jtrent238 test blog: Evening Briefing: US confronts Russia over Ukraine

January 31, 2022

By Remy Tumin

Good evening. Here's the latest at the end of Monday.

Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield of the U.S. greets Ukraine's ambassador, Sergiy Kyslytsya, at the U.N.Richard Drew/Associated Press

1. The U.S. and Russia engaged in a public diplomatic brawl at the U.N. Security Council over the Ukraine crisis.

"The situation we are facing in Europe is urgent and dangerous," said Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador. "Russia's actions strike at the very heart of the U.N. charter." Russia objected to having the meeting at all, calling it "an attempt to mislead the international community" and an example of "megaphone diplomacy."

The meeting of 15 nations, requested by the U.S., represented the highest-profile arena for the two powers to sway world opinion over Ukraine. As expected, it adjourned with no action taken.

The U.S. has said that a Ukraine invasion would set off severe financial sanctions for Russia. There are big risks that could lead to global repercussions. Meanwhile, a wave of bomb threats across Ukraine has intensified an already anxious mood.

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Ahmaud Arbery's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, objected to federal prosecutors' plea deal.Pool photo by Stephen B. Morton

2. A judge rejected a plea deal from two of the three white men facing federal hate-crimes charges for the killing of Ahmaud Arbery.

Travis McMichael, 36, and his father, Gregory McMichael, had agreed to plead guilty, admitting for the first time that they had attacked Arbery, who was Black, because of his race. But the judge rejected the agreement that the men had reached with the Department of Justice because of strenuous opposition from Arbery's family, who objected to the fact that it allowed them to spend 30 years in federal prison, rather than in state prison.

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Arbery's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, denounced the federal prosecutors. "They went behind my back. I'm totally, totally upset. My anxiety is over the roof," she said.

The McMichaels and a third man were found guilty of murder in November. The federal hate-crimes trial is scheduled to begin next week in Brunswick, Ga.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain outside 10 Downing Street in London today.Henry Nicholls/Reuters

3. A highly anticipated report described leadership failures in the office of Prime Minister Boris Johnson and excessive workplace drinking.

The report found that Downing Street held parties that breached pandemic lockdowns, during a period when the government was urging the public to avoid socializing. The report did not directly implicate Johnson in wrongdoing, leaving that judgment to a separate police investigation. That may give him some political breathing room.

In other pandemic news:

U.S. regulators granted Moderna's vaccine full approval.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada tested positive for the coronavirus.
Many at-home antigen tests suggest swabbing only an inch into your nose. Here's why health care workers dig deeper.

Donald Trump spoke to thousands of supporters at a rally in Texas on Saturday.Meridith Kohut for The New York Times

4. Donald Trump's grip on the Republican Party is facing new strains.

The former president has left little doubt about his intentions — plotting an influential role in the 2022 midterm elections and another potential White House run. But shifts in polls of Republicans, disagreements on endorsements and jeers over Covid vaccines hint at tensions between Trump and the right-wing movement he spawned.

Separately, the Biden administration plans to resume enforcing mercury limits for coal-burning plants that were weakened under Trump. The toxin is linked to developmental damage in children.

Members of the news media, team officials and athletes arriving at the Beijing airport on Saturday.Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times

5. Athletes and journalists arriving in China for the Olympics are encountering some of the most intense security measures ever imposed at an international sporting event.

Many of those are precautions against Covid, but others reflect the Chinese government's growing intolerance of dissent and criticism, rounding up activists and shutting down social media accounts ahead of the Games that begin on Friday. Whether any Olympic participants, including athletes, will be willing or able to speak out on issues the government deems objectionable remains a question.

But first, those athletes, journalists and other participants have to get there. Call these the Logistics Games, because no Olympics in history have been this hard to put on, get to or be at.

Also out of China: A video of a mentally ill woman who appeared to have been chained up by her family has drawn outrage on social media.

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The Meta symbol replaced the thumbs up at Facebook's corporate headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif. Jim Wilson/The New York Times

6. How do you turn a 68,000-person social networking giant into a metaverse company?

Facebook's decision to rebrand as Meta, a company that would introduce people to shared virtual worlds and experiences, has led to some of the most drastic changes at the Silicon Valley company in a decade. The result has been internal disruption and uncertainty, according to former Meta employees.

Some workers questioned whether the company was hurtling into a new product without fixing issues such as misinformation and extremism on its social platforms.

In other tech news, Spotify has faced calls to take action after the podcast host Joe Rogan was accused of promoting Covid-19 misinformation on his show. But this is different from most other clashes between creators and tech platforms, our tech columnist writes.

"If we hadn't put the program together as we did, it would still be unsolved," said James Vaughn Jr. Brandon Thibodeaux for The New York Times

7. An heir to a Texas oil fortune was fascinated with one of the greatest puzzles in the history of mathematics. His private support for research may have helped solve it.

Fermat's last theorem, penned by the French mathematician Pierre de Fermat, has baffled experts for more than 300 years. Then a genius toiled in secret for seven years to solve it, making his feat public in the early 1990s. (The method used for end-to-end encryption helped crack the code.)

Now, James Vaughn, a wealthy Texas philanthropist, is recounting how his financial support created a community of Fermat innovators that over decades made Andrew Wiles's breakthrough possible.

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, left, and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe BurrowRyan Justin Kang for The New York Times, Denny Medley/USA Today Sports, via Reuters

8. Two quarterbacks who were No. 1 draft picks are set to face off in the ultimate game of the N.F.L. season.

Cincinnati's Joe Burrow and Los Angeles's Matthew Stafford both survived close calls on Sunday to get to the Super Bowl on Feb. 13. Burrow led the Bengals to a second-half comeback against Kansas City, ending a 31-year-old playoff drought. The Rams advanced to their second Super Bowl since 2018 after getting past San Francisco.

The Super Bowl will be played at the Rams' stadium, SoFi Stadium, in Inglewood, Calif. The halftime show — with performances from Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Dr. Dre, Eminem and Kendrick Lamar — will feature 115 professional paid dancers. But some professional dancers were asked to work unpaid, prompting outrage over how commercial dancers who work with major artists are undervalued.

Shopping for pomelos for the Lunar New Year in Chinatown in Oakland, Calif.Mike Kai Chen for The New York Times

9. It's Lunar New Year. Get ready for some fruit.

Eating and giving fruit is a custom that many Asian families practice for the Lunar New Year. Oranges and pomelos are said to bring wealth and prosperity; for good luck, dragon fruit or star fruit is favored. A gift of fruit shows "they're thinking about you and care for you and love you," said Randy Su, 22, of Toronto.

This year, the holiday will fall on Tuesday, as the moon enters a new phase and ushers in the Year of the Tiger. For many, the inaugural feast commences tonight. Here are eight recipes for a better year ahead.

Flyfishing in Frogtown, East Los Angeles.Madeline Tolle

10. And finally, Los Angeles's urban fishermen.

Centuries ago, in the areas that are now the back sides of strip malls and housing developments, the Tongva people lived along the Los Angeles River and relied on fishing for food. After Spanish colonists arrived in 1781, the river also served as the primary water source for the Pueblo de los Ángeles.

Today, it's more reminiscent of an oversize storm drain than a river. Which makes the act of fishing in Los Angeles seem almost defiant: a tranquil activity against a backdrop of concrete, litter and overpasses. The photographer Madeline Tolle spent a lot of time there last winter and came across many fishermen looking for a bit of respite. Take a look.

Have a relaxing night.

Angela Jimenez compiled photos for this briefing.

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