Bedugul Coffee: Wednesday Briefing: Banks told to prepare for Russian cyber attack threat

Wednesday, February 9, 2022

by Linda Noakes

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Ukraine sees a chance for diplomacy, Iran unveils a long-range missile, and Israel warns of a crisis with the UAE

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A soldier of the U.S. 2nd Cavalry Regiment stands next to combat vehicles as gear is prepared for deployment to Romania at Rose Barracks in Vilseck, Germany, February 9, 2022. REUTERS/Lukas Barth

WORLD

Ukraine believes there is still a chance of resolving the West's standoff with Russia through diplomacy but that there are already grounds to impose sanctions on Moscow, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said. The European Central Bank is preparing banks for a possible Russian-sponsored cyber attack as the region braces for the financial fallout of any conflict.

Iran unveiled a new domestically-made missile with a range of 1,450 kilometers, state TV reported, a day after Tehran and Washington resumed indirect talks to salvage a 2015 nuclear deal.

The next leader of Islamic State is likely to be from a close circle of battle-hardened Iraqi jihadists who emerged in the aftermath of the 2003 U.S. invasion. The group of potential successors to Abu Ibrahim al-Quraishi, who blew himself up during a U.S. operation to capture him in Syria last week, includes one commander whom Washington and Baghdad declared killed last year, Iraqi officials said.

Israel extended a deadline that might have halted its airlines' flights to the United Arab Emirates over an aviation security dispute, but warned of a potential crisis with the Gulf state unless the issue is resolved.

A Belarusian cross-country skier has fled the country with her family because of fears of reprisals by authorities after she was barred from competition over the family's political views, she and her father said.

The sun rises behind the U.S. Capitol in Washington, February 8, 2022. REUTERS/Tom Brenner

U.S.

Republican and Democratic lawmakers across the United States are drawing political maps that will likely deepen polarization and encourage more extreme candidates by eliminating competitive congressional seats, a new Reuters analysis shows.

Top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell criticized his party's censure of two prominent Republican critics of Donald Trump, joining an intra-party battle that could upend his efforts to project an image of party moderation in this year's midterm elections.

The House of Representatives approved legislation to fund federal government agencies through March 11 and avoid a chaotic shutdown of many of Washington's operations when existing money expires at midnight on February 18.

The leader of the Congressional Black Caucus, Joyce Beatty of Ohio, demanded an apology from Republican lawmaker Hal Rogers of Kentucky after she accused him of touching and insulting her when she asked him to wear a mask.

The Biden administration will place hundreds of migrants caught at the U.S.-Mexico border on house arrest in the coming weeks as it seeks cheaper alternatives to immigration detention.

BUSINESS

The U.S. Justice Department said it has unraveled its biggest-ever cryptocurrency theft, seizing a record-shattering $3.6 billion in bitcoin tied to the 2016 hack of digital currency exchange Bitfinex and arresting a husband-and-wife team on money laundering charges.

Toyota and Honda were upbeat about their full-year profit prospects as tight vehicle supplies caused by a chip shortage allowed Japan's two biggest automakers to charge their customers more.

Britain's GSK forecast growth in 2022 after racking up $1.9 billion in COVID-related sales in 2021, beating quarterly forecasts in its first earnings report since rejecting Unilever's bid for its consumer arm.

Facebook owner Meta Platforms is struggling to stop counterfeiters from pushing fake luxury goods from Gucci to Chanel across its social media apps, as the company barrels into ecommerce.

SoftBank's decision to list British chip designer Arm is good news for New York, bad news for London and the best option left for the Japanese group after the collapse of its blockbuster sale to Nvidia.