May 10, 2022

UKRAINE | Today is day 76 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Reports say Russian forces are increasing missile and artillery strikes on the southern Ukrainian port city of Odessa -- a key remaining entry point for western aid to Ukraine. [more]
• U.S. President Joe Biden signed a revival of the World War II-era "lend-lease" program into law yesterday. The law is intended to allow military and other aid to be provided to Ukraine more quickly. [more]
• Werner Hoyer, head of the European Investment Bank, said today that Ukraine has about $8 billion worth of grain that it currently cannot export to the world due to the war and to limited access to its Black Sea shipping ports. [more]
• Reuters cites unnamed German officials as saying Germany is preparing a crisis plan in preparation for a potential abrupt end to Russian gas imports. Russian gas accounted for 55% of Germany's gas imports last year. [more]

SOUTH KOREA | Yoon Suk Yeol was sworn in as South Korea's new president today. In his inauguration speech, Yoon said South Korea would be prepared to provide significant aid to strengthen North Korea's economy if the North would commit to a process of "complete denuclearization." [more]

CLIMATE CHANGE | The World Meteorological Organization suggested yesterday that there is a 50-50 chance that global temperatures will reach a yearly average of 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels of the late 1800s at least once between now and 2026. The 1.5-degree average increase is seen as a bellwether indicator of extreme climate change effects. [more]

ABORTION | In the wake of the recent leak of a draft Supreme Court decision that would overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights ruling, at least two anti-abortion organizations -- one in Oregon and one in Wisconsin -- were targeted with Molotov cocktails this week. [more]

PHILIPPINES | Nearly-complete vote counts in the Philippines show that Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., has been elected the country's next president. Marcos, Jr., is the son of former leader Ferdinand Marcos, and his vice-presidential running mate, Sara Duterte, is the daughter of the country's current president. [more]

COVID-19 | The Chinese city of Shanghai closed its last two operating subway lines today in the city's latest move to limit travel as part of its fight against the spread of COVID-19. [more]

PRIVACY | In a court filing yesterday, facial recognition startup Clearview AI agreed to stop selling its face database service to private businesses and individuals in the U.S. as part of a deal to settle lawsuits claiming the company collected people's photos without their consent. The settlement has not yet been approved by the court. [more]

TRAVEL | Reports say Israel intends to end its policy of requiring travelers to provide a negative PCR COVID-19 test to enter the country on May 20. [more]

ARTS | Artist Andy Warhol's iconic "Shot Sage Blue Marilyn" portrait of actress Marilyn Monroe was sold yesterday at Christie's auction house for $195 million -- reportedly the highest auction sale price ever for a work by a U.S. artist. [more]

BROADWAY | Nominees for the 2022 Tony Awards were announced yesterday, with "A Strange Loop" receiving a pack-leading 11 nominations. "MJ" and "Paradise Square" each received 10 nominations. [full list of nominees] [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1940, after losing the support of many Conservatives in the House of Commons, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain resigned his office and was replaced by Winston Churchill. [more history]