
US deploys missiles to Poland to train NATO ally
Dozens of American soldiers and a battery of Patriot missiles have arrived in Poland, where they will spend the next two years teaching the Polish military to operate the advanced guided missile system at a base just a few miles (kilometers) from the Russian border.
The mission amounts to the most significant deployment ever of US forces to Poland, which once was behind the Iron Curtain but is now an enthusiastic member of NATO.
Though Russia had expressed its strong opposition to having a US military installation close to its border, there was no initial reaction from Moscow to the arrival of the missiles - perhaps an indication that it wants to play down the matter after failing to stop the deployment.
Andrew Paul, a spokesman for the US Embassy in Warsaw, said the battery arrived on Sunday at a base in Morag, a town in northeastern Poland just 37 just miles (60 kilometers) from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in January, when the location was announced, that he couldn't comprehend the need "to create the impression as if Poland is bracing itself against Russia."
The Patriot garrison was a Polish condition for a 2008 deal with Washington to host a long-range missile defense base meant to protect the US and Europe from feared Iranian attacks. That plan, developed and negotiated by the Bush administration, angered Russia and was later reconfigured by President Barack Obama. Bush's envisioned missile defense interceptors were separate from the Patriots missiles, which have a shorter range and have not provoked Russian anger as greatly as the missile defense plan had. In the reconfigured missile defense plan, Poland is still expected to host a missile defense base, but not until about 2018 and one on a smaller scale than that envisioned by George W. Bush. The US military has previously carried out training exercises in Poland, and has also trained the Polish air force to operate F-16 military fighter planes, which Poland bought to modernize its military.
But Paul said the Patriot garrison involves a longer time commitment than anything before, and marks "the first continuing presence" of American soldiers and equipment in Poland. The missiles were transported by rail from a US base near Kaiserslautern, Germany, and will rotate in and out of Poland along with 100 to 150 American soldiers for the next two years. Poland has expressed interest in possibly acquiring some of the US missiles in the future, though no deals have been sealed yet.

Biden admin to let H-1B spouses work
- The reversal comes as a huge relief for a community that had lived with mounting uncertainty after former President Donald Trump’s administration sought to take away their work authorisation.

Former ISI chief Asad Durrani in touch with RAW since 2008: Pakistan
- Durrani has faced problems from Pakistan’s military establishment since he co-authored the book The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace with former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) chief AS Dulat in 2018.

US leaders dial Indian counterparts; talk cooperation in defence, Indo-Pacific
- In an introductory telephone call from US secretary of defence Lloyd Austin to Rajnath Singh, the two sides reaffirmed their commitment to work together to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation and the strategic partnership.

Deforestation soars in Amazon forest in 2020, analysis finds
- A first look at deforestation in the full year of 2020 shows that roughly 21,000 square kilometers (8,108 square miles) of old-growth forest was cut or burned down, about the size of New Jersey, the US-based non-profit group found in its analysis of satellite data.

Biden’s UN nominee urged to counter China, defend 2019 speech

US issues terror alert over anti-govt extremists, urges to avoid large crowds

Pakistan unveils plan to administer Covid-19 vaccine across country

French Holocaust memorial vandalized on remembrance day
- The Israeli Embassy in France tweeted a photo of the pro-Uighur graffiti scrawled on a wall etched with the names of tens of thousands of French victims of the Holocaust. The embassy expressed “horror and anger” at the vandalism “on such a symbolic day.”

Biden admin scraps Trump-era rule ending work permit for some H-1B spouses

Oil slips as Covid-19, demand concerns weigh ahead of supply report

Man to plead guilty in plot to kidnap Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer

UK plant producing Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine evacuated
- The UK arm of Mumbai-based pharmaceutical company Wockhardt, which is producing the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine in north Wales, said it notified authorities after receiving the package on Wednesday morning. The company had recently hosted British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

South Korea sees one of strongest recoveries among major economies

South Africa cracks down on Bitcoin after alleged ponzi scheme

Britain cracks down on travel to stop virus spread
- Travellers arriving in Britain from high-risk Covid-19 countries will have to quarantine for 10 days in government-provided accommodation, while those wishing to leave will need to explain why in a process checked before departure, interior minister Priti Patel said on Wednesday.