CYCLONE LEAVES 150,000 HOMELESS 
Photo: Luo Xiangfeng/Xinhua/ZUMA
A tearful Vanuatu President Baldwin Lonsdale urged the world to send humanitarian help immediately to the South Pacific archipelago after cyclone Pam devastated the country over the weekend. “The humanitarian need is immediate,,” he said. According to aid agencies, up to 150,000 people could be left homeless in the country of 267,000 inhabitants. Expressing fears that the powerful cyclone had “wiped out” development, Lonsdale said the disaster “means that we will have to start anew again.” The death toll officially stands at eight, but it’s expected to rise dramatically in the coming days.

1.5 MILLION MARCH AGAINST DILMA
A nationwide protest against left-wing Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff drew at least 1.5 million people across 147 cities in the country Sunday. Shouting "Fora, Dilma!" ("Dilma out!") and dressed in the national flag's colors of blue, green and yellow, the protestors marched against the deteriorating state of Brazil's economy, inflation and corruption. Read more on our 4 Corners blog.

PUTIN CONSIDERED NUCLEAR OPTION
Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted in a pre-recorded documentary on Russian TV yesterday that during the height of the Ukraine crisis he was ready to arm Russia’s nuclear weapons if his country had been attacked over the Crimea annexation. Of the ouster of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, Putin said the “armed coup” was masterminded by “our American friends.”

• The broadcast came amid growing rumors about Putin’s 10-day absence from public sight. But the Russian leader appeared, as planned, in St. Petersburg for a meeting with the president of Kyrgyzstan.
• Hours before the meeting, Putin ordered the Russian Navy’s Northern Fleet and paratrooper units on full alert for combat readiness drills, state media Sputnik reports.

ON THIS DAY

Speaking of the Ukraine conflict, a year ago today, Crimea voted to join Russia. Time for your 57-second shot of history.

LAHORE KILLINGS INSPIRE PROTESTS
Some 5,000 people marched in the streets of Lahore, Pakistan, today in a second day of protests after the Taliban launched twin bombings of churches that killed 15 people and left more than 70 wounded. Pakistani newspaper Dawn characterized the marches as an unusual twist in which “all of a sudden, the targeted became the targeters.” But the newspaper warned they could “mark the start of a dangerous yet sadly logical new phase in Pakistan’s sectarian conflict.”

1.4 MILLION
The number of cars in Dubai has doubled in the last eight years to 1.4 million at the end of 2014, meaning the city now has a higher vehicle density than New York or London, with 540 cars per 1,000 inhabitants.

MADURO TO GOVERN BY DECREE
The Venezuelan National Assembly has granted President Nicolas Maduro the power to govern by decree until the end of 2015, El Universal reports. The “anti-imperialist” law is a response to U.S. sanctions against Venezuelan officials and what Maduro described as a Feb. 12 U.S.-backed coup attempt. The opposition denounces the move as a power grab. On Saturday, Venezuelan troops started a 10-day military drill to counter the U.S. “threat.” Read more in English from AP.

MY GRAND-PÈRE’S WORLD


WORLDCRUNCH-TO-GO
As Le Monde’s Adéa Guillot reports, the 38-year-old new Greek Parliament Speaker Zoi Konstantopoulou is ambitious and unafraid to anger foe or friend. And fighting corruption is at the top of the agenda for the arguably most powerful woman in Greece. “There’s a real generational and sexism problem among those who have governed Greece until now, but they’ll have to get used to it,” she tells the journalist. “I intend to change this parliament, turn it into a model of democracy and freedom but also responsibility.”
Read the full article, Zoi Konstantopoulou, Greece's Madame Speaker And Syriza Secret Weapon.

‘O LUNA MIA
Check what this week’s New Moon has in store, thanks to Simon’s latest horoscope from The Eternal City.

CHINA NOW NO. 3 ARMS EXPORTER
China has overtaken Germany to become the world’s third-largest arms exporter, behind the U.S. and Russia, The Wall Street Journal reports. Beijing’s move to produce more sophisticated weapons and its partnerships in Africa saw its exports rise by 143% in the last five years, as Germany’s and France’s fell sharply.

VERBATIM
“In 15 years, I’ve never seen such a [bad] referee. In this shit country. This country doesn’t even deserve PSG.” Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who plays for Paris Saint-Germain soccer team, threw this verbal grenade after his team lost 3-2 to Bordeaux in the French Ligue 1 yesterday. Urged to apologize, the sore loser said that his “remarks were not aimed at France or the French people. I was talking about football and not something else.”