Key Storylines
- AFRICA: Burkina Faso’s transitional president, Lt Col Paul-Henri Damiba called for an investigation to assess the damage during the 24 January military coup.
- AMERICAS: The Dominican government began building a wall that will cover almost half of its only land border with Haiti to stop irregular migration and the smuggling of goods, weapons, and drugs.
- ASIA: China denied Australian allegations that a naval vessel shone a laser at one of their surveillance aircraft in an incident that Prime Minister Scott Morrison termed an “act of intimidation”.
- EUROPE: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will hold a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a further effort to ease tensions over Ukraine.
- MIDDLE EAST: The United States and Egypt launched a joint work group to prepare for the next United Nations climate change summit in November.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Donald Trump’s new social media venture, Truth Social, launched late on Sunday in Apple’s App Store, potentially marking the former president’s return to social media after he was banned from several platforms last year.
Top Story
- Global: The Kremlin said it has no plans for a summit with the US on Ukraine.
- The Kremlin said there were no plans for a summit over Ukraine between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden, after the French president said the two leaders had agreed to a meeting in principle.
- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Putin and Biden could meet if they consider it necessary but emphasized that “it’s premature to talk about specific plans for a summit.”
- In a phone call between French President Emmanuel Macron and his American counterpart Joe Biden, Mr. Macron proposed a summit between Presidents Biden and Putin and then a meeting with other governments on security and strategic stability in Europe.
- The idea of a meeting between presidents Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden has been championed by France and cautiously welcomed by Ukraine as a way to avert a catastrophic war in Europe.
- Moscow continues to deny it plans to invade Ukraine and says it is already pulling troops back from areas near the border, though the US and its allies have disputed that.
- Reuters. AP, WSJ, AFP, Bloomberg,
Africa
- Burkina Faso: Transitional president, Lt Col Paul-Henri Damiba called for an investigation to assess the damage during the 24 January military coup. (BBC)
- Central African Republic: The International Criminal Court (ICC) said the leader of a rebel group in the country will go on trial in September to face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. (AFP)
- Kenya: Ethiopians living in Nairobi are holding demonstrations against the alleged abduction of a businessman three months ago. (BBC)
- Nigeria: The military is probing reports from Niger that it accidentally killed children in an airstrike targeting an armed group at the border. (AFP)
- Zimbabwe: At least 80 supporters of an opposition party remain in detention after they were arrested in the city of Masvingo over the weekend. (BBC)
Americas
- Argentina: Wildfires that have been ravaging the country’s north for several weeks advanced quickly although the light rains that began over the weekend gave some hope to firefighters. (AP)
- Brazil: Authorities said the death toll from torrential rains that triggered flash floods and landslides in the city of Petropolis has risen to 165. (AFP)
- Canada: Foreign Minister Melanie Joly postponed her trip to France because of rising tensions in Ukraine. (Reuters)
- Dominican Republic: The government began building a wall that will cover almost half of its only land border with Haiti to stop irregular migration and the smuggling of goods, weapons, and drugs. (Reuters)
- El Salvador: President Nayib Bukele will send a proposal to Congress that grants citizenship to foreigners who invest in the Central American country. (Reuters)
Asia
- China: Beijing denied Australian allegations that a naval vessel shone a laser at one of their surveillance aircraft in an incident that Prime Minister Scott Morrison termed an “act of intimidation”. (AFP)
- Hong Kong: The city will launch a vaccine pass scheme this week as hospitals struggle under an Omicron-fueled outbreak and the finance hub sees record-high departures. (AFP)
- Myanmar: The shadow civilian administration called on the United Nations’ top court not to allow the country’s military rulers to represent the Southeast Asian nation at hearings into a case accusing the country of genocide against the Rohingya ethnic minority. (AP)
- New Zealand: Police accused anti-vaccine demonstrators of throwing human waste at them during an operation to place roadblocks around a protest camp outside Wellington’s parliament building. (AFP)
- Philippines: A police officer was killed, and two others were injured after a national police helicopter crashed in Quezon province. (Xinhua)
Europe
- Bosnia: European Union foreign ministers are discussing ways to ease tensions and prevent the possible breakup up of the ethnically divided Balkans country. (AP)
- Germany: Chancellor Olaf Scholz will hold a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a further effort to ease tensions over Ukraine. (AFP)
- Greece: Fire service rescuers are expanding a search inside a burning ferry anchored off the Greek island of Corfu where 10 people remain missing. (AP)
- Ukraine: Kyiv dismissed a Russian claim that its forces shelled a border post, denouncing it as “fake news” designed to inflame tensions. (AFP)
- United Kingdom: Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to announce an end to all pandemic legal curbs in the country, insisting it is time to move on despite political opposition and unease from the World health Organization (WHO). (AFP)
Middle East
- Region: The United States and Egypt launched a joint work group to prepare for the next United Nations climate change summit in November. (AP)
- Egypt: The army launched joint air and naval drills with France in the Mediterranean. (AFP)
- Iran: President Ebrahim Raisi said that talks on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers cannot succeed unless the United States is prepared to lift sanctions on the Islamic Republic. (Reuters)
- Kuwait: The country’s airways announced a $6 billion deal with Airbus that includes 31 new planes, restructuring an agreement struck in 2014. (AFP)
- United Arab Emirates: UN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet met with Princess Latifa of Dubai in November and was assured she was well but did not reveal the meeting over privacy concerns. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Social Media: Donald Trump’s new social media venture, Truth Social, launched late on Sunday in Apple’s App Store, potentially marking the former president’s return to social media after he was banned from several platforms last year. (Reuters)
World
- Cyclones: Nothing to Report.
- Hurricanes: Nothing to Report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to Report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to Report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 21FEB22)
- Confirmed cases: 424,629,785
- Deaths: 5,888,779
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 21FEB22)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (22FEB22)
- Event: Stimson Center discussion on cyberattacks in Ukraine.
- Algeria: Day of Fraternity and Cohesion.
- Belarus: Early voting to commence in constitutional amendments referendum, concluding Feb. 27.
- Bhutan: Birth Anniversary of His Majesty the King Holiday.
- Central African Republic: UN Security Council to discuss the UN peacekeeping mission in the country.
- DRC: Second joint business forum with Uganda in Kinshasa to promote bilateral trade.
- France: Indo-Pacific Forum meeting.
- France: Visit by Indian external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to attend Indo-Pacific Forum.
- Qatar: Gas Exporting Countries Forum Summit.
- Saint Lucia: Independence Day.
- Saudi Arabia: Foundation Day.
- South Korea: PyeongChang Global Peace Forum.
END
