La conquista del primer campeonato de la NBA de los New York Knicks desde 1973 no solo desató la euforia entre los aficionados neoyorquinos. La histórica victoria frente a los San Antonio Spurs por 94-90 convirtió las Finales en un auténtico desfile de celebridades que siguieron cada jugada desde las gradas, desde sus casas o incluso a pie de pista, compartiendo la emoción de un éxito largamente esperado.

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Los reyes Carlos Gustavo y Silvia de Suecia vivieron este sábado una de las jornadas más emotivas de su reinado al celebrar sus bodas de oro, un acontecimiento histórico con el que conmemoraron medio siglo de matrimonio rodeados de su familia, representantes de las principales casas reales europeas y miles de ciudadanos que quisieron sumarse a la celebración en las calles de Estocolmo.

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Este miércoles se cumplirán 20 años del Estatut de Catalunya. Nadie tiene intención de celebrarlo, pero gran parte de lo que hoy ocurre en la política española se explica a partir de aquel hito.

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Las relaciones entre Polonia y Ucrania atraviesan el peor momento desde el inicio de la invasión a gran escala rusa de Ucrania en febrero del 2022. El presidente polaco, Karol Nawrocki, quiere retirar a su homólogo ucraniano, Volodímir Zelenski, la Orden del Águila Blanca, la más alta condecoración polaca, tanto civil como militar, después de que Zelenski haya conferido a una unidad militar de élite ucraniana una distinción honorífica de nombre controvertido: Héroes del Ejército Insurgente Ucraniano (UPA).

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Estos días se acabarán, lo sé, apenas somos un minúsculo parpadeo en el tiempo de este lugar. Subido en la escalera nos silba, y los perros van contentos por el dulzor breve. A mí me tira con cuidado una rama que, por el peso de los frutos, acaba de troncharse. No quiere bajar, le gusta comer en las alturas, desde arriba manchar los dedos de la impaciencia y brevedad. Yo lo miro sentada en la hierba, con un libro, un tarro de cristal por si acaso, una libreta sin lápiz que solo sale de paseo, nunca la abro fuera de esta casa. Tira del pedicelo, y a la boca: saborea la cereza, rebaña el hueso, se relame, lanza todas aquellas que encuentra picadas para las criaturas de la noche —zorros y tejones se darán el festín alternándose con las yeguas—. 

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Mi primer recuerdo, aún muy niña, de un Papa me lleva más de seis décadas atrás, cuando el 3 de ­junio de 1963 (que era lunes de Pentecostés), a punto de regresar a Barcelona de uno de esos encuentros cristianos que frecuentaban mis padres, ­alguien avisó del fallecimiento de Juan XXIII. No volvería a ver a mi padre tan abatido, y eso que fue encarcelado por sus luchas obreras, hasta el 11 de septiembre de 1973 cuando casi de madrugada, viendo la última edición del Telediario, supo del golpe de Estado en Chile y de la muerte de Salvador Allende.

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Ukraine's foreign ministry rejected renewed allegations of "biolabs" on its territory, stating the country "has never developed, produced, or stockpiled biological weapons" and adheres to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC), according to the ministry's press service.

Ministry response

The comment came after outgoing US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard published findings alleging long-running US government funding of more than 120 "biolabs" in 30 countries, including Ukraine, according to a statement on her office's website.

The foreign ministry said cooperation between Ukraine and the United States has continued for years and is aimed solely at strengthening public health systems, epidemiological surveillance, and laboratory diagnostics. All laboratory facilities involved in international technical assistance programs are civilian diagnostic and research centers unconnected to any military purposes, the ministry said.

"The topic of so-called 'biological weapons development labs' is not new—Russia has used it in its propaganda for many years. At the same time, all Russian accusations have been repeatedly refuted at the international level," the ministry said.

Past international reviews

The ministry said that in 2022, at Russia's request, a formal consultative process was held with BTWC member states, during which Ukraine provided all data on cooperation programs and none of Russia's accusations were substantiated. The UN Security Council reviewed the same allegations and Russia provided no evidence to support its claims, the ministry said. In December 2023, at a meeting of BTWC member states, Ukraine officially confirmed the matter was fully closed.

"Ukraine remains committed to the principles of transparency, international cooperation, and strengthening the global biosecurity system. We call for reliance on the results of international consultations and verified facts, rather than distorted interpretations or Russian propaganda," the ministry said.

Gabbard's map

Gabbard said the "labs" in Ukraine could be "at risk due to the prolonged Russian-Ukrainian war." She said intelligence had previously warned that US-funded biolabs in Ukraine likely "contain dangerous pathogens and remain vulnerable to sustained threats of attack, seizure, or damage by Russia."

Gabbard said evidence of the full scope and funding of these labs was "knowingly concealed from the American people" by "influential people who falsely claimed they didn't exist," attributing the concealment to the Biden administration.

Gabbard also published a "map" marking purported "biolabs" in Ukraine. Her office's map relocated Kyiv to the position of Odesa and labeled one city "Cherniv," apparently intending Chernivtsi. The map also marked alleged "biolabs" in Russian-occupied Crimea and in a location labeled "Zakarpattia."

Press and analyst reaction

Financial Times journalist Christopher Miller said Gabbard used the opportunity to spread "one of her favorite conspiracy theories," distorting facts and "doing the Kremlin a favor." Miller also noted the incorrect placement of Ukrainian cities on the map.

"These four slides shared by Gabbard hardly qualify as 'evidence' for her claims. And if even the US intelligence community can't correctly place Kyiv on a map and invented a new Ukrainian city—'Cherniv' (perhaps she meant Chernivtsi or Chernihiv, but neither is located where 'Cherniv' appears on her map)—how much attention do you think was paid to everything else?" Miller wrote.

Bulgarian investigative journalist Christo Grozev of Bellingcat, an expert on Russian intelligence services, said the US director of national intelligence "effectively handed the Kremlin another information operation."

"Incredible. By publishing what looks (if you bother to look at the 'evidence') like an entirely legitimate American program, and even mentioning the risks of it being used in 'Russian information campaigns,' Tulsi Gabbard—a true 'gift that keeps on giving'—hands the Kremlin yet another information operation," Grozev wrote.

Grozev called Gabbard's actions an abuse of office: "There is a red line of manipulation and abuse of office beyond which a useful idiot inevitably becomes a traitor."

Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the Kremlin "has repeatedly spoken about uncontrolled US military-biological activity."

Background

RFE/RL reported it is unclear why Gabbard released the information days before stepping down as director of national intelligence, and whether the data contains anything new or revelatory. RFE/RL noted the US government has for years openly funded, through the Cooperative Threat Reduction program, efforts to safely secure and control Cold War-era research programs tied mainly to former Soviet biological and chemical weapons development, with some facilities located in Kyiv, Tbilisi, and other former Soviet sites.

The Trump administration has in recent months been reviewing documents on US-funded biolabs following a decision to ban federal funding for organism-modification research in certain countries, including China, over insufficient oversight concerns. RFE/RL reported that US government bodies such as the Department of Defense have long funded foreign laboratories conducting disease research.

At the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, Gabbard had already claimed the existence of US-funded biological laboratories in Ukraine, citing a Pentagon document on cooperation with the Ukrainian government on safe biological threat detection and diagnosis and pathogen risk reduction. That press release stated the United States had supported Ukrainian laboratories, medical and veterinary facilities, and diagnostic sites under a biosecurity program since 2005.

In April 2022, Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation said Gabbard had for several years worked for a foreign audience for Russian money. Since the start of Russia's full-scale war, Gabbard has said the United States was "guilty of Russia's military aggression" because it had "provoked" Russia for years, and that "Washington's ruling elite wants Ukrainians to kill as many Russians as possible."

When Emma Heming Willis walked into a neurologist’s office nearly four years ago, she left with a whirlwind of emotions. Fear, surprise, anxiety, disorientation. But to cope with them, she left with just one thing: a piece of paper. A single brochure, a single printed sheet, was all the former model — who turns 48 on June 18 — took with her from that medical center. She was drowning in medical jargon and technical terms but was lost as to how to proceed. Because she had just been told that her husband, superstar Bruce Willis, the kind-hearted action hero admired around the world, not only had aphasia — as they had known for months — but also frontotemporal dementia, an incurable and irreversible condition. And there she was, a small piece of paper in her hand, the world crumbling beneath her feet. Perhaps that was the spark that led Heming to become, in addition to a wife, mother, caregiver, and patient advocate, an author.

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The European Future Combat Air System (FCAS), a joint project led by France and Germany with participation from Spain, has failed because of disagreements between Airbus, the German representative, and Dassault, the French firm. It was the most ambitious European project at a time when the EU says it wants to increase and coordinate military spending to develop shared defense technologies, programs, and platforms — like the one that collapsed on Monday, June 8. What happened with FCAS casts doubt on whether Europe can ever reconcile national sovereignty with the demands of building next-generation, complex weapons systems, at a moment when the EU is trying to bolster its defense sovereignty and the United States is beginning to withdraw its security umbrella. It also adds pressure and lessons for other projects trying to move forward.

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Swedish JAS 39 Gripen jets intercepted Russian Su-24 and Su-34 aircraft twice on 13 June, with allied combat aircraft also scrambled, the Swedish Armed Forces reported.

Sweden's territorial integrity has faced repeated pressure from Russian military activity over the Baltic Sea, with NATO allies intercepting Russian strategic bombers and fighters over the same waters in April 2026.

What happened

Sweden's air force carried out two interception operations on Saturday, 13 June, each involving two pairs of JAS 39 Gripen fighters, according to the Swedish Armed Forces on X and Nordic Defence Sector. The intercepted aircraft were a Su-24 Fencer supersonic bomber and a Su-34 Fullback fighter-bomber.

Allied combat aircraft were also scrambled during the incidents. Swedish airspace was not violated, the Swedish Armed Forces said.

Officials' response

"Russia's behaviour is serious and indicates a repeated pattern that threatens both our territorial integrity and security. Swedish and allied fighter aircraft acted swiftly, decisively, and clearly, intercepting the Russian aircraft," said Eva Skoog Haslum, head of the Swedish Armed Forces' Joint Operational Command.

In April 2026, NATO countries intercepted Russian strategic bombers and fighters flying over the Baltic Sea. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys recently said the Alliance must be ready to neutralize Russian military facilities in the Kaliningrad region in the event of a conflict with Russia.

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will take part in the same working session at the G7 summit in Evian, France, and "could very well cross paths" on the sidelines, a senior US official said, according to Suspilne's correspondent and Le Figaro with AFP.

The G7 summit takes place from 15 to 17 June in Evian. Trump will hold a bilateral meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on his arrival on Monday, one-on-one meetings with the leaders of Qatar, the UAE, Egypt, and India on Tuesday and Wednesday, and will take part in the G7 leaders' working session on Tuesday alongside Zelenskyy.

No bilateral meeting scheduled

Asked whether a bilateral meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy was planned, the US official said the two leaders "could very well cross paths" on the margins of Tuesday's session, while specifying that no formal bilateral meeting was on Trump's agenda.

The official, speaking anonymously, described ending the Russo-Ukrainian war as a top priority for Trump: "We want the war to end as soon as possible. This is what President Trump prioritizes, one of his top priorities."

A separate US official called the 79-year-old president the "only" world leader capable of ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, without elaborating.

Versailles dinner marks US anniversary

On Wednesday, after the summit concludes, Trump will have dinner with Macron at Versailles. According to the French presidency, the dinner marks the 250th anniversary of US independence at a "high place of Franco-American friendship where the treaty consecrating it was signed in 1783."

Other agenda items

The official sought to downplay tensions between Trump and NATO allies over US commitment to the alliance: "It's a very easy conversation. It has nothing to do with the hysterical way it's being presented in the press, and we are very pleased with the burden-sharing efforts underway and we want to see more of it."

A second US official praised France's "very smart" and "relevant" decision to put trade imbalances on the summit agenda. According to the White House, Trump intends to discuss artificial intelligence, immigration, innovation, and energy with G7 partners. The G7 comprises Germany, Canada, the United States, France, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom; Trump has repeatedly argued for including Russia to restore the former G8 format.

The last meeting between the American and Ukrainian presidents was at the Davos forum in January 2026.

The Food and Drug Administration approved a new sunscreen ingredient in the U.S. for the first time in 20 years. It's been used for decades in Europe and Asia.

(Image credit: mihailomilovanovic/iStockphoto)