Global Beat: Japan Seeks Missiles, Trade Stalemate, and More
December 8, 2017
Global Beat is your weekly stop for news from around the world. Join us every Friday morning for important stories you should know about.
This week, Japan wants to acquire missiles capable of reaching North Korea; efforts to launch trade talks between Canada and China fall short due to disagreement over Trudeau’s progressive trade agenda; former Yemeni president killed as violence escalates; and more.
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Americas
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is on tour in China to discuss bilateral trade following the contentious NAFTA negotiations last month, which left the country seeking new trade relationships. Trudeau’s trade agenda advocates for agreements on labor and environmental ethics, gender equality, and human rights, which experts anticipate could complicate talks with Beijing. A scheduled press conference was canceled after disagreement over its format, and the leaders fell short of announcing the launch of formal talks following disagreement over the trade agenda. Despite the deadlock, both Trudeau and China’s Li Keqiang issued statements underscoring their mutual commitment to the Paris climate agreement and agreed to establish a ministerial dialogue on climate change, in addition to promising investments in clean energy.
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Central & South Asia
U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis met with Pakistani leaders in Islamabad on Monday to urge them to ramp up its fight against both militants in Afghanistan and terrorists operating within its borders. Relations between the allies have been strained since August, when President Trump accused Pakistan of giving "safe haven to agents of chaos, violence, and terror" and pledged to reconsider the strategic relationship. During his visit, Mattis appeared to tone down the harsh rhetoric used by the president earlier this year, opting instead to underline the importance of finding common ground to foster peace in Afghanistan. In a statement released after the meeting, army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa argued that Pakistan had already done "more than its due share despite capacity constraints."
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China & East Asia
According to inside sources, Japan is preparing to acquire precision air-launched missiles that would enable it to strike North Korean missile sites for the first time. The Japanese constitution’s restriction on strike weapons has meant that the country’s missile force technology currently has a range under 300 kilometers. It is rumored that the Japanese government is planning to increase next year’s defense budget to allow for research on the compatibility of its fighter jets with missile defense systems such as Lockheed Martin’s extended-range Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff missile (JASSM-ER) and the 500 kilometer-range Joint Strike Missile designed by Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace. In a statement on Tuesday, Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera refuted these rumors, saying, "We rely on the United States to strike enemy bases and are not looking at making any changes to how we share our roles."
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Europe & Russia
Germany’s acting Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said in a speech in Berlin on Tuesday that the United States’ "withdrawal" from its central role in Europe, as signified by President Trump’s "America First" policy, means that Germany must take a more self-reliant role in global affairs without waiting for U.S. leadership. Gabriel argued that "Germany cannot afford to wait for decisions in Washington" and that it must "make clear to [its] allies where the limits of [its] solidarity are reached." Recent public opinions polls have revealed that 56 percent of Germans feel that the country’s current relationship with the United States is somewhat or very bad. Gabriel, who represents the Social Democrats, is serving as acting foreign minister while Chancellor Angela Merkel struggles to form a new government.
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- International Olympic Committee bans Russia from participating in 2018 Winter Olympics – The New York Times
Middle East & North Africa
Former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh was killed by Houthi rebels Monday during clashes between his supporters and Houthi rebels in Sana’a. Saleh, who ruled Yemen for 33 years before being ousted during the 2011 Arab Spring protests, had formed an alliance with the Houthis in 2014 when they took control over large swaths of the country and forced the government that had replaced him into exile. Houthi leaders had accused Saleh of "treachery" after he condemed them in a televised speech last weekend and suggested working with Saudi Arabia to end the civil war. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters that Saleh’s death "adds an extreme level of complexity to already a very difficult political situation."
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- Trump recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital – The New York Times
Southeast Asia & Oceania
Australian Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull announced the proposal of new laws that would ban foreign political donations and create a transparency scheme based on the U.S. Foreign Agents Registry requiring people to declare their work on behalf of a foreign power. The legislation is the result of increasing concern within the Australian intelligence community over foreign influence in domestic politics, and in particular the influence of Chinese political agents. Turnbull stressed in a public statement Tuesday that the new laws would "reshape the way [Australia’s] national security agencies investigate and disrupt" foreign interference, and alluded to the necessity of the reforms following events such as Russia’s alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Unlike many other countries, Australia had never distinguished between political donations coming from Australia and those from overseas. The proposals will be introduced to parliament this week.
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- Where refugees go when they arrive in New Zealand – Radio New Zealand
Sub-Saharan Africa
The South Sudan government is proposing a "resettlement package" designed to get people to leave the UN peacekeepers’ camps, now called Protection of Civilians sites, over four years ago. The South Sudan government has said that the camps are creating "dependency" among its citizens, and is hoping that the resettlement packages, which include farming tools, seeds, and other equipment, will entice people to leave the camps. Although conditions in the camps are squalid, many residents are afraid to venture outside of them because of ongoing violence. Since the civil war began in 2013, tens of thousands have been killed and two million have fled the country, marking the largest civilian exodus in Africa since the Rwandan genocide.
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