• NATO on Ukraine: NATO’s secretary-general called the alliance’s support for Ukraine “unwavering.” Mark Rutte emphasized that more than €20 billion ($22 billion) has already been pledged by NATO allies so far in 2025. Mr. Rutte met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the port city of Odesa, days after a Russian strike hit the city of Sumy, killing more than 35 people and wounding 119. – The Associated Press
• Russian journalists jailed: A Russian court convicted four journalists of extremism for working for an anti-corruption group founded by the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny. It sentenced each of them to 5 1/2 years in prison. The closed-door trial was part of a crackdown on dissent that has reached an unprecedented scale since Moscow’s February 2022 invasion Ukraine. – AP
• Quiet summit on Sudan: Two years to the day after civil war broke out in Sudan between two factions of the country’s military, world leaders met in London Tuesday. Foreign ministers from across Africa, the Middle East, and the West said their aim was  “making progress” toward ending the brutal conflict, and several countries pledged to step up humanitarian aid to address Sudan’s ongoing crisis. Not invited, however, were the two warring parties, suggesting a ceasefire remains a long way off. – Staff
• French prisons attacked: Violence broke out around at least six prisons in France and lasted into Tuesday in what the government suspects were coordinated attacks. Vehicles were set on fire and a prison in the country’s south was hit by gunfire from an automatic rifle. Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has likened the violence to acts of terrorism and says it is part of an intimidation campaign against the government. No one has claimed responsibility. The French parliament is debating a law that would crack down on drug trafficking. – Staff
• Milestone for a Ranger: A female U.S. Army Ranger for the first time competed in the annual Best Ranger Competition. First Lt. Gabrielle White, and her teammate, Capt. Seth Deltenre, were among 16 of 52 teams that made it through the grueling three-day events, in which Ranger teams compete for accolades as the best of the elite military force. – AP
  • Related Monitor story: A decade ago, the Monitor’s Anna Mulrine Grobe embedded with the first women to enter the Army’s elite Ranger School to report on their experience.
• Kenya nabs ant smugglers: Four smugglers caught trying to transport thousands of live ants out of Kenya for sale on exotic pet markets in Europe and Asia will be sentenced for trafficking wildlife. In a case hailed by the Kenya Wildlife Service as one that broadens perceptions of animal smuggling to include “lesser-known yet ecologically critical species,” authorities intercepted live queen ants, including the Giant African Harvester Ant, concealed in modified test tubes. – Reuters
  • Related Monitor story: Wild animals are disappearing to trafficking in Latin America, too. Colombia is fighting back.

Across China, the flow of exports screeched to a halt last Friday, as 145% U.S. tariffs took hold and Beijing announced countermeasures. But in his first public comments, Chinese leader Xi Jinping did not betray concern. President Donald Trump has set the stage for an epic showdown with Mr. Xi. It will likely end only when one of them finds the political and economic cost too great to bear. So far, experts say, Mr. Trump’s vacillation is boosting Mr. Xi’s confidence that Washington will buckle first.

President Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters have been largely unswayed by dire economic reports related to tariffs, or constant talk of an impending constitutional crisis. They see him as a disrupter and once-in-a-generation visionary. At one weeknight gathering of friends in Virginia, they told our reporter that they’ve never been prouder of the man remaking the U.S. government – and, some argue, the world.

Before Sayid Ali lost his leg in an attack during Somalia’s ongoing conflict, he was one of his school’s best soccer players. He thought he would never play his beloved sport again. Then a neighbor told him about amputee soccer. Today, Somalia’s amputee soccer league has four teams. Participants say the sport often frees them mentally. “When I have the ball,” says one defender, “my enthusiasm for the game makes me forget that I have lost a leg.”

With President Donald Trump’s trade policies, a new threat of tariffs or retreat from them emerges every few days. The chaos has the world wondering whether there’s a method behind the apparent madness. There is, negotiation experts say. President Trump is employing a specific strategy to wring concessions from other nations. The idea is not that Mr. Trump is a madman, but that he acts like one. Other presidents, notably Richard Nixon, used the strategy in international negotiations. But 85 days into the Trump administration, confidence in the tools the president is using and how he’s wielding them seems to be waning.  

Artificial intelligence often works in concert with 5G wireless networks and internet-connected devices. The technology is emerging quickly. And as the influence of this trio grows, calls are rising for much stronger public awareness of its impact on daily life and global dynamics.

The Behbud Association of Pakistan was created after the 1965 war between India and Pakistan that left thousands of women without husbands. Volunteers started a training program in Rawalpindi, where war widows who had no other source of income were taught to sew and embroider. Sixty years later, the association has expanded into a nationwide operation. “When a woman comes to us looking for work, we never say no,” says President Abida Malik. “We have already lifted 1.6 million women out of poverty ... and we’re still doing it.”

The West African nation of Ivory Coast knows a thing or two about resilience. It has navigated through two civil wars so far in this century. It battles extremist militias along its borders. And it struggles with widespread poverty. Despite all that, it stands out in Africa for its economic progress.

Growth in its gross domestic product has lately been 6% to 7% a year. Inflation is low at about 4%. Most of all, it has seen a one-third decline in the percentage of Ivorians living below the poverty line.

An underlying cause is an effort by religious and political leaders to build social trust. Interfaith initiatives are frequent. Organizations quickly address misinformation or grievances at the community level to avert wider conflagration. A Christian-Muslim dialogue in January called on “all citizens to promote messages of peace, fraternity, and unity.”

President Alassane Ouattara himself seems inclined toward pragmatic peacemaking. He took office amid violence that erupted after former President Laurent Gbagbo vehemently contested Mr. Ouattara’s 2010 electoral victory. More than 3,000 people died in that civil war, fueled by politicization over a concept of nationality that excludes a large portion of the population – such as President Ouattara – whose families may have immigrated or had roots in neighboring countries. Nevertheless, Mr. Ouattara has accorded the former president all the perks due a former head of state, lifting a 20-year prison sentence on Mr. Gbagbo.

Mr. Ouattara’s programs on infrastructure, jobs, and land tenure have targeted previously ignored northern regions susceptible to extremism. But now they’re expanding. Other projects aim to serve and “reintegrate” youth. The nation’s ranking in a global corruption index continues to improve. Regional and local elections have become more credible.

An election for president in October may test this trajectory. Mr. Ouattara is signaling that he may run for a fourth term. A decision to stay could derail progress as there is a new generation ready to build on the gains achieved on his watch. According to one think tank, the number of capable “serious candidates” for president indicates “growing openness” of the political system.

“New leaders are coming up,” a government adviser recently told the New York Amsterdam News. “We have a generation that wants to change things.”