World leaders have begun arriving in Rome (Politico) to attend this weekend’s Group of Twenty (G20) summit, which will focus on climate policy, pandemic recovery, a global minimum tax deal, supply-chain bottlenecks, and energy prices. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin will appear virtually, and U.S. President Joe Biden will attend in person.
 
Ahead of the summit, Biden visited the Vatican for a closed-door, one-on-one meeting with Pope Francis. The two were expected to discuss (CNN) climate, migration, and income inequality. Biden will also meet (NBC) with French President Emmanuel Macron today for the first time since the start of a diplomatic rift over a defense deal between the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom (UK).

Two polls found that the ruling Liberal Democratic Party will struggle to keep (Bloomberg) its parliamentary majority but will be able to stay in government thanks to support for its junior coalition party.
 
The World Next Week podcast discusses the stakes of Japan’s election.
 
South Korea: New COVID-19 cases in the country remained above 2,100 (Yonhap) for the second consecutive day. Despite the spike, South Korea is planning to start relaxing physical-distancing requirements on Monday.

An Associated Press investigation found the practice is systemic in the military’s secretive detention system. U.S. officials demanded an investigation (AP).
 
Tajikistan: A Tajik official said China will build a police base (AFP, Reuters) for Tajikistan near the Afghan border. Officials in both China and Tajikistan are concerned about possible extremism in Afghanistan.

Feminist protesters gathered outside a Tunisian courthouse yesterday during a hearing on the alleged sexual harassment and public indecency (AP) by lawmaker Zouhair Makhlouf that had galvanized Tunisia’s #MeToo movement in 2019. Makhlouf did not attend the hearing.
 
The President’s Inbox podcast examines the global #MeToo movement.
 
Lebanon: Former government officials filed a series of lawsuits (Reuters) that could stall an investigation into last year’s deadly blasts at Beirut’s port. The country’s political establishment has opposed the probe.

The appeal for a march on Saturday comes amid international pressure (VOA) for General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan to reverse his takeover of the country’s government.
 
Ethiopia: A government air strike on the Tigray region reportedly killed six people (AFP).

The move comes after France said it will block British boats from accessing (France 24) an area off the coast of the UK until licenses are given to French fishermen. UK-France relations have been strained for months (Guardian) over a dispute about fishing rights in the aftermath of Brexit.
 
France: The country aims to stall European Union trade talks with nations including Chile and New Zealand until after France’s presidential election in April, a French official told Bloomberg.

The humanitarian visas are designed to facilitate access (Reuters) to employment and health care for migrants in a caravan traveling toward the country’s north.
 
Brazil: Murders of Indigenous Brazilians rose 61 percent (Al Jazeera) from 2019 to 2020, according to the Missionary Council for Indigenous Peoples, a Catholic group.

President Biden presented the spending package (NYT) after a larger version failed to gain support from moderate Democrats in the Senate. He urged lawmakers to back it as he headed to Europe for the G20 summit and twenty-sixth Conference of the Parties (COP26).