Cuba is prepared for the unlikely possibility of military engagement with ‌the US, Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio says in response to US President Donald Trump’s threats to take over ‌the Caribbean island nation.

Havana and Washington entered talks earlier this month as an oil blockade imposed by Trump pushes the Communist-run nation deeper into economic crisis. 

Trump on Monday escalated his rhetoric against Cuba, ‌saying he ‌expected to ⁠have the “honour” of taking Cuba.

“Our country has historically ​been ready to mobilise as a nation as a whole for military aggression … We don’t believe it is something that is probable, but we would be naive if we do not prepare,” de Cossio told ⁠NBC ‌on ​Sunday. 

“We don’t see why it would have to occur, and we find ​no justification ‌whatsoever.”

Reports had suggested the Trump administration was seeking to remove Cuban ​President Miguel Diaz-Canel from power.

De Cossio also said any suggestion of the nature, the structure, or members of the ​Cuban ​government being subject to negotiation ​in talks with the US is ‌untrue.

He added that a regime change is “absolutely” off the table in discussions with the United States.

The US military is not rehearsing for an invasion of Cuba or actively preparing to militarily take over the ​island, the top general overseeing American forces in Latin America ​told MPs on Thursday.

Adding to clean energy supply and minimising water footprints will become national expectations for new data centres built on Australian soil.

Operators that further invest in worker training and supply affordable computing power to local startups and researchers can also expect priority treatment.

The keenly anticipated data centre national principles are not legal requirements, but development proposals that meet expectations will be prioritised under federal regulatory assessments.

Australia has the second-largest pipeline of data centre construction in the world,  after the US, with investment booming globally to accommodate the computing needs of artificial intelligence. 

The federal government has welcomed the economic uplift and job creation but the massive energy and water needs of the facilities have given policymakers pause.

Unions, environmental groups and clean energy industry bodies joined forces in February to demand an energy and water-self-sufficient sector committed to upskilling workers.

Energy has been a particular focus as the nation struggles to roll out renewable sources fast enough to meet climate goals and supply fledgling green export industries.

Data centres consume about two per cent of grid-supplied electricity, but that share is expected to triple by 2030 due to the AI surge. 

In addition to bringing their own clean energy or storage to offset demand on the grid, operators will be expected to cover the full share of power connection costs and support network stability.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen said it was important to get the investment settings right to keep the electricity system secure and prices low.

“Data centres have great potential to support our grid and expand new renewable investment,” he said.

Sustainable water use will also be viewed favourably to protect local drinking supplies, with recycled and non-potable water use encouraged where possible. 

Assistant minister Andrew Charlton said the national expectations would maintain community confidence in the fast-growing sector. 

“We will do what is necessary to ensure the growth of AI is sustainable and underpinned by a strong social license,” he said.

Work to implement the principles is under way with state and territory governments and industry.

The federal opposition has been critical of the government’s response to the AI infrastructure boom, saying Australia risks losing investment to competitors without faster planning processes and ready access to affordable and reliable energy.

Opposition industry spokesman Andrew Hastie favours using Australia’s abundant fossil fuels and uranium to power data centres and high-tech manufacturing.

Ukrainian President ‌Volodymyr Zelenskiy has urged allies to keep up sanctions pressure on Russia ahead of a second day of talks ‌between Ukrainian and US officials on ways to end the four-year-old war, triggered by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russian representatives ‌were not present at the weekend talks, which opened in Florida. 

They were originally expected to attend the negotiations, which were due to take place in Abu Dhabi.

The US team is led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.

Zelenskiy on Sunday ‌called for tougher action ⁠against Russia’s so-called shadow fleet and for Moscow to be denied oil ​revenue.

“Revenues give Russia a sense of impunity and the ability to continue the war. That is why pressure must continue and sanctions must work,” Zelenskiy said on X.

“Russia’s shadow fleet must not feel safe in European waters or anywhere else. Tankers that serve the war budget can and must be stopped and blocked, not just let go.”

The ⁠French Navy seized an oil tanker in the Western Mediterranean last ‌week ​that President Emmanuel Macron said was part of Russia’s shadow fleet, a network of vessels used to export oil despite ​Western sanctions.

The ‌shadow fleet, which has grown following Western sanctions on Russia aimed at curbing Moscow’s oil revenues, has helped to ​keep Russian oil exports flowing.

Elements of the peace plan being promoted by the US include a presidential election in Ukraine, alongside territorial concessions.

Zelenskiy, whose term has already expired, is under renewed pressure ​from ​Trump to hold a vote as Washington ​pushes Kyiv towards a peace deal.

Ukrainian law bars wartime elections, ‌but Zelenskiy has said Ukraine would be ready to hold democratic elections if the US secured a two-month ceasefire to allow time to prepare infrastructure and put security guarantees in place.

But Ukraine’s former top general, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, now ambassador to Britain and seen as a potential presidential candidate, said Ukraine needed not elections, but peace won through war.

“What Ukraine ​needs is not time to prepare for and hold elections, but a peace won through war, which ​will secure a future for our ⁠children,” he wrote in an article published on Sunday by Ukrainian outlet NV. 

Australian and European officials are hoping to thrash out the final points of a long-awaited trade deal after progress on a key sticking point of naming products such as cheese and wine.

European Union President Ursula von der Leyen will arrive in Sydney on Monday for a three-day visit, during which she will meet Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and become the first female foreign leader to address federal parliament.

Ms Von Der Leyen and Mr Albanese are widely expected to sign an Australia-EU free-trade agreement, ending a years-long saga defined by stalled negotiations and previously intractable disputes.

They are also expected to speak about Australia’s world-first social media age ban, which some European countries are planning to emulate.

Trade Minister Don Farrell and his counterpart Maros Sefcovic will discuss the free-trade deal on Monday.

Previous negotiations have fallen apart largely due to disagreements over the agriculture sector.

The Australian side wants meat producers to be allowed to sell more of their product to the European market, a push resisted by EU negotiators who want to protect their farmers from increased competition.

Some farmers are likely to be disappointed with the level of access to European markets locked in by the deal, but the two sides have still made positive progress, a source close to the negotiations but not authorised to speak publicly told AAP.

Europe has also wanted to strip Australian farmers of the right to use geographic naming indicators like feta, parmesan and prosecco.

A compromise is likely to be reached on that dispute when the final agreement is struck.

Former Australian trade official Prudence Gordon said the drive for an agreement showed Europe and Australia were trying to push back on US President Donald Trump’s overturning of traditional trade systems.

“The fact that Australia and the EU are negotiating this trade agreement now really signals their efforts to counter the chaos created by Donald Trump,” the now-executive director of the Australian Centre for International Trade and Investment told AAP.

Mr Albanese has sought to frame the deal as a win for Australian exporters who could rake in an extra $10 billion annually.

It would potentially boost access for Australian businesses to a growing European market of 450 million consumers, who are eager to get their teeth into local products, he told a recent gathering of food and beverage makers.

One Nation has completed its arrival as a political force despite failing to win more than a handful of seats at the South Australian election, analysts say.

The Peter Malinauskas-led Labor eased back into power in the weekend poll, but it was the anti-immigration party that hogged the headlines after beating the Liberals to second place with 22 per cent of the primary vote.

With more than 60 per cent of ballots counted on Sunday, One Nation was expected to win at least one lower-house seat and could snatch as many as four.

But experts said the meagre return in the 47-seat state parliament did not capture the magnitude of the result.

Redbridge Group director and former Victorian Labor strategist Kos Samaras said the vote suggested One Nation’s high polling across other jurisdictions, including federally, was accurate.

“We knew they were going to destabilise the market, but if you were to grab what happened in South Australia, put it in Victoria, NSW and Queensland, they win more state seats there,” he told AAP.

“SA, being a state that normally should not favour a political movement like One Nation, has now shone a great big light on the reality that what we’re seeing in the polling numbers across the country is indeed more than protest.”

That Opposition Leader Ashton Hurn celebrated her party’s apparent survival summed up the Liberal Party’s increasing irrelevance, Flinders University public-policy lecturer Josh Sunman said.

Shifting to the right to tackle One Nation remained the Liberals’ most likely move, he said.

“They need to stop haemorrhaging primary votes to One Nation as first order of business before they can turn to winning moderates in cities or government,” Mr Sunman told AAP.

“You’ve got to put out the fire in your own house before you go fighting them elsewhere.”

Meanwhile, the premier’s “inclusive patriotism” victory-speech references perhaps signalled his – and federal Labor’s – likely approach to One Nation.

“It’ll be interesting to see if the federal government, who of course actually control issues like migration, are going to adopt similar stances and directly take on One Nation, rather than just treating it as a problem for the Liberal Party,” Mr Sunam said.

A recent Newspoll put One Nation support at 27 per cent nationally, behind Labor but well ahead of the coalition.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang has pledged to further ‌open up the economy and fully implement national treatment for foreign enterprises ‌as the country seeks to reassure the outside world amid rising global trade ‌tensions.

Beijing will focus on promoting high-quality development and continue to create a favourable business environment so companies coming to China can develop with confidence and achieve great success, Li told the China Development Forum in Beijing, ‌state media ‌reported on Sunday.

The annual ⁠two-day forum, which concludes on Monday, serves as ​a platform for Beijing to promote its economic trajectory and investment opportunities to foreign business leaders, Chinese officials, economists and academics.

This year’s gathering comes as the world’s second-largest economy faces rising tensions with major trading partners over 2025’s record $US1.2 ($A1.7) trillion trade surplus. ‌

It ​also precedes an expected visit from US President Donald Trump, who postponed a ​trip originally ‌planned for late March due to the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Senior executives ​attending include those from Apple, Samsung Electronics, Volkswagen, chipmaker Broadcom Inc, industrial conglomerate Siemens, chemical producer BASF and pharmaceutical firm Novartis.

There were no ​Japanese ​company executives on the guest list on the forum’s ‌website.

Li said China would import more high-quality goods and work with trading partners to promote balanced trade development and expand the global trade pie, describing China as committed to being a “cornerstone of certainty” and “harbour of ​stability” for the world economy.

He said opening up and technological progress ​were needed to create ⁠new markets.

Six cancelled oil shipments won’t trigger a fuel shortage in Australia, but experts warn the axed deliveries highlight the nation’s vulnerability to global supply disruptions.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen revealed the tanker cancellations on Sunday as he conceded there could be “bumps in supply” due to the conflict in the Middle East.

Iran’s decision to effectively close the Strait of Hormuz – a key global trade route – in response to American and Israeli strikes has sent global oil prices skyrocketing.

Domestic petrol and diesel prices have soared, but the government has repeatedly said shortages in some regional and rural areas were caused by panic-buying rather than supply issues.

More than 80 shipments of fuel were delivered to Australia in the average month, Mr Bowen said, but a handful had been scrapped in recent weeks.

“We’re aware of six boats that have been cancelled,” he told the ABC’s Insiders program.

“Some of those have already been replaced by the importers and refiners with other sources.”

Swinburne University expert Hussein Dia said six tankers being cancelled did not constitute a nationwide fuel shortage with supply chains adjusting and alternate shipments being sourced.

But Professor Dia said it highlighted the deeper structural issue with Australia’s fuel system, given the nation imported 80 to 90 per cent of its liquid fuels.

“That makes us vulnerable to global disruptions, whether from geopolitical tensions, refinery outages, or shifts in international demand,” he told AAP.

“What we are seeing at the moment is not a collapse in supply, but increasing volatility … if disruptions become more sustained or widespread, pressure on fuel availability could grow, particularly in regional areas where supply chains are more fragile.”

Sunshine Coast University finance expert Sajid Anwar said the cancellations were a critical stress test for the nation’s energy resilience while people also battled rising inflation.

“With households facing a double-whammy of record fuel prices and rising mortgage repayments, the risk of a broader economic contraction has intensified, making responsible consumer behaviour – such as avoiding panic buying and adopting fuel-efficient driving – essential to stabilising the market,” he said.

The flow of oil to refineries in Asia had slowed, creating flow-on impacts for Australia, Mr Bowen said.

It was highly unlikely that Australia’s international fuel supply would be cut off all, but he admitted there might be rough patches.

“It’s much more likely that there’ll be bumps in supply, but that governments will work with the refiners and importers to manage those and minimise the impact,” the minister said.

Some service stations in regional areas have run dry as petrol prices soar to well over $2.50 a litre and diesel surpasses $3 in some locations.

Mr Bowen said Australia’s two refineries were both working “full pelt” to produce fuel for domestic use and the nation’s total supplies had not changed since the start of the conflict.

Opposition transport spokeswoman Bridget McKenzie suggested Australia should look to biofuels to help ease the shortage.

“Alternative home-grown Australian biofuel blended fuel can help reduce this exposure, support national energy resilience and reduce emissions,” the Nationals senator said.

A category five inflation storm is bearing down on Australian consumers.

As war in the Middle East continues to roil global energy markets, the impact is already being felt domestically.

Not only are motorists feeling under the pump as they fill up, industries ranging from construction to aviation are warning prices will have to increase as they pass on the rising cost of fuel.

The impact of the conflict on already-high inflation prompted the Reserve Bank to hike interest rates for a second straight month on Tuesday.

Money markets have doubled down on bets the RBA will follow up with another in May, amid mounting inflation expectations as the war has dragged on.

The central bank will closely scrutinise inflation data for February, set to be published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday.

Commonwealth Bank head of Australian economics Belinda Allen said the release will offer one last bit of information about how prices were tracking before the conflict.

She expects a fall in annual headline inflation from 3.8 per cent to 3.7 per cent, driven in part by a 2.8 per cent decline in fuel costs.

As the sight of petrol prices approaching $3 a litre indicates, it’s the calm before the storm.

The ABS’s February reference period predates the recent surge in the price of fuel, which is set to jump beyond 25 per cent through March, said NAB senior economist Taylor Nugent.

“In broad terms, the cost shock emanating from the Middle East will appear first and most obviously through automotive fuel prices, which will add around one percentage point to March CPI, sending the year-ended rate up to around 4.6 per cent,” he said.

Higher airfares will flow through from April for domestic and May for international flights, while higher costs passed through other industries such as transport, logistics, agriculture, packaging, manufacturing and construction will be evident over coming months, he said.

None of this will show up in Wednesday’s data.

But luckily for the RBA, March inflation data is due to be released before its next meeting in May and will provide a much clearer impression of the direction of the economy post-conflict.

The increase in fuel costs won’t show up in the RBA’s preferred quarterly trimmed mean inflation measure, which omits volatile items.

Because the price spike came late in the quarter, most of the impact will only be felt in the June quarter, where NAB currently predicts headline inflation peaking at five per cent, Mr Nugent said.

“The (March) data has in some ways been overtaken by events but it remains important as the RBA refines its assessment of how inflationary domestic conditions were before the Iran shock,” he said.

Investors on Wall Street are similarly worried about inflation and higher interest rates, and appear resigned to the fact the Iran conflict will run longer than expected.

The S&P 500 lost 99.01 points, or 1.49 per cent, to end at 6,508.32 points, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 436.98 points to 21,653.71 and the Dow Jones ​fell 422.32 points to 45,599.11.

Australian share futures slumped 156 points, or 1.83 per cent, to 17,617.

With the ASX trading at its weakest level in nine months, the S&P/ASX200 fell 69.4 points on Friday, down 0.82 per cent to 8,428.4, as the broader All Ordinaries lost 62.4 points, or 0.72 per cent, to 8,628.3.

Seven years ago, dairy farming team Kate Mirams and her husband Peter Neaves took a leap, and it changed their soil forever.

Perplexed by the cost of keeping their herd in peak condition and keen to elevate the quality of their produce, they decided to experiment.

The result is a flourishing regenerative farming operation.

At a time when primary producers are staring down the barrel of financial hardship brought on by conflict in the Middle East, the couple won’t be forking out big dollars for pasture-boosting fertilisers.

In fact they have very little need for the synthetic nitrogen crop inputs that are in short supply via the closed Strait of Hormuz.

Now or ever.

Their 130-hectare Gippsland property does, however, boast some of the highest pasture consumption rates in its region as measured by Dairy Australia’s annual monitoring project.

They also rank in the top 25 per cent for return on assets.

It’s captured the attention of other landholders both near and far, too, with 75 of them attending a field day at the Macalister River property this month.

“I’d say there’s still some people who feel a bit confronted by what we’re doing, but there’s definitely more interest,” Ms Mirams says. 

She and Mr Neaves have essentially shifted to practices centred on biology and ecology, demonstrating that it’s possible to remain profitable while reducing fossil fuel inputs and building soil and landscape health.

“It’s a joyous thing,” she tells AAP.

“I can enable microbes to give me something like $60,000 worth of free fertiliser and also to know that my soils are continuously improving, and so is the quality of the food I’m providing.”

The farm these days uses about a tenth of the synthetic fertilisers it previously did with no impact on grass or milk production.

It’s soils are also cooler and retain more moisture, creating a layer of resistance to fire and flood. 

Key to the success has been diversity.

Ms Mirams and Mr Neaves grow up to 14 different species of pasture plants at once.

To begin with, some conventional fertilisers were used to boost growth but it was mixed with water and applied to the plant leaves rather than added to the soil where it could leach away.

Worm juice packed with calcium, magnesium and beneficial microbes was also added to their crop seed.

The focus on healthier plants eventually meant soil improvement.

“So, here we are seven years later and we’ve had extraordinary results,” Ms Mirams says.

“It’s regenerative; farming for soil health if you like.”

For Soils for Life chief executive Eli Court, the opportunity to invest in the practice highlights the best of reasons for reducing Australia’s reliance on fossil fuels and chemical inputs.

“Around 90 per cent of our urea is imported and around half of that comes from Gulf countries. It’s therefore at risk as a result of the conflict,” he says.

“Shoring up fertiliser supplies at a time of crisis like this, is definitely important, critically important.

“Farmers need it, so we have to make sure that that supply is available.

“But like any other market issue, there are two sides the equation: there’s the supply side and the demand side and … the public conversation, seems to be pretty focused on the supply side.”

Fertiliser prices are experiencing a sharp surge, with urea jumping up to 50 per cent in recent weeks due to shipping disruptions at the Strait of Hormuz.

Yet Soils for Life would argue that Australia’s National Food Security Strategy risks continuing to hitch food security to imported fuel inputs.

“We can look at making sure the supply of the things we need to produce food in this country are available,” Mr Court says.

“And we can look at making sure on the demand side, we have the least possible need for external inputs that might be disrupted or … skyrocket for reasons that are outside of our control.”

It’s a point that has the support of University of Sydney food system expert Phil Baker.

“Narrowing policy to just fuel and fertiliser risks turning a food strategy into little more than an agricultural input strategy,” he says.

“One that that further locks us into fossil fuel dependence.

“Contrary to what industry is claiming, a broad, participatory consultation process is precisely what good food policy requires right now.”

The allure of free daytime power has brought savings-motivated Australians to energy expert Mamoon Reza’s door.

Akin to power happy hour, the Solar Sharer policy announced in 2025 has been pitched as a win for renters, apartment dwellers and low-income households otherwise locked out of rooftop solar. 

The founder of social enterprise Equity Solar has been working with households keen to take advantage of the energy plans due to launch in South Australia, NSW and southeast Queensland in July.

Incentivising the use of abundant solar energy in the middle of the day is a noble pursuit, he says, as generation currently exceeds demand and goes to waste.

But he believes barriers are preventing target households from realising full benefits.

Fast-tracking the installation of a smart meter, which is required to participate, can be a hassle when dealing with body corporate and building managers.

“I’ve had a few people where I’ve helped them through that process,” Mr Reza tells AAP.

“I’ve also had a few who have started and then given up.”

Occupants might then consider upgrading to electric, programmable appliances where possible and need to unlearn old habits and start using dishwashers and washing machines during the free sunshine hours.

Some worry they will do the hard work to overcome hardware challenges and behaviour change, Mr Reza says, only to be left worse off.

Retailers have been warning Solar Sharer will leave them short-changed in covering network and other costs during the free period and they will need to recoup losses elsewhere.

The Australian Energy Regulator will allow retailers to recover some of their costs but will limit the extra amount they can charge outside the free window.

The opt-in scheme will not suit everyone, the regulator acknowledges.

Households able to use energy during the day will be the primary beneficiaries.

A 24kWh per day cap will also be enforced during the free period to stop extreme consumption, with marginal charges for consumers who exceed it. 

Mr Reza says energy consumers will need more assurance they will save money under the scheme.

Without a compelling financial case, he says the offer might not get the broad take-up it needs to help the grid.

Nexa chief executive officer Stephanie Bashir says the underlying policy goal is to prevent expensive peaks in demand when the sun goes down.

Demand for power spikes when people return home in the evening, switch on the air conditioning and start cooking dinner.

By then, Australia’s impressive fleet of solar panels have stopped generating.

If more energy is used when the sun is shining, the cost of the electricity system can be reduced for all, with less generation and poles and wires needed to cover the evening peak.

While load-shifting is a “good start” for improving demand flexibility across the grid, Ms Bashir warns the advantages will be blunted by underlying issues with how networks are regulated to incentivise infrastructure overinvestment. 

Free daytime solar plans generally receive the stamp of approval from consumer and renewables advocacy groups.

But many worry renters and other target households will not benefit without more assistance for energy efficiency and appliance upgrades, for example, and accelerated smart meter rollouts.

Renters, apartment occupants and low-income households typically face the biggest barriers to shifting their energy use, Energy Consumers Australia’s Adam Collins says.

They are less likely to have home automation systems or be home during the day, he tells AAP, and more likely to have no insulation.

Without decent energy efficiency, people will still return to hot homes in the afternoon after attempting to pre-cool during the free window.

Mr Collins says the government and regulator risk eroding trust if it is not clear whether consumers will be better off under the new energy plans.

Solar Citizens chief executive officer Heidi Lee Douglas views the free solar plans as a win, but not a silver bullet.

She flagged the May budget as an opportunity to provide more consequential support for renters.

In the meantime, Ms Douglas says there are affordable ways to get the most out of the free solar scheme, including cheap timers for appliances.

Victoria University energy economist Bruce Mountain believes Solar Sharer is fundamentally flawed and will disproportionately advantage wealthy households.

Higher-income folks are more likely to work from home, live in standalone homes, and have electric cars, batteries and controllable hot water systems – the three biggest money-saving opportunities for zero-cost energy windows.

Apartment occupants and renters will have the opportunity to save on dish and clothes washing but Professor Mountain says the benefits are comparably small, at roughly 20 to 30 cents per cycle.

Free solar windows could also undermine the economics of rooftop solar, he says.