October 21, 2025

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,335 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here is your update:

• In a joint statement released today, the leaders of Ukraine, the U.K., Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, and Denmark, along with representatives of the European Union, accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of stalling for time in diplomatic efforts to bring his invasion of Ukraine to an end, said they "remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force," and maintained that supporters of Ukraine "must ramp up the pressure on Russia’s economy and its defense industry, until Putin is ready to make peace." [full statement] [more]

U.S. MILITARIZATION | A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned one of two lower-court rulings that have blocked President Donald Trump's deployment of National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon. The 2-1 decision overturned an order that prohibited Trump from federalizing troops for deployment to Portland, but left in place another that prohibited him from sending any National Guard members to Oregon at all. The Justice Department has asked that the second order be overturned becaue both orders relied on the same legal basis. [more]

U.S. GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN | Day 20. An 11th vote on approving a stop-gap spending measure failed in the Senate last night, with Democrats continuing to hold out for an extension of health care subsidies. Reports say Senate Republicans are scheduled to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House today in a show of unity regarding their strategy of insisting on a spending measure that keeps spending at current levels. [more]

U.S. POLITICS | The GOP-controlled North Carolina legislature began formal proceedings yesterday to redraw the state's congressional district map with the stated aim of helping to maintain Republican control of the U.S. House of Representatives following the 2026 mid-term elections. A final vote on the redistricting measure is expected later this week. [more]

U.S. SECOND AMENDMENT | The U.S. Supreme Court agreed yesterday to hear a case that considers whether people who regularly smoke marijuana can legally own guns. The case involves a Justice Department appeal of a lower court decision that largely struck down a law that bars users of illegal drugs from possessing firearms. [more]

WHITE HOUSE | Crews began demolishing a portion of the White House's East Wing yesterday in preparation for the construction of a $250 million ballroom announced by President Donald Trump earlier this year. Reports cite administration officials as saying costs for the ballroom are expected to be paid through donations, not federal funds, and note that yesterday's demolition work is believed to have started without prior approval from the National Capital Planning Commission, which approves construction work and major renovations to government buildings in the Washington, DC, area. [more]

U.S. AND BELIZE | The Central American nation of Belize has signed a so-called "safe third country" agreement with the United States that, according to reports, is part of the Trump administration's efforts to ramp up deportations and dissuade migration. Details of the agreement have not been released, but analysts note similar arrangements made with Paraguay earlier this year under which asylum seekers currently in the U.S. could pursue protections in the South American nation. [more]

U.S. AND AUSTRALIA | Amidst ongoing tensions over Chinese control of much of the world's rare-earths supply, U.S. President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed an $8.5 billion agreement yesterday to expand mining of critical minerals and facilitate U.S. access to Australia's rare-earth resources. [more]

JAPAN | Liberal Democratic Party leader Sanae Takaichi was elected Japan's first female prime minister today. Shigeru Ishiba, who held the office for only a year, resigned earlier in the day to make way for his successor. [more]

POLAND | Prime Minister Donald Tusk said today that Polish authorities have detained eight people over the past several days on suspicion of planning and preparing for acts of sabotage across the country. Reports cite government officials as saying the suspects have been linked to preparations to sabotage military and other infrastructure facilities and as having possible links to Russia-backed efforts against countries that support Ukraine. [more]

MYANMAR | According to state media, Myanmar's military junta has shut down what it says was a major online scam operation near the border with Thailand, arresting more than 2,000 people and seizing communications and technology assets used to perpetrate cybercrimes. [more]

INDIA | Local reports say India's capital of New Delhi is experiencing dangerous pollution levels today, a day after millions of people celebrated the Hindu festival of Diwali with fireworks that combined with stagnant weather conditions to form a severe and unhealthy smog. [more]

TECH OUTAGE | Amazon Web Services says yesterday's outage that affected governments, businesses, and consumers around the world has been fully resolved. Analysts note that the outage has sparked renewed concerns over society's increasing dependence on a small number of companies and technologies that underlie most online infrastructure. [more]

BASEBALL | The Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Seattle Mariners, 4-3, last night to win MLB's American League Championship Series and advance to the World Series, in which they will face the Los Angeles Dodgers. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1805, a fleet of 33 ships (18 French and 15 Spanish) under Admiral Pierre-Charles-Jean-Baptiste-Silvestre de Villeneuve fought, and was defeated by, a British fleet of 27 ships under Admiral Horatio Nelson in the Battle of Trafalgar.  [more history]