Climate and Ukraine at the UN
UN Secretary-General António Guterres convened a special summit in New York yesterday aimed at spotlighting the world’s most ambitious leaders on climate policy. The leaders of the US and China, the world’s biggest polluters, did not get a turn at the microphone, and the summit produced few new announcements of climate action.
Also at the UN, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine presented his ten-point plan to end the war with Russia and called for Russia to be stripped of its veto power. “It is impossible to stop the war because all actions are vetoed by the aggressor,” he said before the Security Council.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was not present for Zelensky’s speech. Speaking later, Lavrov justified the invasion of his country and repeated the claim that the West had staged a “coup” in Ukraine to install a pro-Western president. Zelensky had left the room by then and was not present for Lavrov’s remarks.
What’s next: Zelensky goes to Washington today. His visit comes as dozens of Republicans oppose President Biden’s latest request for $24 billion in aid in the war in Ukraine.
To the ground: These maps show the progress of the Ukrainian counter-offensive so far – and how far it still needs to go.
Azerbaijan retakes the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave
Azerbaijan said it has restored full control over Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway Armenian enclave. The development could create thousands of new refugees and spell the end of decades of Armenian efforts to assert sovereignty in the mountainous region of the Caucasus. The area is home to tens of thousands of Armenians who remained after the 2020 ceasefire.
President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan told his country that pro-Armenian authorities had surrendered after two days of fighting in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. “Karabakh is Azerbaijan,” he said, raising his fist in the air.
Effects: The enclave’s return to Azerbaijani rule is likely to change the power dynamics in the South Caucasus. The surrender of Armenian separatists could hasten the decline of Russian influence in the Caucasus, where Moscow’s role as arbiter in the decades-old conflict made it a central power.
Rishi Sunak weakens British climate targets
After years of claiming leadership in the international fight against climate change, the British government said it would weaken key environmental pledges and promise lower costs for Britons ahead of the looming general election. The new policy risks alienating large parts of the electorate at a time of growing public awareness about global warming.
Ignoring sharp criticism from business leaders, environmentalists and some of his own Conservative lawmakers, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he would stick to Britain’s overall targets to reach net zero emissions by 2050. He would do that, he said, in what he described as a “sensible” way that did not “impose such significant costs on working people.”
Details: Sunak said he would delay a ban on the sale of gas and diesel cars, reduce targets for replacing gas boilers and propose no new measures to discourage passengers from flying.
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How rap is written today
When rappers write songs, chances are they don’t use lyrics at all. Much of modern rap music is composed via an improvisational studio technique known as ‘punching in’ – a freestyle approach to each line, one at a time, until a song is fully formed.
Is this technique good for the music? The jury is out, even within hip-hop. In this behind-the-scenes video we follow the generational change.