Just links.
What I'm reading and writing while I'm traveling.
By the time you read this, I will be landing back in the U.S. after spending nearly three weeks in Brussels, Cologne, Leipzig, and Berlin.
Amidst all the travel and near-constant reporting, I haven’t had a lot of time to write anything newsletter-specific this week. But I didn’t want to leave you without the usual list of weekly news links. There are some fascinating pieces of journalism out in the world, and so much to stay on top of.
If you’re new here, please check out Lazo Magazine, my tiny independent editorial project. I’m hoping to kickstart work on that once I’m back at my desk. Please feel free to email me (c.maza@protonmail.com) and tell me what you’d like to see more of there. You can also support our work by becoming a paid subscriber to this newsletter or making a small donation here or here.
As always, thank you for being here and caring about international news.
What I’m writing:
• Many have interpreted Europe’s latest commitment to spend 5 percent of GDP on defense as a win for Donald Trump and a sign that NATO allies are more dependent on Washington than ever. But officials have been quietly telling me that this is the first step in a long-term divorce. This story is now unlocked and available to read for free.
• I wrote about Iran’s options for hybrid warfare and the potential for retaliation against the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. This story is now unlocked and available to read for free.
My weekly news blurbs:
What I’m reading:
• The Dispatch has the story of a woman who was kidnapped and forced to work in one of the notorious scam factories on the border between Thailand and Myanmar.
• Russia hit Ukraine with 537 drones and missiles in Moscow’s most significant attack of the war, Politico Europe reports. Neighboring Poland scrambled jets and activated its ground-based air defense units into readiness mode because of the attacks across the border in Ukraine.
• The United States halted shipments of some air defense missiles and other precision munitions to Ukraine over concerns that U.S. weapons stockpiles have fallen too low, the Wall Street Journal reports.
• Ukraine is looking to produce some weapons jointly with its international allies and create a special legal and tax framework to help Ukrainian defense manufacturers scale up and modernize production, the Associated Press reports.
• North Korea is set to send an additional 25,000 to 30,000 soldiers to assist Russia’s war in Ukraine in the coming months, CNN reports.
• China's foreign minister told the European Union that Beijing can’t afford a Russian loss in Ukraine, as a Russian defeat would allow the U.S. to turn its entire focus to China. The South China Morning Post has the story.
• Georgia’s pro-Russian Georgian Dream government, which now runs the country, has jailed several politicians associated with its rival, the United National Movement. The Center for European Policy Analysis has the report.
• The New York Times has an explainer of the diplomatic crisis triggered by the deaths of two ethnic Azerbaijani brothers in Russian custody.
• The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project has a report on the unexplained wealth of Siniša Mali, Serbia's finance minister. They argue that his story captures the essence of Serbia’s corruption problem.
• Serbian police clashed with anti-government protesters in Belgrade as the demonstrators demanded snap elections and an end to the 12-year rule of President Aleksandar Vučić, Politico Europe reports.
• Student-led protesters calling for snap elections in Serbia continue to block roads in various towns and cities as they maintain their campaign against a government they accuse of corruption and brutality, Balkan Insight reports.
• Former Romanian presidential candidate Călin Georgescu was indicted for endorsing fascist propaganda, Politico Europe reports.
• Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s plan to ban Budapest Pride backfired, with the event turning into the biggest LGBTQ+ parade in the country’s history and one of the largest anti-government demonstrations in decades. CNN has the story.
• Warsaw’s patience with Germany sending migrants back to Poland “is becoming exhausted,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said as he announced the imposition of checks on his country’s borders with Germany and Lithuania from July 7. Politico Europe has the story.
• Turkish authorities detained 120 officials from the opposition Republican People’s Party, including a former Izmir mayor and dozens of municipality officials, in investigations against alleged corruption that opposition officials say are politically motivated. The Associated Press has the story.
• Israel has accepted the latest Gaza ceasefire and hostage release proposal, the New York Times reports.
• The Hamas-run Gaza interior ministry accused Yasser Abu Shabab, the leader of a well-armed Bedouin clan defying the group's control of the territory, of treason and ordered the leader to surrender and face trial, Reuters reports. The clan described the order as a “sitcom that doesn’t frighten us.”
• Muftah Magazine explores whether the new Syrian state is revolutionary.
• At least 1.2 million Afghans have been forced to return from Iran and Pakistan this year, the Associated Press reports. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Arafat Jamal, warned that massive-scale returns have the potential to destabilize the fragile situation in Afghanistan.
• Top diplomats from Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo signed a peace agreement in Washington in a bid to end the war in eastern Congo, the New York Times reports.
• Hong Kong’s League of Social Democrats party, known for its street protests, has decided to disband due to “a lot of pressure,” the BBC reports.
You can write to me for any reason: c.maza@protonmail.com.