Part of the loan will be used to rebuild damaged infrastructure in Ukraine. Tyler Hicks/The New York Times |
G7 leaders agreed to give Ukraine a $50 billion loan
At the G7 summit in Italy, the member countries agreed on a plan to give Ukraine a $50 billion loan to help it buy weapons and begin to rebuild damaged infrastructure. The new loan comes at a crucial moment in the war, when Russia has the momentum on the battlefield.
The loan is expected to be repaid using interest earned on nearly $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, which are mostly in European banks. In our Opinion section, Janet Yellen, the U.S. Treasury secretary, explained how the loan will work.
President Biden also signed a 10-year security pact with Ukraine’s government, to show a long-term U.S. commitment to the country. It’s designed to be a bridge to Ukraine’s membership in NATO. Japan signed a 10-year security agreement with Ukraine as well, which included a pledge of $4.5 billion.
Separately, NATO’s defense chiefs gathered yesterday in Brussels to pledge additional weapons to Kyiv. They also met to prepare long-term military commitments to be announced next month at a summit in Washington. One boost for Ukraine: an agreement that Hungary would not contribute to the military alliance’s war effort — but also would not block it.
Biden’s angle: The security agreement is the president’s latest effort to persuade allies that the U.S. will continue backing Ukraine even if Donald Trump wins the presidency this fall. But the agreement could prove fleeting — it contains a provision that allows either side to terminate it with six months’ notice.
More on the G7: Most leaders arrived at the summit beleaguered, embattled or endangered. Many of them are facing elections that may weaken their positions. Read more about the summit.
Mifepristone was approved by U.S. health regulators more than two decades ago. Adria Malcolm for The New York Times |
U.S. Supreme Court upheld abortion pill access
The Supreme Court upheld broad access to mifepristone, a widely available abortion pill, rejecting a bid by anti-abortion organizations and doctors to unravel a U.S. regulator’s approval of the drug. The unanimous decision was a major loss for the anti-abortion movement, which is aggressively seeking an end to all abortion in the country.
The ruling means that access to medication abortion — by far the most common method used in the U.S. — will continue for now. But it does not change the fact that medication abortion remains restricted in the 14 states with near-total bans on abortion.
The numbers: More than 171,000 people traveled out of their states to get an abortion in 2023. This map shows where they went.
More Supreme Court news: Justice Clarence Thomas never disclosed three trips he took aboard the private jet of the Texas billionaire Harlan Crow, according to documents released by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
A driverless taxi in Wuhan, China. Qilai Shen for The New York Times |
Riding in China’s driverless cars
No country is moving as aggressively as China to test driverless cars, and the government is helping. In addition to establishing large testing areas on public roads, censors are limiting online discussion of safety incidents and crashes to restrain public fears about the technology.
Keith Bradsher, our Beijing bureau chief, traveled to Wuhan to take part in the world’s largest driverless car experiment. “It has smooth acceleration, smooth braking,” he said on one trip. “There’s just a slight bit more jerkiness in making a turn than there might be with a human driver.” Watch a video of Keith’s ride in Wuhan.
MORE TOP NEWS |
EPA, via Shutterstock |
Russia: Prosecutors finalized the indictment of Evan Gershkovich, the imprisoned American journalist, who will be tried on a spying charge.France: President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to call snap elections has led to an implosion on the right, unity on the left and bewilderment in the electorate.Lebanon: Israel and Hezbollah traded cross-border strikes for a second day, raising fears of a full-fledged war.Climate: New research showed that polar bears in the southern Hudson Bay, in Canada, could become extinct as early as the 2030s because of thinning sea ice.Ukraine: My colleagues reported from Vovchansk, a town now in ruins, a month into Russia’s push across the border in northeast Ukraine.Under the sea: The wreckage of Ernest Shackleton’s last ship, the Quest, was found off Canada this month.Tesla: The electric car company’s shareholders reaffirmed compensation of more than $45 billion for Elon Musk, which could persuade a judge to reinstate the blocked payment. |
MORNING READ |
Naila Ruechel for The New York Times |
Scientists have struggled for decades to explain racial disparities in reproductive health in the U.S. Hair relaxers, which are widely used by Black women, may offer an answer: They contain many substances that are prohibited in other countries and have been linked to reproductive disorders and cancers.
SPORTS NEWS |
Welcome to Blankenhain: Exploring England’s Euro 2024 headquarters.
Another way to fill the seats: How pop music took over soccer stadiums.
A Montreal upgrade: The Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo delivers positives as he targets a contract extension.
ARTS AND IDEAS |
Katherine Squier for The New York Times |
An ode to barbecuing and fatherhood
Gabriel Sanchez, a photo editor at The Times, watched his father work the fires at a storied Texas barbecue smokehouse. Sometimes, his dad’s nose was near-frostbitten after hours working in a subzero icebox. Or his hands were tinged by the flames, his clothes blackened with soot. When Gabriel grew up, his dad taught him how to barbecue, too.
“I realized my dad was never just teaching me about barbecue — he was showing me what it takes to be a good father,” Gabriel writes in an essay. “To learn how to cook barbecue is to learn how to accept failure as an opportunity for growth. And it goes without saying that the most essential ingredient for raising kids is patience.”
RECOMMENDATIONS |
Linda Xiao for The New York Times |
Bake: This buttermilk tres leches cake is light, cold and decadent.