Morning Briefing: March 4, 2025

By Rabia Ali

ISTANBUL (AA) - Here’s a rundown of all the news you need to start your Tuesday with, including US pausing military aid to Ukraine, Arab ministers convening of emergency summit on Palestine in Cairo, and Turkish President Erdogan's remarks about Europe's security unimaginable without Türkiye.

TOP STORIES

• US pauses military aid to Ukraine: Reports

US President Donald Trump has paused military aid to Ukraine after his Oval Office clash with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to media reports Monday.

"The president has been clear that he is focused on peace. We need our partners to be committed to that goal as well. We are pausing and reviewing our aid to ensure that it is contributing to a solution," a White House official was quoted as saying, per reports.

Trump and Zelenskyy engaged in a fiery Oval Office exchange on Friday in which Trump and Vice President JD Vance repeatedly berated Zelenskyy, alleging he is ungrateful for years of American military and economic aid for his war-ravaged nation.

According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, the financing was suspended in recent weeks due to the administration's freeze on foreign aid. The pause is for new weapons sales to Ukraine and as the US is considering suspending arms shipments from its stockpiles.

• Arab ministers meet in Cairo ahead of emergency summit on Palestine

Arab foreign ministers convened in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Monday for a preparatory meeting ahead of an emergency Arab League summit on developments in Palestine, marking Syria’s first participation since the fall of the Baath regime.

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Qatar participated in the preparatory session for the Arab League Council’s extraordinary meeting on Palestine.

According to the statement, Qatari Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohamed Al-Khulaifi reaffirmed Doha’s unwavering stance in support of Palestinian rights, including the establishment of an independent state within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Earlier Monday, Syria’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani had arrived at the Arab League’s headquarters in Cairo for the ministerial session ahead of Tuesday’s summit.

• Europe's security unimaginable without Türkiye: President Erdogan

Europe's security without Türkiye is unimaginable, said the nation’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday.

Türkiye sees its EU membership process as a "strategic priority," as it is an “inseparable part of Europe," Erdogan said in an address to foreign ambassadors serving in the capital Ankara.

"It is becoming increasingly impossible for Europe to continue as a global actor without Türkiye taking its rightful place," he said during an iftar meal, the end of the daytime fast for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The Turkish President also urged Muslims to be part of the global decision-making process, a status he said they fully deserve.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• Pope Francis, 88, suffered two acute respiratory failure episodes on Monday evening, according to the Vatican.
  
  
• At least two people were killed and several others were injured when a car drove into pedestrians in the city of Mannheim, German authorities said on Monday.
  
  
• The French prime minister expressed concern on Monday over US President Donald Trump's remarks about the Panama Canal, Gaza, Greenland, and Canada, saying there is no such law that applies to all.
  
  
• The Palestinian resistance group Hamas called on mediators on Monday to intervene to prevent the collapse of a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement and start negotiations for the second phase of the deal.
  
  
• Israeli aircraft on Monday evening carried out airstrikes targeting the port city of Tartus in western Syria, according to Syria’s state news agency SANA.
  
  
• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Monday that a rare earth minerals deal between Ukraine and the US, while important, would not be enough on its own to provide a security guarantee for Ukraine.
  
  
• Russia on Monday announced a permanent entry ban on Takeshi Iwaya, Japan’s foreign minister, citing Tokyo’s continued sanctions on Moscow over the continuing Ukraine war, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
  
  
• Türkiye on Monday condemned Israel's decision to stop the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, said the country's Foreign Ministry in a statement.
  
  
• Israeli forces shot and wounded seven Palestinians during raids late Monday in the northern and central occupied West Bank, according to Palestinian health officials.
  
  
• The UN on Monday reported closure of Kerem Shalom, Erez and Zikim crossings for cargo, leading to more than a 100-fold increase in food prices across the Gaza Strip.

SPORTS

• Efes-Maccabi EuroLeague game relocated to Latvia

The Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Round 32 game between Anadolu Efes and Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv has been relocated to Riga, Latvia, instead of Istanbul.

"The Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Round 32 game between Anadolu Efes Istanbul and Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv will be played at Xiaomi Arena in Riga, Latvia. The game will be played on Friday, March 28 at 19:30 local time, 17:30 GMT," EuroLeague said in a statement on Monday.

EuroLeague added that this decision was made after considering recommendations from both the Turkish and Israeli governments.

• Senate Democrats block bill to ban trans athletes from women’s sports

US Senate Democrats voted Monday against a bill that would have banned transgender girls and women from competing in female sports.

By a vote of 51 to 45, the Senate did not invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports bill.

The bill prohibits school athletic programs from allowing individuals "whose biological sex at birth was male to participate in programs that are for women or girls."

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• Canada's retaliatory tariffs on US to start Tuesday: Trudeau

Canada will impose 25% tariffs on US goods starting Tuesday, said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

"Canada will not let this unjustified decision go unanswered," Trudeau said Monday in a statement after US President Donald Trump said that formerly postponed tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico will start on Tuesday.

"Should American tariffs come into effect tonight, Canada will, effective 12:01 a.m. EST tomorrow, respond with 25 per cent tariffs against $155 billion of American goods – starting with tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods immediately, and tariffs on the remaining $125 billion on American products in 21 days’ time," Trudeau said.

• US stocks end with huge losses after Trump's tariff remarks

US stocks ended sharply lower Monday after President Donald Trump announced that tariffs on Canada and Mexico will go into effect as planned on Tuesday and on weak US economic data.

“Tomorrow, tariffs -- 25% on Canada and 25% on Mexico. And that’ll start,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

He also announced that tariffs on "external" agricultural products and reciprocal tariffs will start on April 2.