FBI Arrests Twenty-One-Year-Old Air National Guardsman in Probe of Intel Leak |
The FBI arrested (WaPo) Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira in Dighton, Massachusetts, yesterday on suspicion of leaking classified documents. Teixeira could appear in court as soon as today. Government investigators and independent media outlets had raced in recent days to identify the person who posted apparent secret U.S. intelligence to the messaging platform Discord. From there, it spread more widely on the internet.
The documents purportedly showed recent intelligence (WaPo) about the war in Ukraine, including a Defense Intelligence Agency assessment that the war is likely to continue into 2024, with neither side securing a victory and both refusing to negotiate an end to the conflict. A new batch of leaked documents, which have not been verified by U.S. officials, described broad infighting among Russian agencies involved in the war, the New York Times reported.
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“[The arrest] will raise the inevitable question: If a low-level Defense Department employee has access to such sensitive information, who doesn’t?” Bloomberg’s Anthony Capaccio, Peter Martin, and Courtney McBride write.
“Given the likely trajectory of the war, the United States and its partners need to begin formulating a diplomatic endgame now. Even as [North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)] members ramp up military assistance in support of Ukraine’s coming offensive, Washington should start consultations with its European allies and with Kyiv on a diplomatic initiative to be launched later in the year,” CFR President Richard Haass and CFR Senior Fellow Charles A. Kupchan write for Foreign Affairs.
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Chinese Foreign Minister: Beijing Will Not Sell Arms to Any Party in Ukraine War |
Foreign Minister Qin Gang is the highest-level Chinese official (AP) to make such a pledge. Newly leaked U.S. intelligence cited information from Russia that said Beijing agreed to provide lethal aid to Moscow. An unnamed U.S. official told the New York Times this week that there was no indication that China decided to give lethal aid to Russia.
Japan: Group of Seven (G7) climate ministers will reportedly endorse Japan’s plan (Reuters) to use ammonia to reduce carbon emissions from its power plants, provided that Tokyo agrees to further decarbonization targets. Some G7 member states previously cast doubt on the strategy (FT) because ammonia production can be fossil-fuel intensive.
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United Arab Emirates Pledges $1 Billion in Financial Support for Pakistan |
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Middle East and North Africa |
Yemen’s Pro-government Forces, Houthi Rebels Begin Prisoner Swap |
Some nine hundred prisoners will be exchanged (AP) over the next three days as part of a deal between Yemen’s warring parties, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. The UN-brokered swap is part of efforts to negotiate an end to Yemen’s civil war. This Backgrounder looks at the war in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia/Syria: Saudi Arabia is hosting talks (AFP) with nine countries today about Syria’s potential return to the Arab League. Syria was suspended from the regional alliance in 2011 after violently suppressing anti-government protests. |
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Ethiopia Enters Preliminary Talks for $2 Billion IMF Bailout |
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Germany’s Last Nuclear Power Plants to Shut Down |
Germany’s three remaining plants will close tomorrow (NYT). Meanwhile, some other European countries and the United States are embracing nuclear power as a means to reduce reliance on Russian energy and fossil fuels.
U.S./Hungary: Hungary decided to withdraw state shares (Bloomberg) in a Budapest-based Russian bank after the United States sanctioned the bank and three of its present and former executives, one of whom is Hungarian.
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Investigative News Site Leaves El Salvador Over Press Freedom Concerns |
El Faro announced that it is moving its administrative and legal operations to Costa Rica due to efforts by the Nayib Bukele government to “defame and discredit” the outlet.
This episode of the Why It Matters podcast explains how Latin American leaders are cracking down on press freedom.
Brazil/China: During a state visit to China, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva called on developing countries to increase trade in their own currencies (FT) instead of relying on U.S. dollars. Beijing has increasingly tried to use its own currency in international commodities trading. |
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The Washington Post explains how school massacres, which long seemed to be a uniquely American phenomenon, are becoming a chronic problem in Brazil and beyond. |
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Council on Foreign Relations |
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