World News Digest: December 5, 2023
Check in every Wednesday for the latest world news headlines from The Bassiouni Group.
USA/UKRAINE: 'This cannot wait': Biden urges Congress to pass Ukraine aid"
Per France 24: “President Biden said he was ready to make a "significant compromise" with Republicans who are blocking $60 billion in Ukraine assistance while they seek tough measures against migrants on the border with Mexico. "This cannot wait," Biden said in an impassioned, televised address at the White House. "Frankly, I think it's stunning that we've gotten to this point in the first place, where Republicans in Congress are willing to give Putin the greatest gift he could hope for."
UAE: COP 28 Headlines; Climate Fund Announced; Debt Cancellations Needed
Some headlines from COP-28 via WEF: “Deep debt cancellations are needed to free up investment in climate crisis adaptation, according to campaign group Development Finance International (DFI).The world's poorest nations currently pay 12 times as much to their creditors as they spend mitigating the impact of the climate crisis, DFI says…The first day of the COP28 climate talks saw delegates adopt a new fund to help vulnerable nations tackle the costs of responding to disasters driven by the climate crisis. Event hosts the United Arab Emirates pledged $100 million to the fund, which has been informally known as the "loss and damage fund" for the past two years. Other sizeable initial donations will come from Britain ($51 million), the US ($17.5 million) and Japan ($10 million).
UAE: COP-28 President Sultan-al Jabar Draws Criticism Over Fossil Fuel Comments
Per CBS: “Dr. Sultan al-Jaber is the president of COP28, this year's United Nations climate conference currently being held in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. Al-Jaber is the UAE's environment minister, and he is also the CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). The potential conflict of interest in al-Jaber's roles has been put back under the microscope following the revelation of remarks he reportedly made on the role of fossil fuels as nations seek to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius — a primary goal under the Paris Agreement adopted at the COP climate conference in 2015.”
USA: Alphabet unveils long-awaited Gemini AI model
Per Yahoo/Reuters: “ Alphabet (GOOGL.O) on Wednesday introduced its most advanced artificial intelligence model, a technology capable of crunching different forms of information such as video, audio and text. Called Gemini, the Google owner's highly anticipated AI model is capable of more sophisticated reasoning and understanding information with a greater degree of nuance than Google's prior technology, the company said.”
ISRAEL: UN Secretary-General Invokes Article 99
Per RTE: The UN Secretary General António Guterres has taken the highly unusual step of writing a letter to the UN Security Council under Article 99 of the UN Charter, calling on the Council to "press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe" in Gaza and appealing for a humanitarian ceasefire to be declared. A spokesperson for the Secretary General said Mr Guterres wrote the letter "given the scale of the loss of human life in Gaza and in Israel, in such a short amount of time".
VENEZUELA & GUYANA: Venezuela Moves to Claim Guyana-Controlled Region
Per BBC: “Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is plunging ahead with its plans to take over Essequibo, the oil-rich region controlled by neighbouring Guyana. He has ordered the state oil company to issue extraction licences there and proposed the National Assembly pass a bill making the area part of Venezuela. Guyana has put its defence forces on full alert in response. Venezuelan voters on Sunday approved a referendum claiming rights over Essequibo, ratcheting up tensions.
USA: Taylor Swift Named TIME’s Person of the Year
TIME Magazine announced Taylor Swift as its Person of the Year. They note the following: “Swift’s accomplishments as an artist—culturally, critically, and commercially—are so legion that to recount them seems almost beside the point. As a pop star, she sits in rarefied company, alongside Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, and Madonna; as a songwriter, she has been compared to Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, and Joni Mitchell. As a businesswoman, she has built an empire worth, by some estimates, over $1 billion.”
SUDAN: US declares warring parties in Sudan committed war crimes
Per Yahoo News/Reuters: “The United States on Wednesday formally determined that warring parties in Sudan committed war crimes, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, as Washington increases pressure on the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to end fighting that has caused a humanitarian crisis. Washington also determined that the RSF and allied militias committed crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing, Blinken said in a statement. The fighting, which broke out in mid-April, has displaced more than 6.5 million inside and outside Sudan, killed more than 10,000 and decimated the economy.”
UK: Britain Persists with Rwanda Plan for Migrants
Per VOA: Britain is continuing its efforts to have migrants seeking asylum in Britain sent instead to Rwanda to seek asylum there. In the latest version, Britain would have British lawyers stationed in Rwandan courts to alleviate British concerns about the workings of the system in Rwanda. Britain’s Supreme Court has already ruled that an earlier government plan to send asylum seekers to the East African country is illegal. But that has not stopped some politicians from trying to devise a new way to implement the Rwanda plan.
EDITOR’S NOTE: TBG provides global solutions focused on Sustainability, Innovation and Impact. We leverage a Global Network comprised of more than 1000 experts in over 150 countries. Through TBG Consulting, TBG Global Advisors, TBG Purpose and TBG Capital, we undertake global projects — from Kenya to Kazakhstan — and transform challenges into opportunities.