Stray Drones Are Setting Off Alarms in Europe, and the U.S. Deports a World Cup Referee

0:00This podcast is supported by Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Here's a story that's not getting nearly enough attention. Defunding Planned Parenthood has already caused chaos and harm, and access to essential reproductive care is plummeting. Right now, the Trump administration's backers in Congress want to permanently defund Planned Parenthood, forcing even more health centers to close, and millions at risk of losing access to care. It takes less than a minute to help. Go to plannedparenthood.org slash defend and make a gift of any size. From The New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford.

0:37Today's Wednesday, June 10th. Here's what we're covering.

0:45The downing of a U.S. helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz has set off a new wave of strikes between the U.S. and Iran. Iran didn't claim responsibility for the incident, in which an Apache attack helicopter went down and its two crew members had to be rescued. But President Trump said Iran had shot it down and vowed to retaliate. And at about 5 p.m. last night, U.S. Air Force and Navy jets started hitting a series of Iranian military sites. Iran then said it launched new strikes at American forces in the region, though a U.S. official said there have been no reports of casualties or any damage to American bases.

1:22The Times has live coverage of the new flare-up in the Times app and at nytimes.com.

1:32Next, an update on the war in Ukraine and how it's increasingly spilling over into neighboring countries. Air raid alerts, families sheltering, schools closing, transport interrupted. This is the reality on Europe's eastern border in 2026. On the eastern edge of Europe, there's been a surge of fear and confusion as dozens of drones launched by Ukraine and Russia have veered off course. In just the past week, people in Latvia rushed for cover as warplanes were scrambled to shoot down a drone. And a pack of maritime drones that Ukraine was using to attack Russian ships in the Black Sea sped off course and exploded near the coast of Romania.

2:16These are not isolated incidents. This is a deliberate strategy from Russia, trying to destabilize our democratic societies. Some European officials have accused Russia of using electronic tools to intentionally redirect Ukrainian drones and send them crashing into Ukraine's allies. Russia, for its part, has jumped on the incidents to try and paint Ukraine as reckless, saying it's endangering other countries by ramping up its use of drones. Experts say it's possible some of the errant drones might have been caused by computer glitches or other accidents. But whatever the cause, the sheer number of the weapons that are being launched in the war in Ukraine is forcing many European countries to beef up their defenses and add new drone detection systems.

3:07Meanwhile, in Ukraine, the Times has been covering how a new drone strategy by the country's military seems to be giving it the upper hand. For the past few years, Ukraine has assembled an arsenal of millions of short-range drones that it's used on the front lines, and long-range drones that it's launched deep into Russian territory to hit oil infrastructure, military factories, and other targets. Now it's focusing on the middle ground, hitting the roads and railways that Russia is using to supply its forces. Ukraine is calling the strategy a logistics lockdown. And by wreaking havoc on transport trucks and trains, they've managed to cause fuel shortages and reduce Russian military activity on the front.

3:51The coordinated campaign has made it hard for Russian troops to gain any momentum. And according to a Ukrainian research group, last month was the first month since 2023 in which Russia suffered a net loss of territory.

4:09Now, two quick updates on closely watched primary races that have drawn national attention. First. The California dream? It's alive tonight. The California governor's race is now set. It will be Democrat Javier Becerra, who served in President Biden's cabinet, facing off against Republican Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host who previously worked in British politics. Remember, a majority of Californians think that our state is going in the wrong direction. And so it's very important that we offer them the change that a majority want. It was clear after voting last Tuesday that Becerra would be in the mix.

4:49But the state's drawn out ballot counting process meant it took a full week for the second spot to be called for Hilton. Because of the state's primary rules, it was possible California could have had two Democrats fighting each other for governor come November. But ultimately, Hilton beat out Tom Steyer, the progressive billionaire who spent more than$200 million of his own money on his campaign. This matchup of Becerra and Hilton is the one that Becerra and many Democrats had hoped for, since Hilton has been endorsed by President Trump, who is deeply unpopular in California. The two will be vying to replace the state's current governor, Gavin Newsom, who couldn't run again because of term limits, and is considered a potential Democratic presidential candidate for 2028.

5:36And in Maine... Oh boy! Oh. Progressive newcomer Graham Plattner clinched the Democratic nomination for Senate, as expected, despite a string of troubling reports about his personal life. If you believe, as I do, that we can change our politics and change our country, then you must also believe that people can change. Plattner has dismissed the news reports about his past as immaterial to the coming general election, in which he will try to beat longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins and flip the seat blue. It's expected to be one of the most expensive, hardest-fought races across the country, and the stakes are incredibly high.

6:19If Democrats want to try and take control of the Senate, they must flip at least four Republican-held seats.

6:35Tomorrow in Mexico City, the World Cup kicks off, the start of what will be the biggest World Cup ever, with more teams playing in more games spread across three countries, Mexico, Canada, and the U.S. The first game will be Mexico versus South Africa. And over the course of the tournament's 104 matches, traditional powerhouses like France and Argentina will be competing, And so will a handful of countries making their World Cup debut. That includes the tiny Caribbean country of Curacao, whose entire population could fit into about two soccer stadiums. My colleague Tarek Panja, a global sports correspondent, is in Mexico City covering the start of the competition.

7:16For all the excitement, the backdrop to the World Cup has been one of immense controversy, starting with the most expensive tickets in history with fans paying between three and ten times more than they had four years earlier. We have issues around politics with the war in Iran still going on. We have the Iranian national team, questions about their participation. And not only that, immigration has come to the fore. We had a referee, a FIFA World Cup referee from Somalia turned around and ejected from the United States as he landed in Miami. We've had fans saying their visas have been rejected at the last minute.

7:58There are enormous questions about who this World Cup is for and who it isn't. In a statement about the referee's deportation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said they determined he was, quote, inadmissible due to vetting concerns. A White House spokesman said that President Trump is focused on making the World Cup the, quote, safest and most secure in history.

8:26And finally, I just got back from a week in Amsterdam and Oslo. And the best part about being in Europe is obviously the sunscreens because they have... For years, social media has been filled with Americans raving about how much better the sunscreen from other countries is. The way this is just blending into my skin. OK, I finally understand the hype. And people have been calling for the U.S. to catch up. I was in South Korea earlier this year, and it is so clear how far advanced the rest of the world is on sunscreen. That even included Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who back in 2023 said the government should step in to help, pointing out that many sunscreen ingredients used overseas for decades were still awaiting FDA approval in the U.S.

9:10And now the FDA has cleared the way for one of those ingredients. It's called bimotrisanol, and dermatologists say it has a few advantages over what's currently available. It rubs into the skin without leaving a visible white cast, it's better for sensitive skin, and it lasts longer in the sun without breaking down. Now, the reason this ingredient needed the FDA's green light is because the agency regulates sunscreen in the U.S. as a drug, opening it up to a cumbersome approval process. That's different from many other countries that regulate it as a cosmetic product. It's not clear just yet when you might start seeing products with B-motrisanol on the shelf in the U.S.

9:51For now, though, one dermatologist told The Times the products that are out there without it are perfectly good. The most important thing is just that people use something, as skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the U.S. and also one of the most preventable.

10:09Those are the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow. pp