US officials have opened an investigation into Jack Smith, the former special counsel who led two federal criminal cases against President Donald Trump, US media reported Saturday.

The Office of Special Counsel told The New York Times it was investigating Smith for potentially violating the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal workers from engaging in political activity while on the job.

Republican Senator Tom Cotton had reportedly asked the agency to investigate whether Smith’s actions had been designed to influence the 2024 election.

The agency, which monitors the conduct of federal employees, did not immediately respond to request for comment by AFP.

Smith was appointed special counsel in 2022, and charged Trump with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election and mishandling classified documents after leaving the White House.

Trump denied both charges and sought to frame them as politically motivated, accusing the Justice Department of being weaponized against him.

Neither case ever came to trial, and the special counsel — in line with a Justice Department policy of not prosecuting a sitting president — dropped them both after Trump won the November 2024 presidential election.

Smith then resigned before Trump could fulfil his campaign pledge to fire him.

The Office of Special Counsel operates separately from special counsel offices at the Department of Justice, such as the one headed by Smith.

The prosecutorial decisions made by Smith do not typically fall under its remit, according to the Times.

It cannot lay criminal charges against Smith but could refer its findings to the Department of Justice, which does have that power.

The most severe penalty under the Hatch Act is termination of employment, which would not apply to Smith as he has already resigned.

Since taking office in January, Trump has taken a number of punitive measures against his perceived enemies.

He has stripped former officials of their security clearances and protective details, targeted law firms involved in past cases against him and pulled federal funding from universities.

Last month the FBI opened criminal investigations into its former director James Comey and ex-CIA chief John Brennan, two prominent Trump critics.

Days later Comey’s daughter Maurene — a federal prosecutor who handled the case of notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who has been repeatedly linked to Trump — was abruptly fired.

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Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk, known for its blockbuster diabetes and weight-loss treatments Ozempic and Wegovy, on Tuesday lowered its full-year earnings forecasts again as it unveiled a new chief executive to tackle “recent market challenges”.

The company has faced growing headwinds in the key US pharmaceutical market, where the two drugs, known as GLP-1 injections, have seen their dominance challenged by rivals including Eli Lilly.

A rule by the US Food and Drug Administration allowing pharmacies to create so-called “compound” copycat versions of the drug after high demand led to shortages has also weighed on earnings, Novo said.

“Despite the expiry of the FDA grace period for mass compounding on May 22, 2025, Novo Nordisk market research shows that unsafe and unlawful mass compounding has continued,” it said in a statement.

It now expects full-year sales growth overall of eight to 14 percent, down from the 13 to 21 percent expected after a first forecast downgrade earlier this year.

Operating margins are seen reaching 10 to 16 percent, instead of the forecast of 16 to 24 percent.

The lower forecasts came as Novo reported Tuesday an 18 percent sales increase for the first half of the year, while operating profit growth fell to 29 percent after growth of 40 percent in the same period last year.

The “market challenges” prompted Novo to announce in May the departure of its chief executive Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen, who will be replaced by Maziar Mike Doustdar, currently its vice president for international operations.

“We are confident that he is the best person to lead Novo Nordisk through its next growth phase,” board chairman Helge Lund said in a statement.

“This is an important moment for Novo Nordisk,” Lund said. “The market is developing rapidly, and the company needs to address recent market challenges with speed and ambition.”

Novo Nordisk’s full first-half results will be published August 6.

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Russia on Sunday began direct commercial flights to North Korea, in a further sign of closer ties with its Asian ally helping its offensive in Ukraine.

The first Moscow-Pyongyang flight, operated by Russia’s Nordwind Airlines, took off at 1625 GMT, according to the Sheremetyevo airport’s website.

It is scheduled to land in the North Korean capital some eight hours later.

But initially, the route will only be serviced once a month, Russia’s transport ministry said.

Nordwind Airlines — which used to carry Russians to holiday destinations in Europe before the EU imposed a ban on Russian flights — had tickets priced at 45,000 rubles ($570).

“This is a historical event, strengthening the ties between our nations,” Oleg, a Nordwind employee managing the flight who did not want to give his full name, told AFP at the airport.

He also declined to say how many passengers were on board.

“For the first time in more than 70 years of diplomatic relations, we are launching direct flights between the capitals of our countries,” Russia’s deputy transport minister Vladimir Poteshkin was quoted as saying by the ministry’s Telegram account.

Russia’s state news agency TASS reported that the first return flight from Pyongyang to Moscow would take place on Tuesday.

Russia and North Korea restored train links on June 17 after suspending them in 2020 during the Covid pandemic.

The two countries have been forging closer military bonds in recent years, with Pyongyang supplying troops and weapons for Russia’s military operations in Ukraine.

They signed a mutual defence pact last year, when Russian President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea.

North Korea confirmed for the first time in April that it had deployed a contingent of its soldiers to the frontline in Ukraine, alongside Russian troops.

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US President Donald Trump and EU chief Ursula von der Leyen were set for make-or-break talks in Scotland Sunday, aimed at ending a months-long transatlantic trade standoff, as negotiations went down to the wire.

Trump has said he sees a one-in-two chance of a deal with the European Union, which faces an across-the-board US levy of 30 percent unless it strikes a trade pact by August 1 — with Washington warning Sunday there would be “no extensions.”

Von der Leyen’s European Commission, negotiating on behalf of EU countries, is pushing hard for a deal to salvage a trading relationship worth an annual $1.9 trillion in goods and services.

According to an EU diplomat briefed ahead of the meeting, set for 4:30 pm (1530 GMT), the contours of a deal are in place after talks went late into Saturday night — but key issues still need settling.

And of course the final word lies with Trump.

“A political deal is on the table — but it needs the sign-off from Trump, who wants to negotiate this down to the very last moment,” the diplomat told AFP.

The proposal, they said, involves a baseline levy of around 15 percent on EU exports to the United States — the level secured by Japan — with carve-outs for critical sectors including aircraft and spirits, though not for wine.

Any deal will need to be approved by EU member states — whose ambassadors, on a visit to Greenland, were updated by the commission Sunday morning, and would meet again after any accord.

According to the EU diplomat, the 27 countries broadly endorsed the deal as envisaged — while recalling their negotiating red lines.

Baseline tariff

The Trump-von der Leyen meeting was taking place in Turnberry on Scotland’s southwestern coast, where the president owns a luxury golf resort. He was out on the course for much of the weekend.

The 79-year-old Trump said Friday he hoped to strike “the biggest deal of them all” with the EU.

“I think we have a good 50-50 chance,” the president said, citing sticking points on “maybe 20 different things”.

The EU is focused on getting a deal to avoid sweeping tariffs that would further harm its sluggish economy — while holding out retaliation as a last resort.

Under the proposal described to AFP, the EU would commit to ramp up purchases of US liquefied natural gas, along with other investment pledges.

Pharmaceuticals — a key export for Ireland — would also face a 15-percent levy, as would semi-conductors.

The EU also appears to have secured a compromise on steel that could allow a certain quota into the United States before tariffs would apply, the diplomat said.

Questions on auto sector

Hit by multiple waves of tariffs since Trump reclaimed the White House, the EU is currently subject to a 25-percent levy on cars, 50 percent on steel and aluminium, and an across-the-board tariff of 10 percent, which Washington threatens to hike to 30 percent in a no-deal scenario.

It was unclear how the proposed deal would impact tariff levels on the auto industry, crucial for France and Germany, with carmakers already reeling from the levies imposed so far.

While 15 percent would be much higher than pre-existing US tariffs on European goods — averaging 4.8 percent — it would mirror the status quo, with companies currently facing an additional flat rate of 10 percent.

Should talks fail, EU states have greenlit counter tariffs on $109 billion (93 billion euros) of US goods including aircraft and cars to take effect in stages from August 7. Brussels is also drawing up a list of US services to potentially target.

Beyond that, countries like France say Brussels should not be afraid to deploy a so-called trade “bazooka” — EU legislation designed to counter coercion that can involve restricting access to its market and public contracts.

But such a step would mark a major escalation with Washington.

Ratings dropping

Trump has embarked on a campaign to reshape US trade with the world, and has vowed to hit dozens of countries with punitive tariffs if they do not reach a pact with Washington by August 1.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday the August 1 deadline was firm and there will be “no extensions, no more grace periods.”

Polls suggest however the American public is unconvinced by the White House strategy, with a recent Gallup survey showing his approval rating at 37 percent — down 10 points from January.

Having promised “90 deals in 90 days,” Trump’s administration has so far unveiled five, including with Britain, Japan and the Philippines.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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