NATO Foreign Ministers Pledge New Cooperation With Ukraine at Brussels Summit |
In Brussels today, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries agreed to increase cooperation with Ukraine (Politico) on a range of security and energy issues as part of the first foreign ministers meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council. They also said they were developing a roadmap for Ukraine’s “transition to full interoperability with NATO,” a prerequisite to joining the alliance. Large aid packages to Kyiv are currently pending approval in European and U.S. legislatures, with U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) suggesting earlier this week (The Hill) that he would support new war aid for Ukraine and Israel.
Today’s meeting came after Russia launched a new round of drone strikes across Ukraine last night and as a spokesperson for Ukraine’s intelligence service announced that the wife of the country’s military intelligence chief is being treated (Politico) for a suspected poisoning attack. During their two days of broader talks in Brussels, NATO foreign ministers also discussed (Anadolu) the Israel-Hamas war and security concerns in the Pacific.
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“To make progress now, Western and Ukrainian leaders need to rally around achievable strategic goals. The most pressing is the containment of Russian forces—not only to protect all that Ukraine has already accomplished but also to render Russia’s presence on Ukrainian territory as insecure as possible,” CFR expert Liana Fix and the Catholic University of America’s Michael Kimmage write for Foreign Affairs.
“There still are ways for the West to prevail,” the Hudson Institute’s Walter Russell Mead writes for the Wall Street Journal. “We can step up our military aid to tip the balance against Russia in Ukraine.”
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U.S. Military Aircraft Crashes Off Japanese Coast |
An Osprey military plane crashed (Kyodo) in waters off the coast of southwestern Japan, with one person confirmed dead, Japan’s Coast Guard said today. Osprey crashes in Australia in 2017 and August 2023 also resulted in several fatalities.
Vietnam: The legislature agreed to raise (Reuters) the effective tax rate on multinational companies to 15 percent beginning January 1. The move reflects a global tax deal reached in 2021 that established a worldwide minimum corporate tax rate.
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India Pledges to Formally Probe U.S. Concerns Over Foiled Plot to Kill Sikh on U.S. Soil |
India will investigate U.S. concerns (Reuters) that government agents were connected to a plan to murder a Sikh separatist leader in the United States, India’s foreign ministry said. Washington confirmed last week that it had privately relayed the claims to New Delhi after the Financial Times reported about the thwarted plot to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
Sri Lanka: Colombo reached a preliminary deal (Bloomberg) with bilateral creditors, including India and Paris Club countries, an informal group of creditor governments, to restructure around $5.9 billion of its debt. The deal will allow Sri Lanka to approach private bondholders as the country works to recover from an unprecedented economic crisis.
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Middle East and North Africa |
Israel, Hamas Complete Fifth Exchange of Hostages And Prisoners |
As a temporary cease-fire between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas approaches its new expiration date, diplomats and intelligence officials are working to negotiate (NYT) a longer pause in the war. The two sides have completed five sets of hostage and prisoner exchanges, bringing the total number of Hamas-held hostages released to at least eighty-five. Despite the pause in fighting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that destroying Hamas remains his ultimate goal.
In this In Brief, CFR expert Max Boot explains Israel’s offensive aims.
Saudi Arabia: At a closed-door vote in France yesterday, Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, was chosen to host (AP) the 2030 World Expo global fair. Some activists have denounced the decision over the country’s alleged human rights abuses.
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Sierra Leone Information Minister Calls Sunday’s Upheaval an ‘Attempted Coup’ |
As details continue to emerge about Sunday’s attacks on Sierra Leone’s military barracks that freed more than two thousand prisoners, the country’s information minister called them a “failed attempted coup” (NYT) and said that fourteen people had been arrested. He did not name them.
Sudan: Yasser al-Atta, a top Sudanese general, openly accused the United Arab Emirates (UAE) of supplying Sudanese paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) with military planes in a speech that was then circulated on social media. A UAE official told Reuters that Abu Dhabi has consistently called for de-escalation, a cease-fire, and diplomatic dialogue in Sudan’s civil war. The comments came after the RSF pushed the Sudanese army out of four states in the Darfur region.
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Finland to Temporarily Close All Land Borders With Russia |
Helsinki accused Moscow (FT) of deliberately abetting asylum seekers seeking to cross the country’s shared border in a move that threatens “national security and public order” in Finland. The closure will remain in effect until December 13. |
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Report: Destruction of Amazon Rainforest Slowed Dramatically in 2023 |
Deforestation of the Amazon so far this year has dropped (Reuters) to a level 55.8 percent lower than in the same period in 2022, according to nonprofit Amazon Conservation. Their report looks at deforestation across nine Amazon countries. Curbing deforestation in the Amazon is a critical component of the region’s strategy to combat climate change.
This Infoguide looks at deforestation in the Amazon.
Panama: President Laurentino Cortizo said that Panama would shut down (FT) a mine that accounts for 1 percent of global copper output after the Supreme Court ruled yesterday that a Canadian company’s contract was unconstitutional. The ruling followed weeks of nationwide protests against the mining contract.
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CDC: U.S. Life Expectancy Partially Rebounds From Pandemic |
Life expectancy in 2022 rose more than a full year (WaPo) to 77.5 years, data released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed. The increase represents a partial rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic, although many peer countries experienced smaller drops in life expectancy and faster recoveries amid the pandemic. Experts cite the prevalence of drug overdoses, homicides, and heart disease as contributing to the United States’ poor life expectancy rank among wealthy countries.
This interactive article by Emma Castro, Isabella Turilli, and CFR expert Thomas J. Bollyky compares state responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Council on Foreign Relations |
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