US Secretary of State Marco Rubio under fire from Democratic senators over Iran policy; Mixed reactions from business and unions on the Fair Work wage decision; And in sport, The Socceroos settle into their World Cup base camp.
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TRANSCRIPT:
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio under fire from Democratic senators over Iran policy
- Mixed reactions from business and unions on the Fair Work wage decision
- The Socceroos settle into their World Cup base camp
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has faced tough questioning from Democratic senators during a congressional hearing on the Trump administration's foreign policy.
Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen has accused President Donald Trump of recklessly entering the conflict with Iran and described the administration's foreign policy as a "dumpster fire".
Mr Rubio was also pressed on efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and on what concessions Washington is seeking from Tehran.
The secretary has said the United States wants Iran to stop threatening commercial shipping and reopen the waterway, and that Iran would not receive sanctions relief for reopening the vital shipping route for global oil supplies.
RUBIO: “They will have to reopen the strait. If they refuse to do so, then we have other options available to us, but we would prefer to negotiate the opening of this, which means-”
MURPHY: “Tell us about the negotiations. What do you need from them in order to get the strait reopened? We need the strait reopened tomorrow.”
RUBIO: "Well, what needs to happen is very simple. They need to announce that they will no longer fire on commercial ships that are going through, or threaten to, because in many cases ships just won’t move.”
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US President Donald Trump has reportedly called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "crazy" during a heated phone call over Israel's military operations in Lebanon.
According to reports citing US officials, Mr Trump was furious that Israeli strikes risked derailing talks with Iran and complained that Israel's actions were costing it international support.
The reports say Mr Trump told Mr Netanyahu that "everybody hates Israel because of this" and pressed him to pull back from a major operation targeting Beirut.
The call reportedly ended with Israel backing away from a larger strike on the Lebanese capital, although Prime Minister Netanyahu later said Israel's position towards Hezbollah remained unchanged.
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Russia has launched hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles at Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities in one of its latest large-scale aerial attacks.
Ukrainian authorities say at least 22 people have been killed, including six people in Kyiv, and 16 in the deadliest strike in the city of Dnipro.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has renewed calls for greater Western air defence support, saying Russia's missile attacks will continue unless Ukraine receives stronger protection.
Meanwhile, residents like Olesia Yevlakhovych who runs a clinic in Kyiv, says residents are in despair.
"I think Russia does not want to end the war. It continues to terrorise Ukraine, kill our people, and destroy our buildings and civilian infrastructure. This is a crime. It is truly a crime."
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Australian union and business groups have expressed mixed reactions to the Fair Work Commission minimum wage increase of 4.75 per cent.
The Australian Council of Trade Unions was calling for a six per cent rise, and its President Sally McManus has welcomed the decision.
"This is a really good outcome for everyone struggling with cost of living, in particular, of course, lowest paid Aussies are the ones that are struggling the most with cost of living, and they need this pay rise absolutely. This will allow them to not just pay their bills, but to start making up some of what they've lost since 2021."
The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry had recommended a 3.5 per cent increase.
ACCI Policy Chief David Alexander says businesses will struggle with this outcome.
"For some small businesses, this will be too much to bear, so they're being asked to wear an increase in their wage costs of four point seven five percent. So, for some businesses, they will pass that on, and it'll end up in inflation."
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Australians travelling to Europe have been warned they may face four- to six-hour delays due to the European Union's new digital Entry/Exit System (EES).
DFAT's Smartraveller alert has warned the recently-introduced EES has caused some travellers to miss flights.
The new system went live at the end of April, and provides a digital identity record for non-EU nationals, allowing travellers to visit the Schengen area without going through border controls or getting a visa for each country.
The Schengen area consists of 29 European countries that share common border rules.
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And in sport, The Socceroos have settled into their base camp in California, with the World Cup a little more than a week away.
The 26-man squad are currently at Oakland, on the edge of Silicon Valley in California.
The squad has another chance to fine-tune in the final warm-up match against Switzerland on Sunday morning, before their opening match against Turkiye on June 14, at 2pm AEST.
For Socceroos coach Tony Popovic's new addition Tete Yengi, it's been a whirlwind six-months - from Scotland, to Japan, and now on the cusp of appearing in a world-cup match.
"I don't know if it's really sunk in yet. Football is a journey, only some players stay at one club, I've had the opportunity to move around numerous clubs and countries. I've taken bits from everywhere I've been and kind of put it together and it's made me who I am today and I'm grateful for that."
