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☆ U.S. Military Installs Temporary Pier in Gaza for Humanitarian Aid
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Victoria Kim | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. military anchored a temporary pier on Gaza’s coast on Thursday, creating a point of entry for humanitarian aid for the enclave, where the flow of supplies through land borders has largely come to a halt since Israel began its incursion into Rafah last week. The aid will be loaded onto trucks that will begin moving ashore “in the coming days,” the U.S. Central Command said in a statement Thursday morning. U.S. officials had said last week that the floating pier and causeway had been completed, but that weather conditions had delayed their installation. An American ship loaded with humanitarian aid, the Sagamore, set off for Gaza from Cyprus last week, and the aid was loaded onto a smaller vessel that had been waiting for the pier to be installed. The United Nations will receive the aid and oversee its distribution in Gaza, according to Central Command, which said no U.S. troops would set foot in the territory.

Persons: Charles Q, Brown, “ It’ll, ”, “, that’s Organizations: U.S, Israel, U.S . Central Command, United Nations, Central Command, U.S ., Pentagon, Joint Chiefs, Staff, NATO Locations: Rafah, Israel, Gaza, An American, Cyprus, Brussels

☆ Exclusive satellite images show destroyed Russian jets and building at Crimean airbase
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Paul P. Murphy | Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Satellite images exclusively obtained by CNN show three destroyed Russian jets and damaged buildings at Belbek airbase in occupied port city of Sevastopol on Wednesday. Satellite images exclusive to CNN show destroyed jets and building at Belbek Airbase in Crimea on May 15, 2024. Satellite image ©2024 Maxar TechnologiesSatellite images exclusive to CNN show destroyed jets and building at Belbek Airbase in Crimea on May 15, 2024. Satellite images exclusive to CNN show destroyed jets and building at Belbek Airbase in Crimea on May 15, 2024. Satellite image ©2024 Maxar TechnologiesSatellite images exclusive to CNN show destroyed jets and building at Belbek Airbase in Crimea on May 15, 2024.

Persons: Mikhail Razvozhaev, “, ” Razvozhaev, Belbek, Dmytro Pletenchuk, ”, Volodymyr Zelensky, don’t, Christopher Cavoli, ” Zelensky, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping Organizations: CNN, Ukrainian, ” CNN, Black, NATO, Allied Locations: Sevastopol, Crimea, Russia, Belbek, Russian, Belbek Airbase, Ukrainian, Atesh, Moscow, Ukraine, Azov, Kharkiv, Vovchansk, Ukraine’s, Brussels, Beijing, China

☆ The US is worried about an invasion, but China could take control of Taiwan without firing a shot, war experts warn
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Defense experts say that an aggressive Chinese coercion campaign, short of war but still threatening, is more likely than a full-scale invasion and the US needs to prepare for such an event. Economic and diplomatic pressure is notable, and Chinese misinformation operations and the potential to slowly set up a blockade of Taiwan are also concerns. Annabelle Chih/Getty ImagesThe report identifies four things key to resisting Chinese coercion. CM-11 tanks fire artillery during the 2-day live-fire drill, amid intensifying threats military from China, in Pingtung county, Taiwan, 7 September 2022.

Persons: —, Han, Annabelle Chih, MANDY CHENG, Lai Ching, Lai, Ceng Shou Yi, John Aquilano, Xi, Aquilano, Carlos Del Toro, Frank Kendall Organizations: Service, Business, American Enterprise Institute, Institute for, Liberation Army, PLA, AEI, Cobra, Getty, Democratic Progressive Party, Taiwan, Getty Images, US, Pacific Command, US Armed Services, Air Force, Department of Defense Locations: Taiwan, China, Pingtung, US, Pacific, Hualien, AFP, Pingtung county, Guam, Japan

☆ Zelenskyy canceled all his foreign trips, a sign things are critically bad for Ukraine right now
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

This has given Russian forces the chance to make small but steady gains. It's one of 30 settlements that have seen heavy bombardment by Russian forces, Kharkiv Governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Monday. AdvertisementHolding on until Western aid comesMeanwhile, chronic delays in Western support has left Ukraine badly under-supplied in ammunition. Advertisement"This year represents a window of opportunity for Russia," military analyst Michael Kofman told the Times. "But if the Russian military is not able to turn these advantages into battlefield gains and generate momentum, there's a fair chance that this window will begin to close as we enter 2025."

Persons: —, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy's, Sergii Nykyforov, Nykyforov, EFE, King Felipe VI of Spain, Zelenskyy, Hamish de Bretton Gordon, Bretton Gordon, Vladimir Putin, George Barros, Chasiv Yar, Kyryo Budanov, Oleh Syniehubov, Ann Marie Dailey, Russia's, Emmanuel Macron's, de Bretton Gordon, Michael Kofman Organizations: Service, Business, Telegraph, British, Institute, Associated Press, New York Times, BBC, Kharkiv, RAND, Fleet, Russian, Politico, Times Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Spanish, Portugal, Ukrainian, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Chasiv Yar, Vovchansk, Russian, Ukraine's, prevarication, it's

I've been working with wealthy clients for nearly 15 years, and I've noticed a few common habits. I've been advising wealthy clients for nearly 15 years, and I'm often asked for the secret sauce, or the commonalities I see in my wealthiest financial-planning clients that make them successful. My most successful clients lean on us to help them separate those emotions and make sound financial decisions. My most successful clients value receiving comprehensive financial plans specific to their goals and situations. My most successful clients value receiving comprehensive financial plans specific to their goals and situations.

Persons: I've, —, I'm, that's, they've, doesn't Organizations: Service, Everest, Google, Jobs, Relief, Economic Security Locations: Policygenius

☆ I left JPMorgan and escaped the 'golden handcuffs.' I have no regrets.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Ella Hopkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

I started working in a towering office building in London, and I felt completely out of my depth. In 2016, I was about to move into an area I didn't want to work in when JPMorgan headhunted me. I had been stuck in golden handcuffs, but I was lucky that I didn't have some of the financial pressures other people have, like children. But I get much more of a sense of purpose from my work and feel like I am supporting people. If you left a high-paying career and would like to share your story, email Ella Hopkins at ehopkins@businessinsider.com.

Persons: —, Lucy Puttergill, It's, JPMorgan headhunted, I'd, I've, weren't, Gabor Mate, Ella Hopkins Organizations: Service, JPMorgan, Citi, Business, impressiveness, Mexico City Locations: South Africa, London, Italy, South America, Mexico, Cape Town , South Africa, ehopkins@businessinsider.com

☆ I met a guy on a plane. Shortly after, I quit my job and moved in with him.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Nancy Brier | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A guy sat near meThe flight was about to take off when a guy my age rushed onto the plane. He plunked into an aisle seat and settled in. Lights dimmed, and the movie started. Six months later, I quit my job, moved to California, and started life as a freelance consultant. I've never returned to corporate work and still have a soft spot for that in-flight movie, "A Simple Twist of Fate."

Persons: I'd, glanced, Gary, We've, I've, Steve Martin, Nancy Brier, www.NancyBrier.com Organizations: Service, JFK Locations: Portland, New York, I'd, San Francisco, California, Southern California

☆ I've stayed in Airbnbs around the world by myself. My top tip for solo travelers is to book for 2 people — even if it costs more.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Joey Hadden | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewCozy cabins, unique tiny homes, luxury apartments — I've booked them all through Airbnb. As a travel reporter, I've stayed in accommodations around the world, from the US and Canada to Western Europe. Usually, I travel solo. AdvertisementWhen it comes to staying in Airbnbs solo, my best tip is to book accommodation for two peopleThe author stays at a tiny-home hotel in Germany that she booked through Airbnb. But after all my unique Airbnb experiences, I think it's worth booking them even when I'm alone.

Persons: —, I've, I'm, Joey Hadden Organizations: Service, Business, Quebec City, Airbnb Locations: Airbnb, Canada, Western Europe, Airbnbs, Switzerland, Europe, Niagara Falls, Montréal, Quebec, Germany, Rome

☆ US-built floating pier begins moving from Ashdod port to Gaza, defense official says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Oren Liebermann | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The floating pier that will allow for humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza from the sea is moving from the port of Ashdod toward Gaza, according to a US defense official. Cyprus is the staging point for the humanitarian aid that will be shipped to Gaza through the maritime corridor and the pier. The US was closely watching whether what it called a “limited” Israeli incursion into Rafah in southern Gaza would affect the temporary pier. “I can just tell you it’s a third-party contractor, but that’s it,” deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said at a press briefing. Once the humanitarian aid arrives in Gaza, the UN World Food Program will distribute it to the Palestinian population.

Persons: Pat Ryder, Sabrina Singh, Ryder, ” Ryder Organizations: CNN, Pentagon, UN, Food Locations: Gaza, Ashdod, Cyprus, Rafah

☆ The US and Pacific ally Japan are teaming up to defeat new hypersonic missiles that right now are basically unstoppable
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewThe US and Japan have agreed to work together to develop a defense system to defeat hypersonic missiles, according to the US Department of Defense. Russian navy frigate Admiral Gorshkov launching a Zircon hypersonic missile in White Sea, Russia, on July 19, 2021. Notably, Pyongyang is also attempting to develop what it says are hypersonic missiles. DF-17 medium-range ballistic missiles equipped with a DF-ZF hypersonic glide vehicle in a military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the Chinese People's Republic. The allies successfully tested the jointly developed Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) Block IIA interceptor in a February 2017 intercept of a ballistic missile target.

Persons: —, Gorshkov, Zoya Rusinova Organizations: Service, US Department of Defense, Business, Cooperative, US Missile Defense Agency, Japan, Russian Defense Ministry Press Service, AP, China's, Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense, Iran's, Israel Locations: Japan, Russian, Sea, Russia, Pacific, Moscow, Beijing, Pyongyang, Republic, Getty

☆ The Pentagon is sending 2 Navy warships to protect the floating pier to bring aid to Gaza by sea
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Konstantin Toropin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewNavy warships will help protect the US military's soon-to-be-completed pier to deliver aid to starving Palestinians in Gaza, the Pentagon said Tuesday. Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters at a briefing Tuesday that Navy ships will be part of the security plan for the operation. A Navy official told Military.com that the sea service is assigning two destroyers to the mission. But aid has been slow to come in through those routes either due to closures or heavy screenings by Israeli officials . At the beginning of April, Israeli forces conducted repeated airstrikes on a World Central Kitchen convoy of aid workers, killing seven.

Persons: —, Pat Ryder, Military.com, Roy P, Benavidez, Ryder, P Organizations: Service, Pentagon, Navy, Business, Israeli Defense Forces, Hamas, Maxar Technologies, Reuters, Army Locations: Gaza, Ashdod

☆ This year's biggest air battles are showing the US what it could need most in a missile war with China
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Jake Epstein | Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka, FileThe war has shown how effective air defenses can be at denying air superiority, protecting key areas, and threatening high-value aircraft, as well as the costs when capabilities are degraded. Ukraine's air defenses, like its Soviet-era S-300s and US-supplied Patriots, have defeated enemy missile and drone strikes, hindered Russian air operations, and shot down numerous fighter-bombers and other Russian planes. "Ukraine and NATO might reduce risks with a two-prong strategy of strengthening air defenses and boosting infrastructure resilience." Needing more interceptors for the PacificFrom the fights this year, the US can see how it'll need to employ air defenses in a potential showdown with China. Running out of air defenses before the enemy runs out of air threats spells trouble.

Persons: —, Bradley Martin, Evgeniy, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Firefighters, Archer Macy, Martin, Shaan Shaikh, We've, Amir Cohen TPX, Shaikh, it's, Andy Wong, Thomas Shugart, Shugart, Joshua Smoot, Heath Collins, Navy Carlos Del Toro, Macy, Mark Wright Organizations: Service, Business, US Navy, Ukraine, AP, Patriots, Institute for, Emergency, Ministry, RAND Corporation, NATO, Western, Central Command, Combat, Navy, RAND, Patriot, US, Missile Defense, Center for Strategic, International Studies, REUTERS, China, Pentagon, Defense, Center, New, Air Force, 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, Andersen Air Force Base, US Air Force, Aegis, Missile Defense Agency, Former Navy, CSIS, Pacific Missile, AP Air Locations: China, Ukraine, Israel, Navy, Russia, Congress, Avdiivka, Kharkiv, Russian, Kyiv, NATO, Yemen, Gulf of Aden, Iran, Red, Screengrab, French, Ashdod, South Korea, Japan, Guam, Beijing, New American, Gen, Kauai, Hawaii

☆ A Shock of Red for a Royal Portrait
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Vanessa Friedman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Royal portraits, as a rule, tend to be fairly staid, predictable affairs. Full of symbolism, sure, but generally symbolism of the traditional, establishment kind: symbols of state, of office, of pomp and lineage. Which is why the new official portrait of King Charles III by Jonathan Yeo, the first since the king’s coronation, has created such a controversy. A larger-than-life (7.5 foot-by-5.5 foot) canvas, the portrait shows the king standing in his Welsh Guards uniform, hands on the hilt of his sword, a half-smile on his face, with a butterfly hovering just over his right shoulder. His entire body is bathed in a sea of crimson, so his face appears to be floating.

Persons: King Charles III, Jonathan Yeo, —, Yeo Organizations: Welsh Guards, BBC

☆ Oil prices slip as International Energy Agency cuts demand growth forecast
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Crude oil futures edged lower Wednesday as the International Energy sees global demand growing less than originally forecast this year. World oil demand is forecast to grow by 1.1 million barrels per day this year, down 140,000 bpd from last month's projection as demand in developed economies softened in the first quarter, according to an IEA report. Here are today's energy prices:Global crude inventories surged in March by 34.6 million barrels as trade disruptions pushed oil on water to a post pandemic high, according to the IEA. Oil deliveries have been rerouted this year due to attacks by Yemen-based Houthi militants on shipping through the Red Sea. Inventories continued to build in April as oil on water was discharged to land, leading to an increase in onshore stockpiles, according to the IEA.

Persons: Brent Organizations: International Energy, IEA Locations: Yemen

☆ Opinion: A Russian weapon could wipe out US space edge
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Clayton Swope | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Here, the NanoRacks-Remove Debris satellite is deployed from the International Space Station in 2018. Before revelations about Russia’s development of a nuclear anti-satellite weapon, there had been indications of global recognition that the use of certain space weapons was bad for everyone. The proposed defense budget for 2025 does not reflect the scale and urgency of the need to counter space threats and protect space systems. Learning how to operate satellites in a space environment clogged with debris or increased radiation caused by a space weapon is also important. We need a two-pronged effort to prepare for the worst: Double down on efforts to protect and maintain access to space in a hostile space environment and consider how to operate without space.

Persons: Clayton Swope, Mike Turner, Estonia’s, —, Vassily Nebenzia, Frank Herbert’s Organizations: Aerospace Security, International Security, Center for Strategic, International Studies, CIA, CNN, Clayton, Clayton Swope Center, Strategic, United, US, Intelligence, Ohio Republican, International Space Station, NASA, GPS, Finnair, United Nations, UN, Twitter Locations: Washington , DC, Russian, United States, Russia, Ohio, Vietnam, Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Tartu, China, Moscow

☆ Russia can't seem to stop this Ukrainian Cessna-style drone that, compared to missiles, is basically a 'flying brick' with a bomb onboard
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Experts say these aircraft underscore the success of Ukraine's innovative long-range drone program, which Kyiv has employed to go after Russia's military and energy facilities. The Ukrainian drones are in fact slow-flying ultralight planes. And if Ukraine can find a corridor that lacks proper air-defense coverage, then the drone can effectively penetrate right through Russian territory, Hoffmann said. Notably, the Cessna-style drone underscores the success of Ukraine's ever-evolving drone program. The aircraft was converted into a drone - A-22 Flying Fox.

Persons: —, JzjMc83uA4 —, Fabian Hoffmann, it's, Hoffmann, Petersburg —, It's, Gordon Davis Jr, Davis, Ukraine's, …, obdWO5ACNA, Washington, Lance Landrum, Landrum Organizations: Service, Cessna, Business, Kyiv, University of Oslo, US Army, Center for, Fox, US Air Force Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, Republic of Bashkortostan, Bashkortostan, Russian, Tatarstan, Moscow, St, Ukrainian

☆ The Vietage: New luxury train route in Vietnam offers stunning coastal views, afternoon tea
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Karla Cripps | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The first “The Vietage by Anantara” luxury train carriage launched in 2020 – a six-hour journey connecting Da Nang and Quy Nhon. Courtesy Anantara“The main difference is that the new route connecting Nha Trang and Quy Nhon passes through many more coastal areas than the journey between Da Nang and Quy Nhon,” says Jones. For the six-hour journeys between Da Nang and Quy Nhon, passengers are served a pre-ordered three-course gourmet meal. The Quy Nhon-Nha Trang route includes an afternoon tea set. The original route departs from Da Nang Train Station at 8 a.m., arriving at Quy Nhon’s Dieu Tri Station at 2:03 p.m.

Persons: –, Kate Jones, ”, Jones Organizations: CNN, Dieu Tri Train Station Locations: Vietnam, Na Trang, Da Nang, Quy, Nha Trang, Trang, Thevietagetrain.com, Dieu Tri, Quy Nhon, Quy Nhon’s Dieu Tri, Southeast Asia

☆ Why are hundreds of Teslas parked outside a dying shopping mall? A local news station solved the mystery.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Ana Altchek | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewChesterfield Mall, set to shut down in October, has become an unexpected parking lot for hundreds of Tesla vehicles over the last few months. The Teslas, including Cybertrucks, parked outside of the Chesterfield, Missouri, shopping spot puzzled people passing by, especially as the number of EVs seemed to increase over time. According to the report, Tesla is storing unsold vehicles at the mall until it shuts down. Staenberg said Tesla has occupied the space for about six or seven months and can stay until the mall closes in October. Inventory lots aren't uncommonTesla isn't the only car brand to store its unsold vehicles outside a dealership.

Persons: —, Michael Staenberg, Tesla, Staenberg, Tim Lowe, KTVI, General Motors, ramping Organizations: Service, Business, Chesterfield Mall, Ford's, Plant, General, oversupply, Cox Automotive, EV Locations: Chesterfield , Missouri, Chesterfield, Ford's Michigan, Wayne, Grand Blanc , Michigan, Berlin

☆ Tiny backpacks reveal newfound species of the world’s largest hummingbird
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Now, new research has revealed that there are two distinct species of giant hummingbird in South America — the northern giant hummingbird that lives year-round in the Andes, and the migratory southern giant hummingbird — and they have been evolving separately for millions of years. A southern giant hummingbird is seen flying from its breeding grounds in central Chile. “We wanted to finally solve this mystery.”Designing backpacks for hummingbirdsGiant hummingbirds differ from hundreds of other hummingbird species in many other ways. A southern giant hummingbird is fitted with a tiny backpack-like geolocator tracking device in central Chile. “The two forms of giant hummingbird look almost identical — for centuries, ornithologists and birders never noticed that they were different.

Persons: Charles Darwin, Darwin, Chris Witt, ”, Jessie Williamson, “, ” Williamson, Emil Bautista, Williamson, Christopher Witt, birders, ” Witt, chaskis, “ I’m Organizations: CNN, HMS, National Academy of Sciences, National Science Foundation, Cornell, of Ornithology, Swifts, Centro, Biology, Museum of Southwestern, University of New Locations: New York City, Buenos Aires, South America, Chile, Ithaca , New York, Peru, Biodiversidad, Lima, Peruvian, Chilean, University of New Mexico, Inca

☆ After Living Much of Life at Sea, Captain Sandy Finds Love on Land
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Tammy Lagorce | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sandra Dolores Yawn has been locked up, left for dead on a Florida highway and chased through the Red Sea by pirates. Not because she thought Ms. Yawn, who goes by Captain Sandy, needed her well wishes, but because she had started watching “Below Deck Mediterranean” on Bravo. Ms. Shafer had written to congratulate her on the show’s success. Yawn, 59, has been a yacht captain for more than 30 years.

Persons: Sandra Dolores Yawn, Leah Rae Shafer, Yawn, Captain Sandy, Shafer, Ms, “, ” Organizations: Facebook, Bravo, ” Locations: Florida, Dundee, Fla, Bradenton

☆ Fossil Catches Starfish Cousin in the Act of Cloning Itself
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Jack Tamisiea | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Some brittle stars give an arm and a leg (and still another appendage) to reproduce. This process, known as clonal fragmentation, is practiced by almost 50 species of existing brittle stars and their starfish relatives. However, scientists have found it difficult to determine when brittle stars, a gangly group of echinoderms, started reproducing this way. A recently discovered fossil from Germany pushes the origin of cloning sea stars back more than 150 million years. The specimen, he added, shows that “clonal fragmentation is actually much older than people previously thought.”

Persons: ”, Ben Thuy Organizations: Royal Society, National Museum of Locations: Germany, Luxembourg

☆ U.S. and Taiwan navies reportedly held secret Pacific drills in April
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

TOPSHOT - Navy soldiers walk past a Taiwan-made corvette warship during the inauguration ceremony in Yilan on March 26, 2024. Sam Yeh | Afp | Getty ImagesThe U.S. and Taiwan navies conducted joint drills in the Pacific in April that, officially, did not take place, four people briefed on the matter said, as the two militaries boost cooperation amid rising Chinese military threats. Washington and Taipei have been expanding their military cooperation in recent years amid almost daily Chinese incursions into Taiwan's air defense identification zone and drills by Chinese forces near the island. The drills, which were not publicized, took place last month in the Western Pacific, according to the sources, who requested anonymity given the sensitivity of the matter. "The Navy often makes contact with vessels of other countries and conducts encounter drills as needed," the statement said, without elaborating.

Persons: Sam Yeh Organizations: Navy, Afp, Getty, U.S, Pentagon Locations: Taiwan, Yilan, Pacific, Washington, Taipei, U.S, China, United States, Beijing

☆ Putin to meet Xi in China as world convulses from global conflicts
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Pyongyang – which has an economy almost entirely dependent of China – is believed by Western governments to be aiding Russia with war supplies. Xi has ramped up his calls for Europe and other countries to help the world avoid a “Cold War,” suggesting they resist what Beijing sees as US efforts to contain China. They have also criticized Israel and the United States – converging with mounting global backlash, especially across the Global South against Israel’s war. The conflict has also impacted how China and Russia view their relations with countries there, he added. China “wants to use Russia” for its aims, but Russia is making China weak, he said.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Putin, –, It’s, China –, Xi, France –, Jens Stoltenberg, Sergei Guneyev, ”, Li Mingjiang, Manoj Kewalramani, Russia doesn’t, Stringer, Gaza —, Sergey Lavrov, presser, Wang Yi, Israel, “, Privately, Shen Dingli, China “, Alexander Dugin, Donald Trump, Li Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, West, NATO, Forum, Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, EU, Takshashila, Boys, Getty, United, Global, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Russia, Weibo, Moscow, CNN Locations: Hong Kong, China, Russian, Gaza, Ukraine, Moscow, Washington, Iran, North Korea, Pyongyang, Russia, Tehran, Beijing, Europe, France, Serbia, Hungary, Bangalore, Rafah, AFP, Israel, United States, Kewalramani, South, Taiwan, Shanghai, Singapore

☆ China Deploys Dozens of Ships to Block Philippine Protest Flotilla
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Chris Buckley | Camille Elemia | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

China has sent dozens of coast guard and maritime militia vessels toward a disputed atoll in the South China Sea, a large show of force aimed at blocking a civilian protest flotilla from the Philippines, as tensions between the countries have flared. The Filipino group organizing the flotilla of about 100 small fishing boats, led by five slightly bigger ones, said it wanted to assert the Philippines’ claims to Scarborough Shoal, an atoll controlled by Beijing that is closer to Manila. But even before the motley Philippine fleet set out on Wednesday morning, China deployed a formidable contingent of much bigger government-run ships to the area, an intimidating escalation of its frequent assertions of control over vast expanses of sea far from its mainland. “What we’re seeing this time, I would say, is definitely of another order,” said Ray Powell, the director of SeaLight, a group that monitors the South China Sea. “I think that the China Coast Guard is concerned that they’re going to try to sort of get too close and so they’re sending an overwhelming force.”

Persons: ”, Ray Powell Organizations: Philippine, China Coast Guard Locations: China, South China, Philippines, Scarborough, Beijing, Manila

☆ Got a spare $324 million? Buy a slice of this strategic Arctic archipelago
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The last piece of privately-owned land in the Arctic archipelago Svalbard is up for sale for a cool 300 million euros ($324 million). The Arctic is of increasing geopolitical importance as climate change melts sea ice. The land is governed by the Svalbard Treaty. Knight FrankAn eventual buyer will in fact acquire Aktieselskabet Kulspids, a privately owned Norwegian limited company which owns the land. The purchaser will have to come from one of the 46 nations that have ratified the Svalbard Treaty, which established Norwegian sovereignty over the archipelago.

Persons: Knight Frank, Knight Frank “, Wedel, Kyllingstad, ”, Jonathan Webb, Zeiler Floyd Zadkovich, Webb Organizations: CNN, “ Locations: Svalbard, Norway, Longyearbyen, Norwegian, Oslo, Svalbard Treaty, China

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