Protests against a law passed last week that would grant citizenship to non-Muslim minorities have continued across India (Guardian) today, and were joined by solidarity marches (Mint) in several foreign cities. 
 
The demonstrations are among the biggest challenges yet (Vox) for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a longtime supporter of Hindu nationalism. Clashes between protesters and authorities have restricted transportation (Hindu) in several cities, and three states have said they would not implement (Bloomberg) the law. Demonstrators denounced a violent police crackdown on protesters at two universities on Sunday.

In a UN Security Council resolution, China and Russia proposed (Al Jazeera) the relaxation of some export sanctions on North Korea in exchange for steps toward denuclearization and proposed six-party nuclear talks that would also include Japan, South Korea, and the United States.
 
Japan: Trade representatives from Japan and South Korea held their first policy dialogue (Japan Times) in more than three years in the hope of restoring trust after months of heightened diplomatic tensions.

Pervez Musharraf, who lead Pakistan after helping orchestrate a coup in 1999, was found guilty of high treason and sentenced (Dawn) to death for imposing a state of emergency in 2007.

The country’s recently appointed Prime Minister Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah has appointed (Reuters) a new cabinet, state media reported. The previous government resigned last month over a dispute between Kuwait’s parliament and the ruling family.
 
Israel: Gideon Saar, a former senior cabinet minister under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has launched a bid (AP) to replace Netanyahu as head of the Likud party in the first serious internal challenge to Netanyahu.

The group of families sued (Guardian) companies including Apple, Google, and Microsoft in a U.S. court, saying children had been killed or injured mining cobalt used in the companies’ products, and that the companies had “specific knowledge” that their cobalt was linked to hazardous child labor.
 
Burundi:  The exiled National Council for Compliance with the Arusha Agreement opposition alliance announced it will participate (VOA) in the 2020 national elections. It had previously boycotted the 2015 vote in which President Pierre Nkurunziza won a controversial third term.

More than seventy thousand migrants reached the European Union from Turkey between January and mid-December, a 46 percent increase (DW) over the same period last year, according to an EU report published by the German newspaper Die Welt. Turkey receives EU funding to house asylum seekers and prevent them from crossing into Europe.
 
UK: Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government hopes to pass legislation that would rule out (FT) extending Brexit negotiations beyond 2020, officials said.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer released a letter saying U.S. labor attachés in Mexico will not conduct inspections (WaPo) of factories after a top Mexican diplomat called for the assurance.
 
CFR’s Edward Alden looks at the implications of the new trade deal.
 
Mexico: President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced that a new rail system around the Yucatan Peninsula will begin construction (Al Jazeera) after receiving approval in a referendum Sunday, in which only one hundred thousand of the region’s eleven million residents voted. The project has been criticized for its potential environmental impact.

U.S. lawmakers agreed on the text of a draft 2020 spending bill (NPR) that includes a $22 billion increase in military spending and $25 million for federal gun violence research, according to congressional aides. The bill reportedly includes $7.6 billion for 2020 census efforts, $1.4 billion more than the amount proposed by the White House.
 
This CFR Backgrounder looks at why the census matters.