WORLD BRIEFING: July 25, 2024

Monday was recorded as the hottest day ever globally, beating a record set the day before, as countries around the world from Japan to Bolivia to the United States continue to feel the heat, according to the European climate change service. Provisional satellite data published by Copernicus on Wednesday showed that Monday broke the previous day’s record by 0.06 degrees Celsius (0.1 degree Fahrenheit). Climate scientists say the world is now as warm as it was 125,000 years ago because of human-caused climate change. While scientists cannot be certain that Monday was the very hottest day throughout that period, average temperatures have not been this high since long before humans developed agriculture. The temperature rise in recent decades is in line with what climate scientists projected would happen if humans kept burning fossil fuels at an increasing rate. - AP

Ukraine is “willing and ready to conduct dialogue and negotiation with Russia,” China’s Foreign Ministry said after talks between Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and his Chinese counterpart in Guangzhou. According to the Chinese account, Kuleba reportedly said negotiations “should be rational and substantive and aimed at achieving a just and lasting peace.” Kuleba said the Ukrainian side supports China's position on the Taiwan question and will continue to adhere to the one-China policy, China Daily reported. In contrast, Kyiv said Kuleba “restated Ukraine's established position that it is ready to engage the Russian side in the negotiation process at a certain stage, when Russia is ready to negotiate in good faith, but emphasized that no such readiness is currently observed on the Russian side.”

Yesterday, the U.S. sanctioned a network of six individuals and five entities based in China said to be involved in the procurement of items supporting North Korea’s ballistic missile and space programs. The Department of the Treasury said Pyongyang has supplied ballistic missiles to the Russian Federation, “which continues to target civilian population centers and infrastructure in Ukraine, sustaining Russia’s brutal and unprovoked war.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave an address to a joint session of U.S. Congress on Wednesday, focused on the dangers of Iran-sponsored jihadism and the importance of combatting it through moral clarity and unity of purpose. However some analysts said his prime goal was to garner support in the U.S. for prolonging the war and that nothing was accomplished to bring the surviving hostages home. Close to 100 members of Congress and the Senate decided to boycott the address. As CNN reported, Netanyahu falsely claimed there have been ‘practically’ no civilian fatalities in Rafah, besides one incident. Israeli Opposition Leader MK Lapid said, “It would have been preferable for all of us if Netanyahu had stayed home and dealt with the hostages in Gaza and those displaced from the North.” He elaborated, saying, “…we heard him talk about October 7 as if he had nothing to do with what happened on that day. As if he doesn’t know who was Prime Minster and responsible for the disaster…[when] he is guilty of complacency and horrific neglect that brought about disaster.”

At least 18 people were killed after a small plane skidded off the runway in Nepal's capital Kathmandu on Wednesday, local officials said. The pilot, who has been hospitalized, is the sole survivor of the Saurya Airlines crash. All of the passengers on board —18 Nepalis and a Yemeni citizen — were employees of the carrier, according to police. The aircraft crashed during takeoff from Kathmandu to the city of Pokhara and was en route for technical maintenance, an airline spokesperson said. The crash once again highlights the dangers of air travel in Nepal, a country often referred to as one of the riskiest places to fly due to multiple factors, including its mountainous terrain. - CNN

In a possible explanation to Donald Trump’s claim that his Florida meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was moved to Friday at the latter’s request, the new date coincides with the 33rd birthday of his eldest son Yair, who currently lives in Miami. It will theoretically allow Netanyahu to spend Saturday in Florida, given that Israeli prime ministers don’t traditionally fly over the Sabbath, the Times of Israel reported. Nair has been widely criticized for sitting out the war in Florida. The majority of Israelis want Netanyahu to step down after ignoring signs that Hamas planned to attack Israel, for bungling the war effort and for a series of corruption and other scandals

Italy, Hungary and Slovakia have come under fire over their continued decline in democratic standards, which threatens the effective prosecution of corruption, the independence of the judicial system and the safety of journalists. The three countries fared badly in the new edition of the Rule of Law report, released every year by the European Commission. The extensive report examines all member states and offers tailored recommendations to address deficiencies and close loopholes. "Protecting the rule of law is a continuous work," Vera Jourová, the Commission's vice-president for values and transparency, said on Wednesday while presenting the main findings. “We see that further action is still needed.” - Euronews

Banned from Summer Olympics that were once a national obsession, Russia has prepared its response: a wave of disinformation, cyber attack threats and the staging of its own “fake Games”. The push to retaliate against Moscow’s isolation over doping scandals and the invasion of Ukraine underlines the enduring sensitivity of the Olympic Games, which President Vladimir Putin once used as an opportunity to mark the country’s progress. Russia recorded its biggest ever medal haul when hosting the Winter Olympics in Sochi just a decade ago, with Putin attempting to boost his reputation by releasing political prisoners and welcoming everyone “regardless of their sexual orientation”. By contrast only 15 athletes from Russia will attend the Paris Games, competing under a neutral status. “Russia’s changing attitude towards the Olympics mirrors its broader trajectory,” said Dmitry Navosha, co-founder of Sports.ru, a leading sports website. “In 2014, Russia saw itself as part of the western world. Now, it has reverted to a cold war stance — only this time, the war isn’t just cold.” To compensate for its exclusion from the world’s major sporting events, Russia has turned to inventing its own competitions. The Brics Games, held late last month, attracted only a few thousand athletes as its emerging peers Brazil, India, China and South Africa and dozens of other countries sent small squads. Russia’s isolation was powerfully symbolised when synchronised swimmer Alexandr Maltsev, the sole competitor in the freestyle programme, received his gold medal while standing alone on the podium. Many athletes are not taking the local competitions seriously. “It is complete nonsense to compare the Brics Games with the Olympics. The emotions at the Brics Games? None at all,” sprinter Kristina Makarenko told Russian media after her victory in the competition. - FT

And finally… from the daily blog of Kyiv-based Bohdan Chomiak…

The difference between an autocracy and democracy is not only elections. Autocrats try to make all the decisions, whereas in a democracy the bulk of decisions by law are made by officials and advisors.  The difference between the republicans and democrats is that Trump tries to make all the decisions, whereas the democrats leave governing to the crowd.

The question for Ukraine is not whether Trump wins or loses.  The question is if the democrats win will there be a change of foreign policy advisors.  The current bunch appear from here to have neither served US interests well, and concurrently have not done what they could to assist Ukraine that was within US capacity and interest.