| | | | | | | Hello. Our Russia editor Steve Rosenberg remembers watching one of the country’s first election-night results broadcasts, when “no-one had a clue who was going to win”. Today, he tells us what the citizens of Putin’s Russia expect. And in the US, tech bosses have been getting a grilling from senators over their safety record, as our technology editor Zoe Kleinman reports. Scroll down for Chinese warlords, must-watch TV and #EmotionalWellBeing from Elmo. |
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| | | | Get up to speed | | • | Swedish police say they have destroyed a "dangerous object" found outside the Israeli embassy in Stockholm. | | • | Russia and Ukraine say they have exchanged captured soldiers - the first such swap since the crash of a Russian plane that Moscow claimed was carrying 65 prisoners of war. | | • | YouTube has terminated the official channel of disgraced Nigerian televangelist TB Joshua's megachurch for violating its hate speech policies. |
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| | AT THE SCENE | Rzhev, Russia | | Many Russians see no alternative to Putin | | | | Boris Nadezhdin, from the Civil Initiative party, thanked supporters as he submitted the signatures. Credit: EPA | | A Ukraine war critic says he has collected the 100,000 signatures required to stand against Vladimir Putin in Russia's presidential election. But, even if authorities declare Boris Nadezhdin's application free of "irregularities" and allow him to run, he faces a battle to win over the electorate. | | | | Steve Rosenberg, Russia editor |
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| When I talk to people in the town of Rzhev, 140 miles (225km) from Moscow, about their hopes for the election, many seem to want change - without changing the leader. "I hope things change for the better because there's stagnation now," says a young man called Ilya. "But if you elect someone new, that person might not cope with the burden of government. Someone experienced like Putin can develop the country even in the difficult situation we're in now."
I meet one woman in Rzhev who does want to see change in the Kremlin. Former TV journalist and regional legislator Yekaterina Duntsova recently tried to run for president herself. She called for peace in Ukraine, the release of political prisoners and a "humane" Russia. Russia's Central Election Commission refused to accept her nomination, citing errors in her paperwork. "I think the political system here sees me as some kind of alien object, and doesn't know what to do with me," Ms Duntsova said. |
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| Questions Answered | | A fiery reception for tech bosses | | | | The chief executives were largely on the defensive during the grilling. Credit: Getty Images |
| | Five chief executives from major tech companies have testified at a US Senate hearing about the protection of children from online sexual exploitation. Lawmakers are investigating how tech platforms are tackling harmful content online and what needs to be done to better protect children. | | | | Zoe Kleinman, technology editor |
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| | How did the session play out? | | We have heard examples of young people being exposed to the worst forms of harm on social media platforms, and parents overwhelmed with the responsibility of trying to protect their children. This being a Senate hearing, you tended to hear a lot more from the senators than you did from the people they were talking to. | | Which tech boss was under most pressure? | | It’s fair to say Mark Zuckerberg took most of the heat. There were plenty of robust questions too for TikTok boss Shou Zi Chew about China. The exec who got off most lightly was Linda Yaccarino from X – to be honest there were times when I almost forgot she was there. Although X did say last week that less than 1% of its users are children. | | So, what happens next? | | The lawmakers have so far been unable to take forward various proposed legislation, and the tech companies promise ever more tools and investment in protecting children, while there are always more tragic stories of times when it all fails in the worst possible ways. | | | | | | |
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| | The big picture | | ‘Godfathers of Laukkaing’ handed to China | | | | China had sent a team to work with local authorities in Myanmar. Credit: Xinhua |
| | Myanmar has handed over to Beijing three Chinese warlords, who were notorious for trafficking thousands of foreign nationals to forcibly run scams. The trio, who led three of four families that ruled Laukkaing, on Myanmar's north-eastern border with China, were among 10 people taken by chartered flight. As Kelly Ng explains, it's a sign of the waning power of Myanmar's military junta. | | | | |
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| | | For your downtime | | February flicks | | From MLK to feudal Japan, nine shows to watch next month. | | |
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| | And finally... | | When Elmo, the Muppet, casually asked people on the platform formerly known as Twitter how they were doing, it unleashed a tide of despair. Thousands of X users shared their feelings, from a mild sadness to “existential dread”. And the post attracted comments from household names, including actress Rachel Zegler, US President Joe Biden and the (very supportive) Cookie Monster. Here’s how it all unfolded. |
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| | | | | | | | US Election Unspun newsletter | | Cut through the noise in the race for the White House, every Wednesday to your inbox. | | |
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