First Thing: Putin congratulates Trump on election win and says Russia ready to talk

Russian leader expresses admiration for Trump, as race for control of the House intensifies. Plus, why a movement calling for celibacy among straight women is going viral after Trump’s win

Good morning.

Vladimir Putin has congratulated Donald Trump on his election victory and said Moscow was ready for dialogue, in a development that will deeply concern Kyiv and dial up unease across Europe.

Speaking publicly about Trump’s win for the first time on Thursday at a discussion forum in Sochi, the Russian president also heaped praise on the way Trump had reacted to the attempt on his life. His remarks, which characterized the president-elect as a “courageous person” who responded “like a man”, appeared designed to please Trump’s clear fondness for flattery.

Putin also claimed Trump had been “hounded by all sides” during the campaign and highlighted Trump’s remarks on Ukraine and Russia. “What was said about the desire to restore relations with Russia, to bring about the end of the Ukrainian crisis in my opinion this deserves attention at least,” said Putin.

What has Trump said on Ukraine? He’s claimed, with little substantiation, that he could bring peace to Ukraine “within 24 hours” – leading to fears within Nato that his plan may just be to order Ukraine to surrender.

Republicans edge closer to House majority

The Republicans are only a handful of calls away from gaining control of the House of Representatives – but some hope remains for the Democratic party.

The House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, said he believed there was still a path to victory for the Democrats. Jeffries was quoted by the Hill website as saying: “We still have a clear pathway to taking back the majority. Of course that runs through Arizona and Oregon and five races that are flip opportunities in California that are too close to call and too early to call.”

Losing control of the House would be devastating for the Democratic party, as it would mean having no national legislative mechanisms through which to curb Donald Trump after he won the presidential election and the Republicans clinched a majority in the Senate.

Where are we up to in the House? The Democrats have 199 seats, while the Republicans are ahead at 211. There are still 25 races to call – but either side only needs 218 for a majority.

Democrats blame election loss on Biden and economy as speculation grows over Trump cabinet

The Democratic party has begun to analyze Kamala Harris’s election loss, with congressional Democrats pointing to her failure to distance herself from Joe Biden and focus on abortion rights rather than the economy as key factors.

Biden on Thursday praised Harris for an “inspiring” campaign in his address to the nation. As the party apportioned blame for Donald Trump’s return to the White House, the Democratic party chair, Jaime Harrison, pushed back against comments by the Vermont senator Bernie Sanders after he claimed the Democrats had “abandoned working-class people”.

Speculation is mounting regarding whom Trump will appoint to his cabinet, after the president-elect named his campaign manager, Susie Wiles, as his chief of staff, making her the first woman to hold the influential role.

Who is Wiles? She is widely credited with running Trump’s most organized campaign yet and is seen as having the rare ability to control his erratic impulses.

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In other news …

Gaza’s people are enduring “almost unparalleled suffering”, with families torn apart and unable to bury dead relatives, according to the secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council.

Human rights oraganizations said they feared a young Iranian woman who was arrested for stripping down to her underwear could be tortured after authorities transferred her to a psychiatric hospital.

Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is sending two rescue planes to Amsterdam after Israeli football fans were targeted in “a very violent incident”, his office has said.

Stat of the day: emissions from private jets up 50% in recent years

Climate-heating emissions from private jet flights have soared by 50% between 2019 and 2023 as the form of travel has become more popular, a global analysis has revealed. The US made up 69% of private jet flights, while many jets are “used like taxis” for short trips.

Don’t miss this: ‘No man will touch me until I have my rights back’

In a mostly online movement of South Korean women called 4B, demonstrators began to swear off heterosexual dating in protest against misogyny in 2018. Following Donald Trump’s return to the White House, some young American women are calling for women to take up its pledges against straight marriage, dating, sex and childbirth as a way to regain some control.

Climate check: ‘Essential to act now’ to prevent chaotic climate breakdown, warns UN chief

The world continues to underestimate the severe threat of climate breakdown and ecosystem collapse, the UN secretary general warned, with the rise in global heating set to breach 1.5C (2.7F). In the run-up to Cop29 next week, António Guterres said Earth was nearing potentially irreversible tipping points.

Last Thing: should my son apologise to our neighbour for piling leaves in front of her house?

In this week’s domestic conundrum, 23-year-old Ed sweeps the leaves in front of his parents’ home into a pile that their elderly neighbor complains is too near her gate. Should he apologize like his mom wants – or is he right to stand his ground? It’s your call to make.

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