DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An estimated $1.4 billion lottery jackpot will be up for grabs Wednesday night thanks to dozens of drawings without a big winner.
No one has won the grand prize since May 31, and the 41st drawing on Wednesday will be just one fewer than the record set last year.
All of that losing stems from Powerball’s abysmal odds of 1 in 292.2 million, though lottery officials note that the odds are far better for the game’s many smaller prizes. There are three drawings each week.
The $1.4 billion jackpot is for a winner who opts to receive 30 payments over 29 years through an annuity. Winners almost always choose the game’s cash option, which for this drawing would be an estimated $634.3 million.
Powerball tickets cost $2, and the game is offered in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
This recipe is such an easy way to get cozy and an even easier way to have great leftovers.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 butternut squash, halved and seeded
3 garlic cloves, minced
3-4 cups vegetable broth
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. black pepper
Instructions
1. Prep the squash Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and then line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the butternut squash on the baking sheet face up and lightly coat each half with olive oil on the inside. Then, sprinkle each half with salt and pepper.
2. Roast the squash Turn the squash face down on the baking sheet and roast in the preheated oven until it is tender and cooked through, about 40 to 50 minutes. Set the squash aside and let it cool for about 10 minutes.
3. Build the soup base Meanwhile, in a large soup pot, warm 1 tbsp. olive oil over medium heat until simmering. Add the onion to the pot and cook until translucent. Then, add the garlic to the pot and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute, stirring frequently. Then, place the cooked garlic in a blender and use a large spoon to scoop the butternut squash flesh into the blender. Add the nutmeg, salt and black pepper to the blender. Carefully pour in 3 cups vegetable broth, and do not fill the container past the maximum fill line. Blend on high until the soup is creamy and warmed through.
4. Season it up Pour the soup back into the pot and make sure it is warmed to your liking. Then, add the smoked paprika and top with some more pepper.
5. Serve it hot Spoon into bowls and enjoy right away!
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he’s ready to order federal authorities to mobilize and combat crime in Chicago and Baltimore, despite staunch opposition from elected leaders and many residents in both cities.
Asked by reporters in the Oval Office about sending National Guard troops to the nation’s third-largest city, Trump said, “We’re going in,” but added, “I didn’t say when.”
“I have an obligation,” the president said. ”This isn’t a political thing.”
President Donald Trump said he will send federal law enforcement to combat crime in what he called the “hellhole” cities of Chicago and Baltimore, despite staunch opposition from state and local officials in both cities. (AP Video)
Local officials in Baltimore have joined Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore in similarly opposing federal law enforcement intervention.
Trump has already sent National Guard troops into Los Angeles and Washington, where he’s also federalized the police force. He has said he plans similar moves in other Democrat-run cities even as a federal judge on Tuesday deemed the California deployment illegal.
Trump criticizes leaders in Chicago
The president praised Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser for working with federal forces, but repeated his criticism of Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, a Democrat. Trump said he’d love to have Pritzker call and say, “Send in the troops” — even though the two-term governor has repeatedly said he won’t be doing that.
He said if Pritzker would “call me up, I would love to do it,” Trump said. “Now, we’re going to do it anyway. We have the right to do it. Because I have an obligation to protect this country and that includes Baltimore.”
He added, “Baltimore’s a very unsafe place”
Pritzker deemed Trump’s comments to call him for help as “unhinged.” The two have been locked in an escalating war of words for days as Trump called Chicago “the world’s most dangerous city” earlier Tuesday.
“No, I will not call the president asking him to send troops to Chicago,” Pritzker said Tuesday at a news conference with Johnson and other leaders. “I’ve made that clear already.”
Illinois notified of federal plan
The state received its first contact about federal intervention on Saturday when the head of the Illinois State Police got a call from Gregory Bovino, chief of the Border Patrol’s El Centro, California, sector, saying immigration agents would come to Chicago, according to Pritzker. The governor said no further details were offered.
Pritzker urged the public not to let the presence of federal agents spark tensions in the city but asked residents to look out for neighbors, and to film interactions with federal agents and share them publicly.
“Authoritarians thrive on your silence,” he said. “Be loud for America.”
The Governor of Illinois and the mayor of Chicago said in unison Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s law enforcement intervention in Chicago is unwelcome. (AP Video: David Martin)
Even without knowing exactly what is coming, the city’s organized activist network began circulating protest schedules, vowing to demonstrate within hours of troops or federal agents arriving.
The measures are familiar in a city that has long tried to counteract Trump’s bid to deport more people, including adding more staff at a hotline to report immigration arrests.
Dozens of pastors write a letter to Trump Tuesday saying the focus should instead be on underfunded schools and unemployment.
“To the faithful of Chicago, I say this: prepare your hearts for resistance,” the letter said.
Crime in Chicago
Johnson said violence in the city stems from guns on the streets that are trafficked to Illinois from neighboring states, including Republican-led Indiana.
“Chicago will continue to have a violence problem as long as red states continue to have a gun problem,” Johnson said.
Echoing a trend in other major U.S. cities, Chicago’s violent crime has dropped significantly overall, though it remains a persistent issue in parts of the city.
Recently, the Trump administration has renewed interest in the city’s daily crime log, including using a spate of shootings during the Labor Day weekend as justification for increased military presence.
Chicago’s homicide rate is 21.7 per 100,000 residents in 2024, according to analysis of federal crime data by the Rochester Institute of Technology. It cites seven other major U.S. cities — St. Louis, New Orleans, Detroit, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Indianapolis and Richmond, Virginia — with higher rates.
Chicago reported 573 homicides in 2024, the most of any U.S. city that year. But violent crime dropped significantly in the first half of the year, representing the steepest decline in over a decade, according to city data. Shootings and homicides were down more than 30% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same time last year.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has said the city and state will sue once the federal intervention begins.
Trump says intervention in Baltimore is necessary
Trump’s comments about Baltimore being included in his obligation to protect the country follows local officials in that city and Moore opposing federal law enforcement intervention.
Moore spokesman David Turner said, “While we try to decipher exactly what the President meant today, the Governor has been consistently clear: The use of the National Guard for municipal policing is theatrical and not sustainable.”
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott listed some of the city’s recent accomplishments in curbing gun violence. Scott has repeatedly accused the president of using racist rhetoric and targeting Black-led cities, like Baltimore and Chicago.
“Here’s the reality in Baltimore,” Scott wrote on X, noting that Baltimore homicides have reached historic lows amid sustained declines including the lowest number of homicides on record for the month of August.
Trump said his efforts in Washington have ensured it “is now a safe zone. We have no crime.”
The White House announced separately Tuesday that more than 1,650 people have been arrested since the Trump administration first mobilized federal officials on Aug. 7.
“This was a beautiful thing that happened in Washington,” Trump said “because we showed that it could be done.”
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Associated Press writers Lea Skene in Baltimore and Brian Witte in Annapolis, Maryland, contributed to this report. Tareen reported from Chicago.
JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AP) — The United Nations warned of an exponential rise in casualties from a major earthquake in eastern Afghanistan, as the Taliban said the death toll passed 1,400 on Tuesday, with more than 3,000 people injured.
The figures provided by Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid were just for the province of Kunar.
Sunday night’s powerful 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck several provinces, causing extensive damage. It flattened villages and trapped people under the rubble of homes constructed mostly of mud bricks and wood that were unable to withstand the shock.
Desperate Afghans clawed through rubble in search of missing loved ones after a strong earthquake killed some 900 people and injured 3,000 more in eastern Afghanistan, according to figures provided Monday by the Taliban government. (AP Video)
Rough terrain is hampering rescue and relief efforts, forcing Taliban authorities to air-drop dozens of commandos to evacuate the injured from places where helicopters cannot land.
Aid agency Save the Children said one of its teams walked for over 12 miles (19 kilometers) to reach villages cut off by rock falls, carrying medical equipment on their backs with the help of community members.
An aftershock of 5.2 magnitude close to the epicenter of Sunday’s quake rattled the area on Tuesday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. There were no immediate reports of damage.
Indrika Ratwatte, the U.N.’s resident coordinator for Afghanistan, said rescuers are scrambling in a “race against time” to reach the mountainous and remote area. In a media briefing in Geneva Tuesday, he warned of a surge in casualty numbers.
“We cannot afford to forget the people of Afghanistan who are facing multiple crises, multiple shocks, and the resilience of the communities has been saturated,” Ratwatte said, while urging the international community to step forward.
“These are life and death decisions while we race against time to reach people,” he said.
Ratwatte said that when the walls of wooden and mud homes collapse, the roof falls on the occupants, causing injury or death. While the area was low-density, the earthquake struck when everybody was asleep.
“If you were to model it based on what has happened before, clearly there’s no question that the casualty rate is going to be rather exponential,” he said.
Aid is trickling in to help victims
The Taliban government, which is only recognized by Russia, has appealed for assistance from the international community and the humanitarian sector. However, help for Afghanistan is in short supply due to competing global crises and reduced aid budgets in donor countries.
The United Nations humanitarian office released $5 million from its emergency fund to help kickstart the U.N. response and that will be matched by $5 million from the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund, U.N. spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said Tuesday.
The U.N. has dispatched at least 25 assessment teams to the region, deploying essential items including blankets and solar lamps to areas that can be reached, Dujarric said. Humanitarian experts said that immediate priorities include emergency shelter, critical medical supplies, drinking water and emergency food aid.
The U.K. has pledged 1 million pounds ($1.3 million) to be split between humanitarian agencies rather than going to the Taliban government, which it does not recognize.
The European Union is sending 130 tons of emergency supplies and providing 1 million euros ($1.16 million). Other countries, including the United Arab Emirates, India and China have pledged disaster relief support.
But earthquake victims are bearing the brunt of opposition to the Taliban government, especially their restrictive policies on Afghan girls and women, including a ban on them working for NGOs. Donor countries had already scaled back their funding and, earlier this year, the U.S. gutted aid to Afghanistan, partly due to concerns that money was going to the Taliban administration.
Kate Carey, the deputy head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Afghanistan, said more than 420 health facilities had closed or were suspended due to the “massive reduction” in funding, with 80 of them in the eastern region, the heart of Sunday’s quake.
“The consequence is that the remaining facilities are overwhelmed, have insufficient supplies and personnel, and are not as close to the affected populations as the more local facilities at a time when providing emergency trauma care is needed in the first 24 to 72 hours of the earthquake response,” said Carey.
Taliban authorities have set up a camp in Kunar to organize supplies and emergency aid. There are also two centers to coordinate the transportation of the injured, the burial of the dead, and the rescue of survivors.
____
Associated Press writers Jamey Keaten in Geneva and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Two NASCAR teams, one owned by NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan, on Tuesday argued to a federal judge why the organizations still should be issued a preliminary injunction to be recognized as chartered organizations until their antitrust suit against the stock car racing series is finished.
23XI Racing, the team owned by Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin, and Front Row Motorsports, owned by entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, are suing NASCAR over antitrust claims regarding the charter system. A charter is the equivalent of a franchise and guarantees chartered cars both a spot in the 40-car field each week, as well as a significantly larger chunk of payouts.
NASCAR last September, after more than two years of contentious negotiations, presented teams with its final offer on charter extensions; 13 organization signed the agreements, but 23XI and Front Row refused.
The two teams initially won a preliminary injunction to be recognized as chartered for this season until a jury verdict on the antitrust allegations. That was overturned, and 23XI and FRM are currently competing as “open” teams. NASCAR wants the money back the teams were paid during the portion of the season they were chartered.
The teams also have appealed to have the chartered status reinstated, but NASCAR argued in court last week it has an interested buyer for one of the six charters previously held by 23XI and FRM, and it plans to immediately begin redistributing the charters. NASCAR backtracked after Thursday’s hearing, and a ruling on the preliminary injunction is expected to come from Bell this week.
NASCAR maintains that in holding off on redistributing charters, 23XI and FRM are no longer in danger of suffering irreparable harm. The teams countered Tuesday the threat still exists “because of the risk of breach claims from their irreplaceable drivers and loss of sponsors in the absence of charter rights.”
Tyler Reddick of 23XI has a clause in his contract that says the team would be in breach if his Toyota is not chartered. Jeffrey Kessler, the attorney for the two teams, indicated in court that Reddick has notified 23XI it is in breach.
Kessler also argued that NASCAR agreeing not to redistribute any charters now “does not moot Plaintiffs’ Motion for Preliminary Injunction or eliminate Plaintiffs’ irreparable harm if no relief is provided.”
The 13 teams that are chartered are becoming frustrated with the case — Bell warned last week the entire charter system is in danger of imploding if a settlement is not reached — and the non-suing teams believe their valuations are being harmed by the litigation.
Dan Towriss, the majority owner of the Spire Motorsports’ NASCAR team, as well as owner of Cadillac F1, Andretti Global and other motorsports properties, said he was “very disappointed with the direction” the lawsuit has taken.
“We had meetings with the NASCAR brass a few weeks ago and it’s ‘How can we help?’” Towriss said at last weekend’s IndyCar season finale. “What we saw (in court), what was released in that case is very inconsistent with what they (NASCAR) say privately. And so I need to understand, ‘Who am I dealing with? Which one is it? Is it the people we meet with privately, or is what you say when we’re not around?’”
Towriss said he’d also like to see NASCAR reach a settlement with 23XI and FRM.
EW YORK (AP) — Wall Street sank on Tuesday as rising pressure from the bond market pulled U.S. stocks further from their records.
The S&P 500 fell 0.7% for its worst day in a month after paring a loss that earlier reached 1.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 249 points, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 0.8%. All three are still relatively close to their recently set all-time highs.
Big Tech companies led the market lower. They’ve been soaring for years on expectations that they’ll continue to dominate the economy, but they have also shot so high that critics say their prices have become too expensive.
Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the world’s move into artificial-intelligence technology, fell 2% and was the single strongest force pulling the S&P 500 downward. Amazon sank 1.6%, and Apple dropped 1%.
The overall stock market felt pressure from rising yields in the bond market, where the 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 4.27% from 4.23% late Friday. When bonds are paying more in interest, investors are less willing to pay high prices for stocks.
Longer-term bond yields are on the rise around the world, in part because of worries about how difficult it will be for governments to repay their growing mountains of debt.
In the United States, longer-term Treasury yields are feeling additional pressure from President Donald Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve for not cutting interest rates sooner. The fear is that a less independent Fed will be less likely to make the unpopular decisions needed to keep inflation under control over the long term, such as keeping short-term rates higher than investors would like.
Tuesday was also the first opportunity for trading after a federal appeals court ruled late Friday that Trump overstepped his legal authority when announcing sweeping tariffs on almost every country on Earth, though it left the tariffs in place for now.
Trump’s tariffs have certainly created confusion across the global economy and may have hurt the U.S. job market. But less income from them could also force the U.S. government to borrow more to pay its bills, according to Scott Wren, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.
In another signal of increasing worries in financial markets, the price of gold rose to touch another record. The metal has often provided a haven for investors in times of uncertainty.
Treasury yields briefly trimmed their gains after a report on Tuesday said U.S. manufacturing shrank by more last month than economists expected. Many companies told the Institute for Supply Management that tariffs are continuing to make conditions chaotic.
“Too much uncertainty for us and our customers regarding tariffs and the U.S./global economy,” one company in the chemical products industry said, while noting that orders across most product lines have weakened.
The worse-than-expected data on manufacturing could give the Federal Reserve more leeway to cut its main interest rate for the first time this year at its next meeting in a couple of weeks. That’s the widespread expectation among traders, though economic reports coming later this week could change things.
The highlight for the week is coming on Friday, when economists expect a report to show that U.S. employers upped their hiring by a bit last month. Last month’s weaker-than-expected jobs report raised worries about the economy and cranked up expectations for coming cuts to rates by the Fed.
On Wall Street, Constellation Brands tumbled 6.6% after the beer, wine and spirits company warned that it’s seen a slowdown in purchases of its high-end beers, particularly among its Hispanic customers. That pushed it to slash its forecast for profit this fiscal year.
One of the companies will include shelf stable meals and include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include the Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables brands. The official names of the two companies will be released later.
Among the stock market’s few gainers was PepsiCo, which rose 1.1% after an investment firm said it sent suggestions to the company’s board to reaccelerate its growth and boost financial performance. The investor, Elliott Investment Management, has a history of buying into companies and pushing for big changes that can lead to better stock performance.
All told, the S&P 500 fell 44.72 points to 6,415.54. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 249.07 to 45,295.81, and the Nasdaq composite sank 175.92 to 21,279.63.
In stock markets abroad, indexes slumped across Europe, with Germany’s DAX losing 2.3%. That followed a more mixed finish in Asia, where indexes rose 0.9% in Seoul but fell 0.5% in Hong Kong.
EW YORK (AP) — Wall Street sank on Tuesday as rising pressure from the bond market pulled U.S. stocks further from their records.
The S&P 500 fell 0.7% for its worst day in a month after paring a loss that earlier reached 1.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 249 points, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 0.8%. All three are still relatively close to their recently set all-time highs.
Big Tech companies led the market lower. They’ve been soaring for years on expectations that they’ll continue to dominate the economy, but they have also shot so high that critics say their prices have become too expensive.
Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the world’s move into artificial-intelligence technology, fell 2% and was the single strongest force pulling the S&P 500 downward. Amazon sank 1.6%, and Apple dropped 1%.
The overall stock market felt pressure from rising yields in the bond market, where the 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 4.27% from 4.23% late Friday. When bonds are paying more in interest, investors are less willing to pay high prices for stocks.
Longer-term bond yields are on the rise around the world, in part because of worries about how difficult it will be for governments to repay their growing mountains of debt.
In the United States, longer-term Treasury yields are feeling additional pressure from President Donald Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve for not cutting interest rates sooner. The fear is that a less independent Fed will be less likely to make the unpopular decisions needed to keep inflation under control over the long term, such as keeping short-term rates higher than investors would like.
Tuesday was also the first opportunity for trading after a federal appeals court ruled late Friday that Trump overstepped his legal authority when announcing sweeping tariffs on almost every country on Earth, though it left the tariffs in place for now.
Trump’s tariffs have certainly created confusion across the global economy and may have hurt the U.S. job market. But less income from them could also force the U.S. government to borrow more to pay its bills, according to Scott Wren, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.
In another signal of increasing worries in financial markets, the price of gold rose to touch another record. The metal has often provided a haven for investors in times of uncertainty.
Treasury yields briefly trimmed their gains after a report on Tuesday said U.S. manufacturing shrank by more last month than economists expected. Many companies told the Institute for Supply Management that tariffs are continuing to make conditions chaotic.
“Too much uncertainty for us and our customers regarding tariffs and the U.S./global economy,” one company in the chemical products industry said, while noting that orders across most product lines have weakened.
The worse-than-expected data on manufacturing could give the Federal Reserve more leeway to cut its main interest rate for the first time this year at its next meeting in a couple of weeks. That’s the widespread expectation among traders, though economic reports coming later this week could change things.
The highlight for the week is coming on Friday, when economists expect a report to show that U.S. employers upped their hiring by a bit last month. Last month’s weaker-than-expected jobs report raised worries about the economy and cranked up expectations for coming cuts to rates by the Fed.
On Wall Street, Constellation Brands tumbled 6.6% after the beer, wine and spirits company warned that it’s seen a slowdown in purchases of its high-end beers, particularly among its Hispanic customers. That pushed it to slash its forecast for profit this fiscal year.
One of the companies will include shelf stable meals and include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include the Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables brands. The official names of the two companies will be released later.
Among the stock market’s few gainers was PepsiCo, which rose 1.1% after an investment firm said it sent suggestions to the company’s board to reaccelerate its growth and boost financial performance. The investor, Elliott Investment Management, has a history of buying into companies and pushing for big changes that can lead to better stock performance.
All told, the S&P 500 fell 44.72 points to 6,415.54. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 249.07 to 45,295.81, and the Nasdaq composite sank 175.92 to 21,279.63.
In stock markets abroad, indexes slumped across Europe, with Germany’s DAX losing 2.3%. That followed a more mixed finish in Asia, where indexes rose 0.9% in Seoul but fell 0.5% in Hong Kong.
These biscuits are quick, delicious and a great use of sweet potatoes while they’re in season. Enjoy them on their own or with your favorite cozy meal.
Ingredients
1 cup sweet potato, mashed
1/2 cup milk
2 cups all-purpose flour, leveled
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, cold
Instructions
1. Prep Preheat oven to 425 degrees f and line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
2. Build the dough Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Cut the cold butter into slices and add to the flour mixture, then cut into the dry mixture with a pastry blender or a fork until the butter resembles coarse crumbs. Then, add the mashed sweet potato to the mixture and slowly add the milk until a soft dough forms..
3. Form the biscuits Put the dough on a lightly floured surface and gently pat it into a rectangle about 1/2 an inch thick. Use a drinking glass to cut out circular biscuits.
4. Bake Put the biscuits about 2 inches apart from each other on the baking sheet. Brush with more butter if you’d like and bake for 10-12 minutes.
5. Enjoy Let the biscuits cool for a few minutes, then enjoy!
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is heading to Beijing by train on Tuesday to attend a military parade with his Chinese and Russian counterparts, North Korea’s state media reported. The event could potentially demonstrate their three-way unity against the United States.
Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin are among the 26 world leaders who’ll join Chinese President Xi Jinping to watch Wednesday’s massive military parade in Beijing that commemorates the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and China’s fight against Japan’s wartime aggressions.
While the event would mark Kim’s first attendance of a major multilateral event during his 14-year rule, it would also be the first time for Kim, Xi and Putin, all key challengers of the U.S., to gather at the same venue. None of the three countries have confirmed a private trilateral leaders’ meeting.
The North’s official Korean Central News Agency reported early Tuesday that Kim left Pyongyang for Beijing by his special train on Monday to participate in the celebrations. KCNA, citing Foreign Ministry official Kim Chon Il, said that Kim Jong Un was traveling with top officials including Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui.
South Korean media reported Kim Jong Un’s train was expected to arrive in Beijing on Tuesday after confirming its arrival in the Chinese border city of Dandong on Monday night.
Kim’s travel marks his first visit to China since 2019 and the fifth visit in total since he inherited power upon his father’s death in late 2011.
Putin arrived in China on Sunday to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a regional summit, as well as the Beijing parade. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told Russia’s TASS news agency on Sunday that a meeting between Putin and Kim on the sidelines was “under consideration.”
North Korea observers are paying keen attention to Kim possibly meeting Xi bilaterally as well and holding even a trilateral meeting with Xi and Putin. The three leaders have met bilaterally previously but have yet to hold a trilateral meeting.
North Korea’s foreign policy priority has been Russia in recent years as it has been supplying troops and ammunition to support Russia’s war against Ukraine in exchange for economic and military assistance. North Korea’s relations with China have reportedly turned sour in recent years, but experts say Kim likely hopes to restore ties as China is North Korea’s biggest trading partner and aid benefactor and he would want to brace for the end of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Since aligning with Russia, North Korea has become more vocal in international affairs beyond the Korean Peninsula, issuing diplomatic statements on conflicts in the Middle East and in the Taiwan Strait, while portraying itself as a part of a united front against Washington. Some experts say Kim’s presence at the multilateral event in Beijing is part of efforts to develop partnerships with other nations close to China and Russia.
Kim’s trip comes as President Donald Trump and new liberal South Korean President Lee Jae Myung have repeatedly expressed their hopes to restart talks with North Korea. North Korea has been shunning talks with the U.S. and South Korea and pushing to expand its nuclear and missile arsenals since Kim’s earlier round of diplomacy with Trump collapsed in 2019.
Before departing for China on Monday, Kim visited a North Korean missile research institute to review progress on developing a new engine for what it called a “next-generation” intercontinental ballistic missile, KCNA reported. The North in recent years has tested various versions of ICBMs capable of reaching the U.S. mainland, and analysts say the next-generation ICBM likely refers to a long-range weapon with multiple nuclear warheads that can defeat U.S. missile defense systems.
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Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung contributed to this report.
