
Biden seeks to shore up his domestic flank in his showdown with Putin
CNN
Many Americans are puzzled at being dragged into a 1970s-style Cold War showdown with Russia. On Tuesday, President Joe Biden tried to explain why the crisis matters.
After building a strong Western coalition to try to deter Russia's possible invasion of Ukraine, Biden needed to prepare the home front for the hardships that may come for Americans, including soaring energy prices, if Russian President Vladimir Putin goes ahead. He did so in a grave White House address Tuesday that -- while it may have been necessary for domestic political reasons -- might also have risked a new escalation in US tensions with the Kremlin since Biden signaled no quarter on Putin's core demands.
The world remains on tenterhooks for Putin's next move, even after Moscow said it pulled back some troops in a possible sign of flexibility. Biden said the US had not yet detected such a movement on the ground.

Former Navy sailor sentenced to 16 years for selling information about ships to Chinese intelligence
A former US Navy sailor convicted of selling technical and operating manuals for ships and operating systems to an intelligence officer working for China was sentenced Monday to more than 16 years in prison, prosecutors said.

The Defense Department has spent more than a year testing a device purchased in an undercover operation that some investigators think could be the cause of a series of mysterious ailments impacting spies, diplomats and troops that are colloquially known as Havana Syndrome, according to four sources briefed on the matter.

Lawyers for Sen. Mark Kelly filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to block Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s move to cut Kelly’s retirement pay and reduce his rank in response to Kelly’s urging of US service members to refuse illegal orders. The lawsuit argues punishing Kelly violates the First Amendment and will have a chilling effect on legislative oversight.










