Hello and welcome to the intelligence from The Economist.

I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday, we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

The question around renewables has always been what to do when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine.

One answer is to move electricity around.

That, though, will require brand-new international networks of impressively big cables.

And there was a time that Canada's version of American football drew the same kinds of crowds and talent that Americas did.

Not anymore.

And efforts to revive and broaden its appeal haven't worked either.

We ask whether the sport can survive.

But first... America's Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, spoke in Kiev yesterday, alongside his

Ukrainian counterpart, Andri Tehran.

Let's be clear that Russia started this war and Russia is the obstacle to a peaceful resolution.

And they can start by respecting Ukrainian sovereignty and its territorial integrity.

America has been a staunch ally of Ukraine, in particular since Russia annexed the southern peninsula of Crimea in 2014 and backed forces in the East that have been fighting

on and off ever since.

And in the meantime, we will continue to do everything that we can to support Ukraine's efforts to develop the capabilities to defend itself and protect its sovereign territory.

Things got particularly edgy in April when Russia sent more than 100,000 troops to the Ukrainian border.

But such calculated displays of military power aren't the only thing worrying

Ukrainians. Another one, a big one, is natural gas. A new pipeline between Russia and Germany

called Nord Stream 2 is a few regulatory tick boxes away from starting up, leaving behind pipelines

that many Ukrainians would call lifelines.

...