Starting Feb 10 (time of last issue):
February 21 – Vladimir Putin announces that Russia is suspending its participation in New START, a nuclear arms reduction treaty with the US. Russia is not going to allow US and NATO inspectors into Russia, but says it will still adhere to the previous agreements.
(via The Brookings Institution)
February 25 – Bola Tinubu is elected as Nigeria’s president, defeating former vice president Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi. The election is the most contested since Nigeria’s first election in 1999. Its result is challenged by the other candidates.
(via The United Nations Press Releases)
March 10 – The National People’s Congress unanimously re-elects Xi Jinping as the President of the People’s Republic of China to an unparalleled third term. The Congress previously suspended presidential term limits in 2018.
(via the National Public Radio)
March 10 – After severing their relations in 2016, Iran and Saudi Arabia agree to resume diplomatic relations at talks mediated by China.
(via United States Institute of Peace)
March 10 – Silicon Valley Bank, the 16th largest bank in the United States, fails from a bank run, when too many clients withdraw their money from a bank for the bank to pay out all of them. Because of the higher interest rates and customer withdrawals, the bank was forced to sell a large portion of its bond portfolio at a heavy loss. This failure is the largest bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis and the second largest in US history.
(via the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation)
March 17 – The International Criminal Court issuesW an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for his role in the unlawful deportation and transfer of children to Russia during its invasion of Ukraine.
(via the International Criminal Court)
March 30 – Former President Donald Trump is formally accused by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of not disclosing payments to actress Stormy Daniels during his election in 2016.
April 4 – Former President Donald Trump is arraigned and notified of the 34 charges against him.
(via the Manhattan District Attorney)
April 4 – Finland becomes the 31st member of NATO.
(via the North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
April 11 – Myanmar’s armed forces, who led a coup in 2021 against the democratically-elected Aung San Suu Kyi, massacred at least 165 civilians celebrating the opening of an opposition camp.
(via CNN)
April 13 – Jack Teixeira, an airman for Massachusetts with top security clearance for the Pentagon, is arrested by the FBI for allegedly distributing hundreds of classified U.S. military documents primarily concerning foreign spying and the war in Ukraine. The documents had been circulating since March 2023.
(via the United States Department of Justice)
April 15 – Rival factions and paramilitary groups take over key sites and fight against Sudanese government forces in multiple cities in Sudan, leaving at least 185 killed.
(via Reuters)
April 18 – Fox News pays $787.5 million to Dominion Voting Systems in the defamation lawsuit Dominion Voting Systems v Fox News Network to settle out of court. Dominion is a company that supplies voting machines in the United States. After the election, Fox News alleged that Dominion machines were rigged. Dominion sued, seeking 1.6 billion dollars in damage, alleging that Fox has knowingly spread false information, thus eroding Dominion’s reputation. This is the largest media settlement of a defamation lawsuit in the history of the country.
(via Fox News)
Other ongoing events:
Since August 2022, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has been focused on Bakhmut. As one of the bloodiest battles of 21st century Europe, it has killed around 50000 civilians and soldiers with comparatively little ground gained. The Russian assault forces mostly consist of Wagner Group forces, a private army of mercenaries. Currently, Russia has taken over the east side of the city, along with parts of the city center.
After Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government was elected and formed in late 2022, the coalition announced plans in early January to limit the power of the Supreme Court and allow the ruling coalition to have a majority in the committee for appointing new judges. As a result, large protests occurred, continuing up to the present. Hundreds of thousands of protesters demonstrated every Saturday.
France has had one of Europe’s most beneficial pension programs. After being re-elected in 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron and his government submitted a bill in January 2023 that proposed gradually expanding the retirement age from 62 to 65 in 2031, advancing 3 months per year. This resulted in initial protests. Moreover, on March 16, the government invoked an article in the constitution that allowed forcing bills without a vote in its National Assembly. This move was highly unpopular and led to further widespread protests. Trash collectors have stopped collecting trash, leaving it piled up in the streets. Flights were also disrupted this time. French police have also been accused of using disproportionate force against the protestors and members of the press.