World Briefing: December 2, 2024

U.S. President Biden issued a full and unconditional pardon of his son Hunter on Sunday night after repeatedly insisting he would not do so, using the power of his office to wave aside years of legal troubles, including a federal conviction for illegally buying a gun and for tax evasion. In a statement issued by the White House, Mr. Biden said he had decided to issue the executive grant of clemency for his son “for those offenses against the United States which he has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from Jan. 1, 2014, through Dec. 1, 2024.” He said he made the decision because the charges against Hunter were politically motivated and designed to hurt him politically. “The charges in his cases came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election,” Mr. Biden said in the statement. “No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son — and that is wrong.” - NYT

President-elect Donald Trump said he would require countries that are part of BRICS — a China- and Russia-backed group of emerging economies — to commit to not creating new currency or face 100% tariffs during his administration. “The idea that the BRICS Countries are trying to move away from the Dollar while we stand by and watch is OVER. We require a commitment from these Countries that they will neither create a new BRICS Currency, nor back any other Currency to replace the mighty U.S. Dollar or, they will face 100% Tariffs, and should expect to say goodbye to selling into the wonderful U.S. Economy,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday afternoon. BRICS had been made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa since 2011. Earlier this year, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia and Egypt formally joined — the first expansion in over a decade. Thirty-four countries have submitted an expression of interest in joining the bloc of major emerging economies, South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said in February. The leader of one member country, Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in 2023 proposed creating a common currency in South America to reduce reliance on the US dollar - CNN

My analysis: having attended the BRICS (thank goodness for the sake of the acronym that the founding member wasn’t Peru) summit in Johannesburg last year and having followed developments related to the bloc closely, I can say that many member it would-be nations - especially in Africa - are eager to conduct trade between their own currencies, or without having to convert to USD or some other currency. With the continent ascending in power and influence, the days of other superpowers like Russia or the US or France dictating the terms of intra-African trade are coming to an end..

Russia carried out "a series of air strikes" in Syria on Sunday as rebels advanced after seizing Aleppo, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). Twelve people were killed in a strike on a hospital in Aleppo, while a strike inside the north-western city of Idlib killed eight civilians and wounded more than 50, SOHR said. Warplanes also struck rural parts of Idlib and Hama where the group leading the rebel offensive "has recently taken control", it added. The Syrian government has meanwhile lost control of Aleppo for the first time since the country's civil war began, the observers told news agency AFP. The surprise offensive by opposition forces, which began on Wednesday, marks the most significant fighting in Syria's civil war in recent years. It has been led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), as well as allied factions backed by Turkey. Russian strikes hit Aleppo for the first time since 2016 on Saturday as rebel fighters swept into Aleppo, Syria's second-largest city, the observers said. The Russian air force played a significant role in keeping President Bashar al-Assad in power during the peak of the civil war - BBC

Georgian police beat and forcibly dispersed protesters in the capital, Tbilisi, for a fourth night amid angry demonstrations over Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's announcement last week that his Georgian Dream government had suspended EU accession talks through 2028. Police in ski masks waged running battles in the streets and the downtown Rustaveli subway station after using water cannons to prevent a protest near parliament, and made more arrests and used tear gas and chemical spray in another crackdown launched around 2 a.m. on December 2. RFE/RL journalists said police arrested and beat several demonstrators after they were dispersed from a rally and forced through the Rustaveli station after a protest in the area was dispersed. At least 200 people have been detained so far, but the number of detainees from the latest night of tumult in the post-Soviet Caucasus state of around 4 million was still unclear - RFE/RL

Russian forces have made "rapid advances" toward a lynchpin in Ukraine's defensive line, according to the British defence ministry. The town of Velyka Novosilka, in Donetsk, has become "vulnerable" after the loss of Vuhledar city in October, 19 miles to the east. This enabled Russian advances into "less well-defended areas" in western Donetsk, and Moscow's forces are now approaching the eastern flank of Velyka Novosilka - SKY News

More than 122,000 people have been forced out of their homes in northern Malaysia, while in southern Thailand, around 13,000 others have also been displaced. There are fears the number could rise, as heavy rain and storm warnings remain in place. Emergency services personnel have been deployed to help rescue stranded residents and shelters are being provided. The flooding, which began earlier in the week, has seen thousands of residents evacuated in both nations. Videos on social media and local news show cars and houses submerged, and people wading through waist-deep water. Flooding has impacted nearly 534,000 households in southern Thailand, disaster officials said, and two hospitals had to close to prevent floodwaters from damaging medical facilities. Six provinces have declared a disaster due to the floods. The government has designated 50 million baht ($1.7m; £1.3m) in flood relief for each province, with Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra saying the goal is to "restore normalcy as quickly as possible" - BBC

Thailand and the United States are expected to resume direct flights in February of next year when the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the US Department of Transportation upgrades Thai aviation safety from Category 2 to Category 1, according to Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit. He recently announced the significant progress in Thailand's aviation safety standards following an inspection by the FAA between Nov 11 and 15, with the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) receiving favourable evaluations- Bangkok Post

This Briefing is reprinted with the author's permission. Please find the original here.