Key Storylines
- AFRICA: Rwandan president Paul Kagame appointed Jean Damascene Bizimana to the Ministry of National Unity and Civic Engagement.
- AMERICAS: Venezuelan opposition parties announced they will participate in November’s regional elections, ending a boycott of previous elections they allege were not free or fair.
- ASIA: Taiwan’s defense ministry said China’s armed forces can “paralyze” the island’s defenses and are able to fully monitor its deployments.
- EUROPE: Dutch Foreign Minister Sigrid Kaag said the Netherlands will move its Kabul diplomatic mission to Qatar.
- MIDDLE EAST: Tehran is planning to hold a new round of talks with Saudi Arabia in Iraq after the new Iranian government is formed, state media reports.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Intuit Inc is in talks to buy email marketing company Mailchimp for more than $10 billion, Bloomberg News reported.
Top Story
- Afghanistan: U.S President Joe Biden defends departure from Afghanistan and praises airlift.
- President Joe Biden called the U.S. airlift to extract more than 120,000 Americans, Afghans, and other allies from Afghanistan to end a twenty-year war an “extraordinary success.”
- In his speech from the White House, the president said his administration had evacuated the vast majority of Americans who wanted to leave the country and would refrain from future military action that lacked “clear achievable goals.”
- President Biden has faced tough questioning about the way the U.S. left Afghanistan but reiterated that he “was not going to extend this forever war and a forever exit.”
- Biden also declared the end of an era in which the United States uses military power “to remake other countries.”
- The president offered a glimpse of a different American foreign policy in the post-9/11 world, one that he said would be guided more by competition with China and Russia.
- WaPo, WSJ, AP, USA Today, NYT
Africa
- Ethiopia: USAID reported that Tigrayan forces in recent weeks have looted humanitarian supplies from its warehouses in the Amhara region. (Reuters)
- Mali: The country’s military leadership said they will restore civilian rule in early 2022 but doubts about the timetable are deepening. (AFP)
- Rwanda: President Paul Kagame appointed Jean Damascene Bizimana to the Ministry of National Unity and Civic Engagement. (Xinhua)
- Tanzania: A high court judge in Dar es Salaam said the terrorism case against the leader of the main opposition party can go ahead as planned. (AFP)
Americas
- Region: The Biden administration has initiated talks with the Mexican government to restart the “Remain in Mexico” asylum program. (WaPo)
- Region: The World Health Organization is monitoring a new coronavirus variant named “Mu,” first reported in Colombia but since reported in other South American countries. (AFP)
- Venezuela: Opposition parties announced they will participate in November’s regional elections, ending a boycott of previous elections they allege were not free or fair. (Reuters)
- United States: Five people were missing after a U.S. Navy helicopter crashed in the ocean off Southern California during a routine flight from an aircraft carrier. (AP)
Asia
- Region: South Korea called on member countries of the Northeast Asia Conference on Health Security to encourage North Korea to take part in the forum on pandemics. (Yonhap)
- India: Authorities gave the green light to partially reopen more schools despite apprehension from some parents and signs that infections are picking up again. (AP)
- Japan: Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga ruled out dissolving the House of Representatives for a general election anytime soon given the country’s current severe COVID-19 situation. (Xinhua)
- Philippines: The country topped two million coronavirus cases as it battles a record surge in infections that the World Health Organization confirmed is being driven by the Delta variant. (AFP)
- Taiwan: The defense ministry said China’s armed forces can “paralyze” the island’s defenses and are able to fully monitor its deployments. (Reuters)
Europe
- France: The country started administering booster shots of COVID-19 vaccine to people over 65 and those with underlying health conditions. (WaPo)
- Netherlands: Foreign Minister Sigrid Kaag said the country will move its Kabul diplomatic mission to Qatar. (AFP)
- Russia: President Vladimir Putin said that the U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan had achieved nothing but tragedy and loss of life on all sides and showed it was impossible to foist foreign values on other nations. (Reuters)
- United Kingdom: The Home Office announced that Afghans who worked for the British military and government would be allowed to remain in the UK indefinitely. (BBC)
- Vatican City: In an interview with Spanish radio, Pope Francis announced his plans to visit Greece, Cyprus, and Malta. (AFP)
Middle East
- Region: Tehran is planning to hold a new round of talks with Saudi Arabia in Iraq after the new Iranian government is formed, state media reports. (RFE/RL)
- Israel: The country approved a series of measures relaxing its blockade of the Gaza Strip, including opening the main commercial crossing with the Palestinian enclave to imports. (AP)
- Qatar: Doha urged the Taliban to ensure “safe passage” for people still wanting to leave Afghanistan after US-led evacuations came to an end. (AFP)
- Saudi Arabia: Human Rights Watch has called on the kingdom to stop laying off Yemeni employees, warning that this could force them to return to the humanitarian crisis in their war-torn country. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Technology: Intuit Inc is in talks to buy email marketing company Mailchimp for more than $10 billion, Bloomberg News reported. (Reuters)
World
- Cyclones: Nothing to report.
- Hurricanes:
- Tropical Depression Ida
- Location: 37.3N 82.5W
- Movement: NE
- Wind: 30 mph
- Map
- Tropical Depression Kate
- Location: 23.0N 50.9W
- Movement: NNW
- Wind: 45 mph
- Map
- Tropical Storm Larry
- Location: 12.3N 24.8W
- Movement: W
- Wind: 30 mph
- Map
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 01SEP21)
- Confirmed cases: 217,776,648
- Deaths: 4,520,509
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 01SEP21)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (02SEP21)
- Africa: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visiting Nairobi, Abuja, and Dakar.
- China: Visit by US Climate Envoy John Kerry. (to 03SEP)
- China: Belt and Road Summit and Exhibition in Hong Kong.
- Denmark: Start of trial of former immigration minister Inger Stojberg.
- Europe: European Court of Justice to rule on the European Commission’s case against Germany for failing to implement EU electricity and natural gas directives.
- Japan: 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games. (to 05SEP)
- Russia: Eastern Economic Forum. (to 04SEP)
- Slovenia: Informal meeting of EU defense ministers in Kranj.
- Tibet: Democracy Day.
- Vietnam: National Day.
- United States: Visit by South Korean nuclear envoy Noh Kyu-duk. (to 03SEP)
- United States: V-J Day.
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