02JUN21 Global Overnight Overwatch Report

Key Storylines

AFRICA: The African Union suspended Mali’s membership in the organization “until normal constitutional order has been restored” in the country.
AMERICAS: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Central American countries to do more to contain illegal immigration and expressed concerns over the state of human rights and democracy in Central America.
ASIA: Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi urged ASEAN to immediately appoint a special envoy on Myanmar.
EUROPE: Japanese Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said the party states to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) officially agreed to allow the United Kingdom to begin the process of joining the pact.
MIDDLE EAST: Israel’s parliament chose center-left politician Isaac Herzog to be the country’s new president.
TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: JBS, the world’s largest meat processing company, said most of its operations were getting back online following a cyberattack that disrupted its operations worldwide.

Top Story

Sri Lanka: Sinking chemical cargo ship triggers environmental disaster fears.
- The X-Press Pearl cargo ship loaded with chemical materials started sinking off Sri Lanka’s coast, triggering fears of a major environmental disaster.
- There are concerns that hundreds of tons of engine oil could leak into the sea during the ship’s sinking, which will have a devastating impact on marine life in the area.
- Plastic debris from the ship has already inundated Sri Lanka’s coast in what was already one of Sri Lanka’s worst marine disasters.
- Salvage experts are now attempting to tow the cargo ship, which was on fire for 12 days before Sri Lanka and India’s navies managed to quell the blaze, into the deep sea to minimize marine pollution.
- Reporting: Reuters, AFP, BBC, WaPo, AP

Africa

Region: Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Western Sahara independence movement, arrived in Algeria more than a month after a diplomatic row between Spain and Morocco over the Western Sahara. (Reuters)
Region: The Central African Republic and Chad agreed to the joint investigation of an attack on a border post that killed six Chadian soldiers, for which Chad accused the Central African Republic. (AFP)
DR Congo: Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) warned that almost 500,000 people have no access to clean drinking water in the country following Mount Nyiragongo’s eruption. (BBC)
Mali: The African Union suspended the country’s membership in the organization “until normal constitutional order has been restored” in the country. (Deutsch e Welle)
Mauritius: The government reportedly approved the usage of Russia’s single-shot Sputnik Light COVID-19 vaccine. (Reuters)

Americas

Region: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Central American countries to do more to contain illegal immigration and expressed concerns over the state of human rights and democracy in Central America. (Reuters)
Brazil: President Jair Bolsonaro defended the decision to hold the Copa America tournament in the country despite the coronavirus pandemic ravaging the country. (BBC)
Canada: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau laid flowers at a memorial for the 215 Indigenous students whose remains were discovered last week at a former residential school. (AFP)
Panama: President Laurentino Cortizo announced plans to construct a billion-dollar natural gas plant for electricity generation. (Reuters)
United States: President Joe Biden appealed for the passage of voter rights legislation in Congress on the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa race massacre, amid attempts to restrict voters rights’ by state governments in Texas and other states. (AP)

Asia

Region: China said its deployment of 16 military aircraft over disputed waters near Malaysia was routine training, after Malaysia accused Beijing of violating its territorial sovereignty. (AFP)
Region: Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi urged ASEAN to immediately appoint a special envoy on Myanmar. (AP)
Afghanistan: At least ten people were killed in two bomb blasts in capital city Kabul. (DPA)
Australia: Canberra is officially considering alternatives to a billion-dollar submarine deal with French company the Naval Group. (AFP)
China: Vice Premier Liu He held his first meeting with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. (AP)

Europe

Region: Greece, Germany, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Croatia, and Poland rolled-out a vaccination certificate system for travelers. (AP)
Russia: Parliament’s upper house voted in favor of withdrawing Moscow from the Open Skies treaty. (AP)
Turkish: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s statement on holding talks with the central bank governor about the need to lower interest rates caused the country’s Lira to decline to record lows. (AP)
United Kingdom: Japanese Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said the states party to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) officially agreed to allow the country to begin the process of joining the pact. (Reuters)

Middle East

Region: Israel’s army said it destroyed a Syrian regime observation post in the occupied Golan Heights. (AFP)
Iran: The Kharg warship, which is the country’s largest warship, caught fire and sank in the Gulf of Oman under unclear circumstances. (AP)
Israel: Parliament chose center-left politician Isaac Herzog to be the country’s new president. (Reuters)
Lebanon: The special UN tribunal prosecuting those responsible for the 2005 assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri said it will have to end after July due to acute funding shortages. (Reuters)
Saudi Arabia: The country’s key Tadawul stock market halted trading after experiencing what it called an unexplained technical glitch. (AP)

Tech & Communications

Cybersecurity: JBS, the world’s largest meat processing company, said most of its operations were getting back online following a cyberattack that disrupted its operations worldwide. (AP)

World

Cyclones:
- Tropical Storm Choi-Wan
  - Location: 83 nautical miles S-SE of Manila, Philippines
  - Wind: 35 mph
  - Movement: NW at 10 mph
  - Map
Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 02JUN21)
  - Confirmed cases: 171,196,260
  - Deaths: 3,565,444
  - Countries with confirmed cases: 192
  - Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- Ebola Virus Disease: Guinea (as of 30MAY21)
  - Confirmed cases: 16
  - Deaths: 12
  - Sourcing: WHO

Tomorrow’s Outlook (03JUN21)

Global: US Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman will visit Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Kenya. (to 06JUN)
Global: The Health Ministers of G7 countries will hold a meeting. (to 04JUN)
Global: Chile will host the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) annual meeting.
Global: The 109th Session of the International Labour Conference will be held virtually. (to 19JUN)
Africa: The oil and gas African Local Content Roundtable will be held in Nigeria. (to 04JUN)
Asia: The foreign ministers of Afghanistan, China, and Pakistan will hold a trilateral meeting.
Asia: An ASEAN delegation led by Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah could visit Myanmar and meet with that country’s junta leaders. (to 05JUN)
Germany: Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen will visit and meet with counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Pakistan: Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon will visit and meet with Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Russia: The Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum with Russian President Vladimir Putin expected to address the event this week. (to 05JUN)
Sudan: The mandate of the UN Security Council’s Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in the country will end.
United States: Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz will visit and meet with his counterpart Lloyd Austin and national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
United States: The government will re-impose sanctions on nine Belarusian state-owned enterprises.

END