Defining Denuclearization | An Ethiopian Navy? | Antarctica's Melting Ice

Council on Foreign Relations Newsletter If you are unable to see the message below, click here to view. June 14, 2018 Daily News Brief   TOP OF THE AGENDA U.S. Outlines North Korean Sanctions Relief Conditions U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said North Korea will not receive sanctions relief until it demonstrates it has achieved complete denuclearization. He also noted that the use of the term “complete” in an agreement between U.S. President Donald J. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un implies Pyongyang’s dismantling of its nuclear program must be verifiable and irreversible. The top U.S. diplomat made the comments (Korea Times) after meeting with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts in Seoul. Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono said that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is seeking his own summit with Kim (Nikkei) to discuss Japanese abductees in North Korea and that peace in the region (NYT) would only happen if “all weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles” belonging to the North are destroyed. ANALYSIS “[South Korean President Moon Jae-in] was probably more comfortable with the vague language about peacebuilding and a new relationship than some of the people in the U.S. were [because] he’s of the philosophy as well that you need to slowly build trust with North Korea in order to encourage it to let go of its weapons,” said CFR’s Patricia M. Kim. “Trump faces a huge challenge in selling a turn in U.S.-North Korea relations as an historic accomplishment. The best way to do that will be for Pompeo and his team to roll up their sleeves and get back to work, together with our allies, to make a real peace on the Korean Peninsula,” writes CFR’s Scott A. Snyder. “North Korea’s definition of denuclearization is vague and often includes references to U.S. nuclear weapons in the region. Though the United States removed the last of its nuclear weapons based in South Korea in the early 1990s, the country remains under the protection of the U.S. nuclear arsenal,” Kelsey Davenport writes for Time. PACIFIC RIM Cambodia Rebukes U.S. Sanctions on General The foreign affairs ministry condemned new U.S. sanctions (VOA) on General Hing Bun Heang, head of Prime Minister Hun Sen’s bodyguard unit, over human rights abuses, saying the move is based on “groundless accounts” (Phnom Penh Post). SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA Dozens Killed in Afghanistan Despite Cease-Fire At least thirty government forces across six Afghan provinces were reported killed yesterday as a government cease-fire with the Taliban began (Tolo). An Interior Ministry spokesperson said security forces were defending against militant attacks. This CFR event looked at U.S. strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan. INDIA: The foreign ministry called a new UN report (PTI) on human rights violations in Kashmir “overtly prejudiced” for its accusation that Indian forces in the disputed territory killed and wounded civilians (Reuters) through excessive use of force. MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA Syria’s Assad Aims to Keep Hezbollah, Iran Support President Bashar al-Assad said his government will need support from the Lebanon-based party and militant group Hezbollah “for a long time” as it seeks to retake rebel-held territory and that it would not hesitate to provide Iran military bases in Syria (RFE/RL) if requested. This CFR panel examined Iranian influence in Iraq, Syria, and the Gulf. TUNISIA: The International Monetary Fund predicted growth of 2.4 percent (Asharq al-Awsat) for Tunisia this year due to expected boosts in tourism and manufacturing, as well as a strong agricultural season. The fund recently approved a $500 million loan to the country, the central bank’s governor said. SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA Ethiopia’s Abiy Suggests New Navy Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said his landlocked country should look to build up its naval force (BBC), more than two decades after Ethiopia lost its coastline to Eritrea and disbanded its navy. The country recently reached a deal for a stake in the Port of Djibouti, the gateway for the vast majority of its foreign trade. SOUTH AFRICA: Two people were killed in a knife attack (SABC) at a mosque outside Cape Town early today. The assault follows one at a mosque in KwaZulu-Natal Province last month, in which one person died. EUROPE 2018 World Cup Kicks Off in Moscow The international soccer tournament, including teams from thirty-two countries, began in the Russian capital today (TASS). A total of sixty-four matches are set to take place in eleven Russian cities over the next month. SPAIN: Inaki Urdangarin, brother-in-law of King Felipe VI, was ordered to report for a prison sentence within five days of the supreme court upholding a fraud conviction (NYT) against him this week. AMERICAS Haiti Shutters Oxfam Operation Oxfam’s UK branch is being stripped of its status (Reuters) as a nongovernmental organization, the government said yesterday, for violating Haitian law and the principle of human dignity. The move comes after employees of the charity were charged with sexual misconduct while working in Haiti. CHILE: Police raided Catholic church offices (NYT) in two cities yesterday to search for evidence related to allegations of sexual abuse by members of the clergy. UNITED STATES Californians to Vote on Splitting Up Their State State election officials in California said a proposal to split the state (VOA), the country’s most populous, into three had garnered enough support to be included on ballots in November midterm elections. GLOBAL Antarctica’s Ice Loss Tripled in Last Decade Melted ice from Antarctica is dumping two hundred billion tons of water (WaPo) into the ocean and raising global sea levels by a half-millimeter each year, according to a new report in the journal Nature. In Foreign Affairs, Joshua Busby writes that climate change will soon cease to be a faraway threat.         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: June 14, 2018 at 10:09PM