 The European Union is set to approve a "phased embargo" on Russian oil as early as next week, officials said. The move, that only months ago would have been seen as unfathomable, is coming amid increased resolve among Western nations to cut off financial support for Russia that the country is using to finance its invasion of Ukraine. EU nations are still negotiating the finer points of the embargo, but the European Commission is expected to release a final proposal next week which could receive swift approval. More: - The embargo will be the EU's sixth major package of sanctions since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.
- The proposal is also expected to include sanctions on Russia's largest bank, Sberbank. The U.S. has already imposed sanctions on Sberbank.
- EU nations will likely be able to complete existing contracts with Russian oil companies before cutting them off completely.
- Germany says it has already significantly cut its reliance on Russian oil. Only two months ago, one-third of all German oil was imported from Russia; today, it is at just 12%.
- The move is likely to hinder Russia's ability to continue to finance the war, though it may also exacerbate high oil prices globally.
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Elon Musk reportedly sold 9.6 million shares of Tesla stock this week, worth about $8.5B, amid efforts to raise cash for his purchase of Twitter. Musk's funding plan for Twitter includes $12.5B worth of loans, using much of his stock as collateral, but he needs to provide $21B in cash himself for the takeover. He may not be highly taxed on the shares he sold this week, as he exercised the options last year when the stock price was higher, and can thus use the loss to offset taxes on his capital gains. Musk still owns ~163 million shares of Tesla stock. More: - It's unclear where the rest of the cash needed to buy Twitter will come from. On Thursday night, Musk tweeted: "No further TSLA sales planned after today."
- Tesla stock dropped earlier this week amid speculation that Musk would have to sell some shares in order to finance the Twitter deal.
- The stock has recovered about half its losses from earlier in the week, though it's still down ~11% from Tuesday.
- Musk remains the world's richest person, worth an estimated $252B, though much of his wealth is tied up in his various companies.
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 Former President Donald Trump is unlikely to be indicted on criminal charges related to the Manhattan district attorney's investigation into his business, according to The New York Times. One prosecutor in that office has stopped focusing on Trump, and a number of key witnesses said they had not been contacted by the DA in months. A grand jury, which had been convened to analyze potential evidence against Trump, completed its service this week. More: - A future grand jury could be convened, but sources within Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's office believe a criminal case against Trump related to his business practices could be difficult to prove.
- Nevertheless, prosecutors continue to investigate and issue subpoenas. They are searching for proof that Trump and his organization intentionally inflated the value of assets in financial statements.
- In most similar cases, prosecutors have a deadline of five years following a crime to file charges.
- Meanwhile, New York Attorney General Letitia James may soon file civil charges against Trump, also related to his business practices.
- Trump has been held in contempt in that case over a failure to respond to a subpoena to turn over documents.
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 GOOD NEWS: The James Webb Space Telescope has successfully aligned and is now ready to capture images of deep space, according to NASA. The telescope needed to undergo several months of alignment to unfold 18 gold mirror segments, which will now be capable of looking at some of the oldest galaxies in the universe using infrared light. Webb will also be used to analyze the atmospheres of planets outside of our solar system. More: - In a test, Webb was able to return sharp images from a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way called the Large Magellanic Cloud.
- The first high-resolution images from the telescope are expected by the end of June.
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 A message from AXONIUS Complexity is everywhere. So focus on what you can control. At least that's what Simone Biles says. When the noise and chaos of life creep in, she breathes deep, embraces the quiet, and remembers what really matters. “I've figured out how to push away the distractions and the doubt, and treat everything I do the same as I would in a practice session at the gym. Like I'm doing it just for me.” Complexity is everywhere, including cybersecurity asset management. Control it with Axonius. Axonius correlates asset data from existing solutions to provide an always up-to-date inventory, uncover policy gaps, and automate response actions — giving security and IT teams the confidence to control complexity. Want to learn more about how one of the greatest gymnasts of all time controls complexity? Watch the full video now. Presented by Axonius. Watch Now
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 An explosion at a mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, killed at least 50 people on Friday, the mosque said. The leader of the mosque, Sayed Fazil Agha, told Reuters he believed a suicide bomber entered the building and set off explosives. The Taliban government of Afghanistan said no group had yet claimed responsibility for the attack; they had only listed the confirmed death toll at 10 as of this writing. The attack came on the last day of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, following a string of recent attacks on civilians. More: - The explosion occurred at a Sunni mosque, while many previous attacks have targeted Afghanistan's Shiite minority.
- Responsibility for attacks against Shiite civilians were previously claimed by the Islamic State in the Khorasan Province (IS-K).
- Much of the neighborhood surrounding the mosque shook from the blast, and ambulances quickly raced to the area in eastern Kabul.
- Dozens of other patients are being treated at local hospitals.
- The Taliban condemned the attack and vowed to find and punish the perpetrators.
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 Rounds 2 and 3 of the 2022 NFL Draft will start this afternoon, following a wild first day that saw multiple trades and surprise picks. Only minutes after selecting defensive tackle Jordan Davis with the No. 13 overall pick, the Philadelphia Eagles traded the No. 18 pick and the No. 101 pick to the Tennessee Titans for superstar wide receiver A.J. Brown, who immediately received a four-year, $100M contract. The Arizona Cardinals acquired former Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Marquise "Hollywood" Brown in exchange for their first round pick. Other teams, including the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs, also made trades to move up in the first round. More: - The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted who they hope is their quarterback of the future, Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett, in the No. 20 slot.
- Pickett was the only quarterback selected in the first round. Liberty University's Malik Willis and Matt Corral of Ole Miss are expected to be taken today.
- Other top prospects still available are Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean, Clemson cornerback Andrew Booth Jr., and Minnesota edge rusher Boye Mafe.
- The New York Jets received high grades for their three first round picks: Cincinnati cornerback Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner, Ohio State receiver Garrett Wilson, and Florida State University defense end Jermaine Johnson II.
- The first five picks:
- Jacksonville Jaguars – Travon Walker (DE – Georgia)
- Detroit Lions – Aidan Hutchinson (DE – Michigan)
- Houston Texans – Derek Stingley Jr. (CB – LSU)
- New York Jets – Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner (CB – Cincinnati)
- New York Giants – Kayvon Thibodeaux (DE – Oregon)
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- German tennis legend Boris Becker was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison in the U.K. for hiding financial assets after being declared bankrupt.
- Comedian James Corden announced he will exit as host of CBS' "The Late Late Show" in 2023.
- A Colorado inmate has tested positive for bird flu in the first confirmed case of the illness in the U.S. this year.
- The CDC has ruled out COVID-19 as a factor in mysterious cases of hepatitis in children that have been discovered around the world over the past several months.
- Major food and beverage companies including Pepsi and General Mills are asking Congress to ban companies from selling products with THC that mimic the look of their products.
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 |  | Jonathan Harris is a writer and editor who lives in Los Angeles. |  | | Editor | Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is writing an illustrated book about climate change that will be published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade. | |
Laika is a unified compliance platform that automates workflows for audits, infosec monitoring, and vendor due diligence in a single, collaborative space. | |
Controlling Complexity: a video featuring Simone Biles. Presented by Axonius. Watch now. | |
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