Matthew Whitaker, the US ambassador to Nato, responds to criticism in the Munich Security Conference report

• Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison for national security offences

In its section on Europe, the Munich Security Conference report has also warned that the continent was entering “a prolonged era of confrontation, as Russia’s full-scale war of aggression and expanding hybrid campaign dismantle the remnants of the post-cold war cooperative security order.”

It also added that:

“Washington’s gradual retreat from its traditional role as Europe’s primary security guarantor – reflected in wavering support for Ukraine and threatening rhetoric on Greenland – is heightening Europe’s sense of insecurity and exposing its unfinished transition from security consumer to security provider.”

“Analysts widely view these operations as deliberate efforts by Moscow to probe Europe’s defences, sow division, intimidate publics, and weaken support for Ukraine by diverting attention toward domestic security. Europe now faces the challenge of proactively deterring further provocations while avoiding inadvertent escalation.”

“European leaders have long refrained from overt criticism of US policies. Instead, they have pursued a dual strategy: striving to keep Washington engaged at almost any cost while cautiously preparing for greater autonomy. …

Recent confrontations over Greenland, in turn, suggest that Europe’s strategy of accommodation may be reaching its limits.”

“Given the urgency of these tasks and the limits of consensus-based decision-making, progress will depend on courageous leadership coalitions.

Smaller avant-gardes, such as the Weimar Plus countries (France, Germany, Poland, and the UK) or the European Group of Five (the former plus Italy), will be essential to drive defense industrial consolidation, articulate a coherent European vision for Ukraine, and prepare the EU for enlargement. These steps will involve sharing costs and political risk.

Taylor, who did for Ghanaian music what his friend Fela Kuti did for Nigeria, has been called the greatest rhythm guitarist in history

Ghanaian musician Ebo Taylor, a definitive force behind the highlife genre, has died age 90.

His son Kweku Taylor announced the news on Sunday: “The world has lost a giant. A colossus of African music. Ebo Taylor passed away yesterday; a day after the launch of Ebo Taylor music festival and exactly a month after his 90th birthday, leaving behind an unmatched artistry legacy. Dad, your light will never fade.”

The technologies include facial recognition tools used on Uyghurs in western China, say experts

Iran’s architecture of internet control is built on technologies from China, according to an analysis published by a British human rights organisation.

The report by Article 19 says the technologies include facial recognition tools used on Uyghurs in western China and a Chinese alternative to the US-based GPS system, BeiDou.

Win against Stuttgart was a reminder that unity remains St Pauli’s greatest strength in defying the odds again

It had begun to look like a lost cause. In a season where the Bundesliga’s relegation battle increasingly promises a richness that the title race may lack (with all due respect to Borussia Dortmund’s efforts to stalk Bayern Munich at closer quarters in recent weeks), it has felt like St Pauli were, like fellow minnows Heidenheim, ready to be cut away. The Hamburg club’s best-ever start to a top-flight season, two wins and a draw from their first three games, felt like an age ago. Nine successive defeats will do that to you.

Yet these masters of the unusual and the unexpected had another surprise up their sleeve this weekend; not least, one suspects, to themselves. Stuttgart travelled north on a fine run of form, sitting pretty in a Champions League spot and fresh from a week of qualifying for the DFB Pokal semi-finals, a trophy which they have every hope of retaining. With one league win against largely hopeless Heidenheim since that golden start for their hosts, who are also harbouring an injury list as long as one of Scottie Pippen’s arms (to paraphrase Jay-Z), it looked straightforward for Sebastian Hoeness and his men.

The UK’s first ‘spin doctor’ thrived because he was immensely valuable to those he served. But the strategist always felt entitled to more

Others will be shocked by his sleazy, self-regarding disloyalty and apparent lack of concern for Jeffrey Epstein’s victims, but something that will puzzle people who knew Peter Mandelson is: how could he be so stupid?

Should you be thinking of stabbing a colleague in the back, and betraying your country, your government and your party – to paraphrase the prime minister – a basic precaution is not to leave an email trail. During the 2008 expenses scandal, it was the MPs who left proof of their dishonesty in emails who went to jail. I suspect many others got away with it for want of written evidence. You might think a politician so deviously clever that they call him the Prince of Darkness would know that, and not end up with police searching two of his houses.

Andy McSmith was chief press officer for the Labour party in the 1980s, and spent almost 30 years as a political journalist based in the House of Commons. His latest book, Strange People I Have Known, includes a chapter on Peter Mandelson

Depite an expanded release to some 2,000 screens, the gushing enthusiasm recorded on the vox pop Popcornometer is not powering a word-of-mouth hit

Melania, Brett Ratner’s authorised documentary following the first lady in the 20 days preceding Donald Trump’s January 2025 inauguration, has dipped 67% in its second week of release in the US.

The film outpaced expectations over its first weekend, taking in $7.2m domestically and leading Amazon to expand their rollout from around 1,500 venues to just over 2,000. But indications are that appetite had already been sated, with Sunday projections standing at $2.3m, meaning a drop from No 3 to No 10 in the US box office charts.

Firm accused of ‘abusing’ its dominant position for messaging in what appears to be breach of antitrust rules

The EU has threatened to take action against the social media company Meta, arguing it has blocked rival chatbots from using its WhatsApp messaging platform.

The European Commission said on Monday that WhatsApp Business – which is designed to be used by businesses to interact with customers – appears to be in breach of EU antitrust rules.

A versatile, one-pan dish to which you can add pretty much whatever seasonal vegetables you like and whatever side suits, and all ready in about half an hour

This is a one-pan dinner at its finest: elegant and full of flavour, something that feels as if it has taken more effort and time than it actually has, and versatile in its finish – serve with creamy mash, fluffy rice, boiled potatoes; even hunks of fresh baguette would be wonderful for mopping up the creamy mustard sauce. I use whatever veg is in season: purple sprouting broccoli is at its best right now, but you could add stalks of rainbow chard, shredded cavolo nero, even halved baby carrots. Play around with whatever veg you have and love.

We take a look at the best images from day three of the Games, including slopestyle skills, curling caresses and sliding speed

The Star Trek star will have lots to say about playing Sulu, but you can also ask about his books and stage career – and getting fired by Donald Trump

There’s so much more to George Takei, beyond his role as Sulu, helmsman of the USS Enterprise. Born Hosato Takei in Los Angeles to Japanese-American parents, he was renamed George by his father after King George VI’s coronation. He and his family were forced to live in various US Japanese concentration camps during the second world war, after which Takei went on to study architecture and theatre, including time at the Shakespeare Institute at Stratford-upon-Avon.

Takei’s early acting career included providing English dubbing voices for 1950s Japanese monster films, including Rodan and Godzilla Raids Again. He got a few small roles on the big screen, largely in war films (including Never So Few and Hell to Eternity), but was more successful on TV, getting cast in a number of popular shows including Perry Mason, The Twilight Zone, My Three Sons and Mission: Impossible. In the same year as his M:I role – 1966 – Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry cast him as physicist Hikaru Sulu in the second pilot episode, leading him to play Lieutenant (later Captain) Sulu in all three seasons of the original 1960s Star Trek series and in the first six Star Trek films between 1979 and 1991.

VAR’s application has been a divisive topic everywhere it has been introduced. It was more of the same in Serie A

You might not be shocked to learn that Daniele De Rossi thinks football has gone soft. Since retiring and moving into management, the man with the “beware the sliding tackle” tattoo has acknowledged he sometimes misses getting to stick the boot in. But would the stick figure seen flying into an opponent on the back of his right calf even stand a chance in this era of VAR?

“I don’t know what to say any more,” lamented De Rossi after his Genoa team lost 3-2 to Napoli on Saturday. “The football we played no longer exists. We were naïve, but it seems I don’t know anything. I don’t know what sport I am coaching.”

• He says his form must improve and there are no excuses

• Van Dijk reveals Liverpool failed to execute gameplan

Erling Haaland says Manchester City’s dramatic 2-1 win at Liverpool on Sunday meant more than just the points and represented a statement from the club in terms of the Premier League title race.

City had won only once at Anfield under Pep Guardiola – during the 2020-21 fan-free Covid season – and went there on a run of one victory in six in the league which had allowed Arsenal to pull clear at the top.

Case continues against those who protested Joswar Torres’ arrest, with prosecutors seeking six years’ imprisonment

A Venezuelan migrant whose detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sparked a protest that involved nearly 2,000 people and led to 30 arrests is free after spending seven months in custody in Washington state, after a ruling from a federal judge who said his constitutional rights had been violated.

Joswar Torres, 29, was granted humanitarian parole in the United States and had an asylum application pending, but was nevertheless detained in June 2025 after a routine check-in at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) office in Spokane, Washington.

Faber-Castell says it was unaware its facility was being used to detain asylum seekers deported by the Trump administration

The world’s largest pencil maker has accused the Costa Rican government of misusing an old factory that the German manufacturer donated for humanitarian purposes – by detaining asylum seekers there who were deported from the US by the Trump administration last year.

Faber-Castell produces more than 2bn wooden pencils a year worldwide and used to have a factory in the southern part of Costa Rica, bordering Panama and supplied by trees cultivated in the region.

Communications minister Anika Wells points to media reports alleging children can access spaces meant for adults which include explicit sexual content

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Reports of child grooming and vile content on popular game service Roblox has “alarmed” the communications minister, Anika Wells, who has demanded the platform explain how it is addressing sexual and self-harm material, and that its PG rating be examined by the Australian Classification Board.

The eSafety Commissioner has also written to the game platform, saying it plans to test the promises it made about keeping children safe online, including disabling chat features and making underage accounts private.

Workers and unions condemn ICE operation as ‘horrific’ as pressure builds on Susan Collins, facing re-election this year

Maine, the US’s whitest state, has been shaken by the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, a crackdown that could threaten Republican control of the Senate in November’s crucial midterm elections.

Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agents launched “Operation Catch of the Day” in the state on 21 January, targeting “the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens who have terrorized communities”, according to the administration.

• Manager has ‘no doubt’ he remains best person for job

• Newcastle travel to Spurs on Tuesday in 12th place

Eddie Howe has said he would offer Newcastle his resignation if he believed he was no longer the right man to lead the presently struggling club.

Howe’s team visit Tottenham on Tuesday night aiming to end the run of three straight Premier League defeats that has prompted their slide to 12th place. Victory would be their first in an away match since December but the 48-year-old manager remains confident he can navigate his fatigued side out of their

Puerto Rican musician has been vocal critic of US president, who claimed performance held almost entirely in Spanish was a ‘slap in the face’

Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted sex-trafficker and longtime accomplice of Jeffrey Epstein, is set to attend a virtual deposition for the House oversight committee at 10am ET today.

This is part of the committee’s ongoing investigation into the handling of Epstein’s case,

Only two survivors rescued in tragedy off Libyan coast, UN migration agency says

The UN migration agency said 53 people had died or were missing after a boat capsized in the Mediterranean Sea off the Libyan coast. Only two survivors were rescued.

The International Organization for Migration said the boat overturned north of Zuwara on Friday.

Screenwriter Paul Schrader talks the inspiration and legacy of Martin Scorsese’s incendiary New York nightmare

If Travis Bickle were real and alive today, he would not be a taxi driver but more likely be sitting in his parents’ basement, exploring the dark, misogynistic depths of the internet.

“We call them incels now,” reflects Paul Schrader, who wrote the screenplay for Taxi Driver, released 50 years ago on Sunday. “‘Incels’ wasn’t a word at that time but it is these guys who are lonely, who see themselves unable to make contact with women, have a repressed backlog of anger and resentment and imagine some kind of glorious transcendent transformation through violence.”

Storm Marta sweeps Iberian peninsula just days after Storms Kristin and Leonardo brought deadly flooding and major damage

Spain and Portugal have endured another storm over the weekend, just days after the deadly flooding and major damage caused by Storm Kristin and Storm Leonardo last week. Storm Marta passed over the Iberian peninsula on Saturday, bringing fresh torrential rain and killing two people. Storm Kristin killed at least five people after it made landfall on 28 January with Storm Leonardo claiming another victim last Wednesday.

The outlook for this week is for more rain across Spain, Portugal and France, especially across north-west Portugal, where more than 100mm is possible during the first half of the week. Some of the heaviest of the rain will transfer to southern Italy and western parts of Greece and Turkey later in the week.

She hated water, attacked our Christmas tree, destroyed our wallpaper – but everyone who met her was won over

Mishka was about eight weeks old when we got her. It was 2004, we were living in Dibden, New Forest, and I was looking to buy some guinea pigs. I saw an ad for a raccoon on the secondhand site Preloved. My husband, Graham, and I lived in Florida in the 90s and had a raccoon that would come into the yard. It had a bad leg, and we nurtured it, so I was very interested in raccoons.

I met someone who bred them after researching on Google, and we ended up with three, one after the other – we bought two, Nigel and Casey, and later, Mishka was given to us.

The latest tranche of files expose how he was viewed as a sexual svengali – and an expert on dodging the #MeToo movement

A new tranche of Epstein files has blasted its way through the worlds of media, politics, tech, academia, finance and Hollywood. High-profile individuals have once again been forced to explain their relationship with the billionaire financier – and why exactly they sent that email, or what they were doing in that photo, in that place, at that time. There have been resignations in Norway, Slovakia, France, the UK and on Wall Street. Each individual scandal matters. But take the files as a whole and a new picture forms: of Jeffrey Epstein as a man who was seen to survive a sexual abuse scandal, and who was then feted as a sexual svengali and a valuable ally in navigating allegations of sexual abuse amid the #MeToo movement.

The 3.5m documents that have thus far been released to the public – out of a reported 6m documents pertaining to Epstein in the US justice department’s possession – paint Epstein as someone for whom elites, and particularly elite men, often felt a sense of camaraderie and affection, maintaining intimate and friendly relationships long after his 2008 conviction on child sexual abuse charges. And their content implies that, in some cases, this was not simply a case of them turning a blind eye to their friend’s sexual crimes: the powerful actively approached Epstein for sexual and romantic advice, and saw him as a thrower of “wild” parties and a listening ear in whom they could confide their anxieties about the excesses of the #MeToo movement.

Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist

Asa Butterfield leads a cast of freaks looking for acceptance and love in a harsh and uncaring world in this rather melancholy version of Guy Bass’s kid-lit series

Perhaps the most noteworthy aspect of this middling Brit-populated, European-financed, Indian-manufactured animation is the radical change of career trajectory it represents for its pinballing director, Steve Hudson. Hudson broke through with 2006’s Loachian social drama True North, a migrant movie starring Peter Mullan – now, having witnessed how the other half lives while directing episodes of primetime TV’s Cranford, he pivots to pixels with a big-screen adaptation of Guy Bass’s kid-lit books. Stitch Head feels like a tentative first step into a heavily crowded field, sutured together from ideas and images previously encountered in far more confident and accomplished entertainments.

Bass’s eponymous hero is rendered here as a boy with Bowie-esque heterochromatic eyes, a baseball-like head and the voice of Asa Butterfield; his home is a castle overlooking small town Grubbers Nubbin, where a mad professor (Rob Brydon) carries out Frankenstinian experiments. If the lead character design is solid – accompanying adults may wind up knitting replicas of Stitch Head’s onesie – the surrounding menagerie seems a bit too Pixar for comfort; Stitch’s furry cyclops pal Creature (Joel Fry) is conspicuously a hybrid of Monsters, Inc’s Mike and Sully. Once this pair abscond to join a travelling freak show, Stitch Head ventures a rather melancholy and misshapen showbiz story – that of a boy who, much like the film, just wants to be loved.