05JUN21 Global Overnight Overwatch Report

Key Storylines

AFRICA: Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita met with two visiting Libyan representative speakers as “part of Morocco’s mediation efforts to contribute to the settlement of the Libyan crisis.”
AMERICAS: Brazilian Health regulator Anvisa gave approval for states to import the Russian COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V, but with conditions attached.
ASIA: China condemned the US and EU consulates in Hong Kong for displaying candles to commemorate the June 4 Tiananmen crackdown, declaring it a “clumsy political show” to destabilize the city.
EUROPE: The European Union will ban Belarusian airlines from its airspace in response to the forced diversion of a Ryanair flight and detention of a dissident journalist and his girlfriend last month.
MIDDLE EAST: The Biden administration is possibly choosing Daniel Shapiro, a former ambassador to Israel, for a role as an envoy to the Middle East, people familiar with the administration report.
TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Experts are looking to see if the unusual activity of the computer systems of two central Florida hospitals is proof of a cyberattack.

Top Story

United Kingdom: Representatives from the G7 nations continue to meet in London, discussing a possible increase in global financial regulation.
- Finance ministers from the G7 group of leading economies are optimistic about completing a deal on taxing multinational companies at their meeting in London hosted by the U.K. Chancellor Rishi Sunak.
- Delegates at the meeting of the G7 nations will, in principle, change the basis of international corporate tax law for the first time in a century.
- “We are just one millimeter away from a historic agreement,” French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told the BBC in regard to an agreement on a minimum corporate tax rate.
- Despite a lot of progress, one lingering concern is over if several European nations would drop unilateral digital services taxes, which the U.S believes unfairly target American firms.
- Reporting: BBC, FT, Reuters, The Guardian,

Africa

Region: Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita met with two visiting Libyan representative speakers as “part of Morocco’s mediation efforts to contribute to the settlement of the Libyan crisis.” (Xinhua)
Ethiopia: The nation recorded 347 additional COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide tally to 272,632. (Xinhua)
Ethiopia: The U.N humanitarian chief announced that famine is imminent in the embattled Tigray region in the country’s north, saying there is a risk that hundreds of thousands of people will die. (AP)

Americas

Brazil: Health regulator Anvisa gave approval for states to import the Russian COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V, but with conditions attached. (Reuters)
Canada: UN rights experts have called on the nation and the Catholic Church to carry out thorough investigations after the bodies of 215 Indigenous children were found at a former residential school. (DPA)
United States: A federal judge overturned California’s thirty-year-old ban on assault weapons, stating that it violates the constitutional right to bear arms. (AP)
United States: An unruly passenger who tried breaking into the cockpit of a Delta Air Lines flight bound for Tennessee from California was apprehended by cabin crew and fellow passengers as the plane was forced to land in New Mexico. (Reuters)

Asia

Afghanistan: According to a U.N report, Taliban insurgents show no sign of decreasing the level of violence in the nation to facilitate peace negotiations with the government and appear to be trying to strengthen their military position as leverage, with the “unprecedented violence” of 2020 carrying into 2021. (AP)
China: The nation condemned the US and EU consulates in Hong Kong for displaying candles to commemorate the June 4 Tiananmen crackdown, declaring it a “clumsy political show” to destabilize the city. (AFP)
India: Some of the country’s states are reducing lockdown regulations as COVID-19 infections subside, with the world’s second-most populous nation recording its lowest daily case count in nearly two months. (Reuters)
South Korea: Daily new COVID-19 cases increased to over 700, as cluster infections continued to rise across the country despite a stepped-up vaccination campaign. (YNA)

Europe

Region: The European Union will ban Belarusian airlines from its airspace in response to the forced diversion of a Ryanair flight and detention of a dissident journalist and his girlfriend last month. (DPA)
Region: Exiled Belarusians will stage a large protest on June 5 at the Belarusian-Polish border and will use the event to demand the European Union impose more sanctions against the regime of Alyaksandr Lukashenka. (RFE)
Russia: President Vladimir Putin has accused the US of double standards for its treatment of the Capitol rioters vs. protesters overseas. (BBC)

Middle East

Region: The Biden administration is considering Daniel Shapiro, a former ambassador to Israel, as an envoy to the Middle East. (AP)
Iran: The nation recorded 9,209 additional COVID-19 cases, bringing the country’s total infections to 2,954,309. (Xinhua)
Yemen: The U.S. special envoy for the country accused the Houthi rebels of failing to try to reach an urgently needed cease-fire in the war-torn nation. (AP)

Tech & Communications

Cybersecurity: Experts are looking to see if the unusual activity of the computer systems of two central Florida hospitals is proof of a cyberattack. (AP)

World

Cyclones:
- Tropical Storm Choi-Wan
  - Location: 26.3 N 126 E
  - Movement: NE at 25 mph
  - Wind: 40mph
  - Map
Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
Earthquakes: Nothing to report
Volcanoes: Nothing to report
Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 05JUN21)
  - Confirmed cases: 172,621,623
  - Deaths: 3,713,468
  - 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 (06JUN21)

END