AP News in Brief at 6:04 a.m. EST

But that portrayal collides with the sentiment of Americans who remain anxious about their finances and feel they haven't benefited from Trump's policies. He took the high road to honor the gold medal-winning U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team and a war hero before pivoting abruptly to a darker tone as he ridiculed Democrats.

Here are takeaways from the speech.

Much of the nation is worried about the direction of the economy, but Trump says the good times are here, insisting repeatedly that rising costs are no longer a problem.

“The roaring economy is roaring like never before,” he said. He cheered the lower cost of gasoline, mortgage rates, prescription drug prices and the rising stock market: “Millions and millions of Americans are all gaining.”

Iran pushes back against Trump ahead of Geneva talks in face of major US military deployment

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran pushed back Wednesday against U.S. President Donald Trump's pressure tactics ahead of critical talks in Geneva over Tehran's nuclear program, alternating between calling his remarks “big lies” to saying negotiations may yield an agreement through “honorable diplomacy.”

The remarks by two Iranian officials ahead of Thursday's talks come as America has assembled its biggest deployment of aircraft and warships to the Middle East in decades, part of Trump's efforts to get a deal while Iran struggles at home with growing dissent following nationwide protests last month.

If the negotiations fail, Trump repeatedly has threatened to attack Iran — something Mideast nations fear could spiral into a new regional war as the embers of the yearslong Israel-Hamas war still smolder. Already, Iran has said all U.S. military bases in the Mideast would be considered legitimate targets, putting at risk the tens of thousands of American service members in the region.

Satellite photos shot Tuesday by Planet Labs PBC and analyzed by The Associated Press appeared to show American vessels typically docked in Bahrain, the home of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, all out at sea. The 5th Fleet referred questions to the U.S. military’s Central Command, which did not immediately respond. Before Iran’s attack on Qatar in June, the 5th Fleet similarly scattered its ships at sea to protect against a potential attack.

Trump on Tuesday night in the U.S. gave his annual State of the Union speech, touching on Iran and the nuclear negotiations.

Northeast US scrambles to clear piles of snow as new storm descends on the region

NEW YORK (AP) — Snowplows cleared the way for ambulances and fire trucks in Rhode Island. New York City workers geared up to dump massive basins of warm water on piles of snow and ice. And in Boston, officials tried to clear sidewalks coated in packed snow that cut off access for people using wheelchairs.

The gigantic snowstorm this week across the Northeast U.S. dropped piles of powder from Maryland to Maine and left cities on Wednesday scrambling to clear towering heaps that were not showing signs of melting anytime soon.

By Tuesday evening, New York City had spread 143 million pounds (65 million kilograms) of salt, according to Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and signed up at least 3,500 people as emergency shovelers. The $30-per-hour shifts involve clearing snow across public streets and bus stops.

But with another storm expected Wednesday, there was plenty more work left to do, especially for the many people with disabilities.

Jeff Peters, spokesperson for the Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York, described parts of the city as impassable islands.

The home of the 'Mona Lisa' has a new boss to steer the Louvre out of crisis after jewel heist

PARIS (AP) — The home of the “Mona Lisa” is getting a new boss. Art historian Christophe Leribault, a veteran museum director, is taking over at the Louvre, shouldering the challenge of getting the world’s largest museum out of crisis after the brazen heist in October of the French crown jewels.

French government spokeswoman Maud Bregeon announced the appointment on Wednesday. Leribault takes over from outgoing Louvre director Laurence des Cars, who resigned Tuesday.

The difficulties he inherits are formidable.

The daylight robbery — among the highest-profile museum thefts in living memory — exposed alarming security holes at the Paris landmark.

The former royal palace has also suffered a broad array of other problems that have presented a picture of a treasured national institution spiraling out of control.

Hungary's Orbán stakes his reelection on anti-Ukraine message

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Facing tough odds in an upcoming election, Hungary's pro-Russian prime minister is trying to convince voters that the greatest threat to the country is not economic stagnation — the focus of his top opponent — but neighboring Ukraine.

Viktor Orbán is running an aggressive media campaign replete with disinformation whose central message is that Hungarians should refuse to align with the rest of Europe in supporting Ukraine against Russia's invasion. That path, he argues, risks bankrupting the country and getting its youth killed on the front lines.

Billboards erected across the country show AI-generated images of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flanked by European officials, holding out his hand as if demanding money. It's a not-so-subtle reference to the European Union's efforts to help Ukraine financially and bolster its defenses as the war enters its fifth year.

“Our message to Brussels: We won’t pay!” the publicly funded billboards read.

If there had been any doubt, it became clear on Monday why the outcome of Hungary’s upcoming election will reverberate beyond its borders. Hungary blocked a new package of EU sanctions on Russia in response to interruptions in Russian oil supplies that pass through Ukraine, and vowed to veto any further pro-Ukraine policies until oil flows resume.

India's Modi is making his second official visit to Israel to meet with Netanyahu

JERUSALEM (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was expected in Israel on Wednesday for a two-day visit focusing on strengthening security, economic and technological cooperation between the two countries.

Modi has said he would hold talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog and would speak to Israeli parliament on Wednesday evening.

“Our nations share a robust and multifaceted Strategic Partnership,” Modi wrote on X. “Ties have significantly strengthened in the last few years.”

Netanyahu referred to himself and Modi as “personal friends” when he announced the visit earlier this week and the visit is likely to give Israel a boost of international support after seeing relations with many of its allies deteriorate since the war in Gaza began in October 2023.

In addition to being a powerful ally, India is also Israel's No. 2 trading partner in Asia. Total trade between India and Israel was valued at $3.62 billion in the 2025 fiscal year, according to India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

German leader presses China for fair trade and help ending Ukraine war

BEIJING (AP) — German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called Wednesday for deepening ties with China, while pushing for fairer trade rules between the two countries and seeking Chinese help on Ukraine.

Merz, who arrived in Beijing late morning for a whirlwind two-day visit, acknowledged differences during meetings with the country's top leaders and called for collaboration “wherever possible.”

“We have a few issues that we need to talk about today in the course of my visit,” he told Chinese Premier Li Qiang. “But I think there is also great potential for further growth of both our economies.”

Both Europe and China have been buffeted by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs, and Europe further by his demands that it take more responsibility for its own security and cede control of Greenland to the U.S.

Merz, on his first trip to China since taking office last May, has championed building a stronger Europe both economically and militarily to assert itself in an emerging new world order.

Japan demands the swift release of a Japanese national detained in Iran

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s government said Wednesday that a Japanese national has been detained in Tehran since January and demanded the Iranian authorities release them swiftly.

Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Masanao Ozaki, asked about foreign media reports on the case, confirmed only that the Japanese citizen was taken into custody on Jan. 20 but gave no further details, citing privacy issues.

Ozaki said the government is in contact with the detainee and their family members, while providing necessary support.

Foreign Ministry officials said the detainee is believed to be in good health, although Japanese officials have not been granted a meeting in person.

The ministry declined to comment when or on what charges the detainee was arrested.

US futures are flat and global stocks gain after optimism about AI sends Wall Street higher

TOKYO (AP) — U.S. futures were flat Wednesday after President Donald Trump’s State of the Union speech, while global shares were mostly higher.

In Europe, France's CAC 40 edged up 0.3% in early trading to 8,542.30, while the German DAX added 0.2% to 25,024.38. Britain's FTSE 100 jumped 0.8% to 10,763.15.

The future for the S&P 500 was up 0.1%, while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1%.

Japan's benchmark briefly hit a record high as investors were cheered by an overnight Wall Street rally driven by optimism about the artificial-intelligence boom. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 surged 2.2% to finish at 58,583.12.

Shares also rose in China. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.7% to 26,765.72, while the Shanghai Composite added 0.7% to 4,147.23. South Korea's Kospi surged 1.9% to 6,083.86, as the benchmark continued to benefit from the global demand for computer chips.

Indonesia frees and deports American who spent 11 years in prison for Bali 'suitcase murder'

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia freed and deported an American man Tuesday after he spent 11 years in prison for the premeditated murder of his then-girlfriend’s mother on the tourist island of Bali.

Tommy Schaefer was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the 2014 murder of Sheila von Wiese-Mack, the mother of Heather Mack, during a luxury vacation in a case also known as the Bali “suitcase murder.”

Schafer was deported back to the United States from Bali International Airport on Tuesday evening after serving his sentence and receiving a number of remissions for good behavior, said Felucia Sengky Ratna, head of the Bali Regional Office of the Directorate General of Immigration, in a statement.

The badly battered body of the 62-year-old von Wiese-Mack, a wealthy Chicago socialite, was found inside the trunk of a taxi parked at the upscale St. Regis Bali Resort in August 2014.

Heather Mack, who was almost 19 and a few weeks pregnant at the time of the killing, and her then-21-year-old boyfriend, Schaefer, were arrested on the island a day after the body was found.