President Trump’s tariffs on China could lead to a hazardous scenario for European countries: the dumping of artificially cheap products that would undermine local industries.
President Trump’s tariffs on China could lead to a hazardous scenario for European countries: the dumping of artificially cheap products that would undermine local industries.
New cars in Guangzhou, China, this month. With China facing an extraordinary wall of tariffs thanks to President Trump, Europe is bracing for an influx of diverted goods.
早在2012年，时任总统阿基诺（Benigno Aquino）即签署行政命令，将菲律宾专属经济区内的部分南中国海区域重新命名为“西菲律宾海”，涵盖吕宋海、卡拉延岛群（Kalayaan Island Group）以及斯卡伯勒浅滩（菲律宾称 Bajo de Masinloc、中国称黄岩岛）。该命令出台时，正值中菲围绕斯卡伯勒浅滩发生激烈对峙。
Watch: Is the US heading into a recession? Three warning signs to watch
Chinese officials are calling on US President Donald Trump to "completely cancel" his so-callled reciprocal tariffs, as a trade war between the world's two biggest economies grinds on.
This week, Trump announced a 90-day pause for a host of global tariffs he had planned, but increased levies on Chinese imports to 145%.
"We urge the US to take a big step to correct its mistakes, completely cancel the wrong practice of 'reciprocal tariffs' and return to the right path of mutual respect," China's commerce ministry said in a statement.
The Trump administration offered a concession on Friday by announcing that some technological products - including many produced in China - would be exempted.
The Chinese commerce ministry called the exemptions a "small step" by the US, and said that Beijing was "evaluating the impact" of the move.
Trump's technology exemptions - which include smartphones, computers and semiconductors - offered hope for tech giants and consumers who worried the price of gadgets would skyrocket as a result of the tariffs.
But there was no immediate prospect of a thaw in the two rival's protectionist posture.
US trade representative Jamieson Greer was asked whether there were any plans for Trump to speak with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, during an appearance on CBS's Face the Nation on Sunday.
"Right now we don't have any plans on that," he said.
Trump imposed a tariff amounting to 54% on imports of products from China at the beginning of April, before escalating to the current 145% rate.
In its own tit-for-tat tariffs, China imposed levies of 34% on US goods, before increasing it to 84% and then 125%, which took effect on Saturday.
In announcing its latest tariffs, China's commerce ministry said last week that it would "fight to the end" if the US "insists on provoking a tariff war or trade war".
Late on Saturday, while travelling to Miami, Florida, Trump said he would give more details of the exemptions at the start of next week.
The White House has argued that it is using tariffs as a negotiating tactic to extract more favorable trade terms from other countries.
Trump has said his policy will redress unfairness in the global trading system, as well as bring jobs and factories back to the US.
However, his interventions have seen massive fluctuations in the stock market and raised fears of a decrease in global trade that could have a knock-on effect on jobs and individual economies.
Former Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) athlete Karenna Groff was killed in the crash alongside her parents and partner, according to a family statement
A private plane carrying six people crashed in an open field in upstate New York on Saturday, killing all on board, authorities say.
Among those on board were celebrated former Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) football player Karenna Groff, her parents and her brother, according to a family statement.
The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said the family had been travelling for a holiday celebration when the crash happened.
A video of the final seconds of the flight obtained by officials showed the aircraft intact before it crashed into the ground at a high rate of descent, the NTSB said.
A joint family statement identified the victims as Karenna Groff, her parents Dr Michael Groff and Dr Joy Saini, her brother Jared Groff and his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, and Karenna's partner James Santoro.
"They were a wonderful family," James's father, John Santoro, told the Associated Press.
"The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We're all personally devastated."
Karenna, a former athlete, was named Woman of the Year by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in 2022, her senior year.
She had graduated from MIT, where she met James, and was enrolled in medical school at the New York University (NYU), the family said.
Her parents were both prominent doctors, while her brother, Jared, worked as a paralegal and his partner, Alexia, was about to join Harvard Law School.
"Karenna demonstrated exceptional skill and unwavering passion towards the care of patients and the mission of our institution. We will remember her for her warmth, her grace, her kindness, her outstanding accomplishments, and the pure joy she brought to our community," an NYU spokesperson said.
A New York Times article identified the plane's pilot as Karenna's father, Dr Groff, who was "experienced" according to a family statement. The report that he was flying the crashed plane has not been publicly confirmed by the family or the authorities.
Speaking at a press conference on Sunday, NTSB official Todd Inman said the twin-engine Mitsubishi MU-2B was "compressed, buckled and embedded in the terrain" of a muddy agricultural field near Craryville, New York.
The crash happened at about midday as the family were headed to Columbia County Airport.
Mr Inman added that air traffic control attempted to contact the pilot several times but received no response or distress call.
The pilot had been flying under instrument flight rules, rather than visual flight rules, he said, adding that it was too soon to determine if reduced visibility from weather conditions were a factor.
Mr Inman said the plane had an upgraded cockpit with newer technology, certified to Federal Aviation Administration standards.
An investigation is under way and a probable cause of the crash will be determined in the NTSB's final report in 12 to 24 months' time.
Chief Albert Luthuli won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1960
A South African court is due to re-examine the circumstances around the death of one of the most renowned campaigners against the racist system of apartheid, which had initially been described as accidental.
A 1967 inquest ruled that Chief Albert Luthuli was walking on a railway line when he was struck by a train and died after fracturing his skull.
Activists and his family have long cast doubts on the official version of events, and have said they welcomed the re-opening of the inquest.
Luthuli, who at the time of his death was the leader of the then-banned African National Congress (ANC), won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1960 for spearheading the fight against apartheid.
The ANC went on to lead the struggle against white-minority rule and came to power in 1994, following the first democratic elections.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has said that it "will be presenting evidence before the court in an attempt to have the initial findings into the deaths of Chief Luthuli... overturned". It has not said what that evidence is.
Nearly six decades ago, the initial inquiry into the Nobel laureate's death "found that there was no evidence which disclosed any criminal culpability on the part of any of the employees of the South African Railways or anyone else", the NPA said last week.
But campaigners suspected the authorities had killed him and covered it up.
Luthuli's grandson, Albert Mthunzi Luthuli, told South Africa's IOL news site that the family "welcomes the re-opening of the inquest", even though it is now years after the deaths of "many people that we suspected of being involved in my grandfather's murder".
"We believe the TRC [Truth and Reconciliation Commission] let many families of victims down by giving amnesty to apartheid murderers," he added, referring to the post-apartheid process where perpetrators of violence in the previous decades were encouraged to come forward to fully confess their crimes.
At the time of his death, Luthuli was not allowed to leave his residential area in Groutville - now in KwaZulu-Natal province - or take part in politics.
He was South Africa's first winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. The award was later given to three other South Africans: Archbishop Desmond Tutu in 1984, and Nelson Mandela and FW de Klerk in 1993.
The Luthuli case is one of two highly anticipated inquests into the deaths of anti-apartheid figures re-opening on Monday. The other concerns lawyer Mlungisi Griffiths Mxenge, who was killed in 1981.
He had been stabbed 45 times and his throat had been slit.
An inquest into his death a year later failed to identify his murderers and it was only nine years later that they were revealed - when Butana Almond Nofemela, confessed to killing Mxenge and seven other ANC members.
He was part of a covert hit-squad, or counter-insurgency unit, that detained and killed anti-apartheid activists.
Nofemela, together with the squad's commander Dirk Coetzee and David Tshikalange, were in 1997 found guilty of Mxenge's murder but were granted amnesty by the TRC before the criminal case could be concluded.
Explaining the reopening of the inquest into Mxenge's death last year, the justice ministry said this was because new evidence had emerged, suggesting that "certain critical information" had not been presented to the TRC.
In South Africa, inquests often look into determining how a person died and whether anyone should be held responsible for their death.
A century ago today, on 14 April 1925, John Singer Sargent died in London. This last article celebrating his career and art resumes in the final months of the First World War, when Sargent had returned to Britain.
In 1918, John Singer Sargent was commissioned by the War Memorials Committee of the Ministry of Information in Britain to paint a large work showing Anglo-American co-operation in the war. This was originally destined for a Hall of Remembrance, which was never built, but required a very large if not monumental painting. He set off for the Western Front with Henry Tonks, a distinguished British artist and teacher, in July 1918, and they visited units near Arras and Ypres.
According to Tonks’ recollections recorded in a letter two years later, they both witnessed the result of a mustard gas attack during the opening of the Second Battle of the Somme on 21 August 1918 (although records suggest that may have been on 26 August). In the late afternoon, they heard that many casualties were arriving at a Corps dressing station at le Bac-du-Sud, so went there. Lines of gassed casualties were being led in, in parties of about half a dozen with a medical orderly in front. Apparently, Sargent was “struck by the scene and immediately made a lot of notes.”
This change to his commission required the approval of the War Memorials Committee, which he obtained before he started work on the painting in his studio in Fulham, London, in late 1918. I don’t know exactly when Sargent made each of the pencil sketches for his painting, but some may have been made near Arras, while others were clearly based on the professional models who he employed in his studio.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Study for Gassed Soldiers (1918), charcoal and graphite on cream wove paper laid down on card, 47 × 61.6 cm, Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, CT. Wikimedia Commons.
Many, like Study for Gassed Soldiers (1918), show details of different passages for the final painting, and could have been made in Arras or Fulham.
The most interesting, though, are his assemblies of figures, such as this Study for ‘Gassed’ (1918). This particular group was turned into the more distant line of casualties, at the right of the finished work.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Gassed (detail) (1919), oil on canvas, 231 x 611.1 cm, The Imperial War Museum, London. Wikimedia Commons.John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Two Studies for “Gassed” (1918), graphite on paper, 64.5 × 93.5 cm, Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. Wikimedia Commons.
These Two Studies for “Gassed” (1918) in the Fogg Museum are more compositional in purpose, and show the shape of the final painting starting to form. Note, though, that the nearer line of casualties consists of only six (or seven) figures. In the finished painting, this becomes eleven, and forms most of the width of his panoramic canvas.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Gassed (1919), oil on canvas, 231 x 611.1 cm, The Imperial War Museum, London. Wikimedia Commons.John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Gassed (detail) (1919), oil on canvas, 231 x 611.1 cm, The Imperial War Museum, London. Wikimedia Commons.
There are several fascinating details in the finished painting, including the game of soccer taking place in the distance, seen in the detail above. Sargent probably added that as a reference to the activities of normal life, contrasting with the horror that is taking place throughout the rest of the painting.
Most remarkably, there’s only one pair of eyes visible in all the soldiers present, in the medical orderly near the head of the second line at the right. He even turned the orderly who is tending to the nearer line of casualties so that he faces away from the viewer. This emphasises the blinding effects of the mustard gas, and develops the painting’s theme of vision and art.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Rainy Day on the Deck of the Yacht Constellation (1924), watercolour on paper, 33.6 x 53.3 cm, Private collection. WikiArt.
Inevitably, Sargent faced increasing criticism of his outdated style and refusal to embrace the new styles of Cubism or Futurism. After the war he spent more time in the USA working on his series of murals in the Boston area.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Orestes Pursued by the Furies (1922-25), oil on canvas, 348 × 317.5 cm, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Boston, MA. Wikimedia Commons.
This large masterpiece Orestes Pursued by the Furies was started in 1922, and completed in 1925, just prior to his death. Over the 100 square feet of its canvas, it shows a young and naked Orestes cowering under the attacks of the Furies as he tries to run from them. The swarm of no less than a dozen fearsome Furies have daemonic mask-like faces, blond hair swept back, and hold out burning brands and fistfuls of small snakes.
Sargent has gilded the flames on the brands to make them shine proud like fire. The isolated woman who stands in Orestes’ way is no Fury, though: she wears a gilded crown, and with the clean incision of a stab wound above her left breast can only be his mother Clytemnestra. There’s a profusion of arms, eight of them clutching snakes and thrust in Orestes’ direction.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Orestes Pursued by the Furies (detail) (1922-25), oil on canvas, 348 × 317.5 cm, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Boston, MA. Wikimedia Commons.John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), The Danaïdes (c 1922-25), oil on canvas, 335.28 x 632.46 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA. Wikimedia Commons.
This vast canvas of The Danaïdes (c 1922-25) decorates the entrance to the Library of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Atlas and the Hesperides (c 1922-25), oil on canvas, diameter 304.8 cm, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA. Wikimedia Commons.
Atlas and the Hesperides, painted over a similar period, shows the giant still carrying the heavens on his shoulders, as seven naked Hesperides sleep on the ground around him.
In 1922, Sargent co-founded Grand Central Art Galleries and its associated academy the Grand Central School of Art, in New York City. The former held a major exhibition of his work in 1924, following which he returned to London, where he died on 14 March 1925.
By this time, the avant garde had moved on, and Sargent’s art was becoming increasingly reviled. At the 1926 London retrospective exhibition to commemorate his death, critics led by Roger Fry dismissed him as not even being an artist. It wasn’t until the latter half of the twentieth century that his art was recognised again, and his paintings are still in the throes of that revival.
The nine volumes of his catalogue raisonné are probably the finest and largest of any catalogue raisonné to date. Volumes particularly recommended are:
Ormond R and Kilmurrary E (2012) John Singer Sargent. Figures and Landscapes, 1900-1907. Complete Paintings, volume VII, Yale UP. ISBN 978 0 300 17736 0.
Ormond R and Kilmurrary E (2014) John Singer Sargent. Figures and Landscapes, 1908-1913. Complete Paintings, volume VIII, Yale UP. ISBN 978 0 300 17736 7.
Redford, B (2016) John Singer Sargent and the Art of Allusion, Yale UP, ISBN 978 0 300 21930 2.
There are several large format and excellently illustrated selections of his oil paintings available. However his watercolours are best covered by:
Little C (1998) The Watercolors of John Singer Sargent, University of California Press. ISBN 978 0 520 21970 0.
Hirshler EE and Carbone TA (2012) John Singer Sargent Watercolors, Museum of Fine Arts Boston and Brooklyn Museum. ISBN 978 0 8784 6791 4.
Erica E Hirschler and Teresa A Carbone (2012) John Singer Sargent, Watercolors, MFA Boston and Brooklyn Museum. ISBN 978 0 8784 6791 4.
In this concise interview, Filip Noubel of the news service Global Voices, interviews me about the evolution of the China Unofficial Archives and our efforts to create a platform for independent Chinese Voices.
As I mention to Noubel, “Our users are primarily Chinese or overseas Chinese communities”–in other words, we aim primarily at the Sinophone world. At the same time, our descriptions of each item, as well as our databank of writers, directors, and artists, is bilingual because we want non-Chinese speakers to learn a bit about the amazing output of independent Chinese voices over the past 75 years.
If you want to learn more about this nonprofit, visit the China Unofficial Archives website.
And you can subscribe to the CUA weekly newsletter, which looks at current events in China through the lens of history, via Substack.
生活被摧毁：根据莫斯科方面的说法，对乌克兰的“特别军事行动”原本只打算持续三天时间。然而三年过去了，战争仍在继续。根据智库“战争研究所”（Institute for the Study of War）的最新报告，目前俄罗斯控制着乌克兰约20%的领土，主要集中在东部。这张照片拍摄于2023年5月的顿涅茨克（Donetsk）。
马里乌波尔——乌克兰抵抗的象征：2022年，俄罗斯对乌克兰南部城市马里乌波尔（Mariupol）围攻长达82天。该市遭到猛烈轰炸，最后乌克兰守军被围困在钢铁厂内。俄罗斯轰炸一家医院后，一张孕妇被紧急撤离的照片震惊世界。这张照片由乌克兰记者拍摄，后来凭借纪录片《马里乌波尔的20天》（20 Days in Mariupol）获得奥斯卡奖。
Fifteen people including former Conservative MP Craig Williams have been charged with betting offences by the Gambling Commission.
The investigation was launched last year following bets placed on the timing of the 2024 general election.
The commission said the investigation focused on individuals "suspected of using confidential information - specifically advance knowledge of the proposed election date - to gain an unfair advantage in betting markets".
Those charged will appear at Westminster Magistrates Court on 13 June 2025.
Before the election was called, Williams was the Conservative MP for Montgomeryshire and an aide to then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Laura Saunders, who was the Conservative candidate in Bristol North West at the general election, is also on the list of those who have been charged by the commission.
On 22 May, Rishi Sunak announced the general election would be held on 4 July - a decision that overturned expectations of an autumn poll.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X to get the latest alerts.
Here we go again. That inescapable feeling engulfed Rory McIlroy's fans during a Masters Sunday they wanted to watch through their fingers at certain points.
A nightmare start saw the nervous 35-year-old from Northern Ireland overhauled by nearest rival Bryson DeChambeau at the top of the leaderboard in a three-shot swing in the opening two holes.
Then, after recovering to retake a three-shot lead with six holes left, McIlroy threatened to blow his chance yet again.
Those willing him to win wondered if he was fumbling another golden chance to finally land the prize which had long eluded him.
The rollercoaster nature of his triumph, secured eventually at the first play-off hole, was essentially a microcosm of a career which has provided exhilarating highs and devastating lows.
What his supporters had forgotten - understandably given the scar tissue they also had developed from his myriad near misses - was a very different McIlroy had emerged at Augusta National this week.
A mature McIlroy. A calmer McIlroy. A patient McIlroy.
Most importantly, perhaps, a McIlroy who has learned how to love himself again on the course after having his heart bitterly broken by the sport he adores.
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What are we all going to talk about next year?
"At a certain point in life, someone doesn't want to fall in love because they don't want to get their heart broken," the world number two said in an illuminating pre-tournament news conference on Tuesday.
"Instinctually as human beings we hold back sometimes because of the fear of getting hurt, whether that's a conscious decision or subconscious decision.
"I think once you go through that, once you go through those heartbreaks - as I call them - you get to a place where you remember how it feels.
"You wake up the next day and you're like, 'life goes on, it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be'."
Mending his forlorn heart has built a resilience which helped McIlroy to execute special shots shortly after tough psychological moments on his path to Masters glory.
It has enabled the boy from Holywood to eventually achieve golfing immortality.
On Sunday, he roared back again to win the Green Jacket and become only the sixth man in 90 years of the four modern majors to win the career Grand Slam.
What makes his achievement even more remarkable is getting there following a tumultuous 11-year journey since his previous major win.
"It was maybe one of the greatest performances ever, with so much pressure on him," McIlroy's sports psychologist Bob Rotella told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"What Rory is going to be so proud of is that he found out how unbelievably tough he is."
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Rory McIlroy finally won the Masters on his 17th appearance at Augusta National - only Spain's 2017 champion Sergio Garcia waited longer
The influence of the renowned sports psychologist
From the moment on Tuesday when McIlroy opened up, you sensed there was something different in his mentality.
Working with Rotella - who helped Ireland's Padraig Harrington win three majors - has been a key factor.
McIlroy has known the renowned American since 2010 and the conversations between the pair intensified going into his 11th attempt to complete the career Grand Slam.
McIlroy said they talked before the tournament about "trying to chase a feeling" on the course, rather than "getting too much into results and outcomes".
The strategy worked perfectly in his opening 14 holes on Thursday. Then a pair of double bogeys dropped him seven shots off the lead.
McIlroy scarpered quickly from the course without speaking to the media, saying later he wanted to "leave what happened" behind at Augusta National.
The fast exit and a Friday morning chat with Rotella helped him bounce back into contention.
A bogey-free 66, accelerated by five birdies on the second nine, moved him two behind Justin Rose at halfway.
"I had a good conversation with Bob, mostly around not pushing too hard too early and trying to get those shots back straight away," McIlroy said.
Patience was also the plan for Saturday.
McIlroy and Rotella discussed "letting the score come" and not trying to "force the issue" as he chased down Rose.
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Watch McIlroy claim his Masters green jacket
A blistering start to his third round saw McIlroy sink three birdies and an eagle as he became the first player to card threes on each of the opening six holes.
Still he was stony faced. The solemn expression demonstrated his steely focus and remained throughout another card of 66.
McIlroy refused to get carried away with the highs of that round, or too disheartened by a stickier patch around the turn.
"I certainly don't want to be a robot out there, but at the same time I don't want to be too animated, either," he said.
Moving into a two-shot advantage over DeChambeau set up Sunday's box-office finale.
The contrasting approaches of the final pairing - McIlroy blocking out the noise, DeChambeau feeding off the rising decibels - added an intriguing layer.
McIlroy largely maintained his composure in what DeChambeau described as an "electric" atmosphere. "He wouldn't talk to me," the maverick American said.
Keeping his own counsel worked for McIlroy.
"Every time he made a mistake he came back and did something fantastic," Rotella, who has authored numerous books on sports psychology, said.
"It is like he had a will that was made of steel. He kept bouncing back no matter what they threw at him."
Watching Bridgerton, Disney & sport - how 'distractions' helped
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McIlroy's emotional message to daughter Poppy
Switching off from what happens on the course - or, at least, trying to - was another important factor.
Methods which McIlroy used to zone out included watching racy period drama Bridgerton - which he claimed he was talked into by wife Erica - and Disney animation Zootopia with his four-year-old daughter Poppy.
Picking up a fictional novel "for the first time in a long time" was another. Reading a John Grisham book called The Reckoning proved apt.
On the morning of his own day of reckoning, McIlroy spent the hours before his career-defining day watching sport.
Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz's win at the Monte Carlo Masters was followed by a "little bit" of Premier League football and the Formula 1 GP in Bahrain.
"I tried to keep myself distracted with other sports," he said.
Family time also helped McIlroy compartmentalise the day job. After Thursday's bitter blow, he said heading home to see Poppy before bedtime helped him move on.
The family took part in the Masters traditional par-three contest on Wednesday alongside McIlroy's close friends Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood, and their wives and children.
Poppy stole the show by knocking in a 25-foot putt and joined her father again on the 18th green after he secured victory on Sunday.
"I'm not going to compare this to life moments like a marriage or having a child," said McIlroy.
"But it's the best day of my golfing life."
Dusting himself off from near misses - and Pinehurst
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McIlroy wins Masters play-off to complete career Grand Slam
When 25-year-old McIlroy claimed the fourth major of his career - at the 2014 US PGA Championship - it felt inevitable he would quickly complete the collection at the Masters.
Back-to-back majors at the Open Championship and US PGA - having previously won the 2011 US Open and 2012 PGA - signalled his dominance.
A Green Jacket could have already been in the wardrobe, too, but he blew a four-shot lead on a haunting final day in 2011.
It sparked a long barren streak at all four majors, with McIlroy's heart crushed most recently at Pinehurst last June.
The world number two had charged up the US Open leaderboard to move two shots clear of overnight leader DeChambeau.
Then, as McIlroy later admitted, he lost focus.
Bogeys on three of his last four holes allowed DeChambeau to snatch a dramatic victory.
It was a loss which cut deep. McIlroy fled Pinehurst swiftly, avoiding the media and laying low until the Scottish Open a month later.
"Some people have an experience like that and decide they don't want to get there again, it hurts too much," said Rotella.
"He said he wanted to win majors and could handle losing."
While he missed the cut at the blustery Open Championship which followed, the bounce back in 2025 has been impressive.
A dominant final round from McIlroy led to a two-shot victory at Pebble Beach in February, before he mentally reset to win last month's The Players Championship at Sawgrass in a play-off showdown on the Monday.
And so to Augusta National. The guttural emotion following Sunday's winning putt was McIlroy shedding the weight of burden which had laid heavy.
"Every time you get your heart broken you have to bounce back and it makes for a better story – but you have to have the guts to keep going after it," Rotella added.
"A lot give up on themselves. I admire the heck out of him because he didn't."
The singer will be aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket
Pop star Katy Perry and five other women are set to blast into space aboard Jeff Bezos' space tourism rocket.
The singer will be joined by Bezos's fiancée Lauren Sánchez and CBS presenter Gayle King.
The New Shepard rocket is due to lift off from its West Texas launch site and the launch window opens at 08:30 local time (14:30 BST).
The flight will last around 11 minutes and take the crew more than 100km (62 miles) above Earth, crossing the internationally recognised boundary of space and giving the crew a few moments of weightlessness.
Also on board are former Nasa rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, and film producer Kerianne Flynn.
The spacecraft is fully autonomous, requiring no pilots, and the crew will not manually operate the vehicle.
The capsule will return to Earth with a parachute-assisted soft landing, while the rocket booster will land itself around two miles away from the launch site.
"If you had told me that I would be part of the first-ever all-female crew in space, I would have believed you. Nothing was beyond my imagination as a child. Although we didn't grow up with much, I never stopped looking at the world with hopeful WONDER!" Mrs Perry said in a social media post.
Blue Origin says the last all-female spaceflight was over 60 years ago when Soviet Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman to travel into space on a solo mission aboard the spacecraft Vostok 6.
Since then, there have been no other all-female spaceflights but women have made numerous significant contributions.
Blue Origin is a private space company founded in 2000 by Bezos, the billionaire entrepreneur who also started Amazon.
Although Blue Origin has not released full ticket prices, a $150,000 (£114,575.85) deposit is required to reserve a seat—underlining the exclusivity of these early flights.
Alongside its suborbital tourism business, the company is also developing long-term space infrastructure, including reusable rockets and lunar landing systems.
The New Shepard rocket is designed to be fully reusable and its booster returns to the launch pad for vertical landings after each flight, reducing overall costs.
According to US law, astronauts must complete comprehensive training for their specific roles.
Blue Origin says its New Shepard passengers are trained over two days with a focus on physical fitness, emergency protocols, details about the safety measures and procedures for zero gravity.
Additionally, there are two support members referred to as Crew Member Seven: one provides continuous guidance to astronauts, while the other maintains communication from the control room during the mission.
BBC / Maddie Molloy
The rise of space tourism has prompted criticism that it is too exclusive and environmentally damaging.
Supporters argue that private companies are accelerating innovation and making space more accessible.
Professor Brian Cox told the BBC in 2024: "Our civilisation needs to expand beyond our planet for so many reasons," and believes that collaboration between NASA and commercial firms is a positive step.
But critics raise significant environmental concerns.
They say that as more and more rockets are launched, the risks of harming the ozone layer increases.
A 2022 study by Professor Eloise Marais from University College London found that rocket soot in the upper atmosphere has a warming effect which is 500 times greater than when released by planes closer to Earth.
The high cost of space tourism makes it inaccessible to most people, with these expensive missions out of reach for the majority.
Critics, including actress Olivia Munn, questioned the optics of this particular venture, remarking "There's a lot of people who can't even afford eggs," during an appearance on Today with Jenna & Friends.
At the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Peake voiced his disappointment that space exploration was increasingly seen as a pursuit for the wealthy, stating: "I personally am a fan of using space for science and for the benefit of everybody back on Earth, so in that respect, I feel disappointed that space is being tarred with that brush."
Watch Blue Origin's Last Spaceflight on the New Shepard Rocket
Watch: Blue Origin's tenth human space mission blast off
Additonal reporting by Victoria Gill and Kate Stephens, BBC Climate and Science.
From the end of April, the 500-year-old Royal Mail will be controlled by a Czech billionaire who co-owns a football club and is a major investor in a British supermarket - so, why would he want this ailing institution?
Listen to the audio version of this on BBC Sounds
"A pair of scissors, one empty teapot and some hot water, please." The slightly baffled staff at Claridge's scrambled to comply with Daniel Kretinsky's breakfast order as he sanitised and moisturised his hands.
The upscale hotel has been serving tea to the global elite for decades but Mr Kretinsky brought along his own packet of Chinese green tea, which he snipped open (hence the scissors) and poured into the empty pot.
He was tall, perfectly groomed, steely-eyed but unfaultingly polite and thoughtful. If you told anyone in the dining room he was a billionaire, they would have no problem believing it.
Known as the Czech Sphinx for his enigmatic style, Mr Kretinsky, who is 49, is worth £6bn according to the Sunday Times Rich List. He lives in plush mansions in Paris and London, was originally a lawyer and made his fortune in European energy markets.
Reuters
Billionaire investor Daniel Kretinsky has major investments in Sainsbury's and West Ham United football club
Our meeting was at Claridge's in June 2024 - I was trying to convince him to give me an interview about his audacious attempt to buy a British institution that was once seen as a national treasure: Royal Mail.
His profile as a buyer was one that that unions and ministers typically would be wary of because of his historic connections with Russia - his companies own a gas pipeline that has transported Russian gas to Europe.
But six months on, his bid to buy Royal Mail's parent company was cleared by the UK government after he agreed "legally binding" undertakings.
It was agreed that the government would retain a so-called "golden share", requiring it to approve any major changes to Royal Mail's ownership, headquarters location and tax residency. The deal was also blessed by unions.
Earlier this month, the owner of Royal Mail said that the takeover could be completed by the end of April as the deal cleared the final regulatory hurdles standing in the way.
But step back and Royal Mail seems a strange target for a globally mobile oil and gas billionaire investor to set his sights on. It begs the question why would anyone, let alone a successful international entrepreneur, want to buy this faded relic?
How Royal Mail's crown slipped
Royal Mail was founded by Henry VIII more than 500 years ago and still carries the royal cipher on its vans. It is part of the fabric of British life and many people still have a fond relationship with their 'postie', who walks down their path bringing their letters and parcels to their door.
But in recent years Royal Mail's crown has slipped. It is losing money and market share, has been fined for missing delivery targets and has made an enemy of its own workforce through a series of bitter strikes.
Royal Mail's letter business is in steep decline too. It has gone from a peak of 20 billion letters sent in 2004 to under seven billion sent last year.
In December 2024, it was fined £10.5m by the regulator Ofcom for failing to meet delivery targets for first and second class mail.
While the boom in e-commerce has seen the volume of parcels rise, Royal Mail's share of that more profitable business has been falling as new competitors like DPD, DHL, Amazon and Evri have eaten into its market share.
Royal Mail was split off from the Post Office in 2012 and privatised in 2013 at a value of £3.3bn. Its shares immediately rocketed by 38% on the first day of trading, leading to criticism - from the National Audit Office, among others - that it had been sold on the cheap.
At its peak in Covid-era May 2021, the company was worth more than £6bn but had slumped to just over £2bn when Mr Kretinsky launched his takeover bid last April.
He sealed the deal at £3.6bn - 63% higher than before he signalled his intent, but barely more than it was worth at privatisation over a decade ago.
"Royal Mail is a business that has historically found it difficult to grow revenues by more than costs," says Alex Paterson, an analyst at Peel Hunt stockbrokers. "It has seen its parcels market share eroded by more dynamic competition that has been able to invest more in technology, and it has struggled with industrial relations to keep staff working towards a common goal.
"This is not a challenge to underestimate nor one that can be overcome quickly, but that requires considerable long-term investment in infrastructure, technology and staff."
Part of the challenge, and one that puts Royal Mail at a disadvantage compared with its rivals, is that unlike them, Royal Mail has to meet a string of legal and regulatory obligations, says Hazel King, the editor of Parcel and Post Technology International.
Under what is called the universal service obligation (USO), Royal Mail is required by law to deliver letters six days a week and parcels five days a week to every address in the UK. So it cannot pick and choose which business it wants to do.
"Royal Mail must meet their universal service obligation while trying to compete with private firms who often cherry-pick the most profitable business," says Ms King.
The 'Czech Sphinx's' plan
Mr Kretinsky says he has a plan. His success in the energy sector allowed him to buy a 27.5% stake in Royal Mail's parent company, International Distribution Services (IDS). And his company – EP Group – intends to build a pan-European conglomerate built on three pillars: energy, retail and logistics.
He sees IDS as the cornerstone of the logistics pillar, with a plan to go toe-to-toe with the likes of Deutsche Post DHL, DPD and Amazon.
The USO has been under review by Ofcom, with Royal Mail hoping that the regulator will reduce the requirement to deliver second-class letters from six days a week to every other weekday. That single move could save Royal Mail £300m a year – putting it back on a break-even footing.
PA Media
Mr Kretinsky aims to create a pan-European logistics giant, potentially rivalling Evri
Mr Kretinsky told me during our interview that he would honour the USO "as long as I am alive", but he is unsurprisingly very much in favour of changing its terms. He said he hopes that "rational minds prevail" when reforming a service that is unsustainable in its current form.
So far, the noises from Ofcom seem to be supportive. The regulator's chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes told the BBC there were "real questions about what the service needs to be going into the future".
Given letter numbers are falling, "we have to think about what is economical", she said, adding Ofcom would be publishing plans for the regulation of Royal Mail "to make sure it is sustainable".
While Royal Mail generally welcomed the proposed changes to the Universal Service Obligation, Royal Mail pushed back against proposed new delivery time and business customer requirements.
Royal Mail said last week that the level at which Ofcom is proposing to set the new delivery targets – 99.5% of First Class letters delivered within three days, and the same percentage of Second Class letters within five – is "over specified and will add significant cost to the delivery of the Universal Service".
It also expressed concerns that proposals to add a new category of regulation to ensure timely delivery for business users like direct mail companies "goes against the wider government drive to reduce unnecessary regulation".
European parcel know-how
But there are other factors that may have driven the sale. Some analysts have speculated that there is another jewel in the crown of IDS - and that Mr Kretinsky may really be after a different part of the business.
Along with Royal Mail, IDS also owns a European parcels business called GLS which it acquired in 1999 – long before Royal Mail was split off from the Post Office and privatised.
Last year GLS made a profit of £320m, compared to Royal Mail, which lost £348m as letter volumes continued to plunge and new competitors ate into its market share of the more profitable parcels business.
"GLS has been a profitable growth business, which has seen investment whereas Royal Mail has been a perpetual underperformer, as the board of parent company IDS has invested where it thinks it will see the best returns," says Mr Paterson.
Mr Kretinsky rejects suggestions from some quarters that he wants to break up the group and has committed to keeping it together for at least five years. Even beyond that, he says the plan is to grow the company rather than shrink it, so a disposal of GLS would be "nonsensical".
In fact, Mr Kretinsky says he hopes to bring the European parcel know-how at GLS to bear on Royal Mail's operations.
What the unions are hoping, and Kretinsky is promising, is that Royal Mail will see greater investment and over time begin to look a bit more like GLS and its European counterparts such as Deutche Post DHL.
Catching up with competitors
Given all the challenges Royal Mail faces, there's an obvious question - why would a billionaire want to chance his arm on turning round something that others couldn't, while up against powerful competitors?
Well, if you believe as Kretinsky does - and he is surely right - that getting parcels to people is a profitable and growing industry, then buying Royal Mail and GLS gives you a way to become a big European player in logistics quickly.
Add to that a powerful and historic brand, a database with every single UK address and a frontline workforce that most of its customers are fond of and pleased to see when they walk down the path - then, despite the challenges, it begins to make sense.
Reuters
The Czech entrepreneur has been described as a "quiet sphinx" for his inscrutable style
Mr Kretinsky is convinced future growth lies in out-of-home (OOH) delivery. The parcel lockers found in supermarket car parks and elsewhere, operated by the likes of Amazon, Evri and UPS, have grown quickly across Europe.
Earlier this month it was reported that Sainsbury's would be the first supermarket to partner with Royal Mail and install parcel lockers at supermarkets. Some are already operating at several stores including ones in Clapham, Kidderminster and Chislehurst.
Royal Mail has also trialled a new postbox that can take small parcels. Customers procure a barcode from an app, then at the postbox they scan the barcode and drop the parcel into a drawer - this is all powered by solar panels on the box.
Emma Gilthorpe, Royal Mail chief executive, called it an "historic change" to give postboxes "a new lease of life".
All of this boils down to the same thing: convenience. It means customers don't have to wait at home for a delivery - the sender or parcel business emails or texts a code to unlock the locker. For the business it's more efficient, allowing couriers to deliver lots of parcels to one place - meaning fewer miles on the road and less time.
Getty Images
Royal Mail has long been part of the fabric of British life
"If they can grow the parcels business and claw back market share, there is every chance that they can add new jobs that could offset the reduction in jobs in the declining letters business," says Mr Paterson.
"There is a significant long-term opportunity to run Royal Mail more successfully with regulatory changes to the USO and greater investment in technology and out-of-home deliveries."
But Royal Mail still has a lot of catching up to do with its competitors. It currently has 1,500 lockers in the UK and aims to grow this figure to at least 20,000 over time. By contrast, Amazon already has 5,000 lockers across the UK and InPost has 7,500 across the UK.
Winning over doubters
That Mr Kretinsky has pulled off the takeover is no easy feat. Royal Mail is, after all, considered vital national infrastructure and as such the deal required review under national security laws.
Then there is the fact that his companies own a gas pipeline that has transported Russian gas to Europe – paid for and approved by EU member states. The small amount that was transported was reduced to zero at the end of 2024 when Ukraine refused to renew permission for any gas to flow across its borders.
Speaking in front of MPs in November, UK Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds referred to Mr Kretinsky as a "legitimate business figure" whose alleged links to Russia had already been reviewed and dismissed when he became the biggest shareholder in the company two years ago.
Getting the unions on board seemed even more of a challenge and the Communication Workers Union was wary of Mr Kretinsky. "The CWU believes Royal Mail should be in public hands," Dave Ward, the CWU's general secretary, told the BBC in June. "We know there are legitimate concerns about Royal Mail Group being owned by a foreign private equity investor."
But during negotiations, union representatives secured a series of time-limited commitments from him, including guarantees that he will protect Royal Mail's pension surplus, that there will be no compulsory redundancies for two years, no sell-off or break-up of any operational part of the existing company and no outsourcing of grades represented by the CWU.
Getty Images
Royal Mail, a key part of British infrastructure, is set for a new chapter
Mr Kretinsky also agreed to restrictions on moving dividends out of Royal Mail Group and to respect agreements with and recognition of the CWU. He said he would keep the brand name and Royal Mail's headquarters and tax residency in the UK for the next five years.
Union bosses told me that a life under Mr Kretinsky "couldn't be any worse than what we have had for the last 10 years".
So, as Mr Kretinsky looks certain to pull off the sale, what will customers notice?
The frequency of second-class deliveries may be reduced after the Ofcom review. We will see new Royal Mail lockers appearing in our neighbourhoods. And the price of first-class mail may go up: second-class stamps are regulated by Ofcom, while first-class ones are not.
The monarch's head will still be on those stamps, but there is a new king of our mail system. And his name is Daniel Kretinsky.
Top image credit: Getty
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The Palestinian Red Crescent said Assad al-Nassasra "forcibly abducted" by Israeli troops last month and demanded his release
A Palestinian paramedic who has been missing since an Israeli attack that killed 15 other emergency workers in southern Gaza three weeks ago is being detained by Israeli authorities, the International Committee of the Red Cross has said.
The ICRC confirmed in a statement that it had "received information" that Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) medic Assad al-Nassasra was being held "in an Israeli place of detention".
The PRCS said Mr Nassasra was "forcibly abducted" by Israeli troops following the attack and called for his immediate release.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has not confirmed his detention. A spokesperson said it was aware of the claim about his whereabouts.
The bodies of eight PRCS medics, six Civil Defence first responders and a UN staff member were found buried in shallow graves on the outskirts of Rafah, a week after their convoy came under fire from Israeli troops there on 23 March.
One other PRCS medic survived and said he was released by Israeli forces after being detained for around 15 hours.
The PRCS has said the incident was a "full-fledged war crime", accusing Israeli forces of "a series of deliberate attacks" on its staff and their ambulances as they answered a call to help casualties.
It has called for an independent international investigation into the incident and for those responsible to be held to account.
Last Monday, the IDF said a preliminary inquiry indicated troops "opened fire due to a perceived threat following a previous encounter in the area, and that six of the individuals killed in the incident were identified as Hamas terrorists", without giving evidence.
The Palestinian Red Crescent rejected the allegation, as did the other surviving paramedic.
The IDF initially said its troops fired on "suspicious vehicles" driving in darkness with their headlights and emergency lights off.
But it later said that account was "mistaken" after a video found on the mobile phone of medic Rifaat Radwan, who was in the same ambulance as Assad al-Nassasra, showed the convoy was using its emergency lights.
At the end of the video, the ambulances are seen pulled over on the roadside. The sound of gunfire can be then heard just as Radwan gets out of his ambulance. It continues for more than five minutes and Radwan is heard saying his last prayers, before the voices of Israeli soldiers are heard approaching.
Audio analysis by BBC Verify of the footage found Israeli troops fired more than 100 times during the attack, with some shots taken from as close as 12m (39ft) away.
Gaza medics killing video analysed by BBC Verify
In a statement released on Sunday, the PRCS said: "We have been informed by the International Committee of the Red Cross that PRCS medic Assad al-Nassasra is being held by the Israeli occupation authorities.
"His fate had remained unknown since he was targeted along with other PRCS medics in Rafah."
It added: "We call on the international community to pressure the occupation authorities to immediately release our colleague, medic Assad, who was forcibly abducted while carrying out his humanitarian duties."
A spokeswoman for the PRCS told the New York Times Mr Nassasra had worked for the PRCS for 16 years, and was married with six children.
An ICRC spokeswoman said it had informed Mr Nassasra's family and the PRCS after receiving information about his whereabouts.
It noted: "The ICRC has not been granted access to visit Assad al-Nassasra. The ICRC has not been able to visit any Palestinian detainees held in Israeli places of detention since 7 October 2023."
The Israeli military launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage.
More than 50,940 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
An Australian man was also swept out to sea and is being treat for life-threatening injuries in hospital.
Two British tourists have drowned off the coast of a popular tourist town at the southern tip of the Great Barrier Reef.
A boy, 17, and a man, 46, were swept out to sea on Sunday while swimming at a beach without lifeguards in Seventeen Seventy - a town in Queensland named for the year Captain James Cook arrived in Australia.
The pair were declared dead at the scene after being pulled from the water by a police rescue helicopter.
An Australian man is also in a life-threatening condition after being swept out to sea, and was airlifted to hospital with serious head injuries.
While police revealed that the deceased were from the UK, their names have not yet been released.
"Sunday's mission was a difficult one," CapRescue, the emergency rescue service that found the three men, shared on social media - adding that the deaths had occurred "despite the best efforts of all involved".
Police say the injured Australian man was from Monto, a town about 150 kilometres inland from Seventeen Seventy.
"We're not sure whether the third person jumped into the water trying to perform a rescue," Surf Life Saving Queensland's Darren Everard told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
There is only one beach patrolled by lifeguards within a 50-kilometre radius of Seventeen Seventy.
Police are treating the drownings as non-suspicious and will prepare a report for the coroner.
One-hundred-and-seven people drowned in Australia last year, with 25% of them born overseas, according to Royal Life Saving Australia.
Australia's coastal fatalities mostly occur around creeks and headlands at high tide when "it's chaos in the water", Everard explained.
Speaking to ABC, he encouraged tourists to "seek local knowledge" and swim between the flags.
据海外汽车媒体《AutoCar》报道，这款新的 G 级奔驰将采用新的 MB.EA 平台制造，这是奔驰为了向「全面电动」转型而全新开发的，将覆盖奔驰未来所有的大中型乘用车产品，目前已经在规划中的有电动版的 C 级和 GLC 两种车型。
新的平台意味着较小的这款新 G 级有可能「倒反天罡」，先于现款的纯电大 G 一步用上 800V 高压电气架构和第五代电池技术，续航也将超越现款的 570 公里达到 700 公里左右。
新平台下的「Little G」也将抛弃奔驰 G 级传统的梯形框架结构，搭载奔驰最新研发的新智能四驱系统，该系统可通过电子控制来模拟传统 G 级的三个机械差速锁。这套新的四驱系统也将配备专用的驾驶模式，其悬挂系统采用了经过改进的 GLC 车型的双叉臂前悬挂和多连杆后悬挂，并配备了可变离地间隙的空气弹簧，从而为其提供不错的越野能力。
The Republican former congressman, who was narrowly beaten by Elissa Slotkin in a marquee Senate matchup in 2024, hopes to fill the seat being vacated by Senator Gary Peters.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said Assad al-Nassasra "forcibly abducted" by Israeli troops last month and demanded his release
A Palestinian paramedic who has been missing since an Israeli attack that killed 15 other emergency workers in southern Gaza three weeks ago is being detained by Israeli authorities, the International Committee of the Red Cross has said.
The ICRC confirmed in a statement that it had "received information" that Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) medic Assad al-Nassasra was being held "in an Israeli place of detention".
The PRCS said Mr Nassasra was "forcibly abducted" by Israeli troops following the attack and called for his immediate release.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has not confirmed his detention. A spokesperson said it was aware of the claim about his whereabouts.
The bodies of eight PRCS medics, six Civil Defence first responders and a UN staff member were found buried in shallow graves on the outskirts of Rafah, a week after their convoy came under fire from Israeli troops there on 23 March.
One other PRCS medic survived and said he was released by Israeli forces after being detained for around 15 hours.
The PRCS has said the incident was a "full-fledged war crime", accusing Israeli forces of "a series of deliberate attacks" on its staff and their ambulances as they answered a call to help casualties.
It has called for an independent international investigation into the incident and for those responsible to be held to account.
Last Monday, the IDF said a preliminary inquiry indicated troops "opened fire due to a perceived threat following a previous encounter in the area, and that six of the individuals killed in the incident were identified as Hamas terrorists", without giving evidence.
The Palestinian Red Crescent rejected the allegation, as did the other surviving paramedic.
The IDF initially said its troops fired on "suspicious vehicles" driving in darkness with their headlights and emergency lights off.
But it later said that account was "mistaken" after a video found on the mobile phone of medic Rifaat Radwan, who was in the same ambulance as Assad al-Nassasra, showed the convoy was using its emergency lights.
At the end of the video, the ambulances are seen pulled over on the roadside. The sound of gunfire can be then heard just as Radwan gets out of his ambulance. It continues for more than five minutes and Radwan is heard saying his last prayers, before the voices of Israeli soldiers are heard approaching.
Audio analysis by BBC Verify of the footage found Israeli troops fired more than 100 times during the attack, with some shots taken from as close as 12m (39ft) away.
Gaza medics killing video analysed by BBC Verify
In a statement released on Sunday, the PRCS said: "We have been informed by the International Committee of the Red Cross that PRCS medic Assad al-Nassasra is being held by the Israeli occupation authorities.
"His fate had remained unknown since he was targeted along with other PRCS medics in Rafah."
It added: "We call on the international community to pressure the occupation authorities to immediately release our colleague, medic Assad, who was forcibly abducted while carrying out his humanitarian duties."
A spokeswoman for the PRCS told the New York Times Mr Nassasra had worked for the PRCS for 16 years, and was married with six children.
An ICRC spokeswoman said it had informed Mr Nassasra's family and the PRCS after receiving information about his whereabouts.
It noted: "The ICRC has not been granted access to visit Assad al-Nassasra. The ICRC has not been able to visit any Palestinian detainees held in Israeli places of detention since 7 October 2023."
The Israeli military launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage.
More than 50,940 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
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冯德莱恩智库演讲：2023年3月30日，欧盟委员会主席冯德莱恩在布鲁塞尔两个欧洲智库主办的活动中用英语发表演讲。她指出中国和欧洲之间的经济关系正变得越来越不平衡，中国“明确地将军事和商业领域融合在一起”的做法给欧洲安全带来了风险，因此需要去风险，并且更好地运用现有工具，以维护欧洲经济利益。“我们之间的关系不是非黑即白，而我们的答案也不可能如此。因此我们必须聚焦于去风险（De-Risking），而不是脱钩。”
对华关系新的关键词：冯德莱恩的讲话获得了巨大关注。“去风险”这个说法也随即开始在德国和美国被媒体和政界人士引用。《纽约时报》认为，这一表述是对欧盟对华关系新的概括，德国和法国外交官此后在国际组织中推广“去风险”的概念，并使之体现在当年5月广岛G7峰会声明的内容中。德国《明镜》周刊则指出，冯德莱恩希望在用词上保留空间，与美国一段时间以来使用的“脱钩”有所区别。
依赖是个“好选择”？：德国外长贝尔博克4月中访华期间也表示，德国并非要与中国“脱钩”，而是要“降低风险”，就是说欧洲应降低对中国“不健康”的依赖。同时出席记者会的中国外长秦刚则回应说，“中德是伙伴，不是对手”，双方在供应链上相互依赖“是市场规则下最优的选择”；只要两国都保持开放，“就没有必要担心所谓的依赖”。
肖尔茨是始作俑者？：有德国媒体注意到，最早公开使用“去风险”一词的并不是冯德莱恩，而是德国总理肖尔茨。2022年11月德国《明星》杂志（Stern）在肖尔茨访华前的一篇报道中引述他谈到对中国产业链的依赖性时说到：“去风险和多样化是当务之急。”但当时这一说法并未引起特别的舆论关注。
金融术语：“去风险”（De-Risking）一词并非新近的发明，而是一个金融行业的术语，指的是银行或投资者收缩或终止交易关系，以降低支付违约的风险。而欧盟执委会主席冯德莱恩在2023年1月，亦曾在世界经济论坛上表示，欧盟虽需要“与中国合作和贸易”，但仍须修正与中国的商业交易方向，寻求与这个世界第二大经济体“降低风险，而非脱鈎”。
沙利文：免受胁迫：华盛顿的官员也开始使用“去风险”的表述。今年4月底，美国国家安全顾问沙利文（Jake Sullivan）在华盛顿布鲁金斯学会发表讲话时表示，“去风险意味著拥有弹性的有效供应链，并确保我们不会受到任何国家的胁迫。”“我们只是要确保美国和盟国的技术，不会被用来对付我们自己，”而并不是要切断贸易，他强调，“正如冯德莱恩主席不久前所说的。”
跨大西洋共识：德国《商报》指出，在这个问题上，冯德莱恩、德国总理肖尔茨以及美国国家安全顾问苏利文显然已经形成了共识。“同'脱钩'不同的是，'去风险'的目的并不是要在经济上孤立中国，而是要增强欧洲自身的经济抗压能力。”
G7峰会余音：5月的广岛G7峰会结束后，英国首相苏纳克（左二）对媒体表示，英国和G7集团其它国家在共同寻找方法，减少中国带来的挑战。“这一切都是关于去风险，而不是脱钩。”他补充说：“我们（七国集团）正在采取措施防止中国利用经济胁迫来干涉其他国家的主权事务。”
北京：不要“鹦鹉学舌”：对G7会议公报本已大为不满的北京做出激烈反应，中国驻英国大使馆发言人指责首相苏纳克的言论是“鹦鹉学舌”。中国外交部（图）之前就G7公报表示：“对于所谓‘经济胁迫’，美国大搞单边制裁、‘脱钩断链’，才是把经贸关系政治化、武器化的真正‘胁迫者’。我们奉劝七国集团不要做经济胁迫的同谋和帮凶。”
李强斥“伪命题”：中国总理李强6月27日在天津举办的世界经济论坛（WEF）“夏季达沃斯论坛”开幕式上发表演讲时说：“现在在西方，有些人在炒作所谓的‘降依赖、去风险’，我认为在一定程度上看，这两句话就是一个伪命题。”他认为，风险管控应该由“企业去做相应的判断和选择”，政府和相关组织“不应该去越俎代庖，更不应该将去风险扩大化、政治化、意识形态化”。
走入欧盟对华战略：共同的对华政策也是6月30日结束的欧盟峰会上的一个重要议题。峰会联合声明称，将支持继续保持同中国的经贸关系，同时减少欧洲对中国的的经济依赖。"去风险"在本次声明中正式登场，成为一个概念，今后欧盟将以它作为指导方针推出对华战略。但有批评指，欧盟目前表述的“去风险”仍缺乏具体的计划和责任规范。
德国首份对华战略：2023年7月13日，德国联邦内阁通过首份对华关系战略，“不脱钩、去风险”是重要内容之一。文件称，德国将继续与中国的交流与合作，同时应“降低关键领域的依赖性”。德国政府将提高社会对涉华风险的敏感度，加强与企业的交流，提醒企业做好风险管控。文件还强调，单方面改变台湾海峡现状是不可接受的，台海军事冲突升级将影响到德国和欧盟的利益。
威胁加剧：2021年底的卫星图像显示，俄罗斯军队和重型武器正在俄罗斯小镇叶利尼亚（Yelnya）附近集结，该镇靠近白俄罗斯边境。2021年11月11日，美国时任国务卿布林肯（Antony Blinken）警告俄罗斯总统普京不要入侵乌克兰。但此举未能阻止普京。2022年2月24日普京下令对乌克兰发动全面入侵。
向乌克兰境内发动火箭弹袭击：2022年2月24日的军事行动中，多枚火箭袭击了乌克兰多座城市，包括首都基辅、敖德萨（Odesa）和哈尔科夫（Kharkiv）。基辅一座军事大楼被击中后着火。尽管莫斯科方面坚持称之“特别军事行动”，但事实上一场全面战争已经爆发。
布查大屠杀：数周之内，乌克兰军队成功将俄军赶出了北部城市。然而俄军撤离后，战争罪行浮出水面。布查（Bucha）地区的平民遭受折磨和屠杀的影像传遍了全球。当局报告称，布查地区共有超过 1100名平民被杀。调查人员表示，此次大屠杀是有计划、有针对性的“战略性”暴行。
生活被摧毁：根据莫斯科方面的说法，对乌克兰的“特别军事行动”原本只打算持续三天时间。然而三年过去了，战争仍在继续。根据智库“战争研究所”（Institute for the Study of War）的最新报告，目前俄罗斯控制着乌克兰约20%的领土，主要集中在东部。这张照片拍摄于2023年5月的顿涅茨克（Donetsk）。
“公然违反国际法”——俄罗斯在吞并地区举行“公投”：2022年9月，俄罗斯单方面吞并了乌克兰四个地区——卢甘斯克（Luhansk）、顿涅茨克（Donetsk）、扎波罗热（Zaporizhzhia）和赫尔松（Kherson），总面积约9万平方公里。一年后，这四个地区被纳入俄罗斯地区选举。在一次被称为“公然违反国际法”的投票中，普京领导的“统一俄罗斯党”在四个地区均以超过 70%的得票率获胜。 
数百万人流离失所：乌克兰战争导致数百万人逃离家园，欧洲爆发自二战以来最大规模的难民潮。据联合国统计，乌克兰境内有370万人因战争流离失所，超过600万人向西逃往欧洲，主要前往波兰和德国。 
马里乌波尔——乌克兰抵抗的象征：2022年，俄罗斯对乌克兰南部城市马里乌波尔（Mariupol）围攻长达82天。该市遭到猛烈轰炸，最后乌克兰守军被围困在钢铁厂内。俄罗斯轰炸一家医院后，一张孕妇被紧急撤离的照片震惊世界。这张照片由乌克兰记者拍摄，后来凭借纪录片《马里乌波尔的20天》（20 Days in Mariupol）获得奥斯卡奖。
克里米亚大桥被炸：克里米亚大桥（Crimea Bridge）全长19公里，是欧洲最长的大桥，连接俄罗斯南部与克里米亚半岛。2022年10月，乌克兰发动爆炸袭击，导致与公路桥并行的铁路桥上一货运列车上7个油罐被点燃，公路桥部分路段受损坍塌。2023年7月，克里米亚大桥再次因乌克兰军队袭击而受损。
环境灾难：2023年6月6日，卡霍夫卡大坝（Kakhovka Dam）发生爆炸，导致水库中的水涌入第聂伯河（Dnipro River）。乌克兰和俄罗斯互相指责对方实施了破坏行为，但事发时该大坝是由俄罗斯控制。这场洪水引发了一场环境灾难，摧毁了数千座房屋，可能还造成了数百人死亡。事后有记者发现，俄罗斯方面故意少报了死亡人数。
能源基础设施成为攻击目标：俄罗斯对乌克兰能源基础设施实施了系统性打击。研究人员指出，在俄罗斯全面入侵乌克兰一年后，乌克兰76%的热力电厂被摧毁。至2024年9月，这一比例上升至95%。此外，乌克兰电网也遭到严重破坏，导致大范围停电，尤其在冬季，大规模停电也令人道主义危机进一步加剧。
乌克兰袭击俄罗斯领土：2024年8月，乌克兰武装部队首次对俄罗斯境内发动攻势，在边境，乌军几乎没有遭遇抵抗，并一度控制了库尔斯克地区（Kursk）约1400平方公里土地。但之后，三分之二占领区域重被俄军夺回。
无人机之战：俄罗斯和乌克兰都使用无人机进行侦察、监视和定点攻击。专家表示，目前乌克兰战场上至少有100种不同类型的无人机，大小从玩具到小型飞机不等。2024年3月，乌克兰宣布，年产无人机可达400万架。
战争造成巨大破坏：三年战争给乌克兰留下了永久的伤痕。在乌克兰东部和南部，许多城镇因遭到俄军炮火袭击如今已成“鬼城”。位于顿涅茨克地区的博戈罗季奇内镇（Bohorodychne）于 2022年6月遭受俄军猛烈攻击，现在几乎成了一座空城。
生活仍在继续：并非整个乌克兰都处于战争前线。在远离战火的地方，生活仍在继续。商店、咖啡馆和餐馆照常营业，人们通过安装发电机来应对停电。
美国是否继续支持乌克兰存疑：美国总统特朗普曾表示，他希望在“24小时内”结束乌克兰战争。然而，他至今未能实现这一承诺。无论是特朗普与俄罗斯的“亲密关系”、他近期施压乌克兰让其与美国签署矿产协议，还是与乌克兰总统泽连斯基（Volodymyr Zelenskyy）的口水战（特朗普称其为“未经选举的独裁者”），都引发了乌克兰及其盟友对美国是否会继续支持乌克兰的担忧。
渲染图 图源：motor1
