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Vaccines including varicella, hepatitus A, prevnar and measles, mumps and rubella at Lurie Children's Primary Care — Town & Country Pediatrics on Oct. 18, 2022, in Chicago.

Erin Hooley/Reuters

Hard Numbers: Measles returns to US, Finland remains happy, Ukraine ramps up drone-making, Italian PM seeks damages in deepfake porn case, Biden announces major climate regulation

>58: We love a good comeback story — just not this one. Cases of measles, which is a (checks notes) preventable disease, are rising in the US, thanks largely to unvaccinated travelers. The CDC has already tallied more cases of measles in the US this year than the 58 recorded throughout 2023 (full data will be released in the coming days). Though measles is highly contagious, it’s not expected to spread across the country, but the CDC is encouraging folks to stay up to date on their immunizations.

7: Are saunas and reindeer the key to a happy life? The annual World Happiness Report was released Wednesday, coinciding with the International Day of Happiness. For the seventh year in a row, Finland ranked as the world’s happiest country. Meanwhile, the US dropped out of the top 20 for the first time since the report was first launched over a decade ago – to No. 23, down eight spots from 2023.

2 million: Ukraine says it could make up to two million drones a year — if its Western pals provide more funding. Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s minister for digital transformation, says the country is already on track to produce over a million drones this year. Drones have played a major role on the battlefield in Ukraine, and Kyiv has frequently used them to launch strikes against targets in Russia. Kyiv sees domestic manufacturing as crucial to its war effort, but it’s facing financial hurdles, and internal disputes in Western countries are holding up much-needed aid.

100,000: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is seeking damages to the tune of €100,000 ($109,000) in a defamation case linked to deepfake pornographic videos of her that were uploaded online. Two men are under investigation over the videos, which were viewed millions of times. Meloni’s legal team says that if their pursuit of damages is successful then the Italian leader will donate the money to a fund supporting female victims of male violence.

56: President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced a major new regulation to curb climate change that aims to ensure a majority of vehicles in the US (56%) are all-electric or hybrids by 2032. The ambitious rule increasingly restricts levels of pollution allowed from tailpipes each year. The EPA says the regulation will prevent more than seven billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions from entering the atmosphere over the next three decades.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with winners of the Leaders of Russia national management competition at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia March 12, 2024.

Sputnik/Sergei Savostyanov/Pool via REUTERS

​Despite Putin’s current swagger, Russia remains vulnerable

After last year’s failed Ukrainian counteroffensive, Russia’s Vladimir Putin has signaled confidence that, thanks to lagging support from the West and Ukraine’s shortage of troops and weapons, Russia can win a war of attrition. But a series of stories today remind us the Kremlin still has plenty of security concerns.

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Naming names: The nonprofit tracking corruption around the world
Naming names: The company tracking corruption around the world | Global Stage

Naming names: The nonprofit tracking corruption around the world

What is the least corrupt country in the world? According to a Berlin-based nonprofit called Transparency International, that would be Denmark. Finland is close behind. At the very bottom of the list is Somalia, dead last out of 180 nations.

Founded in 1993 by a retired World Bank Official, Transparency International operates in more than 100 countries, promoting accountability and exposing public sector corruption.

The team, led by CEO Daniel Eriksson, attended the 2024 Munich Security Conference last week with a warning about the rise of “strategic corruption,” a geopolitical weapon involving bribes and disinformation to attain a political goal in another nation.

“Our definition of corruption is the abuse of entrusted power for personal gain,” Eriksson told GZERO’s Tony Maciulis.

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Alexander Stubb talks to the media ahead of the announcement of the results, at an election night event, in Helsinki, Finland, February 11, 2024.

REUTERS/Tom Little

Stubb takes Finnish presidency in close race

Finland’s former Prime Minister, Alexander Stubb, narrowly defeated former Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto in a presidential runoff election this Sunday, with 51.6% of vote. Stubb will replace two-term President Sauli Niinisto, known as “the Putin Whisperer” due to his cordial relations with the Russian president prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

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Presidential candidates Alexander Stubb and Pekka Haavisto attend a debate on Feb. 1, 2024.

Lehtikuva/Antti Aimo-Koivisto via REUTERS

Finland heads to the polls

Voters in Finland will choose their new president on Sunday. The president controls military and security policy – a significant position since Finland joined NATO last year in response to its neighbor Russia invading Ukraine.

The candidates: The front-runner is center-right candidate Alexander Stubb. Stubb, who is viewed as a pro-European globalist, previously served as prime minister and foreign minister and as a member of the European Parliament. He is running against center-left Pekka Haavisto, a Green League member and former United Nations diplomat, who would be the country’s first openly gay president if elected.

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Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan speaks with Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom ahead of the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, November 28, 2023.

SAUL LOEB/Pool via REUTERS

Sweden is confident it will finally become a NATO member

Sweden’s top diplomat is optimistic that the nearly year-long delay in his country’s NATO accession caused by Turkey and Hungary will soon be over. Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom says that Turkey could approve Sweden’s NATO membership “within weeks,” and he expects Budapest to follow Ankara’s lead.

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Model of natural gas pipeline and Finland flag, July 18, 2022.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Another Baltic pipeline whodunnit!

NATO on Wednesday pledged a “determined” response if recent damage to a critical pipeline linking two of its members is found to have been deliberate.

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Expect another Erdogan presidency for Turkey
Expect another Erdogan presidency for Turkey | Europe In :60 | GZERO Media

Expect another Erdogan presidency for Turkey

Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, shares his perspective from Stockholm, Sweden.

How was the outcome of the Turkish election?

Well, we haven't seen the end of it, but the first round, which was not decisive concerning the presidency. Erdogan just short of 50%, but his coalition did capture the majority in parliament and that will be decisive advantage when it goes to the second round for the presidency on May 28th. Erdogan managed to mobilize the nationalists more conservative, more sort of proud Turkish, somewhat more rural Turks against the more modern, Western, younger. We'll see. But in all likelihood, May 28th for Erdogan.

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