The Madman Theory.

Bats in the ICU.

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1. President Vladimir Putin was sworn in for a new six-year term earlier today at a Kremlin ceremony that was boycotted by the United States and a number of other Western countries due to Russia's war in Ukraine. Putin, in power as president or prime minister since 1999, begins his new mandate more than two years after he sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, where Russian forces have regained the initiative after a series of reversals and are seeking to advance further in the east. At 71, Putin dominates the domestic political landscape. On the international stage, he is locked in a confrontation with Western countries he accuses of using Ukraine as a vehicle to try to defeat and dismember Russia. (Source: reuters.com)

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2. As Mr. Putin persists in his bloody campaign to conquer Ukraine, the Russian leader is directing an equally momentous transformation at home — re-engineering his country into a regressive, militarized society that views the West as its mortal enemy. Putin’s inauguration today showcases Russia’s shift into what pro-Kremlin commentators call a “revolutionary power,” set on upending the global order, making its own rules, and demanding that totalitarian autocracy be respected as a legitimate alternative to democracy in a world redivided by big powers into spheres of influence. In “Russia, Remastered,” The Washington Post documents the historic scale of the changes Putin is carrying out and has accelerated with breathtaking speed during two years of brutal war even as tens of thousands of Russians have fled abroad. (Source: washingtonpost.com)

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3. Russia said on Monday that it would hold military exercises with troops based near Ukraine to practice for the possible use of battlefield nuclear weapons, a provocative warning aimed at discouraging the West from deepening its support for Ukraine. These weapons, often referred to as “tactical,” are designed for battlefield use and have smaller warheads than the “strategic” nuclear weapons meant to target cities. Russia’s Defense Ministry said that President Vladimir V. Putin had ordered an exercise for missile, aviation and naval personnel to “increase the readiness of nonstrategic nuclear forces to carry out combat missions.” (Source: nytimes.com)

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4. Israel sent tanks into Rafah and took control of the crossing linking the Gaza Strip to Egypt, securing a strategic corridor as it ramps up preparations for a military offensive in the border city. Israeli military footage showed its tanks entering the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing. The move followed a series of airstrikes against Hamas targets and warnings for civilians in the eastern part of Rafah to evacuate to zones in the west. (Source: wsj.com)

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5. American and Chinese diplomats plan to meet later this month to begin what amounts to the first, tentative arms control talks over the use of artificial intelligence. A year in the making, the talks in Geneva are an attempt to find some common ground on how A.I. will be used and in which situations it could be banned — for example, in the command and control of each country’s nuclear arsenals. The fact that Beijing agreed to the discussion at all was something of a surprise, since it has refused any discussion of limiting the size of nuclear arsenals themselves. (Source: nytimes.com)

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