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Portugal’s Prime Minister Antonio Costa has resigned in a televised address, just hours after prosecutors detained his chief of staff in a probe into alleged corruption in his administration's handling of lithium mining and hydrogen projects. The 62-year-old, Portugal's Socialist leader since 2015, asserted his innocence but said that "in these circumstances, obviously, I have presented my resignation to the president of the republic". The state prosecutor's office said the Supreme Court was examining suspects' "use of the prime minister's name and his involvement" when carrying out allegedly illicit activities. It said the minister of infrastructure, Joao Galamba, and the head of the environmental agency were among those named as suspects. President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa quickly accepted Mr Costa's resignation. He is expected to dissolve parliament and call for a new election. He said in a statement that he is calling parliament to convene on Wednesday, and he will speak to the nation after the Council of State gathers on Thursday. The prime minister teared up while thanking his family for their support. "I totally trust the justice system," he said. "I want to say eye to eye to the Portuguese that my conscience is clear of any illicit or censured act." He acknowledged that he was not "above the law". An investigative judge had issued arrest warrants for Mr Costa's chief of staff Vitor Escaria, the mayor of the town of Sines, and three other people because they represented a flight risk and to protect evidence, the prosecutor's office said in a statement. The judge is investigating alleged malfeasance, corruption of elected officials and influence peddling related to lithium mine concessions near Portugal's northern border with Spain and plans for a green hydrogen plant and data centre in Sines on the south coast. The police raids included the premises of the ministry of the environment, the ministry of infrastructure, Sines town council, private homes and offices. Portugal's lithium mines and green hydrogen projects are part of the continent's green initiative being pushed, and heavily funded, by the European Union. Mr Costa has been a major backer of the projects and an ally of Spain's acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. He had looked set to remain in power for several years after his Socialists scored a landslide victory in elections last year, but in December 2022, his infrastructure and housing minister was forced to quit amid an outcry over a €500,000 (£434,000) compensation payment made to a board member of state-owned flag carrier TAP Air Portugal. The junior minister for infrastructure also stepped down. Ten senior government officials have left their jobs since Mr Costa's party won the 2022 ballot. Mr Costa said he had no prior indication he was being scrutinised by legal authorities. "This is a phase of my life that comes to an end," he said. Associated Press Read More Hundreds gather at vigil held for Ukrainian soldiers killed in missile attack Where the GOP presidential candidates stand on the war in Ukraine Orcas sink another yacht in relentless 45-minute attack Hundreds gather at vigil held for Ukrainian soldiers killed in missile attack Where the GOP presidential candidates stand on the war in Ukraine Orcas sink another yacht in relentless 45-minute attack

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Britain will back fast-tracking Ukraine’s Nato membership as momentum builds among Western allies to significantly change their stance over Kyiv’s attempts to join the alliance. Volodymyr Zelensky’s government may have a quick route to accession, as has been granted recently to Sweden and Finland, rather than continuing with the slower Membership Action Plan (MAP) that has preconditions for entry. Russia is adamantly opposed to Ukraine joining Nato, and even after Vladimir Putin’s invasion there has been reticence among member states over the speed of Kyiv’s accession. But as the war enters its 16th month, the position of Western allies appears to be changing. Britain’s foreign secretary James Cleverly told the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London on Wednesday: “We have seen Ukraine evolve, and evolve quickly. “Many of the requirements of the Membership Action Plan are actually being delivered. The reform of their armed forces are happening whilst engaged in conflict and I think the UK’s position is that it would be very supportive if we moved on from the Membership Action Plan. “We recognise that the offer to both Sweden and Finland did not require MAP. The Ukrainians have demonstrated their commitment to military reform required for Nato membership through their actions on the battlefield, and I think all Nato allies recognise that.” Also speaking at the conference, the French foreign minister, Catherine Colonna, commented: “Perhaps we don’t require the MAP mechanism, something which was planned in 2008. We are now a long way from 2008; time has passed, the situation is quite different.” The United States has been cautious about Ukraine’s Nato membership, with Joe Biden saying recently that his administration would not “make it easy” for Kyiv to join. “They have got to meet the same standards [as other entrants], that is our position,” he said. “I think it will happen, can happen, but it won’t be automatic.” However, senior White House officials indicated the president is “open to” waiving the MAP requirement for Ukraine, and Washington is facing mounting pressure from European allies to give firmer backing to Zelensky on the issue. Krisjanis Karins, the Latvian prime minister, said: “The only chance for peace in Europe is when Ukraine will be in Nato.” Failure to do so, she said, means “Russia will come back.” Nato membership for Ukraine is seen as a deterrent to Moscow from continuous attacks and attempts in the future to carry out regime change in Kyiv. A member can invoke Article 5, under which an attack on one member by an outside power is regarded as an attack on all Nato states. However, it is precisely this prospect of Nato getting directly into war with Moscow that is cited in support of making Ukraine wait until the current conflict has ended. Ukraine will be the key topic at next month’s Nato summit in Vilnius, one of the most important in its recent history. It remains unlikely that Ukraine will be offered immediate membership. The options being considered include guarantees that Western military support will continue, and that the Nato-Ukraine Commission, launched in 1997, will be upgraded to Nato-Ukraine Council, with a higher level of engagement. It will be a symbolic as well as practical move; in 2002, a decade after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia became a partner in the Nato-Russia Council but that ended with the annexation of Crimea by Moscow in 2014. Meanwhile, Britain has set out a package of support for Ukraine including $3 billion in guarantees for World Bank loans and $ 305 million in bilateral assistance. The US said it will send an additional $ 1.3 billion in financial assistance to overhaul Ukraine’s energy grid and modernise other critical infrastructure. Read More Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin claims nuclear-capable Satan 2 missiles ready for combat in ‘near future’ Zelensky: ‘Eyes of the world’ are on West’s support for Ukraine Japan's Kishida says he will attend NATO leaders' summit, stresses need for dialogue with China The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

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