Hard Numbers: Ukrainian grain stuck, Kagame to run again, Uber lobbied Macron, Iran enriches uranium
22 million: Russia's blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports has trapped some 22 million metric tons of grain stocks inside the country, worsening a global food crisis that'll hurt scores of developing countries. Turkey is trying to negotiate safe passage for the grain shipments, but the Kremlin wants Western sanctions lifted first.
4: Paul Kagame will seek a fourth term as Rwanda's president in 2024. For his supporters, he's a benevolent tough guy who brought economic growth and stability following the 1994 genocide; for his enemies, Kagame is a ruthless dictator who'll go after anyone who crosses him.
124,000: Uber secretly lobbied European politicians to help it disrupt the taxi industry across the continent from 2013-2017, according to a leak of more than 124,000 internal documents. Travis Kalanick, the former CEO of the US ride-hailing company, was chummy at the time with now-French President Emmanuel Macron, who as economy minister allegedly protected Uber while it was operating illegally in France.
20: Iran has begun enriching uranium up to 20% using sophisticated new centrifuges at an underground atomic facility. Meanwhile, reviving the 2015 nuclear deal with the US remains a long shot, with Qatar now hosting indirect talks as the Iranians inch closer to having enough enriched yellowcake to build a bomb.