🔥 Putin warns U.S. of New Cold War

Good Morning. 

2 meteor showers, the Southern Delta Aquariid and the Alpha Capricornids, will peak simultaneously in late July, offering skygazers a chance to see multiple shooting stars per hour.

The Delta Aquariids are expected to produce 15 to 20 meteors per hour in the Northern Hemisphere, while the Alpha Capricornids will add about 5 meteors per hour, with both showers visible under dark skies and best viewed after midnight.

— 🐈‍⬛ Acoustic Kitty

THE BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT

Putin warned the United States that Russia would respond with "mirror measures" if the U.S. deploys long-range missiles in Germany, potentially leading to a Cold War-style missile crisis.

Speaking at a Russian navy day event, Putin expressed concern over the U.S. plan to start deploying missiles in Germany from 2026, stating that such missiles could reach Russian targets in about 10 minutes.

The Russian leader drew parallels to Cold War tensions, particularly the deployment of Pershing II missiles in Western Europe in 1979, and emphasized the deteriorating diplomatic relations between Russia and the U.S.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY & DIPLOMACY

Counterterrorism

• French train networks expect to fully restore service by Monday after a sabotage attack on Friday disrupted travel to the Paris Olympics, with repairs completed and increased security measures implemented.

• The U.S. State Department has condemned reports of Iran coercing its Jewish minority to participate in the recent presidential election through unprecedented measures, highlighting concerns about religious discrimination and political manipulation in the country.

• Israel launched strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon following a deadly rocket attack that killed 12 people in the Golan Heights, escalating tensions in the region amid diplomatic efforts to prevent further conflict.

• Mali's army and Russian allies suffered significant losses in clashes with separatist rebels in northern Mali, losing control of key areas and reportedly experiencing numerous casualties.

• 7 Beninese security forces and 5 rangers were killed in a suspected jihadi attack in Benin's National Park W, highlighting the spread of Sahel-based extremist violence into coastal West African states.

• Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei formally endorsed reformist Masoud Pezeshkian as the new president of Iran, marking a leadership transition amid ongoing economic sanctions and regional tensions.

Military & Defense

• The U.S. announced a significant upgrade to its military command in Japan and emphasized increased coordination with Japanese forces to address regional security challenges, particularly those posed by China.

• A suspected Ukrainian drone strike ignited a massive fire at an oil storage depot in Russia's Kursk region, damaging multiple storage tanks and prompting a large firefighting response.

• U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken criticized China's actions in the South China Sea during an ASEAN summit, while also addressing tensions over Taiwan, the Korean peninsula, Gaza, and Myanmar.

• Turkish President Erdogan suggested Turkey might intervene in Israel to support Palestinians, comparing it to past Turkish actions in Libya and Nagorno-Karabakh.

Cybersecurity

• Researchers discovered two malicious npm packages that hide backdoor code in image files, allowing remote command execution and data exfiltration.

• French authorities, in collaboration with Europol, have launched an operation to remove the PlugX malware from infected systems across multiple European countries, following a report from cybersecurity firm Sekoia.

• French authorities are investigating a suspected Chinese espionage campaign involving a botnet that infected 3K machines in France with the PlugX remote access Trojan.

Counterintelligence & Espionage

• Senator Elizabeth Warren alleges that foreign governments are using cryptocurrency mining facilities to spy on U.S. military operations, posing national security risks and threatening the energy grid.

• Russia has legalized the use of foreign intellectual property without consent for military development, revealing its technological struggles and intensifying concerns about international industrial espionage.

Transnational Organized Crime

• Two top leaders of the Sinaloa drug cartel, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez (son of "El Chapo"), have been arrested by U.S. authorities in El Paso, Texas, facing charges for their roles in the cartel's drug trafficking operations.

• German authorities are growing concerned about the expansion of violent Dutch organized crime networks, known as the "Mocro mafia," into Germany following recent incidents of kidnapping, torture, and ATM bombings.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

The U.S. Justice Department has accused TikTok of collecting sensitive data on American users' views on topics like gun control, abortion, and religion, as well as censoring content at the direction of its China-based parent company ByteDance.

This revelation comes as part of the government's defense of a new law requiring TikTok to be sold or banned in the U.S., citing national security concerns.

TikTok has denied these claims and is fighting the law in court, arguing that a ban would violate the First Amendment rights of its 170M U.S. users.

In other news…

New York City is piloting AI-powered scanners in its subway system to detect weapons, but the program faces skepticism from riders and potential legal challenges from civil liberties groups who argue it violates constitutional rights.

KoBold Metals, a Silicon Valley startup, is using AI to find copper and lithium deposits, aiming to revolutionize mineral exploration for the green energy transition.

Former President Donald Trump, speaking at a bitcoin conference in Nashville, promised to make the U.S. a "crypto capital of the planet" if re-elected, outlining plans to embrace cryptocurrency and create a bitcoin strategic reserve.

A massive wildfire in northern California, suspected to be caused by arson, has rapidly spread to over 350K acres, becoming the state's largest fire this year and forcing evacuations while challenging firefighters with its intense growth rate of about 5K acres per hour.

Max Space, a startup led by aerospace veterans, plans to launch a new generation of expandable space habitats in 2026, promising larger, stronger, and more versatile structures than current designs.

A new study reveals that the drying Great Salt Lake in Utah is emitting millions of tons of greenhouse gases, contributing significantly to climate change and posing environmental and health risks to the region.

A viral video shows French Paralympian Kevin Priette, who is paraplegic, carrying the Olympic Torch through Paris using an AI-powered exoskeleton, showcasing innovative technology ahead of the Paris Olympics' Opening Ceremony.

Outdated and incompatible technology systems in Los Angeles are hindering efforts to effectively manage and address the homeless crisis, leading to inefficiencies in data collection, bed availability tracking, and service provision for the city's large homeless population.

DEALS & FUNDING

Applied Intuition, a vehicle software startup valued at $6B, has completed a $300M secondary deal allowing employees and shareholders to sell shares.

The deal attracted new and existing investors, including Fidelity, General Catalyst, and Mary Meeker's Bond.

Founded in 2017, Applied Intuition provides software tools for the automotive industry, particularly in autonomous driving technology, and is used by 18 of the top 20 global automakers.

In other news…

Cybersecurity startup Chainguard raised $140M in Series C funding, reaching a $1.1B valuation and becoming Seattle's newest unicorn, as it expands its software supply chain security services for open-source software and container images.

Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX plans to distribute the $230M loss from a recent security breach among all its customers, returning only 55% of their holdings while locking the remaining 45% in USDT-equivalent tokens.

ZeroTier, a California-based startup focused on securing edge networks and devices, has raised $13.5M in Series A funding to address network security issues like those caused by the recent CrowdStrike update.

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency awarded Orbital Insight a $2M pilot contract through its first-ever commercial solutions opening to provide maritime data for tracking illegal activities in the Indo-Pacific region, responding to a request from U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.

Skip, an Alphabet X spinoff, has partnered with Arc'teryx to bring its MO/GO "powered pants" exoskeleton technology to market, initially targeting hikers but aiming for everyday wear in the future.