The queenCovid’s recovery appears to be progressing nine days after she caught the virus as she held two virtual audiences with foreign ambassadors. Windsor Castle at home today.

The 95-year-old head of state was feeling good enough to speak to diplomats who were at Buckingham Palace after postponing such virtual engagements for two days last week after a positive test on February 20th.

Buckingham Palace said during his positive test that he was experiencing “mild cold symptoms” but was able to continue with “mild duties” throughout the period until he was well.

Today, the Queen received His Excellency Mr. Carles Jordana Madero, who presented the credentials of his predecessor and his own credentials as Ambassador of the Principality of Andorra to the Court of St. James.

The Monarch also received His Excellency Mr. Kedela Yunus Hamidi, who presented his credentials as Ambassador of the Republic of Chad to the Court of St. James this morning.

Royal commentator Richard Fitzwiams said it was “wonderful news that shows she has recovered from Covid”. Another royal expert, Phil Dampier, tweeted that the queen was “seemingly much better”, adding: “What a woman”.

During both audiences, the queen wore a green dress with a large brooch and her preserved pearls. This comes after the diplomatic reception that the monarch was to host at Windsor Castle tomorrow was also postponed.

The queen was due to meet with hundreds of members of the diplomatic corps, but Buckingham Palace said on Saturday that she had accepted the foreign minister’s advice to postpone the event. The decision is believed to have been made because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Queen Elizabeth II appears on screen via video link from Windsor Castle today during a virtual audience with an ambassador

Queen Elizabeth II appears on screen via a video link from Windsor Castle to a virtual audience to receive Andorran Ambassador Carles Giordano Madero (center) and Soraya Maria Waltz Pinilla (left) at Buckingham Palace in London today

This comes after the Daily Mail revealed today that the Queen was enjoying an afternoon with some of her loved ones over the weekend as she continued her remarkable recovery from Covid.

The 95-year-old monarch went to Frogmore at her Windsor mansion on Sunday, where younger members of her family had gathered to meet her for the first time since the diagnosis.

These included Princess Beatrice, her young daughter Sienna and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their three children, who made the most of the incredibly glorious sun.

When in better health, the Queen often drove to Frogmore, about a mile from Windsor Castle, to walk her dogs.

Today, the Queen received His Excellency Mr. Carles Jordana Madero, who presented the credentials of his predecessor and his own credentials as Ambassador of the Principality of Andorra to the Court of St. James

The Queen also received His Excellency Mr. Kedela Yunus Hamidi, who presented his credentials as Ambassador of the Republic of Chad to the Court of St James this morning at Buckingham Palace.

But after a series of problems and her recent diagnosis of Covid-19, she hasn’t been such a frequent visitor lately.

Princess Eugenie, her husband Jack Brooksbank and their one-year-old son August, who live in Frogmore Cottage, are believed not to have been home on Sunday.

The queen is said to be recovering “well” from her coronavirus attack after an outbreak in Windsor.

Last week, she was forced to cancel a number of online engagements while in isolation.

But sources said there was no cause for concern, explaining that her reluctance to appear on camera was due to her sounding rather hoarse as a result of the virus.

The Queen is pictured in the back of a Range Rover leaving Windsor Castle today after suffering from a coronavirus

The Queen is driving a Range Rover today as she leaves her residence at Windsor Castle in Berkshire

The presence of William and Kate was intriguing – coming a day after the Mail revealed that their plans for a new family life in their home counties were moving fast.

The couple has advanced their decision to set up a new preparatory school in Berkshire for their eldest son, Prince George, at 8 p.m.

And they are looking for new family homes at Windsor Mansion, although well-located sources say the castle itself was intended for the couple one day.

The Queen is facing a number of important events to attend, including the British Commonwealth Office at Westminster Abbey on March 14, and then the Duke of Edinburgh Memorial Service, also at the Abbey, on March 29.

The country’s longest-serving monarch, believed to have been vaccinated three times, recently spent more than three months on prescription.

In the fall, she resigned from the Cop26 Climate Change Summit, the Festival of Remembrance, and then from the Sunday Cenotaph of Remembrance service due to a sprained back. She also missed the General Synod of the Church of England.

Now the queen regularly uses a cane and has recently been portrayed as weaker. She remarked during an audience at Windsor Castle last month: “Well, as you can see, I can’t move.”

Her light duties as head of state include working from her red boxes sent to her every day and containing political documents, telegrams from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, letters and other government documents that must be read and, where necessary, approved and signed.

Prince William and Kate were thanked this morning by Ukrainian President Vladimir Green and his wife, after the royals said they were standing with them in their battle.

The supporting message from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge was sent on Saturday as Putin’s troops bombed the country.

This morning, too, Mr Zelenski and his wife, Olena, said they were “grateful” for the rare political comment from the royal family.

They added that support has increased as Ukraine continues to struggle Russiathe invasion.

President Zelensky said: “Olena and I are grateful to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge that at this crucial moment, when Ukraine is boldly opposed to the Russian invasion, they stand by our country and support our brave citizens.

“Good will triumph.”

Harry and Megan also sent their words in support of Ukraine, but were not mentioned by Zelensky. It is not known if he thanked them in private.

The Sussex family posted on their website on February 24, “Prince Harry and Megan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and all of us in Archewell stand with the people of Ukraine.”

They echoed that support on television when they accepted the president’s award at the NAACP Image Awards.

William and Kate’s remarks were published on Saturday and were a rare foray into politics.

The thank-you note to William and Kate was released shortly after 8 p.m.

The Duke and Duchess entertained President Vladimir Zelensky and his wife Elena in the magnificent throne room

The area today near the building of the district administration, which according to city authorities was hit by a rocket attack, in the center of Kharkov, Ukraine

Prince Harry and Megan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, accept the presidential award at the 53rd NAACP Image Awards show, where they reiterated their support for Ukraine

Harry and Megan also posted a statement of support on their website Archewell on February 24

Their February 26 post on Twitter insists they are “standing up” to the people of a war-torn nation as they “bravely fight” for their future.

The royal couple also recalled the “privilege” of meeting with President Zelensky and his wife when they arrived in London in 2020.

In a personal tweet signed by the couple, they wrote: “In October 2020, we had the privilege of meeting with President Zelensky and the First Lady to learn about their hope and optimism for Ukraine’s future.

“Today we are with the President and the entire people of Ukraine as they bravely fight for this future.”

William and Kate welcomed Ukrainians to Buckingham Palace in October 2020 – their first audience since the first blockade of Covid.

The Duke and Duchess entertained President Vladimir Zelensky and his wife, Elena, in the magnificent Throne Room.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge said they were “standing by” the people of Ukraine as they “bravely” fought for their future

William and Kate welcomed Ukrainians to Buckingham Palace in October 2020 – their first audience since the first blockade of Covid

The tweet from William and Kate was sent out on Saturday and was a rare political message

War in Ukraine: the latest

• Russia pledged on Monday to retaliate against the EU after supporting Ukraine, and warned the West not to supply weapons to the country.
• A second round of talks aimed at ending Russia’s attack on Ukraine is expected to take place after the first meeting ended without a resolution.
• Ukraine’s defense ministry says Russia has lost 5,300 troops, 29 planes, 29 helicopters and 151 tanks
• Russia’s Defense Ministry admitted for the first time that it had suffered losses, but declined to say how much
• Ukraine has reported 352 civilian deaths since the invasion, including 14 children. The UN has identified civilian casualties at 102, including seven children.
• Russia’s economy falls into free fall as Western sanctions imposed over the weekend take effect, with the ruble falling to its lowest level ever
• Moscow’s central bank has more than doubled interest rates to 20 percent
• Russia orders people and companies to sell 80% of their income in foreign currency, forcing them to buy the ruble to help maintain it
• Moscow Stock Exchange will not open at least 15:00 in an attempt to prevent a total collapse
• Zelensky allows Ukrainian prisoners to be released if they join the defense forces to “pay off their debt”
• The President of Ukraine also announced the creation of an “international brigade” for foreign volunteers wishing to join the army, after “thousands” applied
• Spanish foreign minister calls Putin’s order to bring nuclear forces on high alert “another sign [his] absolute irrationality “
• Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says his country should be open to deploying nuclear weapons
• Germany announces $ 112 million fund to rebuild the country’s armed forces, more than double its current self-defense budget
• EU announces for the first time in its history that it will send funds to Ukraine for weapons – including fighter jets

The couple did not wear masks, but observed social distancing and looked in good spirits during the meeting, the first royal event to take place at Buckingham Palace in nearly six months.

William and Kate held the audience on behalf of the Queen, who remained at Windsor Castle to fulfill a limited number of commitments.

Ukraine’s president has accused Russia of war crimes after Vladimir Putin’s forces launched attacks that were thought to be cluster and vacuum bombs in a bid to reverse the course of the conflict they have been losing so far.

In a late-night address to Russia, Vladimir Zelensky said “there will definitely be an international tribunal” for “violating all conventions” and added that “no one in the world will forgive you for killing a peaceful Ukrainian people.” . ‘ Hague prosecutors say they intend to launch an investigation “as soon as possible”.

Zelensky speaks after an attack that looked like a cluster bomb on the city of Kharkov on Monday, killing at least 11 people and injuring dozens more, and after Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States accused Putin’s forces of using a banned thermobaric bomb against the capital Kyiv at night.

The bombing of Kharkiv continued on Tuesday morning with a rocket landing right in front of the building of the civil public administration, destroying the road outside and blowing up the windows of the building itself.

Footage from the interior shows that the building is badly damaged, with collapsed ceilings and scattered rubble.

This happened when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – which suffered a heavy defeat in its initial plan to capture key targets and infrastructure in precision strikes – entered a new phase, ostensibly to surround and besiege cities such as Kharkov, Kyiv, Mariupol, Sumy and Kherson, who have so far fiercely resisted – and bombed them to obey, using indiscriminate weapons in the echo of Russia’s tactics against rebel forces in Syria as it fought dictator Bashar al-Assad.

Fears that Kyiv will be hit hard are rising to new heights on Tuesday, as satellite images revealed that a column of Russian vehicles heading for the capital is actually 40 miles long, up from 4 miles reported in Monday.

The most advanced parts of the column are now only 15 miles from the city, being significantly slowed by Ukrainian resistance, but still approaching every day.

The building of the regional administration, which according to city authorities was hit by a rocket attack, in the center of Kharkov, Ukraine

Ukrainian police escort refugees to the Medica border crossing in Poland today

Russia’s plan appears to use heavy armor to encircle and shell the city before troops move for street-to-street battles.

A taste of what was to come struck Kharkiv on Monday as bombs fell on Ukraine’s most friendly city in Ukraine – 25 miles from the border and home to 1.5 million people – in a bid to break his will to resist.

The hail of bombs, shells and rockets that began to fall at noon left at least 11 people dead, including three children, and homes and even schools were destroyed.

When the rain hit California in October, many breathed a sigh of relief: at least in some parts of the state, the worst fire season, according to experts, is likely already behind.

However, there was little rainfall the following month. It rained again in December break records. Now parts of the state have not had a drop of water since early January.

“It’s been an unusually dry and unusually wet winter,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA and conservation organizations.

But what do these ups and downs mean for the next California fire season? The answer is complex.

Until October, the vast majority of California was considered to be in a state of “exceptional” or “extreme” drought (the highest rating, according to the US Drought Monitor). So when meteorological conditions known as “atmospheric rivers” flooded parts of the state in October and December, much of that water was absorbed into the scorched landscape.

The ensuing hot and windy conditions also caused the rain to evaporate quickly, drying out the vegetation that fuels the fires. California’s rising snowpack, which provides moisture to the ecosystem as it melts in the spring, has since fallen sharply.

Historically, the fire season in California lasted for several months during the hottest time of the year. But recently it has become more year-round.

In January, usually one of California’s wettest months, a wildfire engulfed Big Sur, a mountainous coastal region south of San Francisco, forcing hundreds of residents to evacuate. The scene was “quite surreal” given California’s wet October and December, the National Weather Service tweeted at the time.

But while extreme rainfall and drought can lead to near-normal rainfall, it’s no fire insurance, scientists say. As global temperatures rise, even in wet years, hot weather can eventually dry out vegetation, creating drought-like conditions.

“We still have dry and wet years, but we don’t really have cold years anymore,” Swain said. He added: “Despite everything, everything still dries up.”

For now, the drought has a little silver lining.

The lack of rain gives fire departments more room to carry out prescribed fires, which help reduce the worst effects of summer fires. And fires that spontaneously ignite during these colder months are also likely to be less intense and can help prevent more serious fires in hot, dry conditions.

But if there is no rain in the coming days or weeks, the state could plunge back into drought. Last year, historically low rainfall and continued drought led to a brutal fire season that lasted several months and burned 2.6 million acres of land.

“I don’t think March will do us any good,” Swain said of the likelihood that heavy rains in the coming weeks will help prevent major fires this year.

“Almost every year we see bad fire years,” he added.

For more:

Livia Albek-Ripka is a California reporter for The New York Times.

Other news

• Sacramento shooting: A man believed to be meeting his three children for a church visit near Sacramento on Monday afternoon fatally shot and killed the children and accompanying adult.

• Medicaid extension: California makes it easier for older residents to qualify for health insurance through Medicaid.

• Russian sale: According to the Associated Press, state lawmakers plan to pass legislation to get rid of Russian investments in California.

• Obituary: Richard Bloom, former chairman of the board of trustees of the University of California and husband of Senator Dianna Feinstein, died Sunday after a long battle with cancer. He was 86 years old.

• State pension: CalPERS adds the biggest increase in the cost of living to retirees’ pensions in more than 30 years due to high inflation, reports The Sacramento Bee.

• Victim Compensation: California’s compensation board’s cut in crime victim compensation has raised questions about gaps in the program, The Guardian reported.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

• The oil company sues: A Houston oil company is suing those they say failed to stop a leak from an underwater pipeline off the coast of Orange County, the Associated Press reported.

CENTRAL CALIFORNIA

• Rare chamomile against the backdrop of a gold mine: The Inyo mountain daisy, which grows only in rock crevices in the south of the Inyo Mountains, could be threatened by gold mining, according to The Los Angeles Times.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

• Chesa Buden: The New York Times magazine spoke with San Francisco Attorney General Chesa Budin, who is up for re-election. Read the interview.

• Mask mandate upheld: San Francisco will keep the school mask requirement despite the state’s decision to scrap the rule, reports The San Francisco Chronicle.

• Auckland parklets: The Oakland City Council will vote today to extend a program to allow outdoor parks and street cafes, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

• School closures in Auckland: Gov. Gavin Newsom said he would not interfere with Oakland Unified’s decision to close 11 schools, KQED reported.

What you get

Homes in California for $1.5 million.

what do we eat

Thai curry with silky tofu and herbs.

Where are we going

Today’s travel tip comes from Jim Palmer, who recommends the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles:

“Not only the sci-fi look of the 1930s, but also many old things like the Tesla coil, which has always delighted children with its lightning at the push of a button. I am 85 years old and I still remember a day trip to the planetarium when I was in high school in Long Beach. As an up-and-coming engineer, this was and still is my favorite place anywhere.”

Tell us about your favorite places to visit in California. Send your suggestions to [email protected]. We will report more in future editions of the newsletter.

And before you leave, good news

During their wedding in Oakland last year, Abram Jackson and Julius Crowe Hampton jumped off a broomstick.

The tradition was popularized among black couples before the Civil War, when enslaved Africans were generally not legally allowed to marry. It has since come to mean sweeping away the old and welcoming the new, The Times recently reported.

For his recent wedding, Hampton bought a cinnamon broom from Trader Joe’s and adorned it with mustard and sage-colored fabric, as well as sprigs of dried lavender and eucalyptus.

“Jumping off a broom was the most transcendent experience of my life,” said Hampton, 34, an elementary school teacher. “I felt as if my ancestors were encouraging me as we took this great leap of faith that our friends, family and community witnessed.”

“Jumping off a broom as two weirdo blacks in love,” he added, “is an experience “that we will cherish forever.”

Vladimir Putin in recent days, he has hidden family members in an “underground city” in Siberia, according to a Russian professor.

The luxury high-tech bunker is located in the Altai Mountains and is designed for protection in case of nuclear warsaid political scientist Valery Nightingale, 61.

A former professor at the Moscow State Institute of International Affairs (MGIMO) – visited by future senior diplomats and spies, Nightingale previously claimed that Putin suffered from medical problems hidden from the Russian public and participated in strange secret shamanic rituals with him. . Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu.

Some in Moscow have dismissed Nightingale as a conspiracy theorist or fraud, but only last week he was questioned for seven hours by Russian authorities over allegations he made about Putin’s medical and mental condition on the Telegram website he runs.

His home was also searched and many electronic items were seized. Nightingale was later released, but the case was not closed.

The allegation comes as Russia launches missile strikes on Kyiv and Kharkiv, leading to accusations that Putin is committing war crimes by wreaking havoc cluster bombs on helpless civilians.

The luxury high-tech bunker, which is believed to have housed Putin’s family, is located in the Altai Mountains and is intended for protection in the event of a nuclear war, said political scientist Valery Solovey, 61 (pictured).

Nightingale had previously claimed that Putin (pictured last week) was suffering from medical problems hidden from the Russian public and had participated in strange secret shamanic rituals with his Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.

The Altai Courtyard resort, built by Gazprom, in the Altai Mountains. The resort is said to contain one of Putin’s private dachas

Nightingale claims that Putin’s family has been moved to a huge underground bunker buried in the Altai Mountains (pictured resort Altai Courtyard)

“Over the weekend, President Putin’s family was evacuated to a special bunker prepared in the event of a nuclear war,” the professor said in a video. “This bunker is located in [mountainous] Altai Republic. “In fact, this is not a bunker, but an entire underground city equipped with the latest science and technology.” (Pictured Altai Mountains)

Nightingale’s allegation comes as Russia launches missile strikes on Kyiv and Kharkiv, leading to accusations that Putin is committing war crimes by deploying devastating cluster bombs on helpless civilians (pictured: Kharkiv’s administrative center after being fired on March 1). 2022)

Rescuers see themselves in a building that city officials said was damaged by a rocket, in central Kharkiv, Ukraine, in this photo in a printout released today, March 1.

“Over the weekend, President Putin’s family was evacuated to a special bunker prepared in the event of a nuclear war,” the professor said in a video.

“This bunker is located in [mountainous] Altai Republic.

“It’s not really a bunker, it’s a whole underground city equipped with the latest science and technology.”

He warned: “I hope this means something to you? That the president is sending his family to this bunker?

Nightingale, who claims to have internal contacts in the Kremlin, is thought to be referring to a vast mountain dacha allegedly built by energy giant Gazprom about a decade ago in the Ongudai region of the Altai Republic, a region in Siberia bordering Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan.

Observers have spotted numerous ventilation points in the area around the mountain hideout and a high-voltage line connected to a state-of-the-art 110 kilovolt substation, enough to power a small town.

During the construction, it was reported that there were huge German tunnel diggers on the site.

Nightingale did not identify members of Putin’s family who were allegedly sent to the bunker, but had previously claimed that Olympic gold medalist Alina Kabayeva, 38, was the Russian leader’s secret wife.

“This is his real family and Alina is able to influence his decisions,” he said last year.

Nightingale did not identify members of Putin’s family allegedly sent to the bunker, but previously claimed that Olympic gold medalist Alina Kabayeva, 38, was the Russian leader’s secret wife (undated photo of Putin and Kabayeva in the Kremlin)

Putin has two older daughters, Maria Vorontsova, 36, a geneticist, and Katerina Tikhonova, 35, a dancer who has become a mathematician.

He also reportedly has a daughter named Luiza Rozova, an 18-year-old heiress, also known as Elizaveta Krivonogih, from a previous relationship with the cleaner, multimillionaire Svetlana Krivonogih, 45, now co-owner of a large Russian bank.

Unconfirmed rumors denied by the Kremlin say he also has children from Kabayeva.

Earlier, Putin said: “I have a personal life in which I do not allow interference. It must be respected.

He condemns “those who, with their snotty noses and erotic fantasies, intrude on the lives of others.”

It is written that Kabayeva says that she met an unnamed man whom “I love very much”, gushing: “Sometimes you feel so happy that you even feel scared.”

The alleged relocation of his family to the bunker came with a “failure” of Putin’s strategic plan to conquer Ukraine, Nightingale said.

“This is his real family and Alina is able to influence his decisions,” Nightingale said last year (Kabaeva pictured in 2018).

Putin has two older daughters, Maria Vorontsova, 36, pictured in the center, a geneticist, and Katerina Tikhonova, a 35-year-old dancer who has become a mathematician.

Putin was struck by “an extremely strong, united and very negative reaction from the collective West to Russia’s plans.”

“Putin planned to declare a complete and undisputed military victory for Russian troops on Sunday evening, February 27 – and to announce the end or the near end of the so-called ‘special operation,'” Nightingale said.

“As you know, no goal of the Russian invasion of Ukraine has been achieved.”

Estimates of Russian losses after the invasion of Ukraine range between 700 and a Ukrainian claim of 4,500 in the first days of the fighting.

Russia says it has hit 1,146 Ukrainian military infrastructure, including 31 command posts and communications centers, 81 S-300 air defense bases, plus the Buk M-1 and Osa air defense missile systems and 75 radar stations.

“A total of 311 tanks, other armored military vehicles, 42 planes and helicopters (including some on the ground), 51 multiple rocket launchers, 147 field artillery and mortars and 263 specialized military vehicles were destroyed,” a spokesman for the ministry said. defense. Igor Konashenkov.

But there are widespread reports that Russian forces have been successfully repulsed by Ukrainian forces as Russian authorities try to cover up the number of casualties their ranks have suffered.

One of Nightingale’s more startling claims is that Defense Minister Shoigu has arranged for Putin to attend a shamanic ritual in Siberia that involves sacrificing a black wolf in a ritual to improve the president’s health.

Shoigu currently personally controls Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.

One of Nightingale’s more startling claims was that Defense Minister Shoigu (pictured in February 2022) arranged for Putin to attend a shamanic ritual in Siberia involving a black wolf sacrifice in a ceremony to improve the president’s health.

Nightingale has suggested in the past that Putin (pictured) suffered from early-stage Parkinson’s disease and has a secret life-threatening illness, but has provided no evidence of his claims.

“A piece of white cloth was soaked in the wolf’s blood and burned,” said the anonymous telegram channel General SVR, linked to Nightingale in September 2021.

“It is said that they saw a black raven in the smoke, which circled for a long time.

“For some reason, this sign was explained to Putin as a great success.”

Asked about his allegations that Putin had a serious illness – something that was strongly denied by the Kremlin – Nightingale said: “I do not use the term ‘terminally ill’ and I have never used it.

“I use a euphemism: personal circumstances with force majeure.”

In the past, he suggested that Putin suffered from Parkinson’s disease at an early stage and that he had a secret life-threatening illness, but he did not provide evidence for his claims.