De’Andre Hunter, Cavs hold off Trail Blazers in OT

March 3, 2025 | 7:15 pm

DE’ANDRE HUNTER made a go-ahead 3-pointer with 30.8 seconds remaining in overtime (OT), lifting the Cleveland Cavaliers to a stunning 133-129 victory over the visiting Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday.

Hunter finished with 32 points and came up in the clutch after Anfernee Simons put Portland ahead 129-128 with a triple of his own with 44 seconds left.

Shaedon Sharpe missed a floater and Deni Avdija had a 3-point attempt clang off the back rim following Hunter’s late make. Hunter then sealed the win with two free throws with four seconds left.

Ty Jerome provided 25 points off the bench for the Cavaliers, who also got 20 from Evan Mobley and 14 from Max Strus. Jarrett Allen (12 points, 10 rebounds) recorded a double-double as Cleveland won its 10^th straight game.

Avdija matched his season high of 30 points, tied his career high of 10 assists and also had 12 boards for his first career triple-double but couldn’t carry the Blazers to victory. Simons supplied 27 points, Toumani Camara collected 19 and Sharpe finished with 18 as Portland’s four-game winning streak came to an end.

Cleveland scored the first five points of overtime to build a 124-119 lead before the Trail Blazers came back to tie the game at 126.

Simons forced the extra session by making two free throws with 1.1 seconds left in regulation to draw Portland even at 119. Darius Garland had failed to give the Cavaliers a three-point advantage just seconds earlier by splitting a pair of foul shots.

It was tied at 115 when Strus brought the home crowd to its feet with a 3-pointer with 15.6 seconds to go. Simons answered with two free throws to make it a one-point game at 118-117 before later taking advantage of the Garland miss at the charity stripe.

The Cavaliers held out star Donovan Mitchell for rest.

Cleveland put together a stunning comeback for the second straight game after overcoming a 22-point deficit to down the Boston Celtics on Friday.

On Sunday, the Cavaliers found themselves in an 18-point hole when Simons sank a 3-pointer with 1:53 left in the third quarter to give Portland an 89-71 cushion.

The hosts followed with a 14-0 run that bridged the final two quarters, with Jerome draining a pair of free throws to make it 89-85 with 10:25 remaining in the game. Cleveland didn’t pull ahead until there was 4:55 to go, doing so when Hunter made good from deep for a 104-103 edge.

Portland led 54-42 at the break but had to settle for an 89-79 advantage after three quarters.

THUNDER’S JALEN WILLIAMS DROPS 41 POINTS ON SPURS
Jalen Williams poured in a career-high 41 points to go with seven assists and six rebounds as the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder dominated the second half in beating the San Antonio Spurs 146-132 on Sunday.

The Thunder trailed by as many as nine points late in the second quarter and by five at halftime before outscoring San Antonio 36-23 in the third period.

Oklahoma City padded its cushion to 22 points while cruising to its third straight win and fifth in its past six games.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 31 points and eight assists for Oklahoma City. Cason Wallace had 19 points, Aaron Wiggins 17 and Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein 10 each. Hartenstein also took a game-high 11 rebounds.

Stephon Castle led the Spurs with 32 points on 12-of-21 shooting off the bench. De’Aaron Fox added 20 points followed by Jeremy Sochan (17), Devin Vassell (15) and Harrison Barnes (14).

San Antonio, which was playing the second contest of a road-home back to back, has lost five of its past six games.

The Thunder led by as many as eight points in the opening quarter before San Antonio rallied to within a point on Castle’s 3-pointer with 12.9 seconds remaining. Williams finished the period with a dunk to put Oklahoma City ahead 41-38. — Reuters

Japan’s consumers hunt for bargains as food inflation bites

March 3, 2025 | 6:33 pm

Japan-food stall — A VENDOR prepares food for sale inside a stall at Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 12, 2024. — REUTERS

INFLATION in Japan is running at 4%, but Taemi Komiyama finds the cost of feeding her family is escalating much faster than that.

The 35-year-old housewife is paying ¥50,000 ($336) a month for food, up 25% from her budget last year. The prices of staples such as rice, eggs and cabbage have all surged in the past 12 months. She and her husband have stopped eating out to save money and she is considering rejoining the workforce to deal with higher costs. In the meantime, she’s cutting back on fresh produce.

“Fresh vegetables are expensive, so I try to buy frozen ones,” said Ms. Komiyama, as she shopped at the discount supermarket OK in the Asakusa neighborhood of Tokyo.

The higher cost of food is forcing Japanese to scrimp and bargain hunt as their purchasing power drops. Last year, Japanese companies increased pay, but not been enough to offset the rise in prices. Real wages in 2024 decreased by 0.3%, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. And there’s little relief in sight. Prices for about 20,000 items in the food sector are predicted to rise this year, far exceeding the number of price increases last year, according to the Teikoku Databank.

Companies are also struggling. Skylark Holdings Co., which operates the family restaurant chain “Gusto,” expects that inflation will push down operating profits by ¥11.2 billion in the current fiscal year. The company estimates that the cost of ingredients will triple to ¥5.1 billion from ¥1.7 billion. Rice in particular is expected to account for a large proportion of this, at ¥2.2 billion.

The outcry among households and companies poses a challenge for Japanese policy makers who had wanted inflation badly for years to revive growth. Voters punished Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in last year’s national election over his limited price relief measures, prompting the premier to extend energy subsidies. The Bank of Japan (BoJ) has been far more cautious about raising interest rates than its global peers that aggressively hiked borrowing costs to cool inflation.

Food hits a sore spot for policymakers as the nation increasingly relies on imports, whose prices are dictated by global events like the war in Ukraine, while domestic supplies are affected by factors beyond Tokyo’s control, like climate change. And the cheap yen has made imports far more expensive.

Japan’s food self-sufficiency, measured in calories, has steadily dropped to below 40% in fiscal year 2023, down from 50% about three decades ago, meaning that the nation relies on imports for the majority of its needs.

The cost of rice has risen so much that the government will sell 210,000 tons of the grain from its emergency supplies to address record prices. A standard 5-kilogram bag of rice cost ¥3,688 as of Jan. 27^th, 82% more than a year ago. BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda said in February he will keep food inflation in mind when conducting monetary policy, as it may not be temporary and could affect consumers’ inflation expectations.

Still, the Bank of Japan has been far more cautious about raising interest rates than its global peers that aggressively hiked borrowing costs to cool inflation. The central bank is focusing on a core price growth figure that doesn’t include fresh food prices and is currently much lower than overall inflation. That’s created a disconnect between policy makers and the person on the street.

Higher food prices can reduce overall consumption when people choose to save elsewhere by cutting back on large expenses such as replacing cars and home appliances, or going on trips. This in turn becomes a drag on the economy. Pan Pacific International Holdings, which operates discount store Don Quijote, is trying to reduce prices in real terms even as the cost of purchasing goods and labor costs increase.

“The complexity of the situation is completely different from that of the time of deflation,” said Pan Pacific’s President Naoki Yoshida at an earnings press conference in February.

Keiko Yano, a 77-year-old pensioner who lives by herself is feeling the pinch. She works part-time to earn extra money and has only seen hourly wages go up an additional ¥10 to ¥20. She’s paying more for vegetables, eggs and electricity. She used to allow herself the luxury of a sushi meal once a month, but has now pared back to every other month.

“I’m not living in luxury to begin with,” said Ms. Yano. “I can’t save any more.” — Bloomberg

Britain launches probe into TikTok, Reddit, and Imgur over children’s personal data practices

March 3, 2025 | 6:33 pm

BRITAIN’s privacy watchdog, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), on Monday launched an investigation into how TikTok, Reddit and online image sharing website Imgur safeguard children’s privacy.

Social media companies use complex algorithms to prioritize content and keep users engaged. However, the fact that they amplify similar content can lead to children being influenced by increasing amounts of harmful material.

The watchdog said it is probing how Chinese company ByteDance’s short-form video-sharing platform TikTok uses 13–17-year-olds’ personal information to suggest content in their feed.

Social media and discussion platform Reddit, and Imgur are being investigated over how they assess the age of child users, it said.

“If we find there is sufficient evidence that any of these companies have broken the law, we will put this to them and obtain their representations before reaching a final conclusion,” the Information Commissioner’s Office said in a statement.

In 2023, the ICO fined TikTok 12.7 million pounds ($16 million) for breaching data protection law by using the personal data of children aged under 13 without parental consent.

Reddit has been working closely with the ICO and intends to comply with all relevant regulations in the countries in which operates, a spokesperson from the company told Reuters in an e-mail.

“Most of our users are adults, but we have plans to roll out changes this year that address updates to UK regulations around age assurance,” the Reddit spokesperson said.

ByteDance, TikTok, and Imgur did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Britain has passed legislation that set tougher rules for social media platforms, including a mandate for them to prevent children from accessing harmful and age-inappropriate content by enforcing age limits and age-checking measures.

Social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok are required to “tame” their algorithms to filter out or downgrade harmful material to help protect children under proposed British measures published last year. — Reuters

US official wants to remove government spending from GDP

March 3, 2025 | 6:32 pm

WASHINGTON — US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Sunday he would strip out government spending from the gross domestic product (GDP) report, but gave no indication how soon this change might happen, while dismissing fears of a possible recession.

“You know that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Mr. Lutnick said during an interview on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures program.

“They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.”

Mr. Lutnick was asked whether he was concerned that the Trump administration’s policies, including tariffs on imports and efforts to shrink the government through deep spending cuts and mass layoffs would push the economy into recession.

“No, no, no,” said Mr. Lutnick.

Business and consumer sentiment have deteriorated in recent months, erasing gains notched following President Donald Trump’s election victory in November. Data on consumer spending and the goods trade deficit have raised the risk of the economy contracting in the first quarter, fanning fears of a recession.

Federal government spending accounts for about 6.5% of GDP. It contributed 0.25 percentage point to the economy’s 2.3% annualized growth rate in the fourth quarter, mostly from defense spending.

“If the government buys a tank, that’s GDP, but paying 1,000 people to think about buying a tank is not GDP,” said Mr. Lutnick, calling that “wasted money” as he explained the rationale for removing government spending from GDP.

Tens of thousands of federal workers have been fired by tech billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE, — an entity created by Mr. Trump to shrink and cut what the White House has called government waste.

ECONOMISTS ARE WARY
Economists cautioned against changes to the current national accounts structure as it would make GDP very volatile and difficult to get a clear view of the economy’s health, creating more uncertainty.

“I don’t think the stock market, the financial markets would like that,” said Sung Won Sohn, Finance and Economics professor at Loyola Marymount University.

It would also be impossible to compare the US economy’s performance against its global peers.

Looking at the private sector alone would not give the full picture on growth, Mr. Sohn said.

“Economic growth over time would become a lot more volatile. The reason is, when the economy slows or, when we are in a recession, for example, the government spends a lot of money,” he said.

Removing government spending from GDP would distort the figure as government productivity is assumed to be zero whatever the production is in the computation of GDP.

“It’s imperative that we keep the current system because, we need to make comparisons, and it’s important to know how well we are doing compared to a year ago, five years ago, 10 years ago, and we can learn from our mistakes,” Mr. Sohn said. — Reuters

Cinnamon and Pili-based incense shows mosquito-repelling properties

March 3, 2025 | 5:03 pm

Initial tests indicate that incense derived from cinnamon bark, almaciga, and pili resin contains chemical components that can potentially repel mosquitoes, Ms. Florena B. Samiano, leader of the Institute’s Flavors and Fragrances from the Forest Technology Program (F3TP), said in an interview.

Interview by Edg Adrian Eva
Video Editing by Arjale Queral

Lack of awareness on government support hinders young innovators

March 3, 2025 | 4:38 pm

Lack of awareness is one of the hurdles for students and young innovators in the Philippines according to Pili AdheSeal, Inc. Chief Executive Officer, and Filipino inventor Mark Kennedy E. Bantugon.

“The students I’ve talked to who wanted to pursue this path always say that the government lacks support for innovators in the country,” Mr. Bantugon told BusinessWorld in Filipino.

Interview by Almira Martinez
Video editing by Jayson Marinas

Pope Francis, off ventilation and stable, rested well overnight, Vatican says

March 3, 2025 | 3:31 pm

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis rested well overnight and is in a stable condition as he fights double pneumonia in hospital for the 18th day, the Vatican said on Monday.

The 88-year-old pontiff no longer requires the use of mechanical ventilation to breathe and has been without a fever, the Vatican said in its latest medical update on Sunday evening.

“The pope rested well all night,” said a one-line note from the Vatican on Monday morning that did not provide more details. A full medical update on the pope’s condition is expected on Monday evening.

Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on February 14 with severe respiratory problems that swiftly degenerated into double pneumonia – a serious infection in both lungs that can inflame and scar them, making it difficult to breathe.

The Vatican’s updates on the pope’s condition have taken a more upbeat tone since Friday, when the pope suffered a constriction of his respiratory airways, akin to an asthma attack, that required him to be aspirated.

On Sunday evening, the Vatican said the pope’s condition was stable and he no longer required the use of what was described as “non-invasive, mechanical ventilation”.

But the statement said doctors were keeping the pope’s prognosis as “guarded” due to the complexity of his condition, meaning he is not out of danger.

Francis has experienced several bouts of ill health over the last two years and is prone to lung infections because he had pleurisy as a young adult and had part of one lung removed.

He has not been seen in public since entering hospital, his longest absence from view since his papacy started in March 2013, and his doctors have not said how long his treatment might last. — Reuters

Philippines-US defense arrangements to stay intact, ambassador to Washington says

March 3, 2025 | 3:04 pm

US_PHL-Balikatan — SOLDIERS salute the flags of the Philippines and United States at the closing of the Balikatan exercises, May 10, 2024. — PHILIPPINE STAR/WALTER BOLLOZOS

MANILA – Existing defense agreements between security allies the Philippines and the United States will remain intact under U.S. President Donald Trump, Manila’s ambassador to the United States said on Monday.

For his part, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is ready to travel when Trump has time for a meeting and that could be in the northern spring, Jose Manuel Romualdez told reporters on the sidelines of a forum with foreign media in Manila.

Asked about U.S. security support for the Philippines, including military financing, patrols in the South China Sea and Philippine defense facilities currently used by U.S. forces under their alliance, Mr. Romualdez said: “All of that will remain”.

The United States and former colony the Philippines are staunch defense allies, with U.S. troops rotating in and out of the Southeast Asian country regularly and dozens of joint exercises held each year.

The United States has also deployed to the Philippines a Typhon multipurpose missile system for training purposes, angering China, which has repeatedly said the move poses a threat to regional stability.

The Philippines was seeking to import liquefied natural gas from the United States as part of a “give and take” on trade, Mr. Romualdez said.

His remarks come as some countries in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam and Thailand, scramble to reduce trade surpluses with the United States following Trump’s order to his government to complete a review of all his country’s trade relationships by April 1.

“Trump’s idea of what the United States wants to do is helping other countries become a real partner,” said Mr. Romualdez, who is a cousin of the Philippine president and was posted in Washington under the previous Manila administration. – Reuters

Fuel your body right for stronger, healthier bones

March 3, 2025 | 1:35 pm

Healthy habits and smarter eating choices play a vital role in overall well-being. While diet and fitness often take center stage, one critical aspect of health is often overlooked: Bone Health.

Experts from the Bone Health and Osteoporosis Foundation predict that by 2025, osteoporosis will account for three million fractures worldwide — underscoring the importance of proactive care in maintaining strong bones.

Orthopedic Oncologist Dr. Abigail Tud highlights the vital connection between diet and bone health, emphasizing the importance of calcium intake in building and maintaining strong bones. “The simplest way to address this is by increasing calcium intake,” she explained. “For younger girls, it can be as easy as drinking fortified milk daily. Good sources of calcium are accessible even in low-resource settings, examples of which include taho, tokwa, soy milk or soya beans, cheese or dairy products, fish, sardines, nuts, and green leafy vegetables such as bok choy.”

The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) recommends a minimum daily calcium intake of 750 mg for adult Filipinos, which can typically be achieved through a varied and balanced diet. Incorporating calcium-rich foods into daily meals is a proactive and straightforward way to strengthen bones and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.

Here are some calcium-rich foods that can seamlessly fit into daily diets:
Dairy Products: Milk, cheese, and yogurt are top sources of calcium, with an 8-ounce glass of milk providing 300 mg.
Leafy Greens: Vegetables such as kale, collard greens, and bok choy are excellent non-dairy options, offering up to 177 mg of calcium per cooked cup.
Tofu and Soy Foods: Calcium-set tofu delivers 434 mg per half-cup, with soy milk and soybeans also serving as great dairy alternatives.
Canned Fish: Sardines and canned salmon, which contain edible bones, provide up to 325 mg of calcium in a three-ounce serving.
Nuts and Seeds: Almonds, sesame seeds, and tahini (sesame butter) are nutrient-dense options. Two tablespoons of ground sesame seeds offer 128 mg of calcium.
Fortified Products: Many plant-based milks and cereals are fortified with calcium, often matching or exceeding the calcium content of dairy products.

While increasing calcium intake is crucial, it’s important to be aware of certain foods and habits that can hinder calcium absorption.

According to the Bone Health and Osteoporosis Foundation, some foods — such as beans and 100% wheat bran — contain phytates, or phytic acids, that can reduce calcium absorption in the gut. Soaking beans before cooking and consuming wheat bran separately from calcium-rich foods or supplements can help reduce this effect. Protein is another important component. While many older adults don’t consume enough protein, excessive intake, especially from high-protein diets, can lead to hypercalciuria, or increased urinary excretion of calcium.

This is why having a balanced diet that includes adequate hydration and fortified dairy products, which provide both protein and calcium, is essential for optimum nutrition. High sodium consumption especially from ultra-processed and fast food, may also contribute to increased calcium excretion.

This is why limiting these food items as well as overall sodium intake to below 2,300 mg daily is a good practice for bone health and overall well-being (as an example, some instant noodles contain as much as 1,000 mg of sodium per serving!) Even caffeinated and/or alcoholic beverages such as coffee, tea, colas and beers can reduce calcium absorption when consumed in excess, which is why health experts recommend moderating intake.

The NHS UK further emphasizes the importance of Vitamin D in supporting bone health and reducing the risk of osteoporosis. Vitamin D can be found in oily fish like salmon, sardines, and mackerel; egg yolks; and fortified foods like nut-based spreads and breakfast cereals.

Dr. Tud stresses the importance of appropriate sun exposure for natural Vitamin D synthesis. “Daily exposure ranging from 5 to 30 minutes between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. are good for your bones, just make sure to apply sunscreen for protection,” she explained.

She also advocates for an active lifestyle to support stronger bones. “Our bones get weak when we don’t use them. Resistance exercises, 15-30 minutes a day, are an excellent lifestyle choice.” Data from the 2021 Expanded National Nutrition Survey (ENNIS) reveals that approximately 97% of Filipinos adults aged 19 to 59 years old and 96% of those above 60 are calcium-deficient. Consequently, the Osteoporosis Society of the Philippines Foundation, Inc. (OSPFI) estimates that by 2050, around 10.2 million Filipinos could face this condition.

Prioritizing bone health through a calcium-rich diet, sufficient Vitamin D, and regular resistance exercises is a resolution worth keeping this year. Small but consistent changes, along with regular checkups to assess bone health, can significantly reduce the risk of osteoporosis. With millions of fractures projected this year due to weak bones, now is the time to commit to stronger habits for a healthier future.

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DOST eyes potential use of cinnamon, pili-based mosquito repellent

March 3, 2025 | 1:31 pm

A mosquito repellent made from forest products is being developed by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) to support the country’s efforts against dengue.

Residual byproducts from essential oil production, such as cinnamon bark, almaciga, and pili resin are being repurposed into incense cones and sticks as insect repellents by experts from the DOST-Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI).

Resource Person: Ms. Florena B. Samiano, leader of the Institute’s Flavors and Fragrances from the Forest Technology Program (F3TP).

Interview by Edg Adrian Eva

Video Editing by Arjale Queral

USAID official warns of unnecessary deaths from Trump’s foreign aid block, then says he’s been put on leave

March 3, 2025 | 11:32 am

A senior official with the U.S. Agency for International Development in an email on Sunday warned that the Trump administration’s dismantling of the agency will result in unnecessary deaths — only to email his staff less than 30 minutes later to say that he had been placed on leave.

Nicholas Enrich, USAID’s acting assistant administrator for global health, in the seven-page memo shared with staff, and which was seen by Reuters, said “political leadership” had made it impossible to deliver lifesaving humanitarian assistance around the world, contradicting assurances from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that such aid would continue despite President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s cost-cutting campaign.

Twenty minutes later, Mr. Enrich sent another email, which was also seen by Reuters, that he had “just received notification that I have been placed on administrative leave, effective immediately.”

A source familiar with the matter said the decision to put Enrich on administrative leave was made Wednesday, before he sent his email on the consequences of USAID’s dismantling.

Spokespeople for the State Department and DOGE did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Enrich did not respond to a query from Reuters.

The blocked USAID programs include efforts to help contain a deadly Ebola outbreak in Uganda that had killed two and infected 10, Enrich said in the memo seen by Reuters.

“This will no doubt result in preventable death, destabilization, and threats to national security on a massive scale,” Mr. Enrich wrote in the memo, which was dated Feb. 28 and shared widely with staff in the global health division on Sunday afternoon.

The Trump administration announced last week that it was canceling nearly 10,000 foreign aid grants and contracts worth almost $60 billion, ending about 90% of USAID’s global work.

The shuttering of USAID is part of an unprecedented downsizing of the federal government by Mr. Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency. The agency’s sudden demise has thrown global humanitarian relief efforts into chaos.

In a separate memo seen by Reuters, Enrich estimated that a year-long pause in lifesaving aid from USAID would cause between 71,000 and 166,000 additional malaria deaths, a nearly 40% increase; an increase of between 28% and 32% in tuberculosis cases worldwide; and up to 28,000 cases of emerging infectious diseases such as Ebola.

After Mr. Trump ordered all foreign aid frozen in January pending a review, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a temporary waiver for lifesaving assistance, such as essential medicines, food and shelter.

But Enrich said DOGE workers and other political appointees have made it impossible to approve payments for those critical programs. According to Mr. Enrich’s memo, various officials at USAID and the State Department issued conflicting guidance on what programs would qualify for the waiver and how they would be funded.

Since February 14, Mr. Enrich said, “zero lifesaving health activities” have been approved.

Even when a program was approved under the waiver, DOGE had cut off access to the agency’s payment systems, Enrich wrote. For instance, USAID obtained permission to conduct Ebola response activities in Uganda a month ago, but partner organizations on the ground were not able to draw down funds. – Reuters

Ukraine’s Zelenskiy says he can salvage relationship with US

March 3, 2025 | 11:30 am

UKRAINE-CRISIS-ZELENSKIY-SINGAPORE — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, June 2, 2024. — REUTERS

LONDON – Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday he believed he could salvage his relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump after their explosive meeting in the Oval Office, but that talks needed to continue behind closed doors.

Mr. Zelenskiy reiterated that Ukraine would not concede any territory to Russia as part of a peace deal. He said he was still willing to sign a minerals deal with the U.S. and described a discussion on Sunday with European leaders to send a draft peace plan to the U.S. as a key development.

In an extraordinary meeting that was broadcast live on Friday, Mr. Trump accused Mr. Zelenskiy of being ungrateful for U.S. aid, of showing disrespect to his country and of risking World War Three, casting into doubt Washington’s ongoing support for Ukraine in its three-year-long war with Russia.

Mr. Zelenskiy spoke to reporters at a London airport after a summit with European leaders in London on Sunday. While he seemed in good spirits and thanked European countries for their support, the Ukrainian leader was careful to balance his dismay with the events of Friday’s Oval Office meeting with a clear desire to keep talking with Washington.

Mr. Zelenskiy said he did not think the U.S. would stop its assistance to Ukraine, because as “leaders of the civilized world” they would not want to help Russian President Vladimir Putin.

But he said he remained prepared for any outcome.

“As regards salvaging the relationship, I think our relationship will continue,” Mr. Zelenskiy told reporters via a translator after the London summit.

But he added: “I do not think it’s right when such discussions are totally open. … The format of what happened, I don’t think it brought something positive or additional to us as partners.”

A visibly shaken Mr. Zelenskiy arrived in London on Saturday where he was met with a warm embrace from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and by cheering supporters around Downing Street.

At the summit on Sunday Mr. Starmer said European leaders had agreed to draw up a Ukraine peace plan to take to the U.S., in the hope that Washington would offer the security guarantees Kyiv says are vital to deter Russia.

Mr. Zelenskiy said Ukraine relied on the U.S. as its top military backer and that stopping the supply of weapons would only help Putin. “The U.S. are … leaders of the civilized world, and they will not help Putin,” he said.

An influential Russian parliamentarian, Konstantin Kosachev, on Sunday derided the hopes for Europe’s stepping up to forge a peace plan. “And if Ukraine should count on something, it can only be on progress (if there is any to come) in Russian-American relations,” he wrote on Telegram.

READY TO SIGN MINERALS DEAL

The abrupt ending to Mr. Zelenskiy’s Washington trip meant that the two countries failed to sign a much-vaunted minerals deal that Kyiv hoped would spur Trump to back Ukraine’s war effort, but Mr. Zelenskiy said Ukraine was still willing to sign it.

“We agreed upon signing it; and we were ready to sign it. And honestly I believe the United States would be ready as well,” he said.

Mr. Trump had sought to cast the minerals deal as a way for Ukraine, which is home to a trove of lithium deposits and rare earth minerals, to repay the U.S. for its billions of dollars in aid.

While Mr. Zelenskiy sought to avoid any further antagonism of the U.S., saying he did not want to go over what had happened, he was more forceful on any future ceasefire deal, saying Ukraine would not hand sovereignty of occupied Ukrainian land to Russia.

“Everyone needs to understand that Ukraine will never recognize whatever is occupied by Russia as Russian territories,” he said.

“We hope that these security guarantees will make it 100% impossible to give Russia the opportunity to come with another aggression”.

Mr. Zelenskiy said there had been contact between Kyiv and Washington since Friday’s bust-up, although not at his level, and asked if he had considered resigning, he showed no sign of wavering.

“As regards resignation, if I’m to be changed … to change me it will not be easy because it is not enough to simply hold elections. You would need to prevent me from participating in the elections and it will be a bit more difficult.”

Some Republican leaders had suggested that Mr. Zelenskiy needed to resign after Friday’s meeting with Mr. Trump.

Mr. Zelenskiy repeated again, however, that if Ukraine was granted NATO membership, he would have fulfilled his mission. – Reuters