UK Gives Russia Ultimatum on Nerve Agent Attack
Council on Foreign Relations Newsletter If you are unable to see the message below, click here to view. March 13, 2018 Daily News Brief TOP OF THE AGENDA UK Gives Russia Ultimatum on Nerve Agent Attack The United Kingdom gave Russia a midnight deadline (Guardian) to explain the use of a Russian-made nerve agent in an attack on a Russian double agent and his daughter in the city of Salisbury last week. Leaders from NATO and the United States expressed support for the UK position, with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson saying there should be consequences for what he called an "egregious act [that] clearly came from Russia" (BBC). UK Prime Minister Theresa May accused Moscow of "indiscriminate and reckless" use of a nerve agent that could constitute an "unlawful use of force" (FT) against Britain. A Russian foreign ministry spokesperson dismissed the accusations as a provocative "information and political campaign." ANALYSIS "It was widely assumed, not least in Moscow, that Brexit Britain would be eager to reassert its status as the major offshore centre for Russian business. But that is an honour that Britain may now be willing to forgo," Gideon Rachman writes for the Financial Times. "The other alternative outlined—that Russia had manufactured a large volume of nerve agents now turning up abroad without the knowledge or control of the Kremlin—would be a different kind of problem, and plenty horrible in its own way," Kathy Gilsinan and Yasmeen Serhan write for the Atlantic. "This was Theresa May at her most impressive. Tough, but the right side of hawkish," John Crace writes for the Guardian. UNITED STATES Rex Tillerson to Step Down President Donald J. Trump announced on Tuesday that CIA Director Mike Pompeo will replace Rex Tillerson as secretary of state (Guardian). Tillerson had returned to Washington on Monday after cutting a week-long trip to African countries short (VOA). The Trump administration blocked a $142 billion bid by the Singapore-based chip company Broadcom to buy rival Qualcomm (FT), saying the move carried national security risks. PACIFIC RIM China Sets Out to Revamp Administration Beijing announced its most significant reorganization of ministries in recent years, including a merger of two major financial regulatory bodies (Nikkei) and the creation of a new anticorruption commission. Lawmakers are expected to vote on the proposal on Saturday. Andrew Gilholm discusses China's new tool to fight corruption in Foreign Affairs. NEW ZEALAND: The ruling Labor Party is under fire following revelations that three children were molested (NZ Herald) by a man at a party retreat last month and party officials did not report the incident to police (NYT). SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA Mattis, in Kabul, Backs Taliban Reconciliation On an unannounced visit to Afghanistan, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis expressed support for President Ashraf Ghani's call for the Taliban to become a political organization (RFE/RL) and join peace talks, stating that "victory will be a political reconciliation" (Tolo). CFR's Courtney Cooper writes that now is the time to talk to the Taliban. NEPAL: At least forty-nine people were killed and twenty-two were hospitalized after a Bangladeshi airliner crash-landed in Kathmandu (Guardian). MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA Russia Responds to U.S. Threat on Syria The chief of staff for Russia's armed forces said Moscow will "take retaliatory measures" if any Russian soldiers in Syria (FT) are threatened by the United States. The comment comes after U.S. envoy to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Washington is "prepared to act" unilaterally (RFE/RL) to stop attacks by the Syrian regime on its own people. PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES: Five people were injured when an explosive went off as a convoy carrying Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah entered the Gaza Strip (Al Jazeera) through an Israeli checkpoint. SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA Thousands in Ethiopia Flee to Kenya The Red Cross in Kenya said some two thousand asylum seekers (Addis Standard) from the Ethiopian town of Moyale arrived in the country after the military killed at least nine civilians during an anti-rebel operation on Saturday. Several soldiers were suspended following the incident (BBC). NIGERIA: A senator from the ruling All Progressives Congress party said that he and his fellow lawmakers receive about $37,500 monthly for personal expenses (BBC). He said he was revealing the information because he considers it "a moral issue." EUROPE Pressure Mounts on Slovak Government The interior minister announced his resignation on Monday following weeks of anti-government protests sparked by the death of an investigative journalist (DW). AMERICAS Colombia to Resume ELN Peace Talks President Juan Manuel Santos and representatives from the National Liberation Army (ELN), the country's last major guerrilla group, announced envoys from both sides will return to the capital for peace talks (Colombia Reports) that were suspended in January following rebel attacks on police. CHILE: Emilia Nuyado and Aracely Leuquen, the first women from the indigenous Mapuche community (BBC) to be elected to Congress, cast their first votes as lawmakers on Sunday. Council on Foreign Relations — 58 East 68th Street — New York, NY 10065 CFR does not share email addresses with third parties. Forward This Email | Subscribe to CFR Newsletters | Unsubscribe - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
From: dailybrief@e.cfr.org
Date: March 13, 2018 at 10:11PM
