In today’s news, Russian authorities have arrested Ivan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal correspondent in Yekaterinburg, on charges of spying on internal Russian affairs.
Meanwhile, executives from Meta Platforms, Inc., the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, are discussing a potential ban on political advertising in Europe due to concerns about upcoming EU regulations aimed at online campaigning.
Turkey’s parliament is set to vote on Finland’s request to become the 31st member of NATO today. The Swedish Foreign Ministry has expressed dissatisfaction with Russia’s interference in the NATO application process.
China and Brazil have agreed to trade directly in yuan and real, bypassing the US dollar as the central currency in their latest effort to reduce reliance on the dollar in international trade.
In Ukraine, Russian troops have advanced to some extent in the outposts of Bagmut, while the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency has canceled a security plan around the main power plant in Ukraine.
Twitter has blocked visibility of Pakistani government accounts in India in response to legal claims, while US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has rejected the World Bank’s proposal for a capital increase in the near term. She expressed confidence that Ajay Banga, who has been nominated by the United States, will step up as the new president of the World Bank since no other countries have nominated their own nominees and the nomination period has ended.
