UNITED STATES
Biden denies himself in Saudi Arabia
The American president had promised to treat the crown prince of the Wahhabi kingdom as an “outcast” after the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. But the energy crisis has changed the situation. Joe Biden needs Saudi oil to lower the price at the pump in the United States, a few months before the midterm elections. He therefore showed his credentials to Mohammed ben Salmane on July 16 in Jeddah, the last stop on his tour of the Middle East. Highly controversial, this trip is “a brutal demonstration of how the importance given to values is sometimes minimized in the cold pursuit of the national interest”, analyzes the news site Politico.
FIJI
Global warming: international justice seized
Some of them could be among the first nations drowned by the rising waters. The Pacific islands confirmed on July 18 that they intended to seize the International Court of Justice on the obligations of the most polluting countries to fight against global warming. An announcement made at the end of a summit which brought together the previous days the leaders of the region, in Fiji. They “recognized the climate emergency, agreed to defend global warming limited to 1.5°C by pursuing actions and advocacy throughout the world”, reports the New Zealand Herald.
PORTUGAL
monstrous heat wave
As in Gironde, France, violent fires hit the center-west of the Iberian Peninsula in mid-July. On Thursday 14, a monthly temperature record of 47°C was recorded in northern Portugal, awakening the memory of the terrible year 2017, when more than a hundred people died in fires that ravaged tens of thousands of hectares. The magazine Espresso points out “the impossibility of preserving and cleaning up certain territories”, “a dead end forest management” and “relentless global warming”, this “hell for which we have been warned”.
NIGER
Two French ministers in Niamey
The head of diplomacy Catherine Colonna and the Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu made a round trip on July 15 to Niger, the new pillar of the French military system in the Sahel, after the departure of the tricolor forces from Mali. Watchword ? “Combat partnership”, that is to say that the thousand French soldiers deployed in Niger will only intervene in the second line. “Efficiency in discretion or the art of doing a lot with less presence”, comments the site Wakat Sera. French envoys also emphasized economic and social support. Paris will increase its food aid to Niger by 66% in 2022.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna with Niger’s Defense Minister Alkassoum Indatou in Niamey on July 15, 2022.
afp.com/BERTRAND GUAY
MEXICO
The “narco of narcos” arrested
He was on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list for kidnapping, torturing and murdering a US drug enforcement officer in 1985. Rafael Caro Quintero, one of Mexico’s top drug lords, co-founder of the Guadalajara cartel, was arrested on July 15 in the state of Sinaloa (west). “He represented a symbol of power and impunity, his arrest gives the government of Lopez Obrador [le président]the armed forces and the public prosecutor’s office a source of pride which must now be translated into an effective judicial process”, underlines the daily El País.
CHINA
Growth collapses due to Covid
The second largest economy in the world is running out of steam. Beijing announced on July 15 a growth of only 0.4% for the second quarter, against 4.8% in the first. “Beijing has continued its policy of ‘zero Covid’, which consists of eradicating epidemic outbreaks as soon as they appear through rapid confinements and long quarantines, but this has hurt businesses and made consumers nervous, “points out the Guardian. In the spring, the Chinese economic capital, Shanghai, was notably confined for two months following an explosion of contamination.
UKRAINE
Suspicions of treason in the state apparatus
Volodymyr Zelensky banged his fist on the table. The Ukrainian president announced on July 17 the dismissal of the chief prosecutor and the head of the country’s security services. In question: suspicions of treason in favor of Russia by some of their subordinates. In total, kyiv is investigating 651 cases, including 60 in Russian-occupied areas. “These dismissals are yet another example of Zelensky’s tightening grip on the levers of power during the war, following the imposition of martial law and the censorship of the broadcast media,” the report said. FinancialTimes.
Clement Daniez