পুরো লুক সম্পূর্ণ হয়েছে হাই হিলসের সংযোজনে
ছবি: জয়া আহসানের ফেসবুক ও ইন্সটাগ্রাম
ফটোগ্রাফি: সৌম্য সিংহ
মেকওভার: ব্রাশ অব প্রীতম
স্টাইলিং: স্টাইল বাই সুমিত
হেয়ারস্টাইল: কুশল
জ্যাকেট: সানায়া কতুর
Wednesday, 12 November 2025
জয়া কোন তিনটা জিনিস সমুচ্চ রাখেন?
পুরো লুক সম্পূর্ণ হয়েছে হাই হিলসের সংযোজনে
US shutdown fallout: Who came out ahead -- and who didn't
WASHINGTON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - As the U.S. Congress moved toward a deal to end the longest U.S. government shutdown in history, Reuters asked a dozen strategists and analysts to assess who strengthened their position and who paid a price, in the short- and long-term.
DONALD TRUMP: OWNING THE SHUTDOWN
No matter how many times the president has tried to avoid blame for the shutdown, ultimately, the buck stops with him. The White House has faced weeks of headlines about air traffic snarls and low-income families struggling to feed their kids. Even Trump himself admitted that the shutdown probably damaged Republicans in last week’s elections that saw Democrats win in New Jersey, Virginia and New York City.
“Americans recognize that 10 months into his presidency, costs have not gone down. And over the course of this 40-day shutdown, Trump did not emerge as someone who was fighting for them," said Democratic strategist Karen Finney. "He wasn't trying to resolve the issue. He wasn’t engaged, he was nowhere to be found.”
But the public has a short memory. After the government reopens, Trump can train his focus on Americans' cost-of-living concerns before the 2026 congressional midterms. He has shown he can keep his party together under extreme pressure while making few concessions.
“I think he comes out the winner of all this. He had to expend very little political capital in the shutdown," said John Elizandro, a Republican strategist.
"The negotiated deal gives him a resolution without forcing him to further escalate the clash with Senate Republicans over the filibuster,” he added, referring to the Senate requirement of 60 votes to pass legislation.
Consensus: Short-term loss, long-term neutral
SENATE REPUBLICANS: STAYING TOGETHER
Under the leadership of John Thune, Senate Republicans stayed united, held their ground and managed to peel off eight Democrats to vote to reopen the government. Their only concession was agreeing to a December vote on extending healthcare subsidies -- a vote widely expected to fail.
But unity doesn't guarantee immunity.
Recent Reuters/Ipsos polling showed that voters were more likely to blame Republicans than Democrats for the shutdown, a potential warning sign for next year's midterm elections. Some Republicans blamed the shutdown for the trio of losses the party suffered in elections last week.
Consensus: Short-term victory, long-term vulnerability
DEMOCRATS: A SPLIT DECISION
They held their ground – until they didn’t. Many in the Democratic Party are furious that eight senators defected after the party's electoral victories last week. Those senators argued their party's shutdown strategy wasn't working and lasting damage was being done to the economy.
But critics said they left those desperate for relief from healthcare premium increases in the lurch.
“Democrats who supported this compromise are feckless," said Michael Ceraso, a Democratic operative who worked on progressive Senator Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign. "I believed my party would deliver after (last week's) elections."
If Republicans torpedo the Democratic push to extend healthcare subsidies, it will give Democratic candidates a ready-made issue in the midterms – akin to 2018, when Democrats took back control of the House amid Republican threats to repeal the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare.
"Democrats have successfully elevated healthcare as a major national issue. This is dangerous for Republicans as healthcare drove the 2018 suburban blue wave," said Carlos Curbelo, a former Republican congressman from Florida.
Consensus: Short-term backlash, long-term leverage
CHUCK SCHUMER: FIRE FROM THE LEFT
The Senate’s top Democrat saw his colleagues do an end-run around him to cut a deal with Republicans.
He voted against the measure, but critics on the left blame him for allowing it to happen, with some progressive advocacy groups and at least one Democratic congressman, Ro Khanna of California, calling for his ouster.
Consensus: Loss
FEDERAL WORKERS: RELIEF, FOR THE MOMENT
Government employees have been big losers in the shutdown, going without pay. Some have taken temporary jobs to help pay bills.
To their relief, the end of the shutdown will restart regular paychecks and give them back pay.
Under the proposed Senate deal backed by Republicans and the small group of Democratic senators, they also get a temporary reprieve from the Trump administration’s layoff push until the end of January.
But these workers must fear another shutdown next year. Both parties have shown their willingness to use federal employees as bargaining chips.
Consensus: Short-term loss, long-term risk
AIRLINE PASSENGERS: STILL BUMPY AHEAD?
The end of the shutdown should allow officials to reverse forced flight reductions at the busiest airports that have caused havoc for hundreds of thousands of travelers.
The government ordered the cuts due to absenteeism among the 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 airport security screeners who have been required to work without pay during the shutdown. Many didn't come to work because they took second jobs or couldn't afford childcare.
On Sunday, the 40th day of the shutdown, 10,200 flights were delayed in the worst day for air travel yet.
If the disruption lingers, it would prolong misery for travelers going into Thanksgiving week, one of the busiest air travel times of the year.
Moreover, even before the shutdown, the U.S. was about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of targeted staffing. Many worked mandatory overtime and six-day weeks, and air travel snarls were common, suggesting disruption may continue.
Consensus: Short-term turbulence, long-term uncertainty
OBAMACARE PARTICIPANTS: PAYING A PRICE?
For Democrats, the shutdown was about protecting consumers from rising health insurance costs as subsidies for Obamacare plans expire at the end of the year.
But the deal to reopen the government didn’t secure those protections — leaving millions who rely on the exchanges exposed to premium hikes.
Democrats hope to pass legislation next month to preserve the subsidies, but the odds are slim. If the effort fails, the families whom they sought to help will feel the full weight of rising premiums with no clear prospects for relief.
Consensus: Short-term loss, long-term threat
Reporting by James Oliphant and Tim Reid; additional reporting by Chris Sanders; Editing by Ross Colvin and Cynthia Osterman
Monday, 10 November 2025
Typhoon Fung-wong weakens in the Philippines; four dead
ISABELA, Philippines, Nov 10 (Reuters) - One of the year's most powerful storms in the Philippines, Super Typhoon Fung-wong has killed four people, authorities said on Monday, as they began assessing damage after its fury abated, though no reports of major destruction have flowed in yet.
More than a million people were evacuated before Fung-wong hit land on Sunday, unleashing fierce howling winds, heavy rain and storm swells on the most populous island of Luzon that left some sleepless through the night.
"We could not sleep because of the winds hitting our metal sheets and tree branches falling," said Romeo Mariano, who sheltered with his grandmother in their home in the province of Isabela.
"When we got out to check our home, we saw the damage."
Early indications suggest the tally of dead will be "minimal", however, civil defence senior official Raffy Alejandro told a media briefing.
A mudslide buried a house to kill two children in the northern town of Kayapa in the province of Nueva Vizcaya, regional civil defence official Alvin Ayson said by telephone.
They followed two deaths from drowning and fallen debris.Landslides also isolated at least four towns in the province of Aurora, where Fung-wong made landfall, Alejandro added.
Forecast to shift northeast to Taiwan, Fung-wong was packing winds on Monday whose speeds had dropped to between 120 kph and 150 kph (75 mph to 93 mph), but remained a typhoon, whose outer bands could dump rain in coastal areas and trigger storm surges.The storm is the 21st this year in the Philippines, coming after Typhoon Kalmaegi killed 224 last week, with five dead in Vietnam.
The back-to-back storms came as officials of more than 190 countries gathered in Brazil for Monday's opening of the COP30 climate summit.
Scientists have said rising sea temperatures pack more energy into tropical cyclones, making them more intense and boosting rainfall.
Fung-wong is forecast to hit Taiwan's densely populated west coast on Wednesday, though its heaviest rain is expected along the mountainous east coast, where 18 people died in September in flooding unleashed by an earlier typhoon.
The government has already ordered evacuations in the town of Guangfu, the scene of those deadly floods.
Reporting by Adrian Portugal and Eloisa Lopez; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Writing by Mikhail Flores and Karen Lema; Editing by John Mair and Clarence Fernandez
US flight delays, cancellations accelerate as air traffic controller shortages surge
- FAA has mandated flight cuts at 40 major airports due to safety concerns
- More than 2,800 cancellations and 10,200 delays on Sunday the worst since start of government shutdown
- Thanksgiving travel disruptions could impact US economic growth, White House economic adviser warns
- Airlines for America reports 4 million passengers affected since shutdown began
US Senate advances bill to end federal shutdown
In a procedural vote, senators advanced a House-passed bill that will be amended to fund the government until January 30 and include a package of three full-year appropriations bills.
If the Senate eventually passes the amended measure, it still must be approved by the House of Representatives and sent to President Donald Trump for his signature, a process that could take several days.
Under a deal struck with a handful of Democrats who rebuffed their party’s leadership, Republicans agreed to a vote in December on extending subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. The subsidies, which help lower-income Americans pay for private health insurance and are due to expire at the end of the year, have been a Democratic priority during the funding battle.
The vote to advance the bill passed by a 60-40 margin, the minimum needed to overcome a Senate filibuster.
“It looks like we’re getting very close to the shutdown ending,” Trump told reporters at the White House prior to the vote.
The bill would prohibit federal agencies from firing employees until January 30, a win for federal worker unions and their allies. It would stall Trump’s campaign to downsize the federal workforce.
Some 2.2 million civilians worked for the federal government at the start of Trump’s second term, according to federal records. At least 300,000 employees are expected to leave the government by the end of this year due to Trump’s downsizing effort.
It would also provide back pay for all federal employees, including members of the military, Border Patrol agents, and air-traffic controllers.
When the Senate reconvenes on Monday, Republican leaders will try to get a bipartisan agreement to circumvent Senate rules and move quickly to passage. Otherwise, the chamber would require much of the coming week to move through procedural actions before voting on final passage, possibly extending the shutdown into next weekend.
“It was a good vote tonight," Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters after the Senate adjourned on Sunday. "Hopefully, we'll get an opportunity tomorrow to set up the next votes. Of course, that's going to take some cooperation and consent."
Sunday's deal was brokered by Democratic Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen, both from New Hampshire, and Senator Angus King, an independent from Maine, said a person familiar with the talks.
"For over a month, I’ve made clear that my priorities are to both reopen government and extend the ACA enhanced premium tax credits. This is our best path toward accomplishing both of these goals," Shaheen posted on X.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, the chamber's top Democrat, voted against the measure.
Many Democrats on the Hill watched the deal unfold with displeasure.
“Senator Schumer is no longer effective and should be replaced,” wrote U.S. Representative Ro Khanna on X. “If you can’t lead the fight to stop healthcare premiums from skyrocketing for Americans, what will you fight for?"
Sunday marked the 40th day of the shutdown, which has sidelined federal workers and affected food aid, parks and travel, while air traffic control staffing shortages threaten to derail travel during the busy Thanksgiving holiday season late this month.
Senator Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina, said the mounting effects of the shutdown pushed the chamber toward an agreement.
"Temperatures cool, the atmospheric pressure increases outside and all of a sudden it looks like things will come together," Tillis told reporters.
Should the government remain closed for much longer, economic growth could turn negative in the fourth quarter, especially if air travel does not return to normal levels by Thanksgiving, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett warned on the CBS "Face the Nation" show. Thanksgiving falls on November 27 this year.
The wrangling on Capitol Hill came as Trump on Sunday again pushed to replace subsidies for the Affordable Care Act's health insurance marketplaces with direct payments to individuals.
The subsidies, which helped double ACA enrollment to 24 million since they were put in place in 2021, are at the heart of the shutdown. Republicans have maintained they are open to addressing the issue only after government funding is restored.
Trump took to his Truth Social platform on Sunday to blast the subsidies as a "windfall for Health Insurance Companies, and a DISASTER for the American people," while demanding the funds be sent directly to individuals to buy coverage on their own. "I stand ready to work with both Parties to solve this problem once the Government is open," Trump wrote.
Americans shopping for 2026 Obamacare health insurance plans are facing a more than doubling of monthly premiums on average, health experts estimate, with the pandemic-era subsidies due to expire at the end of the year. The ACA enrollment period, however, runs through January 15, which would allow time for a legislative effort to extend the credits for next year.
Reporting by David Morgan in Washington, Nathan Layne in Wilton, Connecticut, Matt Tracy in Washington, and David Ljunggren in Ottawa; Writing by James Oliphant; Editing by Sergio Non, Chris Reese, Edmund Klamann, Stephen Coates and Kim Coghill
Sunday, 9 November 2025
Lukoil operations face fallout from Trump sanctions, Gunvor drops bid
Lukoil's international operations faced mounting disruptions on Friday as a U.S. deadline for companies to cut off business with the Russian oil company looms and after a hoped-for sale of the operations to Swiss trader Gunvor collapsed.
The U.S. Treasury, which would have to approve any sale as Lukoil is under U.S. sanctions, on Thursday labelled Gunvor a Kremlin "puppet" and signalled its opposition to the deal.
The United States sanctioned Lukoil and larger rival Rosneft (ROSN.MM) last month as part of President Donald Trump's push to get Russia to the negotiating table over Ukraine.
"The stark Treasury message is a signal to the market that those gambling on a speedy normalisation of the Russian energy trade will be disappointed," said Geoffrey Pyatt, senior managing director at McLarty Associates and former U.S. assistant secretary of state for energy resources.
Analysts and oil executives said Lukoil will likely be forced to sell the assets at steep discounts by Treasury's November 21 deadline for companies to halt business ties with the firm, possibly to a Western major.
These include operations in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia, and Mexico, and range from a controlling stake in Iraq's sprawling West Qurna 2 oilfield to refineries in Bulgaria and Romania.
MOLDOVA ASKS FOR EXEMPTIONS
In the latest fallout from the restrictions, Moldovan energy minister Dorin Junghietu said on Friday that Lukoil will have to stop its operations in the country from November 21.
According to the minister, Lukoil owns a number of gasoline stations, supplies the oil market, and is the private owner of the airport's only fuel storage, supply, and aircraft refuelling facility.
He said Moldova has requested a temporary exemption from Washington for Lukoil to operate in the country until it resolves the issue, so that the supply of fuel to Moldova is not disrupted.
He also said Moldova had decided to reject Lukoil's offer to divest its assets and sell the airport infrastructure to another company.
BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT MOVES TO SEIZE AND SELL REFINERY
Bulgaria's parliament on Friday adopted a law change that will allow the government to seize control of Lukoil's Burgas oil refinery and sell it to protect the plant from the impact of U.S. sanctions.
Under the revision, a special commercial manager appointed by the government will be able to oversee the continued operation of Lukoil's refinery in Bulgaria beyond November 21.
This manager will also be able to sell the company, with proceeds to be placed in an account in Lukoil's name but which the company cannot use, Boyko Borissov, Bulgaria's former prime minister and leader of the GERB party that heads the coalition government, told local media.
LUKOIL'S FUEL CHAIN IN FINLAND IS RUNNING DRY
In Finland, petrol station chain Teboil, owned by Lukoil, is running out of fuel as the U.S. sanctions against its parent company prevented it from doing business, newspaper Helsingin Sanomat reported on Friday, citing a Teboil spokesperson.
"We are running down our fuel stocks, which means some stations are already out of certain fuel types and the number of such stations is growing daily," Toni Flyckt, Teboil's marketing and communications director, told the newspaper.
KREMLIN DEFENDS LUKOIL'S INTERESTS
The Kremlin said Lukoil's international interests should be respected after Gunvor had withdrawn its bid for the assets.
Asked about the development, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was commercial matter and related to what he called illegal U.S. sanctions on Moscow, but that it was important that Lukoil's interests were protected.
"We believe that all legitimate interests of a major international company, including a Russian one, like Lukoil, in terms of international trade and economic relations, must be respected," said Peskov.
Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov, Anastasiia Malenko, Georgi Slavov, Stoyan Nenov, and Anna Hirtenstein; writing by Lucy Papachristou and Daria Sito-Sucic; editing by Andrew Osborn and Jason Neely
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