Europe – Page 509 – Prologue Journal

Your Thursday Briefing

New York Times A meeting between the leaders of the U.S. and Sweden. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/06/briefing/sweden-nato-israel-jenin-ukraine.html

Zelensky Said He Warned U.S. of Slow Ukraine Counteroffensive Amid Wait for Arms

New York Times Ukraine’s president said he had wanted to start the military push sooner in an interview with CNN. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/world/europe/zelensky-ukraine-counteroffensive-weapons.html

Ukraine Strikes Makiivka, Igniting a Huge Blast in Russian-Occupied City

New York Times Ukrainian and Russian officials differed on whether a military or civilian area had been struck. Earlier in the war, Russia lost dozens of soldiers, if not hundreds, in a strike on the city. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/world/europe/ukraine-strike-makiivka-russia-war.html

Four Countries Sue for Answers Over Airline Downed by Iran’s Missiles

New York Times In 2020, Iranian missiles struck a Ukraine Airlines flight, killing all 176 people on board. Four countries have filed suit in The Hague demanding a credible account and full compensation. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/world/europe/iran-ukraine-airlines-hague.html

Biden and the Swedish prime minister meet to discuss Sweden’s NATO bid.

New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/world/europe/biden-and-the-swedish-prime-minister-to-discuss-nato-bid.html

Tourist Seen Defacing Rome’s Colosseum Says He Didn’t Know It Was Ancient

New York Times A man who etched his initials and those of his girlfriend in a wall of the nearly 2,000-year-old monument wrote a letter of apology, and his lawyer says he is hoping for a plea bargain. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/world/europe/tourist-colosseum-rome-apology.html

In an Ambivalent Scotland, a Second Coronation for Charles

New York Times While this one was purely ceremonial, it offered the king a chance to mend fences with a nation that is not hugely enamored of him or the monarchy. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/world/europe/king-charles-scotland-coronation.html

Exploring a Volcanic Island in Portugal’s Azores Archipelago.

New York Times Volcanic São Miguel, one of the nine islands in this Portuguese archipelago in the Mid-Atlantic, offers landscapes and experiences that are at once wild and serene. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/travel/azores-sao-miguel-island.html

A Captured Russian Soldier’s Story: ‘They Just Sent Us to Die’

New York Times An inmate hoped to start over with a clean slate by fighting in Ukraine. Instead, he was confronted by the drudgery of trench work and the terror of battle. “You’re going in as meat,” he said he was told. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/world/europe/russia-ukraine-prisoner-interview.html

Giorgi Gospodinov’s Time-Bending Fiction

New York Times Georgi Gospodinov won the prestigious International Booker Prize this year for “Time Shelter,” a satirical novel exploring lofty ideas about nostalgia. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/05/books/georgi-gospodinov.html