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Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Robert MacMillan, Reuters.com Weekend Editor

Welcome to the Weekend Briefing. I usually tease a few stories here in the hope that you’ll read them. Today I'm hoping you’ll subscribe to Reuters.com. A subscription gives you unlimited access to all our stories. We won’t sandbag you with surprise price increases and you can cancel anytime. Sign up here. And now… onward with the news.

A dangerous moment for Ukraine

Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS

The plan: The U.S. gave Ukraine a week to consider its peace proposal, one that endorses key Russian demands. If Ukraine doesn’t accept, the U.S. will cut off intelligence sharing and weapons supplies, sources said. A meeting ahead of the deal between administration representatives and a Russian envoy under U.S. sanctions is raising alarm among American officials and lawmakers.
War dispatches: Learn why Russia is working hard to secure the road and railway junction town of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region. Ukraine said it identified a Russian commander as a suspect in the 2022 mass execution of civilians in Bucha. Kyiv lawmakers fired two ministers ensnared in an alleged $100 million plot to control contracting at the state nuclear agency.

Violence, killings escalate in West Bank

Occupation: Israeli forces killed two Palestinian teenagers during a raid near Ramallah. Their deaths come as the military tightens restrictions in the West Bank and attacks by Israeli settlers rise. Israel’s forces have killed six Palestinian minors this month, according to a Reuters tally.
Gaza: More food is reaching the strip since the October ceasefire, but supplies remain below humanitarian needs and winter rains risk spoiling food that’s been delivered, the U.N.’s World Food Programme said. Storms are flooding refugee camps with rain and sewage.

Trump’s Golden Dome faces big delays

Exclusive: The government shutdown and lack of a clear plan to spend the first $25 billion for the missile-defense initiative threaten to derail the president’s promise to have the program operational by 2028.
Invective: Trump admitted his falling popularity in the polls, but said the numbers are up among “smart people.” The White House defended Trump after he called a female reporter “piggy.” Trump got along with New York’s new mayor Zohran Mamdani better than anyone could have predicted. MAGA favorite Marjorie Taylor Greene said she’s quitting Congress following her dramatic fallout with Trump.

G20 forges ahead without the U.S.

No Trump no problem: Envoys agreed on a draft leaders’ declaration before the summit began this weekend. Trump is boycotting the event in Johannesburg. The draft makes references to climate change despite U.S. objections. On that topic: The EU is refusing to accept a draft deal at the COP30 summit in Brazil because they say it fails to further efforts to curb greenhouse-gas emissions. Related: Private data firms are stepping into climate science as the U.S. pulls back, creating opportunities for many but risks for those who can’t afford to pay for knowledge.
Africa roundup: The U.N. is trying to gain access to al-Fashir in Sudan and will treat the area as a crime scene following reports of executions, detentions and rapes. Tanzania’s president said his country’s image is tarnished in the eyes of global investors. Gabon signed an important climate-finance deal for its Congo rainforests.

AI brings new risks to financial markets

Rapid simmer: Company executives are paying high premiums to buy AI technology and struggling to articulate their AI strategies, two experts warned at the Reuters Momentum AI 2025 conference. Investors are brushing aside concerns about rising leverage in the sector and the lack of revenue needed to support that debt.
Dining on companies: The company that owns Pinkberry and Cold Stone Creamery hired TD Bank for a possible sale. Unilever is considering selling its Marmite and Bovril brands. (Marmite: Discuss.) An investor group will buy the California Pizza Kitchen restaurant chain.

Before I forget…

China is crying havoc and letting slip the “wolf warriors” in its dispute with Japan.
Georgia is abolishing its anti-corruption body as ties with the EU sour.
Italy is investigating whether foreigners paid to shoot at civilians with the aid of the Bosnian Serb army during the siege of Sarajevo.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is relying