Ukraine Replaces Top Military Commander |
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksyy elevated (WaPo) Colonel General Oleksandr Syrsky, who was previously commander of Ukraine’s ground forces, to the military’s top position yesterday in its biggest shakeup since Russia’s invasion began. Zelenskyy said the military needed a change after two years of war. Syrsky was credited with leading the defense of Kyiv in the first month of the war and a successful counteroffensive in the eastern city of Kharkiv in fall 2022. Zelenksyy also named (NYT) five generals and two colonels he plans to promote. The leadership shift comes as both Ukraine and Russia calibrate their plans for a third year of war. Zelenskyy said that 2024 “can become successful for Ukraine only through effective changes in the basis of our defense.” Separately, Russian President Vladimir Putin called for (NYT) the United States to help “negotiate” an end to the war in an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. |
|
|
“Ukraine will emerge as the victor from this bloody conflict so long as it is a prospering, democratic Westward-leaning country. [Zelenskyy’s] government needs a laser-like focus on making that happen. About that, there should be no difference between the president and his commanders,” the Economist writes.
“Although increased overall Western provisions [to Ukraine] are important, it is crucial that the West focus on producing and sending the arms most likely to provide Kyiv with a strategic advantage. It must therefore create a stronger connection between Ukrainian tactical learning and industrial production,” the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Mick Ryan writes for Foreign Affairs.
|
|
|
Reuters: UN Probes Suspected North Korean Cyberattacks That Yielded $3 Billion |
UN sanctions experts are probing nearly sixty attacks on cryptocurrency-related companies that appear to have funneled money toward North Korea’s nuclear program between 2017 and 2023, according to an unpublished UN report seen by Reuters. It says that Pyongyang continues to flout UN Security Council sanctions. In this Expert Brief, CFR Senior Fellow Scott A. Snyder explains why North Korea has become more aggressive.
Malaysia: The country’s top court struck down (AP) sixteen sharia-based state laws today, saying they covered issues where federal law has authority, including sexual harassment and giving false evidence.
|
|
|
Pakistan Vote Count Delayed as Former PM’s Allies Outperform Expectations |
Independents backed by former Prime Minister Imran Khan won more seats (Reuters) than former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz or the Pakistan Peoples Party, according to results as of midday today. Khan is currently jailed and banned from office, and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party was barred from running in the election.
India: At least five people were killed (Al Jazeera) and dozens injured in clashes between demonstrators and police at a protest yesterday against the demolition of a mosque and religious school in the northern city of Haldwani.
|
|
|
Middle East and North Africa |
Israeli Strikes Hit Southern Gaza Strip City of Rafah |
The strikes killed (AP) at least thirteen people, a local hospital said. More than half of all Gazans are currently sheltering in the city after fleeing other parts of the territory. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel is now preparing a military operation in Rafah as part of its efforts to eliminate Palestinian militant group Hamas. Yesterday, a U.S. State Department spokesperson said that a poorly-planned operation would be (AFP) a “disaster.” In this In Brief, CFR expert Steven A. Cook ponders if diplomacy has run its course in the Israel-Hamas war.
Yemen: U.S. forces conducted (Reuters) seven strikes yesterday against Houthi vessels and missiles that were preparing attacks against ships in the Red Sea, Central Command said.
|
|
|
CFR’s Robert McMahon and Carla Anne Robbins discuss the wildfires in Chile, NATO ramping up security exercises, Indonesia’s presidential election, and more. |
| |
|
Kenya, Toyota Sign Cooperation Agreements on Green Energy, Car Assembly |
Kenya and the Japanese car manufacturer pledged cooperation (Business Daily) in wind and solar energy as well as on automobile assembly, Kenyan President William Ruto posted. The deal follows an agreement made last year to revamp a Toyota assembly plant in Kenya.
Liberia: Newly inaugurated President Joseph Nyuma Boakai ordered (Bloomberg) an audit of the country’s central bank as part of an anti-corruption drive.
|
|
|
Germany’s Scholz to Talk Ukraine War Support at White House |
The leaders of the United States and Germany are due to discuss (AP) the wars in Gaza and Ukraine during today’s meeting, the White House said. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is expected to spotlight the European Union’s recent funding pledge for Ukraine and stress the necessity of continued Western support as a U.S. aid package for Ukraine remains stalled in Congress.
In this article, CFR’s Jonathan Masters and Will Merrow chart U.S. aid to Ukraine.
|
|
|
Brazilian Court Unveils Accusations That Former President Participated in Coup Scheme |
Police carried out raids (NYT) across Brazil yesterday as part of a probe into former President Jair Bolsonaro and several of his allies. The court order that authorized the probe details an alleged coup effort after Bolsonaro lost the 2022 election, which included editing a draft decree to call for the arrest of a Supreme Court justice. Bolsonaro said that he is innocent. Ecuador: Authorities have arrested more than six thousand people as part of a government crackdown on drug gangs that began almost a month ago, the Financial Times reported. President Daniel Noboa Azín declared a state of “internal armed conflict” last month after a series of attacks in prisons and elsewhere. |
|
|
Special Counsel: Evidence in Biden Documents Probe Is Too Weak for Charges |
A special counsel’s report on the possibility that President Joe Biden mishandled classified documents found the evidence did not warrant (WaPo) any criminal charges, as it “does not establish Mr. Biden’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” At a press conference afterward, Biden pushed back at lines in the report that described him as forgetful.
U.S.: The Supreme Court began hearing arguments (AP) yesterday in a case regarding Colorado’s planned removal of former President Donald Trump from its 2024 Republican primary ballot. The Colorado Supreme Court previously approved the ban based on allegations that Trump engaged in insurrection. U.S. Supreme Court justices questioned whether a state government can act on such a matter before Congress does.
|
|
|
Council on Foreign Relations |
58 East 68th Street — New York, NY 10065 |
1777 F Street, NW — Washington, DC 20006 |
|
|
|
