‘Mission Accomplished’ in Bakhmut?
Russia has claimed victory in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, Although Moscow is trumpeting a “mission accomplished” moment, Ukraine insists the city has not completely fallen. But while the deadliest of the war may be coming to an end, what will happen next is unclear.
Bakhmut lies in ruins, and controlling it will not help Moscow advance toward its larger goal – conquering the entire eastern region of the Donbass – now that Ukrainian troops have worn down the Russian army and are north and south of the city. Have broken through your defenses in some areas.
Ukrainian officials say they are now planning to rain artillery down on Russian forces occupying Bakhmut. Military analysts say that if Moscow continues to send reinforcements to defend the city, it could weaken the Russian military’s ability to prevent a wider counteroffensive, which Ukraine says is about to begin .
quotable “You have to understand, there is nothing,” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the razed city, which was once home to 80,000 people. He said, “There is nothing in this place, just the ground and a lot of dead Russians.”
In other news from the war:
Greek election results
In a decisive victory, New Democracy, the party of Greece’s conservative prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, secured 40.8 percent votes In the country’s general election, preliminary results showed. But the party fell short of the majority needed to lead a one-party government, potentially setting the stage for another vote within weeks.
Mitsotakis described the initial result as a “political earthquake”, called for Greece’s “experienced hand”, and said that any talks with fractious potential coalition partners would only lead to a dead end.
Because Mitsotakis has refused to form a governing coalition, the second vote will take place under a different system, which gives the winning party a bonus seat, giving New Democracy a better chance of forming an independent government.
Hot-Button Problem: EU leaders applaud Mitsotakis, seem to cut him some slack For doing the continent’s unpleasant job of keeping migrants at bay, though they have been accused of illegally pushing refugees back out to sea.
US debt ceiling talks
President Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to meet this afternoon To try to start negotiations quickly with the aim of avoiding default on US debt. Negotiations faltered over the weekend as the two sides clashed over Republican demands to cut spending in exchange for raising the debt ceiling.
Negotiators are working against a punishing clock. The debt ceiling, the statutory limit on a government’s power to borrow to pay its obligations, is forecast to be reached on June 1 at the earliest.
Biden and McCarthy are negotiating a fiscal package that would raise that limit, which Republicans have refused to do without spending cuts. They abstain on key issues, including caps for federal spending, on new work requirements for some recipients of federal anti-poverty aid and money to help the IRS crack down on high earners and tax-evading corporations Is.
This week: Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is expected to provide another update on the government’s cash balance to Congress.
Breaking News
other big stories
For thousands of Afghans, the US withdrawal from Kabul was a beginning The Long, Dangerous Search for Safety Which has taken them halfway around the world and through the jungles of South and Central America.
These desperate, unfathomable trips represent the collision of two of President Biden’s biggest policy crises: the hasty US withdrawal from Afghanistan and the record numbers of migrants crossing the US border.
lived a life
British author Martin Amis, known for his caustic, episodic and darkly comic novels, has died at 73,
sports news from the athletic
Barcelona Femeni lose their first league game in almost two years: Barcelona Femeni lost 2-1 to Madrid CFF first league defeat From June 2021.
How Pirelli seeks to balance F1’s most important variables: Pirelli accused of making tires Build for Competitive Racing,
From The Times: Brooks Koepka wins PGA Championship, becomes first member of LIV Golf win a major title Since joining the circuit.
African architecture on the cutting edge
architecture biennial It opened Saturday in Venice and explores how Africa’s cultures could shape the buildings of the future.
exhibition for the first time Leslie Loko, a curator of African descentAnd more than half of the Biennale’s 89 participants are from Africa or the African diaspora.
measurement work, which were inspired by the First Nations of South Africa and their connection to nature, are being shown in that country’s national pavilion. Globally, the trend towards architecture has begun biomimicry, in which the built environment imitates the natural. African design has always done this through pattern and form, says Mape. The response at Venice and on social media has been overwhelming, he said.
“Architecture should be something that helps us feel more mediated, more connected to the earth, rather than separating us from our home,” Mape said. – Lynsey Chutel, a briefing writer in Johannesburg.
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That’s all for today’s briefing. see you tomorrow. – Natasha
PS A puppuccino and a beef woofslider? The Latest in Dog Travel: High End Hotel Amenities for Dogs,
,the DailyJames is about the dark side of Webb, for whom a famous telescope is named.
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