June 9, 2022

UKRAINE | Today is day 106 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• In a statement yesterday, Oleksiy Arestovych, an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said that Russian forces have largely withdrawn from the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk and that the Russian assault on the city appears to have now shifted to large-scale artillery and airstrike attacks. [more]
• A report released yesterday by the U.N. Global Crisis Response Group says the war in Ukraine has "exacerbated a global cost-of-living crisis unseen in at least a generation." [more]
• Projections from the Institute of International Finance, a global banking trade group, suggest that Russia's economy will shrink by 15% this year, and by another 3% next year, due to international sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine. [more]

JANUARY 6 | The Congressional committee investigating the January 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol will hold its first public hearing tonight at 8pm EDT. The hearing will be televised on many networks. [more]

UVALDE SHOOTING | U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced yesterday that nine law enforcement experts have been selected to conduct a "comprehensive, transparent and independent" review of the law enforcement response to the Uvalde, Texas, elementary school shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead. The federal review was requested by the mayor of Uvalde. [more]

GUN LEGISLATION | The U.S. House of Representatives passed gun control measures yesterday that would prohibit the sale of semiautomatic weapons to people under age 21 and ban large-capacity magazines. The bill is not expected to pass in the Senate. [more]

IRAN | Reuters cites International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi as saying Iran has informed the IAEA by letter that it intends to disconnect 20 IAEA surveillance cameras and other monitoring equipment at its nuclear facilities. [more]

GLOBAL ECONOMY | Reports say European Central Bank regulators are expected to announce plans for the eurozone's first interest rate hikes in 11 years  when they meet today in Amsterdam. [more]

GERMANY | German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said yesterday that his country remains committed to phasing out the production of nuclear power despite ongoing concerns over increased energy costs and fuel shortages linked to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. [more]

WASHINGTON | Reports say a charge of attempted murder has been filed against Nicholas John Roske, 26, after his arrest outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Roske reportedly confirmed his intention to "kill a specific United States Supreme Court justice." [more]

DATA SECURITY | Reports say a cyberattack on Massachusetts-based Shields Health Care Group Inc. in March of this year may have resulted in personal data on as many as 2 million people being compromised. [more]

CLIMATE | The European Parliament voted yesterday to require automakers to cut vehicle carbon-dioxide emissions by 100% by 2035 -- a move amounting to a ban on selling new cars with combustion engines by the middle of next decade. The measure would need to be approved by EU nations individually to take effect. [more]

COVID-19 | Portions of the Chinese cities of Beijing and Shanghai have been placed under renewed COVID-19 restrictions due to disease outbreaks and widespread testing plans as China pursues its "zero-COVID" policy. [more]

SOUTH KOREA | Officials in South Korea say automobile and steel production are among the industries being most affected by an ongoing strike by thousands of the country's truck drivers. The strike to protest sharp increases in fuel costs is now in its third day. [more]

SPAIN | Reports say a wildfire in the mountains of southern Spain has forced the evacuation of some 2,000 people from the town of Benahavis. [more]

U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE | A Senate committee voted yesterday to approve President Biden's nomination of Michael Barr to serve as the Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision -- a position that has a permanent vote on rate decisions at each of the Fed’s eight policy meetings each year. Barr's nomination is widely expected to be confirmed by the full Senate. [more]

MARIJUANA | Thailand has become the first Asian nation to decriminalize marijuana after the government legalized the possession and cultivation of the plant as of today. [more]

TRAVEL | Japan's All Nippon Airways said today that it will resume regular operations for all domestic flights to and from Tokyo's Haneda airport starting next month as COVID-19-related border restrictions continue to ease. [more]

BASKETBALL | The Boston Celtics beat the Golden State Warriors, 116-100, last night to take a 2-1 lead in the NBA Finals best-of-seven series. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1815, the Final Act of the Congress of Vienna, comprising several agreements separately negotiated among various participants for the reorganization of Europe in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, was signed by representatives of Austria, France, Great Britain, Portugal, Prussia, Russia, and Sweden. [more history]