Key Storylines
- AFRICA: Ghanaian police said pirates off the coast of Benin in the Gulf of Guinea kidnapped four Koreans and one Filipino crew member from a tuna-fishing vessel.
- AMERICAS: Police in Nicaragua arrested leading opposition presidential candidate Cristiana Chamorro, the latest event in a crackdown on the opponents of President Daniel Ortega.
- ASIA: Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu expressed appreciation over Japan’s consideration of donating COVID-19 vaccines to Taipei.
- EUROPE: Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen denied that there was “a need to restore relations with either France or Germany,” following reports of Copenhagen allegedly helping the US spy on European leaders.
- MIDDLE EAST: Bahrain’s sovereign fund signed a preliminary agreement with its Russian counterpart to manufacture and distribute Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine across the Middle East and North Africa.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: A military court in Myanmar sentenced two journalists to two years in jail for reporting on Myanmar’s anti-junta protests.
Top Story
- Israel: Opposition parties agree to form coalition government.
- Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12-year tenure as prime minister was on the verge of ending after opposition parties reached an agreement to form a new government.
- A total of eight opposition factions spanning practically the entire Israeli political spectrum, including an Arab party in a historic first if parliament gives its assent to the agreement, will be a part of the proposed coalition government.
- Under the agreement, Naftali Bennett, the head of the right-wing Yamina party will serve as prime minister for two years before handing over the office to the centrist Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid.
- Prime Minister Netanyahu pushed back against the agreement by urging “all legislators elected by votes from the right” to “oppose this dangerous left-wing government.”
- The new coalition government is pushing to be sworn-in as early as next Monday.
- Reporting: BBC, WaPo, AP, Reuters, NYT, DPA, WSJ
Africa
- Region: Ghanaian police said pirates off the coast of Benin in the Gulf of Guinea kidnapped four Koreans and one Filipino crew member from a tuna-fishing vessel. (AFP)
- Nigeria: Twitter removed one of President Muhammadu Buhari’s posts in which the president threatened to treat “those misbehaving today” in “the language they will understand”, for violating its rules. (BBC)
- Sudan: International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda urged the country to hand over alleged war crime perpetrator Ahmed Haroun. (AFP)
Americas
- Argentina: The country’s largest oil workers union threatened to go on strike if the government does not allow it to privately purchase COVID-19 vaccines. (Reuters)
- Brazil: The Supreme Court authorized an investigation into allegations of obstructing a police probe against Environment Minister Ricardo Salles. (Reuters)
- Chile: President Sebastián Piñera pledged to back a same-sex marriage bill that is currently stalled in Congress. (BBC)
- Nicaragua: Police arrested leading opposition presidential candidate Cristiana Chamorro, the latest event in a crackdown on the opponents of President Daniel Ortega. (AP)
- United States: The FBI said the Russian hacking group REvil – also known as Sodinokibi – was behind a ransomware attack targeting the world’s largest meat processing company JBS. (BBC)
Asia
- Region: Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu expressed appreciation over Japan’s consideration of donating COVID-19 vaccines to Taipei. (Reuters)
- China: Beijing accused Western clothing brands including Nike, H&M and Zara of selling goods that could be harmful to children. (BBC)
- India: A politician belonging to the country’s ruling right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was shot dead in the restive Kashmir region. (AP)
- Philippines: The country’s ambassador to the United States said new terms of a two-decades old defense pact between Manila and Washington had been submitted to President Rodrigo Duterte for his consideration. (Reuters)
- Sri Lanka: The government is preparing for the possibility of an oil spill caused by the sinking of the Singapore-registered MV X-Press Pearl chemical cargo vessel. (Reuters)
Europe
- Bulgaria: The United States imposed sanctions on three of the country’s citizens and 64 companies over alleged corruption links. (Reuters)
- Czech Republic: Prime Minister Andrej Babiš’ government will face a no-confidence vote today. (DPA)
- Denmark: Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen denied that there was “a need to restore relations with either France or Germany,” following reports of Copenhagen allegedly helping the US spy on European leaders. (AP)
- Germany: The European Court of Justice ruled that Berlin “systematically and persistently” exceeded limits on nitrogen dioxide across many regions between 2010 and 2016. (AP)
- Ukraine: President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged lawmakers to approve a law aimed at curbing the power of the country’s oligarchs. (Reuters)
Middle East
- Region: Bahrain’s sovereign fund signed a preliminary agreement with its Russian counterpart to manufacture and distribute Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine across the Middle East and North Africa. (Reuters)
- Iran: Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran was “still far from an agreement” on the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal. (DPA)
- Oman: Authorities released dozens of activists who were detained during last week’s protests over unemployment. (Reuters)
- Syria: The country received its first shipment of Russia’s Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine, with President Bashar al-Assad set to be among the first people vaccinated. (Reuters)
Tech & Communications
- Media: A military court in Myanmar sentenced two journalists to two years in jail for reporting on Myanmar’s anti-junta protests. (DPA)
World
- Cyclones:
- Tropical Storm Choi-Wan
- Location: 230 nautical miles NW of Manila, Philippines
- Wind: 40 mph
- Movement: NW at 15 mph
- Map
- Tropical Storm Choi-Wan
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes:
- Indonesia
- Location: 127 km W-SW of Ternate, Indonesia
- Magnitude: 6.1
- Depth: 31.2 km
- Map
- Indonesia
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 03JUN21)
- Confirmed cases: 171,711,450
- Deaths: 3,692,586
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- Ebola Virus Disease: Guinea (as of 30MAY21)
- Confirmed cases: 16
- Deaths: 12
- Sourcing: WHO
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 03JUN21)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (04JUN21)
- Global: The UN International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression – 1983
- Global: The United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030) will be launched virtually.
- Global: G7 Finance Ministers will hold a meeting. (to 05JUN)
- 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.
- Global: The Trade Ministers of APEC countries will hold a virtual meeting. (to 05JUN)
- Global: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will deliver the keynote address of an event organized by the Brookings Institution.
- Global: The EU-Kyrgyzstan Cooperation Council will meet.
- Africa: The oil and gas African Local Content Roundtable will be held in Nigeria.
- Asia: An ASEAN delegation led by Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah could visit Myanmar and meet with that country’s junta leaders. (to 05JUN)
- Brazil: Anvisa, the country’s health regulatory agency, will decide on approving the import of Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine.
- China: The annual Tiananmen Square massacre vigil in Hong Kong is expected to be held in spite of authorities banning it.
- Czech Republic: French Minister of State for European Affairs Clément Beaune will visit and meet with Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and Foreign Minister Jakub Kulhánek.
- Iran: The country will hold a holiday to mark the anniversary of Ayatollah Khomeini’s death in 1989.
- Italy: The government will release its economic outlook report.
- Russia: The Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum with Russian President Vladimir Putin expected to address the event this week. (to 05JUN)
- United States: President Joe Biden is expected to deliver remarks on May’s jobs report.
- United States: The East Turkestan National Awakening Movement are expected to hold a march in Washington, DC, urging for action against China’s genocide of the Uyghur people.
END
