The Irish Press - News from Dublin, Kilkenny, Waterford, Drogheda, Galyway, Ireland and the world

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday held a new meeting on Ukraine in a bid to coordinate a European response to what he called an "existential threat" from Russia after a shock policy shift in Washington.

Prosecutors demanded a near five-year jail sentence Wednesday for Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik for defying the envoy who oversees the peace accords that ended the country's bloody 1990s war.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday hailed progress in talks with the United States, a day after top diplomats met in Saudi Arabia and as a public spat between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and US counterpart Donald Trump deepened.

Italian prosecutors on Wednesday called for Napoli and the club's owner Aurelio De Laurentiis to stand trial for false accounting related to transfers, including that of Serie A title hero Victor Osimhen.

Stand-in boss Matt Sherratt is poised to make sweeping changes to the Wales team beaten by Italy in the Six Nations, a defeat that brought the curtain down on Warren Gatland's second spell as coach, for the visit of champions Ireland.

Tajikistan said Wednesday it would publish a new book updating the country's dress "guidelines" for women, tightening the secular state's policing of women's clothing.

Rangers chief executive Patrick Stewart said Philippe Clement will remain in charge of Rangers on Wednesday despite what he described as a shameful and "disastrous" Scottish Cup exit to second-tier Queen's Park.

India captain Rohit Sharma on Wednesday said he hopes "classy" batter Shubman Gill carries his blazing form into the Champions Trophy.

Pakistan's President Asif Zardari joined thousands of fans at the National Stadium in Karachi on Wednesday for the start of the Champions Trophy, the first international cricket tournament to be hosted in the country for three decades.

Pope Francis, in hospital with pneumonia, is propelled by an energy and stubborn drive that has taken him far -- but could yet prove to be his undoing.

Ademola Lookman said Wednesday that he was hurt by "disrespectful" criticism of his penalty taking by his own coach Gian Piero Gasperini after Atalanta's elimination from the Champions League by Club Brugge.

Global stock markets mostly fell Wednesday after US President Donald Trump broadened his tariff threats, stoking wider trade war fears.

Manchester United paid a total of £14.5 million ($18.3 million) to sack manager Erik ten Hag, sporting director Dan Ashworth and other members of their football staff, according to the fallen English giants' latest accounts published Wednesday.

To resist, ignore or yield? Hollywood and the film industry, long a haven for progressive idealists, are braced for difficult choices in the era of US President Donald Trump.

There is a very small chance that an asteroid capable of taking out an entire city could strike Earth in less than eight years. But even if this asteroid is hurtling our way, humanity is now able to defend itself against such a threat, experts say.

Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar opened his 2025 account with victory in the third stage of the UAE Tour on Wednesday.

Manchester United paid a total of £14.5 million ($18.3 million) to sack manager Erik ten Hag, sporting director Dan Ashworth and other members of their football staff, according to the fallen English giants' latest accounts published Wednesday.

Hamas signalled on Wednesday that it was willing to free all remaining hostages held in Gaza in a single swap during the next phase of the ongoing ceasefire agreement.

Will Young and Tom Latham hit sparkling centuries to guide New Zealand to 320-5 on Wednesday in the opening match of the Champions Trophy, marking Pakistan's first international tournament in three decades.

France's right-dominated Senate has backed a bill to ban religious symbols including the Muslim headscarf in all sport competitions, professional and amateur, sparking accusations of discrimination from the left and rights advocates.

Argentina international forward Guido Petti Pagadizabal will join Harlequins for the 2025/26 season from French club Bordeaux-Begles, the English Premiership side announced Wednesday

Jasmine Paolini's defence of her Dubai Championships title ended on Wednesday with the Italian knocked out in the last 16 by Sofia Kenin.

Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham was hit with a two-match La Liga ban on Wednesday by the Spanish football federation's disciplinary committee after he was sent off for dissent.

Arsenal defender Takehiro Tomiyasu will miss the rest of the season following surgery on his right knee, the Premier League title contenders announced Wednesday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday accused Donald Trump of succumbing to Russian "disinformation", deepening a rift between Kyiv and the new US administration.

The gutting of US foreign aid has left Ghana facing a $156 million funding shortfall, with the health care and agriculture sectors bracing for shortages of drugs and fertiliser.

Four British women who have accused notorious influencer Andrew Tate of rape said Wednesday they were "concerned" by reports the US government was petitioning Romania to ease his travel restrictions.

Matthieu Jalibert, who started France's last Six Nations game against England, will miss this weekend's third round match in Rome, the French Rugby Federation announced on Wednesday, adding that he was "ill".

A collaboration between the Serbian anti-doping agency and law enforcement operatives who seized 3,000 kilogrammes of performance-enhancing drugs and broke up an organised crime gang last year is "the future in the fight against doping", WADA's Director of Intelligence and Investigations Gunter Younger has told AFP.

AC Milan are licking self-inflicted wounds after a painful Champions League exit at the hands of Feyenoord which has cast a dark shadow over what has already been an awful season.

Swiss mining and commodity trading giant Glencore said Wednesday it was considering shifting its stock listing from London after it stumbled into a net loss last year on falling coal prices and writing down the value of assets.

European and Asian markets mostly fell Wednesday after US President Donald Trump broadened his tariff threats stoking wider trade war fears.

Europe is struggling to make its voice heard as the United States barrels ahead with Russia on talks to end the war in Ukraine.

Ukraine's President Volodymr Zelensky has an approval rating of 57 percent, according to a poll released Wednesday hours after US President Donald Trump said Zelensky's rating was just four percent.

British military equipment maker BAE Systems on Wednesday announced a five percent rise in annual net profit, boosted by government defence spending amid the war in Ukraine.

Pakistan's largest city was abuzz with anticipation and apprehension Wednesday as the hosts played the opening match of the nation's first major international cricket tournament in three decades.

Swiss mining and commodity trading giant Glencore said Wednesday that falling coal prices and writedowns to the value of its assets pushed it into a net loss for 2024.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and opposition leader Friedrich Merz will face off in a final head-to-head debate Wednesday, four days before the election, in a campaign overshadowed by the rise of the far right.

Pope Francis's heart is holding up very well despite his pneumonia, a Vatican source said Wednesday, amid growing concerns over the hospitalised 88-year-old's condition.