Wednesday, March 9th, 2022 

Gas prices hit record high as Russia’s Ukraine invasion pushes up oil prices Gas prices continued to rise early Tuesday as bipartisan support for a ban on Russian oil imports grew in Congress. The national average reached $4.173 per gallon, surpassing the previous record of $4.114 reached in July 2008, automobile club AAA said. The price of oil jumped by about 14 percent on Monday, with the international benchmark Brent crude reaching about $129 per barrel, up from about $65 per barrel in early December. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate rose about 8 percent to roughly $125 per barrel. Republicans and Democrats in Congress have been urging President Biden to ban Russian oil imports as part of the effort to impose harsher sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin for invading Ukraine. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

U.S. officials meet with Venezuelan counterparts to discuss oil imports The Biden administration held rare in-person meetings with Venezuelan officials in Caracas over the weekend to discuss letting Venezuela start selling crude oil on the open market again as part of an effort to address a surge in oil prices since Russia invaded Ukraine. Pressure is mounting for the U.S. to ban imports of Russian oil, and Reinaldo Quintero, president of the association representing Venezuelan oil companies, said that the South American nation could ramp up production to eventually replace the crude the U.S. currently gets from Russia. The U.S. once got much of its imported oil from Venezuela, until the Trump administration cut it off as it attempted to drive out the authoritarian government of President Nicolás Maduro. Russian energy companies and banks helped Venezuela continue exporting oil. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Venezuela releases 2 American prisoners Venezuela on Tuesday released at least two imprisoned Americans following a rare visit by a high-level U.S. delegation last weekend. The men released were Gustavo Cárdenas, an executive at the American branch of Venezuela’s state oil company, and Jorge Alberto Fernández. The American officials met with the South American nation’s authoritarian president, Nicolas Maduro, to discuss resuming U.S. purchases of Venezuelan oil to replace U.S. imports of Russian oil, which President Biden banned on Tuesday. Biden administration officials said the prisoner release was not part of any developing deal to restart Venezuelan oil imports, which were banned under the Trump administration. Venezuela is Russia’s staunchest ally in the Western Hemisphere, and the United Nations has accused Maduro’s government of human rights violations. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Biden bans Russian oil imports President Biden on Tuesday announced a ban on Russian oil imports in retaliation for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The United States produces most of its oil domestically but gets about 8 percent of its crude imports from Russia, so the ban could push already record gasoline prices even higher. Biden acknowledged the potential pain for Americans, but said, “Defending freedom is going to cost.” Bipartisan support for a Russian-oil ban has risen as Russia intensified its attacks on Ukrainian cities, as lawmakers argued that sanctions were incomplete if they didn’t include the nation’s lucrative energy industry because it provides Moscow with money to pay for its military offensive. “We will not be part of subsidizing Putin’s war,” Biden said. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Congressional leaders agree to $1.5 trillion spending deal with Ukraine aid Leaders in Congress early Wednesday reached an overdue $1.5 trillion deal to finance federal agencies for the rest of the year. The spending agreement includes billions of additional money to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, and $13.6 billion to help Ukraine and European allies counter Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which is causing Europe’s worst refugee crisis since World War II. President Biden last week asked for $10 billion for military, humanitarian, and economic aid, and bipartisan backing was so strong that lawmakers agreed to add to what he requested. “We’re going to support them against tyranny, oppression, violent acts of subjugation,” Biden said at the White House. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Zelensky tells U.K. lawmakers Ukraine will fight Russia invasion ‘whatever the cost’ Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told members of British Parliament in a video speech on Tuesday that Ukraine would “continue fighting for our land, whatever the cost.” Zelensky repeated calls for tougher sanctions against Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine a week and a half ago. He also called for a no-fly zone over Ukraine. Lawmakers gave him a standing ovation, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson reiterated his promise that the U.K. would keep sending humanitarian aid and military support and maintain sanctions against Russia “until Ukraine is free,” although he did not respond to Zelensky’s pleas for NATO to impose a no-fly zone, which Western leaders worry Russia would use as an excuse to broaden the war. THE WASHINGTON POST 

U.S. turns down Poland offer of MiG fighter jets for Ukraine The United States on Tuesday rejected Poland’s surprise offer to send its 28 Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets to a U.S. base in Germany so they could be delivered to Ukraine. Sending combat aircraft from NATO territory into contested airspace to replenish Ukraine’s air force and help it fight Russian forces “raises serious concerns for the entire NATO alliance” and is “not tenable,” the Pentagon said. The U.S. has been pushing to accelerate weapons deliveries to Ukraine, which has been fighting a Russian invasion for two weeks. The proposed donation of warplanes would bolster Ukrainian forces, but risks expanding the war, because Russia has said it considers supporting Ukraine’s air force to be tantamount to joining the war. REUTERS 

Fitch Ratings downgrades Russia from “B” to “C”, one notch above default, and warns that Russian default on its obligations is “imminent”. (BBC) 

The Ukrainian state grid operator warns that Russian forces, which are in control of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, have disconnected the plant from the electricity grid, which the operator says will impact nuclear fuel cooling, and forced a blackout for the nearby city of Slavutych. Previously, the nuclear plant stopped communications with the IAEA, the United Nations-based organisation specialising in nuclear energy production. (The Independent) 

The United Kingdom bans all Russian aircraft on its territory and in its airspace, impounding one currently being on British soil, and bans all exports of aviation- and space-related goods and services. (Reuters) 

McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Coca-Cola halt Russia operations McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Coca-Cola on Tuesday became the latest major American companies to announce that they were suspending operations in Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine. “McDonald’s has decided to temporarily close all our restaurants in Russia and pause all operations in the market,” CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a statement. Starbucks also will close all of its coffee outlets, and Coca-Cola will suspend all operations in the country. Most McDonald’s restaurants around the world are owned by franchise operators, but in Russia the fast-food giant operates 84 percent of its 847 locations, employing 62,000 people. Pepsi-Cola said it was suspending sales of its beverage brands in Russia but continuing sales of some products, including baby food. CNN 

Early results show a narrow victory for the conservative candidate Yoon Suk-yeol. (The New York Times) 

The wreck of Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance, which sank in 1915, has been found beneath the Weddell Sea. (The New York Times) 

Guy Reffitt found guilty in 1st Jan. 6 jury trial A jury on Tuesday found Guy Reffitt guilty for carrying a handgun while trying to disrupt the certification of President Biden’s victory over former President Donald Trump, and for later threatening his teenage children if they turned him in. It was the first jury trial stemming from the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a mob of Trump’s supporters. Reffitt, a recruiter for the Texas Three Percenters militia group, encouraged rioters to battle police but didn’t enter the Capitol himself. He could get up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced in June, but will likely serve much less time. The case was considered a key test for the Justice Department’s effort to hold people accountable for the riot. ABC NEWS 

Florida Senate passes ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill Florida’s Republican-controlled Senate on Tuesday approved a bill seeking to restrict discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is expected to sign the legislation, officially called the Parental Rights in Education legislation, which critics call the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. “Clearly right now, we see a lot of focus on the transgenderism, telling kids that they may be able to pick genders and all that. I don’t think parents want that for these young kids,” DeSantis said on Friday. Critics said the bill would endanger LGBTQ students, who already face a higher risk of depression and suicide. NPR 

Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio arrested  Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, a longtime leader of the right-wing-extremist Proud Boys group, was arrested Tuesday on a conspiracy charge connected to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a mob of former President Donald Trump’s supporters. He is accused of plotting with followers who tried to prevent Congress from certifying President Biden’s election victory over Trump. The indictment against Tarrio, who lives in Miami, Florida, came on the same day prosecutors won their first jury trial in a Jan. 6 case. Tarrio, 38, is the second leader of a radical group to be charged in connection with the attack, joining Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes. Neither Tarrio nor Rhodes is accused of entering the Capitol during the riot. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Police charge 6 teenagers in connection with deadly Iowa school drive-by shooting Police on Tuesday charged six teenagers with murder in a Monday drive-by shooting outside an Iowa high school that left a 15-year-old boy dead and two teenage girls wounded in critical condition. The attackers were targeting the boy who died, not the girls, said Sgt. Paul Parizek, spokesperson for the Des Moines Police Department. Witnesses said several armed attackers opened fire from several vehicles. Police identified the suspects as Octavio Lopez, 17; Nyang Chamdual, 14; Manuel Buezo, 16; Romero Perdomo, 16; Alex Perdomo, 15; and Henry Valladares-Amaya, 17. “While this incident occurred outside of a school, it could have occurred in any one of our neighborhoods. The school is where the suspects found their target,” Parizek said. USA TODAY 

Aaron Rodgers reportedly to become highest paid player in NFL history Aaron Rodgers will return as the Green Bay Packers’ quarterback next season after agreeing to a four-year, $200 million contract extension that will make him the highest-paid player in NFL history, the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday. The news ended weeks of speculation about Rodgers’ future, after he fueled rumors of his possible retirement last month with an Instagram post thanking his past and current teammates, telling them they were “the icing on the beautiful cake we call our job: football.” Last week, NFL Network reported that Rodgers planned to play in 2022 but was “torn” on whether to do so with the Packers. Rodgers was embroiled this year in a controversy after he revealed that he was unvaccinated against COVID-19, after saying in an earlier interview that he was “immunized.” NFL NETWORK 

WSJ: Regulators investigate Activision Blizzard bets Federal prosecutors and securities regulators are investigating big purchases of Activision Blizzard Inc. shares in January just before the videogame maker reached a deal to be acquired by Microsoft, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday night, citing people familiar with the matter. Barry Diller, Alexander von Furstenberg, and David Geffen bought shares in January at options to buy Activision shares at $40 each on Jan. 14, which gives them an unrealized profit of about $60 million on the options trade, based on a current price around $80 per share. Diller told the Journal none of the three men had insider information. “It was simply a lucky bet,” he said. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

Tuesday,  March 8th, 2022 

Russia’s Ukraine invasion sends metals prices soaring for carmakers Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in soaring costs for metals used in cars, from aluminum used in vehicle bodies to high-grade nickel needed for electric-vehicle batteries. The London Metal Exchange halted nickel trading on Tuesday after an unprecedented 250 percent price spike over two days, pushing its price briefly above $100,000 a ton early Tuesday, a first. Aluminum and palladium, used in catalytic converters, both hit record highs Monday. Metals haven’t yet been included in Western sanctions imposed against Russia over its Ukraine invasion, but shippers and suppliers in the auto industry are among those avoiding Russian goods, adding to the problems facing automakers already contending with a chip shortage. REUTERS 

Due to the panic buying of nickel futures, whose prices have increased above the $100,000 per tonne mark for the first time, and which doubled for the second consecutive day, the London Metal Exchange suspends all trading of nickel. (Reuters) (Reuters 2) 

The Biden administration bans imports of Russian oil, gas and coal to the United States. The United Kingdom also announces that it would phase out Russian oil by the end of the year.  (Politico) 

The Albanian consulate in Kharkiv is destroyed during Russian shelling. No casualties are reported. (Euractiv) 

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki reaffirms that the U.S. will not impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine. (Wall Street Journal) 

A report from the Irish Times said that the United Nations told its employees in a communications guidance to refer to the war in Ukraine as a “conflict” or “military offensive” rather than as a “war” or an “invasion”, and also ordered employees to not put the Ukrainian flag on any of their social media accounts to “avoid reputational risk”, in an attempt to avoid upsetting Russia. However, Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman for the secretary-general of the United Nations, wrote in an email to The Guardian that no such recommendation was ever issued.  (The Guardian) 

Chinese officials indicate that they are interested in buying shares in recently-distressed Russian energy and minerals companies, seeking supply security. The negotiations, however, are still at an early stage. (Bloomberg) 

New Zealand reports a record 23,894 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. (ABC News Australia) 

In an interview with ABC News, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that Ukraine is open to holding discussions about the Russia-recognized Donetsk and Luhansk separatist regions in eastern Ukraine. He also concedes that his country may no longer be prepared to be accepted into NATO. (Business Insider) 

Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio is indicted on conspiracy charges of obstructing the U.S. Congress during the January 6 attack at the United States Capitol. (Politico) 

The New York Times removes all its journalists from Russia, fearing arrests due to the recent changes to the Criminal Code of Russia penalizing “falsehoods” about the Russian Armed Forces or the country’s invasion. (The Hill) 

Camila Cabello laughs off wardrobe malfunction on live TV My oh my. Camila Cabello is laughing off a recent wardrobe malfunction that occurred during a live appearance on a British talk show. On The One Show, the “Señorita” singer was discussing her favorite move from her new music video, and when she got out of her seat to recreate it, she accidentally flashed her nipple. “I just flashed you,” she said, and it was obvious enough that the show’s hosts audibly gasped and tried to stifle their laughter. As she sat back down, Cabello said, “I hope you didn’t see nipple” — only for co-host Alex Jones (not that Alex Jones) to tell her, “There was a bit of a wardrobe malfunction. I don’t know what I saw. There was a flash of something.” Cabello later took to TikTok to joke about the incident, revealing “my stylist asked me if I wanted nip covers and I said no” as she lip-synced, “I wish I had a time machine.” Fortunately, it’s no longer 2004, meaning we probably won’t have to spend the next year of our lives discussing this.  PAGE SIX 

Kanye West writes a bizarre poem about his own death Kanye West is a poet and he didn’t even know it — and according to his “latest creation,” he’s also dead. The rapper on Tuesday shared a strange poem on Instagram titled “Dead,” which is about, well, being “DEAD.” West writes in the Sixth Sense-esque poem, “They ran through my account like the sign said free bread. But no one wanted to tell me I was DEAD.” The poem concludes with West suggesting he was murdered in this scenario. “I found out one day at the newsstand in [purgatory] there was a front page article of my murderers story,” he writes. West also decided to pull a David Lynch by preemptively refusing to answer questions about the poem, declaring he “will not explain this new piece for the explanation destroys the mystery and magic.” Yes, what could he possibly be getting at with his poem “DEAD,” which is just him repeatedly saying he feels like he’s dead? He’s a real enigma, this guy. TMZ 

Renée Zellweger walked half a mile to the Oscars: ‘I don’t recommend it’ Back in Renée Zellweger’s day, we had to walk half-a-mile to the Oscars in the rain both ways! Well, okay, she didn’t have to. Zellweger, who has won two Academy Awards for Cold Mountain and Judy, told The Tonight Show about her process for getting “grounded” before the Oscars — which involves traveling there on foot. “I walk to the Oscars,” she said. “I sneak in.” In fact, she recalls that when she was nominated for Judy in 2020, “the only hotel room that was available was half a mile away,” so she had to walk that distance in the rain … while wearing heels. “I don’t recommend it,” she said, “but it is a good exercise for keeping you grounded.” Luckily, she did end up winning Best Actress that year, making the story a lot less depressing than it might have been — we don’t even want to think about how Glenn Close might have grounded herself before the 2019 Oscars.   PEOPLE 

Zoë Kravitz criticizes ‘click bait’ about her ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ rejection Zoë Kravitz wants to clarify she’s not saying Christopher Nolan is a racist after sharing a shocking story about being rejected. Kravitz, who played Catwoman in The Batman, recently recalled that she wanted to audition for the previous Batman movie, Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises, but was told she was too “urban” for a part. “I wasn’t able to read because of the color of my skin,” she explained to The Guardian, a story she’s previously shared in other interviews. But after the quotes went viral, Kravitz criticized “click bait bad journalism” on Instagram. “I did not mention this to point any fingers or make anyone seem racist, namely Chris Nolan, the film’s producers or anyone on the casting team, because I truly do not believe anyone meant any harm,” she wrote. “I was simply giving an example of what it was like to be a woman of color in this industry at that time.” Kravitz added that she’s happy “we are attempting to evolve,” but requested of everyone, “Let’s all calm down.”  INDIEWIRE 

J.K. Rowling celebrates International Women’s Day with more bad tweets It’s once again not a great day to be a Fantastic Beasts publicist. J.K. Rowling decided to celebrate International Women’s Day by making everyone on Twitter really mad at her for “dumb transphobic bulls—” once again. The Harry Potter author has been railing against a bill in Scotland that would make it easier for transgender people to legally change their gender, claiming it would “harm the most vulnerable women in society.” And on Tuesday, she complained about an official’s comments on the definition of a woman, claiming that “under a Labour government, today will become We Who Must Not Be Named Day.” Her replies were immediately filled with people absolutely begging her to just please, for the love of God, log off, and when one person asked Rowling if she really wants “your legacy to die on this hill,” she replied, “Yes, sweetheart. I’m staying right here on this hill.” Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is set for release in just a few weeks, so yeah, that press tour should go just swimmingly.  INDIEWIRE 

The End Wednesday 

Russia and Ukraine end 3rd round of talks with little progress  Russia and Ukraine on Monday ended a third round of talks with no breakthrough, as Ukraine continued to resist intensifying Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities. Russia is demanding that Ukraine accept neutrality, demilitarize, drop its effort to join NATO, and give up parts of eastern Ukraine. An adviser to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said some progress had been made on improving the “logistics of humanitarian corridors” for civilians to leave besieged cities as conditions worsened. Ukrainians boarded buses to leave the eastern city of Sumy on Tuesday, the first evacuation from a Ukrainian city through an agreed humanitarian corridor after several failed attempts. AXIOS

Senate unanimously approves anti-lynching bill The Senate on Monday unanimously passed a bill to criminalize lynching after a century of failed attempts. The legislation, which passed the House last month and is expected to be signed by President Biden, makes lynching a federal hate crime punishable by up to 30 years in prison. The effort to pass the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act, named after the 14-year-old boy from Chicago tortured and killed while visiting family in Mississippi, gained momentum following the killing of George Floyd by Minnesota police. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.), said the Senate’s unanimous passage of the bill sent “a clear and emphatic message that our nation will no longer ignore this shameful chapter of our history.” NPR 

Supreme Court declines to reverse ruling overturning Cosby sexual assault conviction  The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a request by prosecutors to undo a 2021 ruling in Pennsylvania that overturned comedian and actor Bill Cosby’s 2018 sexual assault conviction. The justices let the decision, which was made by a divided Pennsylvania Supreme Court, stand. The Pennsylvania high court said that Cosby should never have been charged because a previous local district attorney had promised in 2005 that he would not be prosecuted. The ruling angered sexual assault victims. Cosby had spent nearly three years in state prison. He had been sentenced to three to 10 years in prison for drugging and molesting Andrea Constand, a former employee of Cosby’s alma mater Temple University. REUTERS 

Authorities call grounded Haitian freighter largest human smuggling event in years  Authorities in Florida said Monday that a wooden freighter that ran aground with 356 Haitian migrants on board was the largest human smuggling event in years. The boat got stuck Sunday about 200 yards from shore in the Florida Keys near the well-known Ocean Reef Club on North Key Largo. About 158 migrants swam and waded to shore. The 198 others were rescued by a Coast Guard cutter. Hansel Pintos, a spokesman for the Coast Guard’s seventh district, said the vessel appeared designed to ferry goods between Haitian coastal towns, not travel on the open ocean. “Folks who make this kind of voyage in grossly overloaded boats are putting their lives in danger,” Pintos said. Haiti has struggled with a worsening security situation since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse last July. CNN 

Trucks, other vehicles circle D.C. in 2nd day of COVID policy protest Hundreds of vehicles, including dozens of semi-trucks, circled the Capital Beltway for a second day on Monday to protest vaccine mandates and other elements of the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Organizer Brian Brase said the group did not plan to leave the highway but that some participants wanted to drive into Washington, D.C. The so-called People’s Convoy made two loops of the 64-mile highway on Sunday and one on Monday. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) said U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger told her no security threats were anticipated. “It seems their cause has dissolved with masks coming down, and COVID no longer quite the problem it has been nationwide,” Norton said. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Biden administration tightens emissions standards for heavy-duty trucksThe Biden administration announced Monday that it is tightening emissions standards for large trucks, buses, and other heavy-duty vehicles. The Environmental Protection Agency is updating standards for nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from heavy-duty trucks for the first time since 2001 in a bid to reduce smog. The EPA also announced more than $1.3 billion in funding to get more clean transportation and school buses on the road. Before this move, the Biden administration had focused on cutting emissions from passenger cars and other light-duty vehicles. Heavy-duty vehicles cause about 23 percent of total vehicle emissions, although there are far fewer of them than smaller vehicles. CNN 

Uber shares struggle despite raised guidance Uber shares fluctuated on Monday and early Tuesday as driver income fell due to rising gas prices but the company said its ride-hailing business was recovering from the disruption of the COVID-19 wave caused by the highly infectious Omicron coronavirus variant. The company raised its guidance for adjusted earnings to between $130 million and $150 million, up from between $100 million and $130 million thanks to recent increases in customer use of its ride-hailing and delivery businesses. “Our Mobility business is bouncing back from Omicron much faster than we expected,” Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi said. Gross bookings for airports were 50 percent higher at the end of February compared to a month earlier, “highlighting just how eager consumers are to get moving again,” he said. BLOOMBERG 

Monday,  March 7th, 2022 

Metal markets register new highs. Aluminium and nickel register a record price on the London stock exchange, at about $4,000 and $55,000 per tonne, respectively; nickel prices rose 90% on intraday trading. Copper also recorded new highs, at $10,845 per tonne, while palladium reached $3,440 per ounce. Russia is a substantial producer of all of these metals, and the market expects shortages of these commodities as the country is hit by further sanctions. (Reuters) 

The price of Brent crude oil increases to $139.13 per barrel, the highest value since July 2008, amid supply disruptions and the threat of a Russian oil ban. (Reuters) 

Ukraine says that it has killed 41st Combined Arms Army general Vitaly Gerasimov, who allegedly took part in the annexation of Crimea, Russia’s intervention in Syria, and the Second Chechen War, in the Kharkiv Oblast. He is the second general to be killed by Ukrainian forces after Andrey Sukhovetsky.  (The Independent) 

The International Atomic Energy Agency confirms that the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology in Kharkiv, which holds a neutron generator, has been destroyed by Russian shelling. The IAEA says that no radiation release has been detected from the facility, which housed a “small inventory of radioactive material”. (Bloomberg) 

Ukrainian Navy forces strike Russian Navy patrol boat Vasily Bykov with missiles in the Black Sea. (The Telegraph) 

Russian police arrest 4,300 anti-war protesters Police in Russia detained at least 4,300 people at anti-war protests across the country on Sunday, Reuters reported, citing an independent monitoring group OVD-Info. About 1,700 were arrested in Moscow alone. Videos posted on social media showed thousands of protesters in different cities expressing anger about President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Demonstrators chanted “No to war!” and “Shame on you!” One of the dozens of protesters arrested in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg was shown being beaten by riot police. “The screws are being fully tightened — essentially we are witnessing military censorship,” said OVD-Info spokesperson Maria Kuznetsova. “We are seeing rather big protests today, even in Siberian cities where we only rarely saw such numbers of arrests.”  REUTERS 

Russia strikes Ukrainian cities ahead of 3rd round of talks Russian forces shelled a bridge being used by civilians trying to reach the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, on Sunday, killing eight civilians from the town of Irpin, the local mayor, Oleksandr Markushyn, said, according to The Wall Street Journal. Civilian deaths are mounting as Russian forces strike residential areas in cities around Ukraine, and as efforts to establish ceasefires around evacuation corridors fail. Russia’s military says it is not targeting civilians, and claimed without evidence that Ukrainian “nationalists” are firing at their own people. The attacks in Irpin came ahead of a third round of ceasefire talks scheduled to take place on Monday. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized world leaders for their “silence” after Russia’s Defense Ministry announced a new offensive. NBC NEWS 

Russia and Ukraine set up another ceasefire in order to allow humanitarian evacuations in some cities. (ABC News) 

Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov says that Russia will end their military campaign if Ukraine ends its fighting campaign, does not join NATO, recognizes Crimea as Russian territory, and recognizes Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states. (Newsweek) 

Moscow offers ‘humanitarian corridors’ leading to Russia, Belarus Russia announced that it would establish new “humanitarian corridors” on Monday to give Ukrainians ways to escape its attacks on major cities. The corridors would lead to Russia itself or to Belarus, its ally. A spokesperson for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the move a “completely immoral” stunt by Moscow to “use people’s suffering to create a television picture” as propaganda. Russia’s announcement came after two days over the weekend in which ceasefires failed to hold long enough to allow the escape of some of the hundreds of thousands of people trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol without food or water. The United Nations refugee agency said 1.5 million people had fled Ukraine since Russia invaded 10 days ago.  REUTERS 

French forces confirm reports that they killed Algerian-born senior al-Qaeda official Yahia Djouadi in a drone strike in February. (The National News) 

New York City formally ends its mask mandate for its school district as well as its indoor vaccine mandate for restaurants, bars and theaters. (The New York Times) (WNYW-TV) 

Connecticut reports 145 hospitalizations from COVID-19, its lowest since July 30 of last year. (WTIC-TV) 

Belgium removes most of its COVID-19-related restrictions, including lifting most of mask mandate and no longer requiring COVID Safe Tickets to enter most public places, after the country lowered its COVID-19 barometer from code orange to yellow. (Anadolu Agency) 

China reports 526 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, which is the highest daily total in the country in two years. (Bloomberg) 

It is announced that Moderna will build a vaccine manufacturing facility in Kenya to produce mRNA vaccines, including its COVID-19 vaccine. (Reuters) 

The Russian and Ukrainian delegations hold a third round of talks at the Belarus–Poland border. During the talks, both countries say that they made limited progress on humanitarian corridors. However, no ceasefire was agreed to. A fourth round of talks will be held in the future. (ANI) 

It is announced that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba will hold a tripartite meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in Ankara on Thursday. This will be the first Cabinet-level meeting between Russia and Ukraine since the invasion began. (Politico EU) 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán signs a decree allowing the deployment of NATO troops in western Hungary, and the transfer of lethal weapons across its territory to other NATO member states. However, the decree does not allow weapons shipments across its territory to Ukraine. (Reuters) 

President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte approves a bill raising the age of consent in the Philippines from 12 to 16. (Reuters) 

Belarus launched a widespread phishing attack against Polish and Ukrainian government and military officials. The attack has since been contained. (The Washington Post) 

The End Tuesday 

Truck convoy slows traffic on Washington, D.C., beltway A convoy of dozens of trucks, along with minivans and other vehicles, encircled Washington, D.C., on Sunday and disrupted traffic flow to protest government coronavirus pandemic policies. The organizers of the convoy, which was inspired by a protest that blocked streets in Ottawa, Canada, for three weeks, planned to have participants stay close together to slow down traffic as they did two laps on the 64-mile Capital Beltway before returning to a Maryland staging area, but by the second lap the vehicles were spread far apart, reducing their effectiveness, The New York Times reported. The main trucker caravan in the so-called People’s Convoy left for the nation’s capital from Adelanto, California, more than a week ago. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Ex-N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo makes 1st public appearance since resignation Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on Sunday made his first public appearance since resigning six months ago as he faced multiple sexual harassment allegations. “God isn’t finished with me yet,” Cuomo said at God’s Battalion of Prayer, a Brooklyn church run by a close ally. Cuomo delivered a speech condemning government corruption, the Democratic Party, and “cancel culture.” He also referred to his father, the late former Gov. Mario Cuomo, and his younger brother, Chris Cuomo, who was ousted from his job as a CNN host after revelations about his efforts to help his older brother fight the harassment allegations. “The press roasted me, my colleagues were ridiculed, my brother was fired. It was ugly. It was probably the toughest time of my life,” Cuomo said. POLITICO 

TikTok limits services in Russia due to fake news law TikTok is suspending new content and livestreaming on its platform in Russia, the company announced Sunday, citing safety concerns for its users and employees in the country. This comes in the wake of Russia passing a law on Friday that imposes a jail term of up to 15 years for anyone who intentionally spreads “fake news” about the country’s military amid the invasion of Ukraine. In a statement, TikTok declared it has “no choice but to suspend livestreaming and new content to our video service in Russia while we review the safety implications of this law.” TikTok confirmed this will not affect its in-app messaging service. NBC NEWS 

The Batman brings in $128.5 million in best opening weekend yet of 2022 The Batman brought in $128.5 million at the North American box office over the weekend, according to its studio, Warner Bros. Surpassing industry expectations of about $100 million, it was the best opening so far in 2022 and the second biggest of the coronavirus pandemic. The studio released the movie exclusively in theaters after a year of simultaneous debuts in cinemas and on the studio’s HBO Max streaming service. This was one of the best openings ever for a movie about Batman, one of the most popular superheroes. Batman films have made more than $5 billion in ticket sales since 1989’s Batman. This movie stars Robert Pattinson as the Caped Crusader and Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman. CNN 

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