• Ukraine's prime minister said Wednesday that Ukraine and the US had agreed on a mineral deal.
• Denys Shmyhal said they planned to set up an investment fund based on Ukraine's mineral wealth.
• Discussions about Ukraine's minerals have been a source of tension between the two countries.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said Wednesday that his country and the US had agreed on a major deal for Ukraine's minerals.

While the full terms of the deal haven't been made public, Shmyhal told Ukrainian TV that the two countries planned to set up an investment fund based on much of Ukraine's mineral wealth, per the BBC.

Kyiv and Washington will manage it on equal terms, he added.

Shmyhal also said Ukraine would contribute 50% of future revenues from its mineral and metal extraction into the fund, which would go toward the country's reconstruction, according to the Ukrainian state broadcaster Suspilne.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump responded to reporters' questions about the proposed agreement, details of which were first reported by the Financial Times.

He said he believed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was preparing to visit the US to formalize a deal on Friday. "I understand that's a big deal, a very big deal," he added.

Ukraine has significant deposits of valuable minerals, including uranium, titanium, and lithium — the last being a key component in batteries relied on by the EV industry. It also has considerable oil and gas fields.

The draft deal, seen by the FT, doesn't include mineral resources already being extracted by the likes of the oil and gas producers Naftogaz and Ukrnafta, the report said.

The extent of the US's holding in the project remains undefined, the FT reported.

The Ukrainian government and various ministries didn't respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.

The Ukrainian minister who led the negotiations, Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna, told the FT on Tuesday that the agreement was "only part of the picture."

"We have heard multiple times from the US administration that it's part of a bigger picture," she added.

On Monday, Stefanishyna wrote on X that Ukrainian and US teams were "in the final stages of negotiations regarding the minerals agreement."

She added: "The negotiations have been very constructive, with nearly all key details finalized. We are committed to completing this swiftly to proceed with its signature. We hope both US and UA leaders might sign and endorse it in Washington the soonest to showcase our commitment for decades to come."

Trump said Tuesday that through the deal, "the American taxpayer now is going to get their money back plus," without offering specifics.

"It could be a trillion-dollar deal," he said.

Asked what Ukraine gets, Trump said: "The right to fight on."

Both Ukraine and the US have dropped key demands that were earlier being discussed, the FT reported.

The US will no longer demand $500 billion in revenue from the resources extracted, the report said, while Ukraine will no longer demand security guarantees in return.

But Shmyhal said Wednesday that the deal was "directly tied" to security guarantees, according to Euromaidan Press.

The reported deal would be a notable step in recent relations between Trump and Zelenskyy.

Zelenskyy refused earlier proposed terms that would have seen Ukraine send the US up to $500 billion in proceeds from its minerals, while Trump has called the Ukrainian president a "dictator."

• President Donald Trump's media company sued a Brazilian judge in a Florida court on Wednesday.
• The lawsuit accused Justice Alexandre de Moraes of undermining First Amendment rights.
• The lawsuit comes after Moraes received an indictment related to former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro.

President Donald Trump's media company sued a Brazilian Supreme Court judge, claiming that he censored right-wing voices on social media.

Trump Media & Technology Group, the owner of Truth Social; and Rumble, an online video network platform, accused Justice Alexandre de Moraes of censoring political discourse in the United States and claimed that he undermined the First Amendment.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Tampa, Florida, on Wednesday and was first reported by The New York Times.

The legal action came as de Moraes was deciding whether to arrest former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro.

Bolsonaro was charged with masterminding and attempting a coup to cling to power after losing Brazil's presidential election in 2022.

Brazil's chief prosecutor brought five charges against Bolsonaro, a Trump ally. They include allegations that he planned to kill de Moraes and poison President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

TMTG and Rumble, which say they are bastions of free speech and are popular with MAGA supporters, said in the lawsuit that de Moraes had "issued sweeping orders to suspend multiple U.S.-based accounts."

The plaintiffs said the judge wanted to remove accounts he labeled "anti-democratic" and targeted high-profile conservative social media users. They seek a jury trial and permanent injunctive relief.

De Moraes has styled himself as a protector of democracy with his rulings.

In August, the judge ordered Elon Musk's X to halt operations in Brazil until it complied with court orders and paid fines.

Martin De Luca, the Boies Schiller Flexner partner representing Rumble in the lawsuit, said: "We have asked the court to determine whether a foreign judge can unilaterally dictate what speech is allowed in the United States."

He added that the case was about "protecting America's digital sovereignty."

Joseph Russomanno, an emeritus professor specializing in First Amendment and media law at Arizona State University, told Business Insider by email that he couldn't comment on the part that international and Brazilian law might play in the case.

However, he said that the complaint "seems to have a good chance of succeeding largely because of the First Amendment element."

A key consideration would be the plaintiffs' ability to demonstrate that de Moraes' gag order lacks legitimacy, particularly regarding the First Amendment's protection of press freedoms.

The plaintiffs have argued that legitimate political discourse was censored — and "political speech generally has the highest level of protection," Russomanno said.

Another factor would be why de Moraes issued the orders, he said: "For example, does the content of these organizations endanger public safety?"

This type of lawsuit was not unprecedented, Russomanno said, pointing to a 1976 Supreme Court ruling — Nebraska Press Association v. Stuart — that could offer guidance.

• A senior Russian lawmaker said the US should release lists of Russians who have received USAID funding.
• Vyacheslav Volodin said they would then hand the lists to the FSB, Russia's security agency.
• Russian leaders claim the agency has fomented coups and conducted military research.

A top Russian politician said he wants the US to release lists of people and groups in the country that have received USAID funding.

Vyacheslav Volodin, the chair of Russia's State Duma, said this week that they would then "hand these lists to the FSB," Russia's main security and intelligence agency, and the successor to the much-feared KGB.

Volodin's statement came after the Trump administration moved to dismantle the US Agency for International Development, which was established in 1961 to oversee the US' aid programs worldwide.

The agency spent nearly $32.5 billion in fiscal year 2024, channeling aid to countries like Ukraine, Jordan, and Ethiopia.

But Elon Musk, who heads the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has called USAID a "criminal organization" on X, and said it was "time for it to die."

Last week, USAID announced that it would place most of its staff on administrative leave — a move that could reduce the workforce from about 10,000 to fewer than 300.

But staff are now in limbo after a judge blocked the shutdown.

Russian lawmakers have applauded the moves to end the agency.

Volodin has previously claimed that USAID's efforts to promote democracy are aimed at fomenting coups, harming countries like Ukraine and Armenia, according to state-controlled news agency TASS.

Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Volodin said: "The only real democracy left is in Russia.

"Those who were funded from abroad should publicly apologize and seek penance on Red Square."

According to a now-archived description of USAID's spending in Russia, the agency has funded multiple public health projects, child welfare programs, and the promotion of the free market.

It has also supported civil society organizations and nonpartisan watchdog groups, and the building of ties between US and Russian media outlets.

Volodin also said those who left Russia and hoped to be funded by USAID "will now go cold and hungry waiting to receive something."

Other lawmakers have also weighed in, and Russian commentators have moved to recast some projects as nefarious, with one military expert saying, without providing evidence, that the health programs were a means of studying "potential vulnerabilities of specific population groups to certain drugs," TASS reported.

On February 2, Musk posted to X, claiming that USAID had funded "bioweapon research, including COVID-19."

• Russia wants to become a top lithium producer but faces a challenging environment.
• Its largest lithium mining project was sanctioned by the US in January.
• China, a partner in Polar Lithium, may be spooked by the sanctions, experts said.

Russia's plan to develop one of its vast untapped lithium reserves is hitting major roadblocks.

Russia sits on an estimated one million tons of lithium, an amount comparable to the US.

Lithium is used to make lithium-ion batteries, and has been in increasing demand since the EV boom.

With oil and gas sanctions weighing on Russia's economy after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, mining lithium is becoming more attractive.

"The production of this metal is, without exaggeration, a strategically important task," President Vladimir Putin said in the fall.

But a slowing market, US sanctions and a complex mining environment are challenging this ambition, experts told Business Insider.

It's a wide-ranging ambition: Russia has struck international deals and currently occupies Ukrainian land believed to hold lithium deposits.

The jewel in Russia's lithium crown is the Kolmozerskoye field in Murmansk in the country's arctic northwest.

Polar Lithium was set up in 2023 as a joint venture between the state nuclear energy company Rosatom and the privately-owned metals giant Nornickel.

There is technical backing from the Chinese engineering firm MCC International Incorporation.

It's projected to come online by 2030 and produce some 45,000 tons a year — putting it roughly on a par with Chile, the world's second-largest producer.

Rosatom has said that Russia aims to become self-sufficient for lithium and capture 10% of the global market by 2030, catapulting it ahead of the US and into the world's top five producers.

A sanctions chilling effect?

On January 10, the outgoing administration of former President Joe Biden imposed a slew of sanctions on Russia's energy sector.

On its list was Polar Lithium, an inclusion that could spook China's involvement.

Writing last year, analyst Vita Spivak said sanctions could "limit the further integration of China and Russia's metals supply chains, as Chinese firms would be wary of being targeted by Western secondary sanctions."

Speaking to BI in the wake of the recent US announcement, Pavel Devyatkin of The Arctic Institute agreed.

"The sanctioning of Polar Lithium creates risks for the Chinese company and may affect the company's plans," he said.

"Chinese companies have not shown a willingness to challenge US sanctions, including in the Arctic economy."

Philip Andrews-Speed, a senior research fellow at Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, also said that China has been "very careful" about investment in Russia's energy sector.

"My guess is that the Chinese might withdraw, or just slow things down," he said.

The extent of MCC's involvement in the project is unclear — Rosatom's announcement described its technical know-how in extracting and processing but didn't talk about what sort of payment it would get, whether in cash or in the form of mined lithium.

Laurence Haar, a financial economist specializing in energy markets at the UK's University of Brighton, told BI that a so-called offtake agreement, giving away some of the product, is likely the only way Russia can pay for China's expertise. China has used that model in lithium projects elsewhere.

Asked about the extent of MCC's involvement both before and after the sanctions, Polar Lithium spokesperson Vasily Zakharov told BI: "The project continues to advance in accordance with its planned timeline and operational objectives."

Business Insider wasn't able to reach MCC; a listed email address was inactive.

A challenging market

Lithium is often hailed as "white gold" or "the oil of the 21st century" — but for the time being it's not that rare.

Despite a rise in prices during the EV boom, oversupply cooled the market in 2024.

The lithium market "has become highly competitive," Ahmed Mehdi, another senior research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, told BI by email. China gets plenty from its domestic industry as well as from Australia and Africa, he said.

Mehdi added that it's also difficult to know how much investment would be needed to make Polar Lithium commercially viable, "particularly given potential infrastructure constraints and market opportunities (given its sanctions profile)."

Those infrastructure constraints are considerable, Haar told BI, and "would be challenging at the best of times."

Working in the remote and cold High North requires significant transport and civilian infrastructure just to get going, he said, which will add to production costs.

This makes Russia's ambition of taking up 10% of the world's market "a bit optimistic," Haar said, adding: "I don't see it as a threat to the market."

Polar Lithium isn't doomed, yet

This doesn't mean the project is dead in the water.

Lithium mining isn't a complex process, and Andrews-Speed, the OIES academic, said Russia could move ahead without Chinese cooperation in the hopes that sanctions will be lifted later.

Since taking office, President Donald Trump has overturned some of the Biden administration's sanctions. The State Department declined to comment on its plans for Polar Lithium's sanctions.

Even under sanctions, it would not be hard to quietly sell the unprocessed lithium, Haar told BI. Russia has taken a similar approach with its oil and gas.

"Once it's turned into batteries and processed into oxide, no one can know from where it came," he said.

But the real money is in processing it, he added.

"The Chinese have cornered the market in processing lithium," he said. "Which is smart because beneficiation, moving downstream into producing the oxide, and then actually producing batteries, is where you make the money."

• Australia is facing similar egg shortages to the US due to bird flu and industry shifts.
• Sales have been rationed in some stores since June.
• Egg production recovery is slow, taking upwards of six months.

More than six months after some Australian stores restricted the sale of eggs, some shelves are still empty.

As US consumers start to feel the same pinch, Australia's example could show such shortages don't end fast.

This week, multiple US stores, including Costco, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe's, began limiting the number of cartons customers could buy.

It's not unfamiliar to Australians. In June last year, the chains Coles and Woolworths began limiting egg-carton purchases to two per shopper.

As of January, supermarkets were still limiting sales, some shelves were bare, and the industry body Egg Farmers of Australia noted a "lower supply."

The causes have much in common with the US.

1) Avian influenza — albeit different strains — in both cases wipes out some 7% of the national flock.

2) Demand went up over the holidays, further pressuring supplies.

3) A long-term trend away from caged birds' eggs toward barn-laid or free-range.

That resulted in a 11.5% price spike in Australia last year — steep, but pretty minor compared to the 65% hike in the US.

If Australia's seven-month egg shortage is anything to go by, US consumers could be waiting a while to get easy access to eggs again.

Australia is looking at several months before egg production returns to normal while it repopulates its flocks, even after its government declared its bird flu outbreak over.

Emily Burton, a professor in sustainable food production who focuses on poultry at the UK's Nottingham Trent University, told BI that it takes around six months from losing a flock to getting back to full-throttle egg production.

With US officials still reporting sporadic outbreaks in commercial flocks as recently as Friday, supply chains may remain scrambled for some time yet.

• Venice is doubling a last-minute tourist fee for daytrippers.
• The fee, first introduced in 2024, is an attempt to manage overtourism and better preserve the city.
• Venice's tourism chief says other destinations have sought advice on copying the measures.

Venice has doubled its last-minute visitor fee, with the city's tourism chief saying its success has prompted other overcrowded tourist destinations to consider similar measures.

In 2024, the Italian city introduced a €5 charge for visitors on select peak-season dates, in an attempt to curb overtourism.

The fee will remain €5, a little over $5, for those who pay at least four days in advance, but is set to rise to €10 for last-minute bookings.

Fines for not registering range from the equivalent of $52 to $310.

Simone Venturini, the city's tourism councilor, said at a recent tourism fair that other destinations overrun by tourists are looking to follow Venice's lead, something the city's tourism office corroborated.

"We confirm that several institutional bodies, both in Italy and internationally, have contacted the City of Venice to gain a deeper understanding of the Access Contribution mechanism," a spokesperson for Venice's tourism office told Business Insider in an email.

They added that discussions have taken place with representatives from Kyoto in Japan, Formentera in Spain, and the Swiss city of Zermatt, "in addition to various Italian local authorities."

Venice's tourism office said the visitor fee generated €2.4 million in revenue for the city in 2024, about $2.5 million.

It also credited the entrance fee with preventing Venice from hitting previous peak visitor numbers on certain high-traffic days.

The charge applies to daytrippers entering Venice's historic center between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., with exemptions for overnight guests, local residents, students, and those visiting relatives.

In 2024, it was enforced on 29 high-traffic days; in 2025, that will expand to 54 days, covering periods from April to July.

At the tourism fair, Venturini said Venice was a "pioneer" in tackling overtourism.

He said the pilot program had worked and that the goal in 2025 remained the same: To "create a new system to manage tourist flow and disincentivize daytripper tourism in several periods, in line with the delicate and unique nature of the city."

Venice's tourism office said in the statement provided to BI that while the fee led to more people booking visits in advance, the measure was insufficient by itself to prevent overtourism.

Venice has also tried other means, including limiting tourist groups to 25 people and banning loudspeakers on tours.

• The White House announced 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports.
• The US is the world's top steel importer, sourcing mainly from Canada, Mexico, and Brazil.
• Higher tariffs may increase US inflation, affecting industries reliant on these metals.

President Donald Trump on Monday ordered 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports, escalating his trade moves against some of the nation's closest allies.

Trump told reporters on Monday that he would announce "reciprocal tariffs," likely on Tuesday or Wednesday, on countries that have placed tariffs on US goods.

"If they are charging us 130% and we're charging them nothing, it's not going to stay that way," Trump said.

Steel and aluminum were among the first products that Trump targeted during his first term. He imposed tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminum but later granted some duty-free exemptions for trade partners, including Canada, Mexico, and Brazil.

This time, Trump said he is giving "great consideration" to an exemption for Australia — a country with which the US has a trade surplus.

"We have a surplus with Australia. One of the few. And the reason is they buy a lot of airplanes. They're rather far away and they need lots of airplanes," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday.

Since companies tend to pass the higher price of tariffs on to their customers, the move could boost prices of construction, cars, and travel.

The US is the world's top importer of steel, which is used in a wide range of industries, from construction to automobile manufacturing.

Canada, Mexico, and Brazil were the US' largest steel and iron suppliers last year by dollar value, Census Bureau data showed.

Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said in a Tuesday statement that tariffs hurt businesses and consumers.

"I deeply regret the US decision to impose tariffs on European steel and aluminum exports," she said. "Unjustified tariffs on the EU will not go unanswered — they will trigger firm and proportionate countermeasures."

Canada and Mexico were also among the top countries for aluminum and bauxite imports. The United Arab Emirates ranked No. 2, based on 2024 Census Bureau data by dollar value. Aluminum is used for aircraft construction, consumer products like cans, and construction, among other industries.

Shortly after taking office, Trump imposed a 25% tariff on most goods from Canada and Mexico. He later announced that those tariffs would be delayed 30 days after he reached a deal with both countries to strengthen border security.

Trump also placed a 10% tariff on imports from China, and China quickly announced retaliatory tariffs on coal, crude oil, agricultural machinery, and some vehicles. The tariffs announced Monday come in addition to the 10% tariffs on other goods, Bloomberg reported.

Charles Johnson, the president of the US Aluminum Association, said in a February 1 statement: "To ensure that American aluminum wins the future, President Trump should exempt the aluminum metal supply needed for American manufacturers, while continuing to take every possible action at the US border against unfairly traded Chinese aluminum."

Steel inflation may damp demand

There are fears that higher US tariffs on imports from key trade partners could drive up inflation in the US — at least in the short term.

"Constructing and ramping up new smelters/mills can take three or more years," Morgan Stanley analysts Carlos De Alba and Justin Ferrer said in a January 29 report. "Hence, any import tariffs applied to metals or mined products are likely to result in higher domestic prices for local buyers of these materials."

However, high steel prices could weigh on demand that has already been sluggish from the second half of 2024 due to US election uncertainty and seasonality, wrote analysts from the research firm CreditSights in a Tuesday note.

Meanwhile, it's unclear how Pittsburgh-based aluminum company Alcoa would restart capacity after scaling back in the US for years, they wrote.

But Trump's tariffs are politically strategic, the analysts wrote. The levies also curb transshipment through Canada and Mexico.

"The steel industry seems to becoming quasi-government-owned," wrote analysts from research firm CreditSights in a Tuesday note, citing the tariffs and the US blocking Nippon Steel from acquiring US Steel.

• Russian soldiers received sabotaged drone headsets that exploded when switched on.
• The headsets were supplied via humanitarian aid, according to Russian state media.
• The incident highlights risks in military supply chains and crowdfunded gear.

Russian soldiers received a batch of sabotaged drone headsets that were modified to explode when they were switched on, according to Russian media.

Igor Potapov, a spokesperson for Russian manufacturer JSC NPP, told state-controlled news agency TASS that an individual donated the goggles as humanitarian aid.

"When the glasses were turned on, they detonated and exploded," Potapov said.

TASS did not specify whether there had been any injuries or fatalities.

According to Potapov, the goggles were Skyzone Cobra X v4 headsets, used to provide a visual when controlling first-person view drones. He added that when the military opened the batch, "they found plastic explosives in all of the products."

Business Insider was unable to independently verify the report.

Skyzone supplies companies in multiple countries, including Russia and Ukraine, but does not list JSC NPP among its distributors.

Neither company immediately responded to Business Insider's request for comment.

Defense Intelligence of Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the reported sabotage.

Consumer-grade FPV drones are used in their thousands by both Ukraine and Russia, for everything from surveillance and reconnaissance, to target spotting and carrying explosives.

Pro-Russian Telegram channel Razved Dozor shared images purporting to be of the headsets still in their boxes, along with video of them being dismantled.

It said that the goggles contained between 10-15 grams of plastic explosive and that the boxes showed signs of tampering.

The channel added that this was one of several instances of plots to use unwitting volunteers to sabotage Russian soldiers. BI was unable to verify the claim.

Matthew Ford, a war expert and lecturer in international relations at the UK's University of Sussex, compared the Russian reports to Israel's attack on Hezbollah in Lebanon using explosive pagers last September.

That incident required months of planning and infiltration into Hezbollah's supply chain.

In this instance, the headsets were reportedly supplied via an individual donor, likely bypassing official channels.

Russian and Ukrainian units have, throughout the war, turned to crowdfunding to get some basic gear, in what Ford refers to as "participative warfare" — the idea that anyone can participate in the war effort.

At the time of publication, a Cobra X v4 was available to buy on Amazon for $324.

Threatening this less orthodox supply chain adds new headaches for militaries, who will have to add a new level of scrutiny, Ford said.

"That's the target, I suppose," he said.

JSC NPP, which is sanctioned by the UK and EU, develops and supplies electronic warfare equipment to Russian forces in Ukraine, according to TASS.

Potapov warned individuals to be vigilant when dealing with new donors to the Russian armed forces.

• Syria is open to allowing Russia to hold onto two key military bases after Bashar Assad's ousting.
• Syria's new defense minister said that relations with Russia, which supported Assad, have improved.
• Hmeimim and Tartus bases are strategic for Russia, offering major air and naval advantages.

Syria is open to allowing Russia to keep hold of its two military bases in the country, two months after rebel groups ousted Kremlin ally Bashar Assad and set in motion a Russian troop and military equipment withdrawal.

In an interview with the Washington Post, Syrian Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra said that there is a possibility Russia could hold onto the bases — Hmeimim air base and Tartus port — "if we get benefits for Syria out of this."

It's not clear what military, economic, or political support could be offered, but Abu Qasra said that Russia's stance had "improved significantly" toward the new government.

Assad, who ruled Syria for 24 years, fled to Russia in early December after a lightning two-week military campaign by rebel forces.

This threw Russia's hold on the bases — described by Andreas Krieg, a Gulf specialist at the Institute of Middle Eastern Studies at King's College London, as Russia's "most important bases outside the direct sphere of Russian influence" — into question.

Russia was granted a 49-year lease on the bases in 2017 in return for military assistance.

At the end of January, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said that "nothing has changed" and that preserving Russian access to the bases "requires additional negotiations," according to Russian state-controlled news agency TASS.

Prior to his ousting, Assad had enjoyed strong military and political support from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who stationed troops there and helped suppress rebel areas and a 2015 uprising with air and missile strikes.

Within days of Assad's removal, satellite images picked up a flurry of Russian activity at the bases: equipment being packed up, ships moving in and out of port, and the likely transfer of soldiers.

In January, Ukraine said that Russia was moving military gear from Tartus to Libya, where it also has a strong influence.

The Syrian bases are a key foothold in the Middle East and beyond for Russia.

Hmeimim affords Russian air forces a base for refueling and overflight for much of Africa. Tartus, on the Mediterranean, is unique in Russia's assets in being its only warm-water port with direct access to the oceans.

The rebel groups now governing Syria were previously targetted by Russian forces, but Abu Qasra told the Post, "in politics, there are no permanent enemies."

One trump card held by Russia is Assad himself. According to the Post, the new Syrian government wants Assad's extradition so that he can be held to account for his bloody rule.

• Russia's dead and wounded have averaged over 1,500 a day in recent months, according to Ukraine.
• Russia's recruitment rate will likely struggle to replace those lost, military analysts said.
• The Kremlin is trying to avoid a politically unpopular military mobilization to support its war.

Russian battlefield casualties — dead and injured — have risen to more than 1,500 a day over the last three months, posing serious problems when it comes to replacing their numbers, military analysts said.

UK Ministry of Defence reports suggest that Russia lost an average of 1,523 soldiers a day in November, 1,570 in December, and 1,556 in January, citing figures from Ukraine's General Staff. (Russia doesn't regularly release its own casualty figures.)

It's a significant jump that matches the pace and intensity of Russian assaults along the front line in Ukraine and in Ukrainian-occupied Kursk throughout 2024.

In January 2024, Russia was losing far fewer troops — an average of 846 a day, according to the UK MOD.

But it was attracting between 1,000-1,100 new recruits a day, according to an estimate from Vadym Skibitskyi, deputy chief major general of Ukraine's main military intelligence arm, more than enough to replace those lost.

Some estimates of Russia's current military recruitment, alongside soaring casualty figures, suggest that this may no longer be the case.

"The Russian military may be struggling to recruit enough new military personnel," analysts at the Institute for the Study of War said in an assessment this week.

They added that they had observed reports in recent months that parts of Russia were failing to meet their monthly recruitment quotas, with people less willing to sign up to fight.

Russia announced a large military recruitment drive last year, but calling up reservists is both politically unpopular and removes workers from its already stretched labor force.

The Kremlin has tried to tempt recruits by more than doubling its one-time signup payout to about $4,640 per soldier.

And on February 3, Russia's defense ministry proposed reclassifying illnesses like syphilis and schizophrenia as less serious medical conditions, loosening restrictions on military service, Russian state-run news agency TASS reported.

Estimates of current Russian recruitment rates vary.

In December, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that 430,000 recruits — or an average of 35,833 a month — signed up in 2024.

But Pavel Luzin, a defense expert for the Center for European Policy Analysis, wrote in January that Putin "appears to have been exaggerating again."

Luzin's own analysis of Russian budget figures gave a "probable assessment" of no more than 60-70,000 new troops in the last quarter of the year, or 23,300 new troops a month at most.

That's less than an estimate by one NATO official, who said that Russia was likely recruiting around 25-30,000 a month over that period.

Ukraine has also struggled to recruit additional troops, with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy so far resisting US calls to lower the military draft age from 25 to 18.

Russia's recent losses are a marker of the pace and ferocity of its assaults along the front line in Ukraine. The UK MOD said that 48,240 Russian troops were killed or wounded in January alone.

• Police say they are investigating the theft of 100,000 eggs from a Pennsylvania supplier.
• Egg prices have surged due to avian flu and increased holiday demand.
• The stolen eggs are estimated to be worth $40,000, police said.

Police are investigating the theft of about 100,000 eggs stolen from a Pennsylvania supplier on Saturday, amid a nationwide hike in prices.

The eggs were stolen from the back of a distribution trailer in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, at around 8.40 p.m. local time, according to Pennsylvania State Police. The truck belonged to egg producer Pete & Gerry's Organics.

Police said in an incident report seen by Business Insider that the eggs were estimated to be worth around $40,000.

Once considered a cheap staple, the average price of a dozen grade-A eggs hit $4.15 in US cities in December, a steep hike from the January 2024 price of $2.52, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Egg prices have become a marker for the public's attitude to the economy. The price hike has been linked to the avian flu outbreak that has posed challenges to the industry.

Brian Moscogiuri, a global trade strategist at California-based supplier Eggs Unlimited, earlier told BI that the industry had lost 26 million birds since October, or at least 7% of the national flock. The outbreak also appears to have affected shell quality.

Recent increases may also be related to the holiday season when demand rises — and that's set to continue into Easter.

In a statement sent to CNN, Pete & Gerry's said it was working with law enforcement to investigate the theft.

It added: "We take this matter seriously and are committed to resolving it as quickly as possible."

• A medical transport jet crashed in Philadelphia shortly after takeoff on Friday.
• Six people were on board the Learjet plane when it went down, authorities said.
• The NTSB said investigators have recovered the plane's cockpit voice recorder.

A medical transport jet crashed on Friday in northeast Philadelphia.

The Learjet 55 had six people on board when it went down shortly after departing Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Flight operator Jet Rescue Air Ambulance said in a statement that four crew members and two passengers — a pediatric patient and her mother — were on the flight.

It said there were no survivors.

Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on X that all six people on board were Mexican.

They have been identified as Capt. Alan Alejandro Montoya Perales, copilot Josue de Jesus Juarez Juarez, Dr. Raul Meza Arredondo, paramedic Rodrigo Lopez Padilla, patient Valentina Guzman Murillo, and her mother Lizeth Murillo Ozuna, CBS News reported, citing a spokesperson for Jet Rescue Air Ambulance.

In a press briefing on Saturday, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said that at least one other person died as a result of the crash. The person was in a car when the plane went down, she said.

Video footage of the incident circulating on social media seems to show the plane hurtling toward the ground followed by a large explosion.

Data from Flightradar24 shows the aircraft, which was headed to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, had been in service for 43 years. It shows the plane took off shortly after 6 p.m. local time and crashed in less than a minute, "less than three miles from the end of the runway."

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have since launched an investigation into the incident.

The NTSB said on Sunday that investigators had recovered the plane's cockpit voice recorder and its enhanced ground proximity warning system, which may also contain flight data.

The recorder was found at the impact site "at a depth of 8 feet," it said.

NTSB investigator Ralph Hicks said during a press conference on Saturday that the aircraft arrived at the Northeast Philadelphia Airport around 2:15 p.m. on Friday and was on the ground for a few hours before departing at around 6:06 p.m.

The aircraft climbed to about 1,500 feet above the ground before the crash.

Officials are classifying the incident as an "accident," Jennifer Homendy, NTSB chairman, said at the press conference.

The NTSB said a preliminary report would likely come within 30 days, but a final report detailing a probable cause could take between 12 and 24 months.

In a post on Truth Social following the crash, President Donald Trump said: "So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."

"More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all."

The incident comes days after an American Airlines flight crashed into a military helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, killing 67 people.

In a video statement posted to X on Saturday, Transport Secretary Sean Duffy said it had been a "heartwrenching week in aviation" and promised more announcements on the crashes.

"I want Americans to feel confident in American air travel," he said.

• A passenger jet collided with a Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan Washington National Airport.
• Four crew members and 60 passengers were aboard the jet, and three were aboard the helicopter.
• President Donald Trump said there were no survivors.

Sixty-seven people are presumed dead after an American Airlines flight crashed into a military helicopter Wednesday night during the jet's final approach to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

President Donald Trump confirmed there had been no survivors, calling the crash "a dark and excruciating night" for the country.

American Eagle Flight 5342, operated by PSA Airlines and flying from Wichita, Kansas, was on approach to land at the airport when it struck a UH-60 Black Hawk, officials said. Several federal agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board, are investigating the crash.

A NTSB spokesperson told Business Insider in an email on Thursday evening that the "cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder," known as black boxes, were recovered from the Bombardier CRJ700 passenger jet.

"The recorders are at the NTSB labs for evaluation," the spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, crews are still searching the waters as part of the investigation and recovery efforts, while boats remain on the scene for security and search operations, according to the DC Fire and EMS Department.

"Our divers have searched all areas that are accessible," a statement from the department read Thursday night. On Friday, the statement said, "divers will work with NTSB to conduct additional searches to locate aircraft components, to support the investigation, and begin operations to salvage the aircraft.

Three Army crewmembers were aboard the Black Hawk from Bravo Company, 12th Aviation Battalion at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, whose identities will be withheld until their next of kin have been notified, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a Thursday morning video.

"It was a fairly experienced crew, and that was doing a required annual night evaluation," he said in the video. "They did have night vision goggles."

He said investigators deployed Wednesday night and that the 12th Aviation Battalion has an "operational pause on contingency missions" for 48 hours.

"We anticipate that the investigation will quickly be able to determine whether the aircraft was in the quarter at the right altitude at the time of the incident."

At the Thursday morning press conference, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that both aircraft had been flying in a "standard pattern" that was not unusual, with no breakdown in communication between them.

"The helicopter was aware that there was a plane in the area," he said.

Duffy added that the fuselage of the American Airlines plane was inverted in the water.

"It's been located in three different sections," he said. "It's in about waist-deep water."

A livestream taken from the Kennedy Center by EarthCam showed an explosion as the helicopter collided with the passenger plane.

A spokesperson for US Figure Skating, the country's governing body for the sport, told BI that "several members" of the organization were aboard the flight.

"These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the US Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas," the spokesperson said.

She added: "We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims' families closely in our hearts."

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, said Russian nationals were aboard the flight, according to the Russian state-owned news agency RIA Novosti.

At a press conference Thursday morning, Trump said he didn't know what caused the crash before laying out a series of diversity initiatives within the FAA that he suggested without evidence could have contributed to the crash.

In a video posted to the American Airlines website, CEO Robert Isom said the airline was "cooperating fully" with the NTSB's investigation of the crash.

"Anything we can do, we are doing, and right now, that means focusing on taking care of all passengers and crew involved, as well as their families," he said.

Isom said that the plane's pilot had six years of experience with PSA, and the first officer had almost two years.

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport was closed to all aircraft after the crash and reopened around 11 a.m.

United Airlines and Southwest Airlines said they were allowing passengers booked on flights to the airport to change their travel plans without fees.

Anthony Brickhouse, an aviation expert, told BI that the crash was tragic but that he was not surprised it happened.

"We've had so many close calls with runway incursions and commercial flights almost colliding, and when something repeats over and over again, we call that a trend," he said.

"We've been trending in this direction for two or three years now, and unfortunately, tonight, it happened," he added.

Several near misses have taken place in recent years, in cities such as Austin and New York.

But this marks the first major commercial plane crash in the US since 2009, when Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed over Buffalo, New York, killing 49 on board and one person on the ground.

Kathleen Bangs, an aviation safety analyst and former pilot, told BI that she used to fly into Reagan Washington National Airport as a regional airline pilot and that the "extremely busy" airport had challenging flying conditions, including two runways of 5,000 feet and 5,200 feet, and proximity to water.

"The conversation now will be what safety steps need to be modified to ensure there's never another similar collision in the nation's capital," she said.

This was the third major plane crash worldwide since December.

An Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer plane crashed last month, with some blaming Russian air defenses. Thirty-eight people died.

A few days later, a Boeing 737 operated by the South Korean carrier Jeju Air crashed in South Korea, killing 179 people. Two people survived.

• Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's net worth fell by about $20 billion on Monday.
• Huang lost nearly 20% of his net worth after Chinese AI startup DeepSeek triggered a tech sell-off.
• Other AI-linked billionaires saw steep drops in their net worth, per Bloomberg's billionaire index.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang lost nearly 20% of his net worth after Chinese AI upstart DeepSeek sparked a sell-off in AI-related stocks on Monday.

Huang's net worth fell from $121 billion to around $100 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Nvidia shares plunged by nearly 17% when markets closed on Monday, shedding nearly $600 billion in market value. The shares have since gone up by 1.51% in after-hour trading.

Huang wasn't the only tech billionaire who saw his net worth decline.

Oracle cofounder and CTO Larry Ellison lost $22.6 billion, or 12% of his net worth, per Bloomberg.

Michael Dell — whose company bet heavily on AI last year — saw $13 billion wiped from his previous $114 billion net worth, and Binance cofounder Changpeng Zhao also lost around $12 billion, or more than 20% of his net worth, according to the index.

Bloomberg said that the world's 500 richest people lost a combined $108 billion on Monday, with much of that coming from AI-linked ventures.

When approached for comment, a spokesperson for Nvidia told Business Insider that DeepSeek is an "excellent AI advancement" and a "perfect example" of test-time scaling.

Test-time scaling refers to techniques that can improve a model's performance by adjusting how it processes information, instead of retraining it on more data.

"DeepSeek's work illustrates how new models can be created using that technique, leveraging widely-available models and compute that is fully export control compliant," the spokesperson said, adding that the company's products would still be needed to run AI models.

"Inference requires significant numbers of Nvidia GPUs and high-performance networking," the spokesperson continued.

DeepSeek spooked investors this week after its free chatbot app hit the top spot on Apple's US App Store's ranking on Monday. The startup's high-performing but relatively cheaper models have raised concerns that demand for AI hardware like Nvidia's chips may drop.

On Monday, President Donald Trump told GOP lawmakers at their annual policy retreat that DeepSeek's cheaper models are both a "positive" and a "wake-up call" for American tech companies.

"That's good, because you don't have to spend as much money. I view that as a positive, as an asset," Trump said.

"The release of DeepSeek, AI from a Chinese company, should be a wake-up call for our industries that we need to be laser-focused on competing to win," he added.

Last week, Trump announced Stargate, a new AI joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank, Oracle, and Emirati investor MGX.

Trump said Stargate will invest up to $500 billion in AI infrastructure over the next four years.

• A North Korean who escaped the country described his days in the Korean People's Army.
• He told BI that he trained men from the Storm Corps, the elite unit believed to be fighting Ukraine.
• He described tough training conditions, dated equipment, and little ammo.

Constant propaganda as well as limited access to ammunition — or even toilet paper — were the stark realities of being in North Korea's army, a former soldier told Business Insider.

Hyunseung Lee, who was born in North Korea in 1985, defected with his family in 2014. Today he lives and works as a consultant for the Global Peace Foundation in Washington, DC.

During his years in the military, Lee says he trained soldiers from the 11th Corps — or Storm Corps — the elite unit now believed to be fighting alongside Russia in its war against Ukraine.

In an open letter to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in November, Lee described those soldiers as victims of a "ruthless deal" between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russia's President Vladimir Putin. He urged Zelenskyy to target them with psychological tactics.

Lee spoke to Business Insider for an in-depth interview about how North Korea really works.

Shared underwear and no ammo

Lee's firsthand knowledge of the North Korean military was developed during the rule of Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un's father, who died in 2011.

Nonetheless, his insight gives a rare snapshot of the hermit kingdom, as well as its military operations.

Lee told BI that he joined the North Korean military in April 2002.

After training, he said his first unit was the 4th Corps Reconnaissance Artillery Battalion, a special force devoted mainly to infiltrating enemy bases and transmitting back their coordinates for artillery attacks.

It was a grueling life — one in which there were no proper shower facilities, food was poor, and trainees had to improvise their own toilet paper, he said.

"The first day, I used my sock to wipe," Lee said, adding that later it was leaflets, books, or leaves.

Underwear was also communal, he added.

"We washed them together and then the senior officers distribute underwear randomly."

Lee said he was paid 50 North Korean won a month — about the price of an ice cream.

Soldiers would then supplement their income with private business, which was against the law, he added. "Basically, no one could make a living with the North Korean payroll system."

Having no experience of the outside world, Lee said he believed that the North Korean army could take on the US and win. Yet he said the equipment they were using was "from World War II."

Training was also massively restricted due to fears of breaking equipment that could not be replaced, he told BI.

When it came to weapons training — on a North Korean version of the AK-47 — there was very little shooting because bullets were "strictly controlled," Lee said.

"So the first year of my military service, I was only able to shoot three bullets," he said.

Storm Corps: 'Zero relationship with modern warfare'

Lee said he spent six months training soldiers from the Storm Corps, after being transferred to a special tactics unit that taught techniques in shooting, knife throwing, and martial arts.

Drawn from taller and more well-built soldiers, Lee said the corps is an elite unit trained in operations on foreign soil — namely airborne missions, sniping, and light infantry work.

In October, reports emerged that North Korea was using the Storm Corps for the forces it was sending to Russia.

During Lee's time with the corps, they at least had more bullets to work with, he said. But "the regime cannot provide fuel and an airplane," which meant the airborne troops had to practice by jumping off a model, he said.

While North Korea and Russia have long shared similar tactics and equipment, when it comes to advanced tactics it's likely another story, Lee said.

"I would say their training has zero relationship with modern warfare," he said of the Storm Corps.

Last year, a Ukrainian official told Business Insider that the Storm Corps was likely learning deadly new drone techniques on the battlefield.

North Korea experts have also previously told BI that the soldiers — despite their proud status back in North Korea — would likely be at the bottom of the pecking order in Russia. It's an assessment Lee shares.

He said there would also be communication problems, with Russian soldiers taking advantage of the North Korean troops. Ukraine has already claimed that language barriers have caused deadly friendly fire incidents.

Asked if the Storm Corps will survive fighting alongside Russia against Ukraine, Lee said: "I honestly don't know."

But he said they'll want to get back home as soon as possible. "They want to go back, and they want to be alive."

• Federal workers have been told to report DEI initiatives or face "adverse consequences."
• Employees at NASA, DHS, and the Treasury received a memo with the warning.
• The new guidance comes after President Trump signed an executive order ending DEI initiatives.

Federal workers in multiple agencies have received a memo saying they should report any diversity, equity, and inclusion activities in their department amid a widespread purge of DEI initiatives.

Those who don't may face "adverse consequences," according to a template memo issued to federal agencies by the US Office of Personnel Management.

The OPM issued the new guidance on Tuesday, the day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled "Ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs and preferencing."

The guidance included a template email to be sent from agency heads to all employees by 5p.m. Wednesday, saying that there are "efforts by some in government to disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language."

Employees should look out for changes in job descriptions that try to hide diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility — or DEIA — activities "or similar ideologies," and report them within 10 days, it said.

The guidance told federal agencies to place all DEIA staff on immediate leave and to make a plan for ending all related programs.

The letter template added: "These programs divided Americans by race, wasted taxpayer dollars, and resulted in shameful discrimination."

A version of the template on a NASA letterhead was shared by several people on social media. Business Insider was unable to independently verify it.

In a statement sent to BI, a NASA spokesperson said: "Our agency has complied with the requirements of the executive order and guidance from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management memorandum issued Jan. 21."

They added that the agency sent a message to its workforce ahead of the deadline.

According to the BBC, versions of the email were also sent to employees at agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services and the Treasury Department.

The Treasury's version, seen by the BBC, omitted the warning about "adverse consequences," the outlet reported.

Trump's executive order overturned efforts by the Biden administration aimed at advancing equity in the federal workforce.

While in office, President Joe Biden required all federal agencies to submit equity action plans.

As of Friday, pages on some federal agency websites detailing DEI initiatives or profiling former chief diversity officers had been taken down.

In other cases, it appears that roles have been reduced to exclude DEI activities.

One example: An archived version of the about page of Elizabeth P. Martin, deputy inspector general at the US Postal Service Office of Inspector General, lists her as the agency's chief diversity officer. That title is now missing from her current page.

• The Hughes fire erupted Wednesday, the latest in a string of large wildfires in Southern California.
• As of Thursday evening, the fire covered over 10,300 acres and was 36% contained.
• Another small fire broke out overnight along a major freeway, but its forward progress was stopped.

Los Angeles County was bracing itself yet again Thursday after a new fire broke out and spread to more than 10,000 acres.

The Hughes Fire started at about 10:50 a.m. local time Wednesday near Castaic, north of Los Angeles. It was first reported at about 50 acres — but soon mushroomed to more than 10,000 acres by midnight, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.

As of Thursday evening, the fire had burned 10,396 acres and was 36% contained. Firefighters were able to stop significant spread of the flames on Thursday despite continued high wind conditions.

The new fire hit as the Southern California region was still reeling from a series of fires, including the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire, that burned through more than 37,000 acres earlier this month.

Cal Fire said a second, small blaze also broke out early Thursday just east of a major freeway, the I-405, near Sepulveda Pass.

Air support and "other aggressive actions" were deployed to fight it, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said.

Named the Sepulveda Fire, burned through 45 acres and was 60% contained as of Thursday evening, Cal Fire said. Its forward progress was stopped within the first few hours, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

An evacuation warning for the area — which contained a $30 million property owned by Rupert Murdoch, per the Los Angeles Times — has since been lifted.

Another small fire, the Laguna Fire, broke out in Ventura County, northwest of Los Angeles, on Thursday morning. The fire spread to 50 acres but forward progress was quickly stopped, the Ventura County Fire Department said.

The causes of the three fires remain unknown.

For areas near the Hughes Fire, evacuation orders were issued for more than 31,000 people and evacuation warnings were issued for another 23,000 people, officials said at a press conference Wednesday.

The fire threatens more than 14,000 structures, but so far, none have been confirmed damaged or destroyed, the LA County Coordinated Joint Information Center said.

The vital I-5 freeway was also temporarily closed as a result of the Hughes Fire, and some off-ramps in the area remained closed Wednesday evening.

Earlier this month, the Palisades and Eaton Fires tore through the Pacific Palisades, Altadena, and neighboring areas, killing at least 27 people, destroying thousands of homes and other structures, and causing what could amount to $275 billion in damages by AccuWeather's estimate.

Malibu began its repopulation efforts on Wednesday, allowing residents in select evacuation zones to begin returning to their homes with assistance from the fire department, sheriff's department, community response teams, and others.

The region remains at risk as the National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, with dangerous fire weather conditions expected through Friday.

But, the agency is also forecasting rain over the weekend, which would bring relief to any fires still burning.

This story is developing. Check back for updates.

• President Donald Trump was inaugurated for a second term on Monday.
• Former presidents, Trump family members, and tech billionaires attended the inauguration.
• Lee Greenwood and Carrie Underwood sang during the ceremony.

President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance were sworn in on Monday, marking the end of former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris' time in the White House.

The inauguration was held inside the Capitol Rotunda due to winter weather. Former presidents, Trump family members, tech billionaires, and members of Congress attended the packed ceremony.

Photos show the biggest moments from the event.

Ahead of the swearing-in ceremony, the Bidens greeted the Trumps on the North Portico of the White House.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris and former Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff also greeted Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance.

Attendees took their seats in the Capitol Rotunda, where the inauguration was held due to freezing temperatures.

Tech billionaires, including Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai, and Elon Musk, were seated on the inaugural platform.

Former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama took their seats in the Rotunda.

Vice President JD Vance was the first to be sworn in.

President Donald Trump took the oath of office at noon, per tradition.

Melania Trump's hat intercepted a kiss from her husband.

"The golden age of America begins right now," Trump said in his inaugural address, which included numerous policy proposals.

After Trump's address, Carrie Underwood sang "America the Beautiful."

The Bidens departed the Capitol on Marine One, completing the peaceful transfer of power.

Elon Musk addressed a crowd of Trump supporters during an inauguration event at Capital One Arena.

Trump signed a series of executive orders on Monday evening using his signature Sharpie marker.

While answering questions and signing executive orders in the Oval Office, Trump held up a letter left for him by Biden.

At the Commander in Chief Ball on Monday evening, Trump and Vance cut a large cake with sabers.

Trump and the first lady arrive at the Liberty Ball.

Before Trump arrived at the Liberty Ball, Billy Ray Cyrus entertained the crowd.

Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump also made an appearance at the Liberty Ball.

Trump and members of his family danced on stage at the ball.

The family also danced at the Starlight Ball, the final event of Monday's inauguration.

Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance also took to the dancefloor.

• Ukraine says it's working on new, domestically-produced air defenses.
• The decision was in response to the new Russian "Oreshnik" missile, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi said.
• In 2024, 30% of Ukraine's military gear was made in the country, according to President Zelenskyy.

Ukraine is working on a homegrown air defense system to rival the US-made Patriot, according to the commander in chief of its army.

The decision was spurred by the development of Russia's new missile, dubbed "Oreshnik," Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi told TSN, according to a translation by the Kyiv Independent.

"This encourages us to create our own air defense system, which would be not just an air defense system, but also an anti-missile system," he said.

Syrskyi added that "the work is underway, it is being actively pursued in this direction."

Russia fired its first Oreshnik at an industrial site in Dnipro, central Ukraine, in November.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the weapon was a "non-nuclear hypersonic warhead" that can travel at Mach 10, or 10 times the speed of sound.

Syrskyi said that only a handful of defense systems can intercept the Oreshnik, and that Kyiv doesn't currently have that ability. But he said that "back in Soviet times, we actually produced all the control systems for anti-aircraft systems."

Ukraine has struggled to counter Russia's missile and drone attacks with its existing air defenses, with the country repeatedly asking for more Patriots and other air defenses from its allies.

The full-scale Russian invasion has prompted a flowering of defense production in Ukraine, both with domestic companies and international manufacturing partnerships.

Ukraine produced almost a third of the weapons and gear it used in 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this month.

Some Western defense manufacturers have also signed joint production deals and have set up shop in Ukraine. This includes Germany's defense behemoth Rheinmetall, which said it's working on a new air defense facility there.

On Thursday, the UK announced that it was giving Ukraine a new air defense system called Gravehawk, which had been jointly funded by Denmark.

Gravehawk can modify air-to-air missiles to be fired from the ground, according to the UK Ministry of Defence, with the truck-mounted system helping to free up more powerful resources — such as the Patriot and NASAMS air defense systems — for bigger targets.

• Police said a 19-year-old admitted to starting a fire at the weekend over the TikTok ban.
• The fire took place at an office used by Wisconsin Rep. Glenn Grothman. The man was arrested nearby.
• President-elect Donald Trump said he will issue an executive order delaying the ban.

A 19-year-old cited the TikTok ban as motivation for setting fire to a member of Congress's office over the weekend, police said.

The fire took place on Sunday at a strip mall in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, which included a district office used by Rep. Glenn Grothman, according to a statement from the local police.

Grothman, a Republican, was among the 352 members of Congress who voted in favor of the bill requiring ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, to divest from TikTok in the US or face it being banned there.

The local fire department said there was "moderate damage" to the outside of the office, but no injuries were reported. It said the blaze appeared "suspicious" in nature and that it would be investigated.

Police said in a statement that the 19-year-old suspect, who is from the Wisconsin city of Menasha, was arrested near the building.

The man, who was not named, "admitted to starting the fire in response to recent talks of a TikTok ban," it said.

Speaking to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Grothman said he didn't know yet what had happened "other than somebody tried to set a fire over TikTok."

Grothman has previously co-sponsored a bill banning TikTok from US government devices, and has referred to the app as a "growing national security threat."

Grothman's office did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider made outside working hours.

On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld the ban on TikTok. The platform was down for US users for 12 hours starting late Saturday night.

As of Sunday, however, the app was accessible again, and President-elect Donald Trump, who is due to take office on Monday, said that he will issue an executive order delaying the ban.

"Thanks for your patience and support," read a message to TikTok's US users. "As a result of President Trump's efforts, TikTok is back in the US!"

The threat of losing access to TikTok has dismayed many of its approximately 170 million users in the US, including the armies of creators and influencer marketers who make a living on the platform.