From Reuters Daily Briefing |
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By Robert MacMillan, Reuters.com Weekend Editor |
Hello one and all, it's good to be back on this rainy Saturday, at least where I'm sitting. Here's today's look at the big news from the week and a glimpse of where it's all going. |
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A makeshift memorial near Wagner Centre, Saint Petersburg, Russia, August 24, 2023. REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova |
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- An example for others: The presumed death of the Wagner mercenary leader in a plane crash leaves Putin stronger and poses an example for would-be mutineers. But experts say it may prove a strategic loss over time as competing factions within Russia proliferate. While Prigozhin may not have been as indispensable as he thought he was, his absence also may blunt Moscow's ability to spread its influence in Africa.
- Whodunit: The Kremlin said Western suggestions that Prigozhin was assassinated were an "absolute lie" while Putin ordered Wagner fighters to sign an oath of allegiance. Would Putin attend his funeral, should one be held? "The only thing I can say is that the president has a rather busy schedule at the moment," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
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- The money mugshot: Former President Donald Trump returned to the site that was called Twitter when he last was there, using his mugshot from his booking at Fulton County Jail in Georgia to seek donations. "We want to put it on a T-shirt. It will go worldwide. It will be a more popular image than the Mona Lisa," said Laura Loomer, 30, a Republican former congressional candidate. Friends and foes alike are using the photo on T-shirts, shot glasses, mugs, posters and bobblehead dolls.
- Midnight train from Georgia: Efforts by Trump's allies to move the criminal case to federal court are raising legal questions that could delay a trial, which may be a key part of their strategy. Trump is expected to ask for a transfer. One of his co-defendants, Harrison Floyd, remains in jail after telling a judge he cannot afford a private attorney and was denied bond.
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- Proceed with care: The Federal Reserve may need to raise interest rates further to ensure inflation is contained, Jerome Powell said at an annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, nodding to easing price pressures and the surprising overperformance of the U.S. economy and promising to move carefully at upcoming meetings.
- There's always a downside: Central-bank efforts to slow inflation by raising borrowing costs and cooling demand for goods and services may also undermine investments in technologies that could make the economy stronger in the long run, according to a study presented at the Wyoming meeting.
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- A bigger bloc: The BRICS group will admit Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt, Argentina and the United Arab Emirates to accelerate its push to reshuffle a world order it sees as outdated.
- More mortar required: Pledges by BRICS leaders to defend non-Western countries' interests are part of a gradual shift in emphasis by the group from economics to geopolitics, but expansion likely will bring more disagreements.
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- 338 unaccounted for: The death toll from the Aug. 8 fire on Maui stands at 115, but officials said that figure likely will rise substantially, with search teams still sifting through the ashes.
- Not my job? Hawaiian Electric's CEO received an annual bonus last year tied to profit, worker safety and bolstering the supply of renewable energy, but not linked specifically to reducing wildfire risk.
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Before I forget… Election observers say voting in Zimbabwe's parliamentary election did not meet international standards and was conducted in a climate of fear. Ruling party ZANU-PF likely will maintain its 43-year grip on power. A forest fire shut the Dardanelles to maritime traffic, at least 18 migrants died in a wildfire in Greece, a tropical storm drenched California, Indonesia's glaciers could be gone in three years and climbing Mont Blanc isn't what it used to be. Still, the exceptional summer heat might yield a tasty wine vintage in southern France. India landed a spacecraft on the moon's unexplored south pole, the first nation to pull off such a feat. Its rover is exploring the area. The country's space agency plans to check out the sun next. British nurse Lucy Letby will spend the rest of her life behind bars for killing seven newborn babies. Scientists say it is important to monitor a recently spotted COVID-19 variant, but it was unlikely to cause a devastating wave of severe disease and death. Spain's soccer federation said it would take legal action to defend its president Luis Rubiales as he faces criticism for kissing star player Jenni Hermoso on the lips after Spain's Women's World Cup victory. The national team staged a mutiny and the government denounced his "macho actions." Family-planning authorities in the city of Xian sent text messages to residents wishing them "sweet love, marriage and childbirth" as part of China's move to encourage its citizens to make more babies. Lose my number. |
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