Ousted Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad used a private jet to move cash, valuables and documents out of the country, sources say. We bring you a report on that operation. But first, three exclusives: Russia plans to use a seized US-owned company to feed its army, SpaceX is the frontrunner to build Donald Trump's Golden Dome missile shield, and Japan's finance minister says he is "deeply concerned" over the impact of tariffs. The Daily Briefing is taking a short break tomorrow. We will be back in your inbox on Monday. |
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Russian conscripts called up for military service line up during a ceremony in the Rostov region. REUTERS/Sergey Pivovarov |
- Plans are afoot for an American-owned company seized by the Kremlin and placed under state control to be used to supply food to the Russian army, a document seen by Reuters showed, potentially threatening Moscow's warming relations with the US.
- Top Ukrainian officials flew today for a previously unannounced visit to Paris, where Europeans were assembling to plead Kyiv's case to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff. Separately, Ukraine and the US have made "substantial progress" in their talks on a minerals deal, Kyiv said.
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- Israeli troops will remain in the buffer zones they have created in Gaza even after any settlement to end the war, Defense Minister Israel Katz said, as efforts to revive a ceasefire agreement faltered.
- "Uninhabitable" according to the US, the Palestinian enclave is strewn with undetonated explosives. Clean-up efforts have stalled. In this visual piece, our graphics teams breaks down the issue.
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- The European Central Bank is all but certain to cut interest rates for the seventh time in a year, looking to prop up an already struggling economy that will take a large hit from US tariffs.
- Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says US policymakers will wait for more data on the economy's direction before changing interest rates. On today's Reuters World News podcast, Fed Correspondent Howard Schneider breaks down Powell's first remarks since Trump paused most tariffs.
- We have one more podcast suggestion for you. While stocks and bonds have steadied following dramatic falls triggered by the US president's trade war, the policy may yet do lasting damage. On this episode of Viewsroom, our Breakingviews columnists examine the possible long-term effects on US Treasuries and the dollar.
- The tens of thousands of US troops stationed in South Korea and Japan appear set to be part of Trump's tariff negotiations, despite efforts by both countries to separate security talks from trade.
- Trump touted "big progress" in tariff talks with Japan, in one of the first rounds of negotiations since his duties on imports roiled markets. Japan is "deeply concerned" over the economic fallout from Trump's trade tariffs, Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said in an interview with Reuters in Tokyo hours after the talks began.
- Taiwan's TSMC gave a bullish outlook for the year on robust demand for AI applications, adding that while there was uncertainty over US tariffs, the world's largest contract chip manufacturer had yet to see any change in customer behavior.
- For more, watch our daily rundown on financial markets here.
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- Finance officials head to Washington for the IMF/World Bank Spring meetings, one of the biggest gatherings of such policy makers in the year, held from Monday to Saturday.
- China sets its benchmark lending rates on Monday at a time when investors are bracing for more monetary easing from Beijing.
- On Wednesday, China will convene an informal UN Security Council meeting to accuse the US of bullying and "casting a shadow over the global efforts for peace and development."
- Trump said he would be announcing the tariff rate on imported semiconductors over the next week, adding that there would be flexibility on some companies in the sector.
- And a slew of quarterly earnings in the coming week led by Tesla and Alphabet could shed greater light on how US companies are wrestling with a shifting trade landscape. Here is what else investors will be keeping an eye out for.
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Operation Assad: the air mission to smuggle the Syrian despot's valuables |
A satellite image shows the C5-SKY jet taxiing to the runway before its flight out of Syria. Handout via REUTERS |
As his enemies closed in on Damascus, Bashar al-Assad, who ruled over Syria with an iron fist for 24 years, used a private jet to spirit away cash, valuables and confidential documents mapping the corporate web behind his wealth.
Yasar Ibrahim, his top economic adviser, arranged the leasing of the plane to transport Assad's treasured assets, relatives, aides and presidential palace personnel to the UAE aboard four flights, according to an account of the operation pieced together by Reuters. |
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Scientists find strongest evidence yet of life on an alien planet. Handout via REUTERS |
In a potential landmark discovery, scientists using the James Webb Space Telescope have obtained what they call the strongest signs yet of possible life beyond our solar system, detecting in an alien planet's atmosphere the chemical fingerprints of gases that on Earth are produced only by biological processes. |
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