Your Thursday Briefing: Diplomatic Visits Highlight Tension With China
Also, what’s next for Donald Trump and Israeli police raid a Jerusalem mosque.
International Relations
Biden’s Ambassador to Israel, at the Center of the Storm
A longtime Democratic insider, Thomas Nides navigates a fraught U.S.-Israel relationship with humor, if a sometimes all-too-quotable candor.
U.S. Tensions With China on Display as McCarthy Hosts Taiwan’s Leader
Speaker Kevin McCarthy became the most senior elected official to meet with a Taiwanese president on American soil since the United States established diplomatic relations with Beijing.
Tunisia’s Influence in Europe
The European Union relies heavily on Tunisia to stem migration, giving its increasingly authoritarian president leverage in negotiations with the bloc.
Evan Gershkovich Covered Repressed Russian Journalists. Now They Are Covering Him.
Evan Gershkovich’s work for The Wall Street Journal included reporting on Russians’ efforts to help others who were being repressed. Russian journalists are now scrutinizing his arrest as a brazen attack on press freedom.
African Students Who Fled Ukraine Face Legal Limbo in Europe
One student, accepted at a Georgian school, had her visa application rejected. Another, 18 months from his medical degree, received a deportation order from Germany. “It just makes you want to stop in the street and scream,” he said.
Can China Make Peace in Ukraine? Macron Isn’t Saying No.
The French president hopes Beijing can be useful in pressing Russia to end the war in Ukraine. How exactly is not clear.
China’s Ambassador to the E.U. Tries to Distance Beijing From Moscow
The ambassador, Fu Cong, said China was not on Russia’s side in the war in Ukraine. “‘No limit’ is nothing but rhetoric,” he said, referring to a statement from last year about the countries’ relationship.
Finland Joins NATO in a Power Shift and Rebuke to Putin
The Nordic country became the alliance’s 31st member on Tuesday, spurred by the war in Ukraine, in a strategic setback for President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.
Women’s rights in Afghanistan: An ongoing battle
This briefing analyses the current situation of women’s rights in Afghanistan, taking a long view. Women’s rights have been an intense battleground between different actors for over a century, with periods of promising reforms followed by resistance and often reversals of progress.