Daily News Brief

November 10, 2022

Editor’s note: There will be no Daily Brief on Friday, November 11, for Veterans Day.

Top of the Agenda

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered troops to withdraw (NYT) from Kherson, a southern Ukrainian city Russia captured eight months ago. Russian President Vladimir Putin has distanced himself from what could be a significant reversal to his war effort and did not appear at the televised meeting where the withdrawal was announced. The order comes amid a Ukrainian counteroffensive that began in late August.

U.S. President Joe Biden said the withdrawal will allow Russia and Ukraine to “recalibrate their positions over the winter period” (WaPo) and “decide whether or not they’re going to compromise.” Separately, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark A. Milley, said Russia and Ukraine both need to recognize that neither can achieve a full military victory. He estimated that over two hundred thousand Russian and Ukrainian troops have been killed or injured in the war.

Analysis

“No matter how Russia spins it, the retreat from Kherson—the biggest city and only regional capital captured and occupied after the Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine—is a huge military failure for Putin,” the Financial Times’ Christopher Miller tweets.

“There remains, in short, a mismatch between the Kremlin’s goals for Ukraine and the forces it has to deliver them,” the RAND Corporation’s Dara Massicot writes for Foreign Affairs.

Pacific Rim

South Korea and the United States condemned the launch (Yonhap), which comes as they carry out joint military exercises. Pyongyang has launched a record number of ballistic missiles this year.

CFR’s Scott A. Snyder explains why North Korea is escalating its military provocations.

Australia: Hackers published stolen abortion records (BBC) after Australia’s largest health insurer refused to pay ransom for the data.

South and Central Asia

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit begins today (AP) in Cambodia and is expected to focus in part on escalating violence in military-led Myanmar. U.S. President Biden is set to attend.

Pakistan: Supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan resumed a protest march (Al Jazeera) to Islamabad after halting due to an assassination attempt on Khan. The protesters are calling for new elections.

Middle East and North Africa

An aerospace commander quoted by Iranian state media called the missile “a big generational leap” (Reuters). There are no reports of Tehran testing such a missile.

The Why It Matters podcast looks at hypersonic missiles.

U.S./Palestinian territories: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas rejected a U.S. request (Axios) to abandon plans for a UN resolution requesting an International Court of Justice opinion on whether Israel’s occupation of the West Bank should be considered de facto annexation. 

Sub-Saharan Africa

Kenyans will be able to visit South Africa (AP) without visas for up to ninety days per year under the new deal, which was announced during South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s first official visit to Kenya.

Ghana: Twitter reportedly fired all but one staff member in Ghana (Africanews, CNN), where it operates its only Africa office, amid a series of global layoffs.

Europe

The countries will seek to jointly invest in research (FT) on a range of topics, including quantum technology, medicine, and artificial intelligence. Both have been blocked from joining the European Union’s scientific research partnership, Horizon Europe, over disputes with Brussels.

Americas

The countries announced the start of negotiations (Reuters) yesterday. Earlier this week, a court in El Salvador upheld the suspension of the country’s free trade agreement with Taiwan; China’s ambassador to El Salvador celebrated the decision. 

This Backgrounder unpacks China’s growing influence in Latin America.

U.S./Cuba: Officials from both countries met in Havana (AP) to talk about expanding U.S. consular and visa services.

United States

With over 98 percent of votes counted, Democrat Raphael Warnock was leading Republican Herschel Walker (WaPo) but still fell short of the 50 percent of votes needed to avoid a runoff on December 6. Control of the U.S. Senate still remains unclear following Tuesday’s midterm elections. 

COP27

The heads of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank signaled they could consider (NYT) Barbados’s proposals to expand lending for climate spending by poor countries. The proposals include issuing $650 billion (The Guardian) of the IMF’s special reserve currency for emissions mitigation spending, offering poor countries lower interest rates, and allowing them to pause debt payments after disasters.   

The Climate TRACE coalition and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore unveiled a tool (UN News) at COP27 that uses satellite data and artificial intelligence to track greenhouse gas emissions. The coalition said emissions from oil and gas production could be three times higher than what is reported to UN authorities.

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