Three Things for February 23
1. Russia limiting involvement in nuclear arms agreement
On Tuesday, Feb. 21, President Vladimir Putin announced he is suspending Russia’s participation in the START nuclear treaty with the United States. START is the only remaining nuclear arms agreement between Russia and the US, and it regulated the number of active nuclear weapons each country could deploy at any given time.
A few hours after Putin’s speech, his foreign ministry said the decision “was reversible.” While it is not clear wether or not Russia is leaving the agreement entirely, the US government has not been happy with Russia’s level of cooperation in recent months.
A response was published to the Russian Foreign Ministry website, saying, “Washington must show political will, make conscientious efforts for a general de-escalation and create conditions for the resumption of the full functioning of the Treaty and, accordingly, comprehensively ensuring its viability.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the Biden Administration is ready to engage in talks at any time regardless of anything else going on.
For more information about the treaty, click here.
2. Smith and Wesson moving to new Tennessee headquarters
Smith and Wesson Gun Manufacturing is building a new headquarters in Maryville, Tennessee and is expected to move into the new facility by the end of 2023.
“It was a long process of courting them. It goes all the way back to about 2015,” said Jeff Muir, Director of Communications for the Blout Partnership in Maryville.
In addition to corporate offices moving to Tennessee, there is a significant amount of manufacturing moving to the area as well. Distribution, assembly, and plastic injection molding operations will be on the property. This facility amounts to a $125 million investment with 750 new jobs in the area.
For more information about the new headquarters, click here.
3. Prosecutors charge man with killing an LA bishop
On Wednesday, Feb. 22, Los Angeles County prosecutors announced they are charging Carlos Medina with the fatal shooting of Bishop David O’Connell which occurred on Saturday, Feb. 18. Medina is the husband of O’Connell’s housekeeper and has also done work at his house in the past. He was picked up by a SWAT team on Monday.
At the time of his death O’Connell had been a priest for 45 years, and in 2015 Pope Francis named him an Auxiliary Bishop to the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Lt. Michael Modica, who is leading the investigation, said Medina has given authorities multiple reasons for the homicide, “and none of them made any sense to investigators.”
For more information about the investigation, click here.
