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Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Banning Russian oil imports: “President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that the U.S. will target ‘the main artery of Russia’s economy’ by banning the import of Russian energy products. ‘We’re banning all imports of Russian oil and gas and energy,’ Biden said in remarks from the White House.”
* On the ground: “Ukraine accused Russia of targeting civilians as it began evacuating residents Tuesday from the besieged city of Sumy along the first safe corridor created since Moscow invaded its democratic neighbor nearly two weeks ago, sparking the worst refugee crisis in Europe since World War II.”
* A major security development: Poland’s minister of foreign affairs has announced a deal to send all of the nation’s fighter planes, known as MiG-29s, to a U.S. air base in Germany.... Poland also requested the U.S. provide it with used aircraft with corresponding operational capabilities and requested that other NATO allies do the same.”
* When McDonald’s opened in Moscow, it was seen as a symbolic end of the Cold War. Now, Russia has come full circle: “McDonald’s announced Tuesday that it was temporarily closing its more than 800 eateries in Russia, and condemned Moscow’s bloody invasion of Ukraine. Within hours, Coca-Cola announced it was also ‘suspending its business in Russia.’”
* Starbucks is also out: “Starbucks is suspending all business activity in Russia as Vladimir Putin’s forces continue their nearly two-week-old invasion of Ukraine.”
* Guilty: “The first Jan. 6 defendant to take his case to trial was found guilty Tuesday of all charges related to his role in the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Guy Reffitt, a Texas man who attempted to storm the U.S. Capitol while armed with a gun and zip ties, was convicted of all five counts against him.”
* An important Jan. 6 arrest: “Henry ‘Enrique’ Tarrio, the former leader of the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group, was arrested Tuesday in connection to his organization’s role in planning the Jan. 6 attack.”
* Closing one market, opening another? “Senior U.S. officials secretly traveled to Venezuela over the weekend in a bid to unfreeze hostile relations with Vladimir Putin’s top ally in Latin America, a top oil exporter whose re-entry into U.S. energy markets could mitigate the fallout at the pump from a possible oil embargo on Russia. The outcome of the talks with President Nicolas Maduro’s government wasn’t immediately clear.”
* North Korea: “Analysts say recent photos taken from space show new buildings and other signs of work at North Korea’s nuclear testing facility in what they call a worrying sign that the country could be planning to resume testing atomic bombs after having claimed to have destroyed the site in 2018.”
See you tomorrow.