Key Storylines
- AFRICA: The Malian army killed 19 jihadists in operations northeast of the capital Bamako that were supported by European special forces.
- AMERICAS: Two military personnel were killed, and two others injured when a Russian-made helicopter crashed in Venezuela.
- ASIA: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced new sanctions against Russian banks and individuals.
- EUROPE: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceled a planned meeting in Geneva with Russian FM Sergei Lavrov, as he promised to do should Russia invade Ukraine.
- MIDDLE EAST: Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi arrived in Tehran for talks with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: The Dutch antitrust watchdog fined Apple €5 million on Monday, the fifth such penalty in successive weeks in a row over access to non-Apple payment methods for subscriptions to dating apps.
Top Story
- Ukraine: The Country Declared a 30-Day State of Emergency Amid a Standoff With Russia.
- The Secretary of Ukraine’s Security Council Oleksiy Danilov declared a 30-day state of emergency in the country in light of a feared invasion by Russia in the country’s east.
- The State of Emergency will apply to all parts of Ukraine except for its two Russian-backed eastern separatist regions, Donetsk and Luhansk.
- The State of Emergency will also allow the government to impose additional security measures and inspections, pending parliamentary approval, and could be extended a further 30 days.
- Ukraine’s parliament also gave initial approval to a draft law that would allow citizens to carry firearms in self-defense, but it is yet to be finalized and approved.
- The Ukrainian Government ordered its nationals to leave Russia immediately.
- Instead of putting the military led by President Volodymyr Zelensky in charge of all decisions, a state of emergency allows measures to be implemented by special commissions composed of central government and regional authorities.
- DPA, AlJazeera, Axios, NBC News, DW, FT
Africa
- Region: Vast swathes of land stretching from southern Ethiopia to northern Kenya and Somalia are in the grip of a severe drought that has left 13 million people facing hunger. (AFP)
- Central African Republic: France and the United States denounced the presence in the country of Russian paramilitaries accused of killing civilians. (AFP)
- Mali: The army killed 19 jihadists in operations northeast of the capital Bamako that were supported by European special forces. (AFP)
- Sudan: A delegation of senior officials, including the deputy leader of the country’s military-led ruling body, headed to Russia for talks on cooperation. (AFP)
- Uganda: Award-winning author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, who fled the country after being charged with insulting President Yoweri Museveni and his son, arrived in Germany to seek medical treatment after being “tortured” in jail. (AFP)
Americas
- Brazil: One week after flash floods and landslides in the city of Petropolis, the total death toll has risen to 186. (AFP)
- Ecuador: President Guillermo Lasso announced some 5,000 prisoners would be pardoned in order to reduce overcrowding in the prison system. (AFP)
- Mexico: Migrants from Haiti, Cuba, and African nations threw stones and sticks at National Guard troops and immigration agents in the southern border city of Tapachula. (AP)
- United States: The Pentagon is expected to approve the deployment of around 750 unarmed National Guard troops to Washington, DC ahead of planned trucker convoy protests against pandemic restrictions. (WaPo)
- Venezuela: Two military personnel were killed, and two others injured when a Russian-made helicopter crashed in the South American nation. (AFP)
Asia
- China: Beijing is accusing the US of creating “fear and panic” over the crisis in Ukraine and calling for talks to reduce tensions. (AP)
- Japan: Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced new sanctions against Russian banks and individuals. (Reuters)
- South Korea: Health officials approved Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11, expanding the country’s immunization program in the face of a massive omicron outbreak that is driving up hospitalizations and deaths. (AP)
- Taiwan: President Tsai-in-Wen condemned Russia for ordering troops into rebel-held regions in Ukraine, and claimed the crisis was being used to hurt morale on the island, which has long been under the threat of a Chinese invasion. (AFP)
- Tonga: Internet was finally restored to the island more than five weeks after a huge volcanic eruption and tsunami. (AP)
Europe
- Region: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceled a planned meeting in Geneva with Russian FM Sergei Lavrov, as he promised to do should Russia invade Ukraine. (CNN)
- France: President Emmanuel Macron will launch his re-election bid on March 5 at an inaugural campaign rally in Marseille. (AFP)
- Germany: Foreign Minister Anna Baerbock said the international community will not accept Russia’s breach of international law and Moscow is isolating itself with its latest actions in Ukraine. (Reuters)
- Spain: People’s Party leader Pablo Casado is set to meet fellow conservative heavyweights with his future at risk amid an ugly clash with a Popular Party rival. (AP)
- Turkey: President Tayyip Erdogan said the country could not abandon its ties with Russia or Ukraine, and he criticized Western diplomatic efforts with Moscow as achieving little. (Reuters)
Middle East
- Region: The United Nations ended Iraq’s requirement to compensate victims of the 1990 invasion of Kuwait, which to date has cost Baghdad more than $50 billion. (AP)
- Lebanon: The Interior Ministry said the country thwarted a plan by ISIS to conduct three suicide bombings targeting Shiite religious compounds in Beirut’s southern suburbs. (AFP)
- Oman: Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi arrived in Tehran for talks with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian. (WaPo)
- Palestinian Territories: A 14-year-old boy was killed by Israeli gunfire in the West Bank allegedly after throwing firebombs at passing vehicles. (AP)
- Syria: Damascus said Israel fired several surface-to-surface missiles toward military positions in the country’s south, causing only material damage. (AP)
Tech & Communications
- Technology: The Dutch antitrust watchdog fined Apple €5 million on Monday, the fifth such penalty in successive weeks in a row over access to non-Apple payment methods for subscriptions to dating apps. (Reuters)
World
- Cyclones: Nothing to Report.
- Hurricanes: Nothing to Report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to Report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to Report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 23FEB22)
- Confirmed cases: 428,143,810
- Deaths: 5,909,179
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 23FEB22)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (24FEB22)
- Event: Secretary of State Blinken speaks at Council on Foreign Relations centennial event.
- Event: Atlantic Council conversation on Venezuelan migrant crisis.
- Event: Atlantic Council conversation on North Africa and US-Italian relations.
- Global: G7 meeting of heads of state and government, virtual.
- Asia: US-Thailand Cobra Gold military exercises. (to 05MAR)
- Austria: OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Winter Meeting in Vienna.
- Estonia: Independence Day.
- Hong Kong: COVID-19 pass launched.
- India: Visit by Bangladeshi Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen. (to 25FEB)
- Kenya: Africa Tech Summit in Nairobi.
- North America: US-Mexico Border Summit in El Paso, TX.
- Romania: Black Sea Maritime Forum.
- Russia: Visit by Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan.
- Thailand: Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Senior Officials’ Meeting in Pattaya. (to 27FEB)
- Ukraine: Visit by German opposition leader Friedrich Merz.
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