Morning Update: Putin orders troops to separatist Ukraine regions; House vote extends Emergencies Act measures

Good morning,

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed documents recognizing the independence of two separatist regions in southeastern Ukraine, then swiftly ordered Russian troops into the two breakaway regions, escalating the crisis between Moscow and Kyiv and increasing the prospects of a full-scale invasion.

Hours after Putin’s televised address, videos posted to social media showed at least one long column of Russian armored personnel carriers appearing to cross the Ukrainian border into the separatist-controlled areas.

On Tuesday, while the European Union debated imposing sanctions that would make Moscow “feel the pain,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz put certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline on ice. The Kremlin’s lower house of parliament voted to approve friendship treaties with two self-proclaimed people’s republics in eastern Ukraine.

U.S. President Joe Biden is imposing sanctions on the two breakaway regions. Canada and Britain also said they were also preparing sanctions that would roll out in the coming days.

Also: Across the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, many former shelters currently house subterranean businesses, including a sushi restaurant, women’s fashion shops and a jeweller. Sold into commercial use by city officials and property owners, the ex-shelters are not simply untended sanctuaries that can easily be restored to their original function. Many of them are no longer capable of offering protection if war breaks out.

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Emergencies Act measures to stay after House of Commons vote

The Emergencies Act must remain in place even though demonstrators have left Ottawa, because of the threat that the trucks could return, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday.

Last night, the House of Commons voted 185 to 151 to authorize the emergency measures, even though some of Trudeau’s own MPs questioned the need.

Ahead of the vote, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said that his party was “reluctantly prepared to support” emergency measures. He stressed his party would pull its support for the Emergencies Act, “as soon as we believe it is no longer necessary.” Conservatives and the Bloc Québécois, convinced it was never necessary, voted against authorization.

But what will happen next – how and whether a disparate group of people from across the country will stay united – is unclear, even to the protesters.

Also: The RCMP, banking sector and federal government said that account-freezing powers bestowed under the act do not affect donors to the protests, despite unsubstantiated claims by a Conservative MP that a constituent had her bank account frozen over a $50 contribution.

Globe analysis: Racialized prisoners in Canada get fewer chances at parole than white prisoners

An analysis of seven years of federal prison data has found that Indigenous, Black and other racialized men are 26 per cent, 24 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively, less likely than their white peers to be paroled in the first year they’re eligible – even after controlling for their age, sentence length, offence severity, the year they were first eligible for community release and the risk assessment scores that estimate their likelihood of reintegrating into society. (Due to the limitations in the data obtained by The Globe, the analysis excluded women and people serving life sentences.)

When it comes to parole, in other words, you’re better off being white.

Read the full analysis, and check out the methodology behind the story.

Listen to The Decibel: Investigative reporter Tom Cardoso explains the findings of a Globe analysis into parole, and speaks with Renford Farrier about his experience of 30 years behind bars.

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Also on our radar

The Bank of Canada is ready to raise interest rates. How high could they go? After months of blistering inflation, economists and investors are betting the Bank of Canada will start raising interest rates on March 2, kicking off a brisk rate hike cycle that could see borrowing costs return to pre-COVID-19 levels or surpass them some time next year.

It’s a great time to quit a job. So why aren’t more Canadians doing it? Job churn is often a sign of a healthy economy. But with such a murky view of the future because of COVID-19 and public-health measures, it’s tough for people to plan a career change.

Bridging Finance investors to lose $1.3-billion: Bridging Finance Inc.’s investors will lose an estimated $1.3-billion under a final proposal to scrap selling the private lender in favour of winding down its troubled loan portfolio.

British government drops last remaining COVID-19 restrictions: As of Thursday, people in England who test positive for the virus will no longer be required to self-isolate for up to 10 days. The government is also phasing out the distribution of free testing kits and it will stop tracing those who come in contact with someone who has the illness.

B.C. wolf hunt resumes despite public opposition: Opponents of the hunt say killing the wolves is only a superficial measure that won’t protect the caribou in the long run. Harder choices are needed, they say, to cut back on industrial activity in endangered caribou habitat.

Morning markets

Russia-Ukraine tensions hit world stocks: Stocks slumped and oil surged to its highest in seven years on Tuesday as tensions in Eastern Europe escalated. Around 5:30 a.m. ET, Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.11 per cent. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 were off 0.75 per cent and 0.49 per cent, respectively. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed down 1.71 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 2.69 per cent. New York futures were lower. The Canadian dollar was trading at 78.55 US cents.

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Talking points

Racism is having a devastating impact on the lives of Black nurses

“Black nurses face countless obstacles in Canada. These include not being accepted as equals by our white colleagues in nursing school, not having the opportunity to be taught by Black instructors and professors and being passed over when applying for management or executive positions in hospitals and other health settings.” - Angela Cooper Brathwaite, Corsita Garraway, Doris Grinspun

Once a promising leader, Canada’s artificial-intelligence strategy is now a fragmented laggard

“You don’t need an AI system to detect a pattern among these data points: Though it was once a promising global leader in AI strategy, Canada has now fallen behind other countries and faces a labyrinthian mess of disjointed policies and programs.” - Blair Attard-Frost

Today’s editorial cartoon

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Living better

For some children, online learning had unexpected benefits

When the first wave of COVID-19 forced schools to go virtual, Kearie Daniel noticed a sudden change in her eldest son. He was taking more responsibility with his work, even completing an extra project on Black Lives Matter using PowerPoint.

Many students and parents complained about the hardship of learning at home, from technological glitches to little ones dissolving into tears having to stare at a screen all day. But some students thrived. For them, learning online carried unexpected benefits. This was especially true for children who had felt excluded or uncomfortable in their schools prior to the pandemic – those who had experienced racism or bullying in their classrooms, or have anxiety or learning disabilities.

Moment in time: February, 22 2011

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A 7.1-magnitude earthquake rocked the city of Christchurch in early September, 2010, causing massive structural damage throughout New Zealand’s second-largest city but, thankfully, no direct deaths. Five months later, just as cleanup efforts were kicking into high gear, a 6.2-magnitude convulsion shook the city of 380,000. Buildings and infrastructure, already weakened by the earlier quake, crumbled. Thousands of people were injured, 185 died and the downtown core was closed for more than two years. At a memorial service last year marking the 10-year anniversary of the tragedy, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern acknowledged it has been a “hugely difficult decade for this city,” which is located in one of the most geologically active places on Earth. However, as Ardern surveyed the continuing restoration of the landmark Christchurch Cathedral, she added: “I see hope and energy and optimism … and Christchurch taking its rightful place amongst New Zealand’s best and brightest cities.” Gayle MacDonald

Morning update is written by Sierra Bein. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.