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Today's top stories
President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy say they are closer to achieving peace in Ukraine. The two met yesterday at Mar-a-Lago. Meanwhile, Russia's attacks on Ukraine continued over the weekend, and key issues remain unresolved.
- 🎧 The fact that the two leaders met is a sign of momentum toward a peace deal, NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben tells Up First. But a peace didn't appear to be imminent after the meeting, and both leaders said that talks would continue. One of the topics of discussion is how to handle the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine. Russia seeks to control the area, and Zelenskyy believes it should be a demilitarized zone.
Trump is expected to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today in Florida to focus on some of the items left to complete on the president's 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza. The two leaders could also discuss non-Gaza topics, such as Iran and its proxies.
- 🎧 Israeli officials say they see no signs that Hamas is ready to disarm, which may prompt Netanyahu to urge the U.S. to keep the pressure on Hamas to honor its end of the bargain, according to NPR's Michele Kelemen. Israel also shares similar sentiments about Lebanon — where Hezbollah remains a threat — and Iran, where Israelis say the country is building up its ballistic missile stockpile. Kelemen says one thing to watch for in the meeting is whether Trump will announce a board of peace or take steps forward in getting an international force on the ground in Gaza.
This has been a challenging year for groups that help those in poverty. Many have had to scale back amid federal cuts and funding chaos. To better understand the impact the Trump administration's policies have had on these organizations, NPR's Jennifer Ludden visited a group called HAPCAP in southeastern Appalachian Ohio, where Executive Director Kelly Hatas explained what has been happening since January.
- 🎧 Hatas says 80% of the group's funding comes from federal grants, which is why their biggest challenge is the uncertainty over what could be targeted next for funding cuts or pauses. The state has helped by shifting funding to fill gaps, but the group still had to pull back on things like plans to build a homeless shelter, Ludden says. Staff are leaving, driven by concerns about job security. The group has also had to lay off or reduce the hours of some staff members. Next year, potential cuts to Medicaid and SNAP food aid could leave more people in need.
Picture Show
Photography is a significant part of Goats and Soda's coverage of the joys and strife of daily life. Photos hold a special power in the team's work. From a polar bear in a Chinese zoo to a teen in Zambia facing an uncertain future, check out Goats and Soda's top photo-driven stories of 2025.
Behind the story
This essay was written by East Asia-based correspondent Anthony Kuhn and climate solutions correspondent Julia Simon.
As East Asia-based correspondent and Climate Solutions correspondent, we had the opportunity to collaborate this year in a way that journalists at few other media organizations can do.
We reported from different sides of the world on a major trend with huge repercussions for the global economy and the planet: how the U.S. and China are diverging in their energy policies. China is dominating the global renewables sector, and the U.S. is doubling down on fossil fuels.
Anthony set off for the edge of the North China Plain, where gargantuan wind turbine blades on trucks took what felt like an eternity to pass on the roads. He spoke to engineers who use smart grids, batteries and transmission lines to turn the turbines' power into a reliable supply of energy to Chinese households.
Meanwhile — more than 5,000 miles away — Julia went to far northern California, where a planned offshore wind project on Humboldt Bay has hit new roadblocks with the Trump administration. The marine terminal that will assemble the turbines was supposed to be shovel-ready as soon as 2026. But staff told Julia that's no longer realistic, in part because the Trump administration recently canceled more than $426 million in federal grants for the port.
Since the radio and digital versions of our story came out in recent weeks, the Trump administration has continued to stand in the way of the U.S. renewable energy industry. Just this week the Trump administration paused five offshore wind projects along the East Coast, calling them a national security risk. These projects had already approved federal leases, and they were already under construction.
This divergence in energy policy has huge implications for the Chinese and the U.S. economies, and for the two powers' rivalry and competition through energy tech exports.
As for the climate? Johns Hopkins University China expert Jeremy Wallace told us, "China's efforts are the main story for fighting climate change."
You can find out more in our NPR story — all without a paywall — here.
3 things to know before you go
- Do you have this missing painting? A New York curator is hunting for Music by Gabriele Münter. It's a significant work that has been out of public view since the 1970s.
- Brigitte Bardot, the international sex goddess of cinema in the 1950s and 1960s who later became an animal rights activist, has died at the age of 91.
- Most people mark the new year on Jan. 1 because of the Gregorian calendar. Given the existence of diverse systems such as the Chinese and Hebrew calendars, here's how this specific date became the global standard for new beginnings.
This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.
Copyright 2025 NPR