September 5, 2025

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,289 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Just hours after European leaders reiterated their commitment to a potential peacekeeping force in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that any foreign troops deployed to Ukraine prior to implementation of a formal peace agreement would be considered "legitimate targets" by the Russian military. [more]
• Reports suggest the Ukrainian government may move soon to ban activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under a 2024 law banning support of Russia and ties to the Moscow-based Russian Orthodox Church. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | According to data released by the Labor Department this morning, U.S. employers added a much-lower-than-expected 22,000 jobs in August – down from 79,000 in July – and the unemployment rate rose to 4.3% for the month – up from 4.2% in July. Today's jobs report also downwardly revised employment data for June from a 14,000 net gain to a 13,000 net loss for the month. [full report] [more]

U.S. MILITARY | President Donald Trump reportedly plans to sign an executive order today aimed at renaming the Department of Defense the "Department of War." The order is expected to authorize the Department to use "secondary titles" so the name change can be implemented pending formal approval by Congress. [more]

U.S. AIR TRAVEL | In a rule proposal published yesterday, the Department of Transportation says it intends to cancel a Biden-era plan to require airlines to compensate stranded passengers with cash, lodging, and meals for flight cancellations or significant delays caused by a carrier. Department officials say the move is in accord with Trump administration policies to modify federal regulations deemed wasteful or burdensome. [more]

U.S. HEALTH POLICY | In testimony before the U.S. Senate yesterday, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was fired last week after only a month in her position because she was dishonest, and also suggested that CDC staff involved with developing recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic “failed to do anything about the disease itself" and deserved to be fired. [more]

U.S. WIND ENERGY | Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Danish energy company Orsted have filed lawsuits accusing the Trump administration of halting the nearly completed Revolution Wind energy project without “statutory authority, regulatory justification, or factual basis.” Reports note that more than $5 billion has already been spent on the project, which was 80% complete and due to become operational in 2026 before receiving a stop-work order from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management last month. [more]

U.S. PRESIDENTIAL AUTHORITY | Seeking to overturn lower court rulings, the Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to allow the president to fire a member of the Federal Trade Commission. Reports cite legal analysts as saying federal law only allows commissioners to be fired for issues such as misconduct or neglect of duty. [more]

U.S. AND VENEZUELA | Amidst ongoing U.S. military deployments and operations in the Caribbean Sea region as part of what U.S. officials say are efforts to fight drug trafficking, reports say two Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets flew over a U.S. Navy destroyer in the area yesterday. In related action, Reuters cites unnamed sources as saying the U.S. has ordered the deployment of 10 F-35 fighter jets to a Puerto Rico airfield to conduct regional operations against drug cartels. [more]

GLOBAL HEALTH | The U.S. State Department announced yesterday that it will purchase some 2 million doses of Gilead Sciences' new twice-a-year HIV prevention drug lenacapvir for distribution and use in poorer countries by 2028. [more]

CONGO | Public health officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo say a new outbreak of Ebola in the central African country is suspected of causing 15 deaths among 28 people showing symptoms of the disease. Reports note that the World Health Organization has dispatched disease experts to the country to assist in surveillance, treatment, and infection prevention efforts amidst the outbreak. [more]

THAILAND | Veteran politician Anutin Charnvirakul won the majority of votes in Thailand's parliament today and will be the country's next prime minister, replacing Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who was dismissed by court order as prime minister last week after being found guilty of ethics violations. [more]

E.U. AND CHINA | Amidst ongoing trade tensions, China has announced new import duties of up to 62.4% on pork products imported from the European Union. Analysts say the move is widely seen as retaliation for E.U. tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. [more]

NEPAL | The Nepalese government said yesterday that it is banning about two dozen social media platforms, including Facebook, X, and YouTube, in the country due to the companies' failure to comply with regulations requiring them to register with the government. Officials say the requirement is part of efforts to ensure that social platforms are properly managed, responsible, and accountable, while critics suggest the regulations are tools for censorship. [more]

ONLINE PRIVACY | A San Francisco federal jury ordered Google this week to pay $425.7 million in penalties after finding the company guilty of collecting data off smartphones without users’ permission to help sell ads tailored to users’ individual interests when users thought they had shielded themselves with privacy controls. Google has indicated it will appeal the ruling. [more]

TENNIS | Amanda Anisimova will face world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in tomorrow's women's final of the U.S. Open after defeating Naomi Osaka and Jessica Pegula, respectively, in the semifinals yesterday. The men's final on Sunday will feature the winners of today's matches featuring Jannik Sinner vs. Felix Auger-Aliassime and Carlos Alcaraz vs. Novak Djokovic. [more]

FOOTBALL | The defending champion Philadelphia Eagles beat the Dallas Cowboys, 24-20, last night in the opening game of the 2025-26 National Football League season. [more]

R.I.P. | Giorgio Armani, the Italian designer who headed a multibillion-dollar fashion empire, died yesterday at the age of 91. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1905, the Russo-Japanese war, fought over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire, ended with the signing of the Treaty of Portsmouth.  [more history]