Today In Issues:
FDD Research & Analysis
The Must-Reads
Iran accuses U.S. Navy of defending fuel smuggling in Gulf incident US intelligence assessment says Iran not currently developing nuclear weapons Iran’s president setting out on rare Africa tour in bid to reduce Tehran’s isolation U.S. ambassador warned Israel against ‘going off the rails’ with judicial overhaul JPost’s Editorial: Biden warns against 'extreme' members in Israeli gov't Israel asks Lebanon to remove militant Hezbollah tent from tense border area JPost’s Seth J. Frantzman: Hezbollah seeks to stoke tensions with Israel over Ghajar Syrian Kurdish fighters kill at least 5 Turkey-backed gunmen in nighttime attack, activists say Washington Examiner’s Tom Rogan: Sweden belongs in NATO; Turkey doesn't belong in the EU North Korea accuses U.S. of repeatedly entering its economic zone Indonesia seizes Iranian-flagged tanker suspected of illegal oil transfer Turkey agrees to allow Sweden to join NATOIn The News
Iran
An Iranian Revolutionary Guards Commander accused the U.S. Navy on Monday of defending fuel smuggling in the Gulf by trying to interfere when Iran intercepted a ship last week. – Reuters
A U.S. intelligence assessment says Iran is not pursuing nuclear weapons at the moment but has ramped up activities that could help it develop them. The assessment from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released Monday says Iran has moved to increase its capacity to produce an atomic bomb since 2020 but has stopped short of that so far. – Associated Press
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will embark Tuesday on a rare Africa tour in the latest diplomatic efforts to reduce the Islamic Republic’s isolation by forging new alliances. – Agence France-Presse
Israel has set its foreign policy objectives based primarily on its battle to halt Iran’s nuclear weapons program and regional aggression, National Security Advisor Tzahi Hanegbi said on Monday. – Jerusalem Post
Rachel Avraham writes: It was recently revealed in the European Parliament that Iranian state media routinely refers to Azerbaijanis as insects. This report comes after it was reported that Iran is holding an Azerbaijani woman Valida Yusifova in its custody, where she is presently being tortured and exposed to other cruel treatment. This comes after another Azerbaijani student Farid Safarli was imprisoned in Iran on trumped up charges, And Iran attempted to assassinate Azerbaijani MP Fazil Mustafa and Iran attacked the Azerbaijani Embassy in Tehran on International Holocaust Memorial Day, killing a security guard. – Arutz Sheva
Russia & Ukraine
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and his lieutenants met with Russian President Vladimir Putin days after the group’s short-lived revolt against Moscow, according to the Kremlin, a sign that the paramilitary chief and his forces remain important players in Russian security and politics. – Wall Street Journal
President Biden kicked off his high-stakes visit to Europe with a quick stop in London to meet Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, where the two leaders emphasized the importance of supporting Ukraine and bolstering a show of unity ahead of a NATO summit that is expected to be rife with divisions over how allied nations should support Kyiv against Moscow. – Washington Post
As rebellious Wagner forces drove north toward Moscow on June 24, a contingent of military vehicles diverted east on a highway in the direction of a fortified Russian army base that holds nuclear weapons, according to videos posted online and interviews with local residents. – Reuters
NATO members sought to overcome divisions over how to put Ukraine on a path to membership on the eve of Tuesday’s start to a summit in Lithuania, apparently removing one hurdle to Kyiv joining the alliance. – Reuters
Russia launched 28 kamikaze drones on the southern port of Odesa and Kyiv in early hours on Tuesday, Ukraine’s military said, just hours before the start of a NATO summit in Lithuania that will focus on how to tackle security threats from Moscow. – Reuters
Ukraine’s largest Western allies are still finalising a joint framework that would pave the way for long-term security assurances for Kyiv, and may wait until the end of a NATO summit this week to announce them, European diplomats say. – Reuters
James D. Zirin writes: The ball is now in the court of the international community. The crime of aggression is quite clear. Prosecuting Putin for aggression would not only hold the Russian president accountable under international law, but represent a stark deterrent to other leaders. In London, the mindset is that this is Adolf Hitler in 1939 all over again. – The Hill
Harlan Ullman writes: Further, Putin’s threat to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus could have been a precursor for this scenario. With nuclear weapons present in Belarus, would NATO be prevented from taking strong retaliatory action? And do not foreclose Putin engineering some crisis to disrupt the summit. – The Hill
Dalibor Rohac writes: By now, it should be obvious that Ukraine will not be overrun by Russian tanks. The question facing leaders of Nato countries meeting in Vilnius is not whether the alliance should take on yet another source of future liabilities, but rather how much influence the West wants to have over the future of populous, well-armed, and increasingly assertive country in Europe’s dangerous Eastern borderlands. The wise, prudent choice is to bring it to the fold, not give it the cold shoulder. – The Spectator
Giselle Donnelly writes: The NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 11 and 12 was intended to be a celebration of alliance revival, with new members and updated defense plans. But the difficulty of ensuring Sweden’s accession and anxiety over the pace of progress in Ukraine threaten to make the affair much more sober and somber. That, finally, is the type of mentality necessary for victory. – The Bulwark
David Albright, Sarah Burkhard, and Spencer Faragasso write: The vast majority of countries have a vested interest in halting the flow of strategic commodities to Russia critical to its aggressive and illegal war effort. This study shows that there is much work to do to thwart Russia, but the mature trade control systems in many like-minded states provide a sound basis to create tools to act effectively against this new Russian threat to the system of international trade and security. At the same time, these like-minded countries can press countries with inadequate strategic export controls systems to both improve them and participate more actively in thwarting Russia’s illicit trade. – Institute for Science and International Security
Israel
The Biden administration is trying to stop Israel from “going off the rails” with a rushed overhaul of its judicial system, the departing U.S. ambassador to Israel said, as the government here revives the legislation and mass protests intensify again. – Wall Street Journal
Israeli troops shot and killed an alleged Palestinian gunman during new unrest in the West Bank Monday, as a wave of violence in the occupied territory showed no signs of slowing. – Associated Press
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s parliamentary coalition gave initial approval early Tuesday to a contentious bill to limit the Supreme Court’s oversight powers, pressing forward with a judicial overhaul plan that has polarized Israel. – Associated Press
A Spanish judge probing the alleged hacking of ministers’ phones with Pegasus spyware has shelved his investigation over a “complete” lack of cooperation from Israel, a court statement said Monday. – Agence France-Presse
When President Biden arrives in Lithuania for this week’s NATO summit, critics no doubt will rebuke his decision to transfer “banned” cluster munitions to Ukraine. Yet any criticism will pale in comparison to the universal fury at Israel’s use of that weapon in 2006. – New York Sun
An attack that was thwarted on Monday morning against a foreign embassy in Azerbaijan is being investigated as a terrorist incident which targeted the Israeli embassy, local media reported. – Arutz Sheva
Prime Minister Netanyahu intends to distance Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir from any involvement in the issue of possible concessions for the Palestinians as part of the cabinet’s decision to prevent the collapse of the Palestinian Authority, according to Army Radio. – Arutz Sheva
Senior officials from the Palestinian Authority met today, with Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh once again rejecting Israel’s demands in return for measures preventing its immediate collapse. – Arutz Sheva
It has been cleared for publication that in a joint operation by the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and the Northern District Police General Unit, three men from Nazareth were arrested on suspicion they supported the Hamas terror organization and intended to carry out terror activity inspired by the group. – Arutz Sheva
The Palestinian Authority has reportedly threatened to take measures against the Qatari TV network Al Jazeera over its “unbalanced” coverage of Palestinian affairs, especially the Israeli military operation in Jenin Refugee Camp. – Jerusalem Post
The UN official tasked with examining Israel’s policies in the West Bank and Gaza presented in Geneva on Monday a scathing report accusing the Jewish state of collectively imprisoning the Palestinians, sexually abusing Palestinian women, and “challenging the very foundations of the international legal order.” – Times of Israel
Editorial: While Israel is entitled to determine its own domestic policy, the government must take into consideration the broader international ramifications of its actions. Israel’s ties with the US are a key strategic interest. Nothing should be done to undermine them. – Jerusalem Post
Yaron Schwartz writes: International leaders and many journalists, however, tend to create artificial symmetry between the IDF and Palestinian terrorists, inadvertently rewarding the latter for their heinous crimes. There is no justification for drawing any moral parallels between the IDF and the terrorists. Such comparisons are fundamentally flawed and must be rejected outright. Period. – Jerusalem Post
Alan Baker writes: Such hypocrisy and double standards damage the credibility of such bodies and place in question the selective and biased reliance by such bodies and leaders on international law. As such, they achieve nothing but to encourage and close a blind eye to a Palestinian terror apparatus supported and encouraged by Iran, and encourage it to continue to harm Israel, knowing that the international community really couldn’t care less. – Jerusalem Post
Hezbollah
The commander of the U.N. peacekeeping force deployed on the tense Lebanon-Israel border relayed Monday an Israeli request to remove a tent set up by the militant Hezbollah group in a disputed area. – Associated Press
Seth J. Frantzman writes: This is now both a cause célèbre and casus belli for Lebanon and Hezbollah. As with the maritime issue, they work in concert to create new demands and then claim that if the demands are not met, they have the right to tensions. Hezbollah has already done this through its tents on Mount Dov, creating facts on the ground and a kind of legitimized institutional presence to then “return” to if they are removed. – Jerusalem Post
Tal Be’eri writes: Hezbollah exploits the resources and capabilities provided by the United States and Western nations as aid to the Lebanese army. Hezbollah utilizes the Lebanese army’s communications antennas and radars. Hezbollah recruited officers from the Lebanese Air Force and Navy in order to gain access to military radars provided, among other things, by the United States to the Lebanese army. […]Hezbollah is aiming to build a “parallel airport” that will serve it without interference from outside sources. – Arutz Sheva
Rany Ballout writes: By producing materials that heavily demonize the Lebanese military and security apparatus while promoting a pro-Hezbollah geopolitical and security narrative, Al-Mahatta seeks to portray Hezbollah’s moral superiority within the complex security dynamics in Lebanon, which involve the coexistence between Hezbollah, the LAF, and Lebanese security forces. Policymakers in both Beirut and the West ought to consider what such propaganda campaigns masking as “alternative” news outlets can mean for policymaking. – The National Interest
Afghanistan
Australia’s most decorated living war veteran lodged an appeal on Tuesday against a civil court defamation ruling that found he played a part in the murder of four Afghans while serving in Afghanistan, court records showed. – Reuters
The Taliban administration said on Tuesday all activities by Sweden in Afghanistan must stop after the burning of the Koran outside a mosque in the Swedish capital last month. – Reuters
Malaina Kapoor writes: Today there are echoes of Sola’s story in the story of every young Afghan woman. But these women are rapidly losing even the small freedoms that Sola once cherished. Through bans and decrees, the Taliban are posing a dire question: When you take away a woman’s job, her education and her smallest freedoms, does she have anything left? – Wall Street Journal
Henry Olsen writes: In this emergent world, spending tens of billions a year to support thousands of U.S. soldiers fighting in an isolated location was simply a bad idea. No one should be proud of how we left Afghanistan. But leaving it, the better to resist the challenges from our most dangerous foes, was the right call. – Washington Post
Syria
Syrian Kurdish fighters carried out an attack early Monday in northern Syria, killing at least five members of Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces, activists said. – Associated Press
Car bombs killed at least eight people including three children in two separate incidents Sunday in northern Syria, a war monitor said. One blast hit a car repair shop in Shawa, a village near the Turkish border held by pro-Ankara fighters, residents told AFP. – Agence France-Presse
U.N. Security Council approval for aid deliveries to several million people in rebel-held Syria from Turkey is set to expire on Monday as council members struggled to convince Russia to extend the massive U.N. operation for more than six months. – Reuters
Turkey
U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez on Monday said there was a temporary “lull” in Turkey’s “aggression against its neighbors” and said he is in talks with the Biden administration about the hold he has on future U.S. sales of F-16 fighter jets to Ankara. – Reuters
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin discussed support for Turkey’s military modernization during a call with his Turkish counterpart, according to a U.S. readout released late on Monday after Turkey said it would back Sweden’s NATO accession. – Reuters
Hungary’s farm minister will go to Turkey on Tuesday for talks with his Turkish counterpart about extending the deal that allows Ukraine to export grain from its Black Sea ports, the minister said on Facebook. – Reuters
Tom Rogan writes: Fortunately, this Sweden-Turkey agreement does not require Turkey’s EU admittance, only that Sweden supports Ankara’s application. That means Sweden can now join NATO, as should be the case, and that Turkey will be prevented from joining the EU by other EU members. As also should be the case. – Washington Examiner
Krzysztof Strachota writes: In this context, it seems reasonable for the West to return to a dialogue with Turkey on South Caucasus issues — indeed, such a cooperative partnership was an essential element of the successes of Western policy toward the region in the early years after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Today, a renewed dialogue with Turkey would be an opportunity to avoid earlier misunderstandings such as over Syria, loosen Turkish-Russian ties, and finally help pull both sides out of their lengthy strategic impasse in relations. – Middle East Institute
Bobby Ghosh writes: At this point, the greatest hurdle to Turkey’s joining the EU is Erdogan himself. Although he occasionally claims that membership remains an objective, his policies have pushed the country farther from the door than at any time in the past 50 years. – Bloomberg
Middle East & North Africa
Sporadic armed clashes between Yemen’s Houthi rebels and government forces are straining peace efforts, and the rivals are now also battling over revenue from ports, trade, banking and natural resources, the country’s U.N. envoy said Monday. – Associated Press
During a meeting between Lebanese representatives and the UN’s UNIFIL force, the Lebanese representatives asked to start a procedure for drawing the land borders with Israel in an agreed upon manner, this after the maritime border was established under the Lapid government. – Arutz Sheva
Firas Maksad writes: President Biden’s personal relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been unsteady at best. A tempered version of what is being negotiated can put this important bilateral relationship on a stable footing and still reshape the Middle East. To succeed, President Biden must set achievable objectives, continue to manage expectations, and clearly communicate to the Saudis what is realistically possible. – Middle East Institute
Seth J. Frantzman writes: This means Russia is looking to the Middle East for new partnerships. France is also expanding ties with the region, it has signed an MOU with Saudi Arabia regarding energy, with a focus on clean energy, according to various reports. – Jerusalem Post
Korean Peninsula
North Korea’s food situation is “still bad” despite an uptick in trade with China, the South’s unification minister, charged with handling relations with its neighbour, said on Monday. – Reuters
North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong Un, on Tuesday accused a U.S. military spy plane of entering the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone eight times, state media KCNA reported. – Reuters
Officials with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) held an unprecedented meeting during Donald Trump’s presidency to discuss what would happen if the U.S. faced a nuclear attack, according to a former administration official, as Trump’s rhetoric against North Korea heightened the possibility of a nuclear strike and reportedly made high-ranking officials “terrified” the president was “welcom[ing]” nuclear war. – Forbes
China
After three years of self-isolation by China, President Biden’s top aides are flying into Beijing throughout the summer to try to convince and cajole Chinese officials, including Xi Jinping, the nation’s leader, on building a new foundation for relations. It could amount to the most consequential diplomatic push of Mr. Biden’s presidency. – New York Times
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen went to Beijing with no expectations that meetings with China’s new top economic officials would immediately ease tensions between the world’s two largest economies. There was no breakthrough. – Reuters
Xia Baolong is the head of China’s recently created Central Office for Hong Kong and Macau Affairs, according to an official statement that showed him as chair of a meeting in that capacity on Tuesday. The Beijing-based Central Office for Hong Kong and Macau Affairs – created earlier this year as part of broad institutional reforms – reports directly to the the ruling Communist Party and not to the State Council, or cabinet. – Reuters
Two Russian warships are now in Shanghai ahead of an at-sea exercise with People’s Liberation Army Navy vessels in the Pacific, according to Chinese state media. – USNI News
Zachary Faria writes: Biden refuses to take the threat of China seriously, instead meekly consenting to global climate demands in hopes that China will decide out of the goodness of their heart to do the same. His entire strategy when it comes to China is concessions and capitulation, all while the Chinese Communist Party seeks to conquer its neighbors and spit in the face of Biden’s cherished climate goals. – Washington Examiner
James David Spellman writes: In the weeks ahead, we’ll see whether there are viable answers to the central question in U.S.-China relations: How can both countries find common areas of limited cooperation and ease tensions amid high-stakes rivalries in national security interests, critical technologies, market access, and ties with developing countries and emerging markets? – The Hill
Matthew Brooker writes: And the impetus for de-risking comes back to this core concern: Ukraine. The “no limits” partnership proclaimed by Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping less than three weeks before the invasion opened European eyes to the Communist Party’s hostility to the existing liberal world order, and its desire to remake it in a fashion more conducive to the interests of authoritarian states. That document cannot be unseen, and has never been repudiated. – Bloomberg
Weilong Kong writes: The war in Ukraine is straining Russia’s defense production, which is having downstream effects on Moscow’s ability to export arms. These challenges might plague Russia for years or even decades to come if the nation needs to reconstitute its military’s inventory after the war. China has the opportunity, the incentive and the capacity to gain from Russia’s losses. As Russia relinquishes more of its share of the global arms market, there is not much standing in the way of China’s success. – Defense News
South Asia
Sri Lanka is likely to discuss energy, power and port projects during a presidential visit to New Delhi next week, the foreign minister said on Monday, as India tries to push forward stalled initiatives with its crisis-hit neighbour. – Reuters
India’s defence ministry on Monday gave its initial approval to buy 26 Rafale fighter aircraft and three Scorpene submarines from France, news agency ANI reported citing sources. – Reuters
Pakistan’s election commission has issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Imran Khan in a contempt case, broadcaster Ary News reported on Tuesday. – Reuters
Asia
Indonesia’s coast guard said on Tuesday it has seized an Iranian-flagged supertanker suspected of involvement in the illegal transshipment of crude oil and vowed to strengthen maritime patrols. – Reuters
China and the Solomon Islands on Monday signed a deal on police cooperation as part of an upgrade of their relations to a “comprehensive strategic partnership”, four years after the Pacific nation switched ties from Taiwan to China. – Reuters
Hong Kong’s leader warned Tuesday that the city will ban marine products from “a large number prefectures” if Japan discharges treated radioactive wastewater into the sea. – Associated Press
Thibault Muzergues writes: There would be little dissent in advocating for a NATO strategy bent on pushing the Russians and Chinese out of the southern as well as the eastern borders of Europe. And considering the crucial commercial link between the Mediterranean and the Indo-Pacific, it would be a way to involve the Europeans, via a more familiar strategic region, in America’s global strategy. For NATO, the Indo-Pacific may not be consensual, but a Med-Indo-Pacific strategy may be a key for Washington to get the Europeans moving. – The National Interest
John Christianson, Sean Monaghan, and Di Cooke write: Above all, the success of AUKUS Pillar Two will depend on turning the strong political will the three partners have so far demonstrated into a new collective mindset. For Pillar Two to succeed, it should be treated as an opportunity to find marginal—or even transformative—gains in the strategic competition with China, rather than as a series of challenges to be overcome through piecemeal changes to, for example, information-sharing policies or more stringent export and technology controls. As Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Jessica Lewis has said, “The success of AUKUS is not predetermined. It must be built.” What happens next will determine whether AUKUS succeeds or “becomes an interesting footnote in the story of what could have been.” – Center for Strategic and International Studies
Europe
Turkey approved Sweden’s bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, paving the way for the alliance to complete a historic expansion launched in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. – Wall Street Journal
The peaceful scene belied the fear among many Finns that despite Russia’s weakened state, this transit point, and their country, could one day become a Russian target. That anxiety prompted Finland to seek membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization last year, a process completed in April when Finland became its 31st member in what Mr. Biden calls a strategic blow for President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia. – New York Times
As defense budgets increase across Europe, capitals across the continent face a difficult choice: whether to spend the money on weapons developed at home or continue buying American. – Wall Street Journal
The Human Rights Council is set to debate a contentious draft proposal on religious hatred in the wake of a Koran burning in Sweden, an initiative that has highlighted rifts in the U.N. body and challenged practices in human rights protection. – Reuters
The U.S. is pushing NATO to the “most unfavourable” confrontation with Moscow with the decisions expected from the alliance’s summit in Lithuania this week, while Kyiv’s allies are “losing” in Ukraine, Russian diplomats said late on Monday. – Reuters
The defense ministers of Germany and France have vowed to put fresh energy behind a bilateral push for a next-generation tank, putting a topic back on the German-Franco work docket that had gone largely silent in recent years. – Defense News
Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Margus Tsahkna, Elina Valtonen, Thordis Kolbrun Reykfjord Gylfadottir, Arturs Krisjanis Karins, Gabrielius Landsbergis, Anniken Huitfeldt, and Tobias Billström write: Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration entails an ambitious endeavor. It is our duty to support Ukraine on its path to a better future for its people. The historic example of successful Nordic-Baltic cooperation is an inspiring precedent and gives us hope. – Washington Post
Tod Lindberg writes: Ukraine, however, has established that it will fight. Not only in self-defense but also for its European aspirations and, by extension, for Europe, its trans-Atlantic partners, and the values they share. Ukraine is already one of NATO’s sharpest teeth in a collective defense arrangement that extends from the Barents Sea to the Black Sea. We just need to complete the paperwork. – Wall Street Journal
Asli Aydintasbas writes: Biden and Erdogan are set to meet face to face in Vilnius, and Erdogan might be invited to the White House later this year. If both Turkey and the West play their cards right, a wider reset could be in the offing. – Washington Post
Grey Anderson and Thomas Meaney write: Stateside, criticism of NATO focuses on the risks of overextending U.S. treaty obligations, not their underlying justification. The most successful alliance in history, gathering in celebration of itself, need not wait for its 75th anniversary next year to uncork the champagne. – New York Times
Tom Rogan writes: It would be unfair to single out Belgium, France, and Germany. Hungarian strongman/Putin-Xi puppet Viktor Orban is a little more than a fifth column against the United States. Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan is similarly happy to weaken the alliance for his own partisan interests. And Canada’s Justin Trudeau has made clear his interest in NATO extends only so far as Canada doesn’t have to invest in it. Fortunately, Lithuania offers a different conception of alliance. NATO and the U.S. are better for it. Should the day ever come when Lithuania is attacked, the U.S. should be unflinching in its direct military support. – Washington Examiner
Gideon Rachman writes: Behind these political facts lies a broader historical reality. Nato came into being in 1949 in the aftermath of the second world war and at the onset of the cold war. The American statesmen who created the alliance had an intellectual and emotional commitment to the defence of Europe that can no longer be taken for granted in Washington. For all their frustrations with the Biden administration, hawkish Europeans should remember that. – Financial Times
Steven Horrell writes: It is a concern that the Vilnius Summit proceedings will not address the need to replace the 2011 Alliance Maritime Strategy. However, work can begin on the numerous naval and maritime measures that will form the building blocks once NATO does get started on a new strategy. – Center for European Policy Analysis
Hal Brands writes: Self-styled realists claim that great powers are all fundamentally the same, in their quest for security and greatness in global affairs. Don’t try that line in Kyiv. Like so many frontline states before it, Ukraine understands there is a vast difference between the American empire and its competitors — the difference between life and death. – Bloomberg
Africa
West African regional bloc ECOWAS has chosen Nigerian President Bola Tinubu as its new chairman at a time of deepening insecurity, including military coups and terrorism, in the region. – Reuters
An eastern African bloc called on Monday for a regional summit to consider deploying troops into Sudan to protect civilians, after nearly three months of violence between the army and a paramilitary faction. – Reuters
A United Nations peacekeeper from Rwanda was killed on Monday in an attack on their patrol in northeast Central African Republic (CAR), the U.N. said. – Reuters
Sudan appears to be in a civil war “of the most brutal kind” and the world needs a new forum for talks in pursuit of a cease-fire, the United Nations humanitarian chief told The Associated Press on Monday. – Associated Press
African leaders told Vladimir Putin to “show his desire to move forward [with peace]” before they convene in St Petersburg for a Russia-Africa summit at the end of this month, according to Senegal’s president Macky Sall. – Financial Times
Kate Hixon and Kehinde A. Togun write: As a long-standing supporter of the Ethiopian people, the United States has a responsibility to use its clout to set a clear expectation that justice for survivors is paramount, and those who seek to avoid accountability will not succeed. – Foreign Policy
The Americas
Cuba will look to expand cooperation at an upcoming summit of European Union, Latin American and Caribbean leaders next week, its foreign minister said, but accused the EU of “manipulative behavior” that could hamper leaders’ ambitions. – Reuters
Cuba on Monday accused the U.S. government of bearing “direct responsibility” for the protests that rocked the Caribbean island two years ago, marking the largest demonstrations since Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution. – Reuters
The leader of a U.S. think tank has been charged with acting as an unregistered agent of China, as well as seeking to broker the sale of weapons and Iranian oil, federal prosecutors in Manhattan said on Monday. – Reuters
Cybersecurity
The European Union signed off Monday on a new agreement over the privacy of people’s personal information that gets pinged across the Atlantic, aiming to ease European concerns about electronic spying by American intelligence agencies. – Associated Press
China is to issue rules for generative AI as Beijing seeks to balance encouraging local companies to develop the revolutionary technology against its desire to control content. – Financial Times
Hackers linked to the so-called RomCom group are suspected of carrying out phishing attacks against Ukraine and countries that support it ahead of a NATO Summit in Lithuania, according to cybersecurity researchers. – The Record
The City of Hayward, California said it was forced to shut off its website and several online municipal portals in response to a cyberattack. – The Record
Trinidad and Tobago’s justice department is dealing with a cyberattack that has impacted the ministry’s operations. – The Record
The criminals behind the cyber fraud platform Genesis Market are attempting to sell their enterprise almost three months on from an FBI-led operation that seized their clear web domains and added the platform to the U.S. Treasury’s sanctions list. – The Record
Three years after a European court invalidated a transatlantic data transfer agreement, the European Union on Monday formally adopted a new agreement with the U.S. meant to better ensure privacy protections for data moving between American tech companies and users based overseas. – CyberScoop
Defense
Marines with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked aboard the three-ship Bataan Amphibious Ready Group Monday, according to U.S. 2nd Fleet. – USNI News
The White House on Monday told lawmakers it opposes a provision in the House’s annual defense policy bill that would create a special inspector general for Ukraine aid, modelled after the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. – Defense News
As the Defense Innovation Unit works to demonstrate a space-based internet capability that could help the Pentagon achieve its vision for a connected battlespace, one of the organization’s biggest challenges has been navigating the military services’ disparate strategies for achieving it. – Defense News
Editorial: Mr. Biden could announce he’s asking Congress to fund a large expansion of U.S. weapons stocks. He could give a speech leveling to the public that deep American magazines make dictators think twice about invading a neighbor. He could explain how long-range missiles will reduce U.S. casualties in the terrible event the weapons are needed. America’s munitions shortage is a disgrace that needs urgent fixing. – Wall Street Journal