Diplomacy
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Russian counterpart.
Sweden appears poised to apply for NATO membership, but Turkey doesn’t sound keen on Sweden and Finland joining the alliance.
A Russian court extended pretrial detention for WNBA star Britney Griner by 30 days. However, the State Department said it was able to make contact with Griner during her hearing and that she’s doing as well as she can be under the circumstances.
The pro-Russian breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia will hold a referendum on joining Russia on July 17.
Sanctions
The UK sanctioned additional Russian individuals, including Russian President Putin’s rumored mistress and other of Putin’s family.
Japan is banning the export of high-tech equipment, such as catalysts for oil refining, control devices for machine tools, 3D printers, and spare parts for quantum computing, starting May 20.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister urged the G7 to seize Russian assets and give the proceeds to Ukraine for rebuilding as the Kyiv School of Economics estimates $94 billion in damage.
Consequences
A Russian provider of 10% of Finland’s electricity will stop providing power this weekend due to nonpayment.
Ukraine Sitrep
The Pentagon says that Ukraine and Russia are trading artillery strikes in eastern Ukraine.
The Guardian spoke to Russian soldiers who have disobeyed orders and refused to fight. In the meantime, Russia has been asking ex-soldiers to sign up to fight on short-term contracts.
Moldova Sitrep
No news of note