EUROPEAN UNION
Qatargate in Parliament
Bags of tickets were found in his Brussels residence. The Greek vice-president of the European Parliament, Eva Kaili, was placed in detention on December 11, along with three other people charged, like her, with corruption.
Belgian investigators suspect bribes paid by the host country of the FIFA World Cup, Qatar, of which this socialist was full of praise. “The matter goes far beyond Parliament, estimates the German weekly Der Spiegel. If the reputation of the institution that sees itself as the heart of European democracy is tarnished, the reputation of the whole of the EU is tarnished.”
IRAN
Protesters executed
A Tehran court sentenced to death on Sunday, for the first time, a person accused of having participated in “the riots” which shook Iran
© / afp.com/ATTA KENARE
The Iranian regime began a new phase of repression by executing, on December 8, a first demonstrator, sentenced to death for “launching a war against God”. Four days later, security forces publicly hanged another protester in Mashhad, in northeastern Iran. “This is a major escalation that is shaking the whole country, underlines the Washington Post.
NGOs fear that these executions correspond to the beginning of an even bloodier phase of the violent repression against the national uprising.” So far, about fifteen demonstrators have been sentenced to death.
SAUDI ARABIA
Xi Jinping seeks influence in Riyadh
For his first state visit since his re-election in October, the Chinese president chose to visit Saudi Arabia on December 7. Xi Jinping attended a summit of Arab leaders and signed a strategic partnership agreement with Riyadh, providing for more economic, diplomatic and cultural cooperation. In recent years, “Prince Mohammed bin Salman has accelerated Saudi Arabia’s efforts to diversify its alliances, indicates the New York Times. Riyadh seeks to overcome its dependence on the United States to guarantee its security and to supply itself with weapons.
UNITED STATES
Democrats save their majority in the Senate
Joe Biden’s party won a new Senate seat on December 6 with the victory in Georgia of Democratic pastor Raphael Warnock against Republican Herschel Walker. The celebrations were short-lived, however: three days later, Democratic Senator from Arizona, Kyrsten Sinema, announced that she was leaving the party and registering as an independent.
“In practice, his departure will not upset the situation at the Capitol, nuance, however, the American public radio NPR. With incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock winning his runoff in Georgia, the Democrats still firmly control the Senate,” by 50 seats to 49.
PERU
The uncertainty after the impeachment of the president
The country woke up on December 8 with its sixth president in six years: Dina Boluarte, until then vice-president of Peru, acceded to the supreme function after the dismissal of the head of state Pedro Castillo, accused of attempt of a “coup d’etat”. His arrest sparked protests that left at least two people dead. While waiting for early elections, “President Boluarte and her ministerial team will not have a honeymoon”, warns El Comercio. This is not the end of a crisis, but “one more episode in the endless series of political instability that Peruvians have been experiencing since 2016”.
CHINA
A Covid “tsunami”
Students protest lockdown at their university in eastern China, a sign of lingering dissatisfaction with travel restrictions
© / afp.com/Hector RETAMAL
Faced with popular anger, Beijing ended its “zero Covid” policy. As a result, the virus “spreads rapidly”, alerted a government epidemiologist on December 11. Faced with the limited effectiveness of local vaccines, several experts are pushing the authorities to approve vaccines adapted to the variants of Covid.
“The best thing for China would be to approve foreign-made RNA vaccines, speed up vaccination of the elderly, and stockpile antiviral drugs,” he said. in the FinancialTimes Jin Dong-yan, virologist at the University of Hong Kong, who speaks of a Covid “tsunami”.
UK
Historic strike for wages
Started on December 12, the British railway strike, which also affects postal workers, teachers and employees of the health system, promises to be historic. “Workers are facing food inflation of more than 12% and annual energy bills more than 1,000 pounds (1,160 euros) higher than last year”, relates the Guardianfor whom 2022 was “the worst year for real wage growth in almost half a century”.