By LORNE COOK and MATTHEW LEE

WASHINGTON (AP) — A planned meeting between European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Secretary of State Marco Rubio was abruptly canceled Wednesday due to “scheduling issues,” coming as political tensions have increased between Europe and the United States.

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Officials from both sides blamed scheduling challenges for preventing the pair, who last met at the Munich Security Conference in Germany last month, from meeting in Washington.

However, European officials said they were caught off guard, and, notably, Kallas had previewed her planned talks with Rubio just two days earlier.

In recent weeks, President Donald Trump has thrown the partnership between the U.S. and Europe into turmoil by pledging to charge higher taxes on imports from Europe that he says will match tariffs faced by American products. EU officials have traveled to Washington trying to head off a trade war.

Top Trump administration officials also have warned Europe that it must start taking responsibility for its own security, including Ukraine, and sidelined the Europeans from their initial talks with Russia on ending the war. In a remarkable shift, the U.S. split with its European allies by refusing to blame Russia for its invasion of Ukraine at the United Nations this week and joined Moscow in voting against a Europe-backed Ukrainian resolution.

In a bid to mend relations, French President Emmanuel Macron was in Washington on Monday for a White House meeting with Trump seeking support. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose country is no longer a member of the EU but often aligns itself with the continental bloc on foreign policy, is due to visit Thursday.

Kallas herself had said Monday that she would be holding talks with Rubio “on the issues that are of interest to both of us,” which for the EU are chiefly Russia’s war on Ukraine and transatlantic relations.

“It is clear that the statements coming from the United States make us all worried,” she told reporters after chairing a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

Kallas said she hoped the EU-U.S. relationship can continue to function.

“So far, we do not have any indication that it would not. Of course it is going to change, that is very clear. But we should not throw something out the window that has worked well so far,” she said.

In a terse text message, her office referred all questions about why the meeting was canceled at short notice to the State Department.

A senior U.S. official said the planned meeting, which had never appeared on Rubio’s public schedule, had been pulled down due to “an unavoidable scheduling conflict.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations.

Rubio attended Trump’s Cabinet meeting at the White House, which began late Wednesday morning.

The cancellation came less than a week after the State Department’s policy planning office sent an internal memo instructing officials who deal with Europe to highlight two specific issues in interactions with European counterparts. The Feb. 21 memo, seen by The Associated Press, also mentioned tentative plans for an upcoming Rubio meeting with Kallas.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio stands with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, not shown, at the State Department, Monday, Feb. 10, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein).

The two issues of concern identified in the memo were “Freedom of Speech and Free Opposition” and “Migration.”

On the former, the memo said Rubio and other U.S. diplomats should emphasize in their discussions with European officials the importance that the Trump administration attaches to free speech.

It noted that Vice President JD Vance had said in a speech at the Munich Security Conference this month that the West should “unite around free speech, halt censorship, reject suppressing opposition, jailing people for tweets and memes, etc.”

“The United States cannot continue supporting a continent that drifts in an authoritarian direction,” the memo said. “It’s bad for Europe and bad for us.”

On migration, the memo said U.S. officials, including Rubio, should refer to Europe’s “de facto open borders policy” as a “disaster” that must end. Trump has made cracking down on illegal immigration and carrying out mass deportations a signature priority.

“The United States is changing course on migration policy under Trump,” it said. “It’s well past time for Europe to do the same. We want you to remain civilization partners and to do that, you must get this under control.”

It was not clear if the blunt language in the memo contributed to the cancellation of the Rubio-Kallas meeting.

Although her meeting with Rubio was pulled down, Kallas was due to meet with U.S. senators and members of Congress to discuss the war in Ukraine and EU-U.S. ties during her two-day trip to Washington and to take part in a talk about those issues at the Hudson Institute research organization.

Cook reported from Brussels.

By SUSIE BLANN and JUSTIN SPIKE

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A preliminary economic agreement between Ukraine and the United States would ensure long-term U.S. involvement in rebuilding the country, but the deal leaves the question of security guarantees sought by Kyiv to future negotiations.

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According to the final version of the deal obtained by The Associated Press, the United States and Ukraine will establish a co-owned and jointly managed investment fund aimed at financing the reconstruction of Ukraine and its war-damaged economy.

The agreement comes after two weeks of back-and-forth between Kyiv and Washington over how the U.S. could gain access to Ukraine’s natural resources. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has insisted that specific assurances for Ukrainian security must accompany a deal on those resources.

U.S. President Donald Trump planned to meet with Zelenskyy on Friday at the White House to sign the pact, which will closely tie the two countries together for years to come.

Here’s more about what the agreement says, and what it doesn’t say.

What about security guarantees for Ukraine?

While the preliminary agreement references the importance of Ukraine’s security, it leaves that matter to a separate agreement to be discussed between the leaders of the two countries.

According to wording in the deal, the United States “supports Ukraine’s efforts to obtain security guarantees needed to establish lasting peace,” and the U.S. has “a long-term financial commitment to the development of a stable and economically prosperous Ukraine.”

“Participants will seek to identify any necessary steps to protect mutual investments as defined in the Fund agreement,” it states. “The American people desire to invest alongside Ukraine in a free, sovereign and secure Ukraine.”

Speaking at a news conference Wednesday in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said his country “needs to know first where the United States stands on its continued military support.” He said he expects to have a wide-ranging conversation with Trump during his visit to Washington.

The economic agreement “may be part of future security guarantees, but I want to understand the broader vision. What awaits Ukraine?” Zelenskyy said.

A senior Ukrainian official familiar with the matter told the AP on Wednesday that those discussions would take place independently from the establishment of the joint fund.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations, said Kyiv believes the establishment of the fund would itself serve to bolster Ukraine’s security since U.S. and Ukrainian investments would need to be protected amid continuing Russian attacks.

How does the agreement work?

Under the agreement, Ukraine will contribute 50% of future revenues to the joint fund from national assets including minerals, hydrocarbons, oil, natural gas and other extractable materials. Kyiv has hoped that access to those materials would incentivize the Trump administration to help secure a fair and lasting end to the war.

The idea to involve the U.S. in Ukraine’s natural resource wealth was initially proposed last fall by Zelenskyy as part of his plan to strengthen Kyiv’s hand in future negotiations with Moscow.

Ukraine would also contribute half of its revenues from infrastructure relevant to the extraction, processing or transportation of its natural resources, but those contributions would not apply to assets that are already part of the Ukrainian government’s budget revenue, such as state-owned oil and gas companies.

Contributions to the fund will be reinvested annually in Ukraine to promote its “safety, security and prosperity,” the agreement says.

Is Ukraine giving away its natural resources?

The agreement states that revenues from its natural resources will go into the fund and be used for reconstruction of the country, not that ownership or control of those resources would be transferred to the United States.

On Wednesday, a senior Ukrainian official told the AP that the U.S. will not own Ukraine’s mineral and other resources. The official added that the fund would receive 50% of the revenues that come from natural resource deposits once they’re developed.

Is Ukraine paying off a debt for previous U.S. support?

The deal does away with earlier Trump demands that Ukraine pay $500 billion as compensation for Washington’s assistance until now. The senior Ukrainian official said that contributions to the fund do not constitute a repayment of any debt to the U.S. for its previous support during the war with Russia, but an investment in the future.

The agreement states that the U.S. will maintain a long-term financial commitment to Ukraine’s stability and economic prosperity, and could make further contributions outside the fund in the form of financial instruments and other assets critical for Ukraine’s reconstruction.

Ukrainian payments into the fund could provide a mechanism for any future U.S. assistance to be recouped in the long term, the Ukrainian official said.

“We are not debtors,” Zelenskyy said Wednesday, adding that, while he is grateful for previous U.S. support, Ukraine had not entered into any agreements that would require previous U.S. assistance to be repaid.

“There were no such agreements in the past, so there is nothing to discuss in this regard,” he said.

The agreement will also seek to avoid conflict with any obligations Ukraine has to the European Union as it seeks membership in the bloc, or any potential conflicts with obligations to other financial institutions or creditors.

Associated Press writers Hanna Arhirova and Vasilisa Stepanenko contributed to this report.

Jaylen Clark has taken advantage of his opportunities since entering the rotation a month ago, serving as one of the Timberwolves’ prime perimeter defenders. His physicality and relentlessness have set the tone on that end of the floor, all while playing heady offense.

Minnesota is choosing to reward Clark,23, for his sound play, as the Wolves plan to him to a guaranteed, minimum-level contract for the remainder of this season and all of next, a source confirmed.

Clark, chosen by Minnesota in the second round of the 2023 NBA Draft, had been playing on a two-way deal meant for players bouncing between the G-League and the NBA. He tore his Achilles in his final collegiate season at UCLA and spent most of his rookie season rehabbing.

When finally getting  the chance to compete on the NBA floor, Clark has delivered.

Los Angeles Clippers guard Bones Hyland (5) reacts to making a three point basket during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Washington. The Timberwolves plan to sign Hyland to a two-way contract. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)

He fills Minnesota’s last open full-time roster spot. His deal opened up a two-way spot for the Timberwolves, who are choosing to use the spot on Bones Hyland, a source confirmed. ESPN was the first to report the news Wednesday.

Hyland, 24, is a scoring guard who shined as a rookie in Denver under the watchful eye of current Timberwolves basketball boss Tim Connelly, who selected Hyland in the first round of the 2021 draft when Connelly was with the Nuggets.

It’s been rough going ever since for Hyland. He was traded from Denver to the Clippers midway through his second season, and his minutes with Los Angeles slowly deteriorated until he was finally waived this season. This is a low-risk move that allows Connelly and Co. to reunite with Hyland and see if they can get him back on track.

Hyland is expected to start his organizational tenure with the G-League team in Iowa.

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By BINAJ GURUBACHARYA

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Tens of thousands of Hindu devotees gathered at a revered temple in Nepal’s capital on Wednesday to celebrate one of the country’s biggest religious festivals.

In the Bankali forests near Pashupati, the temple of the Hindu god Shiva, holy men and devotees puffed on cannabis smoke, a practice that is normally illegal but is permitted during the Shivaratri festival.

Devotees have been praying and dancing to religious songs at the temple, which is one of the most important for Hindus around the world. About 81% of Nepal’s population is Hindu. Many Hindus from neighboring India also traveled to Kathmandu for the festival.

A key part of Shivaratri is the freedom to smoke marijuana, an act that is normally punishable by prison sentences of up to a month for users and 10 years for traffickers.

The forest area across the Bagmati river from the temple was filled with marijuana-smoking Hindu holy men, who camp there for days during the festival. Young Nepalese men and some women were also partaking in the smoke.

“Weed smoking should be made legal but with some limits and boundaries,” said Abhishek Pathak, who was among those smoking cannabis. “There are multiple uses of marijuana and I really hope in the future that the use of marijuana will be totally legalized.”

“Once it is legalized, the benefits would be not just for the individuals but for the entire country,” he said.

Lawmakers and supporters have made efforts to decriminalize marijuana in Nepal. A petition was filed in January 2020 to legalize the farming and use of marijuana, but progress since then has stalled.

“Once marijuana is legalized in the country, there will be so many opportunities that it could open up like in medical use,” said Akash Rimal, a festival attendee.

Nepal was famous for marijuana and other narcotics in the 1960s, when hippies made their way to the Himalayan nation. Shops and tea houses used to advertise and sell it legally. However, marijuana was outlawed in 1976.

Hundreds of police officers patrolled the area but were not stopping the smokers from puffing on joints during the festival.