Japan mines for deep sea rare earths to counter China’s chokehold
Ocean floor resources could help protect supply chains from Beijing’s export bans
Letter: A defence loan can be a deterrent and offer investors a return
From Alastair Irvine, Grantham, Lincolnshire, UK
Letter: Fiscal responsibility is the Conservatives’ lodestar
From Rt Hon Sir Mel Stride, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, House of Commons, London SW1, UK
Letter: Positively Orwellian
From Tony Tyler, Hong Kong
Letter: What Lasch wrote about elites and the global bazaar
From Francis Ghilès, Senior Researcher, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs, Paris, France
Letter: Tories have always shied away from the hard choices
From Tim Bale, Professor of Politics, Queen Mary University of London, London E1, UK
Letter: AI’s shortcomings — evident with every email
From Margaret McGirr, Greenwich, CT, US
Letter: Maga’s Delors effect
From Chris Boyd, Sète, France
Letter: Wagner: the only composer on the DMT wavelength
From Craig Sams, Hastings, East Sussex, UK
Gadgets that watch, feed and clean up after our pets
The latest tech can look after your cats and dogs’ wellbeing even when you are absent from home
Share of UK companies with low productivity higher than in 1997
BCG research points to Britain falling behind peers in growth sectors
Conservatives should not just focus on voters lost to Reform, analysis suggests
Polling finds that Tory voters who have drifted left or become disengaged outnumber those turning to Nigel Farage’s party
FT Crossword: Number 18,301
Mexico hit by wave of violence after security forces kill cartel leader
Death of Jalisco New Generation Cartel boss ‘El Mencho’ follows US calls for action against traffickers
Ministers pledge £3.8bn of extra cash for special needs education in English schools
Labour government aims to end need for parents to ‘battle’ for support as it bids to avoid backbench revolt over reforms
FirstFT: Leaked documents reveal Iran’s €500mn arms deal with Russia
Also in today’s newsletter: Mexico kills top drug cartel leader and PE firm struggle to exit China deals
Jet linked to Epstein landed at RAF base in 2013, documents show
MPs urge Ministry of Defence to publish any information it has about the use of air bases by the convicted sex offender
Man killed by Secret Service after entering Mar-a-Lago grounds with gun
Trump and wife Melania were in Washington at the time of the incident early on Sunday
Satellite images reveal surge in US fighter jets in Middle East
Washington has deployed dozens of planes to the region as Donald Trump threatens to strike Iran
New and existing battles cast a shadow over the coming days
Trump gives first State of the Union address of second term, Labour in by-election fight and Ukraine war enters a fifth year
Europe needs to learn the art of the trade deal
The Supreme Court’s ruling offers a rare opportunity to fix a historic error
Iranian students mount further anti-regime protests
Slogans chanted on campuses in Tehran as new academic semester begins amid clashes with pro-regime groups
Iran agreed secret shoulder-fired missile deal with Russia
Leaks reveal €500mn contract for man-portable ‘Verba’ system to rebuild Tehran’s air defences
Trump’s new flat-rate tariff is a boost for China and Brazil
US allies including the UK, EU and Japan hardest hit after Supreme Court rules against previous levies