Highlights

As if emerging from the John le Carre world of high espionage and betrayal, a former Russian spy Sergei Skripal lived modestly in Salisbury, England, and kept out of the spotlight until he was found unconscious on Sunday. British police raced to identify the unknown substance suspected of striking the former Russian double agent, as Britain threatened to pull out of the soccer World Cup in Russia if Moscow was shown to be behind the mysterious illness.

The 2018 U.S. primary elections kick off in Texas, where Democrats hope record-high levels of early voter midterm turnout and anger over President Donald Trump’s policies will help them flip congressional seats from Republican control.

Trump faces growing pressure from political and diplomatic allies as well as U.S. companies urging him to pull back from proposed steel and aluminum tariffs, although he said he would stick to his guns.

Commentary: Trade wars do not benefit anyone, writes Trevor Kincaid, a former Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative on how Trump's plans to raise steel and aluminum tariffs could hurt, not help, U.S. national security. "With the stroke of a pen, he could unravel the global trading system, raise prices on basic goods, make American businesses less competitive, drive a wedge between the United States and its European allies, and open the door for China to construct new national security based trade barriers."

World

North Korea is willing to hold talks with the United States on denuclearization and will suspend nuclear tests while those talks are under way, the South said after a delegation returned from the North where it met leader Kim Jong Un.

Details are available for the first time of a committee of scholars created by Modi's government to rewrite the history of India. A Reuters special report explores how the group is using archaeology and DNA to try and prove India's Hindus are directly descended from the land's first inhabitants, as the country's Muslim minority worries the government wants to make them second-class citizens.

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince wants to persuade his British and U.S. allies that “shock” reforms have made his country a better place to invest and a more tolerant society on his first foreign tour as heir apparent.

Eyeing the easy money exit - Five questions for this week's #ECB meeting http://reut.rs/2oXWdpF @ritvikcarvalho @DharaRanasinghe

7:38 AM - MAR 6, 2018