World Depends on ‘Indispensable’ U.S. Leadership, Japanese PM Tells U.S. Congress |
Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio stressed the global importance (Nikkei) of U.S. leadership and Japan’s increased commitment to helping bear the burden of upholding a rules-based international order in an address to Congress yesterday. The United States is “indispensable,” Kishida said, adding that Japan is fully committed to upholding the same values and thus has transformed from a “reticent ally” to a “strong, committed” one in recent years.
Kishida’s address to Congress was the first (Bloomberg) by a Japanese leader since 2015 and occurred during a visit where the two nations also held a first-of-its-kind trilateral summit with the Philippines. A joint statement issued after the summit called (Nikkei) the three countries “equal partners and trusted friends,” and pledged to advance a vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region with more such meetings “for decades to come.”
|
|
|
“Kishida is positioning Japan at the heart of the ‘latticework’ of alliances, as Biden officials put it, that the United States hopes will undergird their interests in Asia,” the Washington Post’s Ishaan Tharoor writes. “If Washington policymakers get to realize the long-sought ‘pivot to Asia,’ it seems Japan must be the key hinge in that turn.”
“In his three years in office, Kishida has implemented considerable strategic change,” CFR Senior Fellow Sheila A. Smith writes in this Expert Brief. “Surprisingly, both of Kishida’s strategic goals have been largely supported by the Japanese people.”
|
| |
Vietnam Issues Death Sentence to Tycoon Amid Anticorruption Drive |
Billionaire businesswoman Trương Mỹ Lan was sentenced (WaPo) to death yesterday on charges of participation in a multibillion-dollar fraud scheme, Vietnamese state media reported. The country’s Communist Party has been carrying out a crackdown on corruption.
U.S./Japan/South Korea: The three countries carried out two days (AP) of joint naval drills in the East China Sea to improve their response capabilities as threats from China and North Korea grow.
|
|
|
Thailand’s Foreign Minister Visits Myanmar Border Over Clashes |
Thailand seeks “peace and dialogue,” the country’s foreign minister said today (Al Jazeera) on a visit to a Thai town across the border from the Myanmar city of Myawaddy that was recently overtaken by rebels. Earlier this week, Thailand said it would accept one hundred thousand people from Myanmar, but has warned the conflict should not spill into Thai airspace.
India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with officials (Bloomberg) yesterday to discuss hospital and firefighting preparedness for searing temperatures that are forecast for next week in the run-up to nationwide elections. Many political groups have started organizing mass outdoor rallies during the six-week election period, which could be dangerous in India’s predicted high heat.
|
|
|
Middle East and North Africa |
U.S. Central Command Chief Travels to Israel as Diplomats Try to Avert Iranian Attack |
The United States has worked through (FT) countries such as China, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey to urge Iran not to retaliate after an Israeli strike hit an Iranian diplomatic outpost in Syria last week. The head of U.S. Central Command arrived (Times of Israel) in Israel yesterday to prepare for what U.S. intelligence has said is an “imminent” threat from Iran.
U.S./Iraq: Washington and Baghdad will discuss (Reuters) their economic and security relationship when Iraq’s prime minister visits Washington next week, an unnamed senior State Department official told reporters yesterday. Iraq’s government has said in recent months that it hopes to end the U.S.-led military mission in the country amid exchanges of fire between the United States and Iranian proxies.
On this episode of The President’s Inbox podcast, Robin Wright and CFR expert Ray Takeyh unpack the U.S. strikes on Iranian proxies in Iraq.
|
| |
CFR’s Robert McMahon and Carla Anne Robbins discuss the U.S. Congressional agenda on its return from recess, one year of civil war in Sudan, the growing Ecuador-Mexico embassy tensions, and more. |
| |
|
Russian Military Trainers, Equipment Reportedly Arrive in Niger |
The trainers brought (AFP) air defense systems and other gear as part of Moscow’s deepening security ties with the country, Nigerien state television reported yesterday. Niger’s military government agreed to strengthen its relationship with Russia earlier this year after expelling French troops.
Ghana: The presidential candidate of Ghana’s ruling party said yesterday that he was against homosexuality and would oppose it (Reuters) if elected. Ghana’s congress passed a harsh anti-LGBTQ+ bill that international rights groups have pressured the president not to sign.
For the Africa in Transition blog, CFR expert Ebenezer Obadare explores how Africa’s LGBTQ+ coalition could revitalize its strategy to combat discrimination.
|
|
|
Ukraine Passes Conscription Law With New Incentives and Penalties |
The law, approved yesterday, offers (NYT) better compensation for soldiers going to fight and tougher penalties for those who evade military service. A proposal for a cap on the total period of mandatory military service at thirty-six months was discarded from the bill.
U.S./Russia/Ukraine: Washington proposed a plan that would use profits (FT) from frozen Russian assets to generate funding for Ukraine. The idea is due to be evaluated on the sidelines of next week’s World Bank and International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings in Washington.
In this In Brief, CFR’s Jonathan Masters looks at how frozen Russian assets could help rebuild Ukraine.
|
|
|
Bloomberg: U.S., Colombia Hold Meetings With Venezuela Over Upcoming Election |
U.S. and Venezuelan officials met in Mexico City while Colombian President Gustavo Petro traveled to Caracas on Tuesday as part of efforts to urge the Venezuelan government to make reforms regarding conditions for the July 28 presidential election, unnamed sources told Bloomberg. Washington has threatened to reimpose oil and gas sanctions on Venezuela if certain conditions for the election are not met.
Peru: Deaths from dengue fever so far this year are more than triple (Reuters) their level from the same period in 2023, health officials said yesterday. Epidemiologists cited climate change as one reason the reach of the mosquito that carries the virus was expanding.
|
|
|
Council on Foreign Relations |
58 East 68th Street — New York, NY 10065 |
1777 F Street, NW — Washington, DC 20006 |
|
|
|
