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Europe Edition

Hungary, France, Monkeys: Your Tuesday Briefing

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Good morning.

Hungary’s spreading far-right message, France’s corruption investigation and Volkswagen’s ban on animal experiments. Here’s the latest:

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Credit...Szilard Koszticsak/EPA, via Shutterstock

Allies of far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary are quietly buying media outlets across Central and Eastern Europe to extend his nationalist influence and undermine the E.U.

By investing in Slovenian media, Hungarian businessmen close to Mr. Orban, above center, helped give him a voice in a neighboring country, where they supported a hard-line populist who finished first in national elections on Sunday. His allies have also bought up right-wing outlets in Macedonia.

Separately, Richard Grenell, the new U.S. ambassador to Germany, prompted a diplomatic outcry by saying that he wanted to empower conservative leaders in Europe who dared to challenge what he called “the failed policies of the left.”

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Credit...Philippe Wojazer/Reuters

Prosecutors in France are investigating whether Alexis Kohler, President Emmanuel Macron’s chief of staff, broke conflict-of-interest rules, the first accusation of corruption against the president’s inner circle.

The inquiry followed complaints filed by the anticorruption group Anticor, which accused Mr. Kohler of influence-peddling and breaching civil service rules while he worked at a government agency and at the Economy Ministry. Mr. Kohler, above, dealt with cases involving a cruise company owned by his relative.

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Credit...Tara Todras-Whitehill for The New York Times

The Pentagon is undertaking a sweeping review of its Special Operations Command, as the military begins shifting its focus to growing threats from Russia, China, North Korea and Iran.

The new strategy, outlined by the Trump administration in January, could result in slashing counterterrorism forces in Africa by as much as half over the next three years. Above, training in Niger.

Nearly a decade ago, almost 13,000 Special Operations troops were deployed around the world. Now, about 7,300 American commandos operate in 92 countries — many in shadow wars against terrorists in Yemen, Libya, Somalia and other hot spots.

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Credit...William DeShazer for The New York Times

Great news for women with breast cancer: Many with early-stage cancer don’t actually need chemotherapy, according to a major international study.

Gene tests on tumor samples were able to identify women who could safely skip chemotherapy and take only a drug that blocks the hormone estrogen or stops the body from making it. Above, Bari Brooks of Tennessee, one of the roughly 10,000 women who took part in the study.

“We can spare thousands and thousands of women from getting toxic treatment that really wouldn’t benefit them,” said an author of the study, adding, “It really changes the standard of care.”

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Credit...John Macdougall/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Volkswagen promised to stop funding experiments testing the health effects of diesel emissions on monkeys, as the German carmaker seeks to repair its reputation following an emissions-cheating scandal.

Howard Schultz, the executive chairman of Starbucks, will leave the company at the end of the month, fueling speculation that he is considering a run for U.S. president in 2020.

Microsoft is buying GitHub, a software developer used by 28 million programmers. Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s chief executive, said the $7.5 billion deal would accelerate a transition to cloud computing and help add artificial intelligence to its applications.

Apple has kicked off its annual developers’ conference, showcasing new software features and operating system updates. Here’s our coverage.

Pharmaceutical companies get away with marking up drugs used to improve women’s sex lives because the topic is treated as taboo.

Here’s a snapshot of global markets.

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Credit...Nick Cote for The New York Times

The U.S. Supreme Court sided with a Colorado baker, above, who refused to create a wedding cake for a gay couple, in a closely watched case pitting gay rights against claims of religious freedom. [The New York Times]

Rescuers in Guatemala searched for survivors after a volcano erupted near the capital, killing at least 65. [The New York Times]

Tens of thousands of pro-democracy activists gathered in Hong Kong to commemorate the 29th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing, an event whose remembrance is suppressed in mainland China. [The New York Times]

President Vladimir Putin of Russia said he did not want to divide the E.U., ahead of a visit to Austria, his first trip to a Western European country in almost a year. [Reuters]

The Alternative for Germany party is divided over comments by its co-chairman suggesting that the country’s 12-year Nazi dictatorship was an insignificant part of German history. [Deutsche Welle]

Fire safety experts in Britain presented an inquiry into London’s deadly Grenfell Tower fire with a catalog of major failures that led to the inferno, including flammable doors, a broken fire elevator and “a culture of noncompliance.” [The Guardian]

A British court convicted a Muslim teenage girl of plotting a terrorist attack on the British Museum in London. Her mother and sister have also pleaded guilty to terrorism charges. [BBC]

Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life.

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Credit...Andreas Rentz/Getty Images

Gift ideas for your graduate.

73 books to read this summer.

Recipe of the day: For a light, flavorful weeknight meal, dress pan-seared fish and asparagus in a garlicky aioli.

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Credit...Rob Robbins

Antarctic sea spiders have no lungs or gills, and they’re encased in hard exoskeletons. Scientists have now figured out how these marine creepers get oxygen from the water.

Five New York Times colleagues who play together in a classical music ensemble discuss how journalism and music overlap.

To mark our Modern Love feature’s 13th anniversary, we asked readers to share 13-word versions of their romantic histories. Here are some of our favorites, read by their authors.

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Credit...Gilles Petard/Redferns, via Getty Images

Seventy-five years ago this week, the Zoot Suit riots shook Los Angeles.

American servicemen attacked Mexican-American and black men who had embraced flamboyantly draped suits, padded at the shoulder and pegged at the ankle. Known first as “killer dillers,” zoot suits had become an expression of pride in minority communities.

The military barred personnel from leaving their barracks, and the City Council voted to ban zoot suits.

A Times report that week traced the suit’s origins to Gainesville, Ga. In the years after, it came to be seen as a symbol of pride, swagger and resistance. The bandleader Cab Calloway once called it “the only totally and truly American civilian suit.”

“Zoot Suit” also became the title of a play and movie, based on the true story of a group of Latino youths unjustly convicted of murder.

Last year, we sent a photographer to shoot portraits of Angelenos at a restaging of the 1979 play. Many had donned zoot suits or ’40s-style dresses.

“When I wear a zoot suit I feel empowered, kind of like it’s a suit of armor,” said Luis Guerrero, then 25. “It’s not only honoring those in the past, but it makes you look sharp.”

Karen Zraick wrote today’s Back Story.

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A correction was made on 
June 5, 2018

An earlier version of the Back Story in this briefing misstated the event at which Angelenos were photographed in zoot suits. It was a restaging of the 1979 play “Zoot Suit,” not a screening of the 1982 film by the same name.

How we handle corrections

Follow Dan Levin on Twitter: @globaldan.

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