Hard Numbers
Hard Numbers: Mexico takes on US gunmakers, NATO shells out to Ukraine, Putin critic enters Russia’s presidential race, EU sanctions firms linked to Sudan violence
Anti-gun protestor.
Photo by Bryan Olin Dozier/NurPhoto
January 23, 2024
10 billion: A US appeals court ruled Monday that a long-running $10 billion lawsuit filed by Mexico against US gun manufacturers can go forward. Mexican authorities say that tens of thousands of US-made guns smuggled across the border each year are helping arm drug cartels to the teeth.
1.2 billion: On Tuesday, NATO announced a deal worth $1.2 billion to buy artillery shells for Ukraine. It’s not clear how much the new ammo will really narrow the margin in a war in which, according to EU estimates, Ukraine has been able to fire just one-third the number of artillery shells that Russia continues to launch into Ukraine.
100,000: Russian politician Boris Nadezhdin, who demands an end to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, got the 100,000 signatures needed to register as a candidate to take on Vladimir Putin in Russia’s March 17 presidential election. Will he be allowed to run? Will he be allowed to speak?
6: The European Council has imposed sanctions on six companies accused of financing and arming the warring Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The US issued similar sanctions last June.More For You
The day before the United States and Israel struck Iran on February 28, more than 150 accounts on Polymarket correctly bet it would happen on that specific date.
Most Popular
Sponsored posts
Crypto goes steady
What's Good Wednesdays
What’s Good Wednesday: April 1st, 2026
Walmart sponsored posts
Walmart’s $1 billion investment is strengthening associate careers
- YouTube
In this “ask ian,” Ian Bremmer breaks down the latest developments in the Middle East, highlighting a new five-point peace initiative from China and Pakistan.
Last week, Microsoft announced Microsoft Elevate for Changemakers, a new initiative designed to help nonprofit leaders confidently navigate the AI era. The program provides essential AI credentials, access to a peer community, and role-based resources to support responsible, mission-driven AI adoption. Part of Microsoft’s broader Elevate commitment, the initiative builds on the company’s 50-year legacy of supporting nonprofits worldwide. Microsoft partners with nearly one million nonprofit and education organizations globally and will deliver more than $5 billion in discounts, donations, and grants in the coming year. By equipping those closest to social challenges with the tools to lead, Microsoft Elevate for Changemakers helps ensure nonprofits remain at the forefront of AI-powered solutions. Read the full blog here.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office, as U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum look on, on the day he signs an executive order, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 23, 2025.
REUTERS/Kent Nishimura
The US president has now suggested several times that the Iran war could end without reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
© 2025 GZERO Media. All Rights Reserved | A Eurasia Group media company.