☕ What happened on Trump and Putin's call

Good morning!

24,500 federal workers who had previously lost their jobs as part of sweeping DOGE cuts were offered new positions yesterday, after a court ruled earlier in the week that those who were in their probationary period couldn’t be dismissed. The workers are spread across 18 agencies, with the largest cohorts across Treasury, Agriculture, Health and Human Services, and Veterans Affairs.

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Some headlines from this morning:

President Donald Trump has ordered the release of thousands of files linked to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. JFK was traveling in an open car when he was shot by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas in 1963. The incident became the focus of several conspiracy theories. Now, 31,000 pages of documents related to JFK’s assassination have been released, following White House orders. Historians say they’re not anticipating major revelations about JFK’s death to come from the files, which could take days to sort through.

A pair of US astronauts who were stuck on the International Space Station (ISS) have safely returned to Earth. Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams ‘splashed down’ off the coast of Florida this morning after nine months in space. The duo were stranded after their Boeing Starliner spacecraft was deemed unfit to fly them back to Earth. A replacement crew for the astronauts docked at the ISS on Sunday.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has posted a picture of himself meeting Donald Trump in his first post since joining the President’s social media platform, Truth Social, on Monday. The move comes after a meeting between Modi and Director of Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who is touring the Asia Pacific. India is also seeking to avoid US tariffs and secure a trade deal. Modi also sat for an interview with popular podcaster Lex Fridman over the weekend, where he praised Trump and drew parallels between his “America First” policy and his own “India First” policy.

Chinese electric vehicle company Build Your Dreams (BYD) has announced their new cars achieve a range of 250 miles in the time it takes to fill up a gas tank. According to the company, the Han L and Tang L can be charged in five to eight minutes with a new one megawatt flash charger. In comparison, a Tesla supercharger takes 15 minutes to achieve a range of 200 miles. BYD stocks jumped 6% in response.

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Two healthcare providers have become the first to be charged with providing an abortion in Texas since the state made it illegal in 2022.

Texan authorities announced the charges on Monday, which also included practicing medicine without a licence.

A refresher: the overturning of Roe v Wade

In 2022, the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade, a 1979 decision protecting a woman’s abortion access at the federal level under the Constitution. The decision returned the ability to legislate on abortion to the states.

After this decision, Texas criminalized abortion, except in cases where a mother is in danger. Punishment for doctors who perform abortions includes up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $100,000.

The accused

Maria Rojas, a 49-year-old midwife, and her employee Jose Ley were arrested and charged with the same offences: the illegal performance of an abortion and practicing medicine without a licence.

Another woman has been charged with conspiracy to practice medicine without a licence.

Rojas reportedly worked as an obstetrician in Peru before coming to the US.

The facts

Texan police began to investigate a complaint that a clinic owned by Rojas was performing illegal abortions.

Allegedly, Rojas, with Ley assisting in at least one procedure, facilitated an abortion for a 26-year-old who was three months pregnant in September 2023 and a 19-year-old in January this year.

A third woman says she approached Rojas, who she thought was a gynecologist, when she was four weeks pregnant. Rojas allegedly recommended an abortion after examining her.

The response

Texan Attorney General Ken Paxton announced the arrests, saying: “In Texas, life is sacred.”

The Center for Reproductive Rights condemned the arrest, saying officials “have been trying every which way to terrify health care practitioners from providing care and to trap Texans”.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to a US-led proposal to stop bombing Ukraine’s power infrastructure, but not a full 30 day ceasefire Ukraine consented to last week under the condition Russia would also participate.

However, Ukraine has said it will still support the agreement, which also requires it to stop bombing Russian energy facilities.

It comes as the US pushes to end the war that began in February 2022 with Russia’s wide scale invasion.

Some background

More than three years ago, Russia launched a full scale invasion of Ukraine and now occupies five Ukrainian regions. Ukraine has relied on US and European support to defend itself.

Since coming to office, U.S. President Donald Trump has pushed to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, which has lasted more than three years.

UN data shows more than 12,500 civilians have been killed in the war to date. Neither side releases updated data on soldier deaths.

Earlier this month, following a heated discussion with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump cut off aid to Ukraine. His administration has also signalled it will not support some of Ukraine’s war-ending conditions.

The talks

In recent weeks, the US has held separate talks with Russian and Ukrainian officials in Saudi Arabia about ending the war.

At the same time, European leaders have formed a ‘coalition of the willing’ — an improvised group of nations formed outside existing agreements like NATO and the G20. Australia, Canada, and New Zealand are part of the ‘coalition’, but not the US.

This group is working to end the war and organise support for Ukraine.

Yesterday’s call

Yesterday, Trump spoke to Putin. Following the phone call, Trump and Putin’s teams released separate statements.

The White House said the pair had discussed “the need for peace,” and that this process would “begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire”.

The Kremlin said the two leaders had “a detailed and frank” conversation, where Putin said a key ceasefire condition was the “cessation of foreign military aid and the provision of intelligence” to Ukraine.

Zelenskyy’s response

Speaking to reporters on an official visit to Finland, Zelenskyy said he supported the plan to stop bombing energy infrastructure.

He said he would be seeking more detail from Trump on the agreement, however.

Zelenskyy added: “There are two sides in this war — Russia and Ukraine. Trying to negotiate without Ukraine, in my view, will not be productive.”

Although the ceasefire signals progress, Russia is currently making further advances in retaking Kursk and Zelensky has warned they are planning a new offensive into the Sumy region.