Vladimir Putin is set to travel to North Korea for a two-day visit starting Tuesday, the Kremlin said, in the Russian president’s first trip to the country in more than two decades – and the latest sign of a deepening alignment that’s raised widespread international concern. This is a rare overseas trip for Putin since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022 and a key moment for North Korean President Kim Jong Un, who has not hosted another world leader in Pyongyang – among the globe’s most politically isolated capitals – since the Covid-19 pandemic. The closely watched visit is expected to further cement a burgeoning partnership between the two powers that is founded on their shared animosity toward the West and driven by Putin’s need for support in his ongoing war on Ukraine. Following his visit to North Korea, Putin will travel to Hanoi Wednesday for another two-day trip, in a display of Communist-governed Vietnam’s ties to Russia that is likely to rankle the United States - CNN
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dissolved the influential war Cabinet that has overseen the fighting in Gaza, a government spokesperson said Monday, days after a key member of the body bolted from the government over frustration with the Israeli leader’s handling of the war. The move was widely expected following the departure of Benny Gantz, a centrist former military chief. Gantz’s absence from the government increases Netanyahu’s dependence on his ultra-nationalist allies, who oppose a cease-fire. That could pose an additional challenge to the already fragile negotiations to end the eight-month war in Gaza. Government officials said Netanyahu would hold smaller forums for sensitive war issues, including with his security Cabinet, which includes far-right governing partners who oppose cease-fire deals and have voiced support for reoccupying Gaza. - AP
The head of Nato says China should face consequences for supporting Russia's war in Ukraine, if it does not change its ways. Jens Stoltenberg said Beijing was "trying to get it both ways" by supporting Russia's war effort, while also trying to maintain relationships with European allies. "This cannot work in the long run," Mr Stoltenberg told BBC News during a visit to Washington. He said China was "sharing a lot of technologies, [like] micro-electronics, which are key for Russia to build missiles, weapons they use against Ukraine". He added that "at some stage, we should consider some kind of economic cost if China doesn't change their behaviour". Speaking ahead of a meeting with US President Joe Biden, the Nato chief also announced that more than 20 nations are expected to meet a defence spending target of 2% this year - more than any other year since it was pledged in 2014. “This is good for Europe and good for America, especially since much of this extra money is spent here in the United States," he said. Mr Stoltenberg also addressed comments that he made to the Telegraph on Sunday which indicated that Nato may be considering increasing the number of deployable warheads as a deterrent against growing threats from Russia and China. - BBC
Ukraine has called on international bondholders to agree to a significant reduction in its more than $20 billion debt to help the country, after initial talks just months before the moratorium on payments expired failed to reach a deal, the Financial Times reports. Bondholders have rejected Ukraine's offer to reduce the cost of foreign currency bonds by up to 60 percent at talks this month, the Finance Ministry said Monday. The government of Ukraine, as noted, faced a tight timeline to secure the debt restructuring necessary to continue receiving IMF assistance and to restore private financing flows for recovery. Bondholders had agreed to a two-year moratorium on repayments for Ukraine after the Russian invasion in early 2022, but it expires in August. "The first negotiations on the restructuring reflected deep investor uncertainty about the course of the war and how much debt Ukraine's economy can sustain," the newspaper writes. “The investor committee, which represents about 20 percent of the bonds, proposed a cut of just over 22 percent, but the IMF said it would not meet key debt targets," the Finance Ministry said. “Strong armies must be supported by a strong economy to win wars," said Ukraine's Finance Minister Sergiy Marchenko. - "As we approach the deadline, we must encourage our bondholders to continue productive and good faith negotiations with more significant debt relief" that could lead to the IMF's goals. The bondholders' committee reportedly said on Monday that it is "committed to working with Ukraine to structure a deal that can attract the necessary support from market participants. But he warned that Ukraine's proposed cuts "significantly exceed market expectations" and "threaten to significantly damage Ukraine's future investor base.
The Washington Post has published another potentially embarrassing story about one of its incoming leaders. This time, the newspaper detailed alleged ties between Robert Winnett—the man set to become the top editor of the Post later this year—and John Ford, a self-described“common thief” who claims to have used illegal methods to get hold of secret information for Britain’s Sunday Times. The investigation from the Post cites chapters from Ford’s unpublished book and other materials in reporting an “apparent overlap” between some of Winnett’s stories at the Sunday Times and the individuals or entities Ford claims to have been commissioned to target. The Post also reported that Ford claimed in his draft chapters that Winnett had put him in touch with a lawyer when Ford was arrested for allegedly attempting to steal the manuscript of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s then-upcoming memoir in 2010. Will Lewis, the new Post CEO and publisher who appointed Winnett (and whose own journalistic record has recently come under scrutiny)—declined to comment in response to his own reporters’ questions. - Daily Beast
U.S. surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, announced on Monday that he would push for a warning label on social media platforms advising parents that using the platforms might damage adolescents’ mental health. Warning labels — like those that appear on tobacco and alcohol products — are one of the most powerful tools available to the nation’s top health official, but Dr. Murthy cannot unilaterally require them; the action requires approval by Congress. The proposal builds on several years of escalating warnings from the surgeon general. In a May 2023 advisory, he recommended that parents immediately set limits on phone use, and urged Congress to swiftly develop health and safety standards for technology platforms. He also called on tech companies to make changes: to share internal data on the health impact of their products; to allow independent safety audits; and restrict features like push notifications, autoplay and infinite scroll, which he says “prey on developing brains and contribute to excessive use.” - NYT
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