Macron Urges Israel to Prioritize Hostage Releases During Visit |
French President Emmanuel Macron urged Israeli leaders today to prioritize securing the release of hostages (FT) held by the Palestinian militant group Hamas since its October 7 attack. While Macron said it was “our duty to fight against these terrorist groups” without widening the conflict, he also called for more aid to be allowed to enter the Gaza Strip before an anticipated Israeli ground invasion. He suggested the creation of an international coalition against Hamas. Macron is also meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas today after requesting a revival of peace talks (Bloomberg) around Palestinian statehood.
Hamas freed two Israeli hostages yesterday, but negotiations over the release of fifty more captives were held up over Israeli resistance to allow fuel to enter Gaza, the Wall Street Journal reported. Israeli officials said they worry the fuel could be diverted for military purposes. Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces said that they bombed four hundred targets in Gaza overnight.
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“Israel is likely to mount a combined-arms assault on Hamas utilizing every element of military power—infantry, armor, artillery, naval vessels, and aviation (fixed wing and rotary, manned and unmanned)—all backed by a vast intelligence-gathering apparatus,” CFR expert Max Boot writes in this In Brief. “While Hamas lacks most of those high-end military capabilities, it does have rockets and drones.”
“One reason for the delay [in Israel’s ground invasion] is a desperate flurry of last-minute diplomacy,” the Economist writes. “The delay also reflects debate within Israel’s government about what kind of war it wants to fight: hard and fast, or patient and long?”
Read the full suite of Foreign Affairs and CFR.org resources on Israel and the current conflict.
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IEA Predicts Ninefold Increase in Electric Cars Globally, Fossil Fuel Demand to Peak by 2030 |
In a new report about the current clean energy transition, the International Energy Agency (IEA) projects (Reuters) that there could be almost ten times as many electric vehicles on the roads by 2030 as there are currently. The IEA’s assessment that the global fossil fuel demand will peak this decade marks the first time that existing government policies have been sufficient to hit this timeline, which comes sooner than alternative forecasts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), a group of oil-rich countries.
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Chinese Government Sacks Defense Minister |
Li Shangfu was removed (SCMP) as China’s defense minister, state media reported today, without giving any explanation for the decision. Li has not been seen in public since August. His abrupt removal is the second major shake-up in the last three months, following that of China’s former foreign minister in July for reasons that are still not public.
For the Asia Unbound blog, CFR expert Yanzhong Huang describes the ebb and flow of several of China’s political leaders’ careers.
North Korea/South Korea: Seoul authorities said they identified four people (Yonhap) trying to defect from Pyongyang in a boat today. It is the first such attempt through the East Sea since 2019. |
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Sri Lanka Announces Free Tourist Visas in Attempt to Boost Revenue |
The visas will be available (Reuters) until March 2024 to citizens of seven countries, including China, India, Japan, and Russia, officials said. Sri Lanka seeks to welcome five million tourists by 2026 to revive its tourism sector and assuage its ongoing financial crisis.
Bangladesh: Two trains collided near the capital, Dhaka, killing at least fifteen people (AP) and injuring many more. The cause of the crash was not immediately clear.
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Middle East and North Africa |
South Korean President Visits Qatar, Pledges Increased Ties |
Yoon Suk Yeol said before his two-day visit to Qatar beginning today that he hoped to expand cooperation (KBS World) between the two countries beyond energy and construction to areas such as agriculture, cultural exchanges, and defense. |
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Benin, Ivory Coast Join European Bank for Reconstruction and Development |
The bank’s shareholders approved the applications (Reuters) of the two countries, both of which had applied earlier this year to gain access to the bank’s financial and advisory services.
U.S./Gabon: The U.S. Department of State said it formally concluded that a coup occurred (BBC) in Gabon, which under U.S. law requires ending non-humanitarian aid to the country. The United States said last month that it had paused some foreign assistance programs to Gabon.
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Erdoğan Submits Swedish NATO Bid to Turkish Legislature |
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had dropped his objections to Sweden’s accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in July. Turkey’s parliament is expected to approve the bid (FT), leaving Hungary as the only NATO country that has not approved Sweden’s request to join. This Backgrounder by CFR’s Kali Robinson explores Turkey’s foreign policy ambitions.
China/Estonia/Finland: A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson yesterday called for (Reuters) an “objective, fair and professional” investigation after Finnish authorities said they were probing the potential role of a Chinese container ship in the damage of an undersea gas pipeline and telecommunications cable between Estonia and Finland earlier this month.
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Mexican President to Propose Joint Latin American Strategy on Migration to U.S. |
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Auto Workers Union Expands Strike to Detroit Plant |
The United Auto Workers union is expanding an ongoing strike (NPR) to a Stellantis plant outside Detroit, Michigan, as it presses for higher pay in ongoing contract negotiations. The announcement brings the total number of the union’s workers on strike to more than forty thousand nationwide. |
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