The White House approved the deployment (CNN) of around two thousand troops from the United States to Germany and Poland and the movement of one thousand troops from Germany to Romania. A Pentagon spokesperson said (Politico) the troops are to be prepared to defend North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries “if it comes to that.” 

Although a Kremlin spokesperson accused the United States of “igniting tensions” (NYT) with the deployment, Russia has sent around thirty thousand troops (RFE/RL) to Belarus in recent days, according to NATO’s secretary-general. Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is in Kyiv and will offer to mediate (Guardian) between Russia and Ukraine.

President Biden announced that a U.S. counterterrorism raid in Syria’s Idlib Governorate today killed (CNN) Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, leader of the self-declared Islamic State. Aid workers said at least thirteen people were killed, including six children and four women.

UAE: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) failed to identify and correct (AP) a wide range of abuses against migrant laborers working at the World Expo 2020 site, according to consultancy Equidem.

This video explains how the kafala system allows for abuses of migrant workers in the UAE and other Middle Eastern countries.

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said he will not press (NYT) for an investigation of Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai’s sexual assault accusations against a top Chinese official unless Peng requests an inquiry. Bach and Peng will meet during the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
 
CFR’s Jerome A. Cohen discusses Peng’s case and how China silences critics.
 
North Korea: A documentary that aired on state media made a rare mention (WaPo) of the country’s “food crisis,” acknowledging that “the situation is more difficult than ever.” The United Nations estimates that 40 percent of North Koreans suffer from food insecurity (FT).

Prime Minister Imran Khan will reportedly meet with top Chinese officials and request $3 billion (Diplomat) in loans to stabilize Pakistan’s falling reserves. Last week, Khan said Western criticism of China’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims was unfounded.
 
Afghanistan: The U.S. Treasury Department said international companies can transfer aid funds to Afghanistan (Axios) without fear of violating U.S. sanctions.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) meets in Ghana today (Al Jazeera) to consider imposing sanctions on Burkina Faso, the latest West African country to witness a successful coup.
 
CFR’s Michelle Gavin discusses West Africa’s so-called coup contagion.
 
DRC: A militia group killed at least sixty people (Guardian) in an attack on a refugee camp in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The trial deliberately infected unvaccinated young people in London and tested responses to an early strain (BBC) of the coronavirus. It found that symptoms and positive test results appeared within forty-two hours of infection and that the virus remained detectable up to twelve days later.

The election was held (Reuters) due to a complaint (NYT) under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), a trade pact that includes more stringent labor provisions than its predecessor, the North American Free Trade Agreement.
 
Canada: The opposition Conservative Party of Canada ousted its leader (Guardian) amid debates over whether to appeal to a more right-wing base.

Biden said he aims to boost cancer screenings (CNN) as part of a relaunch of the White House’s “Cancer Moonshot” initiative, which started as vice president. In 2016, Congress authorized $1.8 billion for the program, and $400 million is still available for 2022 and 2023.