Chuyên mục: World affairs

CFR: Daily News Brief August 3, 2023

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Nigeria Cuts Power Supply to Niger as Neighbors Debate Coup Response

Nigeria cut off its electricity supply to Niger as part of sanctions imposed in response to the military’s decision to overthrow the country’s government last week, AFP reported, while the World Bank announced that it was suspending development aid (AFP) other than private-sector partnerships. A bloc of West African nations led by Nigeria is meeting for a second day of talks today on how to respond to the coup, while U.S. President Joe Biden called today for the release (VOA) of Niger’s ousted president and ordered a partial evacuation of the U.S. embassy in the capital, Niamey.

While the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has reacted strongly to the coup with sanctions and threats of military action, Niger’s military has leaned on other military regimes nearby. Yesterday, a Nigerien coup leader met with Mali’s military government (NYT), which has close ties with the Russian private military company Wagner Group.
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A week after the coup, how has the Niger crisis unfolded?

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Aljazeera.com

Here is a roundup of the key events since a military coup took place in Niger on Wednesday, July 26.

Supporters of Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum gather to show their support for him in Niamey
Supporters of Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum gather in a whoe of solidarity with the deposed leader in Niamey [File: AFP]

Published On 2 Aug 20232 Aug 2023

Here is a look at key events in the week since a military coup took place in the West African country Niger.

Niger’s presidency said on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that members of the presidential guard tried to move against President Mohamed Bazoum in an apparent coup attempt, warning that the army was ready to attack them if they did not back down.

It said the president and his family were well after news agencies quoted security sources as saying that the guards were holding Bazoum inside the presidential palace in the capital, Niamey.

Members of the presidential guard dispersed supporters of the president as they were trying to approach the presidential complex.

Regional bodies swiftly reacted to the power grab. The West African bloc ECOWAS and the African Union (AU) lashed what they called an “attempted coup d’etat”. ECOWAS called on the plotters to free Bazoum, while the AU urged the “felon” soldiers involved to return to barracks immediately.

Bola Tinubu, president of Nigeria and chair of ECOWAS, said he was already in “close consultation” with other leaders in the region about the situation.

The United States, France, the European Union and the United Nations also condemned the power grab.

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CFR: Daily News BriefJuly 28, 2023

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Image Daily News BriefJuly 28, 2023
Top of the Agenda

Guterres: Hottest Month on Record Means ‘Global Boiling’ Has Arrived
July is “virtually certain” to be the hottest month (WMO) in human history by a significant margin, scientists from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said in an announcement yesterday. The month has already seen the hottest three days and highest ocean temperatures ever recorded. UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned an era of “global boiling” rather than global warming has arrived (UN News) and said the year of burning heat must translate into accelerated action by states to curb emissions of heat-trapping gasses, as well as more vigorous efforts to bolster climate adaptation.
Catastrophic heat waves and wildfires across North America, Asia, and Europe in recent weeks have underscored the changing temperature’s costs for human health. U.S. President Joe Biden said yesterday that extreme heat is costing the United States $100 billion (Bloomberg) per year and threatening lives and business, as he issued a hazard alert to ramp up heat-related protections for workers. 
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Chuyến tàu định mệnh

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SÁNG ÁNH – 04/07/2023 05:20 GMT+7

TTCT – Hai vụ đắm tàu cách nhau 4 ngày và vài nghìn cây số cho thấy thế giới đã trở thành một nơi đáng buồn ra sao.

Mục đích của những người tị nạn này không phải là thám hiểm biển khơi. Ảnh: Daryo.uz
Mục đích của những người tị nạn này không phải là thám hiểm biển khơi. Ảnh: Daryo.uz

Gần 3h sáng 14-6 trên Địa Trung Hải gần Hy Lạp, thủy thủ đoàn của chiếc Mayan Queen IV nhận tin có tàu gặp nạn ở gần đó, cách có 4 hải lý. Theo luật hàng hải quốc tế, và luật bất thành văn của dân đi biển, các tàu thuyền có bổn phận giúp đỡ và cưu mang nhau.

Tàu Mayan Queen IV là đại du thuyền tư nhân dài 90m và trị giá 175 triệu đô la, thuộc sở hữu một tỉ phú Mexico, có sức chứa thủy thủ đoàn 24 người và 26 khách, nhưng lúc đó chỉ có thủy thủ đoàn 4 người. 

Đêm không trăng và đen như mực, nhưng trong vòng 20 phút tàu đến hiện trường. Theo thuyền trưởng Richard Kirkby thì tàu duyên phòng của Hy Lạp đang có mặt và chiếu đèn trên biển. 

Ông cho hạ ghe xuống vớt nạn nhân đắm tàu đang bám vào vật nổi lềnh bềnh trên sóng, không ai có áo phao. Theo tiếng kêu yếu ớt của họ trong đêm, Mayan Queen lần dò và vớt lên 104 người Syria, Pakistan, Palestine và Ai Cập. Toàn bộ người được cứu sống là nam.

Tàu đánh cá Adriana dài khoảng 30m, chở 750 người tị nạn vượt biên từ bờ biển Libya sang Âu châu bị lật và chìm chỉ trong vòng 10-15 phút. Khoảng 100 trẻ em và phụ nữ trong hầm tàu không thoát kịp. 80 thi thể sau đó được tìm thấy, số người thiệt mạng như vậy được đoán định khoảng 650.

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CFR: Daily news brief June 20, 2023

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ImageDaily News BriefJune 20, 2023
Top of the AgendaU.S., Chinese Officials Cite Progress in Blinken’s Two-Day Visit to BeijingThe two countries made “progress” toward stabilizing relations (FT), Chinese President Xi Jinping said yesterday in a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Beijing. U.S. President Joe Biden echoed Xi’s comments when speaking to reporters Monday. Blinken held discussions with Chinese officials on Taiwan, the war in Ukraine, and economic relations, though China rebuffed a U.S. request (AP) to resume military-to-military contacts.   Blinken also said that he urged Chinese officials (NYT) to be vigilant that Chinese private companies avoid sending lethal aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine. He said he saw no indication that the Chinese government had sent such aid.
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CFR – Daily News BriefJune 13, 2023

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NATO Holds Largest Air Drills in Europe Since End of Cold WarT

wenty-five countries are participating in joint military air exercises (NYT) that began in Germany yesterday, including new North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member Finland and prospective member Sweden. The drills, planned since 2018, were initially organized following Russia’s 2014 invasion and illegal annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, but have taken on new relevance after Russia invaded Ukraine last year. The drills will occur at six German bases over twelve days.

Japan is an observer to the drills, which come as NATO is preparing documents that will elevate its partnerships with the Indo-Pacific countries of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea, Nikkei reported. The leaders of those four countries are expected to attend a NATO summit in Lithuania in July.
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Warren Buffett’s shifting Asian portfolio

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Geopolitics push ‘Oracle of Omaha’ to move away from China and invest in Japan

asia.nikkei.com

KENJI KAWASE, Nikkei Asia chief business news correspondentMAY 24, 2023 04:30 JST

OMAHA, U.S. — For Antonius Budianto, an independent stock investor from Indonesia, it was a dream come true to be in Omaha, Nebraska for the first time.

Traveling from East Java with his wife and 14-year-old daughter, Antonius was standing in a queue in front of Omaha’s CHI Health Center at 3 a.m. to grab a seat at the annual general shareholders meeting of investment company Berkshire Hathaway on May 6. Antonius said they wanted to be “as close as possible” to the podium as his two business idols — Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger — sat and took questions from shareholders in the audience and around the world.

Antonius has been investing in listed stocks in Indonesia for over 20 years, faithfully following the Buffett method: focus on a few companies with strong earnings, handsome dividend payments and sound corporate governance, and hold on to them, sometimes for decades. At Berkshire, this strategy has been distilled into the oft-repeated maxim: “Just hold the goddamn stock,” as Munger put it that day.

For his part, Antonius has been making a living as a full-time professional investor since 2010.

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Sudan: Hồi kết còn xa

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SÁNG ÁNH – 07/05/2023 06:03 GMT+7

TTCT – Xung đột đang nổ ra tại Sudan là kết quả của không chỉ tranh đoạt quyền lợi phe phái hiện tại. Mâu thuẫn ở vùng đất này cũng lâu đời như chính nó vậy.

Tiếng súng vang lên từ ngày 15-4. Tại thủ đô Khartoum của Sudan, Lực lượng Yểm trợ nhanh chóng (RSF) do tướng Mohamed Dagalo cầm đầu dàn quân tại các khu vực nhiều dân lao động. RSF là lực lượng dân quân võ trang hùng hậu tới 100.000 tay súng. Họ chốt ở các trại lính và căn cứ của quân đội quốc gia, vốn dưới quyền tướng Abdel al-Burhan.

Xung đột vũ trang nhiều hình thức đã dai dẳng ở Sudan suốt một thời gian dài từ khi độc lập. Ảnh: AFP

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Why do Jerusalem tensions fuel regionwide unrest?

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yesterday, April7, 2023 AP

Muslim worshippers perform Friday prayers outside the Dome of Rock Mosque at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of Jerusalem during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Friday, April 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

Muslim worshippers perform Friday prayers outside the Dome of Rock Mosque at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of Jerusalem during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Friday, April 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

JERUSALEM (AP) — It’s become something of a grim, springtime tradition in the Holy Land.

Israeli police fire tear gas and rubber bullets at Palestinians stockpiling rocks and fireworks inside one of the most bitterly disputed holy sites on Earth. The violence ripples across Israel and the occupied West Bank, and militants from as far away as Gaza and Lebanon respond with rockets.

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CFR – Daily News Brief April 3, 2023

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ImageDaily News BriefApril 3, 2023
Top of the Agenda

OPEC+ Announces Surprise Cuts to Global Oil Output

International oil prices rose today (Bloomberg) after Saudi Arabia and other oil-exporting nations announced plans to reduce output (AP) by 1.15 million barrels per day between May and the end of the year. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its partners, collectively known as OPEC+, had not previously signaled plans to slash output. Additionally, OPEC+ member Russia extended its ongoing cut of five hundred thousand barrels per day through the end of the year. The White House called the cuts ill-advised and pledged to work with producers and consumers to bring oil prices down.  The oil producers’ announcement comes as Australia, the European Union, and Group of Seven (G7) countries try to enforce a global price cap on Russian oil. However, Japan negotiated an exemption from the cap due to its energy needs, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday. 
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CFR – The World This Week March 31, 2023

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ImageThe World This WeekMarch 31, 2023
The Putin-Xi Summit Reinforces Anti-U.S. Partnership Thomas Graham

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping attend a welcome ceremony at the Kremlin on March 21, 2023. (Alexey Maishev/Sputnik)The meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Moscow helped both give the impression of a united front, but underlying tensions were also discernible. Get the quick take
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CFR – Daily News Brief, March 30, 2023

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Top of the Agenda

EU Chief Calls for Europe to ‘De-Risk’ From China

During a speech in Brussels today, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for the European Union (EU) to take a “bolder” stance (Politico) toward Beijing in response to China becoming “more repressive at home and more assertive abroad.” She said this would help Europe “de-risk” itself (Reuters) economically and diplomatically, but that economic decoupling from China is not possible. She also referred to the close relationship between China’s and Russia’s leaders and said China is responsible for advancing a “just peace” in Ukraine that includes the withdrawal of Russian forces. Von der Leyen will visit Beijing next week. 
European leaders have diverged in recent months (FT) over their views on China. While the United States has hardened its own China policy through controls on tech exports, trade officials at the European Commission have studied the possibility of controls on outbound European investment. 
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CFR: Daily News Brief, March 28, 2023

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Image Daily News Brief March 28, 2023
Top of the Agenda

British, German Tanks Reach Kyiv as Ukraine Prepares for Spring Offensive

The first deliveries of British Challenger tanks and German Leopard 2 tanks reached the Ukrainian capital (FT), German and Ukrainian officials confirmed. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces completed training (The Guardian) in the United Kingdom on how to use the Challenger tanks. Poland sent tanks to Ukraine late last month, and Spain is expected to do so by the end of the week.
Ukraine’s spring counteroffensive against invading Russian forces will depend (BBC) on continued weapons support from the West, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. He will give a virtual address today (AFP) to kick off U.S. President Joe Biden’s second annual Summit for Democracy. 
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Summit for Democracy Snubs for Two Troublesome U.S. Allies

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Foreign Policy Sitrep

The Biden administration is inviting around 120 countries to join its Summit for Democracy next week, but two of its NATO allies aren’t getting a call.

Turkey and Hungary have been left off the invitation list for the major summit, which Team Biden bills as one of its hallmark foreign-policy initiatives, meant to shore up democracies worldwide and stanch the rise of autocracies.

Backsliding. The spurning of two NATO allies, confirmed by three U.S. officials who spoke to SitRep, reflects a mounting concern with the degree of democratic backsliding in Turkey and Hungary, even though Washington is relying on both to support the West’s strategy against Russia as the war in Ukraine rages on—and needs both to approve Finland and Sweden’s bids to join NATO as full-fledged allies.

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2023 World Happiness Report

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World Happiness Report 2023

It has been over ten years since the first World Happiness Report was published. And it is exactly ten years since the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 66/281, proclaiming 20 March to be observed annually as International Day of Happiness. Since then, more and more people have come to believe that our success as countries should be judged by the happiness of our people. There is also a growing consensus about how happiness should be measured. This consensus means that national happiness can now become an operational objective for governments.

Read the Report

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