

Italian soldiers carry the flag-draped coffin of Sergeant Michele Silvestri upon its arrival from Afghanistan at Ciampino Airport near Rome on March 26, 2012. (Alessandro Bianchi/Reuters)

«For this reason, statements that minimize the contribution of NATO countries in Afghanistan are unacceptable, especially if they come from an allied Nation,» she added. 

Advertisement

«Italy and the United States are bound by a solid friendship, founded on a shared community of values and historical collaboration, which is even more necessary in the face of the many current challenges. But friendship requires respect, a fundamental condition for continuing to ensure the solidarity at the heart of the Atlantic Alliance.»

Trump has repeatedly questioned NATO allies’ reliability, including whether they would come to the United States’ aid if ever called upon.

NATO CHIEF PRAISES TRUMP AT DAVOS, SAYS HE FORCED EUROPE TO ‘STEP UP’ ON DEFENSE

Advertisement
Italy’s prime minister sits at a podium during a formal media briefing.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends her annual press conference in Rome on Jan. 9, 2026. (Antonio Masiello/Getty Images)

He unsettled U.S. allies across Europe, including U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, after downplaying their contributions in Afghanistan during an interview with FOX Business host Maria Bartiromo at the World Economic Forum.

«We’ve never needed them. We have never really asked anything of them,» Trump said of NATO. «You know, they’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan, or this and that. And they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines.»

Trump later appeared to soften his remarks in a Saturday post on Truth Social, praising the sacrifices of British troops in Afghanistan.

Advertisement

«The GREAT and very BRAVE soldiers of the United Kingdom will always be with the United States of America! In Afghanistan, 457 died, many were badly injured, and they were among the greatest of all warriors. It’s a bond too strong to ever be broken. The U.K. Military, with tremendous Heart and Soul, is second to none (except for the U.S.A.!). We love you all, and always will!» he wrote.

British soldiers in military gear move through a secured area following an attack.

British soldiers with the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission arrive at the site of an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, on March 6, 2020. (Omar Sobhani/Reuters)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., also highlighted the broader international toll of the war, citing the sacrifices of 31 allied nations that fought alongside U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

Advertisement

He thanked those countries for answering the call after Sept. 11, noting that 159 troops from Canada, 90 from France, 62 from Germany, 44 from Poland and 43 from Denmark were among those killed in the conflict.



italy,nato,donald trump,afghanistan

INTERNACIONAL

Un tiroteo en un estadio de fútbol en México dejó 11 muertos y al menos 12 heridos

Published

on


Hombres armados abrieron fuego el domingo en un campo de fútbol abarrotado de gente en México, y mataron a 11 personas e hirieron a otras 12, en un ataque que pareció poner de relieve la persistente violencia de los cárteles en el país, a pesar de los esfuerzos del gobierno.

Según las autoridades locales, los disparos alcanzaron a quienes estaban socializando después de un partido de fútbol, culminando un periodo especialmente violento en Salamanca, ciudad de 275.000 habitantes situada en el estado de Guanajuato, al centro del país.

Advertisement

Leé también: Donald Trump ahora mira de reojo a Cuba, Colombia y México y mantiene su idea de apoderarse de Groenlandia

Otro episodio dejó cinco muertos en Salamanca el sábado, y una semana antes las autoridades desactivaron un artefacto explosivo en las inmediaciones de una refinería de la empresa gubernamental Petróleos Mexicanos en la ciudad.

“Estamos pasando por un momento grave, una grave descomposición social”, dijo César Prieto, alcalde de Salamanca, en un discurso grabado en video el domingo por la noche. “Lamentablemente, hay grupos criminales tratando de someter a la autoridad, cosa que no van a lograr”.

Advertisement

Mientras defiende los resultados de su estrategia de seguridad, la presidenta de México, Claudia Sheinbaum, dijo este lunes que su gobierno estaba en contacto cercano con las autoridades de Guanajuato “para poder dar con los responsables”. (AP Foto/Marco Ugarte, Archivo)

Guanajuato registró el mayor número de asesinatos de México el año pasado, con 2035 homicidios dolosos. Esa violencia ha sido impulsada en gran medida por una guerra territorial entre un cártel local y el Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación, el grupo criminal más poderoso de México.

Salamanca, en concreto, se encuentra cerca de una frontera que separa los territorios controlados por cada grupo, y también alberga una importante refinería de petróleo. Ambos cárteles quieren controlar Salamanca para impulsar sus negocios de narcotráfico y robo de combustible. Las autoridades locales dijeron que estaban investigando el tiroteo del domingo, y también si alguno de los dos cárteles estaba implicado.

Advertisement

La presidenta de México, Claudia Sheinbaum, que ha defendido los resultados de su estrategia de seguridad, dijo a los periodistas el lunes que su gobierno estaba en contacto cercano con las autoridades de Guanajuato “para poder dar con los responsables”.

Leé también: EE.UU. alertó por posible “actividad militar” en el espacio aéreo de México y distintas zonas de Latinoamérica

En un comunicado, la gobernadora de Guanajuato, Libia Dennise García, calificó el ataque de “hecho inaceptable” y dijo que las fuerzas estatales y federales estaban reforzando la seguridad.

Advertisement

El tiroteo masivo es un acontecimiento especialmente inoportuno para el gobierno mexicano, que ha estado llevando a cabo una agresiva campaña contra los cárteles de la droga en un esfuerzo por demostrar a la Casa Blanca que se toma en serio la erradicación del flujo de drogas hacia Estados Unidos.

El presidente Donald Trump lleva meses amenazando con emprender ataques terrestres contra los cárteles en México, afirmando que estos grupos dirigen el país. Sheinbaum ha dicho en repetidas ocasiones que un ataque unilateral sería una violación de la soberanía mexicana.

Recientemente, las amenazas más específicas de Trump, así como la captura del presidente Nicolás Maduro de Venezuela a manos de Estados Unidos, han aumentado los temores entre los funcionarios mexicanos de que México podría estar en el punto de mira a continuación. El gobierno de Trump también ha estado presionando a las autoridades mexicanas para que permitan la presencia de fuerzas estadounidenses en México.

Advertisement

En respuesta, México se ha mostrado dispuesto a golpear con más dureza a los cárteles, con la esperanza de evitar cualquier acción estadounidense. En los últimos días, México anunció la captura de varios delincuentes muy buscados, entre ellos un exatleta olímpico canadiense que se había convertido en un prolífico traficante de cocaína. México también trasladó la semana pasada a 37 delincuentes acusados a Estados Unidos.

César Prieto, alcalde de Salamanca, advirtió: “Lamentablemente, hay grupos criminales tratando de someter a la autoridad, cosa que no van a lograr”. (Foto: EFE)

César Prieto, alcalde de Salamanca, advirtió: “Lamentablemente, hay grupos criminales tratando de someter a la autoridad, cosa que no van a lograr”. (Foto: EFE)

Los esfuerzos del gobierno han contribuido a reducir el número de homicidios en más de un 20 por ciento en México en comparación con el año anterior, según el gobierno de Sheinbaum. Las autoridades han centrado gran parte de su potencia de fuego en el Cártel de Sinaloa, una conocida organización delictiva asentada en el oeste del país, y han conseguido debilitar significativamente al grupo. Pero los expertos en seguridad han dicho que, al mismo tiempo, el cártel de Jalisco ha reforzado su control sobre otras partes del país.

Eso incluye Guanajuato. Los homicidios en el estado descendieron durante la segunda mitad del año pasado, pero la lucha entre el cártel de Jalisco y el cártel de Santa Rosa de Lima, un grupo local, ha hecho que continúen las matanzas.

Advertisement
Integrantes de la Guardia Nacional de México custodian la zona donde se cometió un ataque armado este domingo, en la ciudad de Salamanca (México). Al menos 11 personas murieron y 12 más resultaron lesionadas tras un ataque armado durante un partido de fútbol en la comunidad Loma de Flores, en el municipio mexicano de Salamanca, estado de Guanajuato, oeste de México. (Foto: EFE)

Integrantes de la Guardia Nacional de México custodian la zona donde se cometió un ataque armado este domingo, en la ciudad de Salamanca (México). Al menos 11 personas murieron y 12 más resultaron lesionadas tras un ataque armado durante un partido de fútbol en la comunidad Loma de Flores, en el municipio mexicano de Salamanca, estado de Guanajuato, oeste de México. (Foto: EFE)

El campo de fútbol donde se produjo el tiroteo el domingo es un punto de reunión popular en la comunidad, y los partidos atraen a grandes multitudes cada fin de semana, dijo Orlando Arredondo Gallardo, portavoz del gobierno de Salamanca. “Van niños, hay puestos de comida”, dijo. “Toda la gente asiste y más los días domingos, que es cuando es más familiar”.

Entre las 12 personas heridas en el tiroteo había una mujer y un niño.

—————————————

Advertisement

David Shortell, Emiliano Rodríguez Mega y Miguel García Lemus colaboraron con reportería.

Jack Nicas es el jefe de la corresponsalía del Times en Ciudad de México y lidera la cobertura sobre México, Centroamérica y el Caribe.

David Shortell, Emiliano Rodríguez Mega y Miguel García Lemus colaboraron con reportería.

Advertisement

México, carteles, Tiroteo

Continue Reading

INTERNACIONAL

Senate Democrats threaten shutdown by blocking DHS funding after Minnesota ICE shooting

Published

on


NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Anger over a deadly Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)-related shooting in Minnesota has pushed Senate Democrats to threaten a cutoff of Homeland Security funding and a possible shutdown.

Advertisement

In just a few short days, Democrats have rapidly coalesced behind their strategy to block funding for the agency as the deadline to fund the government hurtles closer.

Democrats in the upper chamber were already leery of supporting the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spending bill, which funds ICE, but had come to a fragile truce with Senate Republicans in concocting several built-in restrictions on the agency and usage of ICE over months of negotiations.

SENATE DEMS REVOLT AGAINST DHS FUNDING BILL AMID MINNEAPOLIS CHAOS, HIKING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN RISK

Advertisement

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has coalesced with Democrats behind a plan to strip the DHS funding bill from a broader spending package, but Republicans aren’t biting.  (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

But the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti during an immigration enforcement operation over the weekend in Minneapolis destroyed that tepid support. That incident rapidly mobilized Senate Democrats to decry and reject the DHS bill.

Schumer said in a statement that Senate Democrats would not allow the current version of the DHS bill to advance, and argued that Senate Republicans «have seen the same horrific footage that all Americans have watched of the blatant abuses of Americans by ICE in Minnesota.»

Advertisement

«The appalling murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti on the streets of Minneapolis must lead Republicans to join Democrats in overhauling ICE and [Customs and Border Protection] to protect the public,» Schumer said. «People should be safe from abuse by their own government.»

KEY SENATOR WON’T FUND DHS AS ICE, FEDERAL AGENTS ENTER HIS STATE

Minnesota protester and federal law enforcement agent confront each other

A protester, left, and a federal law enforcement officer argue outside a house on Jan. 18, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn.  (Yuki Iwamura/AP)

«Senate Republicans must work with Democrats to advance the other five funding bills while we work to rewrite the DHS bill,» he continued. «This is the best course of action, and the American people are on our side.»

Advertisement

Senate Democrats held a private, caucus-wide call on the matter on Sunday. A source familiar with the call told Fox News Digital that Schumer’s plan to reject any DHS bill without several reforms, but that the broader, five-bill funding package could move ahead. Lawmakers could vote on the package as early as Thursday.

«Basically, DHS is the problem and should be split from the package,» they said.

But Senate Republicans aren’t willing to cave to Democrats’ demands, especially given how high a priority funding the agency is for the administration and how fast the Friday deadline to fund the government is approaching.

Advertisement

SENATE DEMOCRATS REBEL AGAINST THEIR OWN LEADERSHIP OVER DHS FUNDING PACKAGE, INCREASING SHUTDOWN ODDS

Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune speak at a press conference on the Republican budget bill at the U.S. Capitol on April 10, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)

Democrats’ position creates several procedural headaches beyond their desire to, for now, shut off funding to DHS. Any modification to the package would require approval from the House, which is not in town until early next month.

And House Republican leadership has no desire to return to Washington, D.C., in the interim, leaving the onus on Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and his leadership team to carve out a solution to the growing funding problem.

Advertisement

While some Senate Republicans are demanding a thorough investigation of the shooting of Pretti, none have gone so far as to demand that DHS funding be withheld.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

GOP leaders aren’t willing to cut the bill out of the package just to give Democrats what they want, especially after the current Homeland Security bill was negotiated on a bipartisan basis.

Advertisement

A Senate Republican aide told Fox News Digital that Republicans were «determined to not have another government shutdown.»

«We will move forward as planned and hope Democrats can find a path forward to join us,» they said.

Advertisement

politics,senate,homeland security,democrats senate,chuck schumer,immigration

Advertisement
Continue Reading

INTERNACIONAL

Zelenskyy says US security guarantees document is ‘100% ready’ for signing

Published

on


NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a long-anticipated document on U.S. security guarantees is «100% ready» for signing, with Kyiv now waiting for its American partners to confirm the date and place before the agreement moves to ratification in both the U.S. Congress and the Ukrainian parliament.

Advertisement

«For us, security guarantees are first and foremost guarantees of security from the United States. The document is 100% ready,» Zelenskyy said Sunday at a joint press conference in Vilnius, Lithuania, with the presidents of Lithuania and Poland, according to a translation of his remarks from Reuters.

Zelenskyy reiterated at the press conference that Ukraine views membership in the European Union as another core security guarantee and is aiming to join the bloc by 2027, the Ukrainian president’s office said in a statement on its website.

His remarks come after Ukraine, Russia and the United States held trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi for two days over the weekend.

Advertisement

PUTIN CALLS TRUMP’S PEACE PLAN A ‘STARTING POINT’ AS HE WARNS UKRAINE TO PULL BACK OR FACE ‘FORCE’

Polish President Karol Nawrocki, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda attend a press conference following a Lublin Triangle meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Jan. 25, 2026. (Yauhen Yerchak/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Zelenskyy said on X that the discussions, which involved political and military representatives from all three sides, were «constructive» and focused on potential parameters for ending his country’s war with Russia.

Advertisement

RUSSIA LAUNCHES LARGEST ATTACK ON UKRAINE THIS MONTH FOLLOWING TRUMP’S MEETING WITH PUTIN, ZELENSKYY

The talks in the United Arab Emirates followed a meeting in Moscow on Thursday between Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and head of the Federal Acquisition Service Josh Gruenbaum.

Russia’s president stands alongside U.S. representatives during a formal meeting inside a government setting.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin meets with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner and Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Josh Gruenbaum at the Kremlin in Moscow on Jan. 22, 2026. (Alexander Kazakov/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said the «extremely frank» discussions lasted roughly four hours and included U.S. officials updating Moscow on their recent conversations with Ukrainian and European leaders, according to a summary of the meeting from the Kremlin.

Advertisement

Territorial issues remain a key obstacle in the negotiations, with Moscow pressing Kyiv to relinquish parts of eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region that Russian forces do not fully control.

ZELENSKYY SAYS UKRAINE, AHEAD OF TRUMP MEETING, IS ‘WILLING TO DO WHATEVER IT TAKES’ TO END WAR WITH RUSSIA

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Advertisement

U.S. officials told Axios that negotiations examined the full range of unresolved issues, from Russia’s territorial demands in the Donbas to control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and potential steps to prevent a return to fighting.

Another U.S. official told the outlet a second round of talks is scheduled to take place on Feb. 1.

Advertisement



volodymyr zelenskyy,ukraine,russia,the european union

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tendencias