Daily News Brief

April 12, 2023

Top of the Agenda

At a university in Belfast, U.S. President Joe Biden hailed “the power and possibilities of peace” (CNN) in a speech marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the U.S.-brokered deal that brought peace to Northern Ireland. The 1998 Good Friday Agreement ended the thirty-year conflict known as the Troubles by establishing a power-sharing government between groups that differed on whether Northern Ireland should remain part of the United Kingdom (UK). Now, Northern Ireland’s government has been suspended for more than a year as those groups disagree on Brexit-related trade rules. After his speech, Biden met separately with leaders of Northern Ireland’s political parties and reportedly urged them to resume governing. 

Biden will spend the rest of the week in the Republic of Ireland, celebrating his ancestral roots and attending few political events (NYT). 

Analysis

“[Biden’s] decision to attend the Good Friday anniversary and skip the London coronation [of King Charles III next month] sends a message to Britain, Europe and beyond. The UK will get no trade deal with America if it jeopardizes the peaceful border between Ireland’s north and south,” the Financial Times’ Edward Luce writes.

“President Biden is continuing on in a long tradition of American presidents who’ve maintained an interest in the peace process in Northern Ireland,” Queen’s University Belfast’s Katy Hayward tells the Associated Press. “They see themselves as co-guarantors of the Good Friday Belfast Agreement, which means that they are particularly keen to see the British-Irish relationship be a good one and a close one.”

This Backgrounder explains how Brexit sparked worries of renewed conflict in Northern Ireland.

Pacific Rim

Beijing is considering softening its conditions for participation in a multibillion-dollar debt-restructuring plan for developing countries, the Wall Street Journal reported. It could drop a demand that international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund take losses in any debt relief plans.

For the Follow the Money blog, CFR’s Brad W. Setser discusses China’s role in developing countries’ debt restructuring.

Taiwan: The ruling Democratic Progressive Party nominated Vice President William Lai Ching-te (Nikkei) as its candidate in next year’s presidential election. Lai is seen as having similar policy positions as President Tsai Ing-wen; in January, Lai said Taiwan does not need to “further declare” its independence as it is “already an independent and sovereign nation.” 

South and Central Asia

Japan’s ambassador to India detailed plans (Reuters) for a port and other major infrastructure projects worth some $1.27 billion during a meeting with Indian, Bangladeshi, and Japanese officials. Japan and India have built joint infrastructure projects in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and several African countries as an alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

This Backgrounder looks at the Belt and Road Initiative.

India/Pakistan: Pakistani officials criticized India’s decision (Al Jazeera) to hold an upcoming Group of Twenty (G20) meeting in India-administered Kashmir, a Muslim-majority territory claimed by both countries.

Middle East and North Africa

A purported leaked intelligence document that appeared in the Washington Post this week claimed that Egypt secretly planned to send rockets, artillery rounds, and gunpowder to Russia. An unnamed official source told a state-backed Egyptian news outlet (NYT) that the claims were false. 

U.S./Saudi Arabia/Yemen: U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan praised Saudi efforts (AP) to work toward an end to Yemen’s yearslong civil war in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi officials met with Yemen’s Houthi rebels over the weekend in an attempt to accelerate peace talks.

Sub-Saharan Africa

In a report to the UN Security Council in February, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that 2022 was the deadliest year for Somalians since 2017, largely because of attacks by Al-Shabaab insurgents. The United Nations has only raised 13 percent (RFI) of the $2.6 billion it has requested to address the humanitarian situation in Somalia, which is also suffering from severe drought and food insecurity. 

Chad/Germany: Germany expelled Chad’s ambassador in retaliation for Chad’s expulsion of the German ambassador last week. Two Chadian government sources told Reuters that the latter was due to the former German ambassador’s criticism of delayed elections and a court decision allowing interim military leader Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno to run for office.

Europe

Russia’s government passed laws making it more difficult to escape the draft (FT), while Ukraine will now allow the government to serve conscription notices anywhere in the country. The moves come as Ukraine is expected to launch a spring counteroffensive against Russia.

Americas

The countries announced they will work together (AP) on a sixty-day campaign to stem rising illegal migration through the jungle border between Colombia and Panama, but they did not provide additional details.

This photo essay shows the perils migrants endure to traverse the Colombia-Panama border crossing known as the Darién Gap.

Chile: Congress approved a plan (MercoPress) to gradually reduce the duration of the work week from forty-five to forty hours over the next five years. 

United States

The rules proposed (NYT) by the Environmental Protection Agency would require two-thirds of new passenger cars and one-fourth of new heavy trucks sold in the country to be fully electric by 2032.

Council on Foreign Relations

58 East 68th Street — New York, NY 10065

1777 F Street, NW — Washington, DC 20006

Shop the CFR Store

Forward This Email

Manage Your Email Preferences