Key Storylines
- AFRICA: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will address both houses of parliament over the floods in KwaZulu-Natal province.
- AMERICAS: A Brazilian federal court upheld the suspension of an environmental license for the Volta Grande project, a massive open-pit gold mine in the Amazon.
- ASIA: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told a South Korean delegation that the countries “can’t afford to waste time” in improving relations.
- EUROPE: The United States will host a gathering today of more than 40 countries for Ukraine-related defense talks at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany.
- MIDDLE EAST: Israel’s Parliament has barred longtime critic of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett Amichai Chikli from running for reelection with any political faction.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Elon Musk reached a deal with Twitter to buy the company for $44 billion.
Top Story
- Global: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Visits Moscow to Push for Ukraine Ceasefire.
- UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is in Moscow to discuss conditions for a ceasefire in Ukraine as soon as possible.
- Guterres said that the UN is “extremely interested in finding ways in order to create the conditions for effective dialogue, create the conditions for a cease-fire as soon as possible, create the conditions for a peaceful solution.”
- Guterres was making his first visit to Moscow since Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24 and was due to meet President Vladimir Putin after Lavrov.
- The Secretary-General will have a working meeting and lunch with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov before being received by President Vladimir Putin.
- Dmitry Polyansky, Russia’s permanent representative to the UN, told reporters that he does not think a cease-fire is “a good option right now,” stating it would only give Ukraine an advantage in the war.
- Guterres will travel from Moscow to Kyiv, where President Volodymyr Zelensky has criticized his decision to go to Russia before Ukraine as “simply wrong.”
- Reuters, AP, AFP, UPI, China Daily, AlJazeera,
Africa
- Guinea: A court will rule on whether a former prime minister and three ex-cabinet members charged with economic crimes will be released on bail. (BBC)
- Morocco: Activist Rabie Al Ablaq was sentenced to four years in jail for “offending the king online.” (AFP)
- Nigeria: Authorities arrested a suspected drug trafficker, described as a billionaire drug baron, while on board a plane at Lagos’ main airport. (BBC)
- South Africa: President Cyril Ramaphosa will address both houses of parliament over the floods in KwaZulu-Natal province. (BBC)
- Sudan: Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said three people have been killed inside a hospital in the Kreneik area of Darfur. (BBC)
Americas
- Brazil: A federal court upheld the suspension of an environmental license for the Volta Grande project, a massive open-pit gold mine in the Amazon. (AP)
- Canada: A report by a government advisory board said the number of white supremacists and other violent extremists within the military is growing at an “alarming rate” and commanders are not doing enough to root it out. (AFP)
- Ecuador: Police said a new prison riot that broke out in Quito left 15 inmates injured while a vehicle exploded outside another penitentiary in the port of Guayaquil. (AFP)
- Mexico: Authorities have detained nearly 6,000 migrants in the past four days. (Reuters)
- United States: A federal judge blocked the Biden administration from exempting migrants from expulsion under the Title 42 public health order until it officially expires next month. (NYT)
Asia
- Australia: The Labor party promised to establish a Pacific defense school to train neighboring armies in response to China’s potential military presence on the Solomon Islands. (AP)
- China: Authorities announced mass COVID-19 testing of most residents of Beijing amid fears of a lockdown similar to that taking place in Shanghai. (AP)
- Japan: Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told a South Korean delegation that the countries “can’t afford to waste time” in improving relations. (AFP)
- Myanmar: A military court postponed by a day delivering a verdict on the country’s former leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. (AP)
- North Korea: Leader Kim Jong Un vowed to accelerate the development of nuclear weapons and threatened to use them if provoked in a speech he delivered at a military parade. (AP)
Europe
- Region: The United States will host a gathering today of more than 40 countries for Ukraine-related defense talks at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany. (Reuters)
- Germany: Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said the country will authorize the delivery of tanks to Ukraine in what would be a clear switch in Berlin’s cautious policy on military backing for Kyiv. (AFP)
- Moldova: Police in the separatist region of Trans-Dniester said two explosions in a radio facility close to the Ukrainian border knocked two powerful antennas out of service. (AP)
- Turkey: The United States expressed disappointment at the conviction of activist Osman Kavala, calling it “unjust” and “inconsistent with respect to human rights.” (AFP)
- United Kingdom: The UK defense ministry is investigating a reported hack by Russia of its computer systems targeting more than 100 army recruits. (AFP)
Middle East
- Iran: Police arrested three suspects in the recent gun murder of two Sunni Muslim clerics in Golestan province. (AFP)
- Iran: Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said that talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal have not been suspended, despite reports that they’ve been halted. (Al-Monitor)
- Israel: Parliament has barred longtime critic of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett Amichai Chikli from running for reelection with any political faction. (AP)
- Lebanon: Rescue teams searched the Mediterranean for survivors after an overloaded people-smuggling boat capsized while being pursued by naval forces. (Al-Monitor)
- Palestinian Territories: A man was killed when Israeli forces stormed a refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, in what the army called a “counter-terrorism” operation that sparked violent riots. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Social Media: Elon Musk reached a deal with Twitter to buy the company for $44 billion. (NYT)
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 26APR22)
- Confirmed cases: 510,286,262
- Deaths: 6,221,232
- Countries with confirmed cases: 192
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global (as of 26APR22)
Tomorrow’s Outlook (27APR22)
- Israel: Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Day.
- Japan: Visit by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. (to 28APR)
- Myanmar: Aung San Suu Kyi corruption trial verdict for ousted leader.
- Netherlands:
- Russia: Ban on foreign depositary receipts comes into effect.
- Saudi Arabia: Visit by Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
- Sierra Leone: Independence Day.
- Singapore: Malaysian drug convict due to be executed despite UN plea.
- Slovenia: Day of Uprising Against Occupation.
- Somalia: Parliamentary election.
- South Africa: Freedom Day.
- Togo: Independence Day.
- United States: Funeral of Madeline Albright.
- United States: Secretary of State Blinken testifies to Senate committee on FY’23 budget.
- United States: Senate Foreign Relations Committee top secret briefing on recent developments in China’s nuclear capabilities.
END
