As part of a larger security alliance, named AUKUS, Australia, the US, and UK have jointly decided to help Australia acquire nuclear powered submarines. The alliance also includes sharing of intelligence and technology.
The leaders of the three countries stressed that the submarines would not carry nuclear weapons.
US President Joe Biden spoke with the other two world leaders over zoom, stating, “We all recognise the imperative of ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific over the long term.”
Even as the US Secretary of Defense clarified that “On the issue of China…this relationship is not aimed at anything or anyone,” the country’s foreign ministry called the alliance “extremely irresponsible” and declared it was “damaging international nuclear non-proliferation efforts.”
The Chinese Embassy in Washington DC declared that the countries should “shake off their Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice.”
Australia’s Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, clarified that “Australia is not seeking to acquire nuclear weapons or establish a civil nuclear capability.”
Australia decided that they will no longer buy diesel-powered submarines from France. France’s Foreign Minister called the alliance a “brutal, unilateral and unpredictable decision,” that reminds him “of what Mr Trump used to do,” adding that “it’s a real stab in the back.”
Tensions regarding Taiwan and China’s activity in the South China Sea have increased, raising competition between Beijing and Washington.
The first initiative under #AUKUS is the delivery of nuclear-powered submarines for the @Australian_Navy. This will allow @DeptDefence to meet its mission to protect Australia and its national interests, and that of our regional friends, into the future. #AUKUSpic.twitter.com/CYF05qJqPZ
“The 🇺🇸 choice to exclude a 🇪🇺 ally and partner such as 🇫🇷 from a structuring partnership with Australia, at a time when we are facing unprecedented challenges in the Indo-Pacific region (…) shows a lack of coherence that 🇫🇷 can only note and regret.”https://t.co/ruGnJkQAWa
Russia’s parliamentary election has begun and polls are open for the next three days. Russia’s main opposition leaders have not been allowed to run after months of regulations shutting down the opposition’s chances.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called this election “undoubtedly the most important event in the life of our society and country.” It is expected that Putin’s party will win the election and remain in the majority.
The ballot contains fake candidates that have the same name and similar pictures as opposition leaders. They were created by Putin’s United Russia party to take away votes from other candidates.
Aleksei Navalny, jailed opposition leader, created an app to help voters towards candidates opposed to United Russia, but the app and website were banned.
With support for Russian President Putin’s ruling United Russia party at an "historic low of 29%," it has gone all out with its dirty tricks, taking "election shenanigans in Putin’s sham democracy to another level." Kremlin repression is intensifying too. https://t.co/UvafmEJpN7pic.twitter.com/0n5PCLkaVb
China has applied to join the entity to cement its trade ties in the Indo-Pacific.
The US had originally worked to join the trading bloc but the Trump administration abandoned the effort.
China can join if all eleven members of the bloc approve the application; however, Canada, Australia, and Vietnam currently have tense relationships with China regarding trade and other issues.
‘Celebratory gunfire’ as fuel trucks arrive into Lebanon from Iran to help with the shortage. Hezbollah arranged the deliveries. https://t.co/OQKhMBC0w0
Arab states agree to supply gas to Lebanon through Jordan and Syria to assist in fuel shortage at todays meeting.Lebanon working with World Bank on payment guarantees. No news on new govt formation .
Protester in San Salvador, El Salvador paints anti-Bitcoin graffiti during a protest against the government decision to adopt the cryptocurrency as legal tender. pic.twitter.com/fi011RgEiA
Muslim groups will boycott Hilton Worldwide in response to its plans to construct a Hampton Inn hotel at the site of a destructed mosque. The Uighur mosque in Hotan in Xinjiang, China was destroyed in 2018.
Destroying mosques is only one of China’s human rights violations against its largely Muslim Uighur population.
The minority group is subjected to forced labor, internments, and sterilizations.
China has denied any mistreatment of the Uighur population.
They are profiting off of China's Muslim Genocide. They are opening one of their hotels on the site of a Uyghur mosque that China forcibly demolished: https://t.co/EIOBlF3gXu
The political crisis started after PM Rooble visited UK in July. Now that President Farmaajo suspended some powers of the prime minister, UK requests closed-door consultations of the UN Security Council on #Somalia, as diplomats say. There's more to this than meets the eye.
The United States’ top justices voted to eliminate the constitutional right to an abortion, a law that had been in place for over 50 years.
The closely watched decision was heralded by some and derided by others, depending on their position on the controversial concept of a woman’s right to choose for her own body.
With the abolition of the constitutional right, it is expected that many states in the U.S. will implement near total bans of abortion rights, while other states such as California, Oregon and Washington have reaffirmed their commitment to preserve the right to an abortion.
Planned Parenthood, the advocacy face for abortion rights, is mobilizing around the country to bolster and increase services in those states that will preserve the right, and engage voters in those states that plan to abolish the right.
Tweets
Overturning Roe v. Wade and denying women the right to control their own bodies is an outrage and in defiance of what the American people want. Democrats must now end the filibuster in the Senate, codify Roe v. Wade, and once again make abortion legal and safe.
The EU has finally approved the application of Ukraine to become a candidate country for admission to the 27- country organization. Ukraine will now join the official candidate list, which already includes Albania, the Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Turkey.
The US is expected to provide an additional $450m in security assistance to Ukraine. Which includes four more High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems.
The EU and Norway have agreed to cooperate and provide the EU’s 27 countries with gas from Western Europe’s biggest provider. The EU imports roughly ⅕ of its gas from Norway compared to the 40% it was receiving from Russia. Currently, Russia has been cutting gas supplies to countries refusing to pay for it in roubles.
Melbourne is considering utilizing its largely vacant $200m Center for National Resilience building to house hundreds of refugees fleeing war-torn Ukraine and Afghanistan. The center will only be able to temporarily house about 500 refugees from Afghanistan and about 200 from Ukraine.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov thanked US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin after receiving and welcoming the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) from the United States.
Nike joined other leading Western brands by formally making a full exit from Russia, three months after suspending its operations. Telecoms equipment maker Cisco is also planning to wind down business in Russia and Belarus as well.
All views expressed in this editorial are solely that of the author, and are not expressed on behalf of The Analyst, its affiliates, or staff.
The US Supreme Court expanded gun carrying rights after a New York law denied the plaintiffs Robert Nash and Brandon Koch from carrying a concealed weapon in public, despite them having licenses for recreational gun ownership.
The US court ruled that the New York law requiring residents to prove “proper cause” to carry a concealed weapon is unconstitutional. Justice Clarence Thomas, who represented the 6 justices who ruled in favor of the decision, stated that Americans have the right to carry “commonly used” firearms in public for personal defense.
This decision comes amid an intense national debate over gun violence, and could possibly challenge the outcome of similar regulations in other states, such as California and New Jersey, and affect a quarter of Americans by allowing more people to carry guns legally.
Three liberal justices, Elena Kahan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Stephen Breyer, were against the majority decision, and Justice Breyer noted that “since the start of this year alone (2022), there have already been 277 reported mass shootings – an average of more than one per day.”
While the National Rifle Association (NRA) celebrated the judgment, President Biden stated that he was “deeply disappointed” by the court’s decision and that the ruling “contradicts both common sense and the Constitution, and should trouble us all.”
New York Mayor Eric Adams also agreed with Biden and stated that he would review other ways to restrict gun access by restricting the application process for buying guns and looking into bans of firearms at specific locations.
All views expressed in this editorial are solely that of the author, and are not expressed on behalf of The Analyst, its affiliates, or staff.
The city of Grenoble had recently challenged France’s highest administrative court by allowing full body burkinis to be worn at public pools. Burkinis are typically worn by Muslim women to maintain modesty while they swim. In France, burkinis have often been a point of extreme debate in the country as France’s secular values outlaw anything that violates the country’s belief in the separation of religion and state.
Grenoble challenged the ban on burkini, stating that it violated the principle of neutrality in public services. Shortly after, the policy was suspended and the matter was referred to the Council of State for a decision. The Council of State has officially ruled that Grenoble cannot allow burkinis to be worn in public as that would then allow for “selective exceptions to the rules to satisfy religious demands.”
Furthermore, the ban on burkinis was linked back to hygiene concerns. The court stated that burkinis violate “the common rule, enacted for reasons of hygiene and safety, of wearing bathing suits close to the body.”
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin took to Twitter to label the ruling as a “victory” for “seperatism, for secularism, and beyond, for the whole Republic”. Others have criticized the ruling for not allowing women the right to dress as they please.
All views expressed in this editorial are solely that of the author, and are not expressed on behalf of The Analyst, its affiliates, or staff.
Samar is a UC San Diego graduate with a degree in Communication and a minor in Business. In addition to her passion for research and writing in relation to current events, she also utilizes her skills in areas such as digital marketing. Furthermore, she is deeply interested in positions that involve oral communication skills such as leadership roles and public speaking.
On Tuesday, multiple Chinese aircrafts entered Taiwan’s air defence zone, including bombers that flew over the southern region of the country. Taiwan’s air defence ministry stated that 17 fighter jets, 6 H-6 bombers, as well as electronic warfare was involved.
Fighter jets and missile systems were deployed by Taiwan as a warning to China. The incident marks the largest air defense zone violation by China since May 30th when multiple Chinese aircraft were reported in Taiwan’s ADIZ (air defense identification zone). Both China and Taiwan have dealt with increasing tension over sovereignty claims with China claiming Taiwan as their own territory.
Taiwan has called out China’s tactic of entering into Taiwan’s air defense zone as “grey zone” warfare. The warfare strategy focuses on exhausting Taiwanese forces while also examining how they respond to such incursions. Since 2019, violations of Taiwan’s air defense zone by China have been increasing with 123 warplanes reported in this year.
Recently, Joe Biden had announced that the US military would get involved if China attempted to take Taiwan by force, stating that such a thing would not be “appropriate” for China to do. Shortly after this statement was made, China shared that recent military exercises around Taiwan would serve as a warning to the country for “colluding” with the United States.
Tweet:
29 PLA aircrafts (Y-9 EW*1, Y-8 ELINT*1, H-6*6, Y-20 Aerial Refueling*1, KJ-500 AEW&C*2, Y-8 ASW*1, J-16*8, SU-30*4, and J-11*5) entered #Taiwan’s southwest ADIZ on June 21, 2022. Please check our official website for more information: https://t.co/RfUBzENnI5pic.twitter.com/2WDnOva1zO
— 國防部 Ministry of National Defense, R.O.C. 🇹🇼 (@MoNDefense) June 21, 2022
All views expressed in this editorial are solely that of the author, and are not expressed on behalf of The Analyst, its affiliates, or staff.
Samar is a UC San Diego graduate with a degree in Communication and a minor in Business. In addition to her passion for research and writing in relation to current events, she also utilizes her skills in areas such as digital marketing. Furthermore, she is deeply interested in positions that involve oral communication skills such as leadership roles and public speaking.
Ukraine has announced that they’ve recently deployed a number of long-range weapons sent from Germany. Ukrainian Defence Minister Okeysii Reznikov recently thanked Germany’s Federal Minister of Defence for the howitzers they received. The delivery comes after Germany announced plans last month to step up their delivery of weapons to Ukraine.
President Vladimir Putin has also disclosed plans for Russia to deploy Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missiles around the end of 2022. The deployment of ICBMs is part of Russia’s larger plan to strengthen their military through improved weapons such as the S-500 air defense and missile defense systems.
As both Russia and Ukraine expand their military arsenal, more settlements have been captured by Russian forces in the Luhansk region of Ukraine. Governor Serhiy Haidai has shared that Russian forces have captured the settlement of Toshkivka and several other settlements nearby. President Zelensky states in a video address that the current situation in Luhansk has been tough as Russian forces push into key areas of the region.
Meanwhile, massive amounts of wheat and grains remain stuck at the Black Sea ports of Ukraine. Turkey plans to initiate dialogue with Russian, Ukrainian, and United Nations officials about opening up corridors that would allow for safe grain export. The White House has stated that President Joe Biden has also been examining options for the safe exportation of grain with White House national security spokesperson, John Kirby, calling the grain blockage a weaponization of food.
Tweet:
Panzerhaubitze 2000 are finally part of 155 mm howitzer arsenal of the Ukrainian artillery. I appreciate all efforts of my colleague 🇩🇪 #DefMin Christine Lambrecht in support of 🇺🇦. Our artillerymen will bring the heat to the battlefield 🔥🔥🔥! Photo by BMVg_Bundeswehr pic.twitter.com/mP5M0BApvO
Samar is a UC San Diego graduate with a degree in Communication and a minor in Business. In addition to her passion for research and writing in relation to current events, she also utilizes her skills in areas such as digital marketing. Furthermore, she is deeply interested in positions that involve oral communication skills such as leadership roles and public speaking.
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