First Thing: China vows to ‘fight to the end’ with US in ‘trade war or any other war’

Comments by China’s foreign ministry mark an escalation in rhetoric following Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs. Plus, Trump posts fresh ultimatum to Hamas

Good morning.

China’s ministry of foreign affairs has warned that China will “fight to the end” against the US in a “tariff war, trade war or any other war”, in a stark escalation of rhetoric.

The comments were made in response to Donald Trump introducing an extra 10% tariff on Chinese goods, taking the total duty to 20%. China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Lin Jian, warned that pressuring China was “the wrong calculation”, adding: “If the US has other intentions and insists on a tariff war, trade war or any other war, China will fight to the end.”

The line about “any other war” was shared online by Lin and by the Chinese embassy in the US.

How has China responded to US tariffs? It is imposing duties of up to 15% on a range of US agricultural products.

European-led Ukraine air protection plan aims to halt Russian strikes

A European air force of 120 fighter jets could be used to protect Kyiv and western Ukraine from Russian missile and drone attacks on cities and infrastructure, according to a plan drawn up by military experts that has gained urgency as the US has pulled away from Kyiv.

The backers of the Sky Shield scheme say it could function as an air protection zone operated separately from Nato. It would cover Ukraine’s three working nuclear power plants and the cities of Odesa and Lviv, but not the frontline or the east of the country.

Concerns in political circles involve the west being drawn into a direct conflict with Moscow if a Nato member’s jet was hit or attacked one of Russia’s. But proponents of the plan claim the risk is low, as Moscow has not flown its combat jets beyond the war’s frontlines since early 2022.

EU leaders are meeting for an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday where they are expected to largely support the €800bn ($863bn) “ReArm Europe” plan outlined by the European Commission, prresident, Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday, after the US halted aid.

What else has the US done? After pausing military aid to Ukraine this week, the US stopped sharing intelligence with Kyiv.

Trump gives new ultimatum to Hamas as US enters direct talks with group

Donald Trump has threatened Hamas with a new ultimatum, telling the group to “release all of the Hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered, or it is OVER for you” in an inflammatory intervention amid the shaky ceasefire.

His intervention came hours after the White House confirmed the US had begun direct negotiations with Hamas. Fifty-nine hostages are still held by Hamas, though Israel believes just 22 are alive. Trump also referred to a recent decision to provide Israel with fresh funding, posting: “I am sending Israel everything it needs to finish the job, not a single Hamas member will be safe if you don’t do as I say.”

How has Hamas responded? Hamas said Trump’s comments “encourage” Israel to disregard the ceasefire’s terms.

In other news …

Police are investigating the death of a 20-year-old student in Baton Rouge’s Southern University as a possible act of fraternity hazing, school authorities said.

The Broadway musical Hamilton has canceled its performance at Washington’s John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts next year, blaming Donald Trump’s interference into the institution.

South Korea’s air force has apologised after one of its fighter jets mistakenly dropped eight bombs on a village during a training exercise on Thursday, wounding 15 civilians and damaging several buildings.

The Iranian protest singer Mehdi Yarrahi has been given 74 lashes as punishment for his song that spoke out against the country’s strict dress code for women.

Stat of the day: nearly half of women in Africa ‘will be obese or overweight by 2030’

Almost half (45%) of women in Africa will be obese or overweight by 2030, according to a study by the World Obesity Federation, raising concerns for related disease including diabetes and heart disease. For men, the forecast figure is 26%, a complex gendered gap partly attributed to a lack of safe exercise spaces for women, long working hours, and caring responsibilities.

Don’t miss this: in search of the South Pacific fugitive who crowned himself king

When the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, a collection of islands the size of Puerto Rico, won a bitter war against Papua New Guinea, it managed to secure the region’s independence by 2027. But the war had other consequences, too, writes the journalist Sean Williams, who traveled to Bougainville in search of Noah Musingku, a conman who made a fortune through a Ponzi scheme and then lost it, and has since withdrawn to a remote armed compound and declared himself the islands’ king.

Climate check: global sea ice hit ‘all-time minimum’ in February

Planetary heating, fueled by humanity’s consumption of fossil fuels, caused global sea ice to fall to a record low in February, scientists have said. The EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) found sea ice levels in the Arctic were at their lowest monthly level, at 8% below average, while the levels in the Antarctic were at the their fourth-lowest and 26% below average.

Last Thing: a rodent a day? Experts ask Californians to eat nutria

Wildlife officials are encouraging people in California to switch up their diets and consider adding a rodent to their dinner rotation in an attempt to control an invasive species’ numbers. The nutria, a large, semiaquatic rodent native to South America, is said to taste like rabbit or dark turkey meat. If that sounds tempting, you can find recipes for nutria dishes on Nutria.com. Nutria chilli, anyone?

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