World in Brief - The Economist Roundup

 

World in Brief

The Economist Roundup

February 18, 2024

A spokesperson for Alexei Navalny, Russia’s most prominent opposition leader, confirmed his death. Mr Navalny’s team accused Russian authorities of withholding his body from his family to “cover traces of murder”. More than 340 people were detained across Russia after they tried to pay tribute to Mr Navalny, according to a rights group. The G7’s foreign ministers observed a minute’s silence for Mr Navalny and demanded that Russia immediately clarify the causes of his death. On Friday Russia’s prison service said that the activist had died, having fallen ill after a walk.

 

The International Court of Justice rejected South Africa’s request for additional measures against Israel, which would have prevented it from entering Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city. The court noted that “recent developments” in the strip would worsen the existing “humanitarian nightmare” and called on Israel to abide by the existing provisional measures it ordered on January 26th.

 

Moussa Faki Mahamat, chair of the African Union Commission, said he was worried about the political crisis in Senegal but that he hoped for a “free and transparent” presidential election. Macky Sall, the country’s president, promised on Friday to hold a poll “soon”, after the election authority called his decision to delay the vote “unconstitutional”. The postponement triggered mass protests.

 

The Houthis, an Iran-backed militant group, claimed responsibility for an attack on an oil tanker on Saturday. The vessel “sustained minor damage”, according to a security firm. On Friday America said it hit three mobile anti-ship cruise missiles in Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen. The rebels have been attacking ships in the Red Sea since mid-November.

 

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister, said that countries who attempted to “shut China out” of world trade would be making a “historical mistake”. America and Europe have said they will “de-risk” their trade ties with China—ie, reduce their economic reliance on the country.

 

Thailand will release Thaksin Shinawatra, a former prime minister, from prison on Sunday. Mr Thaksin returned in August after a long exile and was immediately jailed on corruption charges. Many suspect he cut a deal for early release. Upon his return Mr Thaksin’s Pheu Thai Party allied itself with the military establishment. That helped block Move Forward, a liberal party which won May’s election, from forming a government.

 

Japan successfully launched its new H3 flagship rocket, after several setbacks last year. The government plans to launch 20 satellites and probes using H3 rockets by 2030. The success is another for Japan’s strong space programme. In January a spacecraft owned by the national space agency made its first Moon landing, making Japan the fifth country to achieve the feat.

African leaders pick new peacemakers

When African leaders meet at the African Union’s annual summit this weekend they will have a full agenda. The main item will be to choose replacements for ten of the 15 seats on its Peace and Security Council, its equivalent of the UN Security Council.

The criteria for membership include respect for human rights and constitutional rule, and the ability to contribute to security through, for instance, peacekeeping operations.

Yet many of those bidding for seats are countries that have proven themselves more likely to stoke conflict than to resolve it, such as Algeria, Eritrea and Ethiopia. Some have scant regard for democracy, such as Equatorial Guinea, which since 1979 has been under the thumb of an autocrat who is now the world’s longest-ruling. The council’s work could not be more important right now—each of Africa’s five regions is afflicted with coups, civil wars or insurgencies—yet it seems likely that the AU will vote to give pyromaniacs the keys to the fire engine.

China’s economic see-saw

China used to be notorious for its unbalanced trade. Its current-account surplus (which includes its trade surplus) reached almost 10% of GDP in 2007. This percentage then shrank over the subsequent decade, as China’s economy leaned away from exports and towards property investment. Figures released on Sunday are likely to show a modest surplus of around 1.5% of GDP for last year.

Nonetheless, western fears of China’s surpluses are back. The current-account numbers may understate China’s exports because they do not count some goods manufactured in Chinese free-trade zones outside of its customs border. The government is also keen for manufacturing to offset the pain caused by China’s property slump. Heavy investment in industries like electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and solar cells could result in a “manufacturing glut” if domestic consumption falls short. The rebalancing of China’s economy away from property could cause a new unbalancing of its trade with the rest of the world.

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