Monday Briefing: Xi visits Europe
Good morning. We’re covering Xi Jinping’s trip to Europe and Israel’s crackdown on Al Jazeera. Plus, Myanmar’s creative rebel drone units.
Xi Jinping traveled to EuropeXi Jinping, China’s leader, arrived in France yesterday on his first trip to Europe in five years. He will also visit Serbia and Hungary. The three countries, to varying degrees, are embracing China’s push for a new global order. Xi seems intent on seizing opportunities to loosen the continent’s bonds with the U.S. and forge a world freed of its dominance. The visit is likely to be seen as a none-too-subtle effort by Xi to divide Western allies. Soon after arriving in Paris, he praised France, whose president, Emmanuel Macron, has often made the Gaullist point that Europe “must never be a vassal of the United States.” The chemistry between Xi and Macron — who visited China just over a year ago, and echoed the Chinese lexicon of a “multipolar” world, freed of “blocs” — appears to lie in a shared view that the postwar order must be replaced. Xi wants to court leaders who are frustrated by U.S. dominance, see China as a counterweight and are eager to bolster economic ties. Analysis: “Macron is trying to bring a third way in the current global chaos,” said one French expert on relations with China. What’s next: Tomorrow, Xi heads to Serbia. His arrival coincides with the 25th anniversary of the deadly NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade. That mistaken strike, for which the White House apologized, killed three Chinese journalists and ignited protests around the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
Israel shut down Al JazeeraPrime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said yesterday that his cabinet had voted to shut down the Israeli operations of Al Jazeera. He called the Qatar-based network an “incitement channel.” Netanyahu accused Al Jazeera, which has long had a tense relationship with Israel, of harming its national security and inciting violence against its soldiers. Israeli officials did not immediately provide examples of content that Israel believed posed a threat. In a statement in Arabic, Al Jazeera called the decision a “criminal act,” adding that “Israeli’s suppression of the free press to cover up its crimes has not deterred us from performing our duty.” Journalism organizations denounced the closure, which had been under discussion in Israel for weeks, as a blow to press freedom. Context: A major source of news in the Arab world, Al Jazeera has reported extensively from Gaza and highlighted the suffering of the war. Other updates:
Arrests in Canada in the killing of a Sikh leaderThe Canadian police said on Friday that three Indian men had been arrested and charged in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh separatist who was fatally shot in Canada last June. The arrests did little to demystify the killing, which set off a diplomatic clash and led to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s blunt accusation that India had orchestrated the murder. The Canadian police did not present evidence to support his claim, but said that an investigation into India’s role in Nijjar’s death is ongoing. Stakes: The accusation, if proven, could suggest that India’s external spy agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, is now extending its playbook of working with criminals to carry out operations in Western countries, analysts said. |
