The briefing for Thursday, February 5.

The New START Treaty expires Thursday, removing all caps on the world's two largest nuclear arsenals for the first time in over 50 years. The treaty, signed in 2010, limited each side to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads on no more than 700 missiles and bombers. Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered to extend the treaty's limits for another year if Washington follows suit, but President Trump has been noncommittal, with a White House official saying he will decide on his own timeline.

The expiration marks the end of arms control cooperation between Washington and Moscow that helped end the Cold War. Putin suspended Russia's participation in 2023, citing concerns about US inspections during the Ukraine conflict, though Moscow continued to respect the treaty's weapons caps. Other major treaties have already collapsed, including the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Agreement and the Open Skies Treaty, prompting warnings from security experts about an unconstrained nuclear arms race.

Arms control advocates warn the treaty's end could encourage expanded deployments by both nations and potentially China, whose smaller but growing arsenal Trump wants included in future negotiations. According to the Arms Control Association, this opens the possibility of a dangerous three-way arms race for the first time in 35 years. Pope Leo XIV called Wednesday for the treaty not to be abandoned, saying the current world situation requires doing everything possible to avert a new arms race.

The United States hosted the first Critical Minerals Ministerial summit Wednesday, bringing together officials from the UK, EU, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia, and Democratic Republic of Congo to form a new trade zone. Vice President JD Vance announced the bloc will use tariffs to maintain minimum prices for minerals crucial to manufacturing everything from smartphones to weapons, protecting against China's market dominance. The initiative follows Monday's announcement of Project Vault, a nearly $12 billion critical mineral reserve.

China currently controls the mining and processing of most critical minerals, including rare earths essential for computer chips and electric vehicle batteries. Vance explained that Beijing has historically flooded markets with cheap materials to undermine competitors, then raised prices after deterring investment in alternative production. The new trading bloc aims to guarantee stable prices, provide financing for development, and create diverse production centers across member nations.

David Copley, a special assistant to President Trump, said the US plans to deploy hundreds of billions in capital to the mining sector, with investments already made in companies like MP Materials and Lithium Americas. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced that the US, Japan, and European Commission are developing coordinated trade policies to collectively address access issues. China's Foreign Ministry responded by urging countries to follow market economy principles and international trade rules.

The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that California can use its new voter-approved congressional map in November's midterm elections, rejecting appeals from state Republicans and the Trump administration. The brief order, issued without dissent or explanation, keeps in place districts designed to flip up to five seats currently held by Republicans. No justices dissented from the decision, which is part of a nationwide redistricting battle with control of Congress at stake.

The ruling follows the Court's December decision allowing Texas to use its Republican-friendly map despite lower court findings of likely racial discrimination. Justice Samuel Alito noted in that earlier decision that both states appeared to have adopted new maps for political advantage, which the Court has ruled cannot be the basis for federal lawsuits. California Republicans and the Trump administration had argued the California map improperly relied on race, but a lower court disagreed by a 2-1 vote.

Governor Gavin Newsom, who championed the redistricting effort after Trump-backed changes in Texas, celebrated the decision on social media, predicting Trump would lose the redistricting war in November's midterms. California Attorney General Rob Bonta called the ruling good news for democracy. Filing for congressional primaries in California begins Monday, with the new map expected to significantly reduce the state's already small Republican delegation.

Russian and Ukrainian envoys met in Abu Dhabi Wednesday for two days of US-brokered negotiations, joined by American officials including special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Ukraine's National Security Council chief Rustem Umerov said the talks began with all three delegations present before breaking into topic-specific groups. The discussions coincide with the expiration of the New START nuclear arms treaty and follow last month's Abu Dhabi meeting, which yielded progress but no breakthrough on key issues.

The talks come amid Ukrainian outrage over renewed Russian energy infrastructure strikes despite an apparent agreement to pause such attacks. A massive Russian bombardment Monday night included hundreds of drones and a record 32 ballistic missiles, leaving more than 1,100 Kyiv apartment buildings without heating during subzero temperatures. President Trump said Putin had agreed to halt strikes for a week through February 1 and kept his word, while Ukrainian President Zelenskyy suggested he wasn't fully aware of the agreement's terms.

Separately, Russian cluster munitions killed seven people at a Ukrainian market Wednesday as Moscow launched 105 drones overnight, with air defenses shooting down 88. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia wouldn't comment on the Abu Dhabi talks but emphasized that Moscow will continue its military campaign until Kyiv meets its demands. The Institute for the Study of War assessed that Russia likely stockpiled missiles during the brief pause to launch larger strikes as part of its negotiating strategy.

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons issued a position statement Tuesday recommending gender-affirming surgeries be delayed until patients turn 19, citing insufficient evidence that benefits outweigh risks for minors. The nation's largest professional organization for plastic surgeons based its shift on the Cass Review by a senior English doctor and a 2025 US Department of Health and Human Services report. The group emphasized the statement is not a clinical guideline and does not represent an independent evidence assessment.

The change diverges from other major medical organizations' guidance and comes as the Trump administration pressures providers to limit gender-affirming care for transgender people. Deputy HHS Secretary Jim O'Neill called it a victory for biological truth, while the American Academy of Pediatrics reaffirmed that its guidelines already emphasize caution and don't include blanket surgery recommendations for minors. Research shows gender-affirming surgery is rare among US children, with fewer than 1 in 1,000 adolescents receiving gender-affirming medications.

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health, which develops global standards of care, reiterated its opposition to one-size-fits-all age limits, advocating for case-by-case decisions based on evaluations by multiple experts. Current US standards involve developing individualized plans with medical experts and families that include supportive therapy and may—but don't always—involve puberty blockers or hormone treatment. The administration moved in December to cut off gender-affirming care for minors, prompting lawsuits from a third of states and causing hospitals nationwide to suspend such care.