WORLD BRIEFING: July 11, 2024
After decades of viewing China as a distant threat, NATO on Wednesday accused Beijing of becoming “a decisive enabler of Russia’s war against Ukraine,” and demanded that it halt shipments of “weapons components” and other technology critical to the rebuilding of the Russian military. The statement is contained in a declaration approved by the 32 leaders of the alliance, shortly before they headed to a dinner at the White House on Wednesday night. It is a major departure for NATO, which until 2019 never officially mentioned China as a concern, and then only in the blandest of language. Now, for the first time, the alliance has joined in Washington’s denunciations of China’s military support for Russia. But the declaration contains an implicit threat that China’s growing support for Russia will come at a cost. China “cannot enable the largest war in Europe in recent history without this negatively impacting its interests and reputation,” the declaration said, particularly calling out “its large-scale support for Russia’s defense industrial base.” - NYT
Nato members have pledged their support for an "irreversible path" to future membership for Ukraine, as well as more aid. While a formal timeline for it to join the military alliance was not agreed at a summit in Washington DC, the military alliance's 32 members said they had "unwavering" support for Ukraine's war effort. Nato has also announced further integration with Ukraine's military and members have committed €40bn ($43.3bn, £33.7bn) in aid in the next year, including F-16 fighter jets and air defence support. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed US-built F-16 jets are in the process of being transferred to Ukraine from Denmark and the Netherlands. It will be the first time Ukraine has received the advanced aircraft, something which Kyiv has long called for. Mr Blinken told the summit the jets will be in use "this summer" - BBC
Oscar-winning actor George Clooney called on President Biden to end his campaign for re-election Wednesday, saying the 81-year-old incumbent “cannot win.” Clooney made the call for a new candidate in an op-ed published in The New York Times, less than a month after he co-hosted a Biden fundraiser that raised some $30 million. However, the receipts were overshadowed by Biden freezing up during the event and having to be escorted offstage by former President Barack Obama. - NY Post
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrapped up a high-stakes visit to Moscow on July 9 -- his first to Russia since 2019 -- that highlighted the fine line New Delhi treads as it bolsters relations with Russia while courting closer ties with the West. On the second and final day of Modi’s visit to the Russian capital, India and Russia set out nine key areas for closer cooperation, ranging from nuclear energy to medicine, with officials from both sides saying they aimed to boost bilateral trade by more than half to hit $100 billion by 2030. While the 22nd India-Russia annual summit focused on bilateral cooperation, it took place against the backdrop of wider geopolitical turmoil sparked by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The meeting in Moscow on July 9 also coincided with the opening of a high-profile summit of NATO leaders in Washington, as well as the Russian bombing of a children’s hospital in Kyiv. Modi did appear to reference that attack in comments to Putin on July 9, saying that "when innocent children are murdered, one sees them die, the heart pains and that pain is unbearable." - RFE/RL
A court in the United Arab Emirates has handed life sentences to 43 activists after finding them guilty of terror offences. State media said the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal convicted the defendants of "creating a terrorist organisation". United Nations experts and human rights groups have severely criticised the mass trial. Human Rights Watch (HRW) said more than 80 human rights defenders and political dissidents - known as the "UAE 84" - were put on trial. - BBC
Police in Iran shut down the Turkish Airlines office in the capital of Tehran after female employees there apparently refused to wear the mandatory headscarf, or hijab, in an act of defiance of the country’s law. The semi-official Tasnim news agency said police officers went to the Turkish Airlines office in Tehran on Monday to issue what is called a first warning over the “non-observance of hijab” by the company's employees. However, the employees — who are Iranian nationals — reportedly “made trouble for the police officers,” prompting the closure. The Tasnim report said police subsequently sealed the office over the employees’ behavior. - ABC News
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