Morning Report - Huang downfall fallout

TODAY’S INTERNATIONAL story

Ukraine’s Starlink throttled amid Russia peace talks

What happened
President Donald Trump’s peace envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff yesterday met in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin, then debriefed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Dublin. U.S.-brokered direct talks between the Kremlin and Kyiv in Abu Dhabi earlier this week produced no significant breakthroughs, but Kushner and Witkoff said Putin agreed to let European negotiators participate in the next round. Zelenskyy yesterday said his country’s access to Starshield, the military version of SpaceX’s Spacelink satellite system, was again being throttled, hampering Ukraine’s ability to intercept Russian jet-powered drones and “helping the Russians kill more Ukrainians.”

Who said what
The Starshield limits “were first noticed three days ago,” when the Abu Dhabi talks began, Politico said, citing European officials. “Ukrainian officials believe this is not a coincidence, but a pressure tactic.” Despite U.S. nudging, Kyiv has “rejected Putin’s demands to hand over territory that Russian forces had failed to conquer,” The Wall Street Journal said. Trump’s “early move to end nearly all U.S. military and financial aid for Ukraine” limited his leverage, but disruptions to Starlink and Starshield show “the U.S. can still pressure Ukraine.”

What next?
The bipartisan Congressional Ukraine Caucus yesterday said it was “extremely alarmed” by the Starshield slowdown and demanded a “full accounting from the Trump administration and SpaceX on how and why this occurred.” Nobody took responsibility for last month’s Starshield restrictions, though Elon Musk acknowledged throttling Ukraine’s Starlink service.

TODAY’S CRIME Story

Gunman kills 1, injures 4 in DC shooting

What happened
A 55-year-old doctor yesterday killed the manager of his apartment building at a ground-floor gym in the Logan Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C., then shot four other people from the balcony of his penthouse condo, police said. The gunman, Matt Lambert, fatally shot himself while talking to police negotiators, after firing at officers through his door and starting a short-lived fire using a severed gas hose. The building manager, James Stuart, 46, died instantly and one of the other victims was in critical condition, officials said.

Who said what
The attack “prompted a widespread response from law enforcement,” including snipers and SWAT units, in the upscale neighborhood “less than a mile from the White House,” The New York Times said. “This whole incident took place in less than five minutes,” interim D.C. Metropolitan Police Chief Jeffery Carroll said at a news conference. “We believe it’s related” to an “ongoing dispute” between Lambert and building management “regarding maintenance issues, mold and the like.” In a pending lawsuit filed last year, Lambert said exterior renovations had rendered his condo uninhabitable due to mold and water damage.

What next?
The “terror” from yesterday’s attack is “likely to linger in the neighborhood,” the Times said. “I think we’re going to be shaken for a while,” said Nick Ryan, Lambert’s next-door neighbor.

It’s not all bad

Chile’s Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth, is experiencing one of its largest floral blooms in history. Heavy rainfall from El Niño has “penetrated deeper into the parched ground than it has in decades,” allowing millions of long-dormant “seeds, bulbs and tubers” to “sprout above the surface,” said NPR. People think the Atacama is “an empty, arid place, devoid of life,” said Ana Sandoval, a biologist at Chile’s national seed bank. But it’s “just waiting for the right conditions, and any precipitation, to awaken it.”

Under the radar

Lies and discontent fuel Ukraine draft center riot

Violent clashes involving more than 200 protesters at a Ukrainian army holding center on the outskirts of Kyiv could have been the work of Russian disinformation agents. Ukraine’s National Police and the Security Service of Ukraine have so far identified 130 people who may have been involved in the unrest.

On Nov. 2, a crowd gathered outside the building in Petropavlivska Borshchahivka in response to social media and Telegram posts claiming that Ukrainian soldiers were being “illegally detained and tortured” inside, said local outlet UA.News. The angry mob clashed with police after attempting to storm the building, which officials later identified as a “temporary deployment site” for draftees and former deserters run by the “Azov” Corps of Ukraine’s National Guard.

Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukraine’s Presidential Office, cautions against dismissing the incident as merely an act of Russian provocation, arguing it exposes deeper societal tensions over conscription. “Forced mobilization, a reality of Ukrainian life under martial law, remains one of the greatest sources of social and political tension in Ukraine, frequently leading to violent clashes between recruiters and civilians,” said The Kyiv Independent.

Budanov warns that Ukraine needs to mobilize at least 30,000 recruits each month just to maintain the current defense against Russia. New military contracts designed to reduce desertion rates and draft dodging seek to make infantry roles more attractive by offering higher salaries and fixed terms of service for those willing to fight on the front lines. But the problem remains simple: “There just are not enough people,” said one defense ministry official.

On this day

November 13, 1947

Soviet weapons designer Mikhail Kalashnikov debuted his AK-47 assault rifle in a demonstration for Russian military officials. Within two years, the gun became standard for the Red Army. According to a 2020 estimate, AK-47s and their variants account for about 20% of all global firearms, with approximately 100 million units worldwide.

TODAY’S newspaperS

‘Scandal fells’ Huang

“Scandal fells Nvidia’s Huang,” and “coziness with Trump wasn’t enough to avert his undoing,” The Wall Street Journal says on Friday’s front page. “Nvidia chief quits as second affair adds to scrutiny,” The New York Times says. “Huang’s exit tests stability of Nvidia, AI,” says the Los Angeles Times. “Trump says no Iran deal is needed, closes down talks,” The Washington Post says. “Officials: ICE detention plan wasted millions,” says USA Today. “Feds pressured Omar ex-bodyguard” to “provide evidence against her,” The Minnesota Star Tribune says. “Texan central to Haiti’s arms deal with Dolly Parton’s nephew has history of fraud,” the Miami Herald says. “More urged to be tested for prostate cancer,” says The Boston Globe.

► See the newspaper front pages

Tall tale

Plume with a view

An Australian couple came home to find a bizarre intruder: a peacock that “seemingly fell hopelessly in love with himself” in the mirror, said The Guardian. As Hex the peacock was admiring himself in Geoff and Delwyn Ballantyne’s bathroom, they called wildlife rescuers to wrangle the bird out of their house. “There was a lot of screaming from my wife,” Geoff told The Guardian. After his eviction, Hex roamed the Alexandra Hills bushland until he was reunited with his owner, local tattoo artist Elliot Ross.

Morning Report was written and edited by Nadia Croes, Scott Hocker, Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, Justin Klawans, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz, Peter Weber and Kari Wilkin, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek.