Manchin floats censure as Trump trial nears end

What did the Ukraine affair look like in the Senate on 4 February 2020? On 3 February, the day before, Democratic Senator Joe Manchin asked colleagues to consider censuring Donald Trump as an alternative to impeachment. The censure idea concerned Trump's efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate domestic political rivals. Manchin was considered friendly with the White House, which gave the suggestion added interest as the impeachment trial continued.

The region saw separate tension on the same day, 3 February. In Idlib Governorate in north-western Syria, Syrian Army shelling killed Turkish military personnel, and Turkish forces retaliated. A pro-opposition war monitor said the Turkish response killed 13 Syrian soldiers, a claim Syria denied.

Turkish President Erdoğan said the Syrian shelling killed five Turkish soldiers and three civilian personnel, and that nine others were injured. He said the Russians needed to stand aside. The Russian Ministry of Defence said Turkey had moved troops inside the de-escalation zone without notifying the Russian side.

The two stories were unconnected, but both were developing as of 4 February 2020: a Senate weighing alternatives over Ukraine, and an escalating Turkish-Syrian confrontation with Russia on the sidelines of the argument.