February 18, 2009 (Wednesday)
- Stefane & 3G will represent Georgia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 in Moscow with "We Don't Wanna Put In", a song allegedly against Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. (Reuters)
- A Columbian mammoth is discovered in the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, California. (Reuters)
- Switzerland's UBS AG will pay the United States federal government US$780 million in fines and restitution after admitting to helping American clients avoid taxes. (CNN)
- A Eurocopter Super Puma carrying 18 people ditches into the North Sea. (BBC)
- Israel will not negotiate with Hamas unless war prisoner Gilad Shalit is released. (BBC)
- Israel's Securities Authority arrests Poalim Capital Markets CEO Nir Burnstein on suspicion of insider trading. (Jerusalem Post)
- Iran announces it has built an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of traveling 620 miles (1,000 kilometers). (Bloomberg)
- Lawyers representing the entertainment industry defend their compensation claims of US$13 million against The Pirate Bay. (The Local)
- A GEO Television reporter is killed in Pakistan's war-torn Swat Valley. (AP via Google News)
- Verizon Wireless selects Alcatel-Lucent as its primary vendor of fourth-generation wireless communications. (Reuters)
- Swedish Minister of Enterprise and Energy Maud Olofsson criticizes General Motors for "abandoning" the struggling automaker Saab Automobile. (The Local)
- The Czech Republic's Chamber of Deputies approves the Treaty of Lisbon. (CTK)
- General Motors will cut 47,000 jobs throughout 2009. (Sky News)
- South Korea says North Korea will face United Nations sanctions if it proceeds with a threatening long-range missile test. (Reuters)
- Russia's Border Guard Service sinks a Hong Kong-owned merchant vessel, killing eight people. (RIAN)
- The National Aeronautics and Space Administration and European Space Agency will continue with their Europa Jupiter System Mission and Titan Saturn System Missions. (NASA)