Niger’s Army Command Announces Support for Military Takeover |
Niger’s army command said today that it backs a military coup (Reuters) declared yesterday by a group of soldiers after members of the presidential guard took President Mohamed Bazoum captive. Bazoum tweeted that he would resist the coup and urged democratic forces in Niger to do the same, while his foreign minister said the coup did not have the military’s full backing. The events mark the seventh coup in West and Central Africa since 2020.
Niger has been a critical ally (AP) for Western forces aiming to fight insurgents in the Sahel in recent years. France moved its troops from Mali to Niger in 2022 as its relations with Mali worsened, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Niger a “model of democracy” during a March visit; more than one thousand U.S. forces are stationed in the country. Spokespeople from the United States, European Union, and United Nations issued statements of support (BBC) for Bazoum, while the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States condemned the attempted coup.
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“If the coup is successful it would be the latest in a succession of military overthrows in a region that has turned against France and the west and, in some cases, towards Russia,” the Financial Times’s David Pilling writes.
“All the military takeovers have been rooted in the economic malaise and weak governance that have fed frustration among civilians and—in West Africa in particular—the spread of extremist violence,” Bloomberg’s Neil Munshi writes.
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Australia Awards South Korea Weapons Contract Worth Up to $4.7 Billion |
Hanwha Aerospace, South Korea’s biggest defense company, beat out a German firm (Yonhap) to win a bid to build 129 new infantry fighting vehicles for the Australian Army, Seoul said. Australia and South Korea had previously agreed during a meeting in May to strengthen arms cooperation and build stronger defense ties.
Papua New Guinea/U.S.: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Papua New Guinea officials that Washington could help the country expand its military capabilities (AP) during a visit today, as the United States competes with China to build stronger ties in the Indo-Pacific. Austin is the first U.S. defense secretary to visit the island nation.
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China Delays Pakistan Loan Repayments |
China has given Pakistan a two-year grace period (PTI) on paying the outstanding principal amount of $2.4 billion in loans to allow Islamabad to shore up foreign exchange reserves amid its economic crisis, Pakistan’s finance minister announced. Pakistan will still pay the interest on the loans over that period of time. On this episode of The President’s Inbox, Sadanand Dhume details the political, economic, and climate crises roiling Pakistan.
India: The legislature approved an amendment (Hindustan Times) to an environmental conservation law that eases permission for business activities in protected areas and decriminalizes all offenses under the law. Critics protested the change on grounds of conservation and community rights, saying it would deny benefits to local communities with traditional knowledge and could lead to unchecked commercialization.
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Middle East and North Africa |
Iraqi Bank Owners Protest New U.S. Sanctions Amid Currency Drop |
Owners of fourteen banks newly sanctioned by Washington under suspicions of money laundering to Iran called on Baghdad to take steps (AP) to curb a sharp decline in Iran’s currency against the U.S. dollar. Israel: The Supreme Court said it will hear cases (CNN) against the new judicial reform bill that limits its power, and that it would not block the law with an injunction before debates begin in September. Seven different groups are seeking to challenge the law.
This In Brief by CFR expert Steven A. Cook explains what to know about Israel’s judicial reform.
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African Leaders’ Attendance at Summit With Russia Falls |
While forty-three African leaders attended the last Russia-Africa Summit in 2019, only seventeen are attending (AP) today’s meeting in St. Petersburg, leading the Kremlin to accuse Western powers of pressuring African countries not to attend. Russian President Vladimir Putin pitched the summit as a way to bolster ties with African countries, and is holding side meetings with leaders including Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali.
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Ukraine Sends New Troops Into Battle in Country’s South |
The move constitutes a new push (Economist) in Ukraine’s ongoing counteroffensive against Russian forces. Heavy fighting was reported around the village of Robotyne in southern Ukraine.
Italy/U.S.: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is expected to discuss (Reuters) the war in Ukraine and Italy’s ties with China during a White House visit today. Italy is the only Group of Seven country that is part of China’s massive Belt and Road Initiative.
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Canada’s Trudeau Reshuffles Nearly Three-Quarters of Cabinet |
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s reshuffle is part of an effort to refocus on economic issues, CBC reported. The ruling Liberal Party has lagged against the opposition in recent opinion polls.
El Salvador: Lawmakers yesterday approved a plan to carry out mass group trials (Reuters) for the tens of thousands of people who were detained during the country’s security crackdown on criminal gangs, sparking criticism from rights groups. Congress also voted to increase the maximum sentence for gang leaders from forty-five to sixty years.
This Backgrounder by Amelia Cheatham and CFR’s Diana Roy looks at instability in El Salvador and the rest of Central America’s Northern Triangle.
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Biden Greenlights Evidence Sharing on Potential Russian War Crimes to ICC |
Though the United States is not a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), President Joe Biden approved sharing with the court evidence of potential Russian war crimes in Ukraine despite months of resistance from the Pentagon, unnamed U.S. officials told the New York Times. |
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Council on Foreign Relations |
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