Trump Commerce chief Howard Lutnick agrees to testify in congressional Epstein probe
The Straits Times
He has faced pressure over his associations with the now-deceased Epstein. Read more at straitstimes.com.
WASHINGTON – US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has agreed to testify in the congressional inquiry of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the chairman of the committee conducting the investigation said on March 3.
“Secretary Lutnick has proactively agreed to appear voluntarily before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform,” Republican chairman James Comer said in a statement, without specifying a date.
Mr Lutnick, a billionaire former New York financier, has faced pressure over his associations with the now-deceased Epstein, especially after publicly released files undercut his claims of when he had severed ties with him.
In a podcast in 2025, Mr Lutnick recounted moving in next door to Epstein in 2005 and receiving a house tour that left him disturbed. He and his wife decided that he would “never be in the room with that disgusting person, ever again”.
“So I was never in the room with him socially, for business or even philanthropy,” he said.
But records have emerged showing Mr Lutnick’s plans in 2012 to meet Epstein for lunch in Little Saint James, notoriously known as “Epstein Island”.
It will also deliberate on the implementation of a five-year national policy plan. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Financial commitments, such as repayment of credit cards, eat into the bulk of their monthly budget. Read more at straitstimes.com.
The conflict exposes the city to many risks, but some are seeing opportunities too. Read more at straitstimes.com.
The 'unprecedented' freeze on trillions of dollars in financial assistance was instituted in early 2025. Read more at straitstimes.com.
The EU recently struck trade accords with India and a bloc of South American countries. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Mr Dan Caldwell was a former top adviser to US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Read more at straitstimes.com.
They allegedly shared images and videos of school shootings in other countries with one another. Read more at straitstimes.com.
CHISINAU, March 16 - A Russian attack on a hydroelectric plant in southern Ukraine triggered an oil spill and polluted water systems in neighbouring Moldova, with supplies cut completely in the country's second-largest city, officials said on Monday. Read more at straitstimes.com.
MOSCOW, March 16 - Russian air defence units downed at least 67 Ukrainian drones headed for Moscow on Monday, according to data published by the city's mayor, Sergei Sobyanin. Read more at straitstimes.com.
MOSCOW, March 16 - Russia has taken control of 12 settlements in Ukraine in the first two weeks of March as part of advances along the front line in eastern and southern Ukraine, Russian state-run news agencies quoted top general Valery Gerasimov as saying on Monday. Read more at straitstimes.com.
The eastern half of the US, including New York, Chicago and Atlanta, has been hit with widespread air travel delays and cancellations. Read more at straitstimes.com.
It could lead to a protracted conflict with devastating humanitarian consequences, the leaders said in a joint statement. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Bhumika Shrestha on March 16 became Nepal’s first transgender woman lawmaker. Read more at straitstimes.com.