WORLD ROUNDUPU.S. Officials See Strategic Failure in Israel’s Rafah Invasion | The Time for Europe to Step Up Is Now | A Would-be Assassin Stirs Europe’s Violent Ghosts, and more
· The ‘America First’ Chaos Caucus Is Forcing a Moment of Truth
Does the Republican Party still believe in American leadership abroad?
· A Would-be Assassin Stirs Europe’s Violent Ghosts
Political violence and polarization stalk Europe today, with ominous echoes of the past
· Palestinian Student ‘Full of Joy’ After Oct 7 Attack Upset She Faces Deportation
Dana Abuqamar says she will appeal the Home Office’s decision because she believes her comments on the massacre have been misrepresented
· China Develops Revolutionary Electric Car Battery That Can Charge in 10 Minutes
‘Remarkable’ developments in chemistry allow vehicles to travel 600 miles between charges
· Israel Resists Grand Bargain as U.S. and Saudis Work on Security Pact
President Biden is pushing for a broad deal that would get Israel to approve a Palestinian nation in return for Saudi recognition of Israel. But officials need to overcome Israeli opposition
· Taiwan, on China’s Doorstep, Is Dealing with TikTok Its Own Way
The island democracy was early to ban TikTok on government phones, and the ruling party refuses to use it. But a U.S.-style ban is not under consideration
· U.S. Officials See Strategic Failure in Israel’s Rafah Invasion
White House and U.S. intelligence officials doubt that Hamas can be fully defeated and worry the widening invasion will frustrate attempts at a peace deal
· The Time for Europe to Step Up Is Now
The era when allies could obfuscate unequal burden-sharing by claiming that increasing defense spending is “useless” to address capability shortfalls or contributions to NATO missions is over
· Hezbollah Introduces New Weapons and Tactics Against Israel as War in Gaza Drags On
Hezbollah this week struck a military post in northern Israel using a drone that fired two missiles
The ‘America First’ Chaos Caucus Is Forcing a Moment of Truth (Kori Schake, The Atlantic)
The United States Congress took six months to approve a supplemental spending bill that includes aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. The drama, legislative maneuvering, and threats to remove a second speaker of the House of Representatives have left reasonable people asking what, exactly, is going on with Republican legislators.
A Would-be Assassin Stirs Europe’s Violent Ghosts (Roger Cohen, New York Times)
Dmitri A. Medvedev, the former Russian president and regular forecaster of a third World War, had no hesitation in comparing the would-be assassin of Prime Minister Robert Fico of Slovakia to the young man who ignited World War I.
Palestinian Student ‘Full of Joy’ After Oct 7 Attack Upset She Faces Deportation (Charles Hymas and Alex Barton, The Telegraph)
Dana Abuqamar, 19, a law student at Manchester University, had her visa to stay in the UK revoked in December after she was filmed just a day after the Hamas terrorist attack saying she was “really full of joy” and “proud that Palestinian resistance has come to this point.
China Develops Revolutionary Electric Car Battery That Can Charge in 10 Minutes (Jonathan Leake, The Telegraph)
China has developed a revolutionary car battery that can charge in just 10 minutes and power a car for hundreds of miles before it needs to be plugged in.
Israel Resists Grand Bargain as U.S. and Saudis Work on Security Pact (Edward Wong and Vivian Nereim, New York Times)
Two years into President Biden’s term, his aides began negotiating with Saudi leaders to have the kingdom establish diplomatic relations with Israel. But when the Israel-Hamas war began last October, the talks withered.
Taiwan, on China’s Doorstep, Is Dealing with TikTok Its Own Way (Meaghan Tobin and Amy Chang Chien, New York Times)
As it is in the United States, TikTok is popular in Taiwan, used by a quarter of the island’s 23 million residents.
U.S. Officials See Strategic Failure in Israel’s Rafah Invasion (Karen DeYoung and Shane Harris, Washington Post)
Top Biden administration officials traveling to Israel this weekend are running out of chances to persuade the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to adopt their vision of how to end the war in Gaza and bring lasting peace.
The Time for Europe to Step Up Is Now (Jordan Becker, Douglas Lute, and Andrew Webster, War on the Rocks)
When former U.S. President Donald Trump indicated earlier this year that he “would encourage” Russia to “do whatever the hell they want” to countries that are “delinquent,” presumably in terms of defense spending, allies expressed alarm.
Hezbollah Introduces New Weapons and Tactics Against Israel as War in Gaza Drags On (Bassem Maroue, AP)
Hezbollah has regularly fired missiles across the border with Israel over the past seven months, but the one on Thursday appears to have been the first successful missile airstrike it has launched from within Israeli airspace.