Morning Coffee - 30 July 2010

Welcome to Morning Coffee, brought to you by Lindsay Beyerstein with additional links from the UN Dispatch team. Every morning we survey foreign affairs and foreign policy news so you don't have to. We begin with the "Starting Five" items of the day -- these may not always appear on A-1, but they *are* the kinds of stories that will be buzzing in foreign capitals, the UN and wherever foreign policy minds roam.
Starting Five
NINETY DEGREES IN SIBERIA - You know it's hot when you can fry an egg on the sidewalk in Siberia. Russia is suffering the worst heat wave in its history. Over 2000 people have drowned this summer while trying to cool off. Drownings in Moscow are up threefold from last year. Residents are also struggling to breathe the smoke-filled air from smoldering peat bogs that parched in the heat and caught fire. Link
FINAL PLUG FOR THE DEEPWATER HORIZON? - BP says it is preparing to insert the final plug on the Deepwater Horizon oil gusher. Once the long-awaited relief well is in place, the next step is to pump heavy mud into the well through the blowout protector. If the well casing is intact, and this is a big if, the mud will stop the flow of oil. Link
SENATE PANEL WANTS TO BOOST DRUG WAR IN AFGHANISTAN - As you might expect, the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control is urging President Obama to step up drug eradication efforts in Afghanistan. The Obama administration gave up on poppy eradication last year after observing that it was costing billions and alienating poor farmers without making a dent in the drug supply. SCINC says that's no reason not to try. Link
PAKISTAN FLOOD DEATH TOLL HITS 430 - The monsoon season in Pakistan has hit especially hard this year. Government officials say that at least 430 people have been killed in floods and mudslides. Northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province is especially hard-hit. Officials say the flooding there is the worst they've seen in 90 years. Link
COMPANY RECALLS MILLIONS OF FROZEN MICE - A U.S. company has recalled millions of frozen mice, sold and shipped as pet food for snakes and other reptiles. Hundreds of people have become ill with salmonella poisoning, many in the United Kingdom. The bacteria can spread if people use the microwave to defrost the pinkies or the kitchen sink to clean their snakes' cages, public health officials warn. Link
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