China, EU Leaders Hold Summit With Ukraine at Fore |
Chinese and European Union (EU) leaders held their first summit in two years (Reuters) today, with Russia’s war in Ukraine looming large over the talks. Ahead of the meeting, EU officials said China will jeopardize its trade relations with Europe if it supports Russia. A draft China-EU investment deal reached in 2020 is already on hold over China’s repression of Uyghurs and other minorities.
Russia and Ukraine’s own talks on the war resumed via videoconference (NYT) today, and evacuations from the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol began. A Mariupol official said Russian forces continue to block aid (RFE/RL) from entering the city. Russian troops also pulled out of the closed Chernobyl nuclear plant. A UN watchdog is investigating whether they departed due to radiation poisoning.
|
|
|
| | |
“The global economy is still highly integrated—but also prone to great disruptions. A sober calculation of risks and rewards is just what is needed now,” CFR’s Edward Alden writes for Foreign Policy.
“While the investment deal will not progress in the near future, this does not mean the EU will decouple and diversify away from Beijing overnight, although Brussels has released plans to reduce such dependencies,” the Columbia-Harvard China and the World Program’s William Yuen Yee writes for the Diplomat.
CFR provides background and real-time analysis on the unfolding war in Ukraine. |
| | |
|
|
Japan Will Keep Oil, Gas Projects in Russia |
Despite Tokyo’s sanctions (AFP, Jiji Press) on Russia over the war in Ukraine, Japanese firms will not withdraw (Nikkei) from joint oil and gas development projects in the country, Japan’s trade minister said, citing the projects’ importance for energy security.
Indonesia/Malaysia: The countries signed an agreement (Reuters) on safeguarding migrant domestic workers’ rights that aims to strengthen wage protections and mechanisms for reporting complaints. |
|
|
Sri Lanka Lifts Curfew After Protests |
Authorities lifted a curfew imposed after violent protests sparked by the country’s economic crisis broke out (ANI) outside President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s home. Dozens of people were arrested. Afghanistan: Forty-one donors, including the governments of the United States, Germany, Japan, and the United Kingdom (UK), pledged $2.4 billion (VOA) for Afghanistan at a UN aid conference that sought to raise $4.4 billion. This photo essay looks at Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis. |
|
|
Middle East and North Africa |
Israel, United Arab Emirates Finalize Trade Deal |
The agreement will eventually remove customs requirements (Reuters) for 95 percent of products traded between the countries, Israel’s economy ministry said. Talks about the deal began after the countries normalized relations in 2020. Russia/Syria: Hundreds of Syrian mercenaries are headed to assist Russian forces in Ukraine, the New York Times reports. |
|
|
Kenyan Supreme Court Blocks President’s Effort to Amend Constitution |
The effort by President Uhuru Kenyatta would have broadened executive powers (NYT) in the country ahead of an election to determine Kenyatta’s successor.
Somalia: The United Nations voted to authorize (AFP) a new African Union peacekeeping mission in the country, where the militant group al-Shabab seeks to overthrow the government. |
|
|
Orban Leads Polls Ahead of Hungary’s Election |
Polls show that Sunday’s election could extend the twelve-year rule (Politico) of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. As war ravages neighboring Ukraine, Orban has opposed European sanctions on Russia and promised to keep Hungary out of the conflict. |
|
|
ICC to Open Office in Venezuela |
|
|
U.S. to Offer Gender-Neutral Passports by April |
The Joe Biden administration announced the move (White House) as part of a suite of efforts to support transgender people. The initiatives also include expanded training to support trans students in schools and the removal of documentation requirements for trans people trying to update gender information in social security records.
This webinar discusses global LGBTQ+ rights and Biden’s efforts to defend them at home and abroad. |
|
|
| | |
Bloomberg Green tracked a plastic bag from the UK to Turkey to see if the UK’s biggest supermarket chain is as eco-friendly as it claims. |
| | |
|
|
Council on Foreign Relations
|
58 East 68th Street — New York, NY 10065 |
1777 F Street, NW — Washington, DC 20006 |
|
|
|
