Macron Visits U.S. | Inspectors in Douma | Armenian Leader Resigns

Council on Foreign Relations Newsletter If you are unable to see the message below, click here to view. April 23, 2018 Daily News Brief   TOP OF THE AGENDA Macron Defends Iran Deal on U.S. Visit French President Emmanuel Macron told U.S. media that there is no plan B for the Iran nuclear agreement as he began a three-day visit to the United States, where he will advocate for the Trump administration (France 24) to stay in the pact. In the Sunday interview, Macron called the 2015 deal "better than a North Korean type of situation." The French leader also defended U.S. military action in Syria, calling Washington "a player of last resorts for peace and multilateralism." The comments came ahead of his trip, the first state visit of the Trump presidency (NPR), which will include an address to Congress (VOA) on Wednesday. ANALYSIS "The Macron-Trump relationship has flourished while other traditional U.S. allies appeared weakened: Germany during its long wait to form a government and the UK where Theresa May has not capitalised on the traditional London-Washington 'special relationship'," Angelique Chrisafis writes for the Guardian. "The two presidents have developed a real personal connection, sharing similarities in their accession to power—two outsiders vanquishing the political establishment, two disruptive personalities who relish transgression—and in their direct, blunt talk," Celia Belin writes for Foreign Affairs. "France and the United States have found themselves on the same page when it comes to terrorism and working closely together on the problems in North Africa, as well as in the Middle East," Alissa J. Rubin and Adam Nossiter write for the New York Times. Iranian Foreign Minister Speaks at CFR Mohammad Javad Zarif discusses U.S.-Iran relations, regional politics in the Middle East, and the future of the Iran nuclear deal. Watch today at 6:00 p.m. (EDT).   PACIFIC RIM Chinese Tourists Killed in North Korea Bus Crash China's foreign ministry said thirty-two Chinese nationals died (AFP) in the accident on Sunday south of Pyongyang; four North Koreans were also killed. Tens of thousands of Chinese tourists visit the country each year. SOUTH KOREA: South Korea's defense ministry halted anti–North Korean loudspeaker broadcasts at the border to "alleviate tension" ahead of a Friday summit (Korea Times) between the countries' leaders. Victor D. Cha and Mike G. Mullen examined nonproliferation efforts on the Korean Peninsula at this CFR event. SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA Dozens Killed in Attack on Kabul Voter Center The self-proclaimed Islamic State claimed responsibility for the Sunday attack (RFE/RL) outside a voter registration center in a predominantly Shia neighborhood of Kabul. The attack was the fifth against such centers (Tolo) in a week. INDIA: India's cabinet approved an executive order to allow the death penalty for anyone convicted of rape of girls under twelve (Reuters) and increased jail time for sexual assault of girls under sixteen. MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA Inspectors Enter Suspected Attack Site in Syria International chemical weapons inspectors reached the city of Douma, the site of a suspected chemical weapons attack by the Syrian regime, nearly two weeks after the attack was reported. Experts say the team could likely still detect if such an attack took place (NBC), though evidence could have been tampered with over that time. CFR's Lori Esposito Murray discusses whether Syria's chemical weapons use can be stopped. MIDDLE EAST: A spokesman for the Islamic State called for attacks against leaders of Arab countries (NYT), including Saudi Arabia and Iran, saying there is no difference between fighting them and fighting "their American Crusader allies," Russians, or Europeans. SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA Israeli Minister Visits Jews in Ethiopia Israel's justice minister, on a visit to a synagogue in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, vowed to do "everything within my power" to assist Ethiopian Jews who seek to reunite with their families in Israel (AP). The Israeli government does not automatically recognize Ethiopian Jews under its Law of Return. MADAGASCAR: Two people were killed and sixteen injured as security forces clashed with protesters in the capital city of Antananarivo (AFP) over proposed changes to electoral laws, which opposition demonstrators say are designed to keep their candidate out of the race. EUROPE Armenian PM Resigns Following Protests Newly appointed Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan announced his resignation on Monday (Al Jazeera) following days of street protests. Demonstrators accused Sargsyan, who served as president for ten years, of corruption and authoritarianism. FRANCE: Lawmakers backed a contentious immigration bill that would toughen rules on asylum seekers, including a provision that would allow child migrants to be held in detention centers (EUobserver) for up to ninety days. The Senate will debate the legislation in June (France 24). EU: The European Union and Mexico signed a new free trade deal (Reuters) on Saturday. The EU is also set to soon host trade talks with the South American bloc Mercosur. AMERICAS Paraguay Election Shows Rightward Shift Electoral officials declared Mario Abdo Benitez (LAHT), a conservative lawmaker from the ruling Colorado Party, the winner of a Sunday presidential election with 96 percent of votes counted. Benitez's father was a top aide to Alfredo Stroessner, Paraguay's military dictator (NYT) for more than three decades. BRAZIL: Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht is due to make a $147 million bond payment (FT) this week as it seeks to show investors it is pulling through a massive corruption scandal that crippled the company. Michael J. Camilleri writes in Foreign Affairs that corruption scandals in Latin America are fueling antiestablishment fervor. UNITED STATES Supreme Court to Hear Travel Ban Case The Supreme Court will hear arguments on Wednesday over a third iteration of the Trump administration's travel ban (WaPo) on a group of mostly Muslim-majority countries.         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: April 23, 2018 at 10:08PM