Donors Pledge Economic Support for Ukraine at London Conference |
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at a two-day London donors conference today that the European Union (EU) plans to provide $54.5 billion (WaPo) in aid for Ukraine’s economic recovery over the next four years, while the United States announced another $1.3 billion in aid. The commitments are a fraction of the World Bank estimates in March (FT) that Ukraine will need $411 billion to rebuild the country.
The EU’s proposal of economic aid depends on backing from member countries, some of whom were hesitant to support a larger potential pledge of roughly $78 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported. Private financiers BlackRock and JPMorgan Chase are also helping Ukraine set up a bank to help channel private sector investments into the country when hostilities cease.
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“An ambitious recovery program that recalls the Marshall Plan would sustain Ukraine, make Europe more secure, brighten the future of surrounding regions, and revitalize the European project itself,” write Harvard University’s Lawrence H. Summers, University of Virginia’s Philip Zelikow, and former World Bank president Robert B. Zoellick for Foreign Affairs. “To give this plan credibility, Western countries should prepare to use frozen Russian assets to help fund Ukraine’s reconstruction.”
“None of the estimates I’ve seen suggest that this is near enough for a full-blown, front-loaded recovery that would make Ukrainian EU membership in around 10 or 12 years feasible,” the German Marshall Fund’s Jacob Funk Kirkegaard tells Politico.
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Beijing Criticizes Biden for Calling Xi a Dictator |
A spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry said that U.S. President Joe Biden’s comment at a campaign event yesterday was “extremely absurd and irresponsible” (WaPo). The remarks come a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken concluded meetings with Chinese government officials to relieve diplomatic tensions.
China/Hungary: Chinese firm Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt will set up a $1.5 billion plant (Bloomberg) in Hungary to produce a component of electric car batteries. Hungarian officials said the investments will help meet climate goals and serve as a model for East-West cooperation during a time of tensions.
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UN Expert Appeals to Southeast Asian Nations for New Approach in Myanmar |
More than three thousand civilians have been killed in Myanmar since a military coup in February 2021, but the country's crisis has lost international visibility, an independent UN expert said at a news conference in Jakarta. He called for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries to take a harsher line (AP) against the ruling military junta.
Kazakhstan/Syria: Kazakhstan’s government abruptly proposed ending peace talks (Reuters) it has been hosting since 2017 on Syria’s civil war that include Russia, Turkey, and Iran. Moscow said the talks could continue in another location.
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Middle East and North Africa |
Prominent Tunisian Journalist Detained Ahead of Trial for Insulting President |
Radio journalist Zied el-Heni was detained yesterday (Reuters) ahead of the trial and interrogated without a lawyer, his lawyer said. Though the 2011 toppling of longtime President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali led to reforms allowing free speech, press freedom advocates have said it is threatened under current President Kais Saied.
Palestinian territories: Two Palestinian attackers killed four Israelis (AP) near an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, authorities said. They were then fatally shot, and Israeli settlers threw stones and tried to set fire to Palestinian homes in retaliation.
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First Deaths by Starvation Reported After International Food Aid Suspension in Ethiopia |
The United States and United Nations suspended food rations (AP) in some parts of the country almost three months ago after reports of large-scale theft, and the U.S. Agency for International Development went on to suspend all food aid (AP) to the country earlier this month. They have called for Ethiopia’s government to relinquish its control over food distribution and said the aid could resume as early as July.
Rwanda/South Africa: Fulgence Kayishema, who is accused of ordering two thousand killings in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, aims to apply for asylum (The New Times) in South Africa, his lawyer said.
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Estonia Becomes First Former Soviet Nation to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage |
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FT: U.S. Officials Ran Low-Profile Campaign To Defend 2022 Brazilian Election |
U.S. diplomats and military and intelligence officials ran a concerted campaign of public and private appeals to Brazilian officials and military officers to ensure the results of Brazil’s 2022 elections would be respected, the Financial Times reported. The campaign came amid rampant criticism of the election system from formerPresident Jair Bolsonaro.
Honduras: A riot at a women’s prison that had been the site of conflict between gangs left forty-one people dead (NYT).
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Pentagon Says Accounting Error on Arms for Ukraine Larger Than Previously Stated |
The Department of Defense said yesterday that it overvalued arms sent to Ukraine (CNN) by $6.2 billion, likely allowing more weapons to be sent to the country without congressional approval before the end of the fiscal year in September.
This article by CFR’s Jonathan Masters and Will Merrow looks at U.S. aid to Ukraine.
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Council on Foreign Relations |
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