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Nepali Congress President and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said the incumbent coalition government is advancing ahead on a consolidated ground.

In his address to a training and orientation organized for party's regional leaders in Bhairahawa today, Deuba claimed that the formation of a coalition government comprising two major and other political parties in the country has given hope among the citizens.

Stating that the incumbent NC-CPN-UML government is not an absolute majority government, it is a two-thirds government, he highlighted the need for an additional collective support for the government.

The NC leader further said political completion is essential in democracy.

NC President Deuba was of the view that if the NC has any intra-party misunderstandings, they should be sorted out through mutual discussions.

He said that the orientation would help garner a majority for the party in the upcoming elections.

The training organised by the NC Central Policy, Research and Training Academy, is being attended by 130 individuals who include regional presidents and chiefs of regional training sections, according to Academy coordinator Purna Bahadur Khadka.

There will be six presentations on matters concerning the party, its significant accomplishments, policy reforms that the party ensured during its presence in the government after 1990, the constitution, implementation of federalism, and the NC campaign for active membership, interrelations among the center, province and electoral constituencies and so on.

There will be discussions among seven panels on the second day of the event.  The next session will be for collecting submissions on the issues relating to the government and Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba and Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak are scheduled to respond to the concerns raised during the session.

The event has been supported by the NC regional committee, Rupandehi electoral constituency-3.

Former President Bidya Devi Bhandari launched the book entitled 'KP Sharma Oli: Dream, Struggle and Resolve' amidst a programme here today. The book on the life and struggles of Prime Minister and CPN (UML) Chair KP Sharma Oli is edited by journalist Ganesh Pandey.

The book incorporates articles on Oli's many struggles for achieving democracy, and his dreams and leadership initiatives for the prosperity of the country.

The book contains articles by PM Oli's compatriots, politicians, economists and social personalities. It is published by Alchemy Publication.

Prime Minister Oli, UML General Secretary Shanker Pokhrel and others were also present on the occasion.

Britain's privacy watchdog, the Information Commissioner's Office, on Monday launched an investigation into how TikTok, Reddit and online image sharing website Imgur safeguard children's privacy.

Social media companies use complex algorithms to prioritise content and keep users engaged. However, the fact that they amplify similar content can lead to children being influenced by increasing amounts of harmful material.

The watchdog said it is probing how ByteDance's short-form video-sharing platform TikTok uses 13–17-year-olds' personal information to suggest content in their feed.

Social media platform Reddit and Imgur are being investigated over how they assess the age of their child users, it said.

"If we find there is sufficient evidence that any of these companies have broken the law, we will put this to them and obtain their representations before reaching a final conclusion," the Information Commissioner's Office said in a statement.

TikTok, Reddit and Imgur did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Britain has previously passed legislation that set tougher rules for social media platforms, including a mandate for them to prevent children from accessing harmful and age-inappropriate content by enforcing age limits and age-checking measures

Social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok are required to "tame" their algorithms to filter out or downgrade harmful material to help protect children under proposed British measures published last year. Reuters

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday European leaders had agreed to draw up a Ukraine peace plan to present to the United States, a vital step for Washington to be able to offer security guarantees that Kyiv says are essential to deter Russia.

At a summit in London just two days after Volodymyr Zelenskiy clashed with U.S. President Donald Trump and cut short a visit to Washington, European leaders offered a strong show of support to the Ukrainian president and promised to do more to help his nation.

European leaders agreed they must spend more on defence to show Trump the continent can protect itself, and the European Commission chief suggested the bloc could ease rules that limit debt levels.

Starmer, who welcomed a visibly shaken Zelenskiy on Saturday with a warm hug, said Britain, Ukraine, France and some other nations would form a "coalition of the willing" and draw up a peace plan to take to Trump.

"This is not a moment for more talk. It's time to act. Time to step up and lead and to unite around a new plan for a just and enduring peace," Starmer said.

Leaders did not provide details of their plan. Before the summit, French President Emmanuel Macron told newspaper Le Figaro that the plan would involve a one-month ceasefire that would apply to air and sea attacks but not to ground combat.

European troops would be deployed if a more substantial peace agreement was reached, he said. It was not clear whether other nations had agreed to the terms.

Zelenskiy said after the meeting that he left London with "Europe's clear support" and readiness to cooperate.

"There will be diplomacy for the sake of peace," he said in his nightly video address. "And for the sake of us all being together - Ukraine, all of Europe and definitely, definitely America."

Earlier, Zelenskiy told reporters that Ukraine would not cede any territory to Russia as part of a peace agreement and said he was still willing to sign a minerals deal with the United States.

Zelenskiy said he believed he could salvage his relationship with Trump after Friday's shouting match, but that talks would have to take place behind closed doors.

"The format of what happened, I don't think it brought something positive or additional to us as partners," he said.

Europe is scrambling to ensure that Kyiv is not squeezed out of any talks after the Oval Office clash raised fears that the U.S. could pull support for Ukraine and impose a peace plan negotiated with Russia.

Several European leaders said they must increase defence spending - something that could help bring Trump on side to offer a U.S. security guarantee in the event of peace.

"After a long time of underinvestment, it is now of utmost importance to step up the defence investment for a prolonged period of time," Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, the EU's executive body, told reporters.

Europe needs to turn "Ukraine into a steel porcupine that is indigestible for potential invaders," she said.

LACKING WEAPONRY, STOCKS

Europe, which lacks the weaponry and depth of ammunition stocks of the U.S., hopes to convince Trump that it can defend itself but that Russia will only adhere to a peace deal if it comes with the backing of the United States.

Talks with the U.S. have centred on Washington providing a so-called backstop for a European peacekeeping role, possibly in the form of air cover, intelligence and surveillance and a greater but unspecified threat if Russian President Vladimir Putin again sought to take more territory.

Crucial to getting any agreement from Trump is for European nations to increase defence spending and signal they would take part in any peacekeeping role - something Starmer acknowledged was difficult to get unanimity on.

Starmer increased the UK's defence spending before his visit to Washington last week, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said some European leaders had privately set out new plans on defence spending at the meeting but he declined to give details.

'UNCOMFORTABLE VIEWING'

Trump has upended U.S. policy on the three-year-old war since he returned to the White House in January, casting doubt on U.S. military and political support for Ukraine - and Europe - and ending the isolation of Moscow.

"We should spend less time worrying about Putin, and more time worrying about migrant rape gangs, drug lords, murderers, and people from mental institutions entering our Country - So that we don't end up like Europe!" Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network late on Sunday.

Trump had blindsided Europe by calling Putin without warning and sending a delegation to Saudi Arabia for talks with Russia without including Ukraine or Europe. Trump has falsely suggested that Kyiv was responsible for starting the war, and on Friday, he criticised Zelenskiy for not being grateful for U.S. aid.

Zelenskiy, who has in the past thanked the U.S. for their support, said on Monday that: "There has not been a day when we have not felt this gratitude" to Washington.

Zelenskiy's clash with Trump ended a week when Europe had appeared to be in a better position in its drive to encourage Trump to continue to offer support to Ukraine after cordial visits to Washington by Macron and Starmer.

Starmer described watching the spat between Zelenskiy and Trump in the Oval Office as uncomfortable viewing, but he was keen to push the conversation forward by offering himself as a go-between for Europe and the United States.

In a further show of support for the Ukrainian leader, Zelenskiy later on Sunday flew to meet King Charles at his private residence in eastern England.

The Trump administration on Sunday continued to criticise Zelenskiy. White House national security adviser Mike Waltz told CNN that the U.S. needs a Ukrainian leader who is willing to secure a lasting peace with Russia, but that it is not clear Zelenskiy is prepared to do so.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov praised Trump's "common sense" approach and accused European countries of seeking to prolong the conflict by propping up Zelenskiy "with their bayonets in the form of peacekeeping units".

Starmer said the leaders on Sunday also agreed to work to ensure Kyiv is at the table of any peace talks and boost the country's own defence capabilities.

"Europe must do the heavy lifting, but to support peace in our continent and to succeed, this effort must have strong U.S. backing," Starmer told a news conference. REUTERS