Author: Press Room

The press conference with Keith Kellogg and the Ukrainian president was called off in Kyiv on Thursday, just one day after Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator” and criticised his leadership. ADVERTISEMENTA press conference featuring US President Donald Trump’s Ukraine envoy and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was cancelled Thursday at the request of the US delegation, according to officials in Kyiv.Zelenskyy and retired US General Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, were supposed to speak to the press after their meeting in the Ukrainian capital.However, the event has been called off, the Ukrainian president’s spokesperson Serhii Nikiforov said.…

District councillors are urging staff to investigate options for restoring the Gisborne-East Coast region’s famous Tolaga Bay Wharf, which is suffering “ongoing deterioration” after severe weather in 2023/24.In 2014, $5.5 million worth of restoration work was done on the wharf. It was primarily focused on the first half of the structure in an effort led by Save the Tolaga Bay Wharf Trust.Last year, Tolaga Bay resident Clive Bibby requested the council accept responsibility for the upkeep of the wharf and Reynolds Hall in the East Coast township due to a “historical commitment”.The wharf is owned and maintained by the district…

Five people have been injured, two seriously, while trying to erect a structure on private land north of Napier this morning.St John said it responded to an incident on Ohurakura Rd, Te Pohue at 8.36am with two ambulances and one helicopter.”Four patients, three in moderate conditions and one in a serious condition, are being transported by road to Hawke’s Bay Hospital. One additional patient, in a serious condition, is being airlifted to Hawke’s Bay Hospital,” a St John spokesperson said.Fire and Emergency NZ said it was aware of the incident and that two of the five injured were local volunteer…

New Zealand is aware of a Chinese naval task group sailing in international waters off Australia and is monitoring it, says Defence Minister Judith Collins.The Australian Defence Department said the Jiangkai-class frigate Hengyang, the Renhai-class Cruiser named Zunyi and the Fuchi-class replenishment vessel Weishanhu have continued sailing down the coast after being spotted to the north east of the country last week, the ABC reported.British newspaper the Financial Times reported around 12 hours ago the ships were around 150 nautical miles (277km) east of Sydney.Collins said the New Zealand Defence Force is monitoring the group, in coordination with Australia.”We have…

The two women were reportedly employees of the shop where the attack happened and a 16-year-old youth has been detained for questioning by police. ADVERTISEMENTTwo women have been killed in a knife attack at a shopping centre in the Czech Republic, officials have said.Police say they detained a teenage suspect in connection with the stabbings in a store in the city of Hradec Králové, around 100 kilometres east of the capital Prague.Police say the two victims were employed in the store where the attack happened.”We caught up with the male suspect approximately 10 minutes later, less than a kilometre from the…

The police watchdog is criticising police after they decided not to lay criminal charges against an officer who admitted to beating his children with a belt.In a decision released on Thursday, Independent Police Conduct Authority chairperson Judge Kenneth Johnston, KC, concluded the officer’s use of a webbed belt to discipline his children constituted three offences of assault on a child.Inquiries began on July 28, 2023 after Officer A came to the attention of police and Oranga Tamariki when it was reported that he had physically disciplined his children. Police advised the IPCA and also notified Oranga Tamariki.Police and Oranga Tamariki…

Pope Francis is recovering from pneumonia, eating breakfast out of bed after a peaceful night, the Holy See spokesperson said Thursday. ADVERTISEMENTThe head of the Catholic Church Pope Francis continued his recovery from pneumonia, eating breakfast out of bed on Thursday morning after a sixth peaceful night at the hospital, the Vatican said. The Holy See’s spokesperson Matteo Bruni issued a new update after confirming late Wednesday that new blood tests showed a “slight improvement” in some areas. The 88-year-old pontiff, who had an acute case of pneumonia in 2023, is prone to respiratory infections in the wintertime. Pope Francis…

An economist says he expects to see banks offering more fixed rate mortgage cuts over the couple of weeks following the Reserve Bank’s 50 basis point cut to the official cash rate.The Reserve Bank on Wednesday announced it would cut the official cash rate by half percentage point to 3.75%, its third consecutive big reduction with rates now at their lowest since October 2022.Living costs continue to offset any savings found in interests rates however, as Katie Bradford reports. (Source: 1News)Infometrics chief forecaster Gareth Kiernan said yesterday’s Reserve Bank statement “seems to be on the doveish side of things”.”I would…

Police have released the name of a 33-year-old man who died in Hastings following an assault over the weekend.A homicide investigation was launched after the man died in Hawke’s Bay Hospital around 11pm following an assault on Kiwi Lane at around 10.30pm on Sunday night.”Police can now confirm he was 33-year-old Keith Pati, of Flaxmere, Hastings,” said Eastern District Investigations Manager Detective Inspector Martin James. “Our condolences go out to his family and loved ones at this time.”Earlier this week, a 28-year-old Hastings man was arrested and charged with Pati’s murder.James said police were appealing for information to assist in…

The EU watchdog responsible for investigating maladministration is probing the European Commission’s approval of Nicholas Banasevic, a former high-ranking EU antitrust official, joining Microsoft in a senior role dealing with competition and regulatory affairs. ADVERTISEMENTThe European Ombudsman announced on Thursday the launch of an inquiry into Nicholas Banasevic’s transition from the EU executive to the private sector.Banasevic, a senior EU official with 25 years of experience in antitrust cases, first joined the law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in 2022 to represent clients in EU competition matters, and then moved to Microsoft in 2024 as Corporate vice-president and Head of…