The New York Times Morning Briefing - August 9, 2023 by Natasha Frost - covering the war in Ukraine, extreme weather across Europe and more..

 

August 9, 2023

By Natasha Frost Writer, Briefings

Good morning. We’re covering the latest from the war in Ukraine and extreme weather across Europe.

Russian marines during Navy Day celebrations in Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk last month. The Black Sea is suddenly a cauldron of military and geopolitical tensions.Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

The turbulent waters of the Black Sea

Bordered by Ukraine, Russia and three NATO countries, but sometimes overlooked in the war, the Black Sea has become an increasingly dangerous cauldron of military and geopolitical tensions since Moscow’s decision last month to end a deal ensuring the safe passage of Ukrainian grain.

Now, Russian warships patrol its surface, launching missiles at Ukrainian towns while creating a de facto blockade, threatening any vessel that might try to breach it. Ukrainian sea drones carry explosives stealthily toward Russian ports and vessels. In the airspace above, NATO and allied surveillance planes and drones fly over international waters.

The battle for control of the sea could have implications for global energy markets and world food supplies. And it will almost certainly raise new challenges for NATO as it seeks to uphold a central tenet of international law — free navigation of the sea — without drawing the alliance directly into conflict with Russian forces.

Background: After withdrawing from the grain deal, Russia pulverized Ukrainian Black Sea ports to stymie grain shipments key to Ukraine’s economy. It even struck sites on the Danube River a few hundred yards from Romania, which is a NATO member. Ukraine retaliated with two strikes on Russian ships on consecutive days.

In other news from the war:

Two strikes in Ukraine, just 37 minutes apart, killed at least nine people, including a responder to the first attack. Beijing’s foreign minister spoke by phone with his Russian counterpart after China attended peace talks in Saudi Arabia over the weekend.

Dropping water over a fire in Apesia, southern Cyprus, on Monday.Philippos Christou/Associated Press

More extreme weather lashes Europe

At least six people died in flooding in Slovenia. Wildfires burned in Cyprus, Greece and Portugal. And heavy rains were recorded in Sweden and Norway. Together, the instances were yet more examples of the extreme weather that has become increasingly common in Europe in the past few years.

The most recent events have destroyed large amounts of land, left dozens of people injured, forced thousands to evacuate and, in some cases, caused deaths. They come on the heels of scorching temperatures that have engulfed much of Southern Europe this summer.

Other environmental news: The leaders of eight countries that are home to the Amazon River basin agreed to work together to conserve the world’s largest rainforest at a meeting convened by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil.

Members of a military council that staged a coup in Niger attending a rally at a stadium in the capital, Niamey, on Sunday.Reuters

Hopes for dialogue dim in Niger

Niger’s new military leaders have rebuffed diplomatic efforts by the U.S., the U.N. and regional groups to resolve the crisis created by the recent coup. Hopes for the restoration of civilian rule there are fading. And the democratically elected president — who has not yet formally resigned — is reportedly locked in his residence without electricity or water.

What’s next: The Economic Community of West African States, a regional bloc, has threatened military action and frozen financial transactions with Niger. It is scheduled to hold a summit tomorrow.

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THE LATEST NEWS

Around the World

Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters

In the coastal town of Bray, the site of Sinead O’Connor’s last Irish home, mourners gathered to pay their respects to the singer.

Typhoon Khanun headed back toward Japan after killing at least two people there last week. A shark attacked a swimmer at a New York City beach, apparently the first shark bite in the city’s waters in decades. In a yearslong scam, a ticket seller at an art museum in Switzerland skimmed more than $1 million from the ticket office. The Philippine Coast Guard released footage of a Chinese Coast Guard vessel firing a water cannon at one of its ships in a new complaint of aggressive behavior from China.

Other Big Stories

The United Arab Emirates is diverging from U.S. foreign policy, particularly when it comes to isolating Russia and limiting ties with China. The Taiwan-based semiconductor giant TSMC is building a chip-making factory in Germany, its first location in Europe. The fourth criminal case involving Donald Trump is likely to come to a head next week.

The obesity drug Wegovy slashed the risk of serious heart problems by 20 percent in a large trial, according to the drug’s maker. A judge in Los Angeles sentenced the Canadian musician Tory Lanez to 10 years in prison for shooting the rapper Megan Thee Stallion during an argument in 2020.

Science Times

Schmidt Ocean Institute

For the first time, scientists observed complex ocean creatures dwelling beneath hydrothermal vents thousands of feet below the ocean’s surface. Astronomers have found that free-floating planets far outnumber those bound to a host star. Trumpetfish use tricks to catch prey — including hiding behind larger, friendlier fish. At a sanctuary in Louisiana, chimps are learning to stay safe from storms.

A Morning Read

Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

China’s youth unemployment rate has doubled in the past four years, a period of volatility induced by Beijing’s “zero Covid” measures that left companies wary of hiring. Now, some students are being told that they should “not aim too high or be picky about work.”

Related: China’s trade numbers dropped in July, a sign that the country’s economic rebound was lagging.

Lives Lived

Michael Boyd, who led the Royal Shakespeare Company from 2002 to 2012, stabilizing the organization while also mounting such ambitious projects as the un-Shakespearean hit “Matilda the Musical,” has died at 68.

SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC

Serie A transfer standstill: Why soccer player trading has been slow in Italy this summer.

A moment of madness: Would Lauren James have escaped the vitriol if England had lost?

Formula 1 silly season: What we’re hearing about Lewis Hamilton, Daniel Ricciardo and more.

From The Times: In the latest example of a trend that is sweeping women’s elite sports, white shorts have been missing from the Women’s World Cup.

ARTS AND IDEAS

May-December friendship

Roslyn Scharf is an 83-year-old fitness devotee. Omid Malekan is her 42-year-old personal trainer. Both are avid readers and devoted Mets fans who chat over wins and losses. And now, since joining her book club, he is the only middle-aged man among “a dozen octogenarian women who love him,” she said.

This kind of exchange of perspectives and life experiences is a hallmark of cross-generational friendship — a potential antidote to the social isolation experienced by some older people.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

Tara Donne for The New York Times.

Top this lentil and orzo stew with roasted eggplant.

Use a reading light while your partner sleeps.

Garden by night. (You’ll discover more than you might expect.)

Watch “Strange Planet” for an aliens’ guide to being human.

Play the Spelling Bee. (If you’re stuck, the Bee Buddy can help.) And here’s the Mini Crossword, Wordle and Sudoku.

That’s it for today’s briefing. Thanks for joining me. — Natasha

P.S. The Times added 180,000 new digital subscribers in the second quarter of 2023.

You can reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com.