In a speech yesterday at the World Economic Forum’s virtual Davos conference, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged world leaders to cooperate (Straits Times) in fighting the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis and warned against a new cold war. He advocated the building of “an open world economy” and signaled Beijing’s willingness to take on a bigger role as a global leader.

Though Xi did not specifically mention the United States, some of his comments seemed targeted at U.S. President Joe Biden’s plans (Axios) for confronting China. Xi stressed that countries should respect their differences and that cooperation should not be done in “small circles.” Biden has emphasized the need for democracies to work together to challenge China, and a White House spokesperson said Xi’s speech won’t change how the Biden administration plans to approach China (WSJ).

The country, which has the worst coronavirus outbreak in Southeast Asia, has reported more than one million COVID-19 cases (Straits Times). Hospitals have been overwhelmed despite restrictions imposed on Java, Indonesia’s most populous island, and Bali.

Thousands of farmers marched and drove tractors (Reuters) through New Delhi after weeks of camping outside the capital to protest agriculture bills proposed by the government. Police fired tear gas at protesters who breached the historic Red Fort complex, and at least one person died after his tractor overturned during clashes with authorities.

Tajikistan: President Emomali Rahmon said that the country is coronavirus-free and that no cases were reported this month, contradicting the health ministry’s announcement (RFE/RL) that several cases had appeared in January.

Months after Israel and Sudan agreed to normalize ties, Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen led his country’s first official visit to Sudan (AFP). Israeli officials said the two countries signed a memorandum on diplomatic, security, and economic issues and discussed deepening intelligence cooperation. 

Syria: Representatives of the Syrian government, opposition groups, and civil society gathered in Geneva for a fifth round of UN-mediated talks (Al-Monitor) aimed at drafting a new constitution. Little progress has been made in the negotiations so far.

Tanzanian President John Magufuli ordered the release (Nation) of more than 1,700 Ethiopians who had been detained after illegally entering Tanzania. His announcement came after he met with Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde, who is visiting Tanzania.

Nigeria: Authorities are searching for seven children and a man (AFP) who were abducted from an orphanage outside of the capital of Abuja.

People defied the Netherlands’ coronavirus curfew (AP) in several cities, including Amsterdam and Rotterdam, for a second night. Some vandalized buildings, threw fireworks, and lit fires; police in Rotterdam responded with tear gas and water cannons. Dozens of people have been arrested during the riots.
 
Brussels: European Union countries are considering responses to AstraZeneca’s announcement that it is unable to meet agreed-upon supply targets for the COVID-19 vaccine. The EU’s health commissioner said the bloc will take “any action required to protect its citizens,” including tightening vaccine exports (BBC), while Latvian officials said EU nations should sue AstraZeneca (Reuters) for breaching supply contracts.

Mexican authorities are trying to identify nineteen bodies (AP) discovered in Mexico on Saturday near the country’s border with the United States. Relatives of Guatemalan migrants who recently left for the United States said they feared their loved ones were among the dead.
 
Brazil: President Jair Bolsonaro’s government is proposing around $530 million for environmental protection programs, the country’s smallest budget for such programs (Reuters) in at least thirteen years, despite soaring deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon Rainforest, according to data from nonprofit Contas Abertas.
 
This CFR InfoGuide examines deforestation in the Amazon.

President Biden extended a ban (WaPo) that was set to expire today on travelers from Brazil, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and twenty-six other European countries. He also added South Africa to the list in a move to help contain the spread of COVID-19 variants.  
 
This CFR In Brief looks at how dangerous COVID-19 variants are.

Only 22,770 refugees worldwide were resettled (WSJ) through the United Nations in 2020, the lowest number since 2003, the first year that UN figures are available. Refugees entering the United States fell to the lowest level in forty years. The United Nations estimates that around 1.5 million people are in urgent need of resettlement.
 
CFR looks at how the pandemic affected tourism, migration, and diplomacy.