Up First from NPR
Ukraine Ceasefire Talks, Stock Market Slide, Columbia University Arrest Latest
Tue, 11 Mar 2025
As Ukraine begins ceasefire negotiations in Saudi Arabia, the Trump administration signals that aid could resume if Ukraine makes concessions. A steep sell-off on Wall Street followed new tariffs from China and Canada, as investors worry that Trump's trade policies could tip the U.S. into a recession. And, after an ICE arrest at Columbia University, the U.S. Education Department is warning 60 universities they could face penalties over antisemitism investigations.Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.Today's episode of Up First was edited by Kevin Drew, Rafael Nam, Alice Woelfle and Mohamad ElBardicy.It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Chris Thomas.We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis, our technical director is Stacey Abbott.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
Chapter 1: What are the key points in the Ukraine-U.S. negotiations?
Ukraine tries another round of negotiations today, not with Russia, but with its ally, the United States.
Which paused its aid. So what does the U.S. want from Ukraine? What are the Ukrainians able to offer?
I'm E. Martinez, that's Steve Inskeep, and this is Up First from NPR News. The stock markets had their worst day of the year. The fear is that the president's repeated tariff changes may cause recession.
There is a period of transition because what we're doing is very big.
Why did the president's response make investors even more concerned?
Also, the Department of Education, not yet abolished, is telling 60 universities they may face penalties. The department describes last year's protests over Gaza as, quote, relentless anti-Semitic eruptions. Stay with us. We've got the news you need to start your day.
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Bella DePaulo is glad if you're happily married, but she is perfectly happy being single.
I would love to have someone who took care of my car or someone who cleaned up the dishes after dinner, but then I'd want them to leave.
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Chapter 2: How are Trump's tariffs affecting the U.S. stock market?
Chapter 3: What actions is the U.S. Education Department taking against universities?
Public media counts on your support to ensure that the reporting and programs you depend on thrive. Make a recurring donation today to get special access to more than 20 NPR podcasts, perks like sponsor-free listening, bonus episodes, early access, and more. So start supporting what you love today at plus.npr.org.
Bella DePaulo is glad if you're happily married, but she is perfectly happy being single.
I would love to have someone who took care of my car or someone who cleaned up the dishes after dinner, but then I'd want them to leave.
From yourself to your dog to your spouse are significant others. That's on the TED Radio Hour from NPR.
Neuroscientist Ethan Cross says you may think it's healthy to vent about what's bothering you, but... The problem is you often leave that conversation feeling really good about the person you just communicated with, but all the negative feelings are still there. Sometimes they're even more activated.
Tools for managing our emotions. That's on the TED Radio Hour podcast from NPR.
Ukraine struck Russia today. It was the biggest ever drone attack on Moscow. According to Russian officials, the drone strikes hit a warehouse, killed and injured people, and briefly shut down the airports. It was a sign that Ukraine still has some striking power, even though it has lost some vital American support. Today, U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators meet to discuss that and much more.
This meeting is happening in Saudi Arabia, and the talks do come with some urgency attached to them. The Trump administration is withholding both military aid and intelligence from a country that up until now has been a U.S. ally. President Trump has also talked of sanctions against Russia, but unlike with Ukraine, he has yet to announce a penalty.
NPR Ukraine correspondent Joanna Kakisis is covering all this from Kiev. Hi there, Joanna. Good morning. Let's just remember the backdrop here. Ukrainians and Americans met at the White House. Last time they met, it was Volodymyr Zelensky who argued with Trump and Vance, President Trump and Vice President Vance, and they then berated him. So what does Ukraine hope for this time?
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Chapter 4: What is the public sentiment in Ukraine regarding the ceasefire?
Okay, so they have no choice but to come back to the table. Here they are. President Trump spoke with reporters over the weekend, and he said of Ukrainians, quote, I want them to want peace, although it is not clear at all what more the president wants than they have offered. So what's on the agenda for this meeting?
Well, Steve, no final decisions are set to be made today. Zelensky's in Saudi Arabia on a state visit, but he said he isn't planning to attend this meeting and Trump won't be there either. The Ukrainian team includes Zelensky's chief of staff, Andriy Germak, as well as Ukraine's foreign and defense ministers. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is leading the U.S. delegation.
Rubio did say on Monday that he wants Ukraine to show that it's serious about ending the war. He talked about Ukraine making concessions like giving up land taken by Russia. Now, Ukraine has said repeatedly that it's always been serious about ending this war, and it wants a peace deal with security guarantees so Russia does not rearm and attack again.
So just a reminder, at this point, we're only talking about concessions by Ukraine. So what sort of concessions might the Ukrainians be willing to make?
Well, Zelensky has already proposed a partial ceasefire covering aerial attacks in the Black Sea. Not sure if Russia would agree to this, but Rubio seemed to welcome the move. And public opinion polls show between 20 and 30 percent of Ukrainians would consider giving up occupied territory in return for peace. However, Kostenko told us, look, Ukrainians do not trust Russia to honor any truces.
He said Russia also invaded Chechnya and Georgia and violated ceasefires there. The same thing happened to Ukraine after 2014 when Russia first attacked. And eight years later, Russia launched the full-scale invasion. So Kostenko is saying, I'm a person who has experienced dozens of truces and all were violated by Russia. So everyone needs to understand that when negotiating this truce.
I guess the Ukrainians want to persuade the Trump administration that a peace deal isn't going to last if it's too easy on Russia. Is that it?
Well, yeah, everyone, every Ukrainian I've spoken to is trying to convince the Trump administration that it's in the U.S. 's interest to support Ukraine. Here's Ivana Klimpush-Tinsada. She's a member of Ukraine's parliament.
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Chapter 5: How do Trump's comments influence investor confidence?
Is it in the interest of the United States to look weak? Because I think Ukrainian defeat... would be a direct defeat of the United States. It's not about make America great again. It's about make America weak.
And she said, look, it's not clear this argument will work, but President Trump does not like looking weak.
NPR's Joanna Kikisis, always strong. Thanks so much.
You're welcome.
President Trump's tariffs and his remarks about a recession led to the worst day for the stock markets this year.
Now, the Dow tracks 30 major U.S. companies. It fell 2%, almost 900 points. The broader Nasdaq and S&P 500 are also sharply down. Now, these things always move up and down, but the markets overall have given back all their gains since last November's election and then some.
And NPR financial correspondent Maria Aspin is following all of this. Good morning. Good morning. Okay, so why was there such a big drop yesterday?
Well, President Trump has done and said a lot of different things about tariffs in the past week, and investors have been feeling the whiplash. Just to recap, Steve, Trump's new 25% taxes on imports from Canada and Mexico went into effect last week. Then he started giving out reprieves, first to automakers, then to Mexico, then to Canada. Yeah.
But the fact that Trump actually let the tariffs go into effect was a big deal and showed they might be more than just a negotiating tactic. And he's continuing to talk about them happening long term, despite all the warnings about how much they could hurt the U.S. economy. This all really hit home on Sunday.
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