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Today, we will look at President Donald Trump’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case, developments across Asia, and other news spanning the globe.
Let’s get to it.
Africa
-Togo held municipal elections yesterday. The vote was the first since a controversial constitutional reform positioned longtime leader Faure Gnassingbe to rule for life.
Violent demonstrations have rocked the West African country in recent months as protesters have ramped up calls for Gnassingbe to step down.
-France handed over a military base to Senegal yesterday, ending the former colonial power’s presence in West Africa.
-South Sudan’s main opposition party SPLM-IO rejected President Salva Kiir’s call for national dialogue. The move comes amid mounting political tensions and fears that the country could return to civil war.
-Ghana's central bank could announce changes to its benchmark interest rate today after convening an emergency meeting yesterday.
Inflation slowed last month for a sixth consecutive month.
Other Links:
Rise in al Qaeda attacks revives spectre of West African caliphate - Reuters
Nigeria opposition leader Atiku Abubakar quits former ruling PDP party - Africa News
‘Not Trump’s dumping ground’: Outrage over arrival of foreign US deportees in tiny African nation - CNN
US has wasted hundreds of thousands of vaccines meant for Africa, health officials there say - Politico
South Africa coalition strained after trade envoy fails to visit US - Reuters
Americas and the Caribbean
-Mexico City’s government is planning an effort to rein in gentrification amid local outrage over being priced out of the capital, according to the Associated Press.
-Foreign direct investment in Latin America rose by 7.1% in 2024.
-The Brazilian Senate approved a bill that activists say will drastically weaken environmental protections.
-Banana company Chiquita said it would fire its remaining 1,189 workers in Panama. The move follows a strike earlier this year that halted operations and led to the dismissal of thousands of workers.
-Colombian Foreign Minister Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio hosted her Venezuelan counterpart, Yván Gil, in Bogotá yesterday.
-The Cristobal human rights organization has sent 20 of its members into exile amid Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele’s crackdown on critics and dissidents, according to Reuters.
Other Links:
Brazil’s President Lula says Trump was ‘not elected to be emperor of the world,’ as US-Brazil spat escalates - CNN
Brazil's Lula says he won't take orders from 'gringo' Trump - Reuters
Argentina's economy expected to grow 5.8% y/y in May - Reuters
Argentina paves way for return of visiting fans after 12-year ban tried to curb stadium violence - AP
Falklands, Government finally presents delayed 25/26 Budget approved by outgoing Legislative Assembly - MercoPress
Asia/Indo-Pacific
-Chinese-owned ByteDance—the parent company of video app TikTok—became the largest social media firm by revenue in the first three months of 2025, according to Reuters.
-Unemployment in Australia hit a three-and-a-half year high last month.
-The death toll from a devastating monsoon in Pakistan has risen to 159.
-Taiwan will conclude its largest-ever annual military exercises today.
Separately, Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru will host U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Tokyo.
-Japan will hold upper house elections on Sunday.
-The European Union-China summit will commence in Beijing next week.
Other Links:
China’s Aircraft Carriers Push Into Waters Long Dominated by U.S. - The New York Times
Japan doesn't plan on responding to Trump tariff threats with countermeasures, government official says - ABC
US Set to Impose 93.5% Tariff on Battery Material From China - Bloomberg
Chinese court sentences a Japanese man to more than 3 years in prison on espionage charges - AP
India tests new weapons system for China border - The Times of India
Europe
-The British government plans to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote.
-NATO's top military commander Alexus Grynkewich said Patriot missile defense systems would soon be transferred to Ukraine.
-Ukrainian lawmakers approved Yuliia Svyrydenko to serve as prime minister yesterday.
-The Spanish government said it would investigate the possible involvement of far-right groups in several nights of violence in the country’s southeast.
-Birth rates in Germany fell to a 20-year-low in 2024.
-British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz inked a new defense and migration pact in London yesterday.
Other Links:
Zelenskiy says he and Trump are considering a drone 'mega-deal' - Reuters
Von der Leyen unveils hugely increased 'strategic' €2 trillion EU budget - Euronews
Hungary bans three Ukrainian military officials from entering its territory - AP
Pro-Russia cybercrime network targeted by European law enforcement - ABC
Slovenia declares two Israeli ministers persona non grata - Reuters
Middle East
-The ultra-Orthodox Shas party quit Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, leaving his coalition with a minority in parliament. Shas was the second party to exit Netanyahu’s government this week over proposed changes to religious exemptions to military conscription.
The Knesset—Israel’s parliament—will begin a three-month recess at the end of the month.
-The Israeli military bombed the only Catholic church in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing three and injuring the parish priest. Israel said the targeting of the church was a mistake and issued an apology.
The White House said that President Donald Trump phoned Netanyahu after the incident to express his disapproval.
The death toll in the besieged coastal enclave recently surpassed 58,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
-Syrian forces withdrew from the southern city of Sweida after days of clashes with Druze militias following a ceasefire agreement.
Other Links:
US did not support recent Israeli strikes on Syria, State Dept says - Reuters
Drone attacks on oil fields in Iraq’s Kurdish region shut down facilities - AP
Iraq: Fire engulfs new shopping mall, killing dozens - DW
Sand and dust storms affect about 330 million people in over 150 countries, UN agency says - AP
Most Gulf markets gain on earnings boost, but Saudi index extends losses - Reuters
New U.S. assessment finds American strikes destroyed only one of three Iranian nuclear sites - NBC
United States
-President Donald Trump said last night that he would authorize Attorney General Pam Bondi to release grand jury testimony in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation as some of his key supporters continue to call for more transparency in the case.
The announcement came after The Wall Street Journal reported that it had reviewed a letter allegedly written by Trump to the now-deceased financier. Trump denied authoring the letter and said that he would sue the newspaper and its owner, Rupert Murdoch.
-While 63% of voters disapprove of the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein case, the president’s support among Republicans has slightly improved, according to a new Quinnipiac poll.
-The House of Representatives approved a $9 billion spending cut package late last night. The measure—which includes cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and foreign aid programs—passed the Senate early Thursday morning in a 51-48 vote after 12 hours of debate on amendments.
-The House passed a bipartisan cryptocurrency bill yesterday after a conservative revolt. The legislation will now go to Trump for his approval.
-Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee walked out of a hearing just before a vote on Trump nominee Emil Bove to serve as a federal appeals court judge.
Bove previously served as Trump’s personal attorney.
-The White House has held discussions on possible replacements to Senator Susan Collins in the event the Maine lawmaker opts not to seek reelection next year, according to Politico.
The 72-year-old senator said earlier this week that she intends to seek a sixth term.
-Trump was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency after reporting “mild swelling in his lower legs” in recent weeks, according to the White House.
-Public approval of Trump’s immigration policies has fallen to 41%, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.
-On July 18, 1921, John Glenn—the first U.S. astronaut to orbit the Earth in 1962—was born in Cambridge, Ohio.
Glenn later served four terms in the U.S. Senate and ran an unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic nomination for president in 1984.
Other Links:
Bondi tours Alcatraz as part of Trump's plan to reopen former prison - CBS
Trump administration fires 17 immigration court judges across ten states, union says - AP
Emails show DeSantis administration blindsided county officials with plans for ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ - AP
Coca-Cola dodges after Trump says soda will switch back to cane sugar - NBC
US economic activity rises but outlook pessimistic, Fed says - Reuters
‘Late Show With Stephen Colbert’ Is Being Canceled by CBS - The New York Times
That’s all for today. See you next week.
Notes:
https://scowcroft.substack.com/p/tsg-weekly-calendar-july-14-20