Politics
U.S. says it wants new Russia nuclear arms treaty but with China involved – National TenX News
Russian and U.S. negotiators discussed the expiration of the last remaining nuclear arms pact between the two countries and agreed on the need to quickly launch new arms control talks, the Kremlin said Friday.
At the same time, the U.S. emphasized the need for China to join a future arms pact and accused Beijing of covert nuclear tests.
The New START treaty expired Thursday, leaving no caps on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century and fueling fears of an unconstrained nuclear arms race.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had declared his readiness to stick to the treaty’s limits for another year if Washington followed suit. But U.S. President Donald Trump has argued that he wants China to be a part of a new treaty, and his administration ramped up the pressure by accusing Beijing of carrying out nuclear explosive tests. Beijing rejected the allegations and has rebuffed efforts to have it join a nonproliferation deal.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reiterated that China should be involved in a potential new nuclear treaty. “An arms control arrangement that does not account for China’s buildup, which Russia is supporting, will undoubtedly leave the United States and our allies less safe,” he said.
Russian and U.S. negotiators discussed future nuclear arms control in the United Arab Emirates, where Russian, Ukrainian and U.S. delegations held two days of talks on a peace settlement in Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday.
“There is an understanding, and they talked about it in Abu Dhabi, that both parties will take responsible positions and both parties realize the need to start talks on the issue as soon as possible,” he said.
Asked to comment on a report by Axios claiming Russian and U.S. negotiators discussed a possible informal deal to observe the pact’s limits for at least six months, Peskov responded that any such extension could only be formal.
“It’s hard to imagine any informal extension in this sphere,” he said.
The US wants China involved
Trump has indicated he would like to keep limits on nuclear weapons but wants to involve China in a potential new treaty.
In his first term, Trump tried and failed to push for a three-way nuclear pact involving China. Beijing has balked at any restrictions on its smaller but growing nuclear arsenal, while urging the U.S. to resume nuclear talks with Russia.
Rubio said the U.S. was “pursuing all avenues” to fulfill Trump’s “desire for a world with fewer of these awful weapons,” but insisted Washington would not stand still while Russia and China expand their nuclear forces.
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“Since 2020, China has increased its nuclear weapons stockpile from the low 200s to more than 600 and is on pace to have more than 1,000 warheads by 2030,” Rubio wrote on Substack.
Thomas DiNanno, a top U.S. diplomat in charge of arms control, said Friday the expiration of the last Russia-U.S. nuclear arms pact marks the “end of an era” of what he described as “U.S. unilateral restraint.” He said Trump wants a “better agreement” involving Beijing.
“As we sit here today, China’s entire nuclear arsenal has no limits, no transparency, no declarations and no controls,” DiNanno told the Conference on Disarmament, a U.N.-backed organization, in Geneva.
DiNanno also accused Beijing of covertly conducting nuclear tests. “Today, I can reveal that the U.S. government is aware that China has conducted nuclear explosive tests, including preparing for tests with designated yields in the hundreds of tons,” he said.
DiNanno said China’s army “sought to conceal testing by obfuscating the nuclear explosions because it recognizes these tests violate test ban commitments.”
The comment follows U.S. statements accusing Beijing of covertly conducting nuclear tests.
Ambassador Shen Jian of China rejected what he called “false narratives and unfounded accusations by the United States,” saying that “we abide by our commitment to suspend nuclear testing.”
“The U.S.’ continuous hyping up of China’s nuclear arsenal expansion is essentially aimed at shifting its own responsibility for nuclear disarmament and seeking excuses for promoting nuclear hegemony,” Shen said.
He said that “at this stage, China will not participate in nuclear disarmament negotiations” because its nuclear capabilities ”are not on the same scale as those of the United States or Russia.”
Shen said Beijing regrets the New START’s expiration and urged the U.S. to accept Moscow’s offer to stick to the treaty’s limits and resume nuclear talks with Russia.
In October, Trump spoke about U.S. intentions to resume nuclear tests for the first time since 1992, but U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the following month that such tests would not include nuclear explosions.
In the wake of Trump’s statement, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to the International Organizations in Vienna Howard Solomon declared that “the United States will begin testing activities on an equal basis with other nuclear-armed states.” He noted the U.S. has raised concerns that Russia and China have not adhered to the zero-yield nuclear test moratorium.
He was referring to so-called supercritical nuclear test explosions banned under the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, known as CTBT, where fissile material is compressed to start a self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction that creates an explosion.
The monitoring network registered all of North Korea’s six nuclear tests, but it’s unable to detect very low-yield supercritical nuclear tests conducted underground in metal chambers, experts say.
Robert Floyd, executive secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization that monitors compliance with the global ban, said in Friday’s statement that its monitoring system “didn’t detect any event consistent with the characteristics of a nuclear weapon test explosion” on June 22, 2020, when the U.S. claimed China secretly conducted a nuclear test.
New START, signed in 2010 by then-President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, was the last of a long series of agreements between Moscow and Washington to limit their nuclear arsenals, starting with SALT I in 1972.
New START restricted each side to no more than 1,550 nuclear warheads on no more than 700 missiles and bombers deployed and ready for use. It was originally set to expire in 2021 but was extended for five years.
The pact envisioned sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance, although they stopped in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and never resumed.
In February 2023, Putin suspended Moscow’s participation, saying Russia couldn’t allow U.S. inspections of its nuclear sites at a time when Washington and its NATO allies openly declared they wanted Moscow’s defeat in Ukraine. But the Kremlin also emphasized it wasn’t withdrawing from the pact altogether, pledging to respect its caps on nuclear weapons.
In September, Putin offered to keep the New START’s limits for another year to buy time for both sides to negotiate a successor agreement.
Even as New START expired, the U.S. and Russia agreed Thursday to reestablish high-level, military-to-military dialogue following a meeting between senior officials from both sides in Abu Dhabi, the U.S. military command in Europe said. The link was suspended in 2021 as relations grew increasingly strained before Russia sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
Keaten reported from Geneva. Ken Moritsugu in Beijing and Stephanie Liechtenstein in Vienna contributed.
Politics
Woman testifies son of Norway’s crown princess raped her while she slept – National TenX News
A second woman has testified at a court in Oslo, accusing the son of Norway’s crown princess of raping her while she slept.
Marius Borg Høiby, 29, is the eldest son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit from a previous relationship and the stepson of the heir to the throne, Crown Prince Haakon. Høiby has no royal title or official duties.
He is on trial for multiple alleged offences with 38 counts against him, including four charges of rape, sexual assault, abuse in a close relationship against one former partner and acts of violence against another, as well as transporting 3.5 kilograms of marijuana, breaking a restraining order and aggravated assault. Others include making death threats and traffic violations.
Høiby stood while prosecutor Sturla Henriksbø read out the 38 counts against him in the Oslo district court on Feb. 3, asking him if he pleaded guilty. He replied “no” to the most serious charges, including the four counts of rape.
Prosecutors have said that Høiby could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted in the trial, which is scheduled to last until March 19. Seven accusers are expected to testify.
Second woman testifies
On Tuesday, during the second week of the trial, the woman testified about an alleged rape that the prosecution said took place on Oct. 3, 2023, following an after-party in an apartment, Agence France-Presse reports.
After consensual sex, the woman said she woke up after Høiby had resumed sexual relations with her, which she said were not consensual.
“I remember waking up when he was already underway. I thought, ‘I don’t understand how someone can have sex with someone who’s sleeping,’” she told the court.
“Then, I mostly had the feeling I was dissociating, leaving my own body,” she said. “It was painful. My body wasn’t ready for it.”
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“That’s always been my worst nightmare,” she said, adding that she closed her eyes “so I wouldn’t have to take part in my own assault.”
The prosecution submitted video evidence that was filmed with Høiby’s phone to prove that the sex that took place happened when the woman was not in a state to say no.
Prosecutor Sturla Henriksbro said the five-second video, discovered on Høiby’s phone by police, showed the woman asleep at the time of the alleged assault. They also shared data from the woman’s fitness watch to show that she was asleep at the time.
The woman told the court that the footage captured by Høiby was taken without her knowledge.
Høiby told the court that the woman “was awake when I had sex with her,” before correcting himself and saying, “When we had sex together.”
“I don’t have sex with women who are asleep,” Høiby added.
“I don’t understand: if we had sex three or four times before, and I woke her up each time, why the hell would I have had sex with her without waking her the last time?”
A court sketch of Marius Borg Hoiby during the second day of the trial against him, which is taking place in room 250 of the Oslo District Court, Norway, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026.
Ane Hem/NTB Scanpix via AP, Pool
First woman’s testimony
Last week, the court heard testimony from another woman who claimed that Høiby raped her at an after-party in the basement of his parents’ estate outside Oslo in December 2018.
The woman told the court that she “100 per cent” believes that she had been drugged during the after-party, the BBC reports.
The woman said she felt “betrayal and shock” after police showed her videos of Høiby allegedly sexually assaulting her.
She said she had no memory of what happened and referred to her memory as a “black hole.”
When asked about the alleged rape in 2018, Høiby told the court that he did not remember taking videos and denied that he had raped the woman. He said they had consensual sex after other people at the after-party had gone to bed.
When asked by the prosecutor if the woman was awake when they had sex, Høiby said, “I don’t sleep with women who aren’t awake.”
Høiby has been under scrutiny since he was repeatedly arrested in 2024 amid allegations of rape and on preliminary charges of bodily harm and criminal damage.
The royal palace said it was up to the courts to handle the case and reach a decision.
Royal problems
The royals are generally popular in Norway, but the Høiby case has been a problem for the family’s image.
The trial opened at a particularly sensitive moment. Mette-Marit faces renewed scrutiny over her past contacts with Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019 in a New York jail cell as he faced sex trafficking charges, following the release of a new batch of documents from the Epstein files.
They contained several hundred mentions of the crown princess, who already said in 2019 that she regretted having had contact with Epstein, Norwegian media reported. The documents, which include email exchanges, showed that Mette-Marit borrowed an Epstein-owned property in Palm Beach, Fla., for several days in 2013. Norwegian broadcaster NRK reported that the stay was arranged through a mutual friend, which was later confirmed by the royal household.
Mette-Marit said in a statement that she “must take responsibility for not having investigated Epstein’s background more thoroughly, and for not realizing sooner what kind of person he was.” She added: “I showed poor judgment and regret having had any contact with Epstein at all. It is simply embarrassing.”
— With files from The Associated Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Politics
Canadians wait for flights out of Cuba, aid struggling to get in amid U.S. energy blockade TenX News
While Canadians in Cuba are waiting for flights home as an energy crisis worsens in the nation amid a U.S. oil blockade, those who send aid are struggling to do so.
Cuba warned international airlines on Feb. 9 that aviation fuel would no longer be available on the island, beginning Feb. 10, in the latest sign of fast-worsening conditions as the United States moves to cut off the communist-run nation’s oil supply.
Major Canadian airlines, including Air Canada, WestJet and Air Transat, have already suspended service to Cuba. All three airlines have confirmed they plan to bring travellers back home to Canada.
Calgary-based WestJet says its decision to wind down winter operations will affect WestJet, Sunwing Vacations, WestJet Vacations, and Vacances WestJet Quebec.
Air Canada has said its decision to cancel service to Cuba comes after “following advisories issued by governments regarding the unreliability of the aviation fuel supply at Cuban airports.”
Jennifer Raymer, director of Together for Cuba, hugging a woman on the communist island nation.
Supplied by Jennifer Raymer
Venezuela has historically been a major supplier of oil to Cuba but in early 2026, ceased those oil exports as a result of recent geopolitical turmoil after it was taken over by the United States.
The Trump administration is cutting Cuba off from using its traditional fuel sources in an effort to put pressure on the island nation off the coast of Florida, which has been under strict economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. government for decades.
Amid the efforts to get Canadians out, those who provide charitable aid say they are now struggling to send that in.
“The Cuban people are devastated,” said Jennifer Raymer, the director of Together for Cuba. “They rely on tourists coming down there, obviously, for employment and taxi services and hotels and food and, you know, Canadians are known to bring aid.”
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The Ontario-based aid agency sends 600 large duffle bags, weighing about 14,000 kg, full of medicine, surgical supplies and other medical aid to Cuba each year.
Jennifer Raymer, director of Together for Cuba, with a volunteer delivering duffel bags of aid to the Caribbean nation.
Supplied by Jennifer Raymer
“I knew that as soon as this all came down — that all the airlines would stop — we would be stuck here in Canada without being able to get the aid in. I haven’t slept since yesterday.”
Halting shipments will make life even more difficult in the impoverished island nation.
“The Cuban people are going to have an even harder struggle. A lot of our medical bags include prescription medication for heart and diabetes and different things, and as well as surgical bags. These bags are life-saving,” Raymer said.
A sick woman grateful to be receiving aid from Canadian humanitarian group “Together for Cuba.”
Supplied by Jennifer Raymer
As the airlines wind down their operations to Cuba, Raymer was hoping one of them would agree to take the medical supplies on one of the empty flights being sent to Cuba to evacuate the more than 7,000 stranded Canadian tourists.
So far, none have stepped up.
“It means that people can’t have surgeries or get the medications that they need. There are surgical packs in there that people are waiting for, and now they’re sitting in London, Ont.,” Raymer said.
“We’re struggling to find a way to get them out.”
A sick man receiving aid from Canadian humanitarian group “Together for Cuba.”
Supplied by Jennifer Raymer
NDP interim leader Don Davies said Tuesday that Canada must provide immediate support to Cuba in the face of “escalating aggression” from the Trump administration.
“Recent U.S. actions are provoking a severe humanitarian crisis and disrupting travel across the region, leaving Canadians stranded as airlines suspend flights,” Davies said in a statement.
“By threatening tariffs on any third country that transports fuel to the island, the Trump administration is expanding U.S. economic coercion in dangerous new ways.”
Davies argued that Prime Minister Mark Carney has remained “silent” in the face of Trump’s aggression towards Cuba.
“Canada must stand with the Cuban people and resist the Trump administration’s aggression clearly and directly. This is a defining test of principle and we must not fail it,” he said.
Together for Cuba volunteers at a medical clinic on the Caribbean nation.
Supplied by Jennifer Raymer
–with files from The Canadian Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Politics
Olympic medallist wins bronze, confesses on live tv to cheating on girlfriend – National TenX News
Norwegian biathlete Sturla Holm Laegreid admitted live on television to cheating on his now ex-girlfriend, shortly after winning a bronze medal at the Winter Olympics, in the hopes of regaining her affection.
The 28-year-old said an affair he had three months ago was his “biggest mistake.”
He said it had been the worst week of his life since telling his ex-girlfriend, who he dated for six months about his infidelity, and that he hoped admitting to his mistake on television would show her how sorry he is.
“There’s someone I wanted to share it with who might not be watching,” he told Norway’s state broadcaster, NRK.
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“Six months ago, I met the love of my life — the most beautiful and kindest person in the world. Three months ago, I made my biggest mistake and cheated on her,” he said.
“I had the gold medal in life, and I am sure there are many people who will see things differently, but I only have eyes for her,” he continued.
“Sport has come second these last few days. Yes, I wish I could share this with her,” Laegreid added.
Sturla Holm Laegreid, of Norway, gets the bronze medal for the men’s 20-kilometer individual biathlon race at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Anterselva, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026.
AP Photo/Andrew Medichini
In a later interview, he told Norwegian newspaper VG that the “only way to solve it is to tell everything and put everything on the table, and hope that she can still love me.”
“I’ve done that for her, and now for the whole world. I have nothing to lose,” he said. “I want to be a good role model, but I have to admit when I make mistakes.”
Laegreid is a seven-time world champion biathlete, a sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. His bronze medal win follows a gold in the relay at the 2022 Games.
During a press conference after his admission, he told reporters he hoped he hadn’t ruined fellow teammate and gold medallist Johan-Olav Botn’s day.
“I don’t know if it was the right choice or not, but it was the choice I made,” he said.
“I made the choice to tell the world what I did so maybe there’s a chance she will see what she really means to me — maybe not, but I don’t want to think I didn’t try everything to get her back,” he told reporters.
“I don’t want to steal the show. I hope this is just like a day-or-two thing. Then you are an Olympic gold medallist forever.”
Five-time Olympic champion Johannes Thingnes Bøe, a former teammate of Laegreid and now an expert correspondent at NRK, questioned the timing of Laegreid’s admission.
“It came as a complete surprise. His action was wrong — we saw a repentant lad standing there. Unfortunately, the time, place and timing are all wrong,” Boe said.
It’s unclear if Laegreid’s ex-girlfriend heard his on-screen mea culpa.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Woman testifies son of Norway’s crown princess raped her while she slept – National TenX News
Canadians wait for flights out of Cuba, aid struggling to get in amid U.S. energy blockade TenX News
Olympic medallist wins bronze, confesses on live tv to cheating on girlfriend – National TenX News
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