WORLD ROUNDUPEurope Wants to Be a Naval Power | Putin’s Fear of Retreat | Alarm About UAE’s U.S. Meddling, and more

Published 16 November 2022

··MI5 Spy Chief: Russia, China, Iran Top Threat List to U.K.
The three countries pose “major threats” to U.K.

··Lula Declares “Brazil Is Back” on Climate Action
Outgoing President Jair Bolsonarodrove up Amazon deforestation

··Hezbollah Exploiting Diplomatic Loopholes to Finance Terror, Investigation Finds
Diplomatic loophole allow Hezbollah to freely funnel money into its coffers in Lebanon

··Europe Wants to Be a Naval Power
The continent has global maritime interests, but can it build a military to defend them?

··Sweden’s Espionage Scandal Raises Hard Questions on Spy Recruitment
Intelligence agencies debate whether foreign-born citizens are more targeted

 

··Putin’s Fear of Retreat
How the Cuban Missile Crisis haunts the kremlin

··Intel Community Sounds Alarm About UAE’s U.S. Meddling
Worries grow about UAE’s efforts to influence U.S. policy

··China Has Stolen More U.S. Data Than Every Other Nation Combined, FBI Director Christopher Wray Said
China’s vast hacking program is the world’s largest

MI5 Spy Chief: Russia, China, Iran Top Threat List to U.K.  (Reuters / VOA News))
Britain faces major security threats from the trio of Russia, China and Iran, which all use coercion, intimidation and violence to pursue their interests, the U.K.’s domestic intelligence spy chief said Wednesday.
Ken McCallum, director-general of MI5, added to mounting warnings from British authorities about Russia’s aggression and China’s growing assertiveness. He also singled out Iran as a mounting concern, saying U.K authorities have uncovered at least 10 “potential threats” this year to “kidnap or even kill British or U.K.-based individuals perceived as enemies of the regime.”
He said Iran’s intelligence services “are prepared to take reckless action” against opponents, both on Western soil and by luring people to Iran.

Lula Declares “Brazil Is Back” on Climate Action  (Andrew Freedman, Axios)
Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced Brazil’s return to climate diplomacy after outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro spurned the UN process, and drove up Amazon deforestation.

Hezbollah Exploiting Diplomatic Loopholes to Finance Terror, Investigation Finds  (Ash Opbel, Times of Israel)
International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and ProPublica say centuries-old ‘honorary consul’ system being utilized by terror group to funnel money to Beirut

Europe Wants to Be a Naval Power  (David Bosco, Foreign Policy)
Europe’s still-heavy reliance on the U.S. military for protection is raising questions. Once world-straddling, Spain’s navy is now modest in size and capability. Like most European navies, it tends to operate close to home and away from controversy. Even as maritime frictions mount in the Baltic, the Black Sea, the Mediterranean, and the South China Sea, Europe leans on the U.S. Navy to protect international shipping lanes and to counter adversaries such as China and Russia. Rota itself is a key part of the U.S. security umbrella; the four U.S. destroyers stationed there have anti-ballistic missile systems to help shield Europe from strikes.
But there are stirrings of a different European approach, and Rota itself is the focal point for a maritime initiative that does not depend on the United States. Brussels does not yet have a navy, but it is increasingly aware that it has distinct maritime interests—and EU members are building the habit of working together at sea.