WORLD BRIEFING: June 5, 2024
Ukraine has struck into Russia with western made weapons, according to media reports Wednesday morning. According to an official quoted in the New York Times, Kyiv struck missile launchers in the Russian region of Belgorod using an American made missile system. The reported strike happened shortly after U.S. President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-made weapons for limited strikes closer to Kharkiv Oblast.
Yehor Chernev, the deputy chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament’s committee on national security, defense and intelligence, said on Tuesday that Ukrainian forces had destroyed Russian missile launchers with a strike in the Belgorod region, about 20 miles into Russia. Ukraine’s forces used a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, he said. It was the first time a Ukrainian official has acknowledged publicly that Ukraine had used American weapons to fire into Russia since President Biden lifted the ban on such strikes. For months, the ban had stood as a red line the Biden administration would not cross out of concern about increasing tensions with a nuclear-armed nation. The Ukrainian military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. - NYT
Unfortunately the continued Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure have triggered power outages in major cities, according to a longtime expat living in Kyiv Oblast. “Over the last two days I have had access to electricity for six hours, including today from midnight to 2:00 am, and now starting at 7:30 am which may last all day or end in a moment's time,” he wrote in his daily blog. Due to the strikes, power outages have also occurred in Odesa Oblast and officials said tram and other transport services will be impacted today
A Swiss-hosted summit on Ukraine will aim to carve a path to involving Russian officials in future talks after establishing agreement on nuclear safety, food security and returning abducted children, a draft document shows. The June 15-16 gathering in Lucerne, Switzerland, will focus on the three measures as a way to build trust in order to later engage with Moscow on a limited number of issues, according to a draft document seen by Bloomberg
Aid shipments into southern Gaza are being squeezed out by commercial convoys, humanitarian organisations say, at a time when Israel’s military push into Rafah has choked off supply routes critical to feeding hundreds of thousands of people. Deliveries of food, medicine and other aid into Gaza fell by two-thirds after Israel began its ground operation on 7 May, UN figures show. But overall the number of trucks entering Gaza rose in May compared with April, according to Israeli officials. Part of the reason for the stark difference in accounts of what supplies reached the strip is a rise in commercial shipments. In May, the Israeli military lifted a ban on the sale of food to Gaza from Israel and the occupied West Bank, Reuters reported last week. Traders got the green light to resume buying fresh fruit and vegetables, dairy and other goods. Inside Gaza, residents say there is more food in markets, but prices are many times higher than prewar levels, and after months of fighting and displacement few people can afford to buy much. A group of aid agencies warned this week that there was a “mirage of improved access”, when efforts to feed Palestinians were on the verge of collapse. - The Guardian
The Philippine military said on Tuesday (Jun 4) that Chinese boats illegally "seized" food and medicine airdropped to a Filipino outpost in the South China Sea. The alleged incident happened on May 19 at Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands, where Filipino troops are garrisoned on a grounded navy vessel to assert Manila's claims to the waters. Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea and there has been a series of confrontations involving Chinese and Philippine vessels near contested reefs, often during Philippine resupply missions to Second Thomas Shoal. The Philippine military accused China of "aggressive and unprovoked interference" when two Chinese rigid-hulled inflatable boats allegedly came within 10 metres of the Sierra Madre vessel and seized an airdropped package meant for Filipino troops. It was the first time supplies had been seized, the military said. - CNA
President Joe Biden on Tuesday issued an executive order to temporarily suspend the processing of most asylum claims at the southern U.S. border when the seven-day average of unauthorized crossings exceeds 2,500. The president said he's taking action to "gain control" of the border, after years of high number of irregular crossings. The measure will take effect immediately, according to the rules distributed by the Department of Homeland Security. - NPR
Gunmen have killed the female mayor of a town in Mexico just hours after the country celebrated the election of Claudia Sheinbaum as the nation's first woman president. Yolanda Sánchez was shot in the town of Cotija, which she had governed since September 2021. She was the first woman to be elected to the post. Widespread violence against politicians has overshadowed Mexico's general election, which saw two women run for the presidency. The presidential race was won by Claudia Sheinbaum, who will be sworn in on 1 October as the first woman to hold the top office in Mexico. Ms Sheinbaum's defeated rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, has been critical of the violence which marred the campaign. Ms Gálvez said that when she called Ms Sheinbaum on Monday, she told her that "I saw a Mexico with a lot of pain and violence. I wished that she could solve the severe problems our people have”. - BBC
Vladimir Putin has started wearing body armor underneath his clothes when he attends large public events. The move is part of extreme new security measures undertaken for the Russian leader in recent months, the report says, citing two unnamed officials and a source close to the Kremlin. “This year on May 9, the chief was clearly wearing concealed body armor during the parade,” one official was quoted as saying, referring to the Victory Day celebrations on Red Square. It would explain the awkward, rigid movements that many observers have noticed from Putin recently. His meals are also tested for poison with the help of a portable lab, another source told the outlet. “The president has personal chefs who always travel with him. Groceries are brought with him too. But even then, there is always a special group of officers traveling with Putin who check all the meals before Putin gets to them,” the source said. - Moscow Times
A heat dome in the western part of the US will subject more than 34 million people to extreme temperatures beginning Tuesday. Forecasters are warning residents in California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona to prepare for temperatures to reach triple digits. Later in the week, extreme temperatures are expected to reach the Pacific Northwest. Similar temperatures last year killed at least a dozen people in the American Southwest. - BBC
