German Migrant Camps | Malaysia PM Arrested | Iran Rally Arrests

Council on Foreign Relations Newsletter If you are unable to see the message below, click here to view. July 3, 2018 Daily News Brief   TOP OF THE AGENDA Merkel Staves Off Government Collapse With Migration Agreement Editor’s note: There will be no Daily Brief on Wednesday, July 4, for Independence Day. German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed to set up border holding camps for asylum seekers in a deal that could stave off a collapse of her government (NYT) but puts her legacy of welcoming refugees and preserving open borders on the line. The deal, between Merkel’s Christian Democrats and their Bavarian sister party, calls for asylum seekers in Germany who have registered in another EU country (FT) to be held in transit camps along the southern border with Austria until authorities can return them (Guardian). Interior Minister Horst Seehofer had called for those asylum seekers to be immediately turned away, threatening to resign over the issue. The new policy must still be approved by the Social Democrats, who are also part of Merkel’s coalition. ANALYSIS "It’s not clear if Merkel’s other coalition partner, the Social Democrats, will go along with the compromise. The party already rejected a similar proposal that Merkel suggested some time ago," Judy Dempsey writes for Carnegie Europe. "Current events in Germany span well beyond what might become the swansong of a still-powerful leader. They illustrate the frontlines in a major battle over identity, and the future orientation of the federal republic’s party system," Almut Moller writes for the European Council on Foreign Relations. "Immigration has remained a hot-button issue across Europe, owing to the shock of the initial refugee crisis, which still reverberates in voters’ minds. Politics is about perceptions, not raw numbers," Carl Bildt writes for Project Syndicate. PACIFIC RIM Former Malaysia PM Arrested on Corruption Charges Former Prime Minister Najib Razak was arrested by anti-corruption officials (Nikkei) and is expected to be charged on Wednesday (Star) over allegations that he misused money in a state development fund. AUSTRALIA: Archbishop Philip Edward Wilson of Adelaide was sentenced to a year of home detention (SMH) for failing to report child sexual abuse to police. He is the most senior Catholic official to be convicted of such crimes. SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA India Says It Has Backup for Iranian Oil Indian Oil Corp. Chairman Sanjiv Singh says the country has a “very wide crude basket” to draw on if oil from Iran is blocked due to U.S. sanctions (Bloomberg). The state-run refinery is one of Iran's biggest oil purchasers. CFR's Amy Myers Jaffe discusses the geopolitics of Iranian oil. SRI LANKA: Sri Lanka is moving a naval base to the Hambantota port (Reuters), which is under a ninety-nine-year lease to China Merchants Port Holdings, officials said Monday. The prime minister's office denied speculation that the move could lead to China using the port for military purposes. MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA Sharp Uptick in Mediterranean Migrant Crossings The death toll of migrants crossing the Mediterranean from Libya spiked as people rushed to reach Europe before an expected crackdown by EU authorities (Reuters), the International Organization for Migration said. In total, this year’s death toll has surpassed one thousand. JORDAN: Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi is traveling to Moscow to discuss a Syrian government–led offensive in the country’s south. Tens of thousands of Syrians have been displaced by recent fighting near the closed Jordanian border (AP). SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA Macron Meets African Heads of State French President Emmanuel Macron met heads of state from the countries that make up the newly formed G5 Sahel regional force (AP), tasked with fighting organized crime and terrorist groups in the region, at the African Union summit in Mauritania. Macron is next expected in Nigeria to discuss security with President Muhammadu Buhari (Vanguard). ZIMBABWE: The U.S. Agency for International Development has reduced funds for three Zimbabwean civil society groups (AFP) ahead of July elections, citing possible misuse. In Foreign Affairs, John Rapley examines Zimbabwe’s post-Mugabe era. EUROPE Four Arrested in Plot Against Iranian Exile Group The suspects, including an Iranian diplomat (Guardian), were arrested in what Belgian authorities said was a foiled attempt to bomb a rally of Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), which advocates the overthrow of the Iranian government, in France this weekend. President Trump's personal lawyer Rudolph Giuliani and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich both addressed the group (NYT). AMERICAS Mexico’s President-Elect Says Trump Call ‘Respectful’ President Trump said he spoke with the leftist president-elect, Andres Lopez Manuel Obrador, for thirty minutes on Monday about border security and trade (NPR). CFR's Shannon K. O'Neil discusses the future of Mexican democracy.  NICARAGUA: Envoys from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights arrived in Managua on Monday to assemble a multinational panel of experts (DW) that will investigate violence amid anti-government demonstrations that began in April. UNITED STATES Former Ambassadors Call to Restore Palestinian Aid Seven former U.S. ambassadors to the United Nations called on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to restore U.S. funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency, which provides health care, education, and food to Palestinian refugees (Reuters). The letter’s signers have served both Democratic and Republican administrations.         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: July 03, 2018 at 10:05PM